Light Up Alplaus
Christmas Eve Luminary Candles on Sale Now
Once again this year, luminary
candles are on sale at the post office. This is a lovely tradition that continues
to make Alplaus a wonderful place to call home.
The cost
is $5.00 per dozen which includes bags and candles. The students in the
church's after school program have made bags of Reindeer Snack Mix as a treat
for Santa's loyal sleigh-pullers and that is also for sale for $3.00 per
bag.
For those of you with young children or
grandchildren, sprinkling the "reindeer food" outside on Christmas
Eve helps burn off some of the Christmas excitement. Both projects are
fundraisers that benefit Samuel's and the Alplaus Church youth
program. For more information call Kelly at 399-6000.
A Holiday Grace
A
friend's wife invited some people to dinner. At the table she turned to her
six-year old daughter and said, "Would you like to say the blessing?"
"I
wouldn't know what to say," she replied.
"Just
say what you hear Mommy say," her mother said. Her daughter bowed her head
and said: "Dear Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to
dinner?"
What’s inside
On the Hill…………..…….…………….……..2
Alplaus Fire Department Calls - November..2
Fire Commissioner's Election…….…………2
ARA News…………………………………..…3
Santa Claus is Coming to Town……..……3
Trains and More Trains……………………3
Sewer Update…….……………….…….….3
Alplaus Post Office News…………………....3
Alplaus Explorer Post 885…………………...4
Alplaus Historical Society…………………....4
Secret Santa…………………………………..4
Ladies Auxiliary………………………….…….5
Alplaus Church Christmas Celebrations……6
Community Luncheon…………………….…..6
Donations to the Domestic Abuse
Shelter….6
Wounded Soldiers' Quilts…………………….6
No-sew Tied Fleece Lap Quilt…….………....7
On the Hill
The Holiday season has crept up on us once again. It
is both uplifting and a lot of extra work. Our Alplaus Fire Company's Ladies
Auxiliary added a terrific project to their holiday workloads that will give
holiday cheer to our New York State wounded veterans. See pages 6 and 7 in this
Home Town News for pictures and the story of the Wounded Soldiers' Quilts.
Progress
on long-awaited improvements to Alplaus - extended sewers and sidewalks - has
been slow these past few months. We're glad that the Alplaus Residents
Association, and especially Pres. Barb Casey, keeps after the town officials on
these issues. Be patient, before you know it, the ice and snow will be here and
gone and the streets of Alplaus will be filled with machinery!
Finally,
the Home Town News and all its contributors wish each and every reader all the
special joys of the season and a safe winter holiday……AWH
_______________________________________________________________________________
Alplaus Fire
Department
Calls for November 2004
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Date
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Alarm
Time
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Incident
#
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Call
Type
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Location
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#
Fire
Fighters
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Fire
Fighter-Hrs
|
|
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01
NOV 2004
|
10:05
|
000142
|
Medical Emergency
|
Glenridge Road
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4
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0.6
|
|
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02
NOV 2004
|
12:27
|
000143
|
Medical Emergency
|
Butterfield Avenue
|
7
|
3.3
|
|
|
03
NOV 2004
|
20:31
|
000144
|
Medical Emergency
|
Vallywood Drive
|
9
|
5.1
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|
|
07
NOV 2004
|
02:42
|
000145
|
Medical Emergency
|
Pinewood Drive
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4
|
1.9
|
|
|
09
NOV 2004
|
09:44
|
000146
|
Medical Emergency
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Airguard Road
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2
|
1.0
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|
|
17
NOV 2004
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09:36
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000147
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Other Emergency
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Hetcheltown Road
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4
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0.7
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|
|
19
NOV 2004
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20:24
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000148
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Medical Emergency
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Pinewood Drive
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4
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2.1
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|
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21
NOV 2004
|
11:27
|
000149
|
False Alarm Fire
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Glenridge Road
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8
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3.2
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Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Kids of all ages, come join us on Saturday, December
11th at 7 pm for the annual Alplaus tree lighting. Santa arrives on a fire
truck to help with the festivities, and then everyone enjoys delicious treats
and some favorite songs in the firehouse.
Come meet
new friends, see old ones, and watch the kids’ eyes light up. It’s an Alplaus
tradition--Alplaus is a place where neighbors take time to talk to each other,
and it’s reflected in this lovely event.
Thanks
once again to Gray Watkins for making the arrangements, and to the Auxiliary
for providing refreshments.
Trains and More
Trains
I know many of you are not only inconvenienced by
long trains stopping traffic on Alplaus Avenue, you’re also concerned about the
safety of traffic backed up onto Maple Avenue. The fire department always has
the first fire person out call the station to indicate whether or not they’ll
have to go around the tracks! In order to talk with the town and possibly the
train companies about this, I’d like to have some data and I need your help.
Keep a
piece of paper and a pencil in your car.
Any time you are stopped by a train, write down the date, time of day,
how long you have to wait, and whether or not traffic is backed up on Maple
Avenue. Keep track until the end of January, then e-mail me with the results,
or drop them off at the post office and include your name and phone number. If
you have non-Alplaus friends who drive through here frequently, ask them to do
the same thing. I’ll use what we gather to talk to town officials.
Sewer Update
There’s no news to report on this front, except to
confirm that we will have a meeting to answer resident questions about what
comes next. The timing of the meeting
will depend on when we hear back from the state comptroller’s office.
As I
mentioned last month, I’ve also asked the town to mail a letter (after
comptroller approval is received) outlining expected homeowner costs and
homeowner responsibilities.
Let me hear from you if you
have any questions or concerns. Happy Holidays!
Barb
Casey
399-5714
bcasey@skidmore.edu
Alplaus
Post Office News
IT'S BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The holiday stamps are in
and the packages are already flying out the door.
E. GRAY
WATKINS
ATTORNEY
AT LAW
GENERAL PRACTICE
REAL ESTATE
WILLS,
TRUSTS & ESTATES 371-6125
CORPORATE
LAW 1745 RT. 9
PERSONAL
INJURY Clifton Park,
N.Y.
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Stop by the Post Office and enjoy a hot cup
of coffee, tea or hot chocolate. Who knows, there may be a tasty treat on the
counter and a visiting neighbor to give a holiday hug.
Warmest wishes for a joyous season,
Kathy
Boyle
Alplaus Explorer Post 88
by
Kathleen Sheppeck
As we begin our second year
of existence, the Explorers continue both class room and hands on training to
increase our understanding of Fire Services.
This past
month saw the Explorers participating with the Firefighters in a search and
rescue drill. This included an interior second floor building search, as well
as learning more about scene support duties, such as checking vitals and
changing air bottles.
The
Explorers also joined the Fire Company in Schenectady’s Annual Christmas
Parade. The weather cooperated, the crowd was very receptive and a good time
was had by all.
Explorer Post 885 welcomed two
new members in November. We’re all looking forward to a great second year.
Alplaus Historical
Society
by Bob Culver
The Society met on November 18 at the Firehouse with
13 folks in attendance. A potential
guest had to cancel due to inclement weather. 
The
"House History" project is moving ahead slowly under the direction of
Judy Harris. Participants are reminded
that any input is most appreciated.
The Harrises
(Art and Judy) have been looking for Francis Spoonogle's photographs which
were turned over to the Schenectady County
Historical Society. They appear to have been filed under different categories,
which makes the search more challenging.
A copy of
a 1938 "Suburban Times", printed in Alplaus, has been added to the
archives.
Andy and
Patty Coppola have donated two scrapbooks of photos of old Alplaus, trolley
days among others for which the Society thanks them very much.
The
meeting touched on ways to become for the society to become more organized
including some thoughtful information Kathleen Sheppeck obtained from the State
Museum and the State Department of Education.
Secret Santa
Apparently
The Alplaus Historical Society has a "Secret Santa" who does his
mailing from the Utica, New York Area!!
A very nice donation to the Society
was received in the mail in a plain envelope so postmarked and "Merry
Christmas", no other identification.
Who ever you are, the Society is most
appreciative of your generosity.
Thank you very much!
Ladies Auxiliary
by Vicki
Watkins
During
our last business meeting of the year we prepared fruit baskets for those in
need of a little cheer and completed some finishing touches on the quilts that
we made for returning wounded soldiers.
We also finalized plans for our annual holiday party which will be at
Cornell's Restaurant on January 19, 2005.
Many, many thanks to Elizabeth Burke and
Helen Robinson for co-chairing our participation in the Quilts for Soldiers
Program. Please see the separate
article in this HTN issue for more details about this extremely successful project. We will be holding another ‘quilting – bee’
on Sunday, January 30th from 1:00 to 4:00 at the Firehouse so mark
your calendars and come join us.
We had a very successful Election Day Bake
Sale. Thanks to all of you who purchased our goodies and we hope you enjoyed
them.
Over a dozen community members took the “Heartsaver
CPR and Automated External
Defibrillator (AED) Course” taught by Dave Dietrich of Niskayuna. We really appreciate Dave’s taking the time
to teach us this class and to offer it at no charge.
This holiday season the Auxiliary is
‘adopting’ the Schenectady Battered Women’s Shelter. We will be purchasing
towels, sheets, pillows and blankets. There is a “Wish List” available at the
Post Office for anyone interested in making a donation. If you have any
questions please call Vicki Watkins at 399-0184.
Our Alplaus sweatshirts are back! Small, Large, X-large and 2XL will be
available shortly at the Post Office or call Robin at 399-4911.
Congratulations to Kathleen Sheppeck for
joining the Alplaus Fire Company as a firefighter. We are very proud of her taking on this additional role in
support of our community.
Lastly, the Auxiliary voted in a new slate
of officers for 2005. The officers are: Vicki Watkins, President; Kathleen
Sheppeck, Vice-President; Alice Culver, Treasurer; and Pat Coppola, Secretary. Joan
Holterman will be our newest Trustee, replacing Antoinette
Olsen who has served for the past 3 years. Thanks
Antoinette!
Our next meeting will be February 28th at 7
pm at the Firehouse. Please join us if you can. Best wishes to you and your
families this holiday season.
