St Patrick's Day Dinner

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Alplaus Firehouse Hall

4:30 To 6:30 PM

Corned Beef, Ham,

Potatoes, Cabbage, Carrots,

Rye Bread,

Beverage + Dessert

$7.50 per person

Reservations by Monday, March 14th

Call Andy at 372-1124 Please leave message

Spring is (almost) here!

What’s inside

On the Hill…………..…….…………….……..2

Alplaus Fire Department Calls - February....2

Fire Department News…………….…………3

Alplaus Post Office News…………………….3

Alplaus Historical Society…………………….3

Alplaus Holy Week Services………………...3

Battered Women's Shelter…………………..3

The Auxiliary………………..………………….4

ARA News…………………………………..…5

ARA Annual Meeting……………....…….....5

Proposed Development…..…………..….…5

Sewers......... ..…….……………….……..…5

Alplaus Explorer Post 885…………………...6

Easter Egg Hunt………………………………6

Community Luncheon………………………..6

Yates House……..……….…………………..6

Culver Travel Update………………………...6

Remembering Ken Bieber and Family……..7

On the Hill

The safe arrival of our first Grandchild, Joseph James, to our son James and his wife Jeanette on February 8th has made 2005 a banner year for us already. Judy and I spent two weeks with them in Chicago just after Joseph came home from the hospital. I have two observations to share:

#1 With a new mother, a new father and a new grandmother in the house, the new grandfather didn't get much chance to hold the new baby. It sure felt great when I did though.

#2 The new parents may now more fully realize what their parents went through in caring for them.

Fortunately, they are more than willing to pick up the challenge that Joseph James presents to them. In fact, I think they consider it a privilege and not a challenge at all. Live does indeed go on.

On page 7 of this HTN, I have presented excerpts from Lynn Stote's letter "back home" when he heard of Ken Bieber's death in 2002. His remarks recall for us all why Alplaus is such a special place. I can only hope that my sons might write such a letter some time in the future….AWH

_______________________________________________________________________________

Alplaus Fire Department

Calls for February 2005


Date	Alarm Time	Incident Number	Call Type	Location	# Fire Fighters	Fire Fighters Hours
02 FEB 2005	15:36	000014	False Alarm Fire	Glenridge Road	5	1.1
04 FEB 2005	16:32	000015	Medical Emergency	Hetcheltown road	2	0.7
07 FEB 2005	21:08	000016	Mutual Aid Scene	Ronald Regan Way	10	18.7
08 FEB 2005	18:16	000017	Car Fire	Alplaus Avenue	7	5.4
10 FEB 2005	13:19	000018	Medical Emergency	Glenridge Road	5	2.0
15 FEB 2005	08:37	000019	Medical Emergency	Glenridge Road	3	1.3
18 FEB 2005	10:28	000020	Medical Emergency	Governor Drive	2	0.9
19 FEB 2005	05:14	000021	Medical Emergency	Alplaus Avenue	6	2.7
22 FEB 2005	13:08	000022	Other Rescue	Helen Court	4	1.1
22 FEB 2005	13:41	000023	Vehicle Accident	Ronald Reagan Way & Maple Avenue	3	0.9
22 FEB 2005	16:18	000024	Medical Emergency	Wood haven Drive	7	3.7
23 FEB 2005	16:32	000025	False Alarm Fire	Glenridge Road	6	1.0
26 FEB 2005	10:56	000026	Medical Emergency	Glenridge Road	5	2.2

Fire Department News

by Bob Culver

The Annual Banquet and Ladies’ Night was held February 5th at the Woodlin Club. Firemanic Firefighter of the year 2004 was Chris Sparano, Social Firefighter for 2004 was Don Cartwright.

We have learned that Gil West is in a nursing home in Bradenton, Florida. He had been hospitalized earlier with a broken hip, and his overall condition necessitated the move to the nursing home.

Jean has a new mailing address; Jean West, 2755 River Trace Circle, Bradenton, FL, 34208.

Assistant Chief Kurt Haushalter is recovering from a broken pelvis sustained in a fall on the ice. He was hospitalized for a few days and is now recovering at home for a while.

He has commented that he is most appreciative of so many folks expressing concern and helping out, it could be worse…like during hunting season!

Alplaus Post Office News

A new flat rate priority box has been added to the products the USPS is selling (two sizes). They cost $7.70 whatever it weighs, whatever fits in, wherever it is going in the U. S. They work great for heavy items.

Tax season is here. There are many forms available at the Post Office if you need them.

I have been asked by the main office to remind post office box holders to please use your PO Box number as your correct mailing address. If you would like to use your street address along with your PO Box number have the PO Box number just above the city and zip line.

Stay warm and think spring,

THOMAS H. CULVER                       399-5557

   38 SARATOGA ROAD          SCOTIA, N.Y. 12302

                       Residential – Commercial

      HOLLENBECK PAVING CORP.

BLACKTOP

      DRIVEWAY          ROAD       PARKING AREA

Kathy Boyle

Alplaus Historical Society

by Bob Culver and Kathy Boyle

The next meeting of the historical society will be March 17th at 7:00 pm at the Alplaus Post Office. (Please note that this is a change in location from an earlier notice of the March meeting.)

All are welcome to attend.

Alplaus Holy Week Services

All Services are at the Alplaus United Methodist Church on Brookside Avenue.

· Palm Sunday Service at 10:15 am March 20, 2005

· Good Friday Service at 7:30 pm March 25, 2005.

· Easter Sunday Sunrise Service at 6:30 am March 27, 2005. Breakfast will be provided in Fellowship Hall after the service - all are invited.

· Easter Worship Service at 10:15 am March 27, 2005

Battered Women's Shelter

Thanks to everyone who has contributed items to the Battered Women’s Shelter of Schenectady.

This is an ongoing project. Check the post office for lists of items needed.

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.

Ladies Auxiliary

We had our first business meeting of the year last Monday night and began making plans for an exciting 2005.

Our Red Cross Blood Drive has been so successful in the past that we decided to do it again this year. It is scheduled for Friday, May13^th, so please mark your calendars. A sign up sheet will be available at the Post Office in April.

While you have your calendars out, please mark Saturday, June 4^th, for our annual Flea Market and Garage Sale. Details will be in the next HTN.

Our Quilts for Soldiers Program has been so well received that we will be holding another ‘quilting – bee’ on Sunday, April 3^rdfrom 1:00 to 4:00 at the Firehouse. Please come join us. No sewing experience is necessary. Call Elizabeth Burke at 399-2072 with any questions.

We will start this year’s fund raising by selling summer flower bulbs and perennials (yes, spring is coming!). You can order your flowers from any Auxiliary member or at the Alplaus Post Office through April 4th.

Our next meeting will be Monday, March 28^th, at 7:00 PM in the Firehouse. After the business portion of the meeting we will be making greeting cards with the help of Denise Stewart who specializes in decorative rubber stamps.

The Auxiliary is open to all women who live within the fire district. We are always interested in welcoming new members. Please feel free to attend any of our meetings. Call Vicki Watkins at 399-0184 if you have any questions.

Alplaus Residents Association Annual Meeting. Each March, Alplaus residents get together to catch up on the news of our hamlet at the ARA annual meeting. This year, that gathering of friends and neighbors will be Thursday, March 31st at 7:30 pm at the firehouse. We do updates by various groups, elect officers, and will have some town officials present to answer questions you might have.

There might be a presentation on a proposed open space plan for the town of Glenville—more on that will be available in the flyer distributed to homes prior to the meeting.

I have a few things I’d like you to do:

1) Mark the date on your calendar and plan to attend. Get a sitter and come together if you have kids.

2) Bring your $3 individual or $5 family dues.

3) If you have anyone you’d like to nominate for the Alplaus Residents Association Board or to be an officer, please contact Nomination Chair Keith Abatto at 399-6624 or kabatto@eone.com. Self-nominations are welcome, and your nominee doesn’t already have to be on the board to be considered as an officer. They do need to be a resident of the Alplaus Fire District. Please submit nominations by Wednesday, March 30^th for consideration.

Proposed Development. The Glenville Town Board has voted to change the zoning from single family to multi-family for two of the five parcels developer Chris Myers plans to use for the proposed 52-townhouse development off Maple Avenue. The bulk of the discussion about the final site plan, including any discussion about a traffic light or roundabout at the intersection of Maple and Alplaus Avenue, will be through the planning and zoning commission. The town website doesn’t have up-to-date information on meeting dates for any of the committees, so if you’re interested in finding out what’s happening, call Gail Gibbons in Supervisor Mosher’s office at 688-1201.

Sewers. The project is still being reviewed by the comptroller’s office, who several weeks ago asked for some additional information about the project (nothing major that would indicate any problem with continuing to move toward the town’s approval, however). I’ve asked the town to be ready to go with submitting a request for bids. Town engineer Dana Gilgore told me that they are working to be ready and that many recent bids have been going very well for the town.

As promised before, when we have approval and are ready to move, we will have a separate residents meeting just on this issue.

We’re Making MORE Lap Quilts

For Wounded Soldiers

Barb Casey, ARA President

399-5714

Aplaus Explorer Post 885

by Sean Young

In the month of February, the Alplaus Explorer Post 885 took their first trip to NYC. On our first day, we checked into the Navy Lodge on Staten Island, where we later stayed the night. We took the Staten Island Ferry into NYC, where we visited Ground Zero and spent the day at some tourist attractions like the Empire State Building. We went on the "SKYRIDE" attraction and went to the observation deck/gift shop. Next, we took the subway to Times Square, where we stopped at numerous stores. Our next stop was for food at the theme restaurant Jekyll and Hyde, which had some very good food in my opinion. Finally, our last stop before we retired was a stop at "The Gates" in Central Park, where we took a group photo.

Our second day we were there we were picked up by an FDNY career firefighter, and taken to Randall's Island, where we toured the NYC Fire Academy's many training facilities, and apparatus. One of the stops on the tour was the on-campus memorial to the 9/11 firefighters that died in the line of duty. Afterward we ate lunch near Times Square, took the subway back to the Ferry stop, and took the Ferry back to the Lodge, where we packed and departed back to Alplaus.

Does this trip sound exciting to you? Well, the Explorers do drills, travel to other fire departments to drill with fellow Explorers (most recently East Greenbush), and other exciting events. If you are interested in doing something on the first and third Tuesdays of every month then contact Kathleen Sheppeck at 399-7115 or Andy Coppola at 399-7441 for more information.

Respectfully submitted,

Sean Young, Secretary

Explorer Post #885

Easter Egg Hunt

Join us for an old fashioned Easter Egg Hunt 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM Saturday, March 19th plus games, prizes, and refreshments!

For more information please call Kelly at 399-6000.

Community Luncheon

The Alplaus Community Luncheon at Alplaus United Methodist Church will be held on Tuesday, March 8th, 11:30 am to 2 pm in Fellowship Hall. It is open to the public and an event to look forward to with Good Food and Good Fellowship.

Bring a dish to share if you can and come join us in any event.

The Yates House

by Cliff Hayes

Most of us know about the impending development plans on the old school grounds & the Joseph Yates property on Maple Avenue. The Yates house back in the 1930’s & early 1940’s was operated as an elegant restaurant.

Culver Travel Update

from Bob and Alice Culver

Cool here at Crystal River, 55 degrees with some much needed rain yesterday.

Our son Tom stopped by for a bit on his way to Bike Week and the Keys.

Remembering Ken Bieber

and Family

by Lynn Stote

[The following are excerpts from a letter former Hill Street resident Lynn Stote sent on the occasion of Kenneth Bieber's death in 2002. The editor]

I lived next door to him [Ken Bieber] from 1942 till I went in the service in 1960. I have looked back to that period of my life many times. It was indeed a wonderful time of my life. Maybe it was the small town atmosphere, Alplaus Creek, Boy Scout Troop 36, The Earnest Eagles 4-H Club, delivering papers, or maybe because of all the neighbors on Hill Street.

I thought about it and realized that Kenny was the last living neighbor of all who lived on Hill Street in 1942. The family next door consisted of Aunt Jane, Uncle Herb, Nina, and Kenneth. They all took a real liking to my brother and I. My first real concrete recollection was a birthday party that Nina and Kenneth threw for my brother. It was in the early summer and I recall the presents, the refreshments, and Kenny's two dogs, Pat and Mike.

One spring the Alplaus Creek suddenly flooded in the middle of the night. Kenny lost a couple of pigs and one floated down the creek and landed across the creek from our house. Well, when the pig started to rot what a god-awful stench. That stench and incident are etched in my mind forever.

Aunt Jane was an ICON in Schenectady County. She was on the radio every Saturday PM at 12:30 and she would broadcast 5 minutes of the grange news. We came to realize that she seemed to know everybody. My brother and I would take the bus to Schenectady. We would wander into the Carl company lunchroom [on State Street, next to Proctor's Theater]. Aunt Jane would be sitting there. Then you would hear Aunt Jane yell "Here are my little neighbors" and proceed to introduce us to all these people gathered at the lunch counter. She would treat us to a piece of pie and then make us promise not to tell Nina or Kenneth that we had seen her eating apple or banana pie. Yes, and I marveled at the fact that you could address a letter "Aunt Jane" Alplaus, NY and, sure enough, it would be in her mailbox.

Kenneth was a person who always seemed so sincerely happy to see you. I loved talking to him about farming, Racquette Lake, his fishing prowess, and just plain talk. Kenneth would talk about our gardening project with the 4-H club, the latest camping trip with the Boy Scouts, what we were studying in school and the latest world news. As I think back - whenever we came down to visit and went to the front door we would knock or ring the bell. If we went to the backdoor we would just walk in as the backdoor was never locked. He made it known by his actions that we could depend on him for most anything, especially some enlightening conversation.

We had a good number of great neighbors on Hill Street. The families were Moss, Spoonogle, Spiedel, Estabrook, Reed, Coyle, Snyder, Larsen, Ericcson, Montrem, Tripp, Schultz, Bernhardt, Gardner, McJilton, Jaquay, DuBois, Park, Bieber, Gray, Campbell, and, finally, the Maynards at the end of the street. I have very distinct and fond memories of all. And with the passing of Kenneth on May 18, 2002, he was the last of all those great people, who were my neighbors & part of my growing up.

I visited Leon Rubin in Tucson this past April. We talked about Kenneth. Leon recalled Kenneth doing his shopping every Friday night at Sam's. When Kenny's corn matured, he would bring up to Sam's a few choice ears - cook them up and all would sit there and eat corn and have that Italian bread from the bakery on Jay Street. Leon said "Kenny grew the best corn!"

EDITOR/PUBLISHER Art Harris

HTN web address: www.alplaus.org

HOME TOWN NEWS

ALPLAUS, NEW YORK 12008

March 2005 Vol. 129 No. 3 ____________________________________________________________________________

THOMAS H. CULVER 399-5557

BLACKTOP

THOMAS H. CULVER 399-5557

BLACKTOP

E. GRAY WATKINS

The Yates House