What’s inside

On the Hill…………..…….…………….……2

Alplaus Fire Department Calls - August…..2

Rental Wanted…………..…………………..2

AFD Explorer Post…………………………..3

Alplaus Fourth of July Report………………3

Ladies Auxiliary………………………….…..4

Alplaus Historical Society…………………..4

ARA News……………………………………5

Fourth of July………………………………5

Alplaus Runaround…………………….….5

Sewer Update…….……………….…….…5

Samuel's Update…………………………….6

Some Words of Wisdom………………...….6

Visits to Former Alplaus Residents………..7

On the Hill

It could be worse, much worse - even though we have had an excess of rain lately, we haven't seen any hurricanes yet. Our son and daughter-in-law in South Florida are getting pretty tired of putting up window shutters and waiting out the menace of Charlie, Frances and now Ivan. They haven't had any heavy damage yet, but sometimes they feel it's only a matter of time.

Judy and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary with a trip to Alaska in June. It was an adventure we would recommend to all, especially for the opportunity to see lots of wildlife, rugged terrain, snow-clad mountains, and glaciers. With only 1.4 people per square mile in Alaska there is a lot to see that hasn't been trampled by the crowds like here even in upstate New York.

You may notice that Betty Vedder's name no longer appears on our masthead as Reporter. She and Bill have moved to the Socha apartments on Route 50. We are looking for someone(s) to scout out the local news items that she provided for the Home Town News. Please give me a call (399-8320) if you would like to help.

Bruce and Fran Marsh have also moved out of Alplaus and away to the south this summer. Garry Fisher, a Hill Street resident, is setting up a new website where out of town friends and relatives can view the Home Town News. Please be patient while we work it out.…AWH

_______________________________________________________________________________

Alplaus Fire Department

Calls for August 2004


Location	Incident Number	Date	Day	Alarm Time	Incident Type
Bath Street	000101	04 AUG 2004	WED	21:57	Medical Emergency
Woodhaven Drive	000102	13 AUG 2004	FRI	02:07	Medical Emergency
Hetcheltown Road	000103	13 AUG 2004	FRI	11:37	False Alarm
Glenridge Road	000104	14 AUG 2004	SAT	18:13	Medical Emergency
Brookside Drive	000105	15 AUG 2004	SUN	09:51	Medical Emergency
C/O Glenridge and Bruce	000106	17 AUG 2004	TUE	09:07	Vehicle Accident
Glenhill Drive	000107	20 AUG 2004	FRI	06:35	Rescue
Maple Avenue	000108	21 AUG 2004	SAT	06:21	False Alarm
Air Guard	000109	23 AUG 2004	MON	16:03	Chemical Spill
Woodcrest Drive	000110	24 AUG 2004	TUE	18:08	Medical emergency
Glenridge Road	000111	26 AUG 2004	THU	07:17	Cooking Fire
Woodcrest Drive	000112	28 AUG 2004	SAT	18:11	Medical Emergency
Hetcheltown Road	000113	29 AUG 2004	SUN	13:08	False Alarm
Hetcheltown Road	000114	29 AUG 2004	SUN	14:01	False Alarm
Mohawk River - Lock 7	000115	29 AUG 2004	SUN	20:51	Water Rescue
Bath Street	000116	30 AUG 2004	MON	13:12	Medical Emergency

You Are Invited!

Please come and learn more about

The Alplaus Kill & Indian Kill Ecosystem

Presentation by

Mark Storti

President of the Schenectady County Conservation Council

and Sr. GIS Specialist for Schenectady County Planning

7:00 pm Wednesday October 20, 2004

at the Alplaus Fire House

Refreshments to follow

Sponsored by the Alplaus Ladies Auxiliary

Volunteers Wanted

Indian Kill Stream Clean

Saturday September 18, 2004

9am to 11am

Anyone interested in helping out should meet at the Indian Kill Preserve parking lot on Hetcheltown Road. Please dress accordingly.

Please call Mark Storti for additional infor-mation at 386-2225 Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm.

AFD Explorer Post

by Kathleen Sheppeck

Some of you may have noticed a new organization in the hamlet. The Alplaus Fire Company’s Explorer Post 885 is a group of youths, ages 14-20, serving the community by training in fire and emergency medical services.

Activities the Explorers have been involved with since the post began late in 2003 include: the Mayfair Daycare Open House, emergency standby at the Indian Kill Fishing Derby, the July 4^th skills competition, block party and parade, including the well received appearance by Winnie the Pooh!

Six of our Explorers journeyed to Montour Falls to participate in the New York State Academy of Fire Science’s Exploring Weekend together with 150 young people from across New York State. You will see the Explorers involved in the upcoming Fire Prevention Week and the Halloween Party.

Look for more news about the good things Post 885 is doing in future issues of HTN.

An Interesting AFD Call

By Bob Culver

On September 30, the Fire Department responded to a medical call (as they do frequently) to a home on Maple Avenue. The uniqueness of this event was that the patient was located on the second floor and it was not possible to negotiate the narrow stairway to bring the adult patient down with the usual stretchers used.

The ultimate solution was to enlist the services of the aerial ladder from East Glenville Fire Department to remove the patient from a second floor porch.

Others assisting included Stratton Air Guard Fire Department, Mohawk Ambulance and the Glenville Police.

Ladies Auxiliary

by Vicki Watkins

A lot has happened since the June issue of the HTN, except perhaps for summer!

The Village Wide Flea Market and Garage Sale was held the first weekend in June and was a huge success. The cook shack was especially busy and we appreciated the extra help we got from Kailyn Sheppeck and Marcella Muldowney from the Fire Co.’s Explorer Post 885. Many thanks for the donations we received from the following local businesses: Culligan Water, Dunkin Donuts, Freihoffer Baking, Glenville Beverage, Hannaford, Pepsi, Price Chopper, Sam's Club, Save-More Beverage, Saratoga Springs Water, Stewarts and Wal-Mart. Thanks also to Helen Robinson, who was so very successful in soliciting these donations.

The Beautification Committee, led by Kathy Boyle and Elizabeth Burke, did a magnificent job planting flowers and bulbs around the firehouse and the Ted Schwarz Memorial Park. We appreciate the donations made by the Schenectady County Cooperative Extension and the Soil and Water Conservation departments. Thanks also to the Glenville Beautification Committee, who donated several pots of flowers to our community.

Thanks again to Gary Withey for putting up our new flags along Alplaus Avenue in time for Memorial Day and to Senator Hugh Farley, Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, and Congressman Michael McNulty for their contributions towards to purchase of new flags.

We will be holding a can and bottle drive until September 21^st. Please deposit your returnables in the large can on the Post Office porch.

We will have our next meeting on Monday, September 27^th at the firehouse. It will be a covered dish supper and will start at 6:30 pm. We will be welcoming our newest member, Tracie Williams.

The Auxiliary is open to anyone who lives within the fire district. We are always interested in welcoming new members. Please feel free to attend any of our meetings, which are held on the fourth Monday of each month at the firehouse or at the Post Office. Call Vicki Watkins at 399-0184 if you have any questions.

Alplaus Historical Society

by Bob Culver

The Alplaus Historical Society met on September 30 at the Firehouse, with twenty-one interested residents and former residents in attendance. We were honored to have in our midst four former residents who had been in town for the "Alplaus Reunion" held earlier in the day. They were Linda Gray Calderon, Pauline Kardash Battaglia. Bob Stote and Bob Nerad.

These folks gave us some very enjoyable historical facts and anecdotes about Alplaus in the 1950's such as the first television (where many would gather to watch the wonder) and tales about the stores (two in those days). We certainly appreciated their presence.

The project to gather facts about all village homes is getting underway under the leadership of Judy Harris, Emma Spiedel and Dede Bell. Some sheets have been returned up to now, some with photographs attached. The goal is to build a database of homes in the community for Society use.

The forms are being distributed on a one-on-one basis to each household in an effort to bring a personal touch to the search for historical information. They may also be obtained from Kathy Boyle at the Post Office.

Other Business included the need for the Society to organize more formally in view of stated purpose, structure and finances.

These and other items, including a guest speaker (to be announced later) will be the topic of our next meeting scheduled for Thursday, November 18, 2004, 7:00 PM at the Firehouse.

Alplaus Residents Association News

by Barb Casey, ARA President

Fourth of July

I hope all of you enjoyed the Fourth of July festivities as much as I did. Seeing friends and neighbors at the ecumenical service, the block party, and the parade always makes me happy and proud that I live in Alplaus. Announcing the parade made me a bit nervous, but seeing all those smiling faces out there put me at ease.

Many thanks to Mike Sheppeck for all his hard work organizing the parade, as well as to Drew Coppola and all of the members of the fire company, auxiliary, and other residents and friends who pitched in to make the entire slate of activities a success.

If you have any thoughts or suggestions for how things can be improved for next year, please be sure to let me or Mike know. We’d appreciate your input.

Alplaus Runaround

Mark your calendars for this year’s Alplaus Runaround, scheduled for Saturday, October 30th. The one-mile will begin at 10am, with the 5K starting off at 10:30am. Look for a copy of the race entry at the Alplaus Post Office or in the October Home Town News.

Bring the whole family out for a great race and let your friends and neighbors know as well. It was running this race for the first time that made my husband and I start thinking about living in Alplaus. I hope to see you there.

Sewer Update

On to sewers, a subject I know many of you are wondering about. But before I give an update, I need to tell you that while I was on vacation in Maine this summer, I found an article in the newspaper (the Ellsworth American, to be specific) about problems with septic tanks on a nearby bay. Honest, I do have other interests, but for obvious reasons, this article caught my eye! Turns out three neighbors near the testing site had a problem—one had a malfunctioning septic tank, the other two had NO SEPTIC TANKS AT ALL. I don’t know about you, but that sure made me feel better about our situation in Alplaus.

Actually, our situation here is looking very good. A public hearing was held at town hall on July 21st (while I was perusing that article in Maine). The 30-day public comment period followed and has concluded. The next step is an application to the state comptroller’s office to review the project.

Application for the low-interest funding through New York State for which we are eligible will either follow the comptroller’s approval or be conducted simultaneously. I’ve asked the town to look into applying for the funding at the same time so that we can take advantage of the current low rate. The most likely scenario is that construction will begin next spring.

If you have any questions about what will happen or how it will affect you, please don’t hesitate to call me at 399-5714 or e-mail me at bcasey@skidmore.edu.

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.



Some Pearls of Wisdom

I am in shape.

Round is a shape.

Time may be a great healer,

but it's a lousy beautician.

Never be afraid to try something new.

Remember, amateurs built the ark,

professionals built the Titanic.

THOMAS H. CULVER                       399-5557

   38 SARATOGA ROAD          SCOTIA, N.Y. 12302

                       Residential – Commercial

      HOLLENBECK PAVING CORP.

BLACKTOP

      DRIVEWAY          ROAD       PARKING AREA

Conscience is what hurts

when everything else feels so good.

Talk is cheap because supply exceeds demand.

Even if you are on the right track, you'll

eventually get run over if you just sit there.

An optimist thinks that this is the best possible

world. A pessimist fears that this is true.

In just two days, tomorrow will be yesterday.

I plan on living forever. So far, so good.

It's frustrating when you know all the answers,

but nobody bothers to ask you the questions.

The real art of conversation is not only to say

the right thing at the right time, but also to

leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.

Age doesn't always bring wisdom.

Sometimes age comes alone.

Life not only begins at forty,

it also begins to show.

Visits to Former Alplaus Residents

by Cliff Hayes

Dr. James Blake

In June a visit was made to Dr. James Blake residing at the Alterra Wynwood home in Niskayuna. Dr. Blake was the medical director at Glenridge Hospital from 1938 to its closing in 1977(now Conifer Park). Even though I didn’t know Dr. Blake personally, I was a classmate of his daughter, Sara Lynn at the old Alplaus School. Dr. Blake is 97 years young and still sharp as a tack. I was interested in his career at Glenridge and he talked about it for more than an hour one evening in early June.

Larry Hart, the former Schenectady County historian, befriended Dr. Blake after he gave a speech at Mont Pleasant HS on Tuberculosis in 1937 and has published many interviews with him in the local newspapers. A most informative article of Dr. Blake and the hospital was published May 31, 1999 of which a copy will be filed with the Alplaus history artifacts in the post office.

In the early stages of TB, it was considered a terminal disease. The only known possible cure was cold clean air in a remote location. The Glenridge hospital was built and occupied in 1929 with construction of additional buildings in 1938. During Dr. Blake’s tenure the establishment of diagnostic and clinical treatment no longer required the need of extensive hospital care. Dr. Blake was once known as the “outstanding lung man in the country”.

Truly his staff, associates, and the community respected an interesting man.

Marion Russell Park Brundige

As small talk flows in the little village of Alplaus, I ran into Bob Winchester the Saturday of the community garage sale in June. Somehow in conversing with Bob the name Mary Jane Ross who was the granddaughter of Aunt Jane Park came about. While doing some research on the 1938 Alplaus baseball team (whose picture is displayed in the post office) and knowing that Mary Jane’s father played on the team, the question was if he appeared in the picture. Well, Bob Winchester tells me that Mary Jane and her mother, Marion Russell Park Brundige, are at the Rexford art show that Saturday. So I figured this was an opportunity not to be lost and proceded to Rexford even though I’m not an art connoisseur. Maybe Mary Jane could identify her father if he was in the picture.

The story gets better from a history aspect as Mary Jane’s mother confirmed some of the players in the picture of some questions previously, but Harvey Park was not in the picture. Marion Russell grew up on Maple Avenue and was a member of the 8^th grade graduating class in 1936 of the old Alplaus School. Furthermore, she was a member of the Girl Scouts and during that time period it had a vibrant leadership. Again, remembering a 1937 Girl Scout picture hanging in the post office with people not identified, I asked Marion if she would help in identifying the people. She responded in a timely fashion after a copy was sent to her and positively named 8 of the 10 people in the picture.

She even sold one of her paintings while I was bothering her for information. This was another pleasant visit.

Julia Pfaffenbach

Julia still lives locally at the Shady Lane apartments, but formally lived on Glenridge Road between the underpasses raising her family with husband, Bill. Bill Pfaffenbach was a member of the 1938 baseball team and appears in the photograph previously mentioned. I thought possibly Julia could help in identifying the remaining few unknown members. Julia did confirm some of the known teammates, but also identified one of the coaches, Bill Pope, who lived on Glenridge Road and worked for a Schenectady newspaper.

Julia is in pretty good health, but a back problem has limited her bowling and golfing activities.

EDITOR/PUBLISHER Art Harris REPORTER ????????????

http://www.members.aol.com/Alplaus/HTN.html

HOME TOWN NEWS

ALPLAUS, NEW YORK 12008

September 2004 Vol. 128 No. 7 ____________________________________________________________________________

Alplaus Historical Society

E. GRAY WATKINS

THOMAS H. CULVER 399-5557

BLACKTOP

Dr. James Blake

Marion Russell Park Brundige

Julia Pfaffenbach