Recreation and Human Services, was our speaker last Thursday. She focused mainly on the last-listed part of her duties, centered on the food pantry at the David Meager Malta Community Center. It is supported by organizations including the Town of Malta/GlobalFoundries Foundation, Price Chopper, Stewart's, Saratoga Casino, Pitney Meadows, the US Postal Service, and other donors including the public.
MaltaSunriseRotaryNY
The Malta Sunrise Rotary Club is a service organization in the town of Malta, upstate New York, USA. We meet at The Ugly Rooster, on the corner of Route 9 and Dunning Street, east of I-87 Exit 12. Meetings are at 7:15 Thursday mornings, and those who wish to join us are welcome to attend.
Monday, November 4, 2024
From Community Center to Community
Recreation and Human Services, was our speaker last Thursday. She focused mainly on the last-listed part of her duties, centered on the food pantry at the David Meager Malta Community Center. It is supported by organizations including the Town of Malta/GlobalFoundries Foundation, Price Chopper, Stewart's, Saratoga Casino, Pitney Meadows, the US Postal Service, and other donors including the public.
Friday, October 25, 2024
Pancakes and (nonpartisan) politics
Monday, October 14, 2024
Immigration Talk, then Road Cleanup
Some of our cleanup crew (minus Brian Farrell, who took the photo) on Dunning Street after last Thursday's meeting. They are, left to right, Chris Havens, Donna Kripfgans-Rawlin, Miles Cornthwaite, Murray Eitzmann and Steve Haydon.
At the meeting, Phil Kellerman spoke about immigration. He has been an advocate for migrant farmworkers and other immigrants for over 35 years. He established the Harvest of Hope Foundation which raised and distributed more than $1.1 million in emergency and educational financial aid to migrant farmworkers. Prior to retirement his last employment was with the Oley Foundation under Albany Medical Center, helping children and adults in need of tube feeding supplies due to serious intestinal problems, oral cancer, stroke or ALS. He continues to collect tube feeding supplies to send to California to be shipped to the Philippines. In addition, Kellerman helped to establish the Foundation for Language Education and Development (LEAD) which provides financial aid to immigrant students to attend college.Sunday, October 6, 2024
Business from Glenville to Uganda, Glens Falls and Saratoga County
Ugandan crafts on display at this year's Glenville Oktoberfest. We participated in "Rotary Row" under the sponsorship of the Malta Sunrise Rotary club and sold $800 worth of crafts, which will be sent to AOET Uganda to assist them in educating children who are living in poverty.
At Thursday's business meeting we voted to give $200 (in addition to any individual contributions) to Wait House in Glens Falls.
Upcoming fund-raisers are an Oct. 27 pancake breakfast at the Malta Ridge Fire House; and a pre-Christmas sale of pies from Smith's Orchard & Bake Shop, which are baked at a farm on Jockey Street in western Saratoga County.
Sunday, September 29, 2024
Wait House Director
Our speaker at Thursday's meeting was Jason McLaughlin, executive director of Wait House in Glens Falls, which focuses on young people at risk of homelessness in Warren, Washington and Saratoga counties -- including Malta.
Its services include Safe Harbour, protecting young people who may be sexually trafficked or exploited. There is also a Street Outreach program to youths who are homeless or at risk of becoming so, permanent housing assistance, crisis services, transitional living for homeless young women who are pregnant or parents, Child Home Health Care Management and Family Opportunity Center services.
The young people are typically dealing with "childhood trauma of some sort," McLaughlin said, and at Wait House "They finally feel safe. ... We are in a battle. Every day. Every day."
Sex traffickers, he said, "manipulate young people into thinking they're not being trafficked." Sometimes well-intentioned laws such as "Raise the Age" for criminal prosecution can have bad unintended consequences, he said.
Wait House has various sources of revenue, including donations from the public, which can help make up for recent funding cuts.
Friday, September 20, 2024
DA Talks About High-Profile Case
Saratoga County District Attorney Karen Heggen, a lifelong Malta resident, spoke to us at Thursday's meeting about a recent case without ever naming the criminal or victim. But everyone knew what she was talking about.
The case involved the kidnapping of a 9-year-old girl, a Saratoga County resident, from Moreau Lake State Park. The community immediately rallied in support of the girl and her family, and the search-and-rescue operation, "with a level of action, attention, intensity that I hadn't seen." It was quickly determined that it was likely a kidnapping, rather than a case of a child getting lost or playing hide and seek, and this prompted large-scale activation of resources.
After "a massive coordinated effort," the girl was rescued two days later by state police and other law enforcement personnel. A man arrested at the scene pleaded guilty to two felonies, including first-degree kidnapping, and received a sentence of 47 years to life in prison. Heggen's office had two staff members --
an assistant district attorney and an investigator -- embedded with the law enforcement team which broke the case.Thursday, September 12, 2024
AFL-CIO Official Says Labor Is Rising
Kevin Eitzmann, director of field operations for the New York State AFL-CIO, was our speaker today.
Early in his working life, Eitzmann was an "outside tech" worker in Verizon's Mechanicville garage. He was impressed by the insight and concern for safety of a unionized worker. He became vice president of the union local there, and after a layoff in 2008 started work doing social media for the AFL-CIO.
Union membership is up in New York state, he said, and labor is moving "from a top-down approach to bottom-up." Issues he's been involved with include establishing and maintaining health benefits for people affected by the 9/11 attacks, supporting nurses in their struggle for good conditions and limited hours, and steering purchasers (including New York state) toward American-made steel.
Eitzmann is a Malta resident, whose father Murray is one of our members.
In other business, we mourn the passing last week of our friend and fellow club member Nancy Sausville (left). Calling hours and services for Nancy will be Saturday morning (see here for obituary and service details).
We inducted our newest member this morning, Donna Kripfgans-Rawlin.
And last Saturday, we participated in Malta Community Day at Shenantaha Park, running a cornhole booth and raising $128.
Below, left to right, Bob Bonney, Chris Havens, Dave Kruczlnicki and Dwight Havens fold up the canopy at the end of the event.
Our next event will be Monday Sept. 16 from 1 to 6 p.m., assisting a Red Cross blood drive at the Malta Community Center (a cause close to the heart of Nancy Sausville).