UPDATE, Oct. 31 fire house breakfast cancelled/postponed

 

Jere Blackwelder, president of the board of Saratoga History Center at Brookside Museum, was today's speaker.

Brookside, which anchors Front Street at the west end of downtown Ballston Spa, is a 1792 structure originally built as a hotel. It ran into financial difficulties and almost closed a few years ago, and just when it was digging itself out ran into the coronavirus pandemic.

Brookside has dug itself out again, Blackwelder said, hosting over 2,000 visitors since it reopened at the end of June with expanded exhibit space and gardens. He urged everyone to drop by and join up. One of the books for sale in the museum store is a new one, "Saratoga County Stories," by various local historians (including Malta's Paul Perreault), proceeds of which benefit Brookside. 

UPDATE OCT. 30: Unfortunately, a Covid exposure has caused the cancellation/postponement of our Halloween breakfast that was scheduled for Sunday Oct. 31 at the Round Lake Fire House. Tickets already purchased may be reused for the rescheduled event at a date to be determined, or refunds will be available tomorrow morning (Oct. 31) at the fire house.

Ambulance Vote

Scott Skinner from Malta-Stillwater Emergency Medical Services was our speaker on Thursday. He advocated passage of and provided information about the proposition to create an ambulance district in Malta. 

The issue will be decided by town voters in the upcoming election. Early voting has started already at various locations in Saratoga County, and Election Day is November 2. (Check out the back of the ballot on the bottom right.)

We also discussed plans for our Halloween all-you-can-eat scrambled egg, sausage and pancake breakfast on October 31 at the Round Lake Fire House.

We made plans to help out Toys for Tots on November 7 at their Clifton Park warehouse.

 And we got a report on last weekend's Dunning Street cleanup.

 

The Guv

 

Rotary District 7190 Governor Bruce McConnelee spoke to the club on Thursday, accompanied by his wife Lorraine. He talked about efforts to bolster membership, including restarting Rotary in Troy, a club focused on veterans begun by Glenville Rotary, and another new club, Heartbeat online, which is affiliated with Niskayuna. He reminded us about an Oct. 29 meeting in Liverpool, near Syracuse, for World Polio Day, and the Nov. 18 Rotary Foundation dinner at Glen Sanders Mansion in Scotia. And he told a 1980s story about when he was a new Rotary member in Scotia, and helped put a Whipple bridge over Collins Creek.

Also Thursday, our member Bob Conner started his sixth year on a club Rotary project, working with the Shenendehowa School District on the Bountiful Backpacks program, delivering food to Chango Elementary in Malta.