Member Newsletter January 2008

Ellen Mottola, Editor mottola-bsbpa@nycap.rr.com

President Cliff Baum Vice President Jim Whittredge Secretary Sam Capuano Treasurer Donna Avery

The next Board of Directors Meeting is

Monday, January 21, 2008 at 7 pm

at the Brookside Museum.

We encourage members to attend and welcome your

input.

Don’t forget to visit our website! www.ballston.org

As I reflect back on another year that

has sped by, I realize all that I have to

be thankful for. I'm fortunate enough

to be blessed with good health. My

children are now mature young

adults and are making the right

choices in life. I'm surrounded by a

loving family and a host of wonderful friends and

co-workers whose combined spirit is contagious to

all of those around them. I work in a community

filled with friendly people that share a sense of

community pride that you can't help but feel the

minute you step into this village. The people I

work alongside with in the BSBPA are the best.

We all face obstacles in our lives that can seem

overwhelming but what really counts in life are

the people in your life. Although I have only been

in Ballston Spa for five short years, because of you,

I have never felt more at home. I'm so thankful to

have found Ballston Spa, and all of you.

I wish you all a healthy, happy and prosperous

New Year.

Cliff

From the BSBPA President

MMMMid Week Mixer/Networking Breakfastid Week Mixer/Networking Breakfastid Week Mixer/Networking Breakfastid Week Mixer/Networking Breakfast It’s the beginning of a new year—why not get into the swing of things right off the bat? Here are two great opportunities: Join the BSBPA for our January "Mid Week" MixerJanuary "Mid Week" MixerJanuary "Mid Week" MixerJanuary "Mid Week" Mixer, Wednesday, January 9 from 5:30-7:00 pm at Fifty Fifty Fifty Fifty South RestaurantSouth RestaurantSouth RestaurantSouth Restaurant, 2128 Doubleday Ave. (Route 50). Stop by on your way home from work and mix with other busi-ness and community members in a relaxed social setting. Find out what’s going on and get in-volved . Cost is $10 per person. Light fare will be served with cash bar.

January marks the first anni-versary of our NeNeNeNettttworking working working working Breakfasts Breakfasts Breakfasts Breakfasts and they have proved to be quite a suc-cessful venture. Join us for this month’s breakfast on Tuesday, January 15 from

7:30-8:30 am at Coffee PlanetCoffee PlanetCoffee PlanetCoffee Planet, 100 Milton Ave. Cost is $5 with advance reservation or $10 with-out reservation, both payable at the door. For more information on either of these events, please call 885-2772 or email info@ballston.org

See you there!See you there!See you there!See you there!

Save the Date! The BSBPA’s Annual Meeting

and Community Mixer Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Manna’s Restaurant 6:30-7 pm social half hour

7 pm Meeting $5/BSBPA Members, $10/Non-members with

$5 discount if you join that evening. More Details to Come!

Page 2 January 2008

Welcome to Our newest members

BSBPA Members: Do you have upcoming events or news that you would like to share in our next issue? Contact Ellen Mottola,

mottola-bsbpa@nycap.rr.com , 885-2772 (phone or fax) or mail to BSBPA, PO Box 386, Ballston Spa, NY 12020. The deadline

for the February issue is January 25, 2008. I am also interested in spotlighting member businesses. Promptness is always appreci-

ated, questions answered with a smile!

Member News

AAAAbout Our Members & Neighbors:bout Our Members & Neighbors:bout Our Members & Neighbors:bout Our Members & Neighbors: FANs (Friends and Neighbors) of Ballston Spa FANs (Friends and Neighbors) of Ballston Spa FANs (Friends and Neighbors) of Ballston Spa FANs (Friends and Neighbors) of Ballston Spa is pleased to announce that the new playground design, including apparatus descriptions is now complete and can be seen on their website www.fansofballstonspa.com. They also have a Paypal link on the site for donors to purchase pickets and tiles to support the playground project. BSBPA Holiday Mixer: BSBPA Holiday Mixer: BSBPA Holiday Mixer: BSBPA Holiday Mixer: A big “thank you” to the follow-ing who provided fabulous door prizes: Spa Properties Spa Properties Spa Properties Spa Properties Group LLC, Coldwell Banker/PrimeGroup LLC, Coldwell Banker/PrimeGroup LLC, Coldwell Banker/PrimeGroup LLC, Coldwell Banker/Prime----The Mendez The Mendez The Mendez The Mendez Group,Group,Group,Group, Italian Sweets by StacItalian Sweets by StacItalian Sweets by StacItalian Sweets by Stacy, Make Me Fabulous,y, Make Me Fabulous,y, Make Me Fabulous,y, Make Me Fabulous, Daisy Dry Goods, Corina ConteDaisy Dry Goods, Corina ConteDaisy Dry Goods, Corina ConteDaisy Dry Goods, Corina Contemporary Jewelry and mporary Jewelry and mporary Jewelry and mporary Jewelry and Fine Crafts,Fine Crafts,Fine Crafts,Fine Crafts, Sonny & Jeff’s Italian Restaurant,Sonny & Jeff’s Italian Restaurant,Sonny & Jeff’s Italian Restaurant,Sonny & Jeff’s Italian Restaurant, Ballston Ballston Ballston Ballston Chiropractic Office, Champagne & Son, LLC Building Chiropractic Office, Champagne & Son, LLC Building Chiropractic Office, Champagne & Son, LLC Building Chiropractic Office, Champagne & Son, LLC Building and Remodeling, Finishing Touch Salon,and Remodeling, Finishing Touch Salon,and Remodeling, Finishing Touch Salon,and Remodeling, Finishing Touch Salon, Mangino Mangino Mangino Mangino PontiacPontiacPontiacPontiac----Buick, Inc.Buick, Inc.Buick, Inc.Buick, Inc. O’Brien Pharmacy,O’Brien Pharmacy,O’Brien Pharmacy,O’Brien Pharmacy, Spa Dental, SuSpa Dental, SuSpa Dental, SuSpa Dental, Sun-n-n-n-set Café, Village Photo, LLC.set Café, Village Photo, LLC.set Café, Village Photo, LLC.set Café, Village Photo, LLC. Coffee Planet, Inc.Coffee Planet, Inc.Coffee Planet, Inc.Coffee Planet, Inc. , , , , MeMeMeMed-d-d-d-bery Inn & Spa,bery Inn & Spa,bery Inn & Spa,bery Inn & Spa, Hunter Learning Solutions, Front Hunter Learning Solutions, Front Hunter Learning Solutions, Front Hunter Learning Solutions, Front Street Deli,Street Deli,Street Deli,Street Deli, Manna'sManna'sManna'sManna's Restaurant, Restaurant, Restaurant, Restaurant, 1st Place Trophies,1st Place Trophies,1st Place Trophies,1st Place Trophies, DiDiDiDisssstinctive Cabinetrytinctive Cabinetrytinctive Cabinetrytinctive Cabinetry, , , , Mangino Chevrolet,Mangino Chevrolet,Mangino Chevrolet,Mangino Chevrolet, Ballston Spa Ballston Spa Ballston Spa Ballston Spa National Bank,National Bank,National Bank,National Bank, The Relyea Family, Earth Care,The Relyea Family, Earth Care,The Relyea Family, Earth Care,The Relyea Family, Earth Care, Basil’s Basil’s Basil’s Basil’s Creative Catering,Creative Catering,Creative Catering,Creative Catering, LanLanLanLang Brothers, Ballston Spa House & g Brothers, Ballston Spa House & g Brothers, Ballston Spa House & g Brothers, Ballston Spa House & GardenGardenGardenGarden Club, Club, Club, Club, Kelly Whittredge. Kelly Whittredge. Kelly Whittredge. Kelly Whittredge. Thank also to those who volunteered to help. It was a wonderful and festive evening, with a great turn out of members. Kudos to Jim Whittredge Jim Whittredge Jim Whittredge Jim Whittredge for putting together another great event. Our ToOur ToOur ToOur Towne Ballston Spa wne Ballston Spa wne Ballston Spa wne Ballston Spa is offering new monthly auto-deduction payment options for advertising programs. Contact Angela McFarland Angela McFarland Angela McFarland Angela McFarland at 956-0195 for details.

First Baptist Church of Ballston Spa First Baptist Church of Ballston Spa First Baptist Church of Ballston Spa First Baptist Church of Ballston Spa will be joining the First Friday event next month by sponsoring a movie night on Friday, February 1. Please join them for the showing of "The Chronicles of Narnia". Movie will start at 6:30 pm, snacks & beverages will be provided. Saturday, January 5th will be a time for people to "Come to Their Senses at 233 Milton". There will be an Open House at 233 Milton Avenue on that day, includ-ing Sanctuary, Sanctuary, Sanctuary, Sanctuary, where there will be good tea, Reiki, Es-sential Oils, Arm & Hand Massages and Meditation and The Pilates StudioThe Pilates StudioThe Pilates StudioThe Pilates Studio, which will have demonstrations, pi-lates mat, & yoga. A good way to get the new year off to a rejuvenating start! For those interested, the Guiding Eyes for thGuiding Eyes for thGuiding Eyes for thGuiding Eyes for the Blind e Blind e Blind e Blind will once again be holding puppy raising classes for volun-teers interested in helping train guide dogs for the blind. Volunteers take the special puppies into their homes for 14-16 months. The training classes take place throughout the year. The class location is in Ft. Ann this year. For more information, contact Cheryl PalmaCheryl PalmaCheryl PalmaCheryl Palma, 312-6862, cflawyer@nycap.rr.com or visit their website www.cdc.guidingeyes.org.

Tammy Loya Studios Tammy Loya

20 Prospect Street Bldg. 2 Suite 215 Ballston Spa, NY 518 884-7400

www.tammyloya.com

D & R Hydroseeding & More Robert J. Mink, Jr. 671 East Line Road Ballston Spa, NY 518884-8450

BSBPA officers take a moment to pose for the cam-era at the annual Holiday Mixer. From Left to right: Cliff Baum (Coffee Planet), President; Sam Capu-ano (Sunmark Federal Credit Union), Secretary; Jim Whittredge (Ballston Spa Lions Club), Vice Presi-dent and Donna Avery (Ballston Spa National Bank), Treasurer.

Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association Page 3

Association News

Ballston Rocks! The BSBPA marketing

committee is planning a

promotional campaign for

Spring/Summer of 2008

entitled “Ballston Rocks”.

The plans call for painted

rocking chairs placed around town, spon-

sored by local businesses, families, organi-

zations and neighborhoods. More details will

be available early in the new year so stay

tuned!

Festival of Trees

After taking last year off, the Festi-val of Trees was back, bigger and better then ever this year. Co-sponsored by the Ballston Spa House and Garden and hosted by St. Mary's Parish, the festival offered trees, wreaths, kissing balls and many other gift items for sale, with all proceeds going right back into our community. Special thanks go out to Jake Stomieroski, Sister Jean Marie and all the helpers from the St. Mary's Youth Group and PTO, the House and Garden Club for helping with donations and volunteering at the Festival, Joanne Champagne for her room decorating and many, many handmade bows, and all the other BSBPA board members who took time out of their weekend to help out. This event would never have been the success it was without the support of the business and resi-dential members whose donations made it all pos-sible. Festival of Trees committee members are already shopping all the post-holiday sales looking for bargains for next year’s event! Mark your cal-endars for December 5th-7th, 2008, details to fol-low. Thank you, Festival of Trees Committee

Holiday House Tour Thanks The House Tour com-mittee of the Ballston Spa Business and Pro-fessional Association would like to thank everyone who came out to make the Holiday House Tour on Decem-ber 8 such a successful event. We would espe-cially like to thank all of the homeowners who so graciously opened their houses for the tour: Charles and Lori Hogan, Bill and Lorraine Canty, Donald and Tammy Keller, Pre-ston and Diane Lewis, Allan and Cynthia Chapman, Stephen and Cheryl Springer, Kirkland and Diane Westbrook and Rory O’Connor. We would also like to express our gratitude to the Adirondack Trust Com-pany for their generous sponsorship and Skidmore Col-lege’s a cappella group Drastic Measures for the won-derful performance at the dessert buffet, as well as all of the volunteers who took time out of their busy holiday schedules to work at the houses and at the dessert buf-fet. Thank you all. Sincerely Alison Thomas-Oravsky, Chair BSBPA House Tour Committee

The beautiful Springer home was

one of the stops on the House

Tour.

Association and Village Events for 2008 With the new year starting, it’s time to get our event calendar organized. Every year, the BSBPA endeavors to promote our village’s events and activities as widely as possible. This means having our dates set months ahead of time to submit to organizations and publications. If you chair an event for the As-sociation or for the village, please try to “set the date” and then send it along to us so we can include it with our 2008 Schedule of Events. Please contact Ellen at 885-2772 or info@ballston.org.

January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008January 4, 2008

Strolling Village ArtisansStrolling Village ArtisansStrolling Village ArtisansStrolling Village Artisans----

Iron Spring Gallery Iron Spring Gallery Iron Spring Gallery Iron Spring Gallery

“Meet the Artist Night” Painter Lisa Martinez will talk about and demonstrate her art. Winter Festival Member Show 6-9 pm 49 Front Street /885-5855 www.strollingvillageartisans.com ClaysculClaysculClaysculClaysculpture potterypture potterypture potterypture pottery

Reception: “Winter’s Singing Goddesses” 20 Washington St. 885-6302, www.claysculpturepottery.com Coffee Planet Coffee Planet Coffee Planet Coffee Planet

Singer/Songwriter Gary Moon View local artists’ Displays 6-9 pm 100 Milton Ave. 884-9913 www.thecoffeeplanet.net Whistling KettlWhistling KettlWhistling KettlWhistling Kettleeee

Kevin Maul-hard-driving dobro, slide guitar and vocals in a variety of styles. 6-9 pm 24 Front Street 884-2664 www.thewhistlingkettle.com Mango tree Imports Mango tree Imports Mango tree Imports Mango tree Imports

Returned Peace Corps Volunteers & International Volunteers Op-portunities Open House 6:30-9 pm, 2124A Route 50 884-4652 www.mangotreeimports.com Las Mariposas Language CenterLas Mariposas Language CenterLas Mariposas Language CenterLas Mariposas Language Center

“Meet the Teacher” Open House. Spanish, French, Arabic, Italian & Latin Classes for children and Adults. 5:30-7 pm 2124A Route 50 884-4652 HHHHeather Hollywood Designseather Hollywood Designseather Hollywood Designseather Hollywood Designs

Join Heather for glass bead making demonstrations, unique beads and jewelry for the New Year and special pricing on glass bead making classes. 20 Washington St. Upstairs studio 5 (518) 817-5524 www.heatherhollywood.com Corina ConteCorina ConteCorina ConteCorina Contemporary Jewelry & Fine Craftsmporary Jewelry & Fine Craftsmporary Jewelry & Fine Craftsmporary Jewelry & Fine Crafts

Meet local photographer Russell Jenkins and have a cupcake with us! 6-9 pm 89 Milton Ave. 885-0930 www.corinajewelry.com National Bottle MuseumNational Bottle MuseumNational Bottle MuseumNational Bottle Museum

Beautiful 19th and early 20th century music box collection on dis-play. Handcrafted glass gifts from American artists. 76 Milton Ave. Hot Glass demos at 10 Washington St. 885-7589 www.nationalbottlemuseum.com Twice Told BooksTwice Told BooksTwice Told BooksTwice Told Books

Ballston Spa’s only bookstore! Happy to provide free refreshments in celebration of First Fridays 6-9 pm 82 Milton Ave. 885-6976 www.ttubbs.com Midtown Wine & SpiritsMidtown Wine & SpiritsMidtown Wine & SpiritsMidtown Wine & Spirits

Stop in and try some wine. Custom gift baskets available. Check out our great selection @ Warehouse prices. 5-9 pm 77 Milton Ave. 518 884-8346

Page 4 January 2008

Local Happenings

Ballston Spa High School Amnesty International Club Presents The Chosen

Six AIDS orphans from Uganda, known as The Chosen,

will be presenting a dance and song program at the Ball-

ston Spa High School Amnesty International Club’s

Coffee House on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 7 pm in

the High School Library.

These children have been selected from among 400 chil-

dren being offered education and hope for the future by

Action for Empowerment, an indigenous Ugandan non-

profit grass roots organization based in Bugembe, a

small town outside of Jinja in southern Uganda.

Action for Empowerment’s mission is to provide formal

and/or vocational education to desperately poor, ne-

glected and forgotten orphans whose parents have died

of AIDS. In addition, assistance is provided to children

with AIDS and widows who have lost their spouses to

AIDS, many of them HIV positive themselves. Pro-

grams funded by Action for Empowerment are the Re-

haboth School, Widows Empowerment Program and a

Medical Clinic.

The Rehaboth School opened in its new facility this past

winter 2007. A team of international volunteers, includ-

ing residents of Ballston Spa and Saratoga Springs

played an integral role in preparing the new school for

the first day of classes. The 2007 team also assisted the

fledgling widow’s crafts cooperative and purchased

crafts with donated funds. The paper bead jewelry, made

by the widows, is being sold in businesses throughout

the Capital District including Ballston Spa. 100% of

proceeds are returned to Uganda, part back to the

women and part to the Widow’s Empowerment Pro-

gram.

The Medical Clinic provides basic medical care for the

children, their caregivers and siblings. The 2007 team

included two physicians from Saratoga Springs who

worked closely with Action for Empowerment medical

staff. The team brought thousands of dollars of medical

supplies to Uganda and additional medicines were pur-

chased with donated funds.

Admission to the coffee house is $2.00. 100% of any donations will go directly to Action for Empower-ment programs.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

January 4 First Friday in Ballston Spa, downtown shops and restaurants, 6-9 pm January 9 Mid Week Mixer, Fifty South Restaurant, 5:30-7 pm January 15 Networking Breakfast, Coffee Planet, 7:30-8:30 am January 21 BSBPA Board of Directors Meeting, Brookside Museum, 7 pm

Happy New Year!

P.O. Box 386 Ballston Spa, NY 12020