Saturday April 20, 2024 
January Mindful Nature Walk
EAST NASSAU – January Mindful Nature Walk, Saturday, January 9, 10am-12:30pm, Albert Family Community Forest, 120 Hayes Road, East Nassau NY, 12062. Bundle up in your warmest and open your senses to the winter woods, with Kripalu-certified Mindful Outdoor Guides Molly Freiberg and Sandy Wilson. Forest Bathing is a Japanese wellness practice that welcomes us to take in the forest atmosphere with all our senses, and helps to lower stress levels and boost mood and immunity. Space is limited to 15 participants for COVID safety, so please pre-register in advance at www.rensselaerplateau.org/mindful-walk. Read more about how to dress for the cold on the registration page. Questions? Reach out to Molly at molly@nullrensselaerplateau.org or call our office at 518-712-9211.
Water Resources and Air Quality on the Rensselaer Plateau
RENSSELAER COUNTY – Thursday, January 21, 7:00 pm via Zoom. Water Resources and Air Quality on the Rensselaer Plateau. Part of Rensselaer Plateau Alliance’s Thursday Lecture Series. Fred and Barbara Nuffer are both retired from at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Fred was Assistant Director of the Division of Water Resources. Barbara worked at the Air Toxics Bureau in the Division of Air Resources. Fred will describe how the water resources in the county are impacted by the Rensselaer Plateau. Barbara will review air quality regulations, local sources of air pollution, and how they both impact air quality trends in Rensselaer County. Pre-registration is required. Register at www.rensselaerplateau.org/lecture-registration.
Grafton Lakes State Park needs Volunteers for Cabin Fever Event
Cropseyville – Grafton Lakes State Park and the Friends of Grafton Lakes State Park are looking for volunteers to assist with the Cabin Fever event on Saturday, January 23, 2021. Due to COVID-19, we are unable to have our annual Winter Fest event and instead are excited to offer capital region families a day full of outings and a family-friendly guided trail. Events like these are not possible without the dedication of volunteers who love the park. All activities will be pre-registration only. The event is free of charge and will take place from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Love to hike? Be a sweep on hikes and walks led by local clubs and organizations such as the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance, LL Bean, and the Rensselaer Land Trust. Prefer more of a front row seat? Be a guide for our Embrace the Cold trail. Keep groups on track as presenters from organizations such as the Adirondack Mountain Club, Tamakoce Wilderness Programs, and the Rensselaer County Search and Rescue teach about winter hiking, winter camping, and winter survival. To sign up to volunteer visit: (https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0A4DAEA72DA4FB6-grafton2). The park will offer two free snowshoe rentals for your donated time.
Please take note of the following COVID-19 safety protocols and precautions. Volunteers will be required to undergo health screening including a temperature check and a list of COVID-19 related questions. Group sizes for all outings, activities, and presentations will be limited to ten people. Masks will be required for all participants ages two and older for the duration of the activity. Cabin Fever activities will be spread out across the park. Locations for different activities will be shared upon registration. Volunteers (and all participants) will agree to not attend if they are experiencing any symptoms, have been in contact with someone who recently tested positive or is suspected to have COVID-19.
The Capital District Genealogical Society Cordially Invites Members to Join Us
CAPITAL DISTRICT – Saturday, Jan 23, 2021 at 1:00 P.M. via Zoom. This session will NOT be recorded. It is a members only presentation. Now is the time to become a member!
Our speaker, Lisa Louise Cooke is the producer and host of the Genealogy Gems Podcast and the weekly YouTube show Elevenses with Lisa (both available at her website www.GenealogyGems.com.) She’s the author of five books including The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox 3rd Edition, and a podcast producer and instructor and columnist for Family Tree Magazine.
Google Earth for Genealogists
In this exciting session you’ll learn how to unlock mysteries in your genealogical research: from unidentified photographs, to how an ancestral location looked a hundred years ago or more, to plotting homesteads precisely using land patent legal descriptions. You’ll learn how to interpret the genealogical records you already have in new and exciting ways. Come discover why Google Earth Pro is one of the best free genealogical tools available!
This will be a Zoom meeting. There is a 100 person limit.
See our website under meetings and events. Please join us! www.capitaldistrictgenealogicalsociety.org
The Kiwanis Club of Sand Lake Fundraising Drive
SAND LAKE – The Kiwanis Club of Sand Lake is supporting a charity fundraising drive within the Averill Park Central School District to benefit the Capital Region’s Ronald Mc Donald House. The fundraising drive has been extended until February 28th since schools have not been in session for over four months. The goal remains to collect enough pull tabs from soda, beer, soups and pet food cans to fill a school bus!
We ask that parents of our school children and other interested citizens join this effort by removing and collecting as many pull tabs as possible during the months ahead and while schools remain closed take them to the Town Clerk’s office at Sand Lake Town Hall. When schools reopen all collected pull tabs may again be dropped off at the office of one of our three elementary schools, the Algonquin Middle School’s office or to the office at the Averill Park High School.
Please join us to help the Ronald McDonald House as it continues to offer a haven of comfort, love, hope and support – free of charge – for critically ill children and their families. Thank you.