Gary & Dylan discuss a local puppy adoption center in Argyle. Also discussed: a wildfire near Lake George, a Veterans Day fundraiser coming to Atlas Jiu Jitsu, two injured hikers rescued from the Adirondacks, and updates involving two of the suspects in the Calamity Jane’s gun store theft.
00:02 – Intro 00:31 – Ad Break 1 01:09 – Story 1: Wildfire Near Lake George 02:04 – Story 2: Lucky Puppy Adoption Center 04:18 – Ad Break 2 04:41 – Story 3: Rolling for Resilience at Atlas Jiu Jitsu 06:01 – Story 4: Two ADK Hikers Rescued Hours Apart 07:36 – Story 5: Updates in Calamity Jane’s Gun Store Theft 10:06 – Outro
QUEENSBURY — As colder weather approaches in Upstate New York, it becomes even more important to ensure heating systems are working properly. That’s where Cerrone Plumbing, Heating, and Air Conditioning comes in.
Cerrone provides installation, maintenance, and repairs for heating, air conditioning, and plumbing systems, and also helps deal with air quality.
The company, which has primarily dealt with residential properties, has been increasingly providing commercial services. Joe Cerrone, the manager and owner of Cerrone, said this is mainly due to an increase in construction in the Glens Falls area.
“Over the years, we’ve slowly grown, mainly doing new construction and residential service and repair and installations,” said Cerrone. “Just due to the recent Glens Falls renovation projects that are going on right now, we’ve been getting our foot more in the door for commercial projects.”
Dealing with commercial heating is different from residential heating, Cerrone said.
“(Commercial heating is) a bit more in-depth, I would say,” said Cerrone. “There’s a lot more things going on.”
The company had taken on what Cerrone described as “light” commercial projects in the past, but has focused more on the commercial side with the growth of Glens Falls and its surrounding areas.
“We’ve done commercial projects, like light commercial projects, before,” said Cerrone. “But more recently, there’s just been a lot more construction going on in our area that we’ve had the opportunity to bid on the jobs.”
As winter nears, Cerrone said routine maintenance is important to keep heating systems working properly.
“Routine maintenance is a big one. We do offer fall and spring services, preventative maintenance services. Those kinds of things are pretty big, because we can catch issues before they happen, so they’re not left in the middle of winter without heat,” Cerrone said. “We do offer 24/7 emergency service, but just to catch the issues before they happen and prevent them is pretty big.”
Cerrone’s service area stretches from Bolton Landing to Saratoga Springs, according to their website.
“We’re right in Queensbury, so we’re very local for a lot of businesses in Glens Falls,” said Cerrone.
The company provides service to locations such as Glens Falls, Queensbury, Hudson Falls, Warrensburg, Fort Edward, Lake George, Gansevoort, and Wilton.
Cerrone, who grew up in Lake George, said it is “great” to be able to provide services to the local community and watch it grow through the years.
“It’s great, watching this area grow throughout the years,” said Cerrone. “Glens Falls, 15 years ago, wasn’t anything like it is today, with the new restaurants popping up that we’ve done a lot of work in.”
WARREN COUNTY — The Warren County Department of Social Services is urging residents who may qualify for New York State’s Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) to fill out applications for aid as soon as possible, citing the expected rise of heating costs this winter.
Prices of certain types of fuels are expected to rise as much as 30 percent, which can make it difficult for some to keep up with heating bills, according to a press release from the County.
The application period for HEAP opened on Nov. 1. Applications can be filled out online (https://otda.ny.gov/programs/heap/) or by calling the Warren County Department of Social Services at 518-761-6338.
“HEAP is a valuable program to make sure our residents stay warm during winter, and many people may not be aware that they qualify,” said Warren County Department of Social Services commissioner Chris Hanchett in the release. “Please visit the New York State HEAP website or call us to determine if you meet income eligibility guidelines to get help for your heating costs.”
Anyone who is eligible will receive one regular HEAP benefit per program year, the release says. The guidelines are based on household size and maximum monthly income.
See below for a full list of HEAP guidelines, via Warren County:
One-person households: $2,852
Two-person households: $3,370
Three-person households: $4,608
Four-person households: $5,485
Five-person households: $6,363
Six-person households: $7,241
Seven-person households: $7,405
Eight-person households: $7,570
Nine-person households: $7,734
Ten-person households: $7,899
Eleven-person households: $8,064
Twelve-person households: $8,228
Thirteen-person households: $8,778
For households over 13, add $590 to the maximum monthly income.
Those who heat with electricity, natural gas, oil, coal, propane, wood, kerosene or corn are eligible to submit applications. To request an application be mailed to you, visit www.mybenefits.com. Applicants should apply prior to fuel levels getting low in an effort to avoid extra delivery chargers or emergency deliveries, the release says.
HEAP also provides financial assistance for heating system repairs and cleaning, according to the release. Visit https://otda.ny.gov/programs/heap for more information.
Gary & Dylan discuss plans to construct a new transportation facility for the Lake George Central School District. Also discussed: a New York Times bestselling author coming to SUNY Adirondack, Washington County’s upcoming sessions for adoption information, Rockefeller Center’s announcement that this year’s Christmas tree will come from Queensbury, and the Queensbury hotel’s project to install radiant heating in their outdoor restaurant patio.
00:02 – Intro 00:37 – Ad Break 1 01:16 – Story 1: NYT Bestseller Coming to SUNY ADK 02:31 – Story 2: Adoption Information Sessions, Washington County 03:40 – Ad Break 2 04:03 – Story 3: Lake George CSD Project 06:06 – Story 4: Rockefeller Christmas Tree Coming from Queensbury 07:19 – Story 5: Queensbury Hotel Patio Project 08:15 – Outro
A past J. Walter Juckett Community Service Award. (Photo by Andy Camp)
GLENS FALLS — The Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce is now accepting nominations for the 34th annual J. Walter Juckett Community Service Award. The winner of the award will be honored at the ARCC Annual Dinner on March 10, 2023 at the Sagamore Resort.
The J. Walter Juckett Community Service Award is the ARCC’s community service award, given to recognize and honor an extraordinary individual who has selflessly gone above and beyond by contributing time and energy to help others, a press release says.
The award is named in honor of J. Walter Juckett, who was an active participant in many community organizations, the release says. Past winners include John and Kevin O’Brien, Ed Moore, Elizabeth Miller, and Mark Behan, among others.
“We have seen some extraordinary individuals get honored with this award,” ARCC President and CEO Tricia Rogers said in the release. “This is a great opportunity to recognize community members who have really gone above and beyond to serve their community.”
Gary & Dylan discuss Owl Pen Books in Greenwich being added to New York’s Historic Business Preservation Registry. Also discussed: the Adirondack Thunder’s home opener on Saturday, a trunk-or-treat event held by the Warren County Sheriff’s Office, Fort William Henry’s plans to renovate The Carriage House, a fatal car crash in South Glens Falls under investigation, and the Warren County Historical Society’s plans to host free memoir writing classes this month.
00:02 – Intro 00:42 – Ad Break 1 01:22 – Story 1: Adirondack Thunder Home Opener 02:51 – Story 2: Owl Pen Books, Greenwich 04:50 – Ad Break 2 05:15 – Story 3: Sheriff’s Office Trunk-Or-Treat 06:43 – Story 4: Fort William Henry to Renovate Carriage House 08:12 – Story 5: Fatal Car Crash, South Glens Falls 10:17 – Story 6: Warren County Historical Society Writing Classes 11:14 – Outro
Scout, one of the dogs at Lucky Puppy Adoption Center in Argyle (Photo courtesy of Lucky Puppy Adoption Center).
ARGYLE — Lucky Puppy Rescue in Argyle looks to help dogs find a home in Upstate New York. And they travel a long way to do so.
Lucky Puppy’s rescue center is located in Bonifay, Florida, roughly 90 miles west of Tallahassee. Founder Teri Mattson, who resides in Bonifay, said the organization started “completely by accident,” after she found two abandoned puppies in a park.
“There were two little puppies down there, playing in the mud and water,” said Mattson. “There was only one other person there besides me, and I said, ‘Are those your puppies? They’re really cute.’ He said, ‘No, somebody dumped them off here.’”
Mattson and her partner took the dogs in, and “it snowballed from there,” she said.
The Argyle location came about after Lucky Puppy’s Florida rescue center began transporting dogs to be adopted out of centers in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.
“We started with a large van, and we moved to a school bus, and then now we have a big commercial bus that we use,” Mattson said. “We would literally vaccinate them, get them healthy, fix them, and then drive them up to these rescues and hand them off, and then they would adopt them.”
That model was not financially stable for the organization, so Lucky Puppy purchased a former boarding kennel and training facility in Argyle and converted it into an adoption center for dogs from the Florida rescue.
“It’s the same corporation, Florida and New York, but the rescue is in Florida where there are so many abandoned dogs, and the adoption center is here in Argyle,” said Mattson.
Transporting the dogs from Bonifay to Argyle involves a bus ride of 24 to 28 hours, said Mattson, who typically drives the bus herself.
“We’re very blessed that our bus is set up to where it makes a comfortable trip,” Mattson said. “It’s still stressful, and it’s still long, but it’s a comfortable trip for them health-wise.”
The Argyle location, at 511 Pleasant Valley Road, is an “ideal” location, Mattson said. There are two buildings to house the dogs, as well as a home that Mattson and fellow Florida employees stay in while visiting the location. Mattson said several dogs typically stay in the home while people are there, “so they get a little feel of what the house is like too.”
The buildings have fenced-in yards connected, while Lucky Puppy’s property also includes walking trails through a wooded area and another open field that the organization hopes to expand to.
“When we purchased the property, the idea is to expand. We would be able to put more buildings over on this area, because it’s nice and open, and then fence in the whole property so we could have the woods for play, and the area between the house and the kennel,” said Mattson. “Our biggest point is we try to give them enrichment, not just put them in a kennel and hope somebody comes by and picks them out for adoption.”
Mattson said the organization emphasizes exercise and activity for the dogs, saying “it builds their confidence.”
“When you adopt them and take them home, you have a dog that’s more confident, that’s willing to meet new people, go new places, it makes for a better adoption,” Mattson said.
Lucky Puppy specializes in medium and large-sized dogs, Mattson said, naming breeds such as shepherds, border collies, and “all the kind of mix-ups.”
“A little bit of lab, a little bit of retriever, a little bit of border collie,” said Mattson. “People that are looking for good family pets, we can help match them. We know the dogs so well, when you come in and tell me what your life is like, I can say, ‘Oh, this is the dog for you.’”
Mattson said the adoption center typically has 30 to 35 dogs on-site during the warmer months, and said there are “almost always” between 150 to 200 dogs at the rescue center in Bonifay.
The adoption process begins with an online application, Mattson said, which is reviewed by volunteers at Lucky Puppy.
“We have a team of volunteers that would go through that application,” Mattson said. “If you have a pet now, we would check your vet records.”
After the application, an appointment can be made to visit the adoption center to meet the dogs.
“Sometimes, they have a specific (dog) that they want to meet, that they saw online,” said Mattson. “That’s good, we can start with that. But we actually, sometimes, may steer them toward a different one if the first dog they’re interested in is not a good match.”
Mattson said when evaluating matches, Lucky Puppy looks at things like fenced yards, apartments, and more.
“If it’s a young, active dog that needs to run and play a lot, a fenced yard is probably more suited. If it’s an older dog that just might do some leash walks and maybe hang out a little bit, that may not be required,” Mattson said. “People, if they live in an apartment, there’s some dogs that might do well in an apartment, there’s other dogs that would be crazy and bark and disturb your neighbors.”
All of the dogs at Lucky Puppy’s adoption center are fixed and vaccinated before arriving in New York, said Mattson. The center will also take a dog back “if something doesn’t work out.”
“Sometimes, somebody takes home a puppy and they don’t realize the demands of it. The amount of time for training, the amount of time for potty training,” Mattson said. “We’ll always take them back, but we’d hope, of course, that that won’t happen.”
Lucky Puppy also offers fostering opportunities, allowing a dog to live in a home until they are adopted. Mattson said it helps prepare the dogs, as well as provides them with a comfortable environment.
“They’ll take them home and let them live with them until they get adopted. It’s excellent, because they get some extra one-on-one attention,” said Mattson. “They can spoil them a little bit, they can also train them a little bit. They can expose them to riding in the car, expose them to what it’s like living in a house. It’s kind of like a prep school for adoption.”
Mattson said the typical foster stay lasts a week to two weeks, saying it is “a way to have a little fun but not have the commitment.”
The organization is also doing what it can to establish a strong footing in Upstate New York, appearing at numerous outdoor events and offering volunteer days.
“I’ve been trying to capitalize on the fall weather, where it’s so beautiful and people are out walking around and going to the different outdoor events,” Mattson said. “So I’ve been capitalizing on that, so there have been times when I drive back to Florida and spend the night, and then I load up the bus again and drive back.”
“I’ve had people come here and say, ‘We’ve been looking for a puppy to adopt for over a year.’ And here, I have 100 of them down in Florida, waiting to get their turn up here,” Mattson continued. “And they’re healthy, and they’re vaccinated and ready to go to a home. … When you deal with us, we have them off on the right foot to be able to go into your home and be a lifelong pet.”
Lucky Puppy charges adoption fees, but a majority of income is via monetary donations, Mattson said.
“We do charge an adoption fee for the dogs, which helps to kind of go back and cover the vet work that we’ve done, the vaccines, the spay surgeries, things like that,” said Mattson.
Donations help cover the costs of utilities, insurance, vehicles, fuel, and more, said Mattson. She said the organization, like many others of its kind, is in need of funding.
“We have to feed them, house them. We vaccinate everybody, we do flea and tick prevention every month for every dog, which is thousands of dollars,” Mattson said. “Especially when funding isn’t coming in to support that.”
Mattson said the situation with strays and owner surrenders is “overwhelming,” mentioning a crate with four dogs that was left at her home’s carport, and that the organization recently rescued roughly 40 dogs from a house in Florida.
“We operate on such a spectrum. I need money down there to take care of those dogs that we just rescued, and then I need money up here to support our adoption center to be able to get them into homes,” Mattson said. “In order to keep us open and operating, we need monetary support.”
Mattson said Lucky Puppy accepts Venmo and PayPal donations, and mentioned the organization also welcomes volunteer work. Mattson herself is a volunteer, she said, holding an unpaid director position.
She emphasized the work that has gone into Lucky Puppy, saying “we put a lot of effort into it.”
“I also think we could win people over if they come here and see what we do,” said Mattson. “I know this sounds egotistical, but we do a good job. … I live at the farm where the rescue is, my partner and I live there. I’m pretty much 24/7. When babies are being born, I sleep at the kennel and deliver puppies. When puppies are sick, I take them home and care for them there. When I come up here to New York, I stay in the house.
“So I live it, and I know how much we put into it.”
LAKE GEORGE — Fort William Henry will begin renovations on the historic Carriage House in November, converting the building into a new venue for wedding receptions, business meetings, and performing arts programs.
The Carriage House will have a capacity of 460 people in theater-style seating, and 300 people for banquets upon the expected completion in May 2023, according to a press release. The Carriage House will continue to host the Lake George Music Festival, stage productions, and more, along with receptions and meetings.
The renovations are part of a reinvestment into Fort William Henry. $5 million has gone to create premium rooms and renovating rooms and public areas of the Grand Hotel, including the kitchen and bar, the release says. $1 million went into renovating the Fort’s Conference Center, while the Carriage House renovations will cost $3 million according to the release.
“What we are really investing in is the extraordinary beauty of Lake George,” Fort William Henry chairwoman and CEO Kathryn Flacke Muncil said in the release. “There is no place on Earth like Lake George. We are so fortunate to be stewards of this lake and this historic property.”
The Carriage House will be part of over 16,000 square feet of rentable space at the Fort, the release says. Other spaces include the Conference Center (400 capacity theater-style, 250 banquet-style), the White Lion Room (200 capacity theater-style, 150 banquet-style), the Village Blacksmith Restaurant, and Tankard Taverne.
HBT Architects of Rochester created the design for the Carriage House renovations, the release says. BBL Construction Services Inc. of Albany will handle the renovations.
“For both weddings and business meetings, the Carriage House and the surrounding Fort property offer guests nice options to socialize both inside and outside,” said Fort William Henry Corp. president Sam Luciano in the release, mentioning that customer demand for meetings and conferences has rebounded from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first Fort William Henry hotel opened in 1855, the release says. Its Carriage House sheltered horses and carriages of visitors reaching the resort by primitive roads and by rail. It was later used as an early car rental business for visitors arriving via train, and has also housed Fort employees and equipment. Since the 1970s, it has hosted musicals, plays, and concerts under the name Towers Hall.
QUEENSBURY — The Queensbury varsity football team rallied in the second half on Saturday, but couldn’t come all the way back in a 31-21 loss to Ballston Spa at home.
Both defenses held strong early, and neither team was able to score in the opening quarter of play. The Scotties were able to jump out to the lead in the second, with Darrien Insogna breaking free for an 18-yard touchdown run with 5:39 until halftime.
The score gave Ballston Spa a 6-0 lead, but the Spartans responded quickly, with Zavry Ward finding Trevon Bailey for a 16-yard touchdown just two minutes later.
The extra point gave Queensbury an 8-7 lead, but the Scotties had a response of their own, as Blaine Zoller returned the ensuing kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown, giving Ballston Spa a 14-7 lead after a two-point conversion.
The Scotties tacked on as time expired in the half, with Nico Savini connecting with Zoller for a 29-yard touchdown pass. Another two-point conversion sent Ballston Spa to halftime with a 22-7 lead.
The visitors continued to add on in the second half, with Savini breaking free for a 38-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter. The score gave the Scotties a 29-7 lead, but Queensbury wouldn’t go away just yet.
With five minutes left in the third, Ryan Blanchard found the end zone from five yards out, cutting the deficit to 29-14. The Spartans quickly regained possession, and Ward found Blanchard for a 46-yard touchdown to make it 29-21 with 1:13 left in the third.
The Scotties’ defense buckled down, however, and did not allow any points in the fourth quarter. Ballston Spa added to their lead when Isaac Turenne blocked a Spartans’ punt out of the end zone for a safety, bringing the game to its 31-21 final score.
For Queensbury, Blanchard had 28 yards and a touchdown on four carries, and five catches for 98 yards and another score. Bailey had five carries for 31 yards, and a 16-yard touchdown catch, while Isaiah Engel added 21 yards rushing on seven carries.
Ward was 8 of 16 passing for 117 yards and two touchdowns, running for 21 yards on 11 carries.
With the loss, Queensbury finishes the regular season with a 2-6 record (1-4 in the Grasso Division). The Spartans will play at Columbia (2-6) in a crossover game at 6 p.m. on Thursday. Ballston Spa finishes the regular season 7-2 (3-2 Grasso).
Gary & Dylan discuss a Hadley woman charged for alleged involvement in the Jan. 6th, 2021 riot at the United States Capitol Building. Also discussed: repairs to The Shoppe Off Broadway in Salem provided by Lowe’s, a safety check at Glens Falls City School District, the Glens Falls Symphony’s new piece inspired by Charles Frazier’s Cold Mountain, and an infestation of an invasive insect species discovered in Moreau Lake State Park.
00:02 – Intro 00:40 – Ad Break 1 01:20 – Story 1: The Shoppe Off Broadway, Salem 02:57 – Story 2: Glens Falls School District Safety Check 04:06 – Ad Break 2 04:27 – Story 3: Hadley Woman Charged in Connection with Jan. 6 Capitol Riot 06:23 – Story 4: Glens Falls Symphony, “Cold Mountain Suite” 08:03 – Story 5: Invasive Insect Found in Moreau Lake State Park 09:03 – Outro
