Got the Beat
Heart Walk days away, participants are lacing up their shoes for annual fundraiser.
Battle of Plattsburgh returns with annual parade, other events. See photos inside!
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September 19, 2009
Peru woman receives award of distinction
Applefest r etur ns! PERU — St. Augustine’s Annual Applefest will return to the church grounds on Main Street this Saturday, Sept. 19, and Sunday, Sept. 20, from 12-6 p.m., each day. The event, now in its 32nd year, will include food, games, rides, a silent auction, craft fair, games of chance and live entertainment. On Saturday, a parade will start at noon from Peru Central School featuring the Peru High School Marching Band and Police Fyfe and Drum Band. Entries will be welcome until noon. On Sunday, a chicken barbecue will be hosted by Knights of Columbus Council 7273. A quilt raffle and a money raffle, with a top prize of $1,000. will also be held. The day will also include a cake wheel. Admission is free and the event is open to the public.
By Sarah L. Cronk sarah@denpubs.com
many ways. Mainly because people get involved and they’re compassionate and they’re caring towards their friends and their neighbors. It really shows.” Though Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, which has facilities in Rouses Point and Chazy, has traditionally made a contribution toward the local United Way campaign, this year ’s donation was in question, said Bernardi. With the sale of the Wyeth corporation to pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. announced earlier this year and transition of the Rouses Point facility to Akrimax Pharmaceutical current-
PLATTSBURGH — After 35 years as a certified registered nurse, Deborah L. Bell of Peru is being recognized statewide for her hard work and dedication. Bell, an employee of the Skilled Nursing Facility at CVPH Medical Center, was presented with the 2009 Long Term Care Employee of Distinction Award during a ceremony held Sept. 11. The award is presented to 16 employees across the state every year by the New York Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, based in Albany. “We represent 585 notfor-profit and public providers of long-term care services all across the state,” explained NYAHSA president Carl Young. “The genesis of this award really is rooted in the challenge that we ... are finding in attracting people to our field,” Young added. “Young people have so many more choices these days and it has become a real challenge for us to get people to come to the field and stay in our field.” One way NYAHSA has worked to combat the problem was to bring attention “to the people who do the real work,” and focus on the reward of working in longterm care. “Nobody’s going to get rich in our field, but there are rewards that you don’t measure in dollars and cents,” Young explained. The winners of the award are decided upon by the state Assembly, Senate, and numerous other organizations and committees across the state.
See UNITED WAY, page 14
See BELL, page 7
Finding release Hospice of the North Country held its 4th annual Memorial Butterfly Release on the steps of City Hall in Plattsburgh Sept. 13, releasing more than 200 Monarch butterflies into the sky. The event is held each year to help those wishing to celebrate the life of a loved one who has passed away or to honor someone they know. Shirley G. Hanion, Plattsburgh, seen here, was among those releasing butterflies last Sunday. Hanion released a butterfly in memory of Edwin L. Mackey, who passed away in September 2008. Photo by Jeremiah S. Papineau
Local United Way aims to raise $700,000 Pacesetters put organization at 21.6 percent of its goal jeremiah@denpubs.com
Gail Bridge, human resources director for Champlain National Bank, shakes the hand of John C. Bernardi, executive director of the United Way of Clinton and Essex Counties Inc. Champlain National Bank nearly doubled its contribution to the annual United Way fundraising campaign, raising $15,000. Photo by Jeremiah S. Papineau
WEST PLATTSBURGH — And, they’re off. The United Way of Clinton and Essex Counties Inc. officially marked the beginning of their 2009-10 fundraising efforts with their annual fundraising campaign kickoff breakfast at American Legion Post 1619 Sept. 10. The event included the announcement this year ’s campaign team will again seek to raise $700,000 to benefit the 33 partner agencies of the local United Way. John C. Bernardi, the nonprofit organization’s execu-
tive director, announced “pacesetters” — businesses and individuals who begin early fundraising efforts — have so far raised $151,426.62, bringing the campaign to 21.6 percent of its overall goal. Bernardi credited the success of the campaign’s start to the “good cross-section” of those in the community who continue to lend a hand to the United Way. “We’re well-represented and it’s just a tremendous asset, I think, to be so strongly supported by such a wide range of groups and individuals,” said Bernardi. “We’re truly blessed in this region in
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