The Peru Gazette

Bob Howard emailed a link to a video Susan Drapeau made of the Little Ausable River Trail.  It’s made from a bicyclist perspective as Susan traveled from Heyworth/Mason Park to Sullivan Park.  Click here to view the Susan Drapeau video.

On Monday, October 27^th at 6:30 p.m. the Board will hold a public hearing to elicit comment on the proposed extension of water and sewer service on both sides of the Bear Swamp road (State Route 442) from the current terminus of the district immediately west of the Dashnaw Road east to the I-87 right of way. All board meetings are open to the public.

The Peru Town Board will hold a Special Meeting tonight Tuesday, October 13 at 6:15 p.m. at the Town Hall.

The Board will consider a resolution to sponsor a grant application to promote cultural activity within the town. The resolution concerns Lance Falcon, Valley Forges Blacksmith.

Come support the Peru Drama Club as Peru students show off their talents on Friday, October 24th! Student performers will be singing, dancing, performing comedy, monologues and playing the piano and guitar. The evening will begin at 7:30 in the Peru Jr./Sr. High School Auditorium. Tickets are $5.00 per person.  The Peru Drama Club has approximately 75 student members.

L-R Kregg Bruno, Jim Douglass, Janet Duprey, Peter Glushko, Adele Douglas, Brandy McDonald, Donald McBrayer

Story by John T. Ryan

Photos by Tim Mitchell

Developing a walking trail in Peru’s hamlet was first suggested in about 2005. On Sunday, October 5, 2014, years of discussions, planning, grant writing, financing, and construction climaxed at a Ribbon Cutting Opening Ceremony for the Little Ausable River Trail. Click here for individual photos. Click here for slideshow. 

An estimated 125 people gathered to begin their 1.25 walk to Heyworth/Mason Park. The ribbon cutting took place at the Route 22 entrance to the trail. At Heyworth-Mason Park Master of Ceremonies Garry Douglas welcomed Assemblywoman Janet Duprey, Supervisor Peter Glushko, James Dawson, a Board member of Parks and Trails New York, and Karen Derusha, Clinton County Health Department’s Principal Educator.

Thanks were extended to the generous donations of property easements by landowners Winnfried and Stephanie Holderied, Cortland Forrence, John and Penny Clute, James Clute and Michael Thompson.

The Federal Transportation Enhancement Program, the Federal Recreational Trails Program, Parks and Trails New York and the Town of Peru funded the project. The Peru Lions Club, Stewart’s Shops, The North Country Chamber of Commerce Community Development Fund and Peru’s Aubuchon Hardware also gave generously to fund trail amenities. Steven Fuller Excavating constructed the trail. Town of Peru employees put the finishing touches on the project.

Garry Douglas took the occasion to present a bouquet of flowers to his wife Adele who wrote the Town of Peru’s grant applications for the $1.06 million project. Grants funded approximately 75% of the total project cost.

The Peru Gazette is grateful to Tim Mitchell for his wonderful photos.

Peru – There was a record turnout for today’s 4th Annual Walk of Faith sponsored by St. Augustine’s Church, the Peru Community Church, the Catholic Daughters and the Knights of Columbus. Following prayer and opening ceremonies the walkers traveled down Main Street to Heyworth/Mason Park and the Little Ausable River Trail. After the two-mile walk many enjoyed a delicious pulled pork dinner at St. Augustine’s Parish Center’s Paul Calkins Hall.  The dinner proceeds will benefit the the Mission of Hope and the Community Church’s Jamaica Project. Click here to see individual Walk of Faith Photos. Click here to see a slideshow. 

Peru – Approximately 300 runners participated in today’s 4th Annual Octoberfest Half Marathon and 10K Run. Runners departed from the Peru Fire House, ran down the Bear Swamp Road to Main Street, over to the Union Road, back to Elm Street and west on Pleasant Street before arriving at the Peru Gazette’s position at the corner of Pleasant Street and the River Road. We were able to capture a photo of most runners. Congratulations to all the participants! What a great way to assist a worthy cause. The Chip Hamilton family assisted by friends, family and community members started the event four years ago to honor Chip who passed away in 2011, a victim of pulmonary fibrosis. All proceeds benefit the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation.

Click here to view our slideshow. Accompanying music will play on a PC. Individual photos can be found on our gallery view and can be downloaded at no charge by placing your cursor in the upper left corner of a photo.

From the Peru Central School

Peru Central’s Board of Education launches its regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 14, 2014 at 6 PM at the school district’s Community Room, adjacent to the main entrance of Peru Jr/Sr High School. An executive session associated with particular personnel matters will take place immediately following the 6 PM start. The school board is slated to reconvene for public session business at approximately 7:00 PM. Anticipated topics include:

• Recognition of Peru CSD as a College For Every Student (CFES) School of Distinction
• Report on community education
• Discussion of a veterans tax exemption survey

A Message from Brandy McDonald, Chairman of the Peru Democratic Party

The Peru Democratic Party’s  “Meet and Greet” will be this Saturday October 11th, 2014 from 4:30 to 8:00 p.m. at Livingood’s Restaurant.

Each year in support of the Peru candidates who are running for election, we have a “Meet and Greet”. We feel that this function is a very important and effective way to get to know the candidates. It also serves as a time to get to know and have some quality time with fellow Democrats and neighbors.

There will be an assortment of free tasty snacks and a pay as you go bar available. As usual we will also be having drawings for some very nice and useful door prizes.

I look forward to seeing you at the “Meet and Greet” this Saturday, October 11th.
Best wishes,

Brandy McDonald
Chairman

On Sunday, October 12th St. Augustine’s Church and the Peru Community Church will host their 8th Annual Walk of Faith. Registration will be behind St. Augustine’s Church from 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Ceremonies at 12:30 p.m. followed by a walk on Peru new walking trail. A pulled pork dinner will be held from noon to 3 p.m. in Paul Calkins Hall at the St. Augustine’s Parish Center. The dinner proceeds will be divided equally between the Community Church’s Jamaica Project and the North Country Mission of Hope. Walkers will only be charged $6 for the dinner, walking children 12 and under $3.  The non-walker price is $8 and $4.  All are welcome and encouraged to attend! Click Here for walk and dinner details

Here’s the Agenda Regular Mtg Agenda 9Oct2014

Harkness –  On Sunday October 19th any time between 4:00 and 6:30pm, bring your family and meet your friends at the Harkness United Methodist Church Hall, 776 Hallock Hill Road, Peru (corner of Harkness & Hallock Hill Roads) to enjoy one of the North Country’s most delicious traditions; the Harkness United Methodist Church’s Chicken & Biscuit Dinner. This is the 107th year that the church has presented this mouth-watering feast for fans who come from far and wide to savor the chicken & biscuit meal, served with mashed potatoes, gravy, squash, peas, cole slaw, beverages and dessert.

Dinners for Adults are $9.00, Seniors pay $8.00, Children ages 6 – 12 are $5.00, and Pre-schoolers eat free. Take-out meals are available and our new system has decreased the wait time considerably! If you are able, please bring a donation of non-perishable food for our Food Shelf collection. We would love to exceed the total that we collected last year. Hope to see you there!

By John T. Ryan

Last Thursday evening, October 2, 2014, the Town Board accepted the Tentative Budget prepared by Town Supervisor Peter Glushko and the process of finalizing a 2015 Town Preliminary Budget is underway. Glushko told the Board that he used $140,000 from the Town’s fund balance to keep the Tentative Budget $53,212 below the estimated 2% NYS imposed tax cap. He emphasized, “Our goal is to not exceed the tax cap, but we can’t guarantee that at this time. We have to examine budget requests and learn the exact tax cap percentage.” Health insurance rates continue to be challenging. Glushko said he anticipates a 12% increase in health insurance costs.

The Board scheduled its budget workshops to take place from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Town Hall. The general public is welcome to attend any and all workshops.

• October 8^th (Wednesday) – General portion of budget, which primarily includes the programs and activities originating in the Town Hall.
• October 14^th (Tuesday) – Valcour Sewer
• October 16^th (Thursday) – Highway Department
• October 20th (Monday) – Water Department
• October 23^rd (Thursday) – Salaries
• October 29^th (Wednesday) – Only if necessary

Northern New York. A serious crop disease called northern stem canker has been confirmed for the first time in Northern New York soybean fields as part of the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded NNY Corn and Soybean Disease Diagnosis and Assessment Database building project.

NSC occurs in most Midwestern states and in Ontario, but Cornell Plant Pathologist Gary C. Bergstrom says the finding in Jefferson County in northern NY and in six other counties elsewhere in the state is the first confirmation of NSC in New York or the northeastern U.S.

Reported yield losses to NSC in the Midwest have ranged from minor to in excess of 50 percent.

With additional funding from the New York Soybean Check-off Program, Cornell Cooperative Extension/CCE Field Crop Educators Michael E. Hunter and Kitty O’Neil scouted soybean production fields in all six northern NY counties: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence.

Hunter and O’Neil recorded observations on field conditions and diseases, and collected and sent plant samples to the Field Crop Pathology Laboratory at Cornell University for positive diagnosis of suspected disease problems.

‘One option soybean producers can immediately consider to manage NSC is to plant canker-resistant varieties,’ says Hunter, who works with farmers in Jefferson and Lewis counties. Read more »

PLATTSBURGH, NY Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York announces the 2014 Women of Distinction honorees for Clinton, Essex, Franklin & Hamilton counties: Devi Momot – CEO, Twinstate Technologies – Distinguished Trailblazer; Tonia Finnegan – Materials Operations Controller, Graymont- Distinguished Community Leader; Kaysie Kyler – Distinguished Personal Achievement; Christine Darrah – Distinguished Leader of Tomorrow (age 17-21). These women will receive their recognition at a dinner event at the Westside Ballroom, 253 New York Road in Plattsburgh, NY on Thursday, September 25, 2014 from 6pm-9pm. Tickets are $60 each or $600 for a table of 10 and can be purchased online. The event will include an extensive silent auction with proceeds benefiting Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York. For more information, please contact Sandra Grady, Director of Fund Development at Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York (518-348-1413 x408).

Women of Distinction (WOD) is a nationwide program of Girl Scouts of the USA that recognizes the achievements of women. Since 1985, Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York has been hosting WOD events in different areas of the council from Plattsburgh to Albany. The council covers 15 counties in Upstate New York and serves nearly 11,000 girls. Honorees are awarded for their strength of character, dedicated community service, emphasis on life-long learning, along with their dedication to fostering self-confidence and leadership skills in others. Many women who are leaders in their fields credit Girl Scouts with helping them to build the set of skills that paved their road to success.

View Online: http://readme.readmedia.com/Women-to-be-Honored-for-Excellence-by-Girl-Scouts-of-Northeastern-New-York/9746318

Architectural drawing of new facility

By John T. Ryan

The Peru Federal Credit Union moved into its current Davey Drive location in 1998. By July 2015, it should be celebrating the opening of a new and greatly expanded facility still on the Bear Swamp road, but closer to the Adirondack Northway. Dignitaries and staff members participated in the groundbreaking ceremony yesterday at the new location, directly across from Livingood’s Restaurant and adjacent to the the Peru Veterinary Clinic.

Credit Union Board of Directors and Supervisory Committee

L-R – Staff members Nicole Prentiss, Dianne King, Morgan Kowalowski, Abbey Shay and Maggie Pope assisted by Assemblywoman Janet Duprey

Credit Union CEO Maggie Pope is enthusiastic about several aspects of the new building. She explained, “With 2,100 members we’ve outgrown our current facility. The new building is built with growth in mind. We’ll be offering additional services including a 24-hour ATM and a two-lane drive-thru. We’ll also have a larger lobby and more office space.” At 3,400 square feet, the new building will be almost 2.5 times larger than the current building.

The Peru Federal Credit Union is comprised of employee groups; all the entities involved in the construction project are credit union members. Pope told those assembled, “Our new building is being built by our members for our members.” The general contractor is Steven E. Fuller Excavating, the engineering firm is AES Northeast, the heating and refrigeration contractor is A. Hogan Refrigeration and Mechanical, the electrical contractor William J. Murray and the security firm is Security Concepts. Employees from these firms along with employees of the Peru Central School, AuSable Valley Central School and other businesses and institutions comprise the credit union’s membership.

Peru Town Supervisor Peter Glushko expressed satisfaction regarding the credit union’s expansion. He stated, “The members will appreciate the expanded services and the development along Bear Swamp Road is good for the town. We’re extending the water district to the Northway (I87). I’m hopeful that more businesses will be locating there.”

The Peru Credit Federal Credit Union’s Current Facility

The Bear Swamp Road I87 Exit 35 offers easy access to the credit union, restaurants such as Subway, Dunkin Donuts, McDonald’s, Livingood’s and Pasquale’s along with a gift shop, a financial service office, medical offices and insurance agencies. It’s also an often-used exit for Peru, Keeseville, AuSable Forks and Adirondack Region visitors and residents.

From the Office of Congressman Bill Owens

WASHINGTON—Yesterday Congressman Bill Owens spoke at the Canadian/American Border Trade Alliance’s (Can/Am BTA) Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. The event focused on infrastructure improvements, trade facilitation reforms, and the effective management of the U.S./Canada border.

“Our northern border is the backbone of the largest economic relationship in the world,” said Owens. “Investing in improved border services with our Canadian partners and implementing technological innovations in border management encourage the uninhibited growth of secure trade and tourism, growing the U.S. economy and supporting local business communities on both sides of the border.”

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics, U.S.-Canada freight value totaled $55.2 billion in July 2014, a 10.5 percent increase over the previous year. Read more »

John Bruno on September 25, 2014

John T. Ryan

The Peru Gazette planned to make a phone call to John Bruno this morning to ask a few follow-up questions before publishing an article about his service to our community. Bruno’s Ford tractor pulling his red wagon filled with Valehaven Adult Home and Assisted Living residents has been familiar sight in Peru’s neighborhoods for several years. Unfortunately, John Bruno was not able to answer our questions. The 80-year old Schuyler Falls farmer passed away yesterday. A story about his life appears on today’s Press Republican obituary page.

Valehaven residents accompanied by Living Coordinator Debbie Pierce (3rd on left)

Last Thursday, September 25, 2014, John Bruno was sitting in his truck outside Valehaven while he waited patiently for residents to finish lunch. He pointed out the dog bed on the truck’s front seat and explained how is dog “Georgie” loved that bed. Asked why he came to Valehaven, Bruno responded, “One time years ago I was in the hospital for several weeks. I know how much people need visitors and to get outside. Today I’m taking them through those neighborhoods over there (Button Brook) and then down the Mannix Road.”

John Bruno in the September 20, 2014 Applefest Parade

This morning Valehaven’s Resident Care Coordinator Lindsey Ashline wiped away tears as she said, “It’s heart-breaking. John was here on Saturday. He visited us three times a week. Everyone looked forward to his visits and the residents loved Georgie.” Ashline said staff members and many Valehaven residents plan to attend the celebration of John’s life at his Schuyler Falls home tomorrow afternoon.

John Bruno departs from Valehaven for his last wagon ride for residents

While some people describe John Bruno as being outspoken and not afraid to speak his mind, the people at Valehaven remember him as being soft-spoken, warm-hearted and humorous. He brought a sense of joy each time he visited. When interviewed by The Peru Gazette John Bruno did not boast about many of the things mentioned in his obituary. He appears to have been a man who loved and served his neighbor. His actions spoke louder than his words. He will be missed by many people in this community.

Here is his obituary.

SCHUYLER FALLS – John Albert Bruno, 80, of Route 22B, passed away Monday, Sept. 29, 2014, at his home with his loving family by his side. He was born July 2, 1934, in Schuyler Falls, the son of the late Clarence C. Sr. and Florence A. (Brelia) Bruno. Read more »

October 9: Get to Know Alice Morse Earle
Historian Susan Reynolds Williams, author of Alice Morse Earle and the Domestic History of Early America, will be here on Thursday, October 9 at 7:00 p.m. to talk about this important figure in the Colonial Revival movement. Earle’s books about Colonial history, domestic life, and material culture were valued resources for collectors like Alice T. Miner.
November 13: Sounds of the Northway

Join us at 7:00 p.m. on November 13 for an evening of song with Sounds of the Northway. One of the North Country’s favorite musical groups, Sounds of the Northway performs a variety of genres, including traditional and contemporary folk songs, historical and contemporary songs about women’s history, and liturgical music.

Let’s talk about North Country’s flood of rape, sex violence « The In Box.

North Country kids are all right really « The In Box.

Gary Edwards was kind enough to provide The Peru Gazette with a few photos from Saturday night’s 2014 Peru Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Banquet. Cameron Riggs, Nicky Viti – Duprey and John Rock were present. Jennifer Goette is in Gamba, Africa with the Peace Corp. Jennifer’s father came from Oregon to speak on her behalf. Travis Angevine was in Asia on business and was leaving Taiwan for home and couldn’t get a connection to arrive in time for the banquet.

If anyone else has banquet photos, the Gazette would be happy to post them.
Banquet

Bernie Steuart (left) and his escort

Larry McSweeney escorted by his step-grandson Tim Mitchell

Ted Soucia escorted by his wife Marie

By John T. Ryan

Longtime Peru residents and military veterans Ted Soucia, Bernie Steuart and Larry McSweeney are Washington D.C. bound today as they are honored for service to our country by the North Country Honor Flight.

Larry McSweeney, a longtime member of the Peru Volunteer Fire Department, was ready to go when two fire trucks, an ambulance and several fire fighters arrived at his Pleasant Street home at 6 a.m. this morning.  Ten “Plattsburgh Hog” motorcyclists led the procession to the U.S. Oval.

Clinton County Legislator Peter Keenan is also on the flight. He is escorting Willsboro resident and U.S. AIr Force veteran Thomas Thornton.

Click here to see Larry McSweeney being picked up and the ceremonies at the U.S. Oval and Clinton County International Airport. 

Please turn up your speakers to enjoy the music. 

Larry McSweeney’s step-grandson Chris Mitchell assists

Daisy Jopling will be attending Peru CSD on Friday, October 3^rd to work with Mezzo and Avanti String students and Music Teacher Mrs. Fitzsimmons during their regular class meeting times. Daisy’s producer and program administrator will be attending as well.

The String Pulse Experience (https://youtube.com/user/daisyjopling) is a totally free, highly professional, program for music and dance students of the Adirondacks. It will give young artists an opportunity to participate in music and dance training which will last through the spring of 2015 and end with a grand finale onstage at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts.  The students will perform with Daisy Jopling and her band in an original show that features soaring melodies, exciting rhythms from around the world, spoken word and beats, and body percussion written for youth. Daisy has created a spectacular evening that mixes classical music and rock.

Daisy and The String Pulse Experience debuted in Westchester County, NY and performed in April 2014 to a sold-out crowd at the Paramount Hudson Valley Theatre in Peekskill.  Daisy was born in London, England and now lives in NY State. She has toured the world with the creative string trio, “Triology” (www.triology.cc) and with her own band, the Daisy Jopling Band. Her credits include playing at the opening of the Vienna Festival for 30,000 people (May 2004, 2005), writing music for many films (such as arranging and recording with Triology the music of Hans Zimmer in Hollywood, “Spanglish” and “The Road to El Dorado”), and recorded 7 CDs, two with BMG RCA Victor.

An apple-loving man of the cloth – Press-Republican: News.