Andrea Adams, founder and former director of The Bridge and a local LGBTQ activist, passed away peacefully at her home in South Glens Falls on January 22. Her loving partner Dennis Belden was by her side.
A memorial service was held on January 28 at Saint Andrew Lutheran Church in South Glens Falls, a welcoming congregation of which Andrea and Dennis were dedicated members. » Continue Reading.
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision in December to ban the use of hydrofracking in New York State was politically astute. The governor asserted he is merely following the recommendations in a new report from the State Health Department, A Public Review of High Volume Hydraulic Fracturing for Shale Gas Development.
That report, based on four years of research, is also politically judicious. It avoids condemning hydrofracking or sensationalizing its potential health risks. Instead, it concludes that “the overall weight of the evidence from the cumulative body of information” studied for the report demonstrates that there are “significant uncertainties about the kinds of adverse health outcomes that may be associated with HVHF [High Volume Hydraulic Fracking], the likelihood of the occurrence of adverse health outcomes, and the effectiveness of some of the mitigation measures in reducing or preventing environmental impact which could adversely affect public health.” The 184-page report is buttressed by 74 references, mostly well-documented studies and reports from the past few years. » Continue Reading.
Ticks carrying Lyme Disease are in the Adirondacks. Join The Wild Center and Paul Smith’s College at 1 pm on Saturday, December 6th, for a forum on Lyme Disease featuring five regional scientists and health professionals who will share their professional knowledge and expertise.
The presenters will include Brian Leydet from Trudeau Institute, Jennifer Gallagher from High Peaks Animal Hospital, Jonathan Krant from Adirondack Health, Tim Sellati from Trudeau Institute and David Patrick from the Paul Smith’s College Adirondack Watershed Institute. » Continue Reading.
A one day summit planned for Thursday hopes to give local organizations a leg-up in the growing “wellness economy”. Organizers say that those involved in outdoor recreation, tourism, health, arts and culture, wellness or local foods are poised to take advantage of a trillion-dollar and growing wellness travel industry focused on nature, outdoor recreation, heritage, arts, culture, local foods and tourism.
“Grow Your Business in the Exploding Wellness Economy” will be held on November 13th, from 10 am to 3 pm at the Lake Clear Lodge & Retreat. Karin Rozell, founder of WellPronet.com, and author of Rock Stars of Wellness will headline the event as both keynote speaker and leader of the afternoon marketing workshop. » Continue Reading.
As I look out on the political landscape this week, I can give in to despair at the sour mood, the anger and the apathy.
Or I can think of this Wilderness 50th anniversary year, which gives us hope. Amidst all the Great Society social justice legislation of President Lyndon Johnson, the Wilderness Act of 1964 may appear “below the fold,” but I cannot remain hopeless for long in reading again the thoughts of the Act’s author Howard Zahniser:
“We are a part of the wildness of the universe. That is our nature. Our noblest, happiest character develops with the influeance of wilderness. Away from it we degenerate into the squalor of slums or the frustration of clinical couches. With the wilderness we are home. ..It is good and sound to realize that in preserving areas of wilderness we are recognizing our own true human interest. It seems good, ethical, to consider ourselves as members of a community of life that embraces the earth – and to see our own welfare as arising from the prosperity of the community.”
» Continue Reading.
Researchers from Paul Smith’s College are finding Lyme Disease in ticks and small mammals in the Adirondack Park.
Paul Smith’s College professor Lee Ann Sporn is heading her college’s involvement in a Lyme Disease study that includes the state Department of Health and Trudeau Institute in Saranac Lake. Trudeau is working to develop a vaccine for Lyme, while Sporn and students are monitoring the disease by testing mammals and ticks for it. Researchers hope to get a better understanding of the biology of the disease, where it is found geographically, and what factors are influencing its spread.
So far, Sporn said that some of the test results have surprised her, including that a high percentage (eight of twelve) of small mammals tested positive for Lyme Disease in Schroon Lake. The animals — mainly mice, shrews and voles — were trapped in the wild. » Continue Reading.
The recent barrage of publicity regarding ebola has focused everyone’s attention on this particularly deadly virus, however, the relatively isolated nature of the Adirondacks makes our region a most unlikely location for an appearance of such a troublesome disease. In our area there are other viruses that are a much greater threat to the health of the general public than ebola.
At this time of year rabies must be given a top priority, as autumn is the time many infected animals are on the move, and for anyone exposed to this virus who fails to get medical attention the outcome is almost always fatal. » Continue Reading.
Deformities like cleft palate once befuddled all dentists and surgeons, none of whom could find reliable, workable solutions to those truly vexing problems. Around the world, tens of thousands of victims suffered as social outcasts due to congenital deformities. Many were unable to speak, but nearly 160 years ago, that began to change. Since that time, millions have been helped, thanks to the work of the Father of Modern Orthodontia—who happens to be a North Country native.
Norman William Kingsley was born on October 26, 1829, in Stockholm, a sparsely populated town in northern St. Lawrence County. The family had moved there from Vermont, but when Norman was four years old, they returned to the Green Mountain State, living at different locations in the Rutland area. » Continue Reading.
My mother always told my sisters and me as she bounced us outside in all kinds of weather that exercise was good for us. She was more right than she knew.
Listen here to my thoughts on the virtues of exercise, and how we humans aren’t the only creatures who require it in this week’s edition of All Things Natural with Ed Kanze.
The podcast is produced by Mountain Lake PBS’s Josh Clement. Listen to past episodes by visiting Mountain Lake PBS’s Borderless North webpage at mountainlake.org/bn.
Suicide, depression and the effects of both are challenging and frightening subjects to discuss. I know. I was in my early 20s when I stumbled upon a friend during her attempted suicide. What transpired was tragic and emotional, but she eventually received the help she needed. Not everyone is so lucky.
This week, September 8-14, is National Suicide Prevention week and two Clarkson students are trying to do their part to raise awareness and funds by climbing all 46 High Peaks. » Continue Reading.
In August, 2013 a flotilla in Suttons Bay, Michigan set a new Guinness world record for the “Largest Raft of canoes and kayaks” at 2,099, breaking the record of 1,902 set in on Fourth Lake in Inlet two years before. Now, the Kiwanis Club of the Central Adirondacks and the One Square Mile of Hope 2014 committee have formed a strategic partnership with the goal of retaking the record on September 13th, while raising funds to aid breast cancer research and awareness.
$10,000 of the proceeds will benefit Breast Cancer research at the Upstate Cancer Center at University Hospital and another $10,000 will be directed toward pediatric cancer care thru the Clara Condie Fund at Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital. The major beneficiary for this year’s event, which hopes to reach $100,000 in total donations, is The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. To participate visit the One Square Mile Of Hope website. » Continue Reading.
The Adirondacks have a long tradition as a place for healing, the most prominent example being the thousands who came to “take the cure” for tuberculosis at the Trudeau Sanatorium in Saranac Lake during the first half of the 20th century.
Not as well known was how the arts were used as a important part of the patients’ treatment and recovery, a process that lead to the establishment of the creative arts therapies. More recently, the benefits of arts was dramatically demonstrated when music used as a critical part of Congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford’s ability to regain her speech following her having been shot in the head during an attempted assassination January 2011. » Continue Reading.
Though most of us don’t talk about experiences regarding suicide, Producer and Film Director Kathy Leichter is bringing her film, Here One Day to Lake Placid and Whallonsburg. She hopes that her own family’s personal tragedy about her bipolar mother’s suicide will help end the stigma of mental illness and suicide.
The film Here One Day is told through the intimate, emotional audiotapes left by a bipolar Nina Leichter (the filmmaker’s mother) after her suicide. This raw film unearths the effects of mental illness, family relationships and the indelible mark that suicide leaves on those left behind.
According to Director/Producer Kathy Leichter the Here One Day screenings are combined with community education nights to create a safe space to share stories about mental illness. She wants to help link the audience to local support. » Continue Reading.
Recent pieces (here and here) in the Adirondack Almanack stressed the importance of placing the Adirondack Park experience and condition in a national context, especially with the rest of rural America. National context is important when trying to ascertain trends in Adirondack Park demographics, economics or land use.
This past weekend, The New York Times data-crunching blog The Upshot published an interactive map that ranked the 3,135 counties in the U.S. by how hard or easy these places are to live. The indicators they chose to create this ease or hardship ranking were median income, unemployment, percent of population with a college degree, disability rate, obesity and life expectancy. The Upshot said these metrics were selected due to the availability of county level data across the U.S., which provided a profile of economic and public health conditions. Disability was not used as a health indicator, but as a data point for the non-working adult population, which was used in conjunction with unemployment. » Continue Reading.
New federal healthcare law will soon change the way businesses and employees obtain health insurance. To help farmers, small business owners and individuals learn about the Affordable Care Act, the Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) Associations of Northern New York will hold free workshops at six regional sites in September.
The CCE workshops will address a wide range of questions including those about the Individual Exchange for sole proprietors and individuals and the Small Business Health Options Exchange. Employers with more than 50 full-time equivalent employees will be mandated to provide workers with health insurance by 2015. Before the end of 2013, employers of all sizes must explain how to obtain health insurance to their employees. Every individual in the U.S. will be required to have health insurance or pay a tax penalty. » Continue Reading.
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