What caught our eye - Feb. 23, 2019

February 23, 2019

Hopkins Memorial Forest in Petersburg, Rensselaer County, home of the Snow Hole underground cave where the snow lasts until June. (John Bulmer)

OLYMPIAN IN EVERY WAY: Denny Allen made it in the hardest place of all: His hometown. He was the longtime general manager of the Lake Placid Olympic Center, like his father before him, and an international ambassador for the community. He may have been best known as the expert ice tender for the speedskating oval where Eric Heiden won five Gold Medals in 1980. After that, he helped Lake Placid chart its post-Olympics future. Jack Laduke, an Adirondack legend himself, brought the story of Denny’s life to Mountain Lake PBS viewers.  http://bit.ly/Olympic_Legend

DANCING THEIR HEARTS OUT: We know already where our eyes will be next weekend — on the 42nd annual South High Marathon Dance at South Glens Falls (NY) Senior High, an iconic local event and one of the leading high school fundraisers in the country. Last year, the South High students raised an incredible $831,000 for people facing tremendous health challenges. Here’s a peek at what’s in store: http://bit.ly/SHDM19Promo. And here’s how you can help: http://bit.ly/SHDMsupport

First-year coach Jamion Christian has helped Siena’s Saints to heights
no one but them foresaw.  (Siena College)

THOSE WACKY MAAC POLLS: So much for that last-place finish the men’s basketball coaches in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference foresaw for Siena. With three regular season games remaining, the Saints are among a cluster of teams chasing Canisius for the regular-season title. With the MAAC Tournament returning to the Times Union Center, might Siena be breaking out its dancing shoes? http://bit.ly/MAACstandings

SPOUSAL SUPPORT: The New York Times takes us inside the lives of UAlbany women’s basketball coach Colleen Mullen and her wife, Lauren, who has set aside her own coaching career to be the primary caregiver for their three children. It’s a choice each would have made to support the other. http://bit.ly/ModernBasketball

AHHH AT THE SPA: The Japanese operator of 37 upscale spa resorts has purchased 86 wooded acres near the Saratoga Spa State Park, apparently to create an Eastern-style retreat. The Business Review’s Robin Cooper had it first: http://bit.ly/AhhhAtTheSpa

EYE ON LAKE GEORGE:  A winter storm swept the nation from Wisconsin to Massachusetts, and the CBS Morning News covered it from winter central – Lake George, N.Y.  http://bit.ly/WinterCentral

SIDEBAR: CBS Correspondent David Begnaud is an interesting story himself. He suffers from Tourette syndrome and credits the neurological disorder with his success. He has been a champion in helping children with Tourette recognize there are no limits on their gifts and opportunities. http://bit.ly/NoLimitsBegnaud

LOOK WHAT THEY’VE DONE TO WOODSTOCK, MA: Woodstock is eligible to join AARP this summer. The golden anniversary of the epic concert will be celebrated on Saturday, July 20, at “BataviaStock” at Batavia Downs. Melanie will be there in person, but Creedence Clearwater Revival, Santana, Sly & the Family Stone, The Who and Janis Joplin tribute bands are also on the schedule. Does Melanie still ride that bike? http://bit.ly/BataviaStock

The College of Saint Rose is becoming a leading national center
for women’s leadership. (John Bulmer)

SAINT ROSE LEADS: She was the first woman in her family to attend college. Now, a College of Saint Rose alumna’s $1.2 million gift will help create a home for the Saint Rose Women’s Leadership Forum as Saint Rose joins the six-college BOLD Women's Leadership Network established in honor of the late Cosmo editor Helen Gurley Brown.   http://bit.ly/SaintRoseGift

CLIFTON BARK’S SWEETER: Our friends at Barkeater Chocolates in North Creek make their debut at Market 32 in Clifton Park.  http://bit.ly/SweetCliftonPark

COLLAR CITY CUISINE: Put this on your calendar for a warm spring Saturday.   http://bit.ly/TasteOfTroy

WHAT’S UP?

HOW ABOUT A LYFT?  Boeing and Uber are collaborating on the development of an electric-powered air taxi that would transport passengers across congested cities like LA and Houston. http://bit.ly/AirTaxiUber

NYC TO DC IN 20 MINUTES? It might not be that far off … if you don’t mind traveling in a vacuum tube. http://bit.ly/600MPH

UP- STEAKS BEST: Morgan and Co. in Glens Falls, Beyond the Sea in Bolton, Max London’s in Saratoga Springs and Angelo’s 677 Prime in Albany make the prime cut among Upstate New York’s best steakhouses. Don’t overlook Saratoga Springs’ Pennells. http://bit.ly/UpSteakNY

GOOD READS

E-SNUB: Here’s one more thing to worry about. The brilliant Adam Grant, author of Originals, warns against ignoring emails. Ah, the perils of digital snubbery.   http://bit.ly/New_Mail

CITIES, GET YOUR QUIRK ON: Hipster bars. Microbreweries. Farm-to-table restaurants. Are America’s cities all marching to the same branding tune?   http://bit.ly/UrbanIdentityCrisis

SOUNDS OF SILENCE: An Italian community falls silent so the sounds of a Stradivarius can be preserved.  http://bit.ly/SoudsOfStradivarius

LIVES

GREAT VOICE SILENCED: Remembering Ken Nordine and his “Word Jazz.’’  http://bit.ly/KenNordine

PARTING WORDS: Geoffrey Turner of Latham, N.Y., was no idiot regardless of what he wrote in his obituary.  http://bit.ly/Parting_Words

THE SIGNOFF

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: Hanna Kinney, the Washington Post tells us, “always gets the ranch.” And a crowd of people packed around a presidential candidate wasn’t going to stop her. http://bit.ly/AlwayGetTheRanch

PLEASE SHARE: Feel free to pass this along to your friends and colleagues.

THANK YOU to our content contributors John Brodt, Bill Richmond, Bill Callen, Lisa Fenwick, Colleen Potter, Kathy Flacke-Muncil, Siena College Communications, The College of Saint Rose, Mountain Lake PBS, and photographer John Bulmer.

FACING OUT: FACING OUT is what we do. We help companies, organizations and individuals work effectively with their most important external audiences – their customers, their shareholders, their communities, the government and the news media.www.behancommunications.com

Facing Out features news and other nuggets that caught our eye, and that we thought might be of value to you, our friends and business associates. Some items are good news about our clients and friends, others are stories that we hope will leave you a bit more informed or entertained than you were five minutes ago. As always, we welcome your ideas and feedback. 

 Let’s make it a conversation: mark.behan@behancom.com

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