By Jill Nagy

A new consignment shop, Fashion Follies,  has opened at 32 South St., Glens Falls, next to Peter’s Diner.

“People love consignment stores,” said Lori Arpey  who opened the new venture with her sister Lisa Arpey.

Fashion Follies is almost like two stores in one. One section offers day-to-day items like casual clothing, pocketbooks, and jewelry. The other side features wedding gowns, prom dresses, fancy hats, and other special occasion clothes.

“Everything is gently used” and much of it looks new, Arpey said. Some items still have their original price tags. We want things other places don’t have,” she said.

The store accepts contributions by appointment. They insist that everything be clean and in good condition. 

“If it needs cleaning, we usually ask the consignor to take it back and clean it,” Arpey said. Proceeds are shared equally between the consignor and the business.

The Hyde Collection has appointed Bryn Schockmel, Ph.D., as the museum’s new curator of the permanent collection.

Schockmel, a curator specializing in Italian Renaissance and Baroque art, comes to The Hyde from the Oklahoma City Museum of Art (OKCMOA) and joined the museum staff on Jan. 9.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Schockmel to The Hyde Collection team. A dynamic expert in her field, she is joining The Hyde at an incredibly exciting time as we celebrate the museum’s 60th  anniversary,” said Norman Dascher Jr., CEO. “Dr. Schockmel shares our passion for the mission of The Hyde to maintain a museum for the exhibition of the permanent collection and to promote and cultivate the improvement of the fine arts for the education and benefit of the residents of Glens Falls and vicinity and the general public.

“Through her work at other museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Harvard Art Museums, and The Clark Art Institute, she has applied her academic rigor to bring new insights to art collections that forge interdisciplinary conversations about important topics.”

As curator of the permanent collection, Schockmel will advance the vision of Charlotte Pruyn Hyde by ensuring the 5,000-plus works in the collection advance a greater understanding and appreciation of the museum’s collection among all audiences through research, lecture, and writing. She will plan and execute exhibitions related to the permanent collection.

The state Office for the Aging recently honored 94 older adults for their volunteerism, including Betsey Kagey and Eugene Merlino of Warren County, and Deborah Beahan and Dale Grinnell of Washington County, as part of its annual Older New Yorkers’ Day celebration.

“The word ‘volunteer’ cannot capture fully the accomplishments of this group of incredible individuals,” OFA Director Greg Olsen said in his remarks at the event. “Older adults impress us all with their commitment to a greater good and a greater cause. You tell the real story of what’s good about people, what’s good about New York. Through your deeds and actions, time and again, you show us how valuable you all are to those you touch, to those you serve, to the families and communities and lives you make better.”

Kagey was an asset to the Warren County Department of Public Health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since moving to Warren County, she has volunteered at the vaccination clinic since the effort began. Prior to the pandemic, Kagey offered her knowledge and services to the Warren County Emergency Preparedness Program. 

Her background in public health and environmental health has provided a sound basis for helping develop public health response plans for potential emergencies like chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high yield explosives events. She was chair of a Georgia work- group which provided guidance for developing statewide plans for a public health response to a radiation incident.

Merlino has served his community as a planning board member, a town councilman, and town supervisor for the past 15 years, in addition to sitting on the Warren County Board of Supervisors. Among his many accomplishments, the Lake Luzerne Town Complex and Senior Center stands as a testament to Merlino’s devotion to the town and its older adults. 

The City of Glens Falls innovative Urban Agriculture Project reached a key milestone in December when a one-ton heat pump system was installed on the roof of the Lapham & Parks building at 22 Ridge St.

The three-story building houses the city’s indoor hydroponics project that will grow fresh produce.

The farm will produce leafy greens from cilantro to lettuce as part of a state pilot program and,  if economically viable, will seek to be replicated in other regional cities in upstate New York.

The project, funded by a grant from Empire State Development’s Smart Cities Innovation Partnership, has been in the works for more than a year.  

Pooling together contractors and consultants throughout New York, the project is intended to demonstrate the ability of cities to address the problem of “food deserts” by repurposing older, underutilized industrial buildings into farms that supply upstate New York cities and villages with fresh organic produce.

“The arrival of this ultra-efficient heating and cooling system is both a symbolic and substantive leap forward in our efforts to complete the project and start producing,” said Glens Falls Economic Development Director Jeff Flagg.