Category Archives: Health / Community Services

Noted researcher Dr. Paul Arciero has devoted his career to helping people get more active and eat more natural, healthier foods.

It all started in the dirt of a community garden.

“Some of my fondest childhood memories come from tending that garden with my mother,” Arciero said, recalling the hot summers harvesting in rural Connecticut. “Going there with her, tending to the earth, getting dirty – that was my introduction to healthy nourishment.”

The key themes of fitness and family continue with some of Arciero’s latest work as well. He recently developed a new app, with help from his son Nick, a developer and coder. The GenioFit app lets a person know what they should eat and when they should exercise, Arciero said. He leads exercise videos in the app, as well as guided meditations.

“GenioFit embraces all the fundamental premises and mission of the research I’ve done, the organizations I represent, and who I am,” Arciero said. “It’s imperative that we engage in lifestyle strategies that engage healthy eating and exercise. There’s a synergy that lets us derive a significantly greater benefit when the two are together.”

He has spent 25 years at Skidmore College where he is a professor of nutrition and exercise science and director of the Human Nutrition & Metabolism Laboratory.

Arciero has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific journals, but his education in the world of healthy living didn’t all come from the classroom or the laboratory.

The Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health (SCCCMH) named Judge James E. D. Doern as its 2017 Citizen of the Year. 

Judge Doern was honored at the group’s Mental Health Matters benefit at Longfellows Restaurant on May 3.

According to the mental health organization, Judge Doern’s community commitment dates to the early 1990s, beginning with his work with Rotary and continuing through the present with his dedication to a number of advocacy and human services organizations. 

As Saratoga Springs City Court Judge for 18 years, he recognized the impact of un-met mental health, addiction, housing, transportation, and employment needs on people’s ability to function happily and productively in our community.  As a result, Doern has worked tirelessly to improve the scope and collaboration of the community’s services.

In 2015, he was the force behind the establishment of a monthly gathering of human service providers, the mental health and substance abuse coalition. The purpose of this group is to identify and then rectify gaps in the continuum of care.

This high-rise apartment complex on South Federal Street, Stonequist Apartments, is one of the Saratoga Springs Housing Authority’s complexes that is now smoke free.

Courtesy Saratoga Springs Housing Authority

Saratoga Springs Housing Authority said in April that to protect the health and safety of its residents it has implemented a no-­smoking policy in all 339 of its housing units. It also limits smoking elsewhere on its properties.

The policies went into effect May 1.

“We are proud to take this important step in protecting the health and safety of our residents, employees and visitors,” said Executive Director Paul Feldman.”Whether it’s second-­hand smoke filtering into neighboring apartment or common areas through doorways and ventilation systems, or the fire dangers associated with cigarettes, smoking presents risks that needed to be addressed.”

The policy is in effect at all three of the authority’s housing complexes: Jefferson Terrace, Vanderbilt Terrace and Stonequist Apartments.

In addition to prohibiting smoking indoors, the policy establishes a 25-­foot smoke-­free boundary around all outside entrances and exits and windows and a 50-­foot smoke-­free boundary around the authority’s playgrounds.

Feldman said the policy was discussed and developed over the past year in collaboration with Glens Falls Hospital’s Health Promotion Center, through its state-­funded Living Tobacco-­Free Initiative.

Laurie Nelson,Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health Citizen of the Year .

Courtesy Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health

Laurie Nelson was selected as the Saratoga County Citizens Committee for Mental Health 2016 Citizen of the Year for her 30-plus year career serving people living with mental illness.

Nelson was honored on May 4 at the Mental Health Matters benefit at Longfellows Restaurant.

Nelson was formerly the deputy director for Transitional Services Association, where she worked for many years and in several capacities. She began her career working for the state Office of Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities, which is now the Office of Persons with Developmental Disabilities.

After joining Transitional Services Association, she worked in the community residences and served as a program supervisor for Hammond House.