Discover Saratoga announced the hiring of Alyssa Foote as manager of weddings, sports, and sales events.
Foote brings a combined eight-plus years of planning, coordination, and hospitality experience to the role. She has worked in a variety of market segments, most notably weddings and social.
She has previously worked at the Courtyard by Marriott and Excelsior Springs Event Center and the Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls. She will work with new couples and showcase Saratoga as a premier wedding destination and work with meeting groups.
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Lemery Greisler LLC recently announced that Claire McRae has been promoted to member.
McRae has been with the Capital Region business law firm since the start of her legal career in 2011. She concentrates her practice in the areas of corporate and transactional law, including mergers and acquisitions, as well as the formation and day-to-day operation of corporations, limited liability companies and other business entities. She also practices estate planning and estate settlement, which includes the drafting of wills and trusts as well as the representation of fiduciaries, beneficiaries, and creditors in estate probate and estate administration.
Prior to graduating law school at Boston College, McRae interned with the Albany County District Attorney’s Office and the Schenectady County Probation Department. She is admitted to practice in New York state and is a member of the American Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, and the Saratoga County Bar Association.
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Arrow Financial Corp. announced the appointment of Penko Ivanov, CPA, MBA, as chief financial officer, executive vice president, treasurer and chief accounting officer of Arrow and its two subsidiary banks, Glens Falls National Bank and Trust Co. and Saratoga National Bank and Trust Co., as well as its insurance subsidiary, Upstate Agency LLC.
As CFO, Ivanov will be responsible for planning and management of all finance, treasury and accounting functions for Arrow, which reported $3.97 billion in assets as of Dec. 31.
He will be based in the company’s Glens Falls headquarters.
Ivanov most recently served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Bankwell Financial Group Inc. in New Canaan, Conn. Prior to that, he worked in various finance positions for Doral Bank, General Electric Co. and PepsiCo Inc. He began his career with Ernst & Young GmbH in Munich, Germany.
Ivanov holds his MBA, and bachelor degrees in both accounting and finance with a minor in economics from the University of South Florida in Tampa.
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The Dake Foundation for Children announced its 2023 Board of Directors slate, welcoming three new members to its ranks.
Founded by Gary Dake, President of Stewart’s Shops, the Foundation has provided grants to local children with disabilities since 2009 with a focus on inclusion, independence, and fun.
New board members are Pam Fisher, director of community relations for Hudson Headwaters Health Network; Linda Miller, pediatric doctor of physical therapy; and JoAnne Starks, director of marketing for AAFCPAs.
Fisher is a graduate of Syracuse University, and received her M.B.A. from the University at Albany.
Miller joins as a full board member after serving on the Medical Advisory Panel for the past year, a group of specialists and medical professionals whose insights and expertise help steer the grant giving process.
Starks brings with her over 20 years of marketing experience.
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The Saratoga Springs City Council has named Joseph Bruchac III as the city’s first poet laureate.
Bruchac was born in Saratoga Springs and traces his maternal ancestry back to some of the earliest inhabitants, the Abenaki people. He has authored more than 180 books for adults and children. His honors include a Rockefeller Humanities Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Writing Fellowship for Poetry, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native Writers Circle of the Americas.
He holds a B.A. from Cornell University, an M.A. in literature and creative writing from Syracuse and a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the Union Institute of Ohio, as well as several honorary doctorates.
His work as an educator includes three years of teaching in West Africa, and eight years of directing a college program for Skidmore College inside a maximum security prison. With his late wife, Carol, he founded the Greenfield Review Literary Center and The Greenfield Review Press.
His two-year term will run through December 2024.
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Julie & Co. Realty announced the hiring of Daniela D. McKee, Anthony Bonacio, and Jacob Patrick Sewell to its brokerage in Saratoga Springs.
McKee has had 20 years of experience managing properties, including buying and selling residential properties, along with several commercial properties.
Bonacio has an M.S. in accountancy from Siena College and began his career in accounting and finance. After being in the property management business, he decided to pursue his own real estate license.
Sewell worked as a welder and fabricator for several years
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Southern Adirondack Independent Living (SAIL) announced the appointment of Tyler Whitney as executive director.
Marti Burnley, current director, is retiring.
Whitney has been employed at SAIL for the past three years as deputy director and brings an abundance of well-rounded academic and nonprofit work experience to his new role.
SAIL provides an array of advocacy, health insurance, and nursing home transition services to individuals with disabilities and their families. They also loan out a vast amount of durable medical equipment at no cost.
SAIL has offices in Queensbury, the Wilton Mall, and Plattsburgh.
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Equitas Realty has hired Lisa Zibella as the newest member of its team.
Zibella credits her many years in the Spa & Beauty industry, including as a cosmetologist, aesthetician, spa director, educator and business owner, with her understanding of the importance of listening, working with compassion, understanding your product and the market, being resourceful, and the necessity of positioning her clients with a compatible product or service.
Zibella grew up in Hudson, and has lived in San Diego, CA, Northern New Jersey, and Long Island. Having recently returned to the Capital Region, she currently resides in Washington County.
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Wellspring has added six new members to its board of directors.
Wellspring, located in Saratoga Springs, offers programs and services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.
The new Board members are Amy Roman, Cynthia Minuti, Ryan Shaw, Jessica Niles, Deann Devitt and Julia Marco.
Wellspring’s board also consists of Margaret Roohan, president; Karen Sosler, vice president; John Pecora, treasurer; Giovanna D’Orazio, secretary; Jake Behuniak, Margaret Smith Cassier, Shawn Corp, David Cumming, Carmine DeCrescente, Audra Higgins, Dean Kolligian, Lisa Munter and Chief Executive Officer Maggie Fronk.