According to The Press Republican, Plattsburgh High School music director William Verity will direct the Select Vocal Ensemble for the last time at the Martin Luther King Celebration, 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 15, at the Blessed John XXIII Newman Center, 90 Broad St., in Plattsburgh.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Committee welcomes attendees to this annual celebration, whose theme for 2024 is, “Why we can’t wait: activating our power for equity in justice.”

Read more about William Verity’s legacy with the school and how this concert will pay homage to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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Looking for a fun, active sport that connects you with more people during the long winter? Try Pickleball! A new recreation facility in South Burlington is opening  up this fun sport to beat the winter blues. WPTZ has more.

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Hotels in both Vermont and New York are already gearing up for the solar eclipse coming April 8th.

This eclipse is a rare one — it will be the first total solar eclipse to directly hit the North Country in at least a millennium.

According to the Press Republican,  a partial eclipse on Aug. 21, 2017 brought more than 500 people to the Adirondack Sky Center and Observatory in Tupper Lake and around 1,800 to the Wild Center, but tourism officials expect visitation on April 8 to eclipse that figure many times over.

Mark Breen, Senior Meteorologist and Planetarium Director at the Fairbanks Museum in St. Johnsbury, told Vermont Public that “the path will basically cover all of the Adirondacks and St. Lawrence Valley, and in Vermont, the top of the area will be around Montreal, and the lower part of the area will run near Middlebury, Montpelier, St. Johnsbury and Bethlehem, New Hampshire.”

While we haven’t had a nor’eastern storm yet, it’s still early in the season. Here are some GREAT tips on how to prepare your home and car for a winter storm from our friends at WPTZ:

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While announcing the schedule for the annual celebration, “Highlight,” director of Burlington City Arts alludes to difficult times the City of Burlington has faced.

She noted that an even like  Highlight, Kraft said, is an event which will provide Burlington with a chance to harness and refresh its meaning of community.  New Year’s Eve with the everlasting symbolism of “out with the old” and the rebirth of new possibility fits in with the theme of Highlight.

SEE FULL ARTICLE BY BRENT HALLENBACK OF BURLINGTON FREE PRESS HERE

From stories of gentling wild mustangs with The Project Equestrian, scooter riding dogs in Essex to record-breaking fundraisers for Camp Ta-Kum-Ta, 2023 was a year of many positives in the midst of some tough challenges with the flooding in the North Country. Even celebrity boosts from Luis Guzman on Jeopardy and eyebrows raised for a Rod Stewart look-alike in Vergennes, we had quite an eye-popping year. Scroll through some of our favorite stories in Backyard Burlington’s Positive News or check out these fun video favs from our friends over at WPTZ:

Video Highlights of 2023 courtesy of WPTZ HERE

If you’re stumped on what to do this New Year’s Eve, there are LOADS of events going on both sides of the lake! From Karaoke fun at Park Place in Essex Junction, Vermont to Fulton’s Folly at Whiteface Lodge – take a peek at these listing to find something to ring in 2024!

Vermont – click HERE

New York – click HERE

ELIZABETHTOWN, NY – (Courtesy of the Press Republican)

Thirteen years ago, John Konowitz got a few high school coaches together and started the Judy’s Alzheimer’s Awareness Basketball Tournament.

His purpose was to give thanks to the many players and parents who would help watch over his wife — then starting to wander as she struggled with the disease — as he was coaching individual or team clinics on the court.

“Our goal is always to keep the money local and to benefit our youth,” Chris Korowitz said. “ Last year we were able to award scholarships of $500 each to 25 participating senior players, as well as donate $3,000 to the Third Age Alzheimer’s Day Care Center.

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BURLINGTON, Vt. — Courtesy of WPTZ

First responders and organizations from across Vermont took on the role of Santa’s Helpers on Thursday afternoon at the 13th annual Operation Fire Cuffs.

Around 45 organizations took part in the event, donating and collecting gifts throughout the year, that were brought to the University of Vermont Medical Center. Volunteers said on Friday, families of children spending their holidays in the hospital will pick out presents for their kids.

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Last week, a familiar face was thought to have been in the littlest city, Vergennes.  A sighting of the famous couple– Rod Stewart and his wife Penny Lancaster, made quick local news and then a few more confirmations about Rod’s whereabouts proved that it wasn’t the celebrity couple after all.  Darn.

See the follow up to the full ORIGINAL story here. written by Dan Bolles of Seven Days.