“You compartmentalize,” said Valerie Ackroyd. “You put it out of your head that you're looking for human remains. It’s a job. You have to do your job.”

Westerlo Supervisor Matt Kryzak is unhappy that the headquarters of the Westerlo Rescue Squad, which ceased operations at the end of 2019 but hasn’t yet officially dissolved as an organization, is being used by its membership for storage of personal vehicles instead of something that could benefit the town. 

Nadia Raza has decided to close Joe’s Tavern, opting out of the property’s rent-to-own contract amid a cancer battle. However, she plans on reopening the much beloved Curry Patta wherever she can find a location. 

The company was awarded a bid on Tuesday night that allows it to lay down nearly 40 miles of cable that will provide broadband access to 301 homes in the town of Westerlo; the project is funded with a $1.7 million federal grant. 

This week, the Rensselaerville Town Board moved ahead with a law that would — on paper, at least — allow marijuana dispensaries to operate in the town, scheduling a public hearing for Sept. 28. Meanwhile, discussion about another law, which would regulate Airbnbs and other short-term rentals, was paused for lack of urgency.

In a letter to the Westerlo Town Board this week, the town’s planning board chairman, Beau Loendorf, requested that the planning board be allowed oversight of the new firehouse project sought by the local volunteer fire department, which is believed to be immune to local zoning. 

Katherine Dieckmann, Westerlo

Laurie Searl, Berne

It took responders nearly 24-hours to find Wesley L. Knapp, an 82-year-old man from Pennsylvania who was declared missing the night of Sept. 10 after phoning his wife to let her know he was stuck in mud in the Stage Road area of Berne. 

WESTERLO – Hazel G. Flagler — a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother — died peacefully on Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023 at her residence. She was 81.