The Post-Star from Glens Falls, New York • 9

THE POST-STAR Summertime sugaring The Hudson Maple Producers Association will host a family Farm Expo at the Washington County Fairgrounds on Route 29 on Saturday. PigaM IRIDAY july 27. 2001 Hometown Obituaries 112 lib REGION Police: Firefighter stole from bingo proceeds KEN TINGLEY money that had been put in the safe, and Garvin had some of the money in his pocket when he was arrested, Suprenant said. The police surveillance came after the department became suspicious in January that money was being taken from the proceeds of bingo games it holds as a fund raiser, the chief said. The department then kept a closer eye on the money for three or four months and notified police when it became apparent that money was being taken, Suprenant said.

Fort Edward police Sgt. Walter Sandford and Patrolman By DON LEHMAN dlehmuniotiarami FORT EDWARD A lieutenant with the Fort Edward Fire Department was charged with grand larceny Tuesday night for allegedly stealing more than $4,000 from the department's bingo proceeds, police said. Rodney Garvin, 24, of RD 1, Argyle, was charged with third-degree grand larceny after he was caught on videotape going into a safe in the department to steal cash, Fort Edward Police Chief Mitchell Suprenant said. Police had also photocopied "He wasn't doing it (stealing money) every time they had bingo," Washington County Assistant District Attorney Kevin Kortright said. "He was taking about $135 or so each time." Kortright credited the Police Department for assembling a case that included videotape of Garvin going into the safe and evidence he had money from the safe on him at the time of his arrest.

"The department did a good job with it," he said. Dennis Babson, the Fire Department member who Suprenant said oversaw the Eatery's 'family affair' Brothers John, left, and Sheffield Abbott take a break from their work to family has operated Abbott's Restaurant in South Glens Falls. to end ROB BARENDSE-THE POST-STAR reflect on the 60 years that the rob barendse-the post star known for the best turkey club doors after 60 years. Abbott brothers, cit ing lack of help, to close landmark By JASON McCORD mccordpoststar. com SOUTH GLENS FALLS Come next week, there will be no more turkey club sandwiches piled high with homemade french fries served at the corner of Main and First streets.

Abbott's Restaurant, a popular restaurant and bar in South Glens Falls, will close its doors Monday night after 60 years as a family-run business. John and Sheffield Abbott "twin brothers, two years apart" they joke have been running the business since 1984 when they took over the restaurant from their brothers, George and Francis Abbott. George and Francis Abbott opened the business in 1941, Sheffield said, and it's been a family-run restaurant ever since. Not much has changed at Abbott's Restaurant over the years, John said, from the cushioned booths to the old-style telephone booth near the bar. Many of the restaurant's customers haven't even changed, with a steady stream of regular customers still stopping by for lunch or dinner a couple times a week.

With steady customers, business hasn't been the problem for the Abbotts. Rather, Abbott's Restaurant will close on Monday because the brothers can't find steady help. With businesses such as Target and Home Depot opening in Wilton, John said they can't compete with the $ll-an hour plus benefits that the chain stores can offer. Their part-time kitchen worker who helps John cook just got a job at Target a day after applying, John said. Sheffield said they've been thinking about selling the busi- Paul Krug began an investigation that included setting up video surveillance of the safe and copying money.

In all, $4,010 was believed missing, Suprenant said. In a statement to police Garvin admitted taking about $3,500, saying his family was having trouble making ends meet because of an illness of a child. Police believe Garvin used a key to get into the department after hours and knew the combination to the safe. He would remove a few bills each time from each pile of money in the safe, Suprenant said. Abbott's Restaurant, a local landmark sandwich in the region, will close its County and the Rutland, Vt, area dating back to at least 1999.

"I don't know if they've been a group that long but at least one of them is a suspect in two burglaries in Queensbury in 1999," Warren County sheriff's Sgt. Robert Swan said. Swan said police had identified at least a dozen burglaries in which the men were strong suspects. Warren County sheriff's officers were also looking into whether the men were involved in the Feb. 22 fire that destroyed boat storage buildings and 70 Please see LOOT.

Page B7 Correction iT'rPhr bingo program, declined comment on the case Thursday. Fire Chief Matt Altizio could not be reached for comment. It was unclear Thursday if Garvin had resigned from the department, but Suprenant said he understood he had turned in his firefighting equipment. Garvin was arraigned before Fort Edward Village Justice Joseph Malvuccio and sent to Washington County Jail for lack of $10,000 cash bail or $20,000 bond. He posted bail and was freed Wednesday.

Third-degree grand larceny is punishable by up to seven years in prison. Man, 38, drowns in Spa City reservoir By GRETTA NEMCEK nemcek'poststar SARATOGA SPRINGS A 38-year-old local man swimming with two friends in Loughberry Lake near the Greenfield-Saratoga Springs line drowned Thursday night, police and firefighters said. Police would not disclose the victim's name because his family hadn't been notified. Saratoga Springs police received a 911 call at 7:25 p.m. Thursday stating that a person may have drowned in the north end of the lake.

Police arrived and spoke to two men who were with the victim, as well as a third independent witness. They confirmed that the three men were swimming together and only two emerged from the water. Members of the Saratoga Springs Fire Department searched the lake and shoreline for the missing man without success. The search was then turned over to the Saratoga County Sheriff's Department, and divers recovered the man's body at 9:50 p.m., Saratoga Springs police Capt. Robert Flanagan said late Thursday.

An autopsy will be performed at Saratoga Hospital. One of the men who was swimming with the victim, Kenneth Lundy of Glenburnie Road, Putnam, was charged with trespassing. The lake, which serves as the city reservoir, is posted. Lundy was being held in the Saratoga Springs jail in lieu of bail, and will be arraigned this morning in Saratoga Springs City Court. The other man swimming with the victim, John Gibson of South Glens Falls, left the scene during the search and police were still searching for him late Thursday.

Flanagan said both Lundy and Gibson had been drinking. The town of Hadley kicks off its bicentennial celebra-uon today with guest book registration and a display of Hadley famify photo albums. PAGE B6 COMMENTARY Area should play to its strengths If you want to see your children again after college, tell them to major in hotelmotel management. That is the economic reality in our world of the weekly layoff announcement, where a good day at the office is when you don't get anything pink in the mail. It's time to face facts.

Giant computer firms and microchip factories aren't going to be landing on these shores anytime soon. Big businesses find New York state about as attractive as Buffalo in February. This is the world north of Roy McDonald. Throw in political in-fighting, government excess (What ever happened with all those Queensbury cars fire stations that rival The Sagamore for opulence, almost no consolidation of services between local communities, and you can see why we're on the fast track to nowhere. If this region wants to move forward, it has to put all its resources into promoting the glory of this region.

We need the New York Racing Association to expand the Saratoga summer meet to eight weeks, tradition be damned. We need to give Great Escape carte blanche on expansion. This is the hand we have been dealt, and the only card we can play is tourism. We have the Adirondacks; we have Lake George; and we have the track in Saratoga Springs. Other regions wish they had it that good.

Beautiful mountains, pristine lakes and quaint downtowns have laid the foundation for the future, but we need more. The notion of an American family only lounging on a beach for two weeks every summer died with the Catskills. The American family not only has to be entertained, it has to be dazzled in a new way each year, and go-karts and miniature golf can only take you so far. That's why you need the race track. That's why you need Great Escape, with a new roller coaster every year even if it's a little noisy and much more.

Stop fighting it, this amusement park could be the golden goose in a golden tourist trade. We should be looking for ways to keep that park open longer in the fall and earlier in the spring. Let's get those war re-enac-tors to fight a battle every week at Fort William Henry. That's what Warren and Washington c6unties need, their own army to entertain on demand. Entertainment and shopping is the future in this region.

Forget about making things. We have to sell them now. It's one of the reasons that the new dinner-and-a-movie place in downtown Glens Falls is drawing so much attention. It's hoped this is another key piece of the puzzle to spur downtown toward Please see TINGLEY. Back Page Deaths Cheryl A.

Ryan Corinth Obituaries, Page B6 'WfPr 3J ness for a couple of years and have put the building on the market. While no one has purchased the building yet, Sheffield said he hopes whoever buys it opens a restaurant. John, 80, and Sheffield, 78, said they're not sure yet what they're going to do now that they don't have to work six days a week. Sheffield said his wife likes to travel so they may take a trip. The brothers agree that the most enjoyable part of owning the restaurant over the years has been the customers who come so often that they know them by first name.

"It's like a family affair, more or less," John said. Many of the customers have been upset by the news of the closing, Sheffield said. "They all keep asking, 'What are we going to do without your turkey club he said. As he ate at the restaurant's long, wooden bar Thursday afternoon, Dan O'Leary of South Glens Falls said he visits Please see BROTHERS, Back Page County sheriff's Investigator Douglas David. Two men had been arrested as of Thursday, one of whom allegedly told an officer he estimated he'd committed 300 to 400 burglaries during his lifetime, police said.

The group was primarily active in the Hague, Ticonderoga and Whitehall areas over the past 10 months or so, with the two men charged in recent weeks with break-ins in Hague and Ticonderoga. But police believe one or more members may also have committed burglaries in Queensbury, eastern Essex 24 26 28 31-38-42-44 46- 68 71 72 77 at Saratoga Lake update Arrests made in burglary ring Police believe gang responsible for crimes in three counties Miff Tv -J' 1 By DON LEHMAN dlehman9poststar.com Police in three counties and Vermont believe a group of northern Warren County men committed a spree of home and business burglaries in the region over the past 18 months that could number in the dozens. Investigators from police agencies in Warren, Washington and Essex counties believe the group of at least three men stole tens of thousands of dollars in cash, jewelry and other valuables during the spree. In some burglaries, they stole $10,000 or more in valuables, said Warren Lottery Thursday's Winning Numbers Numbers 17 Wln- 2-4-5-9 Pick 10 2 5 8 17 MONTY CALVERT-THt POST-STAR The Saratoga Lake Association meeting produced an on lake leveta tor ttte fafl regatta. STORY, PAGE B6 Inside About 3.350 people corrverged on Fort Tconderoga last weekend to vtew one of the first pnrrtjpgs of fre Declaration of Independence.

PAGE B3 The Smoothies will perform at 10 m. today Kjng Neptune's 0" Kurosaka Lane lake Gecge.The peorrrance was inadvertently omitted from the S'js-ca 'y Speaking section of Thursday's Seer. 56-58 63 7-8-9-18-29 64 TakeFh.