HNA meeting on Wednesday

The Helderberg Neighborhood Association will host a meeting this Wednesday, June 18, at Sage College's Campus Center at 7 p.m.

A discussion of the Albany Almshouse highlights the agenda. HNA Communications Chair Debra Schramek reports that the keynote guest speaker will be Andrea Lain, who will discuss the history of the Almshouse, provide insight on the site excavations and share insights about the lives of the people of the Almshouse.

Also on the agenda, HNA member and neighborhood resident Ed Mashman will talk about the Albany Tennis Club. Albany Library Board Trustee Dennis Gaffney will also provide a brief status update on the Albany Public Library building projects.

Lain, an archaeologist who has worked in Europe, the Middle East, and on numerous sites in the United States and is the Archeology Collections Manager at the New York State Museum, will discuss the background history of the Almshouse and its cemetery, which was located behind the NYS National Guard Armory building on New Scotland Avenue. Lain will give an overview of the excavations at the cemetery and some of the interesting information retrieved from the people of the Almshouse.