Author: Courtney Kless
Courtney Kless
Courtney Kless is the Editor in Chief of Family Times. Courtney is originally from Maryland. She earned her Master’s degree in Magazine, Newspaper and Online Journalism from Syracuse University. Courtney began her career as a sports journalist, then spent several years working in higher education, before joining the company in August 2019. She enjoys traveling, reading and hiking, and recently adopted a Labrador Retriever, Bailey.
Upstate Cord Blood Bank adds St. Joseph’s Hospital Local mothers now have more options when it comes to donating cord blood. The Upstate Cord Blood Bank added St. Joseph’s Hospital to its list of collection sites on June 10. “We are proud to continue former Senator John DeFrancisco’s vision for expanding the cord bank in Central New York, giving families a choice to donate their cord blood to help patients in need of a life-saving transplant,” says Business Manager Ann Marie Straight. “We look forward to growing the program into other upstate regions, making cord blood donation part of each mother’s birth…
Each day, families around the country struggle to afford diapers. Michela Hugo and the CNY Diaper Bank have set out to change that. Founded in May 2016, the organization collects and distributes diapers to local families, and in July, it passed the one million mark for 2020. Family Times recently talked to Hugo, the CNY Diaper Bank’s founder and president, about the organization’s roots and how a shortage of clean diapers can impact families. This interview was edited for length and clarity. Can you start by telling me a little about how the CNY Diaper Bank got started? I learned…
Do you need some fresh air? Are you feeling stressed? These are some of the best places in Central New York to enjoy a walk or bike ride – at a safe distance from others, of course. Beaver Lake Nature Center – Hoping to visit a variety of habitats on your walk? Beaver Lake Nature Center’s nine trails wind through wetlands, meadows, a bog and more. Location: 8477 E. Mud Lake Road, Baldwinsville. More information: onondagacountyparks.com/parks/beaver-lake-nature-center. Baltimore Woods Nature Center – Situated on 180+ acres with plans to expand, Baltimore Woods attracts more than 20,000 visitors each year, according to…
These days, there’s a subscription box for everything – wine, beauty products, clothes, even pickles, if that interests you. Meal kits are a great way to expand your dinner options while you’re in quarantine. For this month’s Treat Yourself, my husband and I tried two meals from Blue Apron. Blue Apron came highly recommended by my parents – they’ve subscribed to the meal kit delivery service for a few years now. When you sign up, it prompts you to choose the menu and number of recipes per week. I selected vegetarian and two meals, but you can do up to…
As online learning continues throughout the area, one school in the Syracuse City School District is using social media as a way to stay connected to its students. “We have been, since we opened, pretty active on Facebook and Twitter,” says Kelly Manard, principal of The Syracuse Latin School. “We’ll often do live events, like a Halloween parade or something like that, and we’ve always gotten a really good response. When we started to need to plan on the fly, some of the different grades added a Facebook group where they’ll be doing a lesson, maybe a science lesson or…
The Positivity Project Club has a motto: #otherpeoplematter. The group has set out to share the importance of building relationships. “We know, statistically, that for students to be successful at school, and then far beyond school, feeling connected to people, staff and their peers is going to set them up for greater success in life,” says Meredith Riggs, the club’s advisor and social worker at C.W. Baker High School. “So that’s really important to us. We want everyone to feel included and welcomed.” The Positivity Project, also known as P2, was already in place at the district’s elementary schools, starting…
Social painting events have grown in popularity in recent years. With that in mind, I headed to The Painting Café in Baldwinsville to get in touch with my inner artist. The Painting Café moved to its current space in the Titcomb Center this past June. According to owner Johnnie-Lynn Fioramonti, painting on canvas is most popular, but they also offer pottery painting, board painting, paint pouring and mosaics (among other things) for individuals and groups of all levels – and you can bring your own adult beverages. “What I try to offer is a relaxing, slowed down, calm environment,” she…
Kayla McKeon’s time with Special Olympics New York began on a soccer field. And it didn’t take long for her parents to also become involved. “She fell in love with it right away,” Mark says. “She made a lot of friends, loved the competition, and just met a whole lot of parents and people in the same situation that we were. We probably watched for about a month and we said, ‘No, we need to get involved.’” Twenty years later, the Central New York family continues to participate year-round, Mark and his wife Patti as coaches, and Kayla as a…
UPDATE: Due to COVID-19 and a recent recommendation by the CDC to cancel or postpone events with more than 50 people for eight weeks (http://ow.ly/OiPg50yMUE1), we have decided that it is in the best interest of our readers to cancel this year’s Kids Expo. Please email [email protected] with any questions. We appreciate your support. The second weekend of February, Triton Robbins competed in a monster truck event in Virginia. The weekend before, he was in Georgia. The next weekend, he was heading to Alabama, followed by trips to South Carolina and Georgia to close out the month. So how…
March has always been one of my favorite months for one reason: college basketball. Though my bracket predictably falls apart in the first round every year, there is nothing quite like an upset. I’m still talking about the time my alma mater, UMBC, defeated top-seeded Virginia, and that was two years ago. But I also happen to be a lifelong Syracuse University basketball fan, so this month’s Treat Yourself was a no-brainer. One recent Saturday night, I ventured downtown to the PressRoom Pub to watch the Orange host Duke. First opened in April 2018, the pub’s name (and décor) is…