Day one and "I Taut I Taw A Puddy Tat"

Day one in Saratoga was eventful so I am going to get right into it. I began with meeting with the Robert Freeman who is the Executive Director on the Committee on Open Government. The Committee is a part of the Department of State and is responsible for overseeing and advising with regards to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), open meetings and the Personal Privacy Protection Laws. Since FOIL's are submitted to my office and I am responsible for the minutes of the Town Board it is important that I am well versed in this type of law. My next meeting was with the Department of Health regarding Birth and Death Certificates. I am the official registrar of the Town of Harrison and therefore, issue both of these types of certificates. If someone is born or dies within the borders of the Town/Village of Harrison I must issue the certificate. My third class involved a discussion with Clerks regarding minutes of the Town Board. As Clerk, I am the official author of the minutes of all Town and Village Board meetings. I must record the decisions of the Board, and how the matter was voted on. By law, I am not required to record any comments made by Board members or members of the public. However, because these actions govern the Town. It is important that we understand how the Board reached their decision. At times, my minutes can be lengthy. However, today I learned some valuable tips to shorten them so they don't turn to hours.

Lastly, this evening I had pleasure of dining at the historic Gideon Putnam Hotel on the grounds of the 2,300 acre Saratoga Spa State Park. Unfortunately, it was raining so I didn't get to see the geysers or bottle any water. Hopefully before I leave.

Before I end this post let me say that I have been witness to many walks of life crossing the road. Pedestrians, rabbits, deer you name it. However, this evening was certainly the first time I ever witnessed a mountain lion taking a stroll across a road. Yes, you read it correctly - a mountain lion. Without getting into it just know I did tell the police and got back to the hotel safely to tell this true tale of how dangerous the life of a clerk really is ; )

Blogging from Saratoga

This week I will be blogging from Saratoga! About a 45 minutes north of Albany, Saratoga is home to the Saratoga Racetrack, bed & breakfasts and plenty of shopping. But this week, this Town of about 5,100 residents is hosting about 400 Clerks from around New York for the NY State Clerks Conference. Since my arrival this afternoon, I wasted no time meeting my counterparts who work everywhere from Long Island to Buffalo. I have met Clerks who are new like I am and I have met Clerks who have been on the job for over 20 years. I have talked with Clerks who serve populations as big as 150,000 and as small as 1700. My goal of the next few days is to absorb as much information as possible so I can bring new and exciting ideas back to you. I will keep you posted on the classes I go to and the people I meet.

I have an early morning ahead so that's all for now.

Harrison gave their best!

Today, I am happy to report that the Blood Drive was a success! I would like to thank all the members of our community who "gave their best" today. By donating blood, you are helping save many lives and because of that you should be proud. This event is the result of what happens when collaborations take place for the common good. I want to thank all the people who I was proud to partner with specifically Chief Joe Bilotto, the entire Harrison EMS and the NY Blood Center. Without their help this life saving event could not have taken place. If you are interested in donating blood in the future please contact the NY Blood Center at (800) 933-2566 or visit www.NYBloodCenter.org. Thanks again!

Organ & Tissue Donation Awareness

Join me Monday evening April 21st, for an informational session regarding this life saving cause.

Time: 7pm
Location: Town Hall
1 Heineman Place

Twitter

Twitter in Plain English from leelefever on Vimeo.

I'm on Twitter! Don't worry I didn't know what it was either. The best way to explain it is to watch the video above. I will still be doing plenty of blogging. I just thought this was a great way to let you know what I am up to even before I do it or as i'm doing it! Pretty cool huh? So, enjoy and you can find me at www.Twitter.com/JoeAcocella. A link will be put on my main page this week.

"On the Air"

Today I had the pleasure of being on the "Harrison Live" radio show with Dennis Nardone and Tonny Guido on WVOX Radio. I want to thank Dennis and Tonny and all the staff at WVOX for welcoming me at the studio and I can't wait to do it again.We had a great hour long conversation about Harrison and the direction my office is taking. It was acutally my first time in a radio recording studio so I was a little nervous, but, as you can see from the pics they all made me feel at home. Thanks everyone!

On WVOX Radio

It has been a crazy week to say the least. However, let me say I wouldn't have it any other way. Just wanted to let you know that I will be on the "Harrison Live" radio show with Dennis Nardone on WVOX 1460AM tomorrow, April 3rd beginning at 2pm. I will be taking calls as well as dicussing my new "Donate Life Harrison" campaign which was launched this week in honor of National Donate Life Month. You can listen in your car or at home by switching to 1460AM or listen live at work at www.WVOX.com (just make sure your boss says it's ok..lol). Can't wait!

A Partnership for Life

I announced today that in honor of April being National Organ Donor Awareness Month, my office has joined the U.S. Health and Human Services' Workplace Partnership for Life campaign, a nationwide effort to increase the number of organ and tissue donors in the United States and specifically, in the Greater New York metropolitan area.

The goal of this partnership is to educate residents and their families about organ and tissue donation and get them registered.

I am working closely with the NY Organ Donor Network to increase enrollment in the New York State Organ and Tissue Donor Registry and to raise awareness among my constituents. All information is maintained by the State Department of Health to record one's intent to donate and is strictly confidential.

As professionals, we can collectively help to save more lives through organ and tissue donation. Through this cause, we can help 8,000 New Yorkers in the metropolitan area, who are awaiting organ transplants and thousands more, who need tissue transplants. By saying "yes" to donation, you could be giving someone the gift of life.

Organ donation has been a big part of my life. I made a promise that if I ever became a public official I would do everything I could to promote the donation of life and now is my chance. I received a kidney transplant eight years ago when I was a senior in high school, my mother also received a kidney transplant in 1992 from a kidney donated by my father. It is a very real part of my life and I want to educate others about it.

The New York Organ Donor Network and my office will host an informational session regarding organ and tissue donation for the public on Monday evening April 21, 2008 at Harrison Town Hall beginning at 7pm. I will also be co-hosting a blood drive with Harrison EMS Chief Joseph Bilotto on Friday April 25th from 2:30pm-7:30pm at EMS Headquarters. Finally, you can hear me speak about the subject in an interview with WVOX Radio on Thursday, April 3rd from 2pm -3pm. You can listen live at www.WVOX.com or 1460AM on your radio dial.

For more info come to my office at Town Hall and pick up your free brochure or visit my main page at www.HarrisonClerk.com and follow the organ donor links.