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Longtime state senator retiring
By Melanie Lekocevic
Capital Region Independent Media
ALBANY — Longtime state Sen. Neil Breslin, D-46, announced his retirement last week after more than 25 years of service.
The 46th state Senate District includes Coeymans and Ravena, and other parts of Albany County and Schenectady counties, as well as all of Montgomery County.
Breslin, 81, was last re-elected to the seat in 2022 when he defeated Republican challenger Richard Amedure Jr. He will not seek re-election in November after 28 years in office.
He is chairman of the state Senate’s committee on Ethics and Internal Governance and the Insurance Committee, and serves on the Finance, Higher Education, Judiciary and Rules committees. He is also co-chair of the Legislative Ethics Commission and a member of the Legislative Commission on Rural Resources.
Breslin is a Democrat and also runs on the Working Families Party line. He is the longest serving official in the New York State Senate.
In addition to his service in state government, Breslin practices law with the firm Barclay Damon LLP.
During his last re-election campaign Breslin sat down for a video interview with the Ravena News-Herald and said he did not originally intend to go into politics.
“I swore I would never be an elected official or be in any political jobs,” Breslin said at the time. “I come from a middle-class family in Albany that turned out three lawyers, an engineer, a schoolteacher and a nurse, so a traditional family.”
He opened a law practice with his two brothers more than 40 years ago. When he was asked to run for state Senate over two decades ago, he said it wasn’t an easy decision.
“I labored over it and finally decided that if I could make a difference in people’s lives, it would be worthwhile,” Breslin said at the time. “It was the first public job I ever had or ever sought.”
Breslin has been serving in the state Senate ever since.
Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy said Breslin’s state service will be missed after his retirement.
“For over 25 years, New York State Senator Neil Breslin has been a strong advocate for Albany County and the Capital Region as a whole and a pillar of our community,” McCoy said in a statement. “First elected in 1996, Sen. Breslin is the most tenured member of the state Senate, bringing a wealth of experience and expertise to the chamber. As he embarks on a well-earned retirement, we celebrate his commitment to public service. His contributions have made a lasting impact, and his daily advocacy will be greatly missed.”
THROUGH THE WOODS: A Messy Woods
By NANCY JANE KERN
HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED the style or history of a forest? In the Adirondack Mountains of NY State, there are forest areas where nature has been left to itself and hosts many forms of life not seen in places that man has disturbed. In my youth I hiked the Northville-Plattsburgh Trail to Northville Lake Placid Trail. One spring, a friend and I carried loaded backpacks and used a network of fallen trees to cross a flooded marsh covering this trail. We followed markers on standing trees and jumped from one flattened tree to another until we found someone’s faded flannel shirt and jeans lying on a log. We looked around for the owner and worried we would find someone deceased in the deep mud. Thankfully we didn’t, but questions still linger.
We found many carnivorous pitcher plants thriving on hordes of insects that nearly drove us crazy. It was a messy wood. Most of Columbia County has been worked by men with few if any primal trees remaining. With the loss of our family farms, the land often became forested again. Some of these properties are now being cleared for developments and manicured mega-mansions. I grew up roaming through large managed wood lots where we cut wood to heat homes or for lumber, always selecting individual trees and leaving most to grow for the future. My home has one of our old woodlots and nature is allowed to have her way. Rain has soaked the ground and high winds have toppled trees. Their roots are turned up and provide dens for many animals and nest sites for some birds. The tops are browsed by deer. Buds and leaves may continue to grow and be eaten, and eventually, the trees rot and become earth again.
Some people like their woods to have a clean park-like look. As I drive around, I am always observing and studying the landscape. Pruned trees with no brush piles, leaves, or fallen branches may be devoid of visible, moving life. Places left to ruin are teeming with life. I love to hear the birds sing, see deer and fawns, and find varieties of native wildflowers and shrubs living without chemicals and poisons. Watching and studying trees is a free pastime and can be done on a trip to the grocery store, as part of a Sunday drive, or a walk or hike. Take some time to enjoy our messy woods, even in winter. It revives the spirit and brings back some serenity to our lives.
See alandevoebirdclub.org .
