KNOX — After 22 years, Councilman Nicholas Viscio submitted his letter of resignation Monday in the period between voters casting their ballots and a slew of new members taking their seats.

He served nearly two years of his four-year term.

BERNE — Mary Ellen Jannsen, better known in the community as “Elderberry Mary” because of her famous preserves, died on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015, at St. Peter’s Hospice Inn, with her daughter Christine by her side. She was 75.

EAST BERNE — Grace M. Ryan, a successful saleswoman and a frugal homebody, died on Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015, at Ellis Hospital in Schenectady. She was 85. 



GREENVILLE — Philip Henry Theiss, a hardworking man and a dedicated volunteer fireman, died on Friday, Dec. 4, 2015, at Hospice Inn in St. Peter's Hospital. He was 82.

“He was a good worker and he instilled that in us,” said his daughter, Deborah Theiss-Mackey.

Now 20, VanAlstyne is facing a sentence of 18 years to life, scheduled to appear in court in January.

ALBANY COUNTY — Derek Ellis, 28, of East Berne, died on Sunday, Nov. 29, after the truck he was driving went off the road and crashed.

Ellis’s truck crashed around 12:25 a.m. near the intersection of Albany-Shaker Road and Everett Road, according to the Colonie Police Department.

Keough spent six weeks training with the dog, going from basic obedience, to tracking, and setting up obstacles with explosives.