My Glens Falls: Sarah Mosher

This week, we’re chatting with Sarah Mosher! If you’ve ever been to Morgan and Company, you’re sure to recognize her smiling face. We were so happy to have the opportunity to get to know her a bit better, including where she grew up, what brought her here, and all of the sweet reasons why she’s so happy to call Glens Falls home now. Fair warning, her answers might just make you fall in love with our city even more…

Sarah Mosher outside Morgan and Company in Glens Falls

Tell us about yourself!

I’m Sarah Mosher, a server at Morgan and Company Restaurant. My husband is Michael, he's a manager at the Queensbury 99 Restaurant. We have three dogs that I'm mildly obsessed with: two pomeranians (JoJo and Nora) and a corgi mix (Sawyer).

I grew up in Hilton, a village outside of Rochester, New York. My sister, Emily lives close in Albany (she also attended SUNY Albany), the rest of my family still resides in western NY. My father and sisters visit here in the summer, it's always nice showing them what's new and exploring the area with them.

One of my favorite things about my job is chatting with people who are passing through or visiting. I love hearing newcomers rave about how much they enjoy our little city. I also love the familiar faces of the regulars who brighten a shift when they come in. Working outside in the warmer months is wonderful, the view of City Park and the gazebo are a treat. I work with a good crew, that are more friends than just coworkers. Ever since I started working there I felt more connected to the community of Glens Falls, it's a nice feeling.

On Life in Glens Falls

I am a transplant to the city. After finishing college at SUNY Albany, my roommate and I moved here because we got summer jobs in Lake George. Apartments were hard to come by in LG, so we decided to look in Glens Falls. We thought it would be fun to work the summer then move on to a new adventure. After the summer had ended, I had fallen in love with the area, its hometown feel, and I decided to stay. It was the perfect balance of urban and rural to me - I can walk to shops and restaurants, yet a hike in the mountains surrounded by wilderness is a quick drive away. That was back in 2005 and since then this has been my home.

Admittedly, I had never heard of Glens Falls until moving here, but my mother had. She was a labor and delivery nurse and the first hospital she had worked at, Genessee Hospital in Rochester, had modeled its birthing unit after the Glens Falls Hospital's. I wouldn't be surprised if I were to learn she had snuck away to the hospital during one of my family's visits to ask for a tour of their snuggery and chat with fellow nurses.

Michael and I bought a house on Vanderheyden Street about two years ago. It's around the corner from the house on William Street where he grew up and his mother still resides at. I have a great mother in law, it's nice to live so close to her since most of my family lives hours away. Some of our neighbors have lived here since Michael was a kid, so he already knew them. He even has a memory of trick or treating as a kid at the house we now own, at the time 3 elderly woman lived there and handed out homemade cookies for Halloween treats.

I am in love with our home. We've been doing projects to put our own stamp on it. It's fun realizing we're both more handy than we thought we were. Michael was delighted to learn he's good at fixing a leaking toilet. We just put in a new window in our upstairs hall so now we're painting a new color. Of course that has now led to new carpet for the stairs. There's always a new project lurking, we really enjoy making our house our home.

I love to garden and our yard was a blank canvas. My favorite thing in summer is tending to my vegetable garden, mowing the lawn, adding new perennials to the landscape.

In the warmer weather I take the dogs for long morning walks through our neighborhood. I know most people by their dogs - there is a Newfoundland named Oliver on Hunter Street that always has a lot to bark about. His owner and I usually exchange pleasantries while shouting over the canine conversation between our pups.

Some Glens Falls Favorites

There's a lot I love about the city of Glens Falls. Early summer Saturday mornings at the farmers market or spending a snowy day stocking up on books to read at Crandall Library. Picking up a Chronicle to read during morning coffee is a weekly habit of mine. I enjoy the festivals - LARAC, Taste of the North Country, and the car show downtown during the Balloon Festival. It's nice when downtown is bustling with a good vibe.

I appreciate the location of Glens Falls. There's all sorts of opportunities for a good day trip. Recently we went to MASS MoCA, a fantastically fun art museum in Massachusetts. This past fall, we ventured to the Grafton Peace Pagoda - a beautiful serene structure in the middle of the woods. Both trips took us through country roads with gorgeous views, covered bridges, passing through villages and rolling farmland on the way.

The community garden by Rite Aid always has gorgeous sunflowers that bloom near the end of summer. I drive by it on my way to work and love when the sunflowers have matured to their towering size and glory. It is awesome that the empty lawn was turned into a space with purpose and beauty.

Last summer a drum circle was popping up here and there in City Park. One afternoon they were playing and I had just finished a brunch shift, so I wandered across the street, sat on a bench enjoying the balmy, sunny, summer day, and listening to their music. It's so neat that a bunch of people can gather with no set song and produce such pretty music.

A Perfect GF Day

A perfect Glens Falls day for me would start at Rock Hill Bakehouse (now The Exchange Cafe) for breakfast. They have a great vegan menu. Maybe pop into Rude Betty or Laura's Vintage, two favorite shops of mine. Rude Betty has a lot of quirky things, and Laura's Vintage has a beautiful collection of clothes and jewelry from the past.

Then I'd probably take the dogs for a stroll through the trails in Crandall Park. If they mind their manners, I'd probably take them for a doggy ice cream at Coopers Cave.

I would wind down the day with inviting my sister and brother in law, Emily and Casey, up from Albany for hibachi at Mikado. Maybe grab a nightcap at Fenimore's Pub at the Queensbury Hotel, it's super cozy (and in good proximity to work and home).

On the Past

I miss the store Poor Richards Antiques. It was always fun to browse and buy. There was an electroshock therapy machine in there that was creepy and intriguing. Someone actually bought it and I wonder why.

The window displays of Downtown Charm, it was a cute shop.

A nice memory was one snowy night when my husband and I went to Fenimore's and ran into the night manager, Frank. My husband knew him from he had worked at The Queensbury years before. Frank ended up giving us a late night tour of the hotel, mostly for me since Michael had worked there. But we walked through the quiet hotel with our wine while Frank told little anecdotes about various spots in the hotel and took us through "behind the scene" spots. I thought the old mail slot that goes through each floor of the hotel ending in the lobby was super cool. This was years ago, before they had begun to restore the hotel.

…And on the Future

A bookstore would be a nice addition. Maybe a mixture of new and used books. There was Red Fox Books years ago...

My dream would be to have a Wegmans grocery store open up here. Being from western New York, we have a cult like appreciation for Wegmans. Although thinking of grocery stores, I was sorry to see the Cooper Street Price Chopper close - it was super convenient to pop into. A Trader Joes would be a neat replacement in that empty space