ALBANY – Beginning on Thursday, May 16, St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church will be holding the 2013 Greek Festival.

This year’s festival will have Greek food including gyros, souvlaki and homemade bakery items. One dollar from every Gyro and Souvlaki sold on Thursday will be donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

There will be live Greek Music, Greek pastries, authentic Greek music, amusement rides as well as souvenir and jewelry shops.

Admission is $3, kids under 12 get in free.

Shuttle bus service will be available from the Center for Disability Services on South Manning Blvd.

For more information, PLEASE VISIT.

LOUDONVILLE- The Farmer’s Market will be coming to Colonie from Saturday May 18 through Saturday, September 14.

The Farmer’s market will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Crossing Park from on Albany Shaker Rd.

Parking is available in the field across from the Market

ALBANY - Are 18, 19, and 20 year olds mature enough to make their own decisions or should the state take certain decisions away from them?

That, in a nutshell, is at the heart of the matter involving a proposal at the State Capitol to raise the legal age of purchasing tobacco from 18 to 21. If enacted, New York would become the first state in the nation to do so.

Few people would argue that smoking isn't dangerous, deadly, and additive, but if you're in the convenience store business, like Kris Otero, deciding whether to raise the tobacco purchasing age from 18 to 21 isn't so clear cut.

"It's a bad habit to get started," Otero, of Coulsen's in downtown Albany, points out. "If they can keep them from smoking it's a good thing but I also don't believe they can take an 18 year old, put them into combat with a gun, and say, "You can't have a beer or a cigarette."