SARANAC LAKE — The Saranac Lake Winter Carnival queen and king were crowned at Coronation Friday night at the Harrietstown Town Hall, honoring their years of volunteering in the community and bringing smiles to the people of this village.
Ricky Sullivan and Liz Murray are both very active, very social members of the community who donate their time toward making Saranac Lake an exciting place to live and inspire others to do the same.
They both have a passion for sports and recreation and say they give to Saranac Lake because they love the community that it gives to them.
QUEEN MURRAY
Not only is Murray a volunteer, she’s a volunteer recruiter. She’s the type of person who brings in more volunteers. Not by pressure, but by making them excited through her energy and enthusiasm.
“I just meet people and I see a certain energy about them and I think ‘Oh my God, they would be great,’” she said.
Then she points them in the right direction.
For example, this year, she started a “Look for Liz” program at the Ice Palace, with a photo of herself posted at the entrance telling first-time Ice Palace Workers 101 volunteers to seek her out for advice on how to help.
“I feel it’s important for volunteers to feel welcome and meet the Ice Palace Workers community,” Murray said. “It’s more fun when you’re connected with the people that you’re working with.”
Murray was a member of the 1977 Winter Carnival Court and that’s where she learned what volunteers do.
“Winter Carnival is what we all live for in the winter,” Murray said. “It’s for locals, but tourists love it, too. … This is where the community pride comes out and you really see all the volunteerism.
“I think growing up in Saranac Lake planted the seed for volunteerism,” she added.
She said it was the sense of community, that people will pull together for a cause and make things happen, and things like Winter Carnival and the Ice Palace planted that seed.
Murray is a member of the Winter Carnival Committee — announcing for the Ladies’ Fry Pan Toss, helping cobble together the Blue Buns Wheel-a-Palooza and working with the IPW 101.
She volunteers with the Willard Hanmer Guide Boat Races in the summer, Holiday Helpers in December, is a volunteer coordinator for the new Saranac Lake 3P multi-sport race, returning on March 2, is a co-creator of the new Saranac Lake Paddlers Challenge and is a past president of the Saranac Lake Women’s Civic Chamber.
Murray said, in her mind, her first real volunteer act was rescuing retired racing greyhound dogs in Florida. She met the pooches at a meet-and-greet at a PetSmart and she fell in love with the dogs. Murray and her husband Ray fostered 30 to 40 dogs over the next years.
Wherever they moved — Florida, Vermont, Albany — they got involved with whatever volunteer things were going on there. But none of these places felt like “home,” Murray said, until they moved back to Saranac Lake around 20 years ago.
When she moved back, her circle of friends were all involved with the Women’s Civic Chamber, so she joined them.
“Like Kelly Morgan, and Marilyn Bigelow and Janet Simkins and Carol Reyell and Barb Martin,” Murray said. “And lo and behold, I just named to you five queens.”
Murray was born in Kapuskasing in Ontario, Canada. She grew up in Saranac Lake and graduated from Saranac Lake High School. Her hobbies outside of volunteering include kayaking and biking.
Murray works at the Enterprise as the Circulation Coordinator.
She is the daughter of Tina Scammell and Don and Judy Scammell and the sister of Kelly and Donald.
She’s excited to be all over Carnival events this week, visiting them as Queen. and she’s happy she doesn’t have to keep her queenship confidential any more.
“It’s the hardest secret I’ve ever kept in my life,” Murray said.
King Sullivan
For Sullivan, volunteering is a way of life. He has a big heart for Saranac Lake and a long history of volunteering for local organizations, and is always out and about.
From fundraising and organizing for local races like the Pat Stratton Ride and the Olga Memorial Footrace to volunteering with the Kiwanis Club and Aktion Club, to cheering for local high school teams and competing in the Special Olympics, he loves sharing his time with the people of Saranac Lake and bringing a smile to people’s faces.
He said he was surprised to learn he was nominated this year and that it was “emotional” learning he would be the Winter Carnival king. Sullivan said he loves the Saranac Lake community and described his volunteering in it as a symbiotic relationship.
“Let me put it this way. If we didn’t have have a good Saranac Lake community, none of this would have been possible,” Sullivan said.
He enjoys being in the community, and the best way to do that is on the sidewalks of downtown, where he connects with people, looking for people he knows, or maybe meet someone new.
“Ricky’s always been a people person,” his brother Kirk said. “I think he might be one of the most well-known faces around town.”
He walks to relax and to chat with friends and neighbors.
“I kind of ruined the surprise,” Sullivan said of his being the Carnival king. “I kind of told people.”
Sullivan loves that Carnival brings people in from all over and looks forward to meeting folks who travel long distances to get here. He’s most looking forward to just being around the Saranac Lake community. As king during Carnival, it’s going to be a time for him to get to see everyone he knows in town.
He is good friends with former Carnival king and Kiwanis Club President Dan Reilly and has been a member of the club for two years now, volunteering for events like the Village Clean-up along state Route 3.
Sullivan is a proud member of the Adirondack ARC family and puts on events with them. He sets up ADK ArtWorks’ stand at the Saranac Lake Farmer’s Market. Sullivan has worked with the Empire State Games and the Special Olympics for 25 years, traveling all over to do so. His favorite sports are bowling and softball. Sullivan said they don’t have enough athletes for a softball team this year, and they’re looking for more members.
He has some advice for athletes.
“If you can’t win, try your best anyways,” Sullivan said. “If I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”
Sullivan’s hobbies include cheering on local athletes at sporting events, bowling, walking long distances, collecting and assembling LEGOs and bringing smiles to the faces of everyone he sees around town.
Sullivan was born and raised in Saranac Lake and graduated from Saranac Lake High School. He has worked for the state for 14 years at Sunmount in Tupper Lake.
He is the proud son of Polly; his father was Fred; he is the brother of Tate, Katie and Kirk; and the uncle of Charlie, Savvy and Bella.