I first crossed paths with Chip Ordway in January 2020. A mutual friend recommended that I listen to his newly-formed radio show on the newly-resurrected WPTR radio station. Okay, I’ll give it a listen. And for two hours on Saturday night, I was transformed back to WPTR’s 1960’s heyday with a mixture of classic oldies and Capital District-centric rarities. Holy cow, this was good stuff.
Trust me, it was so good that I blogged about the experience.
I contacted Chip, and we later kept in touch on social media. I would request some rarities on WPTR, and he would somehow find them and play them on the station. And when I had the opportunity to resurrect my own radio show in May 2020 on my old college radio station, WHCL, Chip was more than kind – he recorded some “Big Boss” intros for my program, including the voice that introduced nearly every Nightowl Radio Show broadcast for the next five years.
A couple of years later, Chip alerted me that he had acquired several drive-in speakers from the Malta Drive-In Theater’s surplus. I purchased a few from him, and repainted one during my drive-in speaker restoration project.
Then came Chip’s biggest joy. He joined up with several upstate railroad enthusiasts and helped to resurrect and revive the rail stretch that once brought transportation and goods from Saratoga Springs into the North Country. Yep, he was one of the many who helped pull the Saratoga, Corinth & Hudson Railroad from a dormant track to one of the new entertainment draws.
And between all of these interests, Chip found time to work on other personal projects. He helped revive and restore a music project involving the Santa’s Workshop amusement park. He participated in a DVD project that compiled the old Abbott and Costello 1950’s sitcom. He was a railfan’s railfan, chasing and photographing trains throughout the Northeast. And he knew Capital District radio history with an incredible interest and expertise.
As for movies? He spent many summers in the projection booth when the Palace Theater had their classic movie nights. He also worked at Hathaways Drive-In in Hoosick Falls, where his double features also included snipes and advertisements from classic drive-in theaters of the past.
If Chip Ordway was your friend, he was an incredible resource and fountain of shared information and enthusiasm.
Which made last night’s news incredibly painful and devastating.
I’ll just leave the screenshot here.
No. Not Chip. No. This is not fair.
And it occurred to me. Chip Ordway packed a ton of activities and interests and experiences into his life. He enjoyed every moment and he treated every challenge as an adventure. His life is not measured only by his accomplishments, but by those whose lives he touched. And he touched many.
I’ve said before that we only get one shot in this life. We are blessed by our Creator with this gift, and we only have a finite time to experience this wonderful gift, because one day we’ll get a tap on the shoulder and we’ll hear those words, “Your ride’s here.”
Trust me, Chip Ordway probably told that entity, “Okay, but let me at least get that problem on your rail line solved, and give me some time to put together a music playlist for the ride.”
Rest easy, my man. High Greens all the way.
And say hi to Boom Boom Brannigan when you reach that next adventure.
Chuck The Writer 
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