Hometown Oneonta 06-03-21

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Common Council eases mask rules Mayor Gary Herzig relaxed the mask ordinance in downtown Oneonta during the Common Council Tuesday, June 1. Masks will no longer be required on Main Street. Also a motion on a payment to Springbrook to build a walk way connecting Main Street to Water Street and the parking garage was passed unanimously. Springbrook is planning a development on Main Street for professional housing.

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Oneonta, N.Y., Thursday, June 3, 2021

COMPLIMENTARY

Education company seeks to fill camp void By GREG KLEIN A local education company is planning to fill the gap in camps this summer. ResourceME, an Otsego County company started by Cooperstown Central School special education teacher Stephanie Nelen, will offer summer camps this year. “The thing about this company is we want to be a source to fill a need in Cooperstown for educational

enrichment, not to compete with anything we already had,” Nelen said. Nelen’s company had been working with Cooperstown Baptist Church during the height of the coronavirus pandemic to host learning pods and tutoring sessions. The church had applied for COVID money to help with educations needs during the pandemic. However, when Pastor Joseph Purdue left for a church in Connecticut, Cooperstown Deputy Mayor Cindy Falk — who

is a member of the church and had helped Purdue apply for the grant — reached out to Nelen for help. They designed a survey to assess community needs and were shocked by the results, Falk said. “It wasn’t a need for either equipment or for broadband, although I am sure some of these folks do have slow internet,” Falk said, “but what that survey said … what people needed was human resources, rather than technology.”

Delgado visits region to celebrate COVID funding

Otsego Outdoors By KEVIN LIMITI to offer summer — Rep. Antoactivities challenge nioCOOPERSTOWN Delgado, D-NY19, appeared in Otsego2000, the Otsego County Conservation Association and the Otsego Land Trust will offer another outdoor activities badge, this one geared to summer activities. The activities include hiking, kayaking, cycling, canoeing and more. Those who successfully complete eight of the 16 activities will be awarded an Otsego Outdoors Summer Octet badge. Go to otsegooutdoors.org for more information. INSIDE ►HAll of FAME HONORS: The parents of late Corp. Michael Mayne of Burlington Flats are awarded a state honor in his memory. Page A3. ►MIDDLEFIELD MOURNING: Town of Middlefield Supervisor Joe Harris dies unexpectedly. Obituary. Page A6. ►PRIDE MONTH: Cooperstown Trustee Macguire Benton writes about LGBTQ+ rights as part of the June designation. Page A4. ►OUTLAWS RETURN: Oneonta’s PGCBL team is scheduled to host its home opener Friday, June 4. Page A7. ►FROM CHAMPION TO A CHANCE: Cooperstown’s Jack Lambert adjusts to college basketball at University of Scranton. Page A7. Follow Breaking News On

AllOTSEGO.com ►MeMORIAL DAY: Cooperstown, Oneonta are among the communities honoring soliders who died while serving their country. ►EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: More from Rep. Antonio Delgado’s tour of Cooperstown Distillery. ►COVID NUMBERS: Pandemic wanes locally, but hasn’t ended. ►NEW DIRECTOR: Hartwick College names new head of Food and Beverage Center.

As the school year wound down, Nelen said she realized there would not be any summer camps for her three children, or anyone else’s kids. She has worked for the school’s Red Bursey Playground Camp in previous summers, but that camp is not happening this summer. The Clark Sports Center, which has not yet allowed kids or teenagers to resume activities, is also not holding its summer camps this year. See CAMPS, Page A2

Otsego County on Thursday, May 27, to speak about the money the county will receive from the American Rescue Plan, which he helped shepherd through Congress. Afterwards, Delgado spent some time at the local Cooperstown Distillery where he toured the distillery and sampled some local fare. “It seems like you guys are hitting your stride at the perfect time,” Delgado said to the workers at the distillery, which included head distiller Daran Bottger, assistant brewer Mike Deflumere and MacGuire Benton, Director of Sales. After trying his hand at pouring whiskey into bottles and a sample of 115-proof chocolate-flavored whiskey, Delgado praised the distillery and stressed the importance of these local businesses. “It’s good to see the growth and it’s good to see how we can grow our local businesses,” Delgado said. “It’s a great step.”

Kevin Limiti/The Freeman’s Journal

Rep. Antonio Delgado samples a chocolate-flavored whiskey at the Cooperstown Distillery during a tour Thursday, May 27.

Cooperstown mayor Ellen Tillapaugh also visited the distillery with Delgado. Otsego County receive about $11.5

million, he said, half of which has already been delivered, with the other half to follow within a year. Other county towns and villages will also

receive money from the act. “It’s been a joy,” Delgado said. “It’s a real testament to what government can do.” Delgado also praised the bipartisan nature of the politicians that were gathered at the press conference, including State Sen. Peter Oberacker, R-51st District, and State Assemblyman Chris Tague, R-102nd District, and said it is how it should be in all forms of government. “This is a big deal, people,” Delgado said. “We’re able to get real meaningful dollars to our community.” Delgado also said that they had to make sure “we had flexibility” to get things done with “something more cooperative.” “I call that direct democracy,” he said. Delgado spoke on the importance of getting broadband for the county calling it a “basic necessity.” Tillapaugh opened the press conference with remarks about the “critical” nature of the money being given See DELGADO, Page A2

AllOtsego people: Milford graduate helping with pandemic relief in Nepal By KEVIN LIMITI Although COVID is starting to fade in Otsego County with towns such as Cooperstown and Oneonta lifting mask restrictions, the same cannot be said for many countries such as Nepal. Zak Aldridge, who was born in Cooperstown, went to Milford Central School and considers himself an “honorary Oneontan,” said he didn’t intend to stay in Nepal for more than a year, but COVID-19 changed his plans. He said he planned on staying there for two weeks. That was 15 months ago. “I was planning to come to check out a school over

here that I was thinking of coming to study languages and Buddhism,” Aldridge said. “And the lockdown happened and I wound up getting stuck. That was a year ago.” Aldridge, who is a Columbia University graduate, has decided to help feed families in the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu, which is currently under a strict lockdown, causing day laborers to suffer from malnutrition. “The government doesn’t do anything for people over here,” Aldridge said. “If you only have a day job, and you make your wage in a day, and that’s how you survive, all of a sudden, you’re really out of luck

with a lockdown like this. So obviously it curbs the spread a little bit but at the same time it creates another problem. So that’s the sad part.” Aldridge has been delivering food to families that need it either by delivery or pick up at a wholesale place. He would purchase rice bags, noodles, dry beets and other food. In the beginning, he was giving food to between 30 and 40 families. However, because of the new lockdown measures, it has been a difficult situation So far, Aldridge has raised about $5,000 and spent Contributed more than $3,800. But he Milford Central School graduate Zak Aldridge, center, says that because of the See PEOPLE, Page A2 helps deliver supplies in Nepal in this recent picture.

THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST PRINT CIRCULATION 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD


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