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Volume 13, No. 40
City of The Hills Concert series to begin Thursday at Neahwa Park A summer concert series will begin Thursday, July 8, in Neahwa Park in Oneonta. The series will feature performances every Thursday between 7 and 8 p.m. The first event will feature the Driftwoods.
Common Council accepts grain grant Oneonta’s Common Council passed a motion Tuesday, July 6, to accept a state grant of $180,000 for the Hartwick College Grain Innovation Center. The city’s plan is for the center to become part of the eventual Lofts on Dietz Street. The council met in person at City Hall for the first time since March 2020, at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Meetings had been taking place via Zoom and were broadcast on YouTube. However, the July change in state COVID laws opened the meetings up again.
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►in-PERSON MEETINGS: Otsego County and its municipalities got back to in-person meetings this week. ►HIT-and-RUn Death: Laurens man arrested after fleeing the scene of an accident that killed another resident. ►MILFORD FUNDRAISER: MCS community rallies to support graduate following bad accident. ►Pathfinder graduates: Workers promoted at Edmeston school.
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Shakespeare (Abridged) Popular show revived
AllOTSEGO.com, OTSEGO COUNTY’S DAILY NEWSPAPER/ONLINE
Oneonta, N.Y., Thursday, July 8, 2021
COMPLIMENTARY
Veterans dispose of tattered flags in ceremony By KEVIN LIMITI OTSEGO — As part of a way of respectfully destroying old flags that are no longer serviceable, veterans from the local Cooperstown VFW and American Legion held a ceremony at the Cooperstown Sportsmen’s Association just north of Cooperstown on Saturday, July 3, where they burned more than 1,600 flags,. VFW Commander Floyd Bourne and American Legion Commander Bob Crawford led the ceremony, which was followed by a gun salute and the playing of Taps on the bugle. Bourne said the burning of the flags is a way to “consecrate to ashes” and although flag burning has a negative connotation, this is actually the correct way to dispose of flags, according to the United States Flag Code. “We shall retire them with the respect they deserve,” Crawford said. “We thank God for this country and our flag and for the liberty for which it stands,” Bourne said. Jay Deitchman and his son Jonathan Deitchman, from Scout BSA Troop 168 in Worcester, came to help with the flag retirement. Deitchman said the retirement of the flags was something that was important to them. They said that normally they would have done this earlier during a scout camp, but because of COVID it got pushed back. “It’s very important and it’s an honor to be a part of it,” Deitchman said. “It’s something most people don’t know about. A lot of people just toss them when they get old. It’s something that means a lot to us.”
INSIDE ►TWITTER INFLUENCER: WCDO Sports Director Nate Lull redefines how to find sports results in the region. Page A7. ►SENTENCE GIVEN: Anais Soto sentenced for her role in Kenneth Robinson’s murder. Page A10. ►ART GARAGE: Middlefield art gallery launches new show. Page A10. ►Post-Season Honors: Cooperstown’s Ubner among athletes given post-season awards. Page A7. ►Kiser Award: Editor Greg Klein reflects on receiving an award from the Cooperstown Sports Booster Club. Page A4. ►Man’s BIG LOSS: Columnist Terry Berkson mourns a ‘good boy,’ his dog Bert. Page A4.
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Kevin Limiti/The Freeman’s Journal
Jay Deitchman from Scout BSA Troop 168 puts tattered flags in the fire during an official retirement ceremony Saturday, July 3, in the town of Otsego.
Normally, flags are retired on Flag Day but because of COVID restrictions, the ceremony was pushed back. Bourne said the ceremony was
Taking on water
also abridged because of the pandemic restrictions being in place when the ceremony was being planned.
Kevin Limiti/Hometown Oneonta
Oneonta Mayor Gary Herzig takes a turn in the dunk tank Sunday, July 4, in Neahwa Park. To get the opportunity to dunk Herzig and other city officials required a donation to the Oneonta’s Hunger Coalition. About $900 was raised with the dunk tank, according to Dan Buttermann, who set up the event. For more Independence Day photos from around the region, see Page A3.
Otsego School helped imprisoned Japanese-Americans during WWII By RICHARD McDONOUGH An Edmeston school for children with Down syndrome welcomed three Japanese Americans in 1943, who had been imprisoned by the Federal Government for no other reason than their heritage. The Otsego School provided employment opportunities for these three women. The school in Edmeston has evolved through the years. Its successor is Pathfinder Village, which today provides a variety of educational and support services for people with Down syndrome.
The Oneonta Daily Star reported June 17, 1922, “The Chesebrough place at Edmeston has been remodeled and will soon be opened as the Otsego School for (children with Down syndrome).” The article indicated Susanne Jones and Florence Chesebrough were in charge of the school. In early 1943, the Otsego School welcomed three new employees – Mary Hiroshige, Hisae Jeanne Mori and Rose Yasui. According to Federal records, Edmeston Museum collection Mary Hiroshige was living The Otsego School in Edmeston was the forerunner of Pathfinder Village. See OTSEGO, Page A2
THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST PRINT CIRCULATION 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD