‘AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY’
LIVES!
IN CNY & GLIMMERGLASS/B1
HOMETOWN ONEONTA E!
E FR Volume 6, No. 43
City of The Hills
& The Otsego-Delaware Dispatch Complimentary
Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, July 18, 2014
Dean Of City Pastors Retiring But Pastor Mel Farmer Will Continue Preaching Via Radio, TV
By LIBBY CUDMORE
By LIBBY CUDMORE
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fter 43 years of preaching God’s word in church, on TV and over the airwaves, Pastor Mel Farmer of the River Street Baptist Church is ready to enjoy the Gospels from the other side of the pulpit. “I’m saddling up ol’ Trigger and riding off into the sunset singing ‘Happy Trails’,” he said. Farmer, the longest-serving local pastor – he turned 82 on Sunday, July 13 – joined the River Please See PASTOR, B4
Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
New York Summer Music Festival Executive Director Jungeun Kim watches Naamah Romano, 12, of Otego, practice her saxophone during Romano’s two-week residency at the festival, hosted by SUNY Oneonta. At the end of her two weeks, she will perform in a free, public concert with the symphony orchestra and jazz bands.
No Chickens Home To Roost In City – Yet
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on’t allow chickens to be raised in the city, resident Barbara Stevens asked Common Council during its Tuesday, July 15, meeting. Where there are chickens, foxes follow, she warned. Already, she said, “a grey fox appeared next door and tangled with a cat that bit me, and I had to get shots,” adding, “I’m not looking forward to having chickens in my neighborhood.” Mayor Miller responded, “We’re a long way from having chickens.” If such a proposal were made, it would be well publicized, he added. 15TH TERM: State Sen. Jim Seward, R-Milford, announced Thursday, July 10, that he is running for another term. He has represented the county since 1986. MODULARS HERE: All pieces of Newman Development Corp.’s Hillside Commons modulars have been delivered to the Blodgett Drive site. The housing for 320 students is expected to be ready for occupancy when SUNY Oneonta opens for classes.
Veteran City Businessman New Executive At Foothills
Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
Pastor Mel at River Street.
n a way, Foothills Performing Arts Center gave Bill Youngs the best birthday present he could have asked for. On Aug. 2, 2013, Yankees star and jazz guitarist Bernie Williams played a show at Foothills. Youngs would have gone, but his band, Soco Mojo, was playing the
Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
Foothills Managing Director Bill Youngs.
B-Side Ballroom that night. After Williams finished Please See YOUNGS, A3
City Council Asked, Let Citizens Help In Search
ART In The Family
Three generations of Scheeles – from left, twins Toni and Tessa, their grandmom Gerri and mom Christie, have a family exhibit in progress at CANO.
By LIBBY CUDMORE
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Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
Same Genes, But 3 Generations Use Varied Mediums
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Mayor Delays Decision Until Recruiter Here
By LIBBY CUDMORE
rt is second nature for the Scheele family. “Growing up in a family of artists, I’ve been learning from them my whole life,” said Tessa Scheele, 22. “It’s intuitive.” Tessa and her twin brother, Toni, along with their mother, Christie, and her mother, Gerri, opened an
exhibit of their work, Forest & Field, Friday, July 11, at the CANO gallery in the Wilber Mansion. Though the theme of nature runs through all of their creations, the four artists work in separate mediums: Tessa works with natural materials, weaving birch baskets and sketching botanical drawings, Anthony does lithographs, Christie paints landscapes and Gerri crafts ceramics. “There’s got to be somePlease See SCHEELES, B4
et citizens with expertise help recruit Oneonta’s next city manager, Common Council was asked at its Tuesday, July 15, meeting. “We need the experience of community members who can search for executives and CEOs,” said Rissberger Rissberger, who chaired the Charter makes his plea. Commission in 2010 before running for Common Council. “There are very few of us on the council who have done that in the past.” He gave credit for the idea to Steve Londner, who broached the subject with Common Council’s Human Resources Committee last week. During the public comment period at Tuesday’s meeting, another Charter Commission member, John Dudek, also endorsed the Please See SEARCH, A3
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ayor Dick Miller issued a defense of the search process to date to replace City Manager Mike Long, but pledged the process will be “thoughtful and independent”/SEE TEXT, A4
HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST CIRCULATION NEWSPAPER 2010 WINNER OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD