about the rising interest rates?"

A Helpful Perspective

Interest rates have been in the news a lot lately. With the Federal Reserve Board raising rates so rapidly many people aren’t sure what it means and how it impacts them personally. I think it is important to put the recent increases in context. Forbes.com recently ran an article on the history of the Federal Funds (FF) Rate. The author breaks this 33 year span into 15 distinct periods of FF rate changes. He starts in the article that in 1990, the Fed Funds Rate was 8%, a high for this 33 year time span. 1990 was also the start of the first down cycle in the rate, known as The Gulf War Recession. This decrease lasted until 1992 and is the first of 9 periods identified that the Fed initiated a down cycle in the FF rate. Since that cycle, the FF rate has not yet again reached an 8% high.

What's the Fed Funds (FF) Rate v. Prime Rate?

However, twice during this span the FF has dropped to 0% at the onset of the Great Recession in 2008 and at the outbreak of the COVID pandemic in 2020. The Federal Funds Rate highly correlates to changes in the Prime Rate. The Prime Rate is the benchmark interest rate used by banks to set interest rates for various loan products, such as personal loans, credit cards, and home equity lines of credit. Typically, the prime rate is about 3% above the FF rate. As the FF Rate goes up, so too does the Prime Rate. During the same time span discussed above, the lowest prime rate hit 3.25%, occurring twice, December 2008 (The Great Recession) and March 2020 (the Covid Pandemic). The highest the Prime Rate hit during this 33 years span was 10% in January 1990, which also corresponds to the highest FF rate of the period. The highest prime rate ever was 21.5% in December 1980.

So What Does This Mean For You?

If you're in the market to buy a home, it has become more expensive. For example: On a $300,000 30-year mortgage at 4.50%, your monthly principal and interest payment would be approximately $1,520. If that same mortgage now has a rate of 5.50% then your payment will be approximately $1,703.

Slowing Down Inflation

By raising the FF rate, the Fed is trying to slow down inflation. The hope is that the more it costs to borrow money, the less likely consumers will be to buy goods. The lower the demand is for goods, the more likely prices will come down and inflation will slow. In the end, the Fed is trying to balance the FF rate and inflation to keep the economy growing no easy task.

Poperation of sixteen employees today. The Plumley team consists of engineers, civil engineers, environmental engineers, geologists, flora and fauna specialists, GIS specialists, and even someone who flies their drone.

Getting Started

From a young boy inspired by Jacques Cousteau, Joel always wanted to be an oceanographer. Even throughout high school, Joel was an avid scuba diver and was fascinated ith marine biolog Once at college he thattypeofthing.I'mnotasfondofenvironmental work.Thatismostlypaperworkandregulatory work.Iliketodesignsomething.It'sagreatfeeling toseeitgetbuiltafterwards."Plumleyalsodoes environmentalengineeringforcompanies.Itmay beremovingpetroleumtanks,orcleaningup contamination.Thatdoesn'tparticularlymakeJoel jumpupanddownforjoy."ButwhenIdesigna railroadsidingintoaplant,nowthey'vegotsomething andwe'reallhappy. learned pretty quickly that he'd need a PhD to make a real living as an oceanographer. "Freshman year, I had a roommate in college that was doing civil engineering. I had worked for my father in construction and enjoyed it. Knowing I could do well with a bachelor's degree as opposed to a PhD, I decided to go that route. I didn't particularly care for school," Joel laughs.

Graduating from Syracuse University in 1980, Joel took an eight hour exam and passed. Then he was required by the state to work for four years under a licensed professional engineer before he could take, and pass, the second eight hour exam. "As soon as I got through that second exam, I hung out my own shingle."

Growth,Innovation&TheEnvironment

Thediversityofservices,particularlyforthesizeofthe company,havebeenauniqueadvantageforPlumley Engineering.Withthemanychangesrelatingto environmentalcompliance,Plumley'sbeenwellpositionedtosecurethatwork."Anexampletodayis calledmergingcontaminants,"Joelstates."Andmost peoplearehearingaboutPFAs(polyfluoroalkyl substances)orPFO(perfluorooctanesulfonate) compounds,whichareabigdeal.They'reactually developed,inpart,toproduceTeflon.Rightnowthe firmisworkingforanairairport,tryingtogetridof thefoamthattheyuseforfirefighting,becauseit containsPFAs.

Staying Inspired

Being one of seven children, Joel and his family grew up in modest circumstances. "Five of the seven of us went to Mohawk Valley Community College because it was inexpensive, it was a good place to start. And then we all transferred. We've got a sister that's an attorney, brother that's a surveyor, etc. My parents stressed education. If you didn't get an education, you'd probably be disowned in my family," Joel jokes. "My dad was tough on that. My parents have been a huge inspiration for me." Joel's also had professors that have very much inspired him. "Several professors at S.U. inspired me, particularly, a structural professor and a geo-technical soil mechanics professor, " says Joel. "Along with some very dear friends."

Industry & Entrepreneurial Challenges

"The challenges primarily center around being able to keep up with new standards and regulations, making sure you're on top of changes," says Jesse, Joel's son and engineer at the firm. "New standards are created by generally, third parties in the industry. There's quite a bit of time before the development of these standards and when they're adopted by regulators; people who are actually making these laws. Best practices and staying on top of all of the changes can sometimes be the greatest challenge.

What's On the Horizon?

A transition is underway at Plumley as Joel is preparing to move on to a new chapter: Retirement. "I'm 68 and I'm ready. I've got other things I want to do in my life," says Joel. "My intent is to transfer the company to Jesse and another long-term employee here." Jesse and another employee are working on buying Joel out right now. "Originally I did not have an intention of working here," says Jesse. "I was going to school for international business with intentions of getting into international law. But during my summer I worked here to help out, doing little things. Something came up here in Baldwinsville where they needed to design a ramp to access a floating dock. It was a fairly minor thing in terms of civil engineering, but to me it was interesting to have to understand and implement. It addressed ADA compliance for wheelchair access to a dock that was going to be raising up and down and how to meet those challenges. That was something that I worked on the summer of 2003, and that triggered me to change course. I left the business program and got into an engineering program, graduating as an engineer. Now, all this time later, we're moving into this transition. I'm excited about being an even bigger part of the future of our company!

Business Got Easier Because of Seneca Savings

Prior to Seneca Savings, Plumley Engineering was at a big, multi-national bank. They weren't responsive. "We weren't even on their radar," says Joel. "We're a small company. The local branches, I couldn't even get a hold of them. Every time I'd call, I'd get a call center somewhere in Boston. So, I finally decided to get somebody more local that I could deal with." Joel went to a couple banks. "Utimately, I chose Seneca. They're local. I could call down there and talk to Joe, the president, right now," Joel smiles with confidence.

"They've been very helpful to me. Prompt in returning phone calls or getting paperwork done. It's the best bank I've ever worked with! I can call and ask for Barb, the branch manager or Laurie Ucher, a Senior VP. They're just always so accessible." Jesse adds "We needed a quick loan for a van. Our old van was on its last legs back in 2021. That's when it was really hard to get any vehicles. We were scrambling and we needed the money fast in order to get the van we needed

Words of Wisdom For the Next Generation

Get rid of the screens. And, social media. Joel offers "I don't think that either really helps you through life." Next, is work hard. "I was brought up with a strong work ethic, and that's what got me to this point. Not so much my brains, but the fact that I was willing to work very hard. The first 20 years or so, I was here nights and weekends all the time, working."

Joel's third piece of advice is to "Study hard and take school seriously. Even if you don't like a course, try to get into it. You'll be glad you did later in life."

The owner of Say I Do Events, Dave Stirpe, combined his experience in renovation and restaurants, to create a one-of-a-kind collection of highly successful wedding venues. Located in Vernon, NY with five uniquely different venues, Say I Do curates hundreds and hundreds of weddings every year, with all of the added components: From the beautiful venue itself, food, bar, DJ, flowers, photography, cakes, every aspect a bride can dream of. "Not only do we execute the wedding, we do all the parts and pieces to make it a one stop shop for brides and grooms," says Dave. It saves couples time, energy, stress, and money, because of the sheer volume that Say I Do buys, which helps save on a couples' costs.

"It all began 16 years ago when someone asked me if I'd ever heard of The Dibbles Inn," smiles Dave. "It needed a lot of work and someone with business savvy to bring it around."

PremierWeddingVenuesCNY.com

315.829.3022

Planning For More Growth

Because Say I Do already can average 14 to 15 weddings in a weekend, Dave wants to go deeper on the offerings for couples versus simply adding more venues. Rooms for lodging, a brewery to help serve the guests, as well as offer a before and after hours facility, are two examples Dave is planning for. "So, just a deeper breadth of products for our current couples as opposed to more couples," Dave adds. The company will continue to add services, continue to perfect the formula, and constantly make added improvements. They've already added a shuttle service. Dave states "Styles change, menus change, fads change, so it's about always keeping up with the times. One of the things that I enjoy the most is working with venues outside of my own to help them do design work and training, making their facilities better. It's something that I started about five or six years ago. I really do enjoy that. These communities are small. If your competitors get better, it only makes you continue to get better and better. I'm just a big believer in that. This business doesn't do well because a competitor does poorly. We do well, because we do well. That's what I focus on."

Dave feels he's lucky that his business really sits between Syracuse and Utica. What people are always surprised to find out about his business is the number of weddings executed. "Quite frankly, nobody in the industry even believes that we do it, but we actually draw a lot from New York City, Long Island, and across the country," states Dave. Only maybe a third of their weddings are local people. With the expansion that's happening in Syracuse, Utica and Rome, all the additional jobs, that creates more people. But there's only a certain amount of local people getting married every year. Dave knows he has to be there when couples are ready to make that decision.

Facing The Unknowns

Rising costs are a massive challenge for the business. "Let's face it," Dave says. "Rising costs are hurting everyone. When I'm pricing out a wedding, I commit to that pricing. It's tough to know because I'm booking weddings for 2024, 2025. How do you know? I never would've thought that eggs would be $9 a dozen. I mean, nobody would ever think that." So, controlling those costs and making sure there are no surprises it's next to impossible right now. It's not just about food costs. "People forget about energy costs and, heating and cooling all of these facilities. You really have to work very, very hard to control all those variables," states Dave.

Loving This Business

Say I Do Events is not only a smart business model for the entrepreneur, it's also a passion project. "You’re a part of something with people in happy times. You’re contributing to one of the happiest days of their lives. I love all of the different elements we're able to design and put together for our clients." Dave shared that although weddings are similar, they all have their unique challenges, and it's the Say I Do team's job to make sure that the day goes perfectly. Unlike many of the venues today, which are barns, (Dave states that there are a lot of beautiful barns out there), "they're the opposite of what we do," he adds. "They're a do-it-yourself package. They're a full-time job and there are brides that want that. We're the opposite. We're an all-inclusive facility that takes care of everything for you to eliminate that stress. And there are brides that want that too." With Say I Do, all of the bride's appointments are set and included; all personalized and custom. So, once a couple has their date secured, the bride meets with the floral team, the kitchen staff, the pastry chefs. The bride will meet with the DJs, etc. So, it saves the bride a lot of worry, time, energy, money, it’s just economies of scale all-around.

A Loyal Team

There's a lot of loyalty with the Say I Do staff. They’re a very close group. "We're all in it together," says Dave. "I'm constantly trying to make things better, not only for myself, but for the entire team. We move quickly and efficiently here. I like to work. It's really about the culture we've built here. Very rarely does anyone ever leave. Dave adds that it's not like the movies. People think of a wedding planner and they think of Jennifer Lopez in a movie with her microphones on. There are a lot of moving parts, and it can be a very stressful day. The key to the whole thing is that the bride doesn't have to experience that stress. So, there are always mistakes that happen along the way" adds Dave. "It’s our job to fix those mistakes and buffer all of that so the bride, the groom, and all of their guests, can have the most memorable, happy experience ever!"

What's So Special About Seneca Savings?

Seneca was something that really turned out to be a surprise for Dave. "I mean, who talks about their bank?" Dave laughs. "I have referred so many colleagues and people in business and the local business community... to Seneca. Their personalized touch... I think that that's the biggest difference. I was with a big national bank before Seneca Savings. When I left, I don't even know if they knew I'd left! And to get anything done, to be able to call and to just ask for help, forget it! The relationship was getting more and more distant, less and less personal. I wanted to be with a bank that treated me like my business mattered. I went and interviewed every small bank there was. Choosing Seneca was definitely the right decision."

"You go into it hoping it's not just promises and it wasn't just promises, it is how they operate. I've sat with the president of the bank. I've had issues, but they've heard my issues and worked for solutions with me, to fix the problems. That's all you're ever asking for. It's like with any business, nothing's ever going to be perfect. But will they work through the problem with you and help so that you're able to do business. I had an issue just the other day. I picked up the phone, talked to the branch manager and she drove here and picked up my deposit because she knew I couldn't make it to the bank. I mean, it's just amazing to me… who does that?!"

Banking Online and Keeping Things Easy

Seneca keeps it easy for Dave and he does just about all of his banking remotely. "They set up the system here, so we're able to deposit checks right on site. We handle everything online."

Giving Back To The Community

Dave and his entire team have a very strong focus on their local community. A charity was set up called Constance Cause, named after a family member of an employee who passed away with cancer. Fundraisers are done throughout the year. One hundred percent of the money is donated to the local community. Helping with anything from kids that need sneakers for school to somebody has a fire, people that are down on their luck, or just need a helping hand. Dave says "We do Easter every year, where we feed almost 3,000 people for free. We've raised several hundred thousand dollars. I owe an incredibly huge 'Thank You' to Seneca Savings for being a part of my team and helping me make all of this happen."

One Friend. One Neighbor. One Hand at a Time.

In a small office on South Salina Street back in 2009, an idea was born out of a desire to give back to a community he called home. Attorney Joe Stanley could only begin to imagine the impact that one idea would lead to in the years to come. Hundreds of events, tens of thousands of dollars, countless volunteers and musical contributions later, Music for the Mission (M4M) is creating impact. In February 2023, thirty food pantries across Upstate New York each received $1,000 mini-grants from Music For the Mission. The highest number yet in any one grant round. "A $1,000 may not seem a lot to some, but I can tell you, to each of those food pantries and the people visiting those food pantries, it makes a world of difference," says Joe.

Where Did the Name Come From?

Like so many people, Joe has a deep love for music. "We agreed in the beginning that music was perfect to encourage people to have fun and do good at the same time," says Angela Moonan, marketing consultant, who's worked with Joe for 20+ years and helped bring M4M to life. "At the time, Joe was 'holding court' in the chapel every month at the Rescue Mission. He'd offer free legal counsel to anyone who needed it. So we combined music with mission, and there you have it," says Angela.

The Need is Great

After supporting worthwhile non-profits like the Rescue Mission, the Salvation Army and the Food Bank of CNY, the M4M board decided they wanted to support smaller, grassroots organizations that often get overlooked because of their size or simple awareness. "Implementing the mini-grant process so that more could benefit has proven to be the right move," says Executive Director and musician, Joanna Jewett. The mini-grants are funding small food pantries, churches, school programs, etc. and offerthemvitalsupport.M4Mreceivedninetyapplicantions thismostrecentgrantroundandcouldonlyfundthirty."We haveevenmoreworktodo.Butit'sincrediblyworthwhile. Ingrantroundsinthepast,wemightreceive20-25grant applications.Soclearlytheneedisincreasing,"saysJoanna. ThemusicianswhopartnerwithM4M,themediapartnersand concertvenues,barsandrestaurants,thegenerosityofso manywhodonate,it'sallanamazing,collectiveeffort.

CloseToHome

InOnondagaCountyalone,thereare17,130kidsK-12thatare deemedfoodinsecure.Accordingtoa2017studyfromtheFood BankofCNY(undoubtedlythosenumbrshavesignificantly increasedinthelast5years),amongthethousandsofpeople whodependoncharitablefoodprogramsincentraland northernNewYork:

29%arechildren18oryounger

16%ofhouseholdsincludeanactivememberorveteranof themilitary

43%ofhouseholdshavehadtochoosebetweenpayingfor foodorpayingfordaytodayexpenses(medicine/medical care,utilities,rent/mortgageortransportation/fuel)

60%ofhouseholdshaveanannualincomebelow$18,000

LoveNotes&LotsofWaystoGive

HangingonthewallsoftheattheStanleyLawOffices,a renovated,historichomeintheHawleyGreenDistricton BurnetAvenue,alsohometoMusicfortheMission,are"Love Notes."It'sanopportunitytohangamusicnoteonthewallin honorofsomeoneyoulove.For$5,peoplepostlovenoteswith thehonoree'sortheirname,onthemusicnote.Allproceedsgo toMusicFortheMission.Inadditiontoareaconcertsand eventsthatM4Mpartnerswith,there'sagrowingnumberof CNYmusicianswhoenjoyofferingtheirtalentstoraisemoney. "WenameanewArtistoftheMonth,"saysJoanna."That artistormusiceducatorissomeonewhowantstogivea portionofthatmonth'sCDsalesorperformancemoneyto M4M."Itgivesartiststheuniqueopportunitytonotonly sharetheirmusic,butalsosharetheloveforpayingit forwardtohelpthoseinneed."