Editorial of September 17, 2026
No Amount Is Ever Too Small
“Mohawk Valley Gives,” a community-wide giving day to benefit nonprofit organizations serving the Mohawk Valley—set this year for Friday, September 18—is now in its fifth year. This is the fourth year running that the Community Foundation of Otsego County brings “Mohawk Valley Gives” to Otsego County. Early donations began on Monday, September 14.
According to the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties website, more than $6.5 million was raised last year, benefiting hundreds of local organizations. Here in Otsego County, thanks to a partnership between the two community foundations, Otsego County charitable organizations received more than $830,000.00 in donations from 2023-2025 through the Mohawk Valley Gives initiative. CFOC Executive Director Jeff Katz said of the fundraiser that Mohawk Valley Gives is “one of the year’s most important fundraising events for organizations serving our community.”
New this year, on Friday, the Cooperstown Food Pantry will host “Community of Giving,” a live event celebrating giving at Templeton Hall, 63 Pioneer Street, Cooperstown, compliments of Lucy Townsend and LM Townsend Catering.
Community members are invited to stop by after work—or anytime during the evening—to meet representatives from the food pantry and other participating Otsego County nonprofit organizations. Attendees can learn about local programs and services, enjoy live music, purchase wine or beer from a cash bar, and make donations in person or online. Valerie Jackson, CFP’s new executive director, said staff, board members, and volunteers from participating organizations will be available throughout the event, and fundraising updates will be shared online as nonprofits across Otsego County work toward their Mohawk Valley Gives goals.
“Bringing everyone together is a fitting way to celebrate this remarkable program,” said Katz of this new collaboration between the food pantry and his organization.
Nonprofits participating in Mohawk Valley Gives can promote their mission, raise unrestricted dollars to support their organization’s needs, and be placed in the running for prizes and incentives that will be awarded throughout the giving day. Many organizations—including the Cooperstown Food Pantry, the Susquehanna Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and CFOC itself—also have an opportunity to leverage donations through matching challenges, bringing further meaning to the phrase “no amount is too small.”
Every dollar donated to our charitable organizations supports important work done across Otsego County on behalf of our residents, including environmental conservation, programming for seniors, healthcare, the arts, education, historic preservation, battling food insecurity, and a plethora of other concentrations and missions.
Nonprofits participating this year are: A.O. Fox Hospital, Angel Network of Cooperstown, Bassett Medical Center, Bugbee Children’s Center, Butternut Valley Arts and Crafts Center, Canadarago Lake Improvement Association, Catholic Charities of Delaware, Otsego, and Schoharie Counties, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Albany, Catskill Choral Society, Catskills Agrarian Alliance, Center for Agricultural Development & Entrepreneurship (CADE), Center for Continuing Adult Learning, Inc., Charles N. Gordon Wildlife Rehabilitation Center Inc., Cherry Valley Artworks, Cherry Valley Community Facilities Corp., Cherry Valley Museum/Historical Association, Community Arts Network of Oneonta, Inc., Community Cupboard of Edmeston, Community Foundation of Otsego County, Connections at CSC, Cooperstown Art Association Inc., Cooperstown Concerts, Cooperstown Food Pantry Inc., Cooperstown Foundation, Cooperstown Friends of the Parks, Cooperstown Rotary Foundation, Cooperstown Sports Booster Club, Cooperstown Summer Music Festival, Cornell Cooperative Extension Schoharie and Otsego Counties, Daily Bread Food Pantry, Cherry Valley, Delaware-Otsego Audubon Society, Family Planning of South Central NY, Family Resource Network Inc., Fenimore Art Museum, Fenimore Chamber Orchestra, Feed Otsego, Fenimore Farm and Country Village, Film Otsego, Friends of Doubleday, Friends of Music and Art (FOMA) Cooperstown, Friends of the Oneonta Theatre, Future for Oneonta Foundation, Glimmerglass Festival, Greater Oneonta Historical Society, Habitat for Humanity of Otsego County, Harris Memorial Library, Hartwick College Yager Museum of Art and Culture, Hartwick Food Pantry, Helios Care, Hyde Hall Inc., Jail Ministry of Otsego County, League of Women Voters of the Cooperstown Area, Lions Club of Cooperstown, Lisa’s Spark of Hope, Little Delaware Youth Ensemble, Milford Central School Education Foundation Inc., Milford United Methodist Church, Mount Upton UMC Food Pantry, Oneonta Community Health Center, Opportunities for Otsego, Origins Community Foundation, Otsego 2000, Otsego Area Rowing Inc., Otsego Christian Academy, Otsego County Chapter NYSARC Inc. DBA The ARC Otsego, Otsego County Conservation Association, Otsego Lake Association, Otsego Land Trust, Otsego Pride Alliance, Otsego Refugee Resettlement Coalition Fund, Otsego Rural Housing Assistance Inc., Pathfinder Village Foundation Inc., Richfield Springs Community Center, Richfield Springs Food Pantry Inc., Richfield Springs Garden Club, Richfield Springs Historical Association and Museum, Richfield Youth Sports Inc., RMS-Ryerson Manor Springfield Corp, Saturday’s Bread, Schuyler Lake UMC Food Pantry, Springfield Historical Society, SUNY Oneonta Foundation, Super Heroes Humane Society, Swart-Wilcox House Museum, The Brookwood School, The Catskill Community Players in Oneonta, The Catskill Symphony Orchestra, The Family Service Association, The Friends of Huntington Memorial Library, The Gathering Place 50 Plus Community Center, The Salvation Army of Oneonta, The Smithy Pioneer Gallery Inc., Unadilla Community Food Pantry, Upper Catskill Natural Burial Association, and Worcester Free Library.
Give what you can, to as many as you can, at www.givemv.org/info/otsego.
