News Briefs: September 4, 2025

HoF Renovates General Store

COOPERSTOWN—The National Baseball Hall of Fame recently began a major renovation of the former Cooperstown General Store building, directly adjacent to the museum. After many years of vacancy, the space will be used to expand the museum store and add new back-of-house facilities to improve overall museum operations. Once the store has moved, the vacated space will provide new opportunities for activities and exhibits that previously did not fit in the museum. The project is expected to conclude some time in 2026.

Grand, Glorious Fair is Sunday

ONEONTA—Catskill Choral Society’s annual Grand and Glorious Fall Fair will return to Oneonta’s Neahwa Park on Sunday, September 7. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the park will be filled with craft vendors, food trucks, useful miscellany and community building. There will be live music by the Oneonta Community Band. For more information, visit CatskillChoralSociety.org.

Coop Concerts Series Begins

COOPERSTOWN—Cooperstown Concerts will open the 2025-26 season with a “Pickin’ on Sunday” double-billing at Fenimore Farm and Country Village, 5775 State Route 80, at 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 21. It will feature two outstanding acts, progressive bluegrass trio Follow the Muse and father-son guitar duo Loren and L.J. Barrigar. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit cooperstownconcerts.org. Further 2025-26 concert announcements will be posted to the website at a later date.

Collection Available Digitally

COOPERSTOWN—The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced that it has digitized the materials in its Bob Wolff Collection and made many of them available on its YouTube channel. Wolff was the 1995 Ford C. Frick Award Winner, capping a broadcast career that included 13 years as the voice of the Washington Senators and four seasons calling NBC’s “Game of the Week.” He donated much of his film collection, featuring two decades of interviews with baseball’s biggest stars, to the museum in successive gifts in 1972, 1975, 1976, 2002 and 2006. Many will be made available online in the coming weeks. Additional Bob Wolff tapes are preserved at the Library of Congress. For a complete list of films in the collection, contact the Hall of Fame Library at research@baseballhall.org.

Month Highlights Child Support

ALBANY—The New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance highlighted the 50th anniversary of the state Child Support Program as part of National Child Support Awareness Month, observed each August. The program has collected more than $50 billion over the last five decades, providing critical financial support to the state’s most vulnerable children. It assists parents in obtaining financial support and health coverage for their children by locating the other parents, and currently serves more than half a million children across the state. Administered by county departments of social services, it collects more than $1.67 billion each year. For more information, visit childsupport.ny.gov.

Chamber Meeting Rescheduled

UNADILLA—Due to Labor Day, the Unadilla Chamber of Commerce will hold its September meeting a week late, at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, September 9. As usual, it will be held in the Masonic Temple and William Bauer Community Center, 343 Main Street. For more information, visit the UCC Facebook page or contact unadillachamber@yahoo.com.

Invitational Tourney Slated

COOPERSTOWN—The Pathfinder Village/Baseball Hall of Fame Golf Invitational will return to Leatherstocking Golf Course on Monday, September 15. It will begin with an 11 a.m. shotgun start and features team prizes worth more than $6,500.00. Proceeds will benefit Pathfinder Village and the Hall of Fame’s educational programs. As is tradition, Hall of Fame pitcher Jack Morris will serve as Master of Ceremonies and keynote speaker at the fundraiser dinner. For more information or to register, visit pathfindervillage.org/tournaments?mc_cid=1e2f32e93a&mc_eid=7ff7b2a7d0.

Red Cross Announces Collab

OTSEGO COUNTY—The American Red Cross has announced a collaboration with “PEANUTS” to celebrate the iconic comic strip’s 75th anniversary. Through Sunday, September 21, all blood donors will receive an exclusive Red Cross x PEANUTS mystery bag with one of four limited-run T-shirt designs. To register for a blood drive, visit RedCrossBlood.org, download the Red Cross Blood Donor App or call 1-800-REDCROSS. Walk-ins are welcome.

Upcoming local blood drives include: Clark Sports Center, 1-5:30 p.m. on September 5; 1 Hartwick College Drive, 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on September 6; 5588 State Route 7, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on September 8; 15166 State Highway 30, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on September 10; 454 Delhi Drive, Delhi, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 12; 22 Union Street in Sidney, 1-6 p.m. on September 15; 77 Church Street in Margaretville, 12:30-5:30 p.m. on September 17; and 24 Market Street in Oneonta, 1-6 p.m. on September 18.

DVS Seeking Vet Feedback

ALBANY—The New York State Department of Veterans’ Services recently released a short, confidential survey for female veterans across the state. It takes less than two minutes to complete and will provide valuable feedback on healthcare, mental health, childcare, employment, education and other key veterans’ issues and services. Women veterans are urged to complete the survey at https://forms.office.com/g/firLyyAz09 by the end of the year.

Sweeney To Lead Workshop

ROXBURY—Roxbury Arts Center will host local artist Kathleen Sweeney for a workshop in Kirkside Park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, September 6. “Enchanting, Foraging and Bookmaking” will begin with a guided garden walk to forage for natural art materials, which will be used later in the day for creative writing exercises. The workshop will be offered with tiered equity pricing ranging from $20.00-60.00. Visit roxburyartsgroup.org for more information or to register.

FCO Season Begins Saturday

COOPERSTOWN—The Fenimore Chamber Orchestra will open its 2025-26 concert series at Christ Church Cooperstown at 3 p.m. on Saturday, September 6. The themed concert “Sunshine and Thunderstorms” will feature Mozart’s First Symphony, Giambattista Cimador’s bass concerto and Haydn’s “La Passione” Symphony. The “Wintersong” concert, performed at Christ Church at 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 6, includes Bartók’s “Dances of Transylvania,” Persichetti’s Appalachian Christmas Carols and Florence Price’s Andante moderato. “Bach in Bengal,” a musical dialogue between Indian classical music and the intricate structures of J.S. Bach and featuring sitarist Arjun Verma, will begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 21. The season will conclude with Concerto for Chamber Orchestra, including Mozart’s Symphony no. 40, work by Brazilian composer Villa-Lobos and the world premiere of a piece by Stephen Lias, at 3 p.m. on June 6.

In addition to the four regular-season concerts at Christ Church Cooperstown, FCO will travel for four concerts on the road at venues across the region. These include West Fulton’s Panther Creek Arts at 3 p.m. on September 7, Utica’s Masonic Care Community at 2 p.m. on December 7, the Village Library of Cooperstown at 3 p.m. on February 7 and back at Panther Creek Arts at 3 p.m. on March 22. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit fenimoreorchestra.org.

O2K To Host Public Meeting

COOPERSTOWN—Otsego 2000, in partnership with the Otsego Land Trust, SUNY Oneonta’s Biological Field Station and the Otsego County Conservation Association, will host and lead a community meeting on a proposed new subdivision on Sunday, September 7. The meeting will be held at the Pierstown Grange, 137 Wedderspoon Hollow Road, starting at 3 p.m. The Manocherian Subdivision Proposal would involve more than 1,500 acres of farmland, wetlands, slopes, and vacant land on the west side of Otsego Lake, straddling the boundary between the Towns of Springfield and Otsego. It would provide more than 110 buildable lots and include about three miles of new road construction. For more information, visit otsego2000.org/environmental-stewardship.

FCAHS To Host Clock Show

FLY CREEK—The Fly Creek Area Historical Society will present an Antique Clock Show at 208 Cemetery Road in Fly Creek from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 20. There will be displays and discussion of antique clocks collected by Chris Resch and handmade clocks by Tom Huntsman. Community members are welcome to bring in their own antique clocks for a brief evaluation.

Connections Announces Events

COOPERSTOWN—Connections at Clark Sports Center has released its September calendar of events for older adults, including regularly scheduled Monday and Thursday activities. These include mindfulness, pickleball, Silver Sneakers Yoga, a lunch option, Nordic walking and lap swimming. Special events include a Bluegrass Circle Jam Session and Italian lessons on Monday, September 8, each beginning at 12:45 p.m. There will be a mindful outdoor walk and a healthy eating workshop at 10 a.m. on Thursday, September 11, followed by a genealogy program from 12:30-2:15 p.m. and a Helios Care Grief Support Group from 1-2:30 p.m. For more information or to view the full schedule, visit the Connections at Clark Sports Center Facebook page or contact connectionsatcsc@gmail.com.

Professor Publishes Textbook

HERKIMER—Dr. Lisa Elwood-Farber, professor of English at Herkimer College, announced the publication of her first textbook in August. Kendall Hunt Publishing has agreed to bring out “Foundations of Writing and Literature,” intended as a guide for collegiate writing across disciplines. It covers active reading, text annotation, and analysis as a foundation for critical thinking and the creation of original ideas. Dr. Elwood-Farber began her tenure at Herkimer in 2003 and has since earned numerous accolades, including finishing a PhD in literature and criticism and receiving the 2019 SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities. According to a release, her primary research work examines 19th-century American literature through the lenses of race, feminist and post-colonial theory. For more information, visit herkimer.edu/herkimer-new.

Word Thursday Live is Sept. 11

TREADWELL—Bright Hill Press and Literary Center of the Catskills will host local poets Mike Jurkovic and Linda McCauley Freeman for Word Thursday Live at 7 p.m. on September 11. The live poetry reading will begin in the Community Library, 94 Church Street in Treadwell, and will be livestreamed on Zoom and the Bright Hill Facebook page. There is a suggested donation of $5.00. Word Thursdays are held on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month. For more information or to make a donation, contact info@brighthillpress.org.

Register for Brew-to-Brew 5K

SIDNEY—Wakeman Coffee Company and Muddy River Farm Brewery will host their inaugural Sidney Brew-to-Brew 5K road race at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 6. Runners will start their morning with a coffee at Wakeman before racing to the brewery for a post-race beer or non-alcoholic beverage on the scenic lawn. Muddy River will also have live music, corn hole, local vendors and shirt tie-dyeing for visitors. All race participants will receive a drink token for each location. Runners and walkers of all ability levels are welcome. Registration is $35.00 and rises to $45.00 for same-day registration. Proceeds will benefit the Delaware Valley Humane Society and The Uplift Collective, a local nonprofit that assists children and families facing significant health crises in the Southern Tier. For more information or to register, visit runsignup.com/Race/NY/Sidney/SidneyBrewToBrew5K.

Price Chopper Raises $57K

SCHENECTADY—Market 32 and Price Chopper customers donated more than $47,000.00 to the Muscular Dystrophy Association in a July round-up fundraiser, matched by $10,000.00 from the company. The money will fund the MDA’s critical work with children and adults living with muscular dystrophy, ALS, and related neuromuscular diseases, including research funding, nationwide care centers and MDA summer camps. For more information on the fundraising campaign, visit pricechopper.com. To learn more about muscular dystrophy or to make a donation, visit mda.org.

Gas Prices Climb into Autumn

UTICA—New York State’s average price of gas rose two cents to $3.17 per gallon over the week ending Monday, September 1, AAA Northeast announced. Strong demand leading up to the holiday weekend combined with tightening inventories and refinery outages from flooding in the Midwest to push up prices. Demand reached 9.4 million barrels a day, the highest reading since mid-June, and domestic gasoline inventories dropped to 222.3 million barrels, the lowest of the year. Crude oil prices have increased due to significant new fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war and market fears about the upcoming OPEC+ meeting on September 7. New York’s price is the same as a month ago and 30 cents lower than this day last year. To view the full report, visit gasprices.aaa.com.

Quilt Show, Sale Is Saturday

FLY CREEK—On Saturday, September 6, the Fly Creek United Methodist Church, 852 County Highway 26, will hold its 14th annual “Draping the Pews” Quilt Show and Sale from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. There is no charge to attend. For more than 20 years, Fly Creek area quilters have been donating their creations to those less fortunate, working with Bassett Healthcare Network, the Family Service Association, and the Otsego County Office for the Aging, among others. Proceeds from this event, and the corresponding silent auction, will be used to purchase the supplies needed to continue that tradition. There will also be an opportunity to make a monetary donation to a local food bank at this event, organizers said.