Al Rubin and teammate Theo Basdekis play a match in Otsego County Chamber of Commerce’s first pickleball tounament, which was held Saturday, June 26, in Oneonta’s Wilber Park.
CONCERT – 7:30 p.m. Kimberley Hawkey to perform mix of songs from Jazz, Broadway, and folk. She will be joined by pianist/vocalist Loren Daniels, bassist Evan Jagels, and drummer Graeme Francis. Music charge, $15. Origins Cafe, 558 Beaver Meadow Rd., Cooperstown. 607-437-2862 or visit www.celebrateorigins.com
NOBLE EAGLE – 2 p.m. Cooperstown Senior Community Center presents Joshua Ives sharing his story of his military experience in Afghanistan through photography. Brick building behind St. Mary’s Church, 31 Elm St., Cooperstown. coopseniorcenter@gmail.com
Richard Sternberg, retired Bassett Hospital orthopedic surgeon, is providing his professional perspective weekly during the COVID-19 threat. A village trustee, he resides in Cooperstown.
I and multitudes of people, from the President of the United States on down, have tried to convince people to get vaccinated when they are eligible, and to maintain basic public health precautions; wearing masks properly, washing hands and surfaces frequently, and maintaining social distance. Only about 60 percent of the adult population has followed these recommendations and a similar percent say they will get vaccinated.
If this continues, we may never get to go back to things the way they were, because enough of the population will remain vulnerable and the virus will still circulate and mutate. Once it mutates enough, it will defeat the immunity provided by most of the vaccines.
So, to the people who refuse to follow the best practices to eliminate COVID as a continued threat to normal, social, life, if you are not going to get the shot for some reason you picked up through rumor, learned on the internet or because of political position, maybe you will try to protect yourself, friends and family. If not, it is hurting you where it really matters, in the wallet.
With 35 percent of its employees not yet vaccinated, Springbrook is offering a $500 enticement to encourage them to get the COVID-19 vaccine shot.
“This is important, this is safe,” said Springbrook CEO Patricia Kennedy. “It’s going to get us back to where we want to be, being with the people we want to be with and doing things we want to do.
That’s my message for all our employees and the community.”
There’s a distinction between new employees we put in place in January.”
As for the residents on the Milford Center campus, 95 percent have been vaccinated.
BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE – 8:30 a.m. Women business owners gather online to discuss their adventures in entrepreneurship. Includes how they got started, resources they used to get off the ground, what they had known beforehand, and how they pivoted during the Pandemic. Free, registration required. Presented by Otsego County Chamber of Commerce. 607-432-4500 or visit otsegocc.com
When the going gets tough, the entrepreneurs get going.
At the first “Coffee With Coop,” Glimmerglass Festival’s Francesca Zambello outlines plans for the Andrew J. Martin-Weber Lawn Stage, which will ensure a robust 2021 season, despite COVID.
A corollary: The entrepreneurial spirit isn’t limited to entrepreneurs. (Per Merriam-Webster: “A person who organizes and operates a business or businesses, taking on greater-than-normal financial risks in order to do so.”)
So it was telling to watch the Cooperstown Chamber’s first “Coffee With Coop” panel discussion via Zoom last Friday, March 19. Kudos to the Chamber, and Executive Director Tara Burke, who was also an adept emcee.
It was a little disheartening to hear a recitation of all the Hall of Fame cancellations, although the scope of its undertakings – an estimated 80,000 fans were expected at Derek Jeter’s Induction – make them particularly fraught, not to mention dangerous, in Time of COVID.
And yet, the entrepreneurial spirit lived in presentations by, first, Fenimore President/CEO Paul D’Ambrosio and then, in Glimmerglass Opera General & Artistic Director Francesca Zambello.
SEMINAR – 8:30 – 11 a.m. Learn about the progress in bringing Broadband internet to Otsego County from Otsego Electric Cooperative CEO Tim Johnson. Free, registration required. Presented by The Otsego County Chamber of Commerce. 607-432-4500 or visit otsegocc.com
INTERNATIONAL NIGHT – 5 – 8 p.m. Enjoy 3-course meal from abroad. This week enjoy dinner from Brazil. Cost, $20/person. Reservation required. Take-out available. The Otesaga, Cooperstown. 607-544-2524 or visit www.otesaga.com/dining/seasonal-dining
With herd immunity headed our way – by mid-summer or earlier – it IS time to look toward what’s next.
So interim Otsego Chamber President Al Rubin’s letter to members, which arrived Monday in e-mail boxes, is ideally timed.
The letter was an appeal to members to volunteer for chamber committees: Marketing/Education, Membership Services/Events and Finance/Audit.
“We want your input, we want your voice,” wrote Rubin, “and we encourage your engagement to step in and involve yourselves in any way you might be able to utilize your skill sets and connections within our community.”
For sure. Intrigued chamber members should jump in.
Likewise, all other organizations and businesses should be preparing for the rebound, be it this spring, mid-summer or sometime this fall.
TRIVIA NIGHT – 7 p.m. Get your housemates together for fun ‘Around The World’ themed game night. Part of the Cooperstown Winter Carnival. Visit www.cooperstownwintercarnival.com for info.
PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION – 46th President Joe Biden to be inaugurated in Washington DC.
VIRTUAL TOUR – 2 p.m. Zoom meeting featuring walk through of exhibit ‘Hamilton’s Final Act: Enemies and Allies’ with manager of arts education Kevin Gray. Free, registration required. Suggested donation $5. Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown. 607-547-1400 or visit www.fenimoreartmuseum.org
COVID TESTING – 8 – 10 a.m. Free Covid-19 testing for people with no symptoms. Call for an appointment. Bassett Medical Center, Cooperstown Clinic, 1 Atwell Dr., Cooperstown. 607-547-7973.
MAPLE SYRUP – 6 p.m. Learn how to make Maple Syrup at the micro scale with Aaron Wightman, Co-Director of the Cornell Maple Program. He will cover why sap flows, sap collection options, the basics of processing, filtering, and grading. Free, registration required by Noon. Presented by Cornell Cooperative Extension. 518-234-4303 ext. 111 or visit cceschoharie-otsego.org/events/2021/01/11/the-taste-of-the-hills-maple-syrup-for-beginners
STATE OF THE STATE – 9 a.m. Hear from local leaders, business owners, elected representatives on our economic health and policies from a national, state and local perspective. Will feature keynote speaker Rep. Antonio Delgado. Free, pre-registration required for Zoom conference. Presented by the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce. 607-432-4500 or visit members.otsegocc.com/events/details/2021-state-of-the-state-virtual-meeting-with-keynote-antonio-delgado-404
