Though Rockefeller has flown free near Saugerties, she lives on in the hearts of Otsego County residents.
“I was so moved by this tiny little owl,” said Susan Miosek, a retired Cooperstown Elementary School teacher. “I’ve always wanted to write a children’s book, so I sat down and wrote it.”
“Rockefeller” follows the Oneonta Saw-whet owl as she journeys from “Daddy Al” Dick’s West Oneonta home down to New York City inside his 75-foot Norway Spruce, to Rockefeller Center and then to Saugerties, where she was “treated like a king” and released to continue her journey.
“In the beginning, she wakes up and she feels that everybody is sad,” Miosek said. “She wishes there was a way she could help. And by the end, she looks around and she thinks, ‘I’ve made these people happy.’”
Her 12-year-old grandson, Griffin Beckman, did the illustrations over Thanksgiving weekend in order to get the book into print for Christmas.
The book, printed at the Copy Shop, is available at The Cooperstown Art Association and the Family Tree Gallery.
TRUNK OR TREAT – 4:30-6:30 p.m. Enjoy games, candy, prizes. Parking lot of the Community Bible Chapel, 577 Greenough Rd., Cooperstown. Call 607-547-9764 or visit www.facebook.com/CommunityBibleChapel/
COMEDY – 9-10 p.m. Comedian JR De Guzman serenades the audience with music, jokes, stories of traveling the world, and life after college. Admission, $3. Hunt Union Waterfront room, SUNY Oneonta. Visit oneonta.campuslabs.com/engage/event/1458990
YARN WORKSHOP – 5-6:30 p.m. Work with instructor Tori to create something for yourself or loved one. All skill levels welcome! Create mittens, hats, more. The Turning Point, 22 Elm St., Oneonta. Call (607)267-4435 or e-mail kyle@friendsofrecoverydo.org or visit www.friendsofrecoverydo.org/events
CONCERT – 7 p.m. The Nate Gross Band performs with special guest Mike Herman. Show starts at 8 p.m. Includes a cash bar for those age 21+. Admission $5. The Foothills Performing Arts Center, Oneonta. foothillspac.org
ART RECEPTION – 5-7 p.m. Opening exhibit “The Wednesday Painters… Past & Present,” “Break out of The Box” an invitational miniature challenge, “Autumn Harvest” a retrospective in watercolors and mono-types by Betty Kratzenstein. The Cooperstown Art Association. Visit www.cooperstownart.com
CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERT – 7:30 p.m. The public is invited to the annual Florence High Memorial Chamber Music Concert arranged by Glimmerglass Festival Violinist Ubaldo Valli. Pierstown Grange Hall, 137 Wedderspoon Hollow Rd., Cooperstown. Call (607)264-3069 or (607)547-1347.
WATER SAFETY – 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Children aged 11-14 have fun in the pool while learning about water safety and lifeguarding with the Oneonta YMCA. Cost, $35 members, $50 public. Briggs Pool, Wilber Park, Oneonta. Call (607)432-6939 or visit www.oneontaymca.org/upcoming-events.html
