Latest Articles

Delaware Academy Announces Valedictorian and Salutatorian

Delhi - Easton Potrzeba has been named Valedictorian and Victoria Verspoor will be Salutatorian of the Class of 2024 at Delaware Academy Central School at Delhi. Easton is a talented cello player who’s been involved in the school musical and stage crew, indoor and outdoor track and German Club, as well as Sources of Strength and Students Against Destructive Decisions, and has qualified to receive the Seal of Biliteracy upon graduation. He is a member of the National Honor Society, and serves as a student member on the DEI Committee. He participated in Shakespeare programs with the West Kortright Center and has been an Intern at the Bright Hill Literary Center Children’s Workshops. Easton plans to attend the University of Washington in Seattle, where he’ll major in Industrial Engineering with a minor in German. Victoria is a busy and active student who currently serves as vice president of the Class of 2024 and as a Student Representative on the Board of Education, participates in chorus, concert band, marching band, jazz band, musical, NYSSMA, Area All State, and All County music groups, plays volleyball (captain), basketball and softball (captain), and attended Athletic Captain’s Training. She is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish Club, Varsity Club, Sources of Strength, Students Against Destructive Decisions, and Catskill Area School Study Council leadership group. She was recently honored at the 2024 Scholar Recognition dinner and has qualified to receive the Seal of Biliteracy upon graduation. Victoria enjoys helping others, and serves as a Brilliant Pathways mentor, a peer tutor, and has volunteered for numerous events and organizations inside and outside of school. She plans to attend the Batten Honors College of Virginia Wesleyan University, majoring in Biology, and then continue her education in medicine. Delaware Academy Central School District at Delhi will hold its 204th commencement ceremony at 10:00 am on Saturday, June 29 at the school.

County Denys NY Safety Track Application

By Mary A. Crisafulli HARPERSFIELD - Delaware County Planning Board members took no action at their May meeting regarding the site plan application requesting expansion of land use activities at the New York Safety Track on Zimmerman Road. The board issued the "no action" due to an incomplete application. The application was submitted in 2022 following a SWPPP (stormwater pollution prevention plan) violation by the track owners when they removed trees without a permit. The safety track is a two-mile-long race track originally designed for motorcycles. The proposed expansion of use includes increased hours of operation and development of a .7-mile-long mini-track, and the ability to host races. Track owners are also requesting additional vehicle types be added to its site plan, including cars. This is the third time the county has reviewed this application. In November 2023 they also issued a "no action" due to an incomplete application and submitted a list of additional items for the applicant to provide. The board recommended the applicant supply a list of all LLC members, clearly defined hours and days of operation, and a completed sound study of all neighboring towns with a reapplication. The board also recommended the owners consult with the Harpersfield Town Council and Code Enforcement Officer Thomas Little regarding local regulations. However, at the May meeting, board members noted "The items requested have not been received." During public comment regarding the application, it was stated that officials are not permitted on the property to conduct inspections and there is a shooting range at the facility which worries neighboring property owners. The Harpersfield Planning Board, which is also reviewing the application and SEQR (state environmental quality review), scheduled a special meeting on Thursday, May 16 after press time. More information on that meeting can be found in next week's edition of The Mountain Eagle.

O'Connor Hospital Partners with SUNY Delhi to Hold Free Rabies Vaccine Clinics

DELHI — Bassett Healthcare Network’s O’Connor Hospital recently partnered with SUNY Delhi to hold free clinics to administer rabies prophylaxis vaccine to workers with high exposure risks around the region. Dr. Bret Meckel, Dean of the SUNY Delhi School of Veterinary and Professional Studies, learned in March that SUNY Delhi had an oversupply of rabies vaccine that would be expiring soon. He reached out to colleagues at nearby O’Connor Hospital to explore how the institutions could work together to provide a public health service to workers at high risk for contracting the virus, including professionals, faculty, and students in veterinary medicine and employees who work at local animal hospitals and animal control offices. “It is a privilege to work closely with our colleagues at O’Connor Hospital to offer our communities care and resources,” says Dr. Meckel. “We are proud to have been able to offer this critical preventive intervention to people in our region.” The rabies vaccine is a two-shot series given seven days apart and requires a booster every two years. O’Connor Hospital staff worked with Dr. Peter Sosnow, Medical Director and Division Chief of Bassett Healthcare Network’s health centers across Delaware County, to obtain orders for vaccine doses. With assistance from O’Connor Hospital’s Patient Access team and Ambulatory Care team, 90 doses of vaccine were administered in two days. “Our collaborative relationship with SUNY Delhi has always been a great source of pride and satisfaction for O’Connor Hospital and Bassett Healthcare Network,” says Susan Oakes Ferrucci, DNP, MSN, RN, CNS, Chief Hospital Executive of Bassett’s Critical Access Hospital Division. “I am grateful to everyone at O’Connor Hospital for helping to make these clinics happen. We look forward to continuing to partner with SUNY Delhi on future initiatives to serve our communities.” As a Critical Access Hospital, O’Connor Hospital provides 24/7 emergency and inpatient care to surrounding communities. In addition, the hospital operates an outpatient pharmacy, surgical services, laboratory, imaging services, rehabilitative care, and specialty care. Learn more by visiting www.bassett.org.

FEDERAL, STATE & LOCAL PRIMARY ELECTIONS – TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 2024

Polls will be open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The last day for new voters to register is June 15 th . The last day for the Board of Elections to receive early mail/absentee ballot applications online or by mail is June 15th Voters must be enrolled members of the party in order to participate in a primary Voters should note that the elections are limited to the following candidates, parties and Towns: Office of Member of Council, Town of Roxbury – 3 year vacancy, Vote for One Democratic Party : Lisa M Ciaravino; Nathan S Potter Office of Member of Assembly 102 nd District, Vote for One Democratic Party : Mary T Finneran; Janet S Tweed The 102 Assembly District Towns in Delaware County are: Bovina, Davenport, Delhi, Franklin, Hamden, Harpersfield, Kortright, Meredith, Roxbury, Stamford & Walton NOTE: There will be no Republican, Working Family or Conservative party primary elections in Delaware County on June 25 th Primary elections will be held at your regular poll site Early Voting, Saturday, June 15 th through Sunday, June 23 rd will be held at the Board of Elections Office. Questions? Call us at 607-832-5321

Reynolds Attends Cowtown Society of Western Music Awards Show

MINERAL WELLS, TEXAS — On the weekend of May 3rd, 4th, and 5th 2024 local radio host Alan Reynolds was in Mineral Wells, Texas for the 24th annual Cowtown Society Of Western Music Awards Show. He was not there to receive an award. That happened last year when he was inducted into that organization's Hall Of Fame as Radio DJ Of The Year. This year he was there to help bring Justin Trevino into the Hall Of Fame as a Hero Of Western Swing. Justin had become a good friend over the years as he introduced Alan to many singers, musicians, band members, producers, radio personalities and many others involved with country music and western music. You can listen to Alan Reynolds locally at WIOX 91.3 FM or anywhere on your computer or smart device at wioxradio.org. Pure Country airs on Saturday afternoons at 4-6 PM Eastern Time. The Radio Truck Stop is open from 10 PM until Midnight on Sunday evenings.

Travel Writing Workshop Begins June 5

Writers in the Mountains (WIM) presents Travel Writing 101, a six-week long workshop with Rachel Dickinson, June 5 – July 10. The class will be held online Wednesdays, from 6 to 8 pm ET. Once you register and pay, you will be given instructions on how to join the class. Have you ever met a travel writer and thought "I wish I could do that?" Well, you can. In this course we'll read a variety of travel pieces, and talk about what makes them good (or not so good). We will look at different kinds of travel writing - roundups, essays, hotel/spa reviews. Then we will write a couple of travel pieces - one that features something where you live (you don't have to travel to do good travel writing) and another about some place you have visited. These pieces will be critiqued by the class. A freelance writer for over 20 years, Rachel Dickinson's pieces about nature, history, science, and travel have been published in numerous publications including Aeon, The Atlantic, Audubon, Smithsonian, Salon, Outside Online, The Saturday Evening Post, and many publications that no longer exist. A two-time winner of the Travel Classics Writing Award, she’s also the author of seven nonfiction books. Her latest, a memoir in essays, is The Loneliest Places: loss, grief, and the long journey home (Three Hills Press, 2022). Dickinson has an MFA in nonfiction from Goucher College. To register, e-mail writersinthemountains@gmail.com. To register online, visit writersinthemountains.org. Class fee is $140. Limited to ten students. Registration deadline is May 29. Writers in the Mountains is a not-for-profit organization with a mission to provide a nurturing environment for the practice, appreciation and sharing of creative writing. Learn more at writersinthemountains.org.

Young and Old Make Music in Stamford

STAMFORD — Just prior to the pandemic lockdown in March of 2020, The Community Music Network had planned to start up a multi-generational family music and movement class at The Pavilion Senior Living Center in Stamford, New York. Instead, director and teaching artist Pamela West-Finkle, found herself in the same position as many teachers and self-employed gig workers, scrambling to figure out how to teach something normally done in person with a group online. Now, after four years, the organization is bringing the young to the old once again. Starting this Thursday, May 16th, local families with young children, babies to age seven, and special needs children of all ages, are invited to participate in Miss Pam’s Jamboree starting at 10:30 am. Registration is required and a $10 donation per family is suggested, but numerous scholarships are available. This program is funded with support from the Robinson Broadhurst Foundation and the A. Lindsay and Olive B. O’Connor Foundation. The class will run on Thursday mornings for five weeks until approximately June 13th (or 20th in case of illness cancelation), then four weeks July 11th – August 1st, starting again in early September to run until the holidays. The Pavilion Senior Living Center is located at 1 Buntline Avenue in Stamford, New York. “Of all of my programs over the years,” West-Finkle explains, “my favorites have always been my multi-generational classes. The residents look forward to it all week, even asking staff repeatedly ‘When are the babies coming?’ and they truly come alive when they see the little ones and their parents having so much fun with the music. The pandemic put a huge damper on these types of in person programs, so I am so glad we are finally able to bring the children to the senior facility again.” In the class, the senior residents form a human circle in chairs and a group of young children and their caregivers or parents participate inside the circle, singing primarily old folk songs and dancing. Everyone plays egg shakers, rhythm sticks, uses bells, bands, parachutes, and scarves, and then each participant picks a hand percussion instrument to play during the big jam session. The 45-50 minute class ends with a lullaby and the farewell ritual song. As children become comfortable around the senior citizens, they begin interacting with them, collecting instruments, dancing with them, and bringing pure joy to the residents in the home. That in turn, improves their mood and enhances their well-being, evokes memories associated with the music or raising their own children, and reduces their need for pain and psychiatric medications. Pamela West-Finkle has been teaching children music and performing in nursing homes, hospitals, and hospice since the 1990s. She received her BS in Education in 1996 at Ashland University in Ohio and her Masters in Music in 2012 from the University of Montana and is certified to teach K-12 music and 7-12 English. For the last twenty years, she has brought her all ages community music programs to the Catskills, obtaining nonprofit status in 2020. Miss Pam will also be joined by SUNY Oneonta Music Industry Intern, Katie Marie Eklund, who will be helping to facilitate the classes. Katie and her sister Gabbi Eklund make up the soulful rock duo Sweet Marie and have performed at Mountain Jam, The Bitter End, The Bearsville Theater, opened for Brandye Carlisle, Warren Haynes, American Nomads and have regularly performed in the Catskills since their teens. For more information about classes with the Community Music Network and to register, call 607-287-0793, email communitymusicnet@gmail.com.

Artworks by Music Legend Bob Dylan Featured This Summer at Fenimore Art Museum

The Thomas Cole National Historic Site Announces the Opening of the Exhibition Native Prospects Indigeneity and Landscape

Blood Drive at Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown on May 21

Bassett Medical Center Holding Inaugural David S Svahn Memorial Lecture on May 24

Local Business Focus

Ravens Nest Crafts By Tori Edwards RICHMONDVILLE — In Richmondville, Ravens Nest Crafts is a women owned and operated craft business. The owner, Frances DoBesh can be reached at (518) 603-8217 or by email at DESIGNSBYFRANCESD@GMAIL.com. This artist sells custom made shirts, tumblers, cups, keychains, and so much more. Her Facebook page is Ravens Nest Crafts. Go like her page and find out more about the goodies she creates. She can do a variety of designs and slogans on any material, just give her an idea or an item you are interested in, and she can create that special work of art just customized for you! Her slogan is “Where creativity knows no bounds.” Frances started her business this past holiday season and has flourished ever since. She creates items with her Cricut and vinyl that has branched out into sublimation to make beautiful pieces. She enjoys this as her pastime and loves making custom car coasters. Frances creates items for birthdays, weddings, baby showers, and just because gifts. Does your business need customized designs for promotional purposes? This is the place! Just contact Ravens Nest Crafts! This company will put your designs on a variety of products to promote your business! Hit like on Facebook and message the Ravens Nest Crafts Today!