Letters for April 10, 2008

April 10, 2008 09:05 am

Canvas grocery bags great idea

Have you noticed that the Cooperstown Great American is selling reusable canvas grocery bags for 99 cents, to replace the traditional disposable plastic and paper grocery bags? This is a great idea whose time has come. Plastic bags are very unfriendly to our environment;

they are petroleum-based products that lay in our landfills or wind up being windblown into our lakes, rivers and streams. It takes 100 years or so for a plastic bag to decompose, so that every single plastic bag that has ever been produced in still on our planet! And paper grocery bags are no better.

Mary and I bought five of the reusable canvas bags a few weeks ago for $5.28 including tax. We keep them in our vehicle so they are handy for our next trip to the Great American. The checkout clerks that I spoke with said they are no more difficult to deal with than the plastic or paper bags. And I have found that they make it much easier to load the groceries into the vehicle and then into the house; they have sturdy straps and hold their shape better.

Thank you, Great American! If we all get behind this, we can make a difference.

Paul Kuhn
Cooperstown

Festival was a success

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the people who supported and volunteered to make our first festival of Children’s Authors and Illustrators in Cooperstown a large success. Our deepest gratitude goes to Peg O’Dell whose support was unwavering and steadfast. We could not have done the festival without her hard work, support and focus.

Thank you, Peg!

Mary Tedesco has been a tremendous support and strength to help move the festival forward and make it happen. The financial support from the Cooperstown School Parent Teacher Organization and the Friends of the Village Library is greatly appreciated. An immeasurable thank you goes to all the staff, teachers, parents and students who gave their time, energy and support to make the festival run smoothly and enjoyable for all who attended the festival. We would like to thank the nine authors and illustrators who spent their Saturday in Cooperstown enriching are minds and souls with literary enthusiasm. And to all who came to the festival in support of inspiring and educating ourselves and our children in the art of writing, illustrating, publishing and reading books ... we thank you for your support. We look forward to the second annual festival next spring.

Charlene and Jim Vrooman
Cooperstown

Community help appreciated

Thank you for all the calls of concern, visits, food, cards, monetary donations and most of all the prayers after my snowmobile accident and during my continued recovery. Words cannot express our deep gratitude and appreciation to the many businesses, business associates, community members, our many friends and our loving family for the most wonderful and overwhelming show of support with the fundraiser. It truly touched our hearts knowing our small community and beyond was so willing to aid us in so many ways. We are very blessed and pray that God will bless you greatly in return.

Special thanks to our immediate family who put in many hours of work and planning to bring this fundraiser together. We are humbled.

-Grant and Joan Seamon
- Debbie and Dave Bartlett
-Jodi and Les Phillips
- Tami and Mike Kucerak and families.

Finally, thank you to our wonderful children for all their loving care, concern and being there whenever we needed anything. We love you.

- Ella Cooler and Bill Coveny and boys
- Tim Winslow
-Joni and Jeromie La- Barge

God bless you,
Larry and Michele Winslow
Richfield Springs

Brookwood PTO says thanks

The Brookwood School’s PTO (Parent Teacher Organization) would like to thank Robert Fiorentino, LMT, of Leatherstocking Massage, Richfield Springs, and Diane Ducey, LMT, Cooperstown for their donations of head and neck massages for the Brookwood staff during Staff Appreciation Week, March 10 through 14.

Wendy Ferguson
Co-facilitator, Brookwood
PTO

Play was well done

“Arsenic and Old Lace,” presented by the Senior Class of 2008, was outstanding. Everything about it was outstanding. The casting was perfect, with each cast member taking on his/her character with a professionalism beyond their years.

The set was beautifully done, and everything ran like a well oiled machine, showing that there was an efficient group of people behind the scenes doing an excellent job. All of the adults involved are to be commended. Congratulations to all involved in this production, those on stage and those behind the scenes. Thank you for a most enjoyable and unforgettable night at the theater.

Grace Kull
John Rathbun’s proud grandmother
Cooperstown

Controlled fire worked well

Dear Fly Creek Fire Chief Mike Thayer, Max and Donna Marie would like to thank the Fly Creek Fire Department for doing a professional job in carrying out the controlled burn of the house at 469 Keating Rd., Fly Creek on Saturday, April 5.

We also would like to thank everyone for saving the evergreen trees, which were so close to the house. We greatly appreciate all that was done.

Again, many thanks.
Max Lewis and Donna Marie Loiacano
Fly Creek

Coop girls say thank you

The CCS girls’ varsity basketball team would like to thank the community for all their support throughout the season, sectionals and our trip to the state final four.

We ended our season with a team banquet on March 27 at the Baseball Hall of Fame. A special thank you goes to the organizers of the event, Mrs. June Dolhun and Mr. Ted Spencer. Thank you to the custodial and security staff at the Hall of Fame for all their help.

We would also like to thank Mr. and Mrs. Capozza for being on standby just in case we needed extra tables. Thanks to Mr. Bennett and our CCS custodial staff for moving over extra chairs.

Thanks to Mohican Flowers for a beautiful donated centerpiece and to the General Store for numerous discounted tablecloths.

To Ted Spencer again: thank you for the very special DVD of our season. It will be something we will always treasure.

Last but not least, we would like to thank our coaches and our parents. Without all of you none of this would have been possible. These last five months have given us wonderful memories that will last us a lifetime.

CCS Varsity Basketball Seniors: Kristen Busse, Katie Cring, Katie Donley, Abby Hull, Sam Fox, Jenny Potrikus, Lindsay Valentine and Jen Wehner

Concert series a success

Cooperstown Concert Series has just concluded its 38th season. A big thank you is in order to all of our volunteers. The Concert Series could not exist without the help of many, many people who contribute in a variety of ways. Volunteers offer their time at the shows by acting as ticket takers, ushers and coordinators, and in a year-long effort by attending meetings, setting the program, submitting grants, distributing posters and paying the bills.

We also wish to thank our generous sponsors and donors who help support our efforts in bringing quality music to Cooperstown. We are grateful, as well, to the Otesaga Hotel and Cooperstown Middle/ High School for being such gracious hosts.

Yet, all of that work would be in vain if not for those who subscribe and buy tickets. While we provide the concerts, you, the audience, provide the energy and enthusiasm that makes it all worthwhile. Nearly 2,900 tickets were purchased or donated to local charity organizations for the 2007-08 season alone.

And now, on to next season, when we will provide seven shows, each different from the other: from Rock and Roll Hall of Famers like Roger McGuinn of the Byrds, to up and coming artists like Eilen Jewell. We’ll have the David Leonhardt Jazz Group for our Holiday show, and the Heavenly Echoes gospel group in February. The Bruce Katz Band (no relation) will bring their blues/ funk sounds in January, and the 25-member Indonesian music group Gamelan Galak Tika will hit Cooperstown in March with a full-costume spectacle never before seen in our Village.

We will be supporting a free show of hot bluegrass music with the Lost Boys on Pumpkinfest Sunday as a Thank You to the community for their support.

So we will see you again on Sept. 27. Until then, check out our website, cooperstownconcertseries. org, for updated information.

Jeff Katz and Rich Brown
Co-Directors

Let’s improve children’s health

We have become a fast food nation. Just like the commercials say, “America runs on Dunkin’.”

This is a problem, because most schools do not give children recess, gym only every other day, and the fatty grease ball burgers that they eat pack on the pounds.

I am a senior at Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School. I have not had recess since seventh grade, and I only have gym every other day. This does not allow me or my peers to get enough exercise. I have a friend from another country, and when I asked him what he thought of American food, he said, “At home, we don’t go to Mc- Donald’s or have pizza every day.” Obesity is a major problem, and there are two causes. One, you are what you eat, and two, children do not get enough exercise in school, which shapes their idea about exercise for later in life.

Schools can and should provide more healthy food. Also, the schools should allow all students to have at least 20 minutes in the gymnasium every day.Hopefully, schools will realize that they shape their students’ future, and provide a more healthy environment.

Blaze Cox
Roseboom

Cox is a senior at Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School.

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