Published: July 03, 2008 08:31 am         

Festival help sought

The annual Otsego Lake Festival is a day of educational outreach with a focus on water quality, as well as a celebration that recognizes Otsego Lake and its vital role to the region as the source of the Susquehanna River, according to an Otsego 2000 press release.

Now in its fourth year and considered by many to be a summer tradition, Otsego Lake Festival is an opportunity for local businesses that rely on the lake and enjoy its benefits to support conservation efforts. Sponsored by the Otsego County Water Quality Coordinating Committee, this year’s event is scheduled for Saturday, July 12 from noon to 5 p.m. in Lake Front Park.

Although the festival focuses specifically on Otsego Lake, the water quality initiatives featured by exhibitors are relevant to all who live, work, and enjoy recreational activities in the Otsego Lake watershed, which encompasses approximately 75 square miles and includes two counties, five towns, and the Village of Cooperstown. Planning is underway for Otsego Lake Festival 2008, but such an endeavor does not come without a cost. The Water Quality Coordinating Committee and the Lake Festival Executive Committee are currently seeking financial support to help offset festival expenses, including the rental of tents, tables, and chairs, advertising and printing costs, entertainment, special events and much more.

Designed to be entertaining as well as informative, Otsego Lake Festival is an event for the entire family. Special features this year include live music by the Stoddard Hollow String Band and James Traglia on Caribbean steel drum, among others.

Artist Tracy Helgeson, who appeared at last year’s festival, will return this summer with fish painting at The Art Spot, and the SUNY Oneonta Biological Field Station will conduct Ecology Barge Tours in the afternoon.

The schedule is still shaping up, organizers said. For more about the festival, or for information about sponsorship and volunteer opportunities, contact Susan O’Handley at (607) 293-6043 or visit www.otsegolakefestival. com.