News from the Noteworthy from the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce
Sean Lewis: ‘Chamber Has a Lot Going On’
As we approach the fourth quarter holiday season, the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce is moving into a very busy period of community activity. As always, the OCCC participates in efforts that support our communities and the nearly 300 member businesses, organizations, and individuals we serve.
October 31 is, of course, Halloween. As a member of Oneonta’s Parade Team, we are helping the Rotary Club of Oneonta with the Annual Halloween Parade. Other team members include Hill City Celebrations, Destination Oneonta, and “The Daily Star.” We are all working together to produce the traditional parades that are part of the fabric of this city. Staging begins at 5 p.m. along Elm Street, with the parade beginning at 6 p.m. Bring your children down to Main Street for trick-or-treat at participating businesses starting at 3 p.m. And, of course, there are donuts and cider at Foothills Performing Arts and Civic Center directly after the parade. Show up, show out, and dress up for the festivities! If you want to participate in the parade itself, register at https://form.jotform.com/242834950782162.
November 14 is our Annual Members Meeting and Awards Celebration in the Atrium at the Foothills. This year’s award winners are: Breakthrough Award—The Gathering Place; Small Business Award—Annutto’s Farm Stand; Member of the Year—Bobby Angilletta and the staff at Sal’s New Classic Pizza; and four winners of the Community Leadership Award—Hartwick College and SUNY Oneonta for their efforts to work together on multiple projects, and ONC BOCES and Bassett Healthcare Network for the recent LPN Pipeline Program. This event is a traditional sellout, so members should reserve their seats right away by visiting our website at otsegocc.com.
Starting on Small Business Saturday (November 29), OCCC will once again be running our Shop Small, Win Big Promotion for Otsego County retail businesses. Each participating business will donate a $25.00 gift card, with expectations that we will increase the levels from 30 participants last year. The community can visit each location between November 28 and December 17 to register. OCCC will pick one winner from all the registrations collected live on Facebook, and that lucky individual will win all the donated gift cards plus a $200.00 gift card to the participating business of the winner’s choice. Our goal is to present one winner with over $1,000.00 in local store credit just before the holidays! Look for the Shop Small, Win Big posters and registration displays throughout Otsego County.
The Holiday Parade and other traditional Christmas season events will be held again this year in Oneonta. The parade kicks off at 10 a.m. and runs its traditional course along Main Street. Santa will be making his regular appearance, with visiting hours at the cottage on Muller Plaza directly afterwards. The city tree lighting will be December 12 at 5 p.m. Additional Muller Plaza Santa visiting hours will be after the tree lighting, December 13 from 5-8 p.m., December 14 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m., December 20 from 5-8 p.m., and December 21 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. And the Festival of Trees will be at the Foothills Atrium on Friday, December 6 and Saturday, December 7. If you would like to participate, please contact Karen Laing at klaing@otsegocc.com.
We hope to see you this season as we celebrate our area and the folks who live and work here.
Sean Lewis is the president and chief executive officer of the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce.