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Friday, February 16, 2007February 16 2007Let It Snow, Let It Snow...  Roseboom Is Hit By A Record By JIM KEVLIN ROSEBOOM "Never!” Never has 10-year Roseboom Supervisor Michael Stannard seen a storm like the icy Valentine’s Day Massacre that dumped a record 38 inches on his town Wednesday, Feb. 14, at a rate of up to 4 and 5 inches an hour. “It’s quite a mess,” he said, shortly after entering his Pleasant Brook home at 9:30 p.m. that evening after he and the town highway crew – four plows total – had been on the road since 3:30 that morning. Otsego County “spotters” reporting to the National Weather Service in Binghamton said 3 foot, 2 inches of snow fell on the county’s east end, 32 inches in Schenevus, 30 inches in Cooperstown. Sure, this was a two-day storm, but accumulations almost doubled the one-day records: 21 inches on Feb. 19, 1972, 18.6 on March 13, 1993, and 18.4 on Jan. 13, 1964. At the west and south ends of the county, the amounts tailed off, with only 11.4 inches recorded in Unadilla Forks in the far southwest. Justin Arnott, National Weather Service meteorologist, called the snowfall “a big deal” – he said conditions off the coast of Maine, where the storm was most intense, was the winter equivalent of a Category 10 hurricane – but he didn’t have to tell anyone who lived through it. The snow began falling between 8 and 9 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13, and about a foot – www.weatherunderground. com said 18 inches – had fallen by the time the sun rose on Valentine’s Day. But that was only the beginning. Except for pickups with plows on the front, traffic all but disappeared as Cooperstown’s streets were turned over to cross-country skiiers and struggling pedestrians. Snow-shovelers who thought their work was done emerged from their homes and offices an hour or two later to sidewalks that looked untouched. By mid-afternoon, snow was piled shoulder-high along Main and Pioneer streets’ sidewalks, where there was nowhere to put the fluffy stuff. With the 10 feet of snow that fell in Oswego County in recent days, “lake effect” has been on everyone’s lips, but this storm was quite the opposite. Where lake effect results from cold air moving west-to-east over Lake Ontario’s warmer waters, this front came east to west, carrying warm, moist air from the Atlantic seaboard. When the moist air hit a high, super-dry updraft as it came into Otsego County, a frozen deluge of snow came out of the sky. Arnott said precipitation equalled 2.5 inches of rain, similar to the amount that caused last June’s devastating floods. Stannard’s wife, Carol, works at Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown, which sent all but emergency staff home at 1 p.m. It usually takes Carol 20 minutes to get home; Wednesday, it took her one hour, 45 minutes. She arrived in Pleasant Brook, a few miles to the east of Bob’s Corner Store, at 3:15. “It was really bad out there,” she said. “You could get stuck in drifts in the middle of the road if you weren’t careful.” Snow showers were predicted to continue through Friday, Feb. 16, although revellers at Snowfest 2007, which includes the New York State Snowsculpting Championships, can expect some clearing, perhaps even a little sun, on Saturday. Gift of Life Turns Into Even More  Transplant Beneficiary, Rabbi Become Family By JIM KEVLIN CHERRY VALLEY Everything was going fine. Katherine and Paul Sullivan were spending their summers in that verdant vale along Old Route 20, tending a garden and enjoying fresh eggs from their chickens. They weren’t big red meat people. They always ate their greens and vegetables. And oatmeal and grain cereals. They didn’t see it coming. Then one day in the fall of 2003, Katherine’s heart started racing wildly. Paul could see the beating through the fabric of the top she was wearing. They called the ambulance and she was raced to Mary Imogene Hospital in Cooperstown, but it wasn’t Katherine’s heart at all. The next morning, Dr. Barbara Healey, the oncologist, came into the hospital room and asked the Sullivans to sit down. “It’s a good thing we sat down,” said Paul, a retiree from the state Department of Transportation and the Palm Beach County (Fla.) Highway Department. His wife’s white blood cell count was up. She was diagnosed with the most virulent form of leukemia. Over the months that followed, she endured three bouts of chemotherapy. The cancer would go into remission, then return. There would be extreme nausea and hair loss: Hopes rising and hopes dashed. In November 2004, Dr. Healey outlined another option, one that sounded all that more futuristic and scarey: a stem-cell transplant. “I don’t know why: I just felt everything was going to be OK,” Mrs. Sullivan said recently during an interview at her home across from Cape Wycoff, a leafy refuge in the summer, but it was close to zero that day. As it happened, she was right – on Feb. 11, she passed the second anniversary of her transplant, and two days later was tested and found to be leukemia free. It’s been a daunting experience, one that tested the couple’s resolve and strengthened their relationship. The first challenge was to find “a match” – someone whose blood was sufficiently similar that Katherine’s body would reject it. Her two brothers and two sisters were tested, but no match. The next step: National Marrow Donor Program Registry. And, in December 2004, it yielded a surprise. Katherine matched with Rabbi Daniel Treiser of Temple Kol Ami Emanu-El in Plantation, Fla. Her maiden name was Walter, and her parents were practicing Catholics from Stuttgart, West Germany. “There must have been some rolling in the haystack,” Katherine joked. The rabbi’s family was from an area that was in East Germany. As it happens, Rabbi Treiser joined the registry after his sister, Jody Greenspon, became marketing director at the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation in Boca Raton, and he discovered that Ashkenazi Jews, descended from medieval Jewish communities in the Rhineland, had particular trouble finding matches. “It felt incredible,” he said, “when I was told I was a match. There was just excitement. No fear. No consideration of saying no.” Katherine, meanwhile, had been referred to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Mass., and Dr. Peter Westervelt. The pre-transplant treatment involved eliminating her white blood cells completely, so Daniel’s could replace them. Her kidneys shut down. Her lungs filled with fluid. Her immune system was gone, and she was being maintained in a sterile room; Paul could only visit her wearing a sterile suit. “They just about wiped her right out,” he said. By now, it was February 2005. While Katherine waned, Daniel waxed: He was injected with Neupogen, “which caused my body to mass-produce white blood cells.” He was flown to Atlanta, where his blood was extracted from one arm. It was run through a centrifuge to spin off the white blood cells, then was reintroduced into his body through his other arm. “I hate needles, and I was OK,” he recalled. Immediately, the plasma was airlifted to Boston’s Logan Airport, in a blizzard, it turned out, and hurried to Worcester, where “it was just like a transfusion” for Katherine, who immediately began recovering. It’s been uphill ever since, due in no small part to Paul, who changed her bandages daily and flushed the hoses that ran in and out of her chest. “She never got infected once,” he said with some pride. When a nurse would minister to his wife, “I would redo her,” he said. “I didn’t even trust the nurses.” (For his part, Paul was praiseful of Hope Lodge, the American Cancer Society’s hostel for relatives of cancer sufferers where he stayed while Katherine was hospitalized. Hotel rooms would have been $100 a night otherwise. Plus, returning each even to others going through the same experience – even though they spoke very little – was comforting.) As she began to feel better, Katherine received a get-well card from her benefactor. “It is difficult to know what to say to a woman I’ve never met, yet share this bond with,” Treiser wrote. “But I hope some day we’ll have the opportunity to meet. I pray that the gift I’m offering will bring you health and happiness.” Katherine was deeply touched. “I felt like I’m related to him; he’s part of me.” A year went by – donors and recipients aren’t allowed to meet for a year after a transplant – and as the second anniversary neared, she received a call. It was the Gift of Life Foundation, which was having its holiday party at Benvenuto’s restaurant in Boynton Beach. Would Katherine like to attend and meet Daniel Treiser? And how, she responded, “If I hadn’t met him, I would have died of curiosity.” And so the emotional reunion, if it can be called that, happened, on Dec. 16, 2006, two years to the day that the Sullivan-Treiser match was identified. “It was outstanding and unbelievable,” she told the Jewish Journal. “He’s the sweetest and the whole family is so lovely: There aren’t words to describe it.” Rabbi Treiser had “the easiest smile,” and she was immediately set at ease. The Gift of Life staff makes matches happen, but rarely has the opportunity to see the outcome. One young woman was so overcome she kept bursting into tears. For Treiser’s part, the transplant happened in the midst of “a lot of emotional ups and downs.” Two days after the Atlanta trip, his father Irwin died. Two weeks later, his first son Ethan was born. (He has an older daughter, Ivana.) The whole episode caused him to “wonder at the whole cycle of life.” Katherine, who was raised in Livingston Manor, had worked in a beauty salon and held a number of other jobs. She and Paul married in 1980 after he retired from 26 years with the DOT; they both moved to Florida, where he took the county job. He retired again in 1992. On the fridge amid numerous family photos, there’s a snapshot of the two of them, tanned and healthy, looking at each other with affection. They spent their winters in Palm Beach County and, after buying an old schoolhouse in Cherry Valley, their summers here. Now, Katherine hopes, things will return to normal. For now, they are wintering here while she continues her recuperation. “I feel good,” she said. “I really feel” – she rapped her knuckles twice on the wood arm of her chair – “good.” Valentine’s Day Aura Is Dimmed By BREN MIOSEK COOPERSTOWN Love conquers all. Well, not everything, everywhere, all the time. When the worst snowstorm in five years struck Otsego County on Valentine’s Day, it congealed some of the day’s traditional romancing, but not all of it. In Cherry Valley, for instance, the crew at The Rose & Kettle was undeterred. “We’ve had a couple cancellations this morning, but we’ve also had a few new reservations as well,” said Clem Coleman, chief and owner of The Rose & Kettle located in Cherry Valley. “We plan on staying open.” Rose & Kettle co-owner Dana Spiotta said she was counting on people arriving on snowshoes. “We’re open because we live up stairs,” said Spiotta. “Most of our guests with reservations for tonight live within walking distance so they should be fine. Otherwise, most of our out-of-town reservations have cancelled. Besides, there really isn’t any place to park.” That wasn’t the case everywhere. At The American Hotel in Sharon Springs, a voice message advised that the scheduled festivities. In Milford, phone calls went unanswered at The Elm Inn. “Unfortunately, we’re having to close,” said Villa Isidoro manager Tim Farrell in Richfield Springs. “Apparently their closing Route 20. Our guests won’t be able to get to us any way. I’ll be spending the rest of the day calling all of our reservations to tell them to stay home.” Villa Isidoro expects to be back open for business and soon as the storm passes, he said. The gang at Stage Coach Coffee on Pioneer Street closed up shop and spent the remainder of the evening sculpting what they considered to be the world’s largest cup of cappachino. “We’ve got to do something with all this snow,” said shop manager Matthew Grady. As far as carnations, late shoppers were still able to purchase flower arrangements at Mohican Flowers in Cooperstown and a Rose Is a Rose in Cherry Valley, but the owners were not encouraging travel. “We’re certainly open, buts all this snow in putting a crimp on possible walk-in business,” said Mohican Flowers’ Carol B. Waller. “We managed to make all our deliveries to the Otsego Manor, Bassett Hospital and all in-town orders before it got real bad. We’ll finish up tomorrow,” said Mayor Waller. “Everyone’s been real positive. To be honest with you, I think everyone’s pretty much enjoying the day.” “Believe it or not, there were still people who needed flowers this morning,” said A Rose is a Rose owner Jackie Hull. “I came in this morning and we made a run to Cooperstown, but the roads were treacherous. We’ll be closing shortly. They’ve stopped plowing and no one else is open in Cherry Valley.” ‘Cooperstown Caboose’ Script May Be Filmed Around Lake By BREN MIOSEKCOOPERSTOWN  With bold ambition, children’s story-book author Ray Cassinari, Poughkeepsie, left a lofty position with IBM in 1995 to pursue his passion for writing. After filtering a collection of ideas and penning a few tales, Cassinari eventually wandered down a path that led to Cooperstown, which he considers the perfect backdrop for a screenplay titled, “The Cooperstown Caboose,” which is now complete and in the hands of his agent.“I love Cooperstown,” stated Cassinari. “It’s a beautiful village and the ideal setting for this action/adventure story.” After organizing ideas and story lines for nearly 20 years, Cassinari – he has published two books, “The Legend of Little Nessie” and “The Skeleton Family” – sat down in 2006 and finished “Caboose.” Set in the modern-day era, the screenplay spins the tale of a time-traveling train that was originally supposed to serve as a summer time fort for five friends on vacation. During a heavy thunderstorm, the caboose gets struck by lightning, propelling the children – Matthew, Lori, Jess, Jennifer and Max Stevens – through portals of time into other dimensions. Through their travels, the children encounter dinosaurs, giant babies and insects while always trying to return to the quiet little village they call home. Throughout the entire tale, references are constantly made to Cooperstown, including the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, as well as various landscapes and locations. “I had a lot of fun writing Cooperstown Caboose,” said Cassinari, who currently works at Ebay, adding that the project needs a producer to proceed further. Anxious to get the Caboose rolling, Cassinari said he’d be interested in casting actual Cooperstonians once the screenplay is picked up. “Of course, I can’t promise anything, but I think it would be wonderful to have actual people from Cooperstown starring in a movie that takes place in Cooperstown.” Portabello’s Owners Building Banquet Hall  Kantors Plan 5,000-Square-Ft. Building 2 Miles North of Fly Creek Restaurant By BREN MIOSEK FLY CREEK Looking to improve on what Otsego County has to offer in terms of banquet halls and conference centers, Josh, Adam and Debbie Kantor of Portabello’s Restaurant are throwing their hat into the tumultuous ring of the catering business. They are building a 5,000-square-foot stone-clad banquet hall and conference center on Route 28 two miles north of Fly Creek, just past the Route 80 intersection on the right. You may have seen the earthmoving under way in the past six weeks; weather permitting, construction may begin this month, with completion due by July. There is already one booking, Josh said, and he’s working on another. “In addition to running a successful restaurant, we’ve done a lot of rehearsal dinners and weddings,” he continued, reflecting on the five years since Portabello’s opened at Fly Creek’s busy four corners. “Everyone always seemed to enjoy themselves, but it never seemed like we were doing enough for our guests. We’ve always felt like we could be doing more.” Plus, the Kantors felt they were ready to branch out. “We started talking about opening a banquet hall and conference center a little over three years ago,” said Debbie. Located five miles from Cooperstown, the new facility is designed to accommodate corporate retreats, award ceremonies, birthday parties, retirement dinners, bar and bat mitzvahs, and weddings. “We’ve done tent weddings in the past, but we just don’t like them,” said Debbie. “Outdoor weddings around here are tricky. The weather is unpredictable.” One feature separating Portabello’s new venue from all the rest in the area will be that, inside, the weather will be predictable year ‘round. “There aren’t too many places around here that can cater to a winter wedding,” said Debbie. “The building will be climate controlled,” said Josh. “That way we’ll able to ensure the comfort of our guests.” Once construction is complete, it will take quite a bit of time and effort to landscape the perimeter of the property, making it user friendly for wedding photos while at the same time adding ambiance. “The parking lots will be large,” said Josh. “Right now, I’m waiting on 400 truckloads of fill for the lot and the perimeter of the property. Behind the stone-clad estate-style manor, the Kantors planning several acres of manicured gardens, waterfalls, fountains and a gazebo. “When you dine at Portabello’s, we serve you,” said Debbie. “When your at Portabello’s state-of-the-art banquet and conference center, we’ll be catering to you.” Once the banquet hall is open, the plan is to continue to operate Portabello’s as is. Labels: Archives
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