Governor Creates Panel To Reform Driver’s Ed

COOPERSTOWN
It seems like a long-shot just two months ago, when state Sen. Jim Seward, RMilford,
announced a $35,000 grant to initiate a 21st Century driver’s-ed curriculum for Cooperstown
Central School.
And yet, on Tuesday, July 8, it became a reality, when Gov. David Paterson signed legislation that will establish an advisory panel to examine, assess and make recommendations on how to improve and expand drivers’ education in the state.
Co-chaired by the state education and DMV commissioners, the panel will be required to report back to the General Assembly by year’s end.
Seward introduced the bill in the Senate, then Assemblyman Bill Magee, D-Nelson, shepherded it through the House. But all along the way in the final weeks, Penney Gentile, mom of Chris Gentile, the CCS senior who died in a car crash on Holy Thursday 2007, assembled an army of e-mailers who peppered key legislators with missives, to let them know people cared.
“It takes a village, and then some,” said Penney Gentile after receiving word.
Now, she said, the goal is to ensure a muscular advisory panel is formed, with access to the latest research on improving driver’s education. If asked to serve, she said she would.
She also said Alan Brown, who founded the Joshua Brown Foundation in Georgia after his son died in a car crash and pushed through driver’s ed reform there, would be willing to serve if asked.

Leatherstocking’s ‘Dining Room’ Due July 17 to July 27

COOPERSTOWN

A.R. Gurney’s “The Dining Room” will run for nine performances, from Thursday, July 17, through Sunday, July 27, at the Cooperstown Theater Festival, Route 80.
This is the Leatherstocking Theatre Company’s fifth Gurney production (previously, “Cocktail Hour,” 1991; “Children,” 1994; “Ancestral Voices,” 2001 and “Love Letters,” 2003), “The Dining Room” is directed by Morris native Ann Matthers Taylor, who launched her theater career on LTC’s stage in its very first season.
The play features seven actors playing over 40 roles in 18 scenes of this comedy of manners.
For reservations, call 441-0428 or visit www.leatherstockingtheatre.org

Labels: Area Briefs

SPRINGFIELD
After a few seconds at the podium, commencement speaker Henry “Hank” Sheldon, a police officer active in the DARE program, took off his suit jacket and donned
his son’s soccer sweatshirt and a CV-S baseball cap.
“There, now am I more recognizable?” he asked as a ripple of laughter coursed through the Alice Busch Theater, where the Cherry Valley-Springfield Class of 2008 held its commencement Saturday, June 28.
Sheldon told the audience he believes in young people, the community and the school. And he believes CV-S grads will always be rewarded.
“Be brave, be honorable,” Sheldon advised them. “When you say you’re going to do
something, do it.”
Class president Weston Johnson said in introducing the speaker, “Hank captivates
the thoughts of the school, the community, and always gives a cheerful hello.”
Valedictorian Kaitlin Fox said, “To wish you are someone else is to waste the person you are.”
And salutatorian Ashley Jacoby said, “Without your teammates, you will only
be working against yourself.”
The class advisers, Jordan and Melissa Jaquay, stood to bid farewell to the
young people they had guided from the seventh grade through graduation. Jordan Jaquay quoted George Carlin - “If you don’t laugh at life, you aren’t really living it. Smile and laugh through all of life’s ups and downs.”
His wife underscored his message, saying, “Just dance. Be open minded, be tolerant,
don’t be afraid to look silly or to be laughed at. Be unique.”
Bagpiper Robert Schafsteck played the recessional. As the class exited into the
scorching sunshine, the temptation was too much for Scott VanDerKrake, who led a group of boys in cannon-balling into the pond out front.






CHERRY VALLEY – Here is the Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School Class of 2008:

Lyla G. Abdallah
Jennifer Lynn Bowen
Anthony Franklin Brant
Kendra Lynn Burst
Audrianna Irene Butler
Keegan R. Butts
Jordan Alexander Carter
Scott Ono Chiba
Dylan Joshua Clements
Desiree A. Cornelia
Tylor Cornell
Don P. Corns III
Blaze Cayenne Cox
Sebastian Daou
Cody Wayne Duncan
Michael Gordon Fassett
Catherine Grace Fischer
Janet Marie Fish
Kaitlyn Ann Fox
Steven G. French
Scott H. Fullington
Barry Charles Gaughan
Jason R. Guernsey
Braden Michael Hanlon
Calvin B. Hardy
Zqachary S. Hayes
Nathaniel T. Herringshaw
Kyle Thomas Hysack
Ashley Nicole Jacoby
Weston Walker Johnson
Micholas Tivon Jordan
Kyle Shane Kraham
Laura Rebekah Kroon
Richard Marvin Lantz
Adrienne Elizabeth Mabie
Jesse Jon Miller
Tany Erin Montgomery
Michelle Louise Natali
John M. Odbert
Zachary K. Pecenak
Benjamin D. Prime
Sabrina Marie Proctor
Robert Kurt Schafsteck
Lucas F. Sikkema
Owen Michael Stenz
Matthew Aaron Tracy
Amanda Lynn VanBuren
James Thomas VanDerKrake
Scott Jeffrey VanDerKrake
Joseph Frank Varone Jr.
Emily Louise Vesely
Savannah Marie Whiteman
Devin Lee York
Anthony Dewitt Young

Labels: Area Briefs, Cherry Valley-Springfield, Graduation

Phil Pohl recalled his first day of school, 13 years ago, when he went to the school
bus for the first time, armed with a Spiderman lunch box. “I was ready to face the world, for I was a kindergartener.”
Sean Killian, another of Cooperstown Central School Class of 2008’s top four students, reflected on his classmates’ “back-pack phase... Full it was homework and stress; empty it was relief, fun or vacation. Our backpacks will no longer support
us; our lives are getting fuller now.”
Erin Sullivan noted they are entering “the suitcase phase of life... We’re all packing a bag of some sort. We have to decide what to take along with us. The suitcase is transition, apprehension and freedom.”
Kaitlyn Breiten rounded out the group, posing the question, “What bag will you carry in life?” A briefcase, a satchel, a diaper bag? “Some can see things as they are, as say why? We can see things and say” – enthusiasm rising – “WHY NOT? So pack your bags and head into the future.”
In her introductory remarks, Superintendent of Schools Mary Jo McPhail reported 93 percent of the Class of 2008 is going to college (with the help of $228,000 in Clark
Foundation scholarships); 5 percent into “the world of work,” and 2 percent
into the military. She spoke of their community service: working on Habitat for Humanity, donating school supplies to a mining community, helping to stock
the Cooperstown Food Bank.
Laura Resnick, class president, said she’s heard Cooperstown referred to as “sheltered. The hard task, for most of us, will be leaving.”
She noted 49 students, about half the class, spent all 13 grades locally.
While the class has been successful, “failure awaits us all as a stepping
stone to greater success,” and she gave some examples.
Henry Ford went bankrupt five times. A newspaper editor fired Walt Disney for “lack of talent.” She quoted Wayne Gretsky, “We miss 100 percent of the shots we never
take.”

COOPERSTOWN – Here is the Cooperstown Central School Class of 2008:

Dante A. Alessi
Alison T. Angerer
Robert Alan Bauer
Brock Michael Bell
Jonathan S. Birch
Aaron Michael Bogart
Kaitlyn Hilary Breiten
Donna M. Bronson
Kyle Bronson
Kristen Irving Busse
Robert Albert Busse
Sean William Clinton
Tyler W. Combs
Kaitlin S. Cring
Michael J. Croft
Emily Anne Dauchy
Michael W. Davis
Catherine Rose Donley
Brittany R. Doroski
David J. Douglas
Karl J. Dykstra
Peter J. Edmonds
Justin P. Ellis
Jamie Lee Feik
James Douglas Fort
Samantha Lynn Fox
Veronica A. Garbera
Benjamin E. Garcia
Gregory M. Giovine
Roseanne C. Grigoli
Christopher M. Gulotta
Arum T. Habercorn
April Michelle Higgins
Ryan M. Huggins
Andrew P. Hughes
Abigail E. Hull
Ryan J. Jacobson
Erika A. Johannesen
Kenneth B. Kane
Madison Taylor Kenyon
Sarah Elizabeth Key
Anna Marguerite Kieler
Sean Michael Killian
Silvia L. King
Douglas H. Kline
Katrin Klit Kronborg
John D. LaDuke
William Allen Landon
Drew Cameron Lierheimer
Kyle Spencer Mackie
Gianna Lyn Marsala
Robert A. Mayton
Benjamin F. Miller
Caitlin Marie Murphy
William H. Nichols
Joshua Potter Pearlman
Claire Boutain Petroskey
Mary Ellen Phillips
Rachel Marie Pier
Philip Michael Pohl
Sharleen M. Pollock
Marissa A. Pomarico-
Maxson
Jennifer R. Potrikus
Daniel Murphy Poulette
John Walker Rathbun
Laura Suzanne Resnick
Michael A. Rodriguez
Andrea J. Rosen
Sara A. Ruggiero
Carolyn I. Schiavo
Kelly L. Segit
Terrell A. Silvera
Rebecca Anne Smith
Teanna Lee Smith
Anna Grace Snell
Quinn Edward Snyder
Marcos Andre Soares
Gregory S. Sorin
Griffi n D. Soule
Angela Marie St. John
Katie M. Stilson
Erin Elizabeth Sullivan
Marissa Lynn Szwejbka
Ian E. Taylor
Thanatnicha Thanaboonrungroch
Lillien Gendall Tillapaugh
Luke John Tirrell
Karolina Fanni Toth
Lindsay Marie Valentine
Jessica Lee Walrath
Jonathan M. Weber
Jennifer Ann Wehner
Eli W. Weir
Danielle White
Jaclyn C. Wilson
Lauren E. Zoltick

Labels: Area Briefs, Cooperstown, Graduation

MILFORD
In 2001, the case put Milford Central School in the middle of a U.S. Supreme Court debate: Should religious student groups be allowed to use a public-school classroom.
That years-old controversy was again in the spotlight on Friday, June 27, when salutatorian Andrea Fournier, plaintiff in the suit, graduated with the Class of 2008. The case was mentioned in passing in Superintendent of Schools Peter N. Livshin’s introduction of “a uniquely different kind of class: strong academically,
willing to fight for their beliefs, always a smile on their faces, and always something going on – even if you’re not sure what.” That brought down the house.
In her remarks, however, Andrea chose to focus on the town she loves: “In the fight against cynicism, I am sure that I will be victorious, because I have something I hold in my pocket: A picture of my Milford.” But the evening brought highlights aplenty:
• Manique Talaia-Murray, who gave the senior address, was moved to tears by the musical selection,” Dream Big,” performed by seniors’ siblings.
• Valedictorian Morgan Robinson modestly declared, “I’m embarrassed so many have worked so much harder at so much more. I have no special talents; just able to pull things together better.”
• The seniors’ parents sang, “Baby, You’re Never Alone.” At the culmination, they turned and blew kisses at the graduates.
A slide show of all the seniors’ baby pictures followed. The flag in front of the school was at half-staff, honoring those who have died in Iraq.




MILFORD – Here is the Milford Central School Class of 2008:

Hannah Rose Ackerman
Maria Louise Arnot
Justin Bartrow
Leela W. Brush
Elizabeth Florence Burgher
Brenna Elizabeth Campbell
Travis Laurence Conroy
Gabriela Via Reque Cortes
Ross Devlin
Morgan Elizabeth Dutcher
Cheyenne E. Evans
Nicholas Ryan Fisher
Andrea Fournier
Dominic Ambrose Green
Logan A. Griffiths
Sean Michael Huffstickler
Mitchell Ryan Jahnke
Joshua Mathew Johnson
Drew Allen Jones
Timothy Matthew Kessler
Nickole Kilts
Michael J. Krol
Nicholas R. Lutz
Richard Mann
Kerry Anne O’Hara
Samantha Irene Pick
Chynna Christine Pitlock
Samantha Lucille Prendergast
Morgan Brittany Robinson
Natasha Reyanne Roseboom
Jackie Lee Rumple
Michael T. Scanlon
Samantha Leann Scanlon
Rachel Julia Schultes
Scott C. Seeley
Brienna Lee Stiefel
Manique Talaia-Murray
Catherine Elizabeth Weigel
Michelle E. Weigel
Rebecca Ann Williams
Anthony R. Winchester, Jr.
Kathrine Marie Yerdon

Labels: Area Briefs, Graduation, Milford

TODDSVILLE – Lightning caused Monday evening’s fire at a historic Greek-revival home on Greenough Road, county Emergency Services Coordinator Butch Jones reports.
The home, in a rural setting halfway between Toddsville proper and the 1812 House, is owned by Angelika and Andrew Rashkow; Mrs. Rashkow was home alone when the fire occurred. It is known locally as Dr. Rauscher’s house, after the physician who used to own it.
Jones said one of the tall pines in front of the house had been “cabled” at some point to reinforce it. The lightning hit the tree; the current then shot through the cable striking the attic level.

Labels: Area Briefs

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Allan Guiney, a graduating senior at Hamilton College, was among 16 classmates recognized as student-athletes by the New England Small College Athletic Conference. Each honoree is a varsity letter winner with a GPA of at least 3.35. His mother is Kathy Lloyd, Toddsville.

CORTLAND HONOREES: Local students on the SUNY Cortland Dean’s List for the spring semester included: senior James Aborn, sophomore John Aborn, sophomore Jesse Elliott and junior Colin Havener, all of Milford; junior Lindsey Potrikus and senior Shirley Tyler, both of Cooperstown.

REGULATION EXPERT: Jillian Harrington, Binghamton, has joined Bassett Healthcare as director of compliance and regulatory affairs, ensuring Bassett meets all areas of regulatory compliance, and also as HIPAA privacy officer.

HONORING THERING: The Town of Otsego is planning a retirement party for Ferd Thering at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 10, at town hall in Fly Creek. Thering, who is 81, is retiring from the town assessor’s office after 26 years, according to Town Councilperson Meg Kiernan. Ferd, who has served on the Hartwick town Planning Board for decades, mostly as chair and co-chair, is being reappointed there as an alternate.

HONOR, AWARD: Andrianna Lyons, daughter of David and Janette Lyons, Fly Creek, has received a $2,000 scholarship from the American Red Cross for her efforts organizing blood drives at SUNY Cobleskill. Both Andrianna and her brother, Shawn – he attends SUNY Oswego – have been named to the Dean’s List for the spring semester.

BATTLE JOINED, WON: Two CCS teams bested Fort Plain in the first High School Battle of the Books Tuesday, May 20, to bring home the “House Cup” for Cooperstown. The high school team consisted of Virginia Ofer, Emily Snell, Amy Bishop and Erin Henrici; the middle school team, Tom Franck, Maya Bergamasco, Erik Mebust and Jack Siegel. The high school teams read 16 books; the middle school team, 20. Questions during the “battle” were based on the reading matter.

CUM LAUDE: Evan Jagels received a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Wagner College in New York City, where he majored in English. A member of Sigma Tau Delta honor society, he was selected for both the English Literature Prize and the Instrumental Music Award. He is the son of Rick and Kathy Jagels, Cooperstown.

Labels: Area Briefs, Community