... To Sport Tech, which recently celebrated 25 years in business on Oneonta's Main Street.
You don't have to be a longtime Oneonta resident to notice that Main Street storefronts seem to change hands pretty often. Add to that the statistics that highlight how difficult it is for small businesses to stay in the black, and you've got an idea of how significant Sport Tech's achievement is.
When Robert and Nancy Scanlon, Edward Lorenz and Charles Faulds took over Konstanty Sporting Goods in 1984, they were considered "young upstarts," Nancy Scanlon said recently. The sporting-goods store had been founded by Jim Konstanty 36 years earlier, making it a Main Street fixture for an earlier generation.
We're proud to recognize businesses such as Sport Tech that have weathered the economic storms of recent years. While Scanlon said downtown "will never be what it was in the '50s and '60s," we do agree with her that the redevelopment of the former Bresee's building may signal a positive change for Oneonta's Main Street _ one that will help keep Sport Tech and its Main Street neighbors going strong for years to come.
o ... To Ioxus Inc., an Oneonta-based firm that is demonstrating the local viability of high-tech industry.
The ultracapacitors produced at the Winney Hill Road plant are used in forklifts and other vehicles, wind-energy development, telecommunications and in retrofitting energy devices.
In an economic climate where many industries are struggling, Ioxus is anticipating that demand will grow for its products by as much as 20 percent over the next five years. Otsego Chamber President Rob Robinson, who recently announced Ioxus' selection as its Breakthrough Award winner for the year, praised the company, pointing out that the region has long sought light-manufacturing companies such as this.
We wish Ioxus continued success, and hope that other businesses may see this as a sign that the region is ready to support this sort of industry.
o ... To those who helped seven local veterans visit the World War II Memorial in Washington.
The World War II veterans _ Arthur Snyder, Peter Martin and Mardon Sullivan of Fly Creek; Ernest Feola of Morris; Marshall Smith of Oneonta; Richard Burnett of West Davenport; and Marvin Zeh of Schenevus _ were part of a group of 31 on the trip organized by Leatherstocking Honor Flights.
Donations allow Honor Flights to fly veterans to see the monument for free. Guardians, who pay their way on the airplane flight, accompany them.
It's important to honor those who sacrificed so much, and we thank everyone who helps make these flights possible.
