By Denise Richardson
The Otsego County Chamber named a retired judge and a resort hotel as distinguished honorees this year.
Robert A. Harlem Sr. was chosen for the fifth annual Eugene A. Bettiol Jr. Distinguished Citizen award, and the Otesaga Resort Hotel in Cooperstown was named NBT Bank Distinguished Business. The awards will be presented at the Chamber's annual banquet at the State University College at Oneonta on Friday, April 3, a media release Tuesday said.
Rob Robinson, president and chief executive officer of the Chamber, said the awards recognize the ``cream of the crop.'' Individual and business recipients typically have been motivated by a commitment to the area, its communities and have worked toward sustaining and improving business and social sectors, he said.
``We are a blessed community,'' Robinson said.
Harlem is being recognized for ``countless hours of volunteerism'' to make Otsego County a better place in which to live, Robinson said.
Harlem said Tuesday that the Chamber recognition was a surprise and honor.
``I was literally shocked,'' said Harlem, 82. ``In all the many ways my life has been consumed, it has never been with the expectation of reward or recognition.''
Harlem said he came to Oneonta in 1952 knowing one person. Six years later, he was Otsego County attorney and found himself embraced by the area's ``very welcoming community,'' he said.
A community is like an apple tree _ its fruit can be picked but it also needs to be cultivated and protected, Harlem said, and it therefore was natural to become involved in community organizations and boards.
``I can't just belong,'' he said.
Harlem, admitted to practice law in New York state in 1953, has worked as a trial lawyer, a judge and in private practice. He was elected Otsego County and surrogate court judge in 1972. He was nominated for state Supreme Court in 1978 and subsequently elected to serve the Sixth Judicial District. He retired from the bench in 1991 and resumed a law practice with his son, Richard A. Harlem.
In 1955, he incorporated the Oneonta Boys and Girls Club and has served on its board, according to a biography. As attorney for the Goodyear Lake Association, he successfully sought an injunction to stop the dam from being torn down, thus saving the lake. Harlem said he previously lived in Oneonta and now has a home on Goodyear Lake.
He also has been involved with Orpheus Theatre, Hartwick College, the Oneonta Country Club, the Oneonta Elks Clubs, the Oneonta Indians Football Team and the Knights of Columbus. He is active in his church, the release said.
The Chamber award is a bonus atop the good life he has had in the area, Harlem said.
``I enjoyed doing whatever I did,'' he said in a telephone interview. ``You live a life, that's all.''
Chamber members generate nominations for the awards, which are reviewed by a Special Projects Committee, Robinson said. That committee chooses up to three nominees in the individual and business categories and passes on the names to him and the Chamber board for final selection.
100-year-old Otesaga honored
The Otesaga Resort Hotel, celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, recently completed a $40 million restoration, the Chamber release said. The hotel has more than 300 employees, a golf course and tennis courts.
``We have always worked toward being an important part of the business community in the county and look forward to continuing this role for at least another 100 years,'' said John Irwin, general manager, in the release. The Otesaga staff is honored the hotel is receiving ``this prestigious award,'' he said.
The Otesaga supports area charities and nonprofit organizations, including Bassett Healthcare, the American Red Cross and the Cooperstown Fire Department.
In 1908, Edward S. and Stephen C. Clark purchased the Holt-Averill property in Cooperstown to build a summer hotel, which opened July 12, 1909, with 179 sleeping rooms, including 26 rooms for staff. Today, the hotel has 135 guest rooms and suites, plus a dining room and meeting rooms. About 60 percent of the hotel's business is for group meetings, the release said.
From 1920 to 1954, the hotel was used by the Knox School as a finishing school, and from 1961 to 1970, American Telephone and Telegraph used it as a training center. The Otesaga operated as a resort during those summers.
The dinner event will start at 5:30 p.m. April 3 in the SUNY Oneonta Hunt Union, and the cost is $75 per person. For more information or to make reservations, call Pam Ferguson at the Chamber at 432-4500, ext. 201, or (877) 5-OTSEGO, or e-mail pam@otsegocountychamber.com.
