Schoharie Promotional Association holds annual community meeting

By Jennifer Patterson

After celebrating 40 years of service in 2023 with an ambitious spate of projects and events, the nonprofit Schoharie Promotional Association (SPA) will host a community meeting to get input from neighbors and friends for what 2024 should have in store.

The annual SPA community meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 8, in the Schoharie Town Hall meeting room at 300 Main St. Members will share ideas, plans and events for the upcoming year, followed by refreshments and fellowship.

“We’re hoping to see new faces, and that people come to share their ideas about what would benefit the community,” said Diana Bell-Jackson, a longtime member and vice president of SPA. “We’re a small group, and it would be nice to welcome some new members.”

SPA had much to celebrate last year, especially the completion of the Nicholas J. Juried Pavilion in the Lily Park, thanks to a generous donation from the philanthropist.

One of three Schoharie village parks, the Lilies of the Schoharie Valley Walking Path and Gardens on Fort Road near the Old Stone Fort is a popular spot for both locals and out-of-towners.

Founded in the spring of 2015 by SPA, volunteers turned the former three-acre brush dump into an oasis of lilies, where the growing and popular annual Lily Festival is held in early July.

ZMS Construction built the spacious pavilion, with its design complimenting the nearby covered bridge. Vedder Construction donated all of the site work and stone pad, as well as final grading. In addition, the Stoddard family purchased and donated new picnic tables, and SPA volunteer Brian Lashway created, fabricated and donated a large wooden sign that reads, “Nicholas J. Juried Pavilion,” which was recently installed.

Maintaining the Lily Park is just one of SPA’s many community undertakings, which can be a lot for the small group of mainly retired volunteers. That’s why the nonprofit is hoping to drum up interest at the community meeting and welcome new members in 2024, continuing its mission of promoting all that Schoharie has to offer.

For information about the community meeting and Schoharie Promotional Association, go to http://www.schohariepromo.org.