Category: Special Features
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PROFILE: Tammy Thompson
New president of Oswego Players wears many hats By Stefan Yablonski All the world’s a stage — and Tammy Thompson isn’t done playing her part just yet. The vice president in charge of administration for the Oswego Players in 2024 is now president of the local theater troupe. “I am currently the president for Oswego Players, Oswego County Autism Task Force and Oswego County Youth Bureau. I am very involved with the Zonta Club of Oswego where I am a past president,” she said. “So yes, I am very busy.” The Oswego Players, Inc. is one of the oldest continuously operating community theater organizations in the country. “We have about 70 members. We are all volunteers,” she said. Born in Dubuque, Iowa, she moved to Brookings, South Dakota in 1972 when she was 7. “My parents Hugh and Gen Ackman were both educators and moved to Brookings for jobs. My dad was an elementary school principal and my mom held a number of administrative positions. She was head of the Title One programs for the district as well as a reading consultant and taught English as a second language,” she said. “My cousin, Randy, and I always talked about (more…) -
BUSINESS UPDATE: Century Old Phoenix Funeral Home to Close
The building will be sold. The business will continue at the Falardeau Funeral Home in Baldwinsville By Stefan Yablonski Allanson Glanville Tappan Funeral Home, founded more than 100 years ago in Phoenix is changing ownership. The family-owned business is run by Doug Tappan, the third generation owner. He said he has entered into a cash asset buyout arrangement with Albert Clos, owner of the Falardeau Funeral Home in Baldwinsville. “I had a woman who was going to take over, a licensed lady. However she said she was going to take a job in Binghamton,” Tappan said. “I haven’t had anything really substantial,” he added. “We are doing all cremations for the most part and most of the time we haven’t used the funeral home. When you start losing your charges for use of the home — upkeep and utilities — you’re working for nothing.” He said he had two people who had inquired about the business, but it was years ago. When he checked up on them, “they were not in that mode again.” A little history Because he had some family history with the Falardeau Funeral Home in Baldwinsville, he and Clos made a deal. “The Falardeau (more…) -
BUSINESS UPDATE: Financial Adviser Launches Own Business in Fulton
After nearly 15 years of serving clients at Pathfinder Bank in the investment services department, financial adviser Craig Fitzpatrick recently announced the launch of Fitzpatrick Financial, a full-service investment firm. This transition marks a significant milestone in Fitzpatrick’s career, reinforcing his commitment to offering clients an experience built on trust, integrity and a deep understanding of their individual financial goals. “Starting Fitzpatrick Financial has been a dream of mine for many years,” he said. “I’ve always aimed to be the adviser who truly understands and cares about each client, and this new chapter will allow me to better serve that mission. By forming my own firm, I’m more committed than ever to offering honest, personalized and dedicated service to everyone I work with.” As part of this transition, Fitzpatrick will be joined by his trusted assistant of many years, Ginger Lyons, who will continue to provide outstanding service and support to enhance the client experience. The new firm will offer even more personalized services, with a stronger focus on addressing each client’s unique needs and long-term financial goals. “We are deeply rooted in this community,” said Fitzpatrick. “This is where we grew up, where our families live, and where we (more…) -
BUSINESS UPDATE: SUNY Oswego’s Online MBA Continues Top Ranking
SUNY Oswego remains the top online MBA program among public schools in New York state, according to rankings released Jan. 21 by U.S. News and World Report. The U.S. News: Best Online Programs ranking joins the same designation as the top public-school online MBA in the state from Poets & Quants, Fortune and the Princeton Review. U.S. News ranked SUNY Oswego No. 88 among all online MBA programs in a process that assessed approximately 1,780 online degree programs across various lists and metrics. The rankings measure overall academic quality at the baccalaureate and master’s levels across disciplines such as master’s in business (MBA and non-MBA programs), criminal justice, education, engineering, information technology and nursing, U.S. News explained. “We’re still a top-ranked school with rising enrollment, customized advisement and individual support, and we take great pride in providing outstanding service,” said Irene Scruton, assistant dean of the School of Business and director of Oswego’s MBA programs. “That our student excellence and student engagement scores remain at high levels even with increased enrollment shows how much we emphasize the student experience.” “Our enrollment growth and the recognition of being one of the top 100 online MBA programs in the country is due (more…) -
SPECIAL REPORT: Craft Brewing Doing Well in NYS; Not So Much Elsewhere
By Stefan Yablonski 6 Acres Farm Brewery will be open this spring at 412 Fort Leazier Road, Mexico. Pictured are the building and the tasting room inside. In 2021, it won the Next Great Idea Oswego County Business Plan Competition, earning the $50,000 grand prize. After decades of growth, the craft beer industry nationwide is in real bad slump, according to the executive director of the New York State Brewers Association. While it has gone flat in most places, it still bubbles with optimism in the Empire State. “We are holding steady,” Paul Leone said. “We are one of those states where some craft breweries are closing, some are opening, some are expanding and some are right-sizing. That leaves us flat — which is not a bad thing in this environment.” The NYSBA (www.NewYorkCraftBeer.com) is the nonprofit trade association for craft beer in New York state. It does all of the lobbying in Albany and Washington DC for craft brewers in the state. “We are the marketing arm as well and hold five beer brewers’ festivals around the state that exclusively feature New York state craft beer,” Leone said. “In March, we also hold the largest statewide brewers’ competition (more…) -
ConnextCare Expands Access to Health Care in Oswego County
With a new and expanded location in Oswego, ConnextCare will increase services related to primary care, mental health and dental services By Stefan Yablonski ConnextCare team at a recent photo shoot: From left, Ken Martin, senior director of IT; Liz Krell, chief operating officer; physician Scott VanGorder, associate medical director; Tricia Peter Clark, chief executive officer; Tracy Wimmer, senior vice president and chief financial officer; Stephanie Earle, senior director of human resources; and Nancy Deavers, senior vice president chief nursing quality officer. Growing up, Tricia Peter-Clark often relied on a school-based health center for access to care. The health center, as well as her primary care doctor’s office in Pulaski, was operated by Northern Oswego County Health Services Inc., the predecessor to ConnextCare, the organization she now leads. Peter-Clark grew up in Sandy Creek, graduated from the local high school and went to Buffalo for college. “I retuned home after graduation and began working at Oswego County Opportunities in 2004 as the coordinator of the cancer services program,” she said. Later she became coordinator of the Rural Health Network of Oswego County, focusing on collaboration between providers. She started with ConnextCare in 2013 as the chief operating officer and (more…) -
STARTING UP: New Dumpster Business Already Cleaning Up
By Stefan Yablonski Q: How did this all start? A: Roots Roll-Off Professionals was born out of a dream — a dream to build something meaningful for our family, to serve our community with pride and to leave behind a legacy that would last for generations. We knew we wanted to serve our community. We just weren’t sure what that was going to look like at first. We explored a few different options before finally settling on the dumpster business. Q: What service do you provide? A: My wife, Kim, and I started this business with a clear mission: provide professional, fair, upfront and reliable dumpster rental services while giving back to the people and places that raised us. Q: Is this what you always wanted to do? A: Deep down, I always knew I was meant to be an entrepreneur. It’s in my blood. My grandfather owned and ran a diner for many years, my dad owned a waterbed store in Syracuse many years ago and my uncle, a successful entrepreneur with his own CPA firm (among other ventures), has been a key part of our early planning and guidance. His support and experience helped us navigate those (more…) -
PROFILE: Robert Griffin
Helping small businesses grow and succeed is his goal By Stefan Yablonski Robert Griffin, the head of Onondaga Small Business Development Center, is in charge of a territory that includes eight counties, including Onondaga and Oswego. The SBDC provides with no cost, individualized and confidential business consulting to start-up and existing businesses. “I was born in California and lived most of my youth in Texas; I kind of call Texas my home,” Griffin said. He graduated high school there and graduated from Angelo State University in San Angelo with a degree in business administration, specializing in market research. “My father was a businessman. I always had some kind of interest there,” he said. “At one point I thought I was going to go into accounting and then realized there were way too many rules there. Decided I wanted to be a little more flexible in terms of my career. Business administration was broader. “I did have some interest in business management and strategy and things like that. I think that is why I ended up more in the business administration side of things.” He got his professional start in New York in the tourism industry, as deputy and then (more…) -
BUSINESS UPDATE: FitzGibbons Agency Now Under New Ownership
Long-time owner John FitzGibbons recalls trajectory of the Oswego-based agency (founded by his grandfather in 1922) and explains why Marshall + Sterling was the right company to acquire his business By Stefan Yablonski For more than 100 years, FitzGibbons Agency LLC has been providing quality insurance services to the Oswego and Onondaga communities. “We’re proud to be a third-generation independent insurance agency,” said John FitzGibbons, 67. Founded in 1922 by George FitzGibbons, the agency remains dedicated to the people and places it serves, he added. Today the agency at 44 E Bridge St., Oswego, offers a range of personal and commercial insurance options, including home, auto, renters, business owners, liability, worker’s compensation and more. The office was located previously in the Press Box Building on East First Street. The office reflects the agency’s history. The walls are adorned with memorabilia of the growth of the company, the paperwork for FitzGibbons’s first job — selling popcorn at 14. He sold popcorn for 50 cents from a wagon, like the one people see at state and county fairs. “I started by operating nightly at East Fourth and Bridge streets,” he said. “I did ultimately do fairs — including the New York (more…) -
BUSINESS UPDATE: Century 21 Galloway Realty Marks Milestone
Local real estate agency in business for 60 years By Stefan Yablonski T here’s a saying in real estate — location, location, location. But for William Galloway, owner of Century 21 Galloway Realty, people, people, people would be more appropriate. The agency is celebrating 60 years as a family-owned business. “We made this the No. 1 office in New York state,” Galloway said. “We grew and grew and grew. We have great agents. Connie Ryan, she just got Realtor of the Year recently. They work so hard. They are like family. We kind of grew together. They are the reason we’re doing so well — why we’ve been around for 60 years. “From my top agents to my bottom agents, they are all producing very good.” In 1965, his father, Tom Galloway, worked in insurance and then he went with Bob Shay and Bob died. “Then my father opened his own business — out of his house,” Galloway said. “He began independently selling real estate and insurance with his wife, Bridget.” Eventually, he opened his own agency known as Galloway Real Estate. The one-man office was located on East Seventh Street in Oswego. As the business grew, he moved (more…)