Aiming High With Knee-Hi

Aiming High With Knee-Hi

Knee-Hi Basketball is back for another season in Fulton. My grandson is playing again and I’m looking forward to watching a few of his games. First, I’ll need to find a parking spot at the War Memorial, where Knee-Hi takes place, and that’s always a challenge. Every Saturday from December through March, there are games going from 8 am until 8 pm. Knee Hi Director, Sean Broderick, told me that about 450 kids are signed up for this season and with two games being played concurrently, that’s a lot of moms, dads, aunts, uncles and grandparents filling the bleachers.

I’ve known about Knee-Hi since my son was on a team twenty years ago, but its history goes back even further. Thousands of kids have been involved and some of them become a coach when their children were old enough to participate. Every coach that participates in the program – and Sean expects about 60 this year – are volunteers. Last year was my grandson’s first year and his coach, Mikayla Kemp, told me that she’s been involved with Knee-Hi since she was a youngster:

"Fulton Knee-Hi Basketball has been a vital part of my life for the past 20 years. I started playing in kindergarten and what began as a fun way to socialize and follow in my older brother's footsteps turned into a love for the game and an opportunity to learn some very valuable life lessons.”

Mikayla reflected on those lessons: “Knee High has always centered on inclusiveness and fun, offering the youth of Fulton the amazing opportunity to be active in a sport they enjoy without the fear of being rejected or feeling unwelcome. This is a large part of the reason I've decided to stay involved with the program as an adult, coaching my son with the intent to progress with him as he ages. I can only hope to be a coach that offers as much fun, excitement, and commitment to the program as my father did while coaching me as a child.”

Hundreds of Fulton parents have been Knee-Hi coaches and many who participated in the past will tell you that the success of the program is largely due to Jerry Schremp, the program’s coordinator for decades. I got to learn about Jerry’s love of basketball and how he’s shared it with our young people when he agreed to tell his story for The Fulton Library’s Memoir Project. Here’s how Jerry remembered getting started with Fulton sports:

“I was the ball boy for Carm Vescio’s All Stars, a semipro basketball team, when I was in fifth grade. When I got a little older, I played for Holy Family in the Catholic basketball league. Nunzi Fichera coached basketball for Holy Family School and we would practice at the War Memorial. I have a lot of great memories of Nunzi.”

Jerry never forgot the way Nunzi helped him and other kids. When he was in high school, Jerry became a playground director for the city’s summer parks program, and he developed fun things for the kids to do, including plenty of sports. Then, through his own children, Jerry got involved with Knee-Hi:

“Knee-Hi started as a Fulton youth program, with the city funding it with $600 a year from New York State. Tony Iamaio ran it for 3rd through 6th grade boys and they meet twice a week over at the War Memorial to go through some drills. On Saturdays, he would create teams and they’d play against each other. Terry Acome also helped and he was able to double the number of kids who participated.

“When my son was in kindergarten, I got him into Knee-Hi. After about a year, Terry said he wasn’t going to be able to run the program any longer and was looking for someone to put more time in. I raised my hand, and the next thing I knew, I was the volunteer director. It was kind of neat to come back and run the Knee-Hi program at the War Memorial, after spending so much time there as a kid.”

Jerry ended up giving his heart and soul to that program. As Sean told me, the Knee-Hi program is really special for the city of Fulton. “First, the city lets us use the War Memorial, which is a tremendous facility to coordinate such a large program. Second, we have the best volunteers, who believe in the goals of Knee-Hi: treating everyone on the team fairly and being a good role model for how to act on and off the court.”

Sean gives a lot of the credit for the program’s success to Jerry Schremp. “Before Jerry took it over, Knee-Hi was for boys only. He started bringing in girls to play and also reaching out beyond the city limits to bring in youth from other towns. My son had the chance to interact with his peers from other schools in Fulton and from other school districts, and some have remained his friends over the years.”

Sean and I ran some numbers and determined that in the many years Jerry ran Knee-Hi basketball he was a positive influence on over 6,000 kids. Having watched my own son go through the program and now my grandson, I can attest that not only were all those children learning the fundamentals of a sport, but also guidelines for a good life: cooperation, working hard, taking a chance on life and cheering for one other, no matter who is winning. A lot of  Fultonians are lucky to have learned those lessons because of people like Jerry Schremp.

Jerry Schremp, on the court refereeing, one of the many ways he contributed to Fulton's Knee-Hi Basketball Program for decades.

In Fulton, a New Calendar Makes All the Difference!

As we near the end of 2017, many of us who like to plan ahead are already thinking about next year’s calendar. We know we need a place to schedule appointments and make note of birthdays and other celebrations. Here in Fulton, perhaps the most anticipated calendar is the one created by The Fulton Savings Bank. Each November, patrons of the bank start asking the tellers: “Is the new calendar ready yet?”

Nancy Kush Ellis would have the answer to that question. Nancy is a vice president for the bank and the coordinator of the calendar, now in its 22nd year. I’m one of those who look forward to getting a copy each holiday season and over the years I’ve enjoyed their themes, which often focus on local history. I was curious how the bank selects those themes and how the calendar got started in the first place. Nancy had the answer to those questions, too.

“In 1996, the bank was celebrating its 125th year,” Nancy explained. “Before that, we’d given out little desk calendars, but then we saw a sample of a larger, customized one and I got the idea to try it for our bank.”

I sat with Nancy in her office to hear more about the bank’s famous calendars. She spread out three big binders on her desk, which had samples of each of the 22 calendars.  As I looked through them, year by year, their bright photographs in brilliant colors got me wondering: Who creates these works of art?

“The bank has a marketing committee and each year we sit down to discuss different theme ideas,” Nancy shared. “We discuss the pros and cons of each idea, deciding if we can find pictures to support the theme and if it can cover the cities and towns the bank serves.” Nancy reminded me that not only can you find a Fulton Savings Bank in our city, but also in Phoenix, Central Square, Brewerton, Constantia and Baldwinsville.

Nancy gives a lot of credit for the calendar’s beauty to Ed Vayner, who has designed them from the first year. Ed once owned an advertisement business in Fulton and, as Nancy pointed out, “he works with our theme, hunting down pictures, designing them and then finding a local printer to produce them. Even though Ed retired a few years ago, he still takes on this project for the bank.”

I made note of the different themes the bank has undertaken. Its first year celebrated the bank’s anniversary, with photos of one-room schools, fire departments and sports activities. Sports have been the theme for several years – it helps that Bank President Mike Pollock is an enthusiastic local sports fan and supporter. Other themes focused on places of worship, community servants, historic bridges, trains and trolleys. For the year 2000, the calendar celebrated a whole century with “It All Started Here,” which covered nationally known products made in Central New York. The 2017 theme, “Whether the Weather in CNY,” is an apt one, since each of our seasons comes with its own unique weather.

To me, the calendars seem like collector’s items and Nancy confirmed that. “I’ve had people come to me and say ‘I’m missing last year’s calendar,’ so, for a couple years after each calendar is released, I’ll keep a stack of them for those requests. One year, we were trying to figure out if the monthly paper statements we mailed out were effective in informing our customers. To find out, we put in a little notice that said, ‘Our calendars are coming out soon and if you’d like us to, we’d be happy to mail one to you.’ We thought we’d get ten or twenty requests. We got over a thousand.”

The year 2002, the theme focused on “Supporting the Communities We Serve.” One page featured a photo of some of the bank’s scholarship winners. It caught my eye and I asked Nancy to tell me a little more about the scholarships. “The Fulton Savings Bank Scholarship Program started in 1998 and it gives a $500 scholarship to two high school seniors in each of our county’s nine school districts and Baldwinsville. Those students have chosen to attend either SUNY Oswego or Cayuga Community College, and as long as they remain a fulltime student there, the $500 is awarded to them annually.”

I did a little math in my head: ten school districts per year for two students over the nearly twenty years the program has existed. That’s a substantial amount of financial support for local youth. Nancy’s staff provided me with the actual figures, showing that Fulton Savings has awarded over $413,000, benefitting 186 Oswego State students and 168 at Cayuga Community College. This year, some lucky young people will be added to that total.

Nancy explained that creating the calendar is really a yearlong process. “As soon as one year’s is finished and sent to the printer, we’ll begin looking at ideas for next year. Over the months, we narrow it down to one and then Ed takes over, spending months coming up with the right photos, design and text.”

Nancy will be ending her 40-year career at Fulton Savings Bank in the near future and she’ll have a lot of memories to take with her. Putting together the Bank’s calendar is one of her favorites. “I love seeing it all come together,” she commented.

I got a sneak peek at next year’s calendar, which the bank is calling “The Falling Waters of Central New York.” Nancy explained that it will go through four or five drafts before it’s approved. Based on the 22 years of calendars that Nancy shared with me, we can be sure that the 2018 edition is going to join the others as a real treasure of our community’s history.

Nancy Kush Ellis, right, shows Judy Young some of the Fulton Savings Bank's calendars. Judy has collected each year's calendar since 1996.

How a Group of People are "Rocking" Fulton, New York!

Maybe you’ve seen them when you’re out in the city of Fulton. You might have found one hidden under a bush at a park or near the steps to the post office. Sometimes several line the trails along Lake Neatahwanta. I’m talking about rocks. Painted rocks with little messages of hope: “Smile, It’s A New Day.” “Keep Calm.” “You Are Cared For.” A group calling themselves “Fulton, NY Rocks” have started this encouraging campaign and their Facebook page lists over 5,300 members. One of them is Janelle Wallace.

You might know Janelle from the Fulton Public Library, where she works in the Children’s Room. I met her through my association with the Library’s Memoir Project, which encourages Fultonians to write about our city’s past. Janelle has not been directly involved with the Memoir Project’s historic focus, but she has a history with Fulton, the library and those painted rocks.

In 1999, shortly after graduating from high school and starting college, Janelle applied for a summer position with Oswego County AmeriCorps. AmeriCorps is a federal program that places people in worksites and organizations that serve communities. AmeriCorps members receive a small stipend and assistance in paying for their college education.

After interviewing at several locations, Janelle was selected to become an AmeriCorps member at the Fulton Library. She completed her summer position and then was accepted for a second, yearlong AmeriCorps position, again at the library. The library staff liked Janelle’s work so much they offered her a part-time job.

In her new position, Janelle was assigned to oversee the library’s extension branch, The David Vayner Library, on the city’s west side, at Catholic Charities’ former location. For ten years she helped develop that new site, encouraging people to visit by bringing in guest speakers and programs. Unfortunately, when the Fulton Library encountered financial constraints, the Vayner branch of the library closed. Janelle was brought back to the main library, where she continued offering programs and activities, welcoming young and old with her friendly personality.

That’s where Janelle and I recently met so she could explain how she learned about “Fulton, NY Rocks.” A year ago, walking to work one day, she noticed a rock near the front entrance of the Library. Its bright colors caught her eye, but it was the quote on it that she really liked: “Throw Kindness Around Like Confetti.” Janelle smiled as she explained her discovery to me. “I still have that rock,” she said.

Janelle started noticing children and their parents coming into the library and talking about finding rocks in unusual places. She saw children’s faces light up when they told her they’d discovered a rock, describing its colors and quote. Janelle enjoys painting and she painted her first rock about eight months ago. She hasn’t stopped since.

Fulton NY Rocks was started by two Fultonians, Billie Jo Blair and Diane Zischke Blasczienski, and according to Janelle they’d heard about similar projects going on in other cities around New York State and beyond. They thought their hometown could use a positive boost. It was just the two of them at first, with their children, setting rocks around the community. Then Facebook gave their good-will project a boost.

As can happen with online social media, news of what Billie Jo and Diane were doing quickly spread. Their Facebook page was designed so that when someone finds a rock they post a picture of it and mention where they found it. This way the rock’s artist can see how far it has traveled. Fulton rocks have traveled all over the United States, showing up in New England, the Midwest and the west coast. One rock even has crossed the Atlantic Ocean, ending up in Ireland!

Janelle shared some stories about how meaningful it can be to find a painted rock. One story in particular helped me comprehend Fulton NY Rocks’ far-reaching effects. During the years Janelle worked at the library she befriended a coworker, Kathy Lennon. Kathy had worked many years at the library, so she helped Janelle in her new AmeriCorps position. Kathy’s health had always been a struggle and about four years ago she passed away. Tragically for her parents and family, Kathy’s brother had passed away just a year before, leaving behind his wife, Christine.

A couple months ago, Janelle was in the Route 31 shopping area, and like she always does, she’d brought along her bag of painted rocks and found a place to hide one. Its quote read “Be Kind.” Janelle went into a store to do her shopping and by the time she’d come back, she noticed the rock was gone. She was delighted that someone found it so quickly.

That evening, Janelle logged onto the Fulton NY Rocks Facebook page and saw her rock added to the postings. The person who’d found it added a message: “Somebody knew I needed a smile.” Janelle recognized the picture of the women who had found it. It was Kathy Lennon’s sister-in-law, Christine.

Janelle sent Christine a note to explain that she had made the rock and both were thrilled to have connected in such a positive way. Most of the Fulton group’s painted rocks are meant to be passed on so more people can enjoy them, but Christine asked Janelle if it might be alright to keep this one. She’d been missing her husband and Kathy a lot, and the rock had brought her some peace. Janelle said that was perfectly fine.

As Janelle and I ended our talk, she summed up her philosophy of life and why she believes being part of Fulton NY Rocks is so important. “I think everyone should enjoy the little things in life. Something as little as a rock can bring such joy to someone.”  Then Janelle asked me, “Do you think Kathy made sure that rock got to her sister-in-law?”  I have no doubt that she did.

Janelle Wallace, center, with two of her Fulton, New York Rock friends.