Middletown, NY – This past Friday, friends and supporters of Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County gathered at the Education Center & 4-H Park in Otisville, NY to take part in the 9th Annual Bountiful Harvest Celebration. This year’s glamor-filed night of fun helped fundraise monies in support of the continued development of the CCE Orange County’s Education Center & 4-H Park.
This year’s Bountiful Harvest Celebration’s theme was “Denim and Diamonds”, bringing together both country and glam in a dazzling display of outfits. This year was the first year that Bountiful Harvest held a Glam Contest for its attendees with categories such as “Best Western”, “Most Bedazzled”, “Best Dressed Couple”, and “Least Likely a Cowboy/Cowgirl”. Other festivities included networking, live auctions, raffle baskets, and the highlight of the evening, the “Celebrity Cow-Milking Contest”.
This year’s Celebrity Cow Milkers included David Mistretta of Woodbury Common Outlet, Mark Adams & his granddaughter Priya of Mark & Sue Adams Greenhouses, Franco Fidanza of Fidanza Family Properties, and Eric Price of Pyramid Management Group all vying for the famous Blue Ribbon. Each celebrity had three minutes to showcase their milking skills, and they also competed to gather the most pledges in a spirited fundraising effort for CCE Orange County. Chris Van Aken from Van Aken Dairy in New Hampton, NY, provided the celebrity cows and gave the contestants a few milking lessons before the big event. This year, Franco Fidanza was the winner of the contest and got to take home the Blue Ribbon! David Mistretta also took home a prize, raising over $10,500 in his virtual milk bucket, making him the top fundraiser of the night. Overall, the celebrity cow milkers raised nearly $16,000 in total – This was a record high for fundraising for this event.
"The enthusiasm of this year’s cow-milking celebrities generated the most ‘milk’ for their virtual milk buckets through the donations of their supporters. We appreciate them taking time out of their schedules and their support!" said Jill Van Aken, Community Liaison, Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County.
After the cow-milking contest, a delicious farm-to-table dinner from locally sourced favorites was prepared by Country Courtesy Catering. Much of the food for the event was locally grown by Orange County Farmers and there was even a signature cocktail called “The Cowboy Cocktail”. The Whiskey for the cocktail was provided by Orange County Distillery- Brown Barn Farm. After dinner, there was an exciting live auction hosted by WDLC Country’s Michelle Taylor and Walden Savings Bank’s Derrick Wynkoop where bidders were able to pick up some truly awesome auction items such as a brand new 28” Blackstone Griddle with accessories and all or a whole porch of holiday decorations created and placed by the CCE Orange County Master Gardner Volunteers to beautify your home this holiday season.
CCE Orange County’s own Master Gardner Volunteers also ensured that all attendees had a festive atmosphere by designing and putting up festive décor that stretched through the outdoor barns and walkways. Decorations from the event were also available to be purchased at the end of the evening.
"Bountiful Harvest is an incredible event that unites our community each year for an unforgettable night,” said Lucy Joyce, Executive Director of CCE Orange County. “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supported this year’s event and to all the organizers who made it a success. We truly appreciate the enthusiasm for our Education Center and 4-H Park, and we look forward to continuing to showcase it’s potential to our community."
CCE Orange County would also like to send a special thank you to our sponsors for this year’s Bountiful Harvest Celebration. Without sponsors, none of these events that we put on would be possible and with their help, we can provide a wonderful event full of fun and whimsy. Thank you to: Woodbury Common Outlet, Crist Bros. Orchard, Lucy Joyce & Chris Lewis, Walden Savings Bank, Wall Radio, WDLC Country, Devin Dean of Eagle Auto Body, Jeff Bank, First Federal Savings of Middletown, Fidanza Family Properties, Paul & Jennifer Ruszkiewicz, Adams Fairacre Farms, Naughton & Torre LLP, Chris & Patricia Reineke, Fusco Engineering, Garnet Health, Pyramid Management Group, DeGraw & DeHaan Architects, Sun River Health, Chris & Shelly DeHaan, GCD Auto Studio, Andrea Nilon, All States Material Group, Gordan & Ruth Dean, Derrik & Allison Wynkoop, Kathleen Hamilton, Noel Spencer of Spencer Financial, Jennifer Caci, Tom Manza, Otisville Hardware, Margaret Coughlin, Middletown Lions Club, and Access Supports for Living Foundation.
The Education Center & 4-H Park is located at 300 Finchville Turnpike in Otisville. The Park has Three open pole barns, an enclosed pole barn, bathroom facility, and large outdoor horse arena are already completed. To learn more, schedule a tour, or pledge financial support for the new Center, contact Jill Van Aken at 845-344-1234 or email at jd863@cornell.edu. Visit our website at www.cceorangecounty.org for more fundraising updates and to donate.
Last updated September 23, 2024