NOW this… by Brenda
NOW this… by Brenda
We are Family.
Community. How sweet it is to live in one that doubles as a family. Full-time residents, part-time homeowners, business owners, our visitors. We are all connected. Thanks to this powerful bond, Ellicottville has the ability to produce big results when it comes to supporting one another.
Just. Like. Family.
That is what makes our community so dynamic.
When the pandemic put its fearful grip on us and everything non-essential shut down, we put our thinking caps on to ensure our small businesses survived. Many of our retailers transitioned to online stores, personal trainers introduced at-home Zoom workouts, restaurants offered curbside pick-up … and our community answered the call. We shopped, we cleared our living rooms for burpees, and we ordered take-out often.
Nick Pitillo, owner of Villaggio and Buffalo’s Osteria 166, took the fight back to the pandemic and created something benefitting the entirety of western New York. His frozen food delivery service, stockthefreezer.com, allowed us to order our favorite Italian dishes while also providing an opportunity to donate a meal to those in need. These meals were delivered to our frontline healthcare workers, essential employees, community action centers and those in our community who had fallen on hard times. Since the launch, Stock the Freezer has donated an astounding 28,000 meals. That’s the power of a community in action.
When the pandemic’s effects began affecting PPE inventory of healthcare workers nationwide, the Timkey family — owners of The Boardroom Snowboard Shop — teamed up with the national organization, Goggles for Docs. Thanks to donations of new and used goggles from the ski & snowboard community, including a substantial donation from Mud, Sweat ‘n Gears, the Timkeys delivered close to 200 pair of goggles to western New York healthcare workers.
Daff Dry Goods owner Laura Solly transformed her storefront window into a masterpiece of hope, inviting the community to draw, paint, and create rainbows that covered every square inch of glass. It quickly became the go-to photo opportunity spot for parents and their children — albeit, masked up — but portrayed the very thing that we are built on: community. It was truly inspirational.
And we can’t say enough about our local Rotary Club, stepping up to the plate by partnering with local restaurants (Villaggio, Dina’s and Katy’s Cafe) to provide over 500 meals a week to families affected by the shutdown. Our Rotary continues to make a substantial difference year-round with assistance from our community through staple fundraising events, including Tuscan Moon and Irish Christmas. Although events this summer have seen a domino effect in cancellations, our community has taken other avenues to make sure that Rotary-sponsored programs do not suffer, by donating directly through www.ellicottvillerotary.com/donate. It’s our community’s way of maintaining a supportive channel to assist fellow community members when they need it most.
However, we don’t need a pandemic to hit in order to showcase our strength in numbers. Our community continuously churns out good karma whenever a good deed presents itself.
Just this summer, our own Bradley Poole brought awareness to the public eye on Cystic Fibrosis, which Brad was diagnosed with at a very young age. His crusade to help find a cure for every CF warrior led him to run 266 miles (!) throughout Cattaraugus County, raising more than $60,000 for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation-Western New York Chapter.
Bill Finnerty, owner of Finnerty’s Tap Room, set a goal to walk 100 miles with his proud canine companion — a St. Bernard named Finn — in honor of his late mother and in the name of MSA (multiple system atrophy). The celebration will culminate with moms eating free at Finnerty’s on August 28th. You can donate to Bill and Finn’s cause by searching #FinnFightsMSA on Facebook.
How about the Ellicottville-Great Valley Trail? With a dedicated committee, their mission to create a multi-use trail system connecting the two communities continues to make headway. Last year, the committee cleared the first section of the trail between the Town Center (Arboretum) and Tim Horton’s on Route 219. But there is much work left to be done — you can donate at www.evgvtrail.org.
And just last weekend, the community again stepped to the plate. Residents and visitors alike came together to show their support for the Ellicottville Skatepark Project. As a lead advocate, I am overwhelmed with the generosity that poured out on the lawn of Town Hall in one afternoon. Our committee, SK8EVL, teamed up with Carson’s BBQ & Catering to dish out close to 300 delicious chicken dinners. Altogether, we raised $4,200. What’s even better: every dollar raised is doubled by the Tony Hawk Foundation/Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation through the “Built to Play” matching grant, bringing the day’s total to $8,400 to apply towards the construction of a permanent, concrete skatepark in Ellicottville’s Village Park. We are almost a third of the way to our $250,000 goal. You can learn more at www.sk8evl.com.
From raising money for family support, health organizations, and recreational projects, our community can always count on one another to make a difference. We are a driving force in making things happen.
We are Community. We are Family. We are all in this together.
