(Syracuse, NY – Sept. 2011) Billy Fuccillo, president of Fuccillo Automotive Group, recently received three honors at the National Kia Dealer meeting at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas.

Fuccillo received two national awards for Fuccillo Kia of Cape Coral in Florida including Best New Dealer for 2011 and U.S. dealer with the Highest Retail Sales Volume. Also, Fuccillo Kia of Schenectady won Highest Retail Sales Volume for the Eastern region.

“The Kia brand provides dependable and affordable automobiles,” said Billy Fuccillo, president of Fuccillo Automotive Group. “The Fuccillo Automotive Group is able to offer great cars at the lowest prices around – and that’s HUGE.”

The award for Best New Dealer is only given to one dealership in the country. Fuccillo Kia of Cape Coral opened in December 2010.

Fuccillo Automotive Group has four Kia dealerships including Fuccillo Kia of Clay, Fuccillo Kia of Rochester in Greece, NY, Fuccillo Kia of Schenectady and Fuccillo Kia of Cape Coral in Florida. Fuccillo was welcomed into the 2009 and 2010 Kia President’s Club for achieving the highest overall sales volume and outstanding customer satisfaction. Fuccillo is on pace to be accepted into the 2011 Kia President’s Club.

(Syracuse, NY – Sept. 23, 2011) Achieve Fitness, LLC announced today Byrne Dairy as the official chocolate milk sponsor of the Inaugural Empire State Marathon and Half Marathon on Oct. 16, 2011, as well as the Driver’s Village New York State Health and Wellness Expo on Oct. 14 and 15.

As an official sponsor, Byrne Dairy will distribute samples to participants and get frequent mentions during the Empire State Marathon and Half Marathon. The company will also have booth space at the Driver’s Village New York State Health and Wellness Expo and assist at the finish-line recovery station, where runners can relax and refuel.

“In addition to health benefits such as building strong bones and muscles, milk also serves as an effective recovery drink,” said Brian Collins, principle owner of Achieve Fitness, LLC, management company for the Inaugural Empire State Marathon and Half Marathon. “So it’s only fitting we partner with Byrne Dairy to help promote the role dairy can play in supporting active lifestyles.”

Kate Byrne, Sales and Marketing Specialist states, “We are very excited to be a part of this race in its opening year, and to help aid runners in their recovery as they cross the finish line. We look forward to talking with the athletes at the Health and Wellness Expo and will provide materials on the many benefits of drinking low fat chocolate milk after a strenuous exercise. Byrne Dairy looks forward to a great race this year and in the years to follow as this race continues to grow.”

Byrne Dairy recently won first place – with a perfect score of 100 percent – in the 2011 New York State Fair Fluid Milk Quality Competition. The competition included milk samples from 21 New York State plants that were evaluated by Cornell University’s Department of Food Science for flavor, bacteria, butterfat and freezing point.

(Watertown, NY – Sept. 2011) The Greater Watertown – North Country Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce that the North Country Procurement Technical Assistance Center has expanded their primary service area to include Oswego and Oneida Counties.

The PTAC is hosted by the GWNC Chamber of Commerce and continues to service their previous area of Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence Counties and any other county in New York not covered by another PTAC Program.

The North Country PTAC provides free technical assistance and counseling to businesses interested in selling to the government (federal, state, local, and military).  The program is federally funded and within the first three years of the program, their clients have reported 45 contracts awarded totaling over $75million.

Visit the program’s website at www.northcountryptac.com or contact Stephen Barr, Program Manager at ptac@watertownny.com or call 315-788-4400 for more information.

(Sept. 10, 2011) As the flood waters that raged through the village of Owego and other parts of Tioga County begin to recede, the residents of the upstate New York community are left to begin to reconstruct their homes and lives.

The area was inundated both by the Owego Creek and the Susquehanna River, which crested at 40 feet, 10 feet above flood stage, according to the National Weather Service.

To help those affected by the flood, on Monday, Adam Weitsman, president of Upstate Shredding – Ben Weitsman & Son, is making a donation of $100,000 to Tioga County charities and aid organizations working in Owego and Tioga County FEVAS. These organizations are providing much-needed food and shelter to the thousands of people impacted by the floods.

“This community has been home to my family for generations,” said Weitsman. “And now, Owego and Tioga County need our help and support.  Kim and I are happy to help in any way that we are able.”

All parts of the community were impacted by the historic floods this week – “The town is closed,” said Fire Chief Jim Morris. Damage from the flood will linger for months, if not years, and will cost the community millions and millions of dollars to repair. Power is out to much of the community. The two main bridges into the village were closed due to concerns over damage dealt during the flooding. Half of the town’s residents were evacuated, and those that remained have crowded into three temporary shelters. Supplies are limited, and there are reports of neighborhoods banding together with the food they have remaining as supplies are flown in by the National Guard.

“The devastation to our community is unbelievable,” said Adam Weitsman.  “Our thoughts and prayers are with the residents and families in our community who have lost so much in this disaster.”

Fortunately, no lives were lost in the floods. But many families have been displaced from their homes; others’ homes and belongings were destroyed in the rising waters, and they have been left with nothing.

City officials said nearly every commercial building in Owego was impacted by the flood, including Ben Weitsman & Son on Main Street. The yard has suffered a five million dollar loss, and, like thousands of homeowners in the region, the company’s insurance policy does not cover flood damage.  Reconstruction of the Owego yard will begin on Monday.

The Ben Weitsman location on Main Street in Owego will be closed until further notice however all Ben Weitsman Owego customers can bring their scrap to the Upstate Shredding facility behind the jail on Route 38 or to the Ben Weitsman Binghamton yard located at 10 Brandywine Street in Binghamton.

(Watertown, NY – Sept. 7, 2011) The Greater Watertown Jaycees in partnership with the Jefferson County Job Development Corporation are seeking nominations for its 2011 Young Professional Awards.  The Awards recognize three distinct regional leaders under 40 years of age in three categories: Civic, Business, and Arts/Culture/Entertainment.  Those honored have achieved professional success or have been active volunteers within their nominated field.

Last year, the Greater Watertown Jaycees honored Jennifer Hodge of Dexter for her outstanding work in the community; Jamie Mayer, founder of CNY Media Group, for his leadership in the business community; and Katie Taylor, Watertown, for her efforts to advance the arts and culture with her work with the Northern Blend Chorus.

Nomination forms are available online at www.watertownjaycees.org, or by contacting Michelle Capone at capone.michelle@yahoo.com.  The deadline for nominations is September 30, 2011.  Awards will be presented at the Greater Watertown Jaycees awards luncheon in October as part of its Young Professionals Day.

(Liverpool, NY – Sept. 7, 2011) Gregory Cohen of Chittenango has been appointed president of EBS-RMSCO, a full-service employee benefits administration and consulting services company headquartered in Liverpool.

The appointment was announced by David Klein, chief executive officer of The Lifetime Healthcare Companies, the parent company of EBS-RMSCO. The appointment was effective July 1. In addition to its headquarters location, EBS-RMSCO has other New York offices located in Albany, Amherst and Fairport. A fifth office is located in Ravenswood, W.Va.

In his new role, Cohen is responsible for overall leadership, management and organization of operations for the company’s 325 employees, who provide innovative employee benefit and risk management solutions to more than 4,000 clients throughout the United States.

“More than 22 years of management experience in employee benefits give Greg a strong background in health care and business management, making him well-positioned to guide EBS-RMSCO’s future growth,” Klein said.

Cohen has served as senior vice president and vice president of EBS-RMSCO and its predecessor company, EBS Benefit Solutions, since 2001. During that time, he was the innovator and driving force behind the formation of the company’s third-party administration of self-funded health plans line of business.

Prior to joining the company, he spent 14 years with Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Syracuse, and a subsidiary company.

A seven-year veteran of the United States Air Force, Cohen earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia at Valdosta. He serves on the boards of Community General Foundation and Loretto Foundation, both in Syracuse.

Pictured from left are Amber Bullard (Member Svc Rep/ New Accounts), Kimberly Smith (Education Director for CNY-SPCA) and Antoniette Gozzi (VP-Operations FocalPoint).

(Syracuse, NY – Sept. 7, 2011) They say you can tell a lot about a person by how they treat animals.  So the fact that the staff at FocalPoint Federal Credit Union chose the Central New York chapter of the Society For Prevention of Cruelty To Animals (CNY-SPCA) as the charity to benefit from second quarter 2011 fundraising efforts speaks volumes about this hard working, kind-hearted crew.

During the second quarter of 2011 (April-June) the credit union’s employees in Syracuse (6555 Ridings Rd.), Chittenango (278 Genesee St.) and Canandaigua (400 Fort Hill Ave., Bldg 7) had the option of making a “Dress-Down-Day” donation, and everyone solicited donations from members to this cause.

In addition, employees distributed CNY-SPCA brochures Summer Pet Safety Tips to help pets beat the summer heat. The total raised was $344.

“We especially want recognize long time credit union member Matthew Diniro of Brewerton, who donated $51.50 to help make this our most successful quarterly fundraiser to date,” said Amber Bullard, member service representative at FocalPoint’s Syracuse branch.  “Many of us have a dog, cat or other pet that we think of as part of the family, so we are honored to support the CNY-SPCA in this way.”

The CNY – Society For Prevention of Cruelty To Animals promotes kindness to animals and provides services, including information about missing pets, adoption, family education, pet safety, spay/neuter programs, and investigations into animal cruelty.

For details or learn how you can help, visit www.cnyspca.org or call (315) 454-4479.

For more information about FocalPoint, call (315) 463-8333 or visit www.focalpointfcu.com.

(Owego, NY – Sept. 6, 2011) Scrap industry veteran Richard Kent has been hired as senior buyer of Scrap for Upstate Shredding – Ben Weitsman & Son. In addition to buying scrap metal, Kent will also broker scrap for the export market.

The company, with headquarters in Owego processes ferrous and non-ferrous scrap through locations in New York and Pennsylvania.

“Richard’s deep knowledge of the scrap metal market surrounding Albany makes him uniquely suited to help expand our reach,” said Adam Weitsman, president of Upstate Shredding. “He is uniquely suited to the job of raising our market penetration in that region.”

Kent joins a team of people who buy scrap metal for Upstate Shredding. In addition to processing ferrous and non-ferrous scrap, the company is host to two Riverside Engineering mega-shredders. This includes a 10,000-hp mega shredder in Owego capable of processing more than 400 tons of ferrous material per hour.

Kent began his experience in the scrap market in 1993, when he began working as the general manager for R. Freedman and Son of Green Island, N.Y. His career next took him to Rensselaer Iron & Steel, where he served as Buyer from 2000-2004. He then left to found his own company, Albany Metal Recycling.

He will be based in Albany.

(Aug. 30, 2011) The Central New York Community Foundation has enhanced the offerings available to those who apply for the John F. Marsellus Sabbatical. The Sabbatical program, which traditionally awards grants exclusively toward four-week sabbaticals for nonprofit executive directors and senior management staff in Onondaga and Madison Counties, is now offering an abridged two-week program as well.

The new two-week sabbatical offering was introduced as a result of responses received when nonprofit executives were surveyed on their preferences for a sabbatical program. The four- and two- week options both allow time for personal reflection and professional development.

The Central New York Community Foundation invites executive directors and senior management staff of nonprofit organizations in Onondaga and Madison counties to apply for either a four- or two-week sabbatical by October 31, 2011. Applicants must have served in a senior management position of a nonprofit organization in Onondaga or Madison counties for at least five consecutive years and have the approval of the board of directors of their agency. The application guidelines can be viewed on the Community Foundation’s web site at www.cnycf.org/grants or may be obtained by calling the Community Foundation at (315) 422-9538.

This annual grant was established in 2000 in memory of John F. Marsellus, who wished to enhance the leadership capacity of nonprofit executives in Central New York by underwriting a month-long opportunity for personal and professional reflection and development.

The Community Foundation, of 431 East Fayette Street, Syracuse, NY 13202, can be reached at (315) 422-9538 or www.cnycf.org.

(Owego, NY – Aug. 2011) A $25,000 donation from Adam Weitsman, president of Upstate Shredding and Ben Weitsman & Son will help build the classroom portion of the Owego Volunteer Fire Department’s new training campus, where future firefighters will receive important education and safety training.

Village fire Chief Ed Franz said the donation is the largest the building project has received.

“This donation gives us the shot in the arm needed to complete the classrooms,” Franz said. “We’re grateful to Adam and to the Weitsman companies.”

The gift will nearly cover the cost of the construction of the three-room classroom facility. Two of the classrooms will be used for safety training, instruction and other “clean” training activities, Franz said, while the third room, a “dirty” classroom, will resemble a garage and will allow the more than 300 volunteer fire fighters in the Owego department a permanent, indoor location to train on fire engines and other essential public safety equipment. Franz said he hopes construction will conclude this fall.

“The Fire Department is an important part of the community of Owego, and I’m glad to be able to support them,” said Adam Weitsman.

Owego Mayor Ed Arrington said he was deeply appreciative of the donation, and said the new training facility will benefit the residents not only of Owego but also of all of Tioga County. When complete, Owego’s training center will be used for education and training by all the county volunteer fire departments.

“This new facility will be a real boost to the community. We’ll be able to train our future and current fire fighters here,” the mayor said. “The Weitsman family has always thought of the community first; on behalf of the people of Owego, I want to thank Adam Weitsman for his most generous gift.”

Upstate Shredding knows first-hand of their commitment to duty – the fire department worked tirelessly in the middle of the night to save the company from damaging fire that threatened to engulf the Upstate Shredding facility, despite dangerously cold temperatures of 10 below zero.