Kosher Food, Israeli Culture On State Fair Wish List 

The New York State Fair kicked off its 185th year on Wednesday, August 26, in the Syracuse suburb of Geddes. It showcased a great variety of animals – horses, goats, swine, llamas, exotic fish, owls, hawks, falcons, canine stunt dogs, chickens, roosters, turkeys, reptiles, and a whole host of other living creatures there to make fair-goers smile. Governor Kathy Hochul toured the State Fair on opening day with her husband, Bill, her daughter and granddaughter, Sofia, in tow. She told The Jewish Press that the horses are her favorite.

The fair also had the usual rides along the midway, interspersed with food vendors. The dairy barn was a hit, featuring 25-cent chocolate milk and kosher ice cream (not Cholov Yisroel) from Byrne’s Dairy. Unfortunately, there were slim pickings of kosher food at the fair. Hudson Valley Senator Michelle Hinchey (D - Saugerties, Ulster County), who is Jewish and the chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, told The Jewish Press that kosher food needs to be included in the mix of international foods at the fair. “I’m happy to raise it again,” she said of the issue, adding, “We need to be expanding markets for our farmers here, which is something we’ve been focused on doing, including kosher and all markets – absolutely.”

There is an Asian Village exhibit at the fair. Since Israel is located on the Asian continent, the village director wants to see a presence from Israel at the Asian Village, which will be expanding next year from the current six days to all 13 days. The rules of the fair don’t allow for displays that are closed on one day of the week. But if a sponsor steps up for a display honoring Israeli dance, culture, and food, an exception will be made, according to the fair superintendent.

“I think when we’ll be at 13 days, if they skip certain days for worship or something, nobody will feel it, which will be a good sign,” Superintendent Zeeshan Smith told The Jewish Press. “It costs between three and four dollars per square foot for a tent to display Israeli goods and literature. We would love people to apply for the application and we will make them succeed... Last year there was an Arabic truck, and he had a ‘Donate to Palestine’ sign on his truck and he was fine. When you become an American, it’s a blessed place.

“I’m coming from a different part of the world, but when it says America, it is a blessed America,” Smith, who is originally from Pakistan, continued, saying the fair is a place for “people from different cultures sitting together, not punching each other in the face and not being offended by what anybody is wearing, which is the best part.”

Kosher Eats and New Digs at UAlbany

In other kosher food news, at the University at Albany (SUNY Albany), my alma mater, Aramark Collegiate Hospitality has teamed up with the Chabad religious center just outside the campus boundary, Shabbos House, to supply kosher food to students on campus whether they are Jewish or not.  

“UAlbany Dining via Aramark Dining provides meals from the local caterer 518Kosher for lunches Monday through Friday and dinners Sunday through Thursday,” explained Rabbi Mendel Rubin, co-director of the Shabbos House. “Shabbos House Chabad, serving UAlbany since 1976, provides all Saturday Shabbat lunches, Saturday night pizza, and Sunday brunches each week. We also prepare food for all Jewish holiday festive meals during the academic calendar, such as Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, Passover and more. 

“Friday night Shabbat dinners at UAlbany alternate between Shabbos House Chabad and UAlbany Hillel. In addition, Shabbos House Chabad provides food and refreshments at all of its weekday events, such as dairy dinners at weekly Torah Tuesday.”

UAlbany also just opened a new $12 million dorm in August for 222 students, mainly upperclassmen. The new dorm building, formerly part of the now-defunct College of Saint Rose, is called Great Dane Apartments, named after the university’s mascot.

“We had enough reserves, so we effectively paid cash for the building,” said Todd Foreman, UAlbany’s vice president for finance and administration and chief financial officer. “It’s a sign of a healthy institution. We’re pretty good stewards of the resources that are made available to us and it’s an investment... When you think of us as an institution that spends about $700 million a year, $12 million is a relatively small percentage in terms of having a healthy reserve.”

Adding to the income side of the ledger, the University will welcome 5,500 freshmen this year, Foreman said, as enrollment has surpassed 18,000 students, including undergraduates and graduates. “Our research portfolio is growing, our enrollment is growing, philanthropy is growing, so there’s a lot of really good things happening,” he added.

A Center for the Pataki Legacy

Another ribbon-cutting in August involved former Governor George Pataki, 81, who served from January 1, 1995, to December 31, 2006. Pataki finally received an honor that had eluded him for two decades: The Pataki Leadership Center. Located in a small building on a narrow Albany street next to the back of the state GOP headquarters, at 14 Spring Street, the building was dedicated to the former governor on Wednesday, August 5. It will double as a storage unit for Pataki as he cleans out his home in Peekskill.

The website proclaims, “The goal is not to teach young people politics. It is to teach them government: how to lead, how to serve, and how to make government work for the people it represents. The Albany headquarters will also preserve important materials and memories from Governor Pataki’s years in public service.”

While Pataki was widely viewed as a friend to the Jewish community and supporter of Israel during his tenure, there was only one Jewish member of the state legislature in attendance at the ribbon-cutting.

“I’m really proud and honored to be a member of the same party as Governor Pataki. I’m honored to be able to be here to commemorate this building for the Pataki Center, to basically validate all of the things that he did to make our state great,” Assemblyman Scott Bendett (R -Crooked Lake, Rensselaer County) told The Jewish Press. “I’m just really glad that he is being recognized for a tremendous contribution to our state, and my hope is that one day we get another George Pataki in office to help us change the direction and the trajectory of the state again. People are starving for a bipartisan effort to change the trajectory of our state and make it affordable for people to stay here whether they be seniors or students.”

Pataki’s legacy includes two major achievements: rebuilding Lower Manhattan, known as Ground Zero, which was devastated when two planes struck the World Trade Center Towers, and advocating for the environment.

“As of about a month ago, American Express broke ground on a new tower that will finish out the vision of the site that was the governor’s [vision] 25 years ago. It’s an amazing accomplishment,” one of Pataki’s most loyal employees, David Catalfamo, told The Jewish Press. Catalfamo is a board member of the Pataki Center. He served as Pataki’s director of communications as well as a senior vice president of Empire State Development, the economic development arm of the state. “He’s a guy who understood the importance of the environment, but it wasn’t like it is now. It wasn’t done at the expense of common sense and affordability, which is what we have now, which is basically environmental policy run amok. I’m really proud of that legacy and it’s something that probably will never be matched.”

There has been talk recently about making a bid for an Olympics to be held partially in Lake Placid and partially in New York City. Pataki reminded the media that he had other ideas. Just before leaving office, Pataki convened a group to look into having an international Olympics.

“When I left, we put together a group to try to bring the Olympics here. We had the idea of having a Winter Olympics, which [have] grown so much. That would be a joint Olympics between Lake Placid and Montreal, where the big events with big arenas would be held in Montreal and the downhill and outdoor events would be held in Lake Placid,” Pataki said. “I still think it’s a good idea. There’s no longer going to be a Winter Olympics in a small venue like Lake Placid.”

Keeping in mind how President Trump feels about Canada nowadays, Pataki’s idea would never get off the ground. Trump has declared that Lake Ontario in northern New York will be renamed Lake America. The acronym H.O.M.E.S. to remember the names of the Great Lakes – Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior – could be changed to S.H.A.M.E. – Superior, Huron, America, Michigan, and Erie. Governor Kathy Hochul (D - Buffalo) said Lake Ontario’s name will never change. Area Congressman John Mannion (D - Syracuse) told The Jewish Press that Trump’s move to change the name of one of the Great Lakes is nothing more than a diversion. Mannion’s district includes Lake Ontario, er...Lake America.

“Tourism for Canadian tourists is way, way down. They are our partners. We have the longest peaceful alliance and the longest international border in the world. That’s an important relationship we have and I hope it continues,” Mannion said. “That’s just a distraction. It’s a joke. It distracts from the important work, peace in the world, protecting Social Security, lowering our debt, lowering costs for Americans. It’s a distraction and unfortunately it is going to eat up some of the media oxygen that’s out there. It’s Lake Ontario.”

NY Could Decide Control of Congress

On the election front, there are four open congressional seats up for grabs in New York. One incumbent lost his seat in the June primary election. Of the 26 New York congressional districts, there are 10 contests to watch closely, as the Empire State could be the deciding factor nationally in determining which political party controls Congress.

Early voting runs from October 24 to November 1. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3.