Celebrations abound in late October around the Oneida region

There were many celebrations in and around the greater Oneida area late last week:

• On Wednesday, the Madison County Historical Society held its well-attended annual dinner at Johnnie's Pier 31 Restaurant on Oneida Lake. Solsville native and guest speaker Jim Ford spoke about his book, "Sweet Cider Days", recounting the story of the world-famous Mott family of Bouckville. Executive director Sydney Loftus also reviewed the organization's highlights from the previous year and new board members were voted into office (including yours truly).
• Oneida Healthcare Center celebrated the completion of the second phase of an $18 million expansion effort on Friday morning with a ribbon-cutting and a breakfast at the Kallet Theater for nearly 250 supporters.
• A crowd of over 260 feted Madison-Cortland ARC Executive Director Ray Lewandowski as he received the 2010 Distinguished Service Award at the Greater Oneida Chamber of Commerce annual dinner, also held at the Kallet.
• And lastly ... and admittedly how you feel about this depends on where you live and/or attend(ed) high school ... Oneida had a thrilling 28-27 overtime gridiron victory Saturday over rival V.V.S. in a Class B semifinal football game in Chittenango. It was quite a transformation from a 33-6 Oneida loss to V.V.S. just two weeks earlier.

November is shaping up to be just as exciting. Among the many events and activities on tap: Oneida football faces Cazenovia in the Class B finals this weekend. And the new Pepi's Pizza on Route 5 opens its doors soon. Keep reading the Oneida Daily Dispatch and oneidadispatch.com for all the news of these happenings and much more.