Dave Rowley is a busy man but I was able to catch up with him for a cup of coffee at the Muddy Rivers coffee shop in Oneonta’s West End.
Rowley graduated Oneonta High School in 1968, after which he attended Hartwick College. After Hartwick, he went on to earn his master’s degree in public administration at Penn State, graduating at a time when such jobs were scarce due to a very weak economy — Rowley reminded me of the days when you could only buy gas on an even date if your license plate ended in an even number and the same for odd number plates. (Imagine the social media uproar if that was to happen today!) As a result, Rowley enrolled in SUNY Oneonta to obtain his teaching certificate. Since then, he has had 16 years of teaching high school and 11 years of service as a school superintendent (Edmeston, Stamford and Oneonta) under his belt.
Retirement does not appear to have slowed Rowley down a bit. He now serves as the president of both the Community Foundation of Otsego County and the Oneonta Rotary Fund, and as a board member of the Otsego County Industrial Development Authority, Springbrook School Board and, until recently, the A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital Board of Directors. When asked what drives him, Rowley’s answer was short and direct. “You can make a difference,” he replied.
As he was recently elected as president of CFOC, I asked Rowley to tell me more about what the foundation is doing that excites him. “Everything we do is about improving quality of life in the county,” he said. In only six years of existence, local community support has allowed CFOC to raise nearly $10 million, $135,000 of which is allocated, this year, to help local non-profits provide relief to families and individuals dealing with food insecurity. “The need is great,” Rowley told me. “We have received 30 applications asking for more than a total of $300,000. Food pantries are in great need. Philanthropic organizations cannot take the place of the federal government.”
Rowley seemed especially excited by the foundation’s focus on helping young people become our future civic leaders — not surprising given his long history of teaching and leadership in our local schools. Student Voices, Student Choices is an initiative that connects teams of high school students with local non-profits to identify challenges and deliver results. The program, now in its fourth year, will culminate in public presentations at Hartwick College at 7 p.m. Nov. 24, with students from six schools presenting the work they have accomplished over the past school year. CFOC will grant each participating school team $2,500 to complete their projects.
Rowley went on to explain that a larger-than-expected community impact is occurring through the establishment of donor-advised funds and field of interest funds. Each can enable a donor to establish a fund to support specific charities or areas of their interest with the administration of the funds and grants being left to CFOC. When I asked for examples, the first he cited was the Cemetery Fund. “It is amazing how many Revolutionary War vets are buried in Otsego County,” Rowley said. He explained that most of the stones of Revolutionary War soldiers are so worn down that you can no longer read them. “The fund is able to provide $50,000 per year in grant funding to the small local cemeteries for the rehabilitation of gravestones of Revolutionary War vets,” he said.
Similar funds that have been established, Rowley told me, include supporting the health of Otsego Lake, recycling efforts in the county and local communities such as Otego and Springfield. “When a family or individual establishes a fund with us, we are able to be good stewards of their funds while making the grant awards for them,” he said.
Looking ahead, Rowley said he sees much work still to be done. “There is a need to fund more,” he said. “Organizations are experiencing rough times with bigger needs and less government support.”
Before we finished, Rowley added that CFOC’s most recent expansion has been into strengthening our local economy. This new and expanding field allows CFOC to make loans with affordable interest rates to underserved entrepreneurs looking to start new businesses in the county or to expand existing ones.
The Otsego County economy can use all the help it can get. We can be thankful to Rowley for his many years of successful commitment to community service. His willingness to continue to work hard is a much needed and welcome contribution.