CAZENOVIA— Last week, Community Bank Cazenovia and the Cazenovia High School (CHS) indoor track teams helped kick off the 44th Empire State Winter Games (ESWG) by participating in an Olympic-style torch relay.
Over the course of five days, the games’ two torches traveled along two routes through New York State to Lake Placid to light the cauldron for the opening ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 1.
Along the way, the torch stopped at select Community Bank branches, including Cazenovia.
On Wednesday, Jan. 31, the following members of the CHS Varsity Girls and Boys Indoor Track teams formed Cazenovia’s leg of the ESWG Torch Relay: seniors Zoey Gagne, Dinah Gifford, Margaret Huftalen, Reid McMurtrie, Meghan Mehlbaum, Connor Frisbie, and Eddie Comeau; juniors Lucy Bliss, Avery Cashatt, Susie Pittman, Olivia Ruddy, Jaden Kaplan, and Finn Worthington; sophomores Becca Brooks, Lily Kogut, Maeve McGreevy, Maura Phillips, Tristan Field Bradley, and Caleb Gilmore; and freshman Olivia Dorus, Ava Eno, Ella Gale, Eliza Huftalen, Caroline Mehlbaum, Olivia Puffer, Jake Woolbert, and Jonas Putnam.
The torch, which is a symbol of unity and athleticism, was presented to the student-athletes by Doug Bush, whose company, Endurancefactor, was asked to help coordinate the western part of the ESWG Torch Relay.
Led by Girls Indoor Track Assistant Coach Kalin Merkley and accompanied by an ESWG Torch Relay vehicle, the student-athletes ran the torch from CHS on Emory Avenue to Community Bank on Albany Street, where they were greeted by bank employees, given the chance to take photos with the torch, and treated to hot chocolate and donuts.
According to Varsity Girls Indoor Track Coach Kurt Wheeler, the indoor track program has been serving as a leg of the ESWG Torch Relay for about eight to 10 years.
“We are so lucky that [the torch’s] path goes through Cazenovia,” said senior Meghan Mehlbaum, who also participated in the relay her sophomore year. “If we were even just a little bit north or west or east, we wouldn’t get to [participate]. It’s so fun that we get to be on the journey of the torch. And we get free shirts.”
The CHS students, ESWG helpers, and Community Bank staff were joined at the post-run celebration by 11-year-old figure skater Jillyan Strain, who was looking forward to competing for the Clinton Figure Skating Club in the 2024 ESWG over the weekend. Strain is the niece of Community Bank Cazenovia Branch Manager Heather Russell.
Community Bank was the title sponsor for the games this year.
From Friday, Feb. 2 through Sunday, Feb. 4, an estimated 2,500 athletes ages 8-80 competed in more than 20 winter sports, including hockey, speedskating, ski orienteering, bobsled, and alpine skiing.
The ESWG is the largest Olympic-style winter sporting event in the Northeast for all ages and abilities.
For more information, visit empirestatewintergames.com.
