Hume Laidman does not like to be in the spotlight; he just wants to give back to his community. But last week, Laidman found himself standing on the pitcher’s mound at NBT Bank Stadium throwing out a ceremonial first pitch and being celebrated as a finalist for a $10,000 prize in the Today’s Options Champions Competition.

Laidman, 83, a 58-year resident of Cazenovia, is in the running as a representative of the charity of his choice, Community Resources for Independent Seniors (CRIS), to whom the prize money will go if he is crowned the competition grand champion.

To win, Laidman needs the support of the Cazenovia community through daily votes on the Today’s Options Champions Competition website. The finalist with the most votes will win the prize money for their charity.

“It’s sort of an honor, so I’m pretty happy about it,” said Laidman, one of the co-founders of CRIS and currently its vice president. “I have mixed feelings. It’s a responsibility to the organization, really, that I do well in this, I hope.”

The Today’s Options Champions Competition is designed to recognize everyday champions who are making a difference in the lives of older Americans in Central New York, such as improving the welfare of older adults, creating solutions for local senior issues, advancing the cause for social justice and/or collaborating to make Central New York a better place for older adults.

The competition began June 1 with a solicitation for nominees who live in the Central New York area, specifically the counties of Cayuga, Cortland, Herkimer, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Otsego and Tompkins. More than 35 people were nominated, and a panel of judges narrowed that field down to five finalists, said Today’s Options President Colleen Schmidt.

The finalists were chosen based on criteria including the uniqueness of the submission, the level of passion communicated in the nomination, the strength of the effort/achievement/program that is making a difference in the lives of seniors, the strength of the incident or turning point that made the individual take action, the overall quality of the nomination and the strength of the designated charitable organization’s focus on making a difference in the lives of seniors.

The five finalists are:

▶ Hume Laidman — designated charity: CRIS.

▶ Bob Graves — designated charity: North Area Meals on Wheels, Liverpool.

▶ Mike Gasapo — designated charity: Honor Flight Syracuse.

▶ Lennie Tucker — designated charity: Rescue Mission Alliance of Syracuse.

▶ Jen Coman — designated charity: Sarah’s guest House, Syracuse.

Laidman was nominated by CRIS because he was one of the driving forces behind the creation of CRIS and because of his long list of service to the Cazenovia community, said Nancy Zeferjahn, CRIS treasurer.

“We just can’t believe we were finalists,” said Nancy Zeferjahn, CRIS treasurer. “Everybody is very excited … what a wonderful thing for the senior community in Cazenovia,” she said.

Laidman is a former Carrier Corporation executive in charge of worldwide manufacturing operations who has remained active in his retirement. He is an active member of SCORE a group of experienced business leaders that advise and mentor start-up business owners. He also mentors students at Cazenovia High School Engineering Program. He has been a ski patrol member for 49 years and is a support volunteer for bladder cancer patients at CNY Cancer Center.

For the past six years, Laidman has been a driving force for coordinating and promoting services for local seniors with the goal that seniors remain in their homes and stay connected to their community, according to a CRIS statement. After a community study revealed that Cazenovia was losing most of their senior population to other communities Laidman spearheaded a group that studied what other communities were doing and then started CRIS.

The five Today’s Options Champions were introduced and recognized during the Syracuse Chiefs pre-game ceremony on Thursday, July 30, where they all received an award and threw out a ceremonial first pitch.

From now until Aug. 27, the champions will participate in an online competition where online voters will select the champion whose accomplishment, impact and story best exemplifies a Today’s Options Champion and is worthy of designating the charity that will receive a $10,000 donation from the sponsor. The Today’s Options Champion that collects the most votes will be named the Today’s Options Grand Champion.

Voting is allowed daily at todaysoptionschampions.com from now through Aug. 27. Voting can be done online once per day per IP address. The competition grand champion will be announced Aug. 27 at the New York State Fair.

If Laidman becomes the grand champion and wins the $10,000, he will donate the money CRIS, specifically for the CRIS Cazenovia Area Transportation (CAT) program.

The CRIS-CAT program drives seniors to medical appointments, hairdressing, shopping, church and other needs. This program, which has 60 volunteer drivers, makes a difference in people’s lives because it frees people up from their homes, Laidman said.

“Seniors are not bound to their homes as much as they have been; many drivers and riders make friends … friendships have emerged there,” he said. “I’m 83; I’m old too, so I’m a little bit selfish about it.”

If Laidman wins, CRIS will use the funds to purchase a handicapped-accessible vehicle to enable them to transport handicapped individuals through the CRIS Cazenovia Area Transportation (CAT) program, which is something CRIS cannot currently do, Zeferjahn said.

“We are so excited and proud that Hume has been picked as a finalist and CRIS may receive $10,000 to offer programs for seniors. We need to get out the vote to make this grant a reality,” she said.

Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached at [email protected].