The SALT Board of Directors has announced its first Community Development project awards, a total of eight awards ranging from $200-500 and including three youth projects and five to not-for-profit organizations.
These projects are designed to improve the quality of life in the Schoharie County and are expected to be completed in 2019.
The awards are as follows:

Youth projects:
• Boy Scouts—For a project to help defray the cost to construct a covered batting cage for Schoharie Little League.
The project is being under taken by Joe Lawyer as part of his Eagle Scout Project.
• Joseph B. Radez Elementary School Knitting Club—For a project to conduct three knitting session for the club with Cecilia Tkaczyk, owner of the CeCe’s Wool Farm in Esperance.
The objective is for the students to gain a more thorough understanding of how to spin wool on a drop spindle.
• Everything Under the Sun 4-H Club—This project will enable the 4-H Club to teach children how to tap a tree and make maple syrup.

Not-for-profit projects:
• Central Bridge Civic Association—This project is to assist in the upgrade of playground equipment for the park.
• George Landis Arboretum—This project is to assist with the painting of a large scale mural on the back side of the Landis Arboretum’s historic 19th Century Barn.
This project calls for a nature focus that will include large-scale butterfly, bird wings, white tail deer antlers and tree and flower gardens highlighting the importance of conservation.
Each sign will also have QR codes for visitors to scan and link to additional information on items in the painting.
• Schoharie Joint Youth Recreation Commission—To replace the chlorinator for the kiddie pool which will serve families from the towns of Esperance, Wright, Schoharie and the village of Schoharie.
• Sharon Spring Free Library—This project will enable the library to install exterior outlets to the building that houses the library in order to increase the safety of participants where there are outdoor events such as the Second Saturday summer markets or Trunk or Treat.
• Schoharie Free Library—To assist the library in the purchase on an iPad for the reopening of the Mildred Vrooman Easter Egg Museum in April 2019. Additionally, the iPad will be used for various educational programs.

The Community Development fund was funded in part by Schoharie County’s Bounty of the County and by proceeds from the sale of “Schoharie Valley Rising” yarn.
SALT Development has partnered with CeCe's Wool Farm Store and local dyer Kelly Shultes to create a locally-processed and dyed yarn,“Schoharie Valley Rising”.
This new yarn was unveiled for the first time at the Bounty of the County and proceeds from the yarn will go to SALT’s Community Development fund.
The colors for “Schoharie Valley Rising” yarn were inspired by Schoharie artist Elizabeth Apgar-Smith’s painting “The Valley Rising”.
The yarn is currently available for sale at CeCe’s Wool Farm in Esperance and Schoharie Valley Farms, The Carrot Barn in Schoharie.
In spring of 2019, SALT Development will announce another round of funding.
Details and applications will be available soon.