| Andover
Lions are having a record year for maple syrup
production. Under the leadership of Sugar Shack chairman
Ed Derowitsch, the Lions have been harvesting maple sap
in the Village of Andover from 250 taps. Alternating
warm and freezing weather throughout the month of March
has been ideal conditions for a bountiful harvest. The
Lions will be selling their syrup as well as maple
products from a number of other local producers during
the annual Maple Festival and Sportsman Show April 4 & 5
at Andover Central School.
In days gone by many farmers tapped the sugar maple
trees to boil down the sap to make delicious maple
syrup. Today there are fewer producers. Despite labor
saving advances in the process, it is still a tremendous
amount of work. Typically 40 gallons of say are needed
to produce a single gallon of syrup. When the Andover
Lions Club first began their Maple Festival in 1972, the
maple lined streets of the Village of Andover were seen
as a maple bush that could be used to demonstrate the
process to the public. The trees are on the streets near
the school are tapped with traditional collection
buckets and boiled down at the sugar shack that the
Lions operate on the grounds of the Blessed Sacrament
Church on Elm Street. Visitors are welcome to stop by
for a look, a chat, a smell and free taste during the
festival.
If this gets you mouth watering for something more
substantial, a full pancake breakfast is being served 7
AM to 2 PM on Saturday and Sunday at the school
cafeteria. Sausage and eggs with buckwheat pancakes
topped with real, locally produced maple syrup will be
prepared by the Rod and Gun Club. Maple products by
local producers and buckwheat pancake flour will be on
sale at the Maple Room, along with many other food
vendors for lunch, snacks and dinner.
For the 10th year, the Sportsman Show and
Antler Round Up will be held in the gymnasium during the
Festival. There will be exhibits and vendors of hunting
and fishing equipment and the free scoring of your big
buck by the NY State Big Buck Club for successful
hunters who bring their mounts in between 10 AM and 2 PM
Saturday. There are cash prizes for the highest scores.
The Maple Festival boasts live entertainment on both
Saturday and Sunday, over 100 vendor exhibits and
displays as well as more than 40 food vendors. On
Saturday at 11 AM there will be a "Kiddie Tractor Pull"
where children can compete with pedal powered tractors.
The tractors will be provided and there are prizes in
several weight classes. Saturday afternoon there will be
a puppet show by ventriloquist Phil Barner at 1:30.
Sunday afternoon the Quigg Hollow Band will perform at
noon to 2 PM.
The Lions Club motto is "We Serve". The Lions are
dedicated to community service and especially to
preservation of sight, blindness prevention and programs
to assist the visually impaired. Several free health
clinics are offered by the Lions during the Maple
Festival. Child eye screening for kids 6 months to 6
years old is offered as well as diabetes and blood
pressure screening for adults. Diabetes is the leading
cause of preventable blindness in the United States.
Early detection can prevent not only the loss of vision,
but other dire health consequences. Andover Lions
support many local community efforts and has also
pledged to raise $10,000 for Lions International’s major
initiative to combat preventable blindness worldwide,
Sight First 2.
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