Owego man walks 16 miles to work to raise money for veterans
Mark Cooke is a Bedding Buyer for Olum's Furniture and Appliances.
On Friday, he participated in the company's second annual 'Walking for Clear Path' fundraising event.
Cooke once again walked from his home on Lisle Road in Owego to the Olum's in Vestal. Overall, he walked 16 miles to work.
Cooke says last year, the event raised $6,500 for Clear Path for Veterans. This year, the goal was set at $10,000.
Clear Path for Veterans supports veterans and active-duty service members. It offers free access to vital programs and services as well as peer support.
Cooke says, 'Thank you' to those who have served.
'Veterans don't really get the recognition they deserve, particularly after service. Whether you believe in conflict or don't, the fact is people put their lives on the line for us, and they deserve more,' said Cooke.
Donations have been made by sponsors, bedding companies, and community members. Cooke says presenting the check is the best part of the event.
Olum's is still collecting money.
To donate through Venmo, click here.
Donations can also be made in person at the Vestal location by cash or check.
Event at Binghamton City Hall brings local Haitian-American community together
Owego man walks 16 miles to work to raise money for veterans
Food and Farm Showcase: New Leaf Cider Co
Vestal senior appointed to Naval Academy
Elizabeth Church Manor up for sale by United Methodist Homes
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Business Wire
26 minutes ago
- Business Wire
Brett McGurk Joins Tidal Partners as Senior Advisor
PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tidal Partners is pleased to welcome Brett McGurk as a Senior Advisor to the firm. Brett brings decades of experience in global diplomacy and national security—with a track record forged at the center of some of the most consequential geopolitical events of our time. "The quest for AI leadership has inextricably linked geopolitics and technology. For today's leading companies, this moment presents a rare opportunity to create meaningful value—or risk falling behind," said David Handler, Co-Founder of Tidal Partners. "Brett's deep global and strategic experience enhances Tidal's role in driving outsized outcomes for our clients in today's fast-moving and uncertain environment." "I'm honored to lend my experience to Tidal Partners' distinguished clients as they wrestle with what could be the most significant decision-making of their careers," said Brett McGurk. "This is a transformational, hinge-point moment, with unprecedented risks and opportunities for our country and companies navigating the AI revolution." Brett is a veteran diplomat and national security expert with decades of service across four administrations leading high-stakes, breakthrough negotiations in the most complex geostrategic environments. His distinguished career includes serving as White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa in the Biden Administration where he negotiated two Gaza ceasefires, securing the release of over 100 hostages, organized the defense of Israel against Iranian missile attacks, negotiated the release of American hostages from Iran, and managed highest-level U.S. relations with the Gulf states, including UAE and Saudi Arabia, at the leading edge of the global AI competition. Brett also served as Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS under the Obama and Trump administrations. In that role, he helped to design and lead the diplomatic and military campaign to defeat ISIS through a historic coalition of more than 80 countries that remains in place to this day. In the Obama administration, Brett also led secret negotiations with Iran to secure the release of multiple American hostages, later receiving the James W. Foley Hostage Freedom Award for these efforts. In addition, Brett held senior posts in the George W. Bush administration. As Senior Director on the National Security Council, he is credited for helping to develop the "surge" strategy for Iraq in 2007, and he later negotiated the Strategic Framework Agreement that continues to guide relations between Iraq and the United States. Brett had earlier spent nearly a year in Iraq as a legal advisor during the transition to an interim Iraqi government and helped negotiate Iraq's interim constitution. Early in his career, Brett served as law clerk to Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist. He was at the Supreme Court on September 11, 2001, a day that changed history and led to his dedicating over two decades to nonpartisan service in Washington and overseas. Currently, Brett is a Global Affairs Analyst for CNN, a Distinguished Fellow at Harvard's Belfer Center and the Atlantic Council, where he advises the N7 Initiative. He is also a Venture Partner at Lux Capital and Senior Advisor for the Middle East and International Affairs at Cisco Systems, Inc. He is finally writing a book about presidential decision-making and high-stakes diplomacy to be published by Crown. Tidal Partners is an M&A strategic advisory boutique dedicated to driving long-term value creation for leading technology companies in an era of global and digital transformation.


Business Wire
26 minutes ago
- Business Wire
Judge Patricia Breckenridge (Ret.) to Receive the 2025 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Eighth Circuit
ALEXANDRIA, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Patricia Breckenridge has been selected to receive the prestigious 2025 American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the Eighth Circuit. Breckenridge was a judge on the Supreme Court of Missouri from 2007 until her retirement in 2023 and served as chief justice from 2015 to 2017. She will receive the award from Judge Duane Benton at the Eighth Circuit Judicial Conference in Kansas City, Missouri, in August. Judge Patricia Breckenridge (Ret.), selected to receive prestigious 2025 American @InnsofCourt Professionalism Award for the 8th Circuit. #InnsofCourt #mizzou #MizzouAlumni #MizzouLaw Share 'As a member of our state's highest court for over 15 years, she worked tirelessly to improve Missourians' lives….,' writes Willie J. Epps Jr., chief magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, who nominated Breckenridge for the award. Breckenridge earned an undergraduate degree with honors in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1975, then earned her law degree from the university in 1977. She then practiced law with her father and husband in the firm Russell, Brown, Bickel and Breckenridge in her hometown of Nevada, Missouri. Breckenridge's judicial career began even as she was practicing law. From 1979 to 1982, she also served as the town's assistant municipal judge. Soon after, she was appointed as associate circuit judge for Vernon County, becoming the first woman to serve in the position. In 1990, Breckenridge was appointed to the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District, becoming only the second woman to serve. In 2007, she was appointed to the Supreme Court of Missouri. During her tenure as chief justice, she was appointed to serve on the National Center for State Courts National Task Force on Fines, Fees, and Bail Practices, which gave her a platform for improving the administration of justice nationwide. In 2019, Breckenridge received the organization's Distinguished Service Award for Appellate Judges. Breckenridge has also been active in the nonprofit world. She co-founded the Council for Families in Crisis, for example, which offered a hotline, a support group for abuse victims, anger management counseling, and then established a battered women's shelter in Nevada, Missouri, that has existed for more than 35 years. Breckenridge has mentored four sisters for 27 years through Operation Breakthrough, a nonprofit childcare provider and after-school program that serves low-income children in Kansas City, Missouri. Breckenridge has been a member of the Elwood L. Thomas American Inn of Court since 2012. She served as president of the Association of Probate and Associate Circuit Judges from 1990 to 1991. The American Inns of Court, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, inspires the legal community to advance the rule of law by achieving the highest level of professionalism through example, education, and mentoring. The organization's membership includes more than 30,000 federal, state, and local judges; lawyers; law professors; and law students in more than 350 chapters nationwide. More information is available at


UPI
27 minutes ago
- UPI
United States, China to hold trade talks in Sweden
U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent speaks to press in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. in June. Photo by Annabelle Gordon/UPI. | License Photo July 28 (UPI) -- Delegations from the United States and China will meet on Monday in Stockholm to keep the current trade truce alive and possibly negotiate a permanent deal. The world's two biggest economies will be represented by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, in the third meeting between the countries in as many months. The May meeting in Geneva saw a 90-day truce get set, and then it was rescued in June when the nations met in London. Beijing has used its lock on strategic rare earth minerals to its advantage, keeping the United States at the negotiating table and getting some U.S. export demands rolled back. If anything, the possibility of smooth negotiations seems likely after President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping had a very pleasant conversation when they last spoke on the phone. Trump said Sunday that the United States "is very close to a deal with China" but didn't offer any deeper details. Gracious moves have been made since the Trump-Xi chat, like the lifting of the American ban on sales of an important Nvidia chip to China and Beijing backing off on antitrust investigation into American chemical company DuPont. The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported Monday that the United States and China are likely to extend their truce by another three months, citing unnamed sources from both sides. There was a recent flareup between the countries earlier this month when Beijing refused to allow a Chinese American banker for Wells Fargo and an employee of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to leave China. Nonetheless, Secretary Bessent sounded very positive while discussing the impending talks with Fox Business last week, saying that "trade is in a good place" between the two countries. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun was asked Monday in a press conference about where China stands in regard to the upcoming meeting, to which he replied, "For the specifics of the economic and trade talks between China and the U.S. in Sweden, you may stay tuned."