Fall. A time for apple picking, visits to pumpkin patches, football games and gatherings of friends and family. Until COVID-19, fall was also synonymous with the Auburn Education Foundation’s signature
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The life of Richard Dick Howard was loud.Â
Now, the family of the beloved Auburn drummer is coping with the fact that his death was so quiet.
Howard, 83, passed away at The Commons on St. Anthony on Dec. 29 â less than 24 hours after testing positive for COVID-19.
Due to the state s ban on nursing home visitation during the pandemic, his family couldn t be with him during his final hours.
His daughters, Julie Howard and Lynette Wilson, told The Citizen that they tried to reach him after his diagnosis. But the facility was too busy responding to the outbreak of the virus there to arrange a call that day. The last time they talked to their father was his birthday, Dec. 14, through FaceTime. The last time they saw him in person was before the pandemic began in the U.S. in March.
Although the first COVID-19 vaccination in New York state Monday showed some light at the end of the tunnel, Cayuga County s bar and restaurant owners still feel very much in the dark.
More than a dozen gathered at a virtual Restaurant Roundtable that afternoon to share ideas and struggles during the pandemic. Organized by the Cayuga County Chamber of Commerce and hosted by Business Development Specialist Meg Goloub, the roundtable also included local officials and others who could answer questions about the state s COVID-19 guidance, available relief funds and more.
The roundtable included many subjects, but three of the recurring themes were confusion, creativity and collaboration.Â