06/28/2026
Skaneateles at its finest. What I've admired about the Village are the volunteers. Is Skaneateles a wealthy-upscale community; yes. Is Skaneateles privileged, yes. Is Skaneateles beautiful, yes.
But-
What is beauty without work. Specifically women's work.
What is the side of wealth and privilege that nobody talks about? That It's a lunch pail job.
Well manicured parks, the cleanest lake is and has been done in earnest year over year. The people, the tax payers, do not give up. They show up.
My favorite time of the year has been watching the docks go in. Rain or shine, hot or cold, people in wetsuits install the docks that are free to the public and funded by volunteers.
Dickens, the lights, the wreaths, the garlands: Untangled by volunteers.
Stay at Home Moms: A privilege and a choice, for most-absolutely not all- free lunch programs are here too and they are a necessity in Skaneateles just as much as neighboring schools, but those Moms who made the choice because they could afford to stay home--> Run Things. Everyday. All day. They show up and are the hardest working CEOs and CFOs with or without titles on the board.
The PTA, the parents, the retired volunteers who show up to give tours, talk, educate people about Skaneateles-
The landscapers and environmentalists who log their time-
That is Skaneateles.
The big houses, the mansions, the Titans of industry- that is not all Skaneateles is, most- not even close to what it can be because dedication grows.
Wealth changes. Riches expand and contract, but community stands and that's what Skaneateles is, like everyone else- a community.
To contribute is to belong. My only critique upon leaving is the stories- we hear about the Titans, but I'd like to hear, on tours, about the people propping this town up.
A new library is going in :) Maybe as they do in Europe, people-the hands of Skaneateles could make themselves available for loan and tell the stories of what it meant to untangle wreaths for Dickens and install the docks of Summer.
If there's anything Skaneateles needs, it's to be relatable and attainable to the visitors in awe over its beauty and insecure over its wealth.
