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It’s the FRIDAY FIVE! This week, we’re featuring Erin Bates, Executive Director of the McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center. Special thanks to our friends at @CrouseHealth for helping bring important stories like Erin’s to life each and every Friday in the FRIDAY FIVE.
For more than 11 years, Erin has dedicated herself to the mission of the McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center and its incredibly important work supporting children and families impacted by abuse here in Central New York.
As I got to know more about Erin while putting together this week’s FRIDAY FIVE, what stood out to me was her compassion and commitment to a mission that is so important to our community. The McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center provides critical support for children and families during some of the most difficult moments imaginable, and our community is fortunate to have Erin helping lead that mission.
Her story is also a reminder of something I love about this series. Some of the people making the biggest difference in Central New York are doing it quietly, every single day, through work that many of us may never see firsthand.
This week, get to know Erin Bates, what inspires her, and the important mission she leads at the McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center.
#fridayfive #syracuse #centralnewyork #cny #community
One of my favorite fall views of Syracuse in the fall is from Woodland Reservoir in Strathmore #syracuse #syracuseny #fallvibes #upstatenewyork #leafpeeping
When you stop to think about it…there’s lots to be proud of…and isn’t that all that matters?! Consider this your pat on the back and KEEP GOING 💯🙌🙏✅#upstateny #mindset #centralnewyork #syracuse #upstateny
There’s so much beauty in Upstate New York this time of year! Who else is excited for the fall colors to peak this year? This shot was taken with my drone a few years back overlooking the Strathmore neighborhood in the city of Syracuse looking south into the valley. Love the contours of this city and region one seen from above. #upstateny #fallvibes🍁 #syracuse #syracuseny #iloveny
Name a more beautiful park in all of Syracuse. Go ahead. I’ll wait ⏰ #syracuse #syracuseny #fallvibes #onondagapark #upstateny
The Erie Canal isn’t just something you read about in a history book.
At Camillus Erie Canal Park, it’s still RIGHT HERE. More than 200 years after the canal first transformed New York, you can still walk or bike along its paths, take in a boat ride, explore the museum and experience a piece of the Erie Canal story for yourself.
And with fall here, there’s never been a better time to experience it…walk the trail, explore the history, take in the colors...the choice is YOURS!
Visit @eriecanalway’s website to get started.
#ErieCanal #CamillusNY #CentralNewYork #UpstateNY #ErieCanalway
This really has to be one of my favorite times of year in Upstate New York…crisp mornings, warm afternoons…it gets no better 💯 #upstateny #syracuse #syracuseny #sunrise #fallvibes🍁
It’s the FRIDAY FIVE! This week, we’re featuring entrepreneur and Chocolate Pizza Company owner Ryan Novak! Special thanks to our friends at @CrouseHealth for helping bring stories like Ryan’s to life each and every Friday in the FRIDAY FIVE!
Ryan’s story is one of those great Central New York stories about starting small, dreaming big, and never forgetting where you came from.
He started working at Chocolate Pizza Company when he was just 15 years old, mopping floors and washing dishes. But even then, Ryan had bigger dreams for the little chocolate shop in Marcellus. At just 21 years old, while still a senior at Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management, he took a huge leap and bought the business.
What he’s built since is pretty remarkable.
Ryan has helped transform Chocolate Pizza Company from a small-town chocolate shop into a growing national brand, all while keeping the company family-owned and firmly rooted right here in Central New York. Today, the company operates from a 15,000-square-foot facility between Marcellus and Skaneateles, with its signature Chocolate Pizza and Peanut Butter Wings reaching customers across the country.
Along the way, Ryan and the company have been featured everywhere from People and Forbes to Food Network and ABC World News Tonight. But what I appreciate most about Ryan’s story is that behind all that national attention is still a local business, a local team, and a guy who literally started at the bottom and worked his way up.
That’s what the FRIDAY FIVE is all about. Getting to know the people behind the businesses, organizations, and stories that make Central New York special.
This week, get to know Ryan Novak!
#fridayfive #syracuse #centralnewyork #cny #supportlocal
I didn’t have the heart to tell them 😂👀#lemonadestand #keepitreal #sorrynotsorry😂 #upstateny #streetlemonade
So excited for this fall, and the Friday night lights set to beam from the Corcoran High School athletic field in Strathmore. I have so many awesome memories from my time at Corcoran, and am appreciative for all the amazing teachers and administrators that made it one of the best experiences I had as a young adult. Cougars for life 💯🙌 #syracuse #fridaynightlights #scsd #fall #strathmore
One of my favorite buildings on one of my favorite campuses in one of my favorite cities at one of my favorite times of day…does it get any better?! PS: Can you name that building? #syracuse #syracuseu #syracuseuniversity #upstateny #sunset
It’s almost time to see my favorite New York State Park in all its FALL glory! Who else is excited to see Green Lakes State Park when the colors peak in a few weeks? This is not a current photo, this was taken with my drone in 2025. #greenlakes #iloveny #nysparks #greenlakesstatepark #upstateny
I’ve seen Syracuse from a lot of angles, but this view never gets old.
Looking through the city from north to south, you can see downtown rising in the middle and the valley stretching out for miles behind it.
It’s a perspective most people never get to stop and really appreciate.
A city I’ve known my whole life, seen in a completely different way.
This is why I fly.
To change perspectives of Syracuse, one view at a time.
#SyracuseNY #SyracuseFromAbove #DowntownSyracuse #CNYViews #DronePhotography
On a walk through Strathmore, I spotted a small patch of brick peeking through the asphalt.
And for a second, it felt like old Syracuse was showing itself again.
There was a time when streets like this were everywhere… laid by hand, brick by brick, carrying generations of Syracuse families through the city.
Today, only FOUR brick streets remain. More than a road. A little piece of Syracuse history still beneath our feet.
#SyracuseNY #SyracuseHistory #upstateny #CNY #HistoryInPlainSight
