Citizens Foundation honors tourism pioneer

Sugar Loaf - Jerome Brisman, whose family has owned West Point Tours Inc. for three generations and whose volunteer efforts have touched many lives, has been named the Orange County Citizens Foundation’s 2007 Ruth and James Ottaway Medal recipient. The award is presented annually to an individual or organization who has contributed to quality of life in Orange County. Brisman has been chosen for the Ottaway Medal because his initiative and volunteer efforts throughout the county. The Brisman family and West Point Tours helped boost the tourism industry in Orange County by offering guided tours of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the 1970s. “Jerry helped turn West Point into one of the top tourism destinations in New York State,” said Susan Cayea, Orange County’s director of tourism. “Jerry’s knowledge of the local business community has given him the ability and flexibility to develop programs and initiate changes that have positively impacted our residents and the business sector,” said Citizens Foundation President Nancy Proyect. In 2000 when Orange County’s unemployment rate was so low that it was difficult to find workers to fill vital positions, West Point Tours began offering to pay 80 percent of the cost for child care for its workers, enabling parents with small children to work. He is a past president of Temple Beth Jacob in Newburgh. In 1994, Leadership Orange presented him with the first ever Orange County Leadership Award. A 1952 graduate of West Point, Brisman was stationed in Alaska during the Korean War. His assignment there was to devise options for defending Alaska should the Russians attempt to cross the Bering Sea. After the War, Brisman worked in the military defense and aeronautics industries for more than 15 years. He brought his family back to Orange County in the 1960s at which point he began working in his father-in-law’s bus company - Storm King Stage. The Brismans later purchased the company and expanded into school transportation and the company has grown from there with a fleet of 30 vehicles. Today, Brisman is semi-retired, leaving daily operations to his two sons, Jay and Robert. The Citizens Foundation will present the Ottaway Medal to Brisman at the Foundation’s dinner on May 3 at the Inn at Central Valley. Tickets are $75. The Citizens Foundation is a membership-based public policy organization advocating for the greater public good in Orange County. It focuses on land use planning, transportation, water and waste and cultural affairs. For more information, contact the foundation at 845-469-9459 or visit its Web site at www.occf-ny.org.