Brothers Vern and Craig Sessler and their sister Jane Shaffer recently were awarded honorary memberships in our chapter for their contributions to the Finger Lakes boating community.
The Sesslers, lifelong Seneca Lake boaters, were cited as the driving force behind the $7.5 million transformation of the Sampson State Park marina and shoreline campgrounds, in a partnership with New York State known as Seneca Lake Resorts. Sessler Companies is based in Waterloo. Sampson State Park is in Romulus, on the east shore of the lake.
“I had the pleasure of meeting and working with the Sessler organization and management while I co-chaired the Friends of Sampson Marina Committee,” said Don Kloeber when introducing Vern Sessler and his wife, Lisa, at an ABC-FLX gathering at Fulkerson Winery on the western side of Seneca Lake.
The committee was formed nearly 15 years ago to persuade New York State Parks and Recreation to preserve the Sampson marina, an “important asset to the Finger Lakes boating community,” Kloeber said.
“When (the state) documented their long-term plans to close the marina, we were close to giving up. Thankfully, the Sesslers committed to the refurbishment challenge. In addition, they welcomed our committee inputs that provided boater inputs to their designs and ongoing operations,” Kloeber said.
The renovated marina re-opened in June 2019 with new boat slips and docks, boat and kayak launching sites, jet ski docking, fully ADA-compliant infrastructure, a fueling station, a ship’s store, a concession stand and access to nearby cabins. The public-private agreement additionally has allowed for the development of a long-term campground and other amenities.
Seneca Lake Resorts is also involved with improvements and operations at Seneca Lake State Park and its marina, east of Geneva.
“We can’t thank the Sesslers enough for what they’ve done for boaters on Seneca Lake and in the Finger Lakes, a premier boating destination,” Kloeber said.
Vern Sessler is a Coast Guard-licensed captain and pilot and has navigated 3,800 miles of the nearly 6,000-mile Great Loop waterway route along the eastern coast of the United States, across the Great Lakes and south on rivers, including the Mississippi.
