Business owners, Dave and Jess Shull will be recognized by the Boy Scouts at the 2024 Distinguished Citizens Award Dinner for Chenango County. (Submitted photo)

CHENANGO COUNTY - The Baden-Powell Council, Boy Scouts of America has announced Dave and Jess Shull will be honored at the 2024 Distinguished Citizens Award Dinner for Chenango County for their exemplary roles in the community.

The community is invited to purchase tickets for the recognition dinner. The Shulls will be honored on Thursday, May 9, at the Canasawacta Country Club in Norwich with a reception beginning at 5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $100 and the funds will go to supporting Scouting in Chenango County.

In 2023 the award was presented to both David Burrell and Gary Brightman.

Selection was made for the award by a committee of local citizens which includes past recipients as well as community and business partners. This is the 37th Annual Distinguished Citizen of the Year dinner benefiting the local Scouting program.  Each year the scouts recognize a local community leader for their outstanding contribution to the betterment of the community and service to their fellow citizens.

“We are excited to present this award to Dave and Jess Shull this year,” said Jared Bartle of Blueox.

“They have been so supportive of the community and have given generously to support our local youth and community organizations, first responders and sporting groups. Dave is an Eagle Scout and he and Jess are a great example of living the values taught through the Scouting program. We look forward to a wonderful evening honoring this great couple.”

Dave and Jessica Shull met in 2006, a year after Dave relocated from his home state of Colorado to Oxford, New York, to pursue a new business adventure with one of his college roommates Vincent Scileppi. Shull and Scileppi had partnered up with two other business partners Michael Barone and Anthony Amendola to open what is now known to the area as the Stadium Sports Bar & Grill.

The Stadium opened in January of 2005 as a sports bar providing food from its neighboring restaurant Roma’s Pizzeria. Dave and Jess met in 2006 as Jess was looking for another job in the area that would allow flexibility with her current schedule. Jess was brought on the small staff and instantly provided new ideas and knowledge to the restaurant. Jess would also become the talented baker behind the scenes that now supplies both The Stadium and Nina’s with many of their house made fresh desserts. They both quickly realized the opportunity was present to make the change to a full blown restaurant that could provide food on its own and add another restaurant option for the Village of Oxford.

Over the next few years Dave and his business partners would open Roma’s Ristorante & Pizzeria in Sidney in 2009 and work closely with the Nicastri family to purchase one of the longest family owned and operated restaurants in the area, Nina’s Pizzeria, in September of 2011.

Dave and Jess married in August 2012.

The Shulls are passionate about commitment to their community and giving back to the amazing community that supports them.

“The least we can do as a local business owner is be involved and help any way we can in the community. You can always count on our restaurants and the Shulls’ support,” said Dave.

Combined, the restaurants employ an average of 60 employees yearly. Dave has brought his commitment to communities to all his restaurant locations. Over the years the restaurants have hosted Give Back Nights, donated food to organizations, first responders and local sporting groups. They have provided gift cards and donated food to benefits and other fundraisers in the area. They have sponsored youth sports teams and provided heavily discounted food for sports teams’ travel meals and concession stands.

Nina’s has been an active major sponsor for many of the yearly YMCA events including Gus Macker and the Halloween Parade. They have also taken on an active role with the Toys for Tots campaign over the past eight years. Nina’s hosts an annual Spaghetti & Meatball Dinner and Movie event planned by Lon Yerton (tenured Nina’s server) and Heather McShane (Nina’s manager). Nina’s provides and donates all the food and partners with Rich and Todd Barnes, the Colonial Theatre and the Chawgo’s to help raise thousands of dollars and help fill the Chawgo’s bus full of toys that are then distributed locally to less fortunate families right here in Chenango County.

The future is bright as the Shulls have recently partnered up with the Brightman Family (Gary, Holy, Carter, Grant and Cole) at Nina’s in late 2023. The addition of the Brightmans to Nina’s is just an added layer of support for our community as the Brightmans have always dedicated their time and commitment to this community.

Dave was an active member of The Boy Scouts of America as a a youth and achieved their highest honor of Eagle Scout in 1992. His Eagle Scout project consisted of planning and conducting a multi-neighborhood canned food drive to help stock local food pantries in Colorado Springs before the holiday season.

Over the years, the Shulls have been recognized for commitment to community by receiving the following: Catholic Charities of Chenango County (Fundraising Events Acknowledgement) in 2017; Oxford Fire Department Community Support Award in April 2017; Commitment to Community Award on behalf of the Norwich Business Improvement District, October 2017; Commitment to Community Award on behalf of Commerce Chenango in 2020.

Reservations and sponsorship opportunities for the Distinguished Citizen Award Dinner may can be found at www.bpcouncil.org/chenangodcad/ or by contacting Kellie Amlin at the Baden-Powell Council service center at 607-648-7888 extension 106. Seating is limited and filling quickly, so please send in your reservation early. Tickets will not be available at the door.