Doug Plummer, the mayor of Sharon Springs, New York, passed away in December after battling cancer when he was 63. He was a native of Pennsylvania with aspirations of becoming a performer. After earning a theater degree from New England College, he relocated to New York City and eventually met Garth, his partner. The couple purchased a vacation house in Sharon Springs in 1990, but that was only the start. 

A few years later, Doug and Garth would settle in the area. Together, they brought the neighborhood back to its previous state of community. They restored numerous other local real estate, added coffee shops like the Rockville Cafe, and remodeled the American Hotel (so skillfully that he received multiple prizes). Additionally, he had a strong interest in the arts, as evidenced by his purchase of Klinkhart Hall in 2007 to provide a home for the thriving arts community. 

In the end, Doug was elected mayor of his hometown. One of his most noteworthy life attributes was his dedication to the community, its past, and its future. Doug leaves behind his partner and his family, who loved him dearly.

In addition to serving as Sharon Springs’ mayor, Doug was also a tremendously giving individual, notably to TNS. At our galas, Doug frequently provided accommodations at the historic American Hotel and gift cards and tickets for nearby attractions. During this challenging time, we offer our condolences to Abby and the entire Plummer family. 

Below is this special edition of Abby’s World, a blog where Abby writes about her uncle and his impact on her and the World. 

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2024, everyone! We’re taking a little detour from my usual content here at Abby’s World. I dedicate this blog post to my Uncle Doug, who recently passed away. I wanted to share this blog because he was very special to me and TNS. 

Some of my favorite memories of Uncle Doug are just memories of celebrating the holidays. He even gave me some of his favorite bracelets, and I still have those today. I also loved being with my extended family; we would always get together to take family photos. 

Uncle Doug was really passionate about his family. We have always been super close; he helped my parents raise me. He was also always there for me. He also loved his partner, Garth. He was passionate about everything they did for each other and their love for their dogs. 

He was the mayor of Sharon Springs, a town in New York. He did a lot for his local community and was passionate about it. I got to see how much he loved his family and community, and it taught me what it means to be supportive and have a supportive community. Being an advocate for TNS means I support my community, and they support me. I learned a lot about that from my uncle. I always try to bring the closeness that I saw to TNS and our community.

Uncle Doug was dedicated to TNS because of me; he would donate stays to the hotel to our gala and donate what he could because of what TNS does for me and the community. 

He was a lover; he loved everyone and everything in his life. He was a caring man, and his love for the community helped me push TNS to be a close-knit community like the one he cared for. He was proud of his family; he supported me and my work and encouraged me to wear my hearing aids, too.

My uncle always told me to follow my dreams and work hard to get there. I know my uncle will always be with me, as we have been best friends all my life. I love and miss you, Uncle Doug.