Tedisco Honors Saratoga County Business Owner as  “Woman of Distinction”

ALBANY — Senator Jim Tedisco (R,C-Ballston Lake) and his colleagues in the New York State Senate in Albany recently honored as a 2026 “Woman of Distinction” Dawn Vavala of Halfmoon, a small business owner who gives back to the community as a major supporter of the City of Schenectady School District Educational Foundation.

“Dawn Vavala is a successful small business owner in Saratoga County who has dedicated her time and energy to giving back to the community and making Saratoga County, Schenectady and the entire Capital Region a better place by living the Rotary Club mission of ‘service above self,’” Tedisco said. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to honor her as a 2026 New York State Senate Woman of Distinction for all her hard work and everything she has done for our local economy and to make life better for residents via her volunteerism.”

For more than 25 years, Vavala has owned Nite Owl Marketing in Clifton Park, which specializes in custom clothing and branded promotional products. Previously, she owned and operated Tuxego of Clifton Park. Vavala grew up in Schenectady and graduated from the former Mont Pleasant High School in Schenectady, is a charter member and past president of Twin Bridges Rotary Club, a Paul Harris Fellow, and a member of its Gift of Life board, which provides life-saving surgery for children in developing countries. She recently helped to bring a child from Mongolia to the Capital Region for life-saving surgery.

Vavala is a board member of the Mother Teresa Academy in Halfmoon and a member of the Southern Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, Saratoga Convention Bureau, and the Schenectady Ole Timers Baseball Club.