Van service transporting 818 veterans to appointments in 2025

Photo by Ginny Kropf: The Medina chapter of Sons of the American Legion donated $2,000 to the Veterans’ Van Service in Albion on Thursday. Presenting the check to Phyllis Schrader, chair of the Veterans’ Van Service, and David Kusmierczak, president of the Joint Veterans Council, are, from left, Wayne Hale and Phil Rudnick, SAL members; and Scott Carlton, Medina SAL commander.

MEDINA – Maintaining a fleet of vans to provide free medical transportation to Orleans County veterans would likely be impossible without the support of many local organizations throughout the county.

One of these organizations is Sons of the American Legion, whose Medina chapter on Thursday morning donated $2,000 to the Veterans’ Van Service. Making the presentation to Phyllis Schrader, chair of the Veterans’ Van Service, and David Kusmierczak, president of the Joint Veterans Council, were SAL commander Scott Carlton and members Wayne Hale and Phil Rudnick.

Carlton said the SAL hold various fundraisers throughout the year, enabling them to support programs for veterans, such as the Van Service. One such fundraiser is clam night, starting at 4 p.m. today, until sold out, at the American Legion on North Main Street in Medina.

“We’ve supported the Van Service for many years,” Hale said. “This makes about $8,000 we’ve donated over the years.”

The Veterans Van Service has been in operation since 1997, an idea of local veteran, the late Jim Andre.

“Jim saw a need for such a service and the idea was developed by the late Frank Tower, then the Veterans’ Services officer, and the late Frank Berger, a legislator and a veteran,” Schrader said.

Initially, the service started Dec. 13, 1996 with a card table, a phone and one van, operating out of the county office building. The first year in operation they provided 5,184 hours of service by the all-volunteer drivers and office schedulers. They had driven 37,099 miles on the first van when a second one was acquired.

“We started with one driver and now we have 20 drivers and 10 office staff, all volunteers,” Schrader said.

For years, the late Owen Toale of Medina shopped for suitable vans.

“We only buy good, used vans,” Schrader said. “We can’t afford new ones.”

The fleet now consists of five vans.

The vans are available to transport any veteran from Orleans County to medical appointments in the Western New York area, namely Medina, Lockport, Buffalo and Rochester.

Veterans must give the Van Service two weeks’ notice of their appointment so office staff can secure a driver. The service is totally free to veterans.

Gas and maintenance of the vans is paid for by the Buffalo Veterans’ Administration, funded by private donations.

The Veterans’ Van Service operates under the Joint Veterans’ Council and now occupies its own office in the Orleans County Veterans’ Services office in Albion.

Schrader attends the Joint Veterans’ Council meeting the third Monday of each month and reports on the van service’s activity for the previous month.

Year-to-date figures for 2025 were 616 trips transporting 818 veterans; 27,334 total miles driven; and 3,874 hours by 26 volunteers.

In other news from the Veterans Service Office, clerk Jackie Lonnen announced the Jospeh P. Dwywr Peer to Peer Program will sponsor three free games of bowling for veterans on Feb. 28 at Medina Lanes. The event, from 1 to 5 p.m., will include pizza, wings and soft drinks. Veterans must RSVP by calling (585) 589-3219.

Also, on April 1 Lonnen said they will be giving away 100 hams to veterans for Easter. More details will be forthcoming.

Photos by Tom Rivers: Congresswoman Claudia Tenney speaks during Tuesday’s Orleans County Legislature meeting.

ALBION – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney spent 2 ½ hours meeting with Orleans County legislators and department heads on Tuesday, hearing about the challenges of providing services in a rural county.

Orleans is part of the 24^th Congressional District in New York, which includes all or parts of 14 counties, stretching from Niagara County to northern New York.

Tenney praised the team of county legislators and department heads and said some of the successes in the county should be emulated around the state.

Orleans County, for example, has one of the lowest error rates in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), Tenney said. The federal government funds SNAP, which  provides low-income individuals and families with food benefits.

President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 changed how SNAP is administered, with states penalized that exceed a 6 percent payment error rate.

Tenney, during Tuesday’s County Legislature meeting, said New York State has one of the highest error rates in the country, but counties like Orleans “are significantly less than the state.” She doesn’t want Orleans to be penalized based on the overall state’s error rate.

She said the new changes imposed by the federal government have put more workload on the county’s DSS staff. She favors giving the smaller counties more time to implement the changes.

Tenney said the county struggles to provide services due to a limited tax base and the crushing weight of state mandated programs, including Medicaid, which costs the county more than $8 million a year.

She would like to see the state rein in the costs of Medicaid without hurting needy people around the state.

County Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson thanked Tenney for spending the afternoon in Albion meeting with the department heads and county legislators.

“You spent a lot of time in Orleans County and we can’t tell you how much we appreciate that,” Johnson said.

The congresswoman said the Orleans County team “is hitting it out of the park” for local residents, finding cost savings in providing local services.

Johnson, contacted today, said the county reached out to Tenney about stopping by and hearing the concerns from the county level.

“We appreciate her willingness to take the time to truly listen and better understand the priorities of Orleans County,” Johnson said. “She spent two and half hours meeting with our department heads and legislators, attentively hearing firsthand about the challenges and needs facing our community. Her thoughtful questions, engaged presence, and approachable demeanor made the discussion both meaningful and productive.”

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney complimented the county’s team of department heads and county legislators.