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BASOM – With a warm, sunny weekend ahead, consider a visit to Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge now to experience bird migration, natural abundance, and wildlife activity.
Various shorebirds are already heading through the area, providing special sightings. Route 63, which connects the refuge’s Orleans and Genesee county sides, re-opened this afternoon. The refuge’s visitor center will be open Saturday until 4 p.m., with representatives available to lend binoculars and field guides, and answer questions.
For woodpeckers, warblers, nuthatches and brown creepers, walk the Kanyoo Trail located off of Lewiston Road. The Kanyoo Trail is a short loop hike of just over 1 mile that takes visitors through forest and marsh habitats. A bumper crop of fallen acorns is attracting red squirrels. The damper, milder weather is starting to bring colorful mushrooms and fungi to fallen logs and mossy hollows. The woods are full of berries and wild grapes, attracting a variety of wildlife. Please be aware that foraging for human food is not permitted at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. At this time of year, most warblers have molted out of their showy summer breeding plumage, so they are notoriously difficult to identify, but it can be a fun challenge. Along the boardwalk through the marsh, keep an eye out for swimming muskrats and look for painted turtles basking in the late summer sun.
For wading birds, ducks, shorebirds, egrets, and sandhill cranes, try the Feeder Road Trail. This trail comes off of the Kayoo Trail parking lot on Lewiston Road. Walk along the wall of the red building to come out along Kumpf Marsh. The marsh water level is low, and the remaining pool of shallow water and surrounding mud flats are a good place to observe greater and lesser yellowlegs, least sandpipers, and winged rarities as migration season often brings unexpected visitors like the glossy ibis recently seen at this location. Canada geese are starting to arrive in large numbers, with mallards, blue-winged teals, and a scattering of other duck species paddling in the pool.
Resident bald eagles, common gallinules, black-crowned night herons, and other water loving birds can be seen from Cayuga Overlook without additional walking. The overlook parking area is on Lewiston Road.
For fields of beautiful purple, gold, and pink wildflowers, warblers, various sparrow species, and migrating monarch butterflies, hike the Visitors’ Center Trail at 1101 Casey Rd., Basom. This one-mile loop trail, starting at the right of the building, is fully graveled and is an easy walk. The pine grove at the back of the trail can be a good place to see warblers. Check out the floating bridge for a closer look at the marsh, where visitors may see belted kingfishers hunting, and huge flocks of red-winged blackbirds swirling up from the cattails as they group together and prepare to migrate south. The newly-installed benches along this path are a nice place to have a picnic lunch, and you can stop at the visitor center to see the educational displays, use the bathroom, and visit the Flyway Nature Store.
Long-billed dowitchers were recently seen at Center Marsh, along Sour Springs Road. Water levels are low, making it a good place to see herons, egrets and shorebirds. For bird watching from your car, be sure to stop at nearby Ringneck Overlook for a beautiful Orleans County marsh vista.
Gray catbirds, cedar waxwings and other fruit eaters are flocking to the berry bushes along Swallow Hollow nature trail off Knowlesville Road on the eastern edge of the refuge. Local birders have reported a huge variety of migratory warblers at this trail over the past few weeks This is also a reliable spot to see flocks of rusty blackbirds in late fall foraging in wet leaf litter. Deer are common along this trail, and it is a wonderful place to look for thrushes and other songbirds. Swallow Hollow’s 1.3- mile loop winds through forest and marsh and includes a long section of elevated boardwalk. Listening for calling chickadees can be a good way to locate the mostly silent warblers at this time of year, since they often flock together to forage.
The 2.5 mile out-and-back Onondaga Nature trail is another good place to look for warblers and is an especially nice spot to observe mushrooms and to enjoy the fall foliage.
Come visit the trails and overlooks of Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge for your own seasonal adventure! The refuge is open from sunrise to sunset.
The visitor center is located at 1101 Casey Road between route 77 and Route 63. For more information, hours, trail maps, directions and upcoming events see the refuge website (www.fws.gov/refuge/iroquois), or the Facebook page, Iroquois Observations.
The Fundamental Transformation of America. The Great Reset – Whatever they want to call it.
As Barack Hussein Obama’s third term comes to a close, the Democratic Party, the Deep State and the Global Elites are on the ropes as America and the entire globe has awakened to their evil plot for one world government with no borders where they have control of speech, every means of production, what we eat, what we drive and our freedom of travel (that will be eliminated) the environment and how and where we live.
The Democrats have inserted with no primary votes from the American people – two naked communists, Harris and Waltz. Puppets that once in power will finish off the middle class in this country.
While we are now living a lot of George Orwell’s 1984, it will be full-blown implemented with the force from one of the most corrupt DOJ’s (right now) the country has ever seen. These people will explode the size of the federal government to proportions never seen before in American history.
All speech that dissents against the government or any protected class of people will result in arrest and imprisonment. The constitution will fall. Anyone telling the truth will become an enemy of the state. Isn’t that what’s going on now anyone telling the truth is drowned out by the Democrat media and big social media as a conspiracy theorist? (They are doing this right now in the UK)
The biggest obstacle to the globalists’ plans is the white Christian male. My opinion is why has Biden been so eager to keep this war going in Ukraine? Besides feeding the military industrial complex, both Russians and Ukrainians are white and predominately Christian. 600,000 Ukrainian men and millions of Russians have been killed in this war. Why do you think the great replacement of the white European male has been taking place all over the western globe?
Make no mistake the globalists, the traitorous Democratic Party want to keep power forever. The invasion of our border with these mostly military-aged men – many who have been military trained – is starting to show its ugly face with rampant migrant crime throughout or entire country. Other countries have cleaned out their prisons, mental institutions, jails and have sent their worst to our country.
Over 300,000 illegal alien children have disappeared off the radar. Sold into slavery and human child trafficking. This would make the Department of Homeland Security director one of the biggest child traffickers in the history of the world. These illegal immigrants, probably around 20 million of them, have taken resources and are put first above every need of American citizens.
What monsters would open a border to the world give them full financial support while making every policy detrimental to its own citizens? Lie to you for 4 years saying the border is closed. Lie to you about everything! This is collapsing our system, destroying our culture and destroying our country.
Can you imagine four more years of this? They want to give reparations on top of that? The country will die. By the way there is 16 tons of ammonium nitrate missing from the stock pile that no one can account for. Don’t think ( my opinion) that a government that is covering up an assassination attempt on Trump wouldn’t use that to take out our grid and kill tens of millions of people to declare martial law and stop the 2024 election.
Humanity is not a part of their Agenda 2030 goals you mean nothing to them. Three quarters of us could be wiped off the face of the earth and the quarter left would be to many for these evil people. Make no mistake that is their goal.
If you are paying attention they openly tell you that. If you vote Democrat this November 5th you are voting to put the death nail in all of western civilization. Call me crazy, that’s OK. I hope I’m so wrong. The only thing standing in the way of the Democrats and the globalists is Trump.
They fear him like Dracula fears the cross and Democrats fear God in our lives. The world is on fire but it is also more awake than it’s ever been. The common man, the farmer, most all of humanity sees and understands something is very wrong.
Obama’s fourth term will be the end of the USA. Like him or not Trump 2024 is our only hope to change this upside-down country and world.
Paul Lauricella
Lyndonville
Lauricella is chairman of the Orleans County Conservative Party
The Class of 1974 gathers for a group photo at the Archery Club on Saturday. Front row, from left: Richard Saeva, John Gavenda, Gay Demos, Wanda Riley, Kim Wright Pritt, Sandy Sanders Flugel, Willie Riley, Donna Celmer Woolston, Michele Johnson DiCureia, Sherry Lanning Wheatley. 2nd row: Helen Furmanski Miles, Mary Louise DiGerolamo, Rodney Woolston, Alan Monacelli, Laurie Tully, Helen Markle Shetler, Janet Palacios Hausner, Deb Engle Martillotta, Renee Schoonover Colonna, Sue Forder Polisoto, Sue Hamilton Ries, Sue Salchak Fetzner, Stephen DePeters. 3rd row: Tom Behage, Jim Kirby, Jim Spanton, John Borello, Dan Marek, Joel Allen, Charlie Breuilly, John Pickett, Nancy Weits Horth, Becky Allen Prophet, Linda Hickein Roberts, Tony Navarra, Jim Passarell, Ray Flugel, Peter Southcott. Not pictured, but attended: Gasper Pecorella, Margaret Coville Swan, and Cynthia Taber
Photos and information courtesy of Kim Pritt
WATERPORT – The Albion Central School Class of 1974 celebrated their 50th Class Reunion the weekend of September 9-10.
The class gathered for a Meet ‘n Greet at the Tavern on the Ridge on Friday evening and the reunion was held at the St. Mary’s Archery Club in Waterport on Saturday.
Seventy-three attended the reunion, including 41 classmates. Guests of honor of the class were four former teachers: Mr. Rick Bovenzi – Science, Mr. Mark Chamberlain – Science, Mr. Dick Contant – Business, and Mr. Bill Lattin – Art.
Sadly, the Class of ’74 has lost 32 classmates since graduation. A memorial table with an empty chair was displayed to honor their memory. “Those that touch our lives, stay in our heart forever!”
These retired teachers stopped by the reunion. From left include Mark Chamberlain, Bill Lattin, Rick Bovenzi and Dick Contant.
The Reunion Planning Team, from left, includes: Sue Salchak Fetzner, Nancy Weits Horth, Helen Markle Shetler, John Gavenda, Charlie Breuilly, Deb Engle Martillotta, Kim Wright Pritt, John Borello, Sandy Sanders Flugel, Sherry Lanning Wheatley, Becky Allen Prophet, Laurie Tully and Linda Hickein Roberts. Not pictured is Marilyn Wright Kilborn.
Two class photos were taken. One was missing three classmates and the second then had three different classmates not pictured.
Pictured in front, from left: Gay Demos and Rich Saeva.
2nd Row – John Gavenda, Sue Forder Polisoto, Kim Wright Pritt, Becky Allen Prophet, Sherry Lanning Wheatley, Renee Schoonover Colonna, Donna Celmer Woolston, Rodney Woolston, Stephen DePeters, Margaret Coville Swan and Willie Riley.
3rd Row – Sue Salchak Fetzner, Helen Furmanski Miles, Helen Markle Shetler, Mary Louise DiGerolamo, Michele Johnson DiCureia, Deb Engle Martillotta, Janet Palacios Hausner, Sandy Sanders Flugel, Wanda Riley, Linda Hickein Roberts, Tony Navarra, John Borello, Dan Marek.
4th Row – Jim Spanton, Nancy Weits Horth, Tom Behage, Charlie Breuilly, Laurie Tully, John Pickett, Joel Allen, Allen Monacelli, Gasper Pecorella, Ray Flugel, Jim Kirby, Peter Southcott
Not pictured, but attended: Gasper Pecorella, Margaret Coville Swan and Cynthia Taber.
By Mike Wertman, Sports Writer Posted 13 September 2024 at 10:34 am
Looking to keep the momentum of the come-from-behind season opening road win over Bolivar-Richburg, Holley will host new foe Newfield from Section IV in a non league 8 Man football game at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Quarterback Destin Kuyal threw for 4 touchdowns and ran for 2 more to lead Holley to the 48-30 win over Bolivar-Richburg as Vinny Golisano caught 3 of those TD aerials.
Trailing 24-16 when stormy weather halted play last Friday, the Hawks came rallying back when play resumed on Tuesday with a burst of four straight touchdowns to key the win.
Newfield will be looking to rebound from a 52-8 season opening loss to Section IV foe Groton.
By Mike Wertman, Sports Writer Posted 13 September 2024 at 10:30 am
Contributed Photos – Local players at SUNY Morrisville, from left, Leigha Walker, Iyla Lilleby and Cayla Burch.
The lineups for the SUNY Morrisville fall teams includes a trio of local student/athletes.
Holley graduate Leigha Walker, who was a key member of the Lady Hawks state semifinal team last fall, is a freshman defender on the Morrisville women’s soccer team. She has started all four of the Mustangs games to date.
The Morrisville field hockey squad includes Medina grad Iyla Lilleby, who is a freshman midfielder/forward, and Roy-Hart grad Cayla Burch, who is a freshman goalie.
Harris used to pick juries. She has great instincts.
The debate and how Trump responded was very revealing – both about Trump and why his diehard supporters did not notice while it was on that she won.
To start, Trump was not able to look over at Harris. It’s called reactive formation and is a clear sign of insecurity. He put on a well rehearsed tough guy, glowering, face to mask fear. The tell for a poker player is his looking down and scowling, not making eye contact. His followers have long missed that tell.
Patriotic Americans – conservative or liberal – do not negotiate with communist dictators who invade other countries. When specifically asked, he failed twice to support Ukraine. He favors our enemy.
By pretending he can deal with Russia (without giving up Europe, whose interests he also ignored) Trump displayed delusions of grandeur. This is the guy who writes the North Korean dictator love letters to get things done.
Followers of that type of leader are typically authoritarian personalities themselves or people attracted to leaders with charismatic appeal. That is why his followers are not protesting his putting Patriotism second.
Bragging about well attended rallies while doubling down, in the same thought, insisting Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Ohio displays senility or what is called distortion of reality. He often distorts reality and often dehumanizes people in an appeal to racists or the other categories of people he (and his followers) distort and scapegoat.
He talked of his persecution. A jury with Republicans convicted Trump under a racketeering law and he says that is persecution. What it is is a delusion of persecution. In typical cases the gang members buy into that but in Trump’s case it’s simply a sign many followers also share from some form of persecution complex.
After 14 years and 60 failed votes to repeal another President’s health care plan (only now to admit the promised replacement was an undefined concept) he clearly demonstrated he suffers from a coping mechanism called projection as a defense. It allowed him to impress people with claims he was smarter than Obama.
Now that we know it was a charade it’s clear he is not a serious man and his claims back then projection. That need to be seen as superior – to project – makes Trump an easy mark.
Trump forcefully made the case he is highly respected abroad. But he merely named one reviled dictator. It’s called deflection and he uses that a lot. See above about those attracted to a perceived strong man or a charismatic man. In this situation authoritarians will miss it too. Serious people would have addressed the issue. Who abroad respects him?
Misrepresenting that nations pay tariffs when in fact tariffs are built into the price consumers pay the company (like a sales tax) is a ploy. It plays on distrust of better educated experts or relies on how people buy into easy answers – to the detriment of their pocketbook. (Harris knows how to deal with those types who compulsively lie and misrepresent. She has seen all sorts of personality disorders in her prosecution days. )
Coming to a debate and not laying out an economic plan is either a sign of senility or another sign of delusion of grandeur.
It was also telling that Trump took time to blame his “many” bad advisors but completely ignored the underlying accusations that he does not hold our men in uniform in high esteem. That again is deflection.
Trump threatened to jail other candidates and their donors. This betrays fear and insecurity. It is called coercive control. Again, it impresses both fellow bullies and followers of charismatic leaders.
Harris advising people to go to Trump rallies was brilliant! It is called trivialization and was used to suggest that Trump is not worthy of consideration. I suspect she must be sure he will continue to say outrageous things to fill in the gaps in his often broken train of thought – thoughts tending to go back to the past perceived slights, getting even, and scapegoating.
Harris did her home work on what makes Trump tick to draw him out so adroitly. She demonstrated her impressive intelligence and showed she will take practical positions to improve our life and country.
Besides focusing on us and showing she is a formidable leader, she shrugged off the biggest bully of the past decade or two and ate his lunch.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 September 2024 at 9:43 am
Photos courtesy of Emily Cebula: (Joe Baschnagel of Lockport, left, is Pipe Major with Celtic Spirit Pipe Band, which performed outside at the Yates Community Library on Aug. 26. Mary Metz, right, of Clarence Center, is fiddler. (Right) Celtic Spirit’s unique sound and adaptability to many musical genres is due to its varied instrumentation. Sandra Lewis, right, of Somerset, is keyboardist and vocalist. She is also the assistant clerk for the Village of Lyndonville.
LYNDONVILLE – After weather forced the cancellation of a concert twice this summer by the Barker Community Band, Library Director Emily Cebula hopes the third time is the charm.
The Barker band is scheduled to perform at 6 p.m. on Monday outside the Yates Community Library. The Concert on the Lawn series started on July 2 and about 650 people have attended the nine events.
The concerts have been funded by the NYS Council on the Arts with a grant administered by Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council.
The concerts have been on the back lawn of the library, overlooking Johnson Creek.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 13 September 2024 at 9:20 am
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Gary Pask of Middleport waits for his wife Diane, who is getting information on Orleans Community Health’s first Resource Fair on Thursday afternoon.
MEDINA – The first Resource Fair sponsored by Orleans Community Health was a resounding success, according to Scott Robinson, director Marketing, Community and Outreach.
“We were slammed with people,” said Lori Condo, assistant controller, who helped register people in the front lobby. “We are so excited at the turnout.”
In addition to testing options in Imaging/Radiology and Laboratory departments, there were free services, information on billing and vendors from throughout the county providing health-related facts on their services.
The Lumps and Bumps Clinic with Dr. Devon Huff was one of the most popular features.
“The clinic was full most of the time,” Robinson said.
(Left) Vendors from service organizations in Orleans County lined the hallways of Orleans Community Health for the organization’s first Resource Fair. (Right) Kim Gray, chief nursing officer and director of Surgical Services at Medina Memorial Hospital, compares notes with surgeon Dr. Devon Huff, who held a Lumps and Bumps Clinic during the hospital’s first Resource Fair. The clinic was one of the most popular features of the afternoon.
Vendors included U Connect Care, Orleans County Mental Health, Office for the Aging, Child and Family Services, Walsh Duffield (Medicare information), Hospice of Orleans County, M-Power Insurance Agency (Medicare information) and Cornell Cooperative Extension.
“This event is pretty cool,” said Sarah Martin, a nutritionist at Cooperative Extension, who handed out recipe cards with healthy recipes.
Other vendors handed out pens, candy, hand sanitizer informational cards on which to log prescriptions.
One couple who came to check out the fair was Gary and Diane Pask of Middleport.
“We local people are blessed with a good health facility and we wanted to see what they have in case we ever need it,” Gary said.
“We’re just being aware, checking out what is available,” Diane said.
“We had been talking about doing another Resource Fair in the spring, and this one was so successful, we may do it again next fall,” Robinson said. ‘We are very happy to be helping the community.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 September 2024 at 8:19 am
ROYALTON – Two construction workers were taken to the hospital after getting hit by a car on Thursday afternoon, the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office said.
A driver of a 2013 Chrysler sedan, 59-year-old Darrin Moreland of Middleport, was westbound on State Road at 2:28 p.m. when the vehicle moved to the north road shoulder. The sedan then struck a water tanker truck where it was parked, unoccupied, on the road shoulder, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The sedan continued down the right side of the water tanker truck and then hit a construction worker, 24-year-old Zackary Brown of Newfane, who was seated on the grass next to the truck. The sedan then made contact with a pump trailer that was parked on the grass north of the truck.
A second construction worker, 23-year-old Sheldon Gardner of Little Genesee, who was standing on the trailer was knocked down onto the floorboard of the trailer. The sedan came to rest between the water tanker truck and the pump trailer, the Sheriff’s Office reported.
The driver of the sedan wasn’t injured. Brown, the construction worker who was seated in the grass, was flown by Mercy Flight to ECMC for treatment for neck and back pain.
Gardner, the other construction worker on the trailer, was taken by ambulance to ECMC for similar complaints of pain.
An investigation by the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office is continuing.
By Mike Wertman, Sports Writer Posted 12 September 2024 at 9:09 pm
A lone second half goal proved to be just enough to earn Kendall a narrow 1-0 win over host Byron-Bergen in a Genesee Region League boys soccer game this evening.
Pablo Rosario-Reyes scored the game winner for the Eagles off an assist from Jonathan Reyes.
Jonny Conte made 7 saves to earn the shutout in goal.
Kendall, which next visits Albion at 5 p.m. Saturday, improves to 2-0 in the league and 3-1 overall.
By Mike Wertman, Sports Writer Posted 12 September 2024 at 8:57 pm
Jumping out to a commanding 6-0 halftime advantage, Medina went on to defeat host Akron 8-0 in a Niagara-Orleans League boys soccer game this afternoon.
Cole Callard scored 3 goals and Tyler Kroening 2 to lead the Medina offense as Vinny Gray, Aleks Seefeldt and Cam Kenward each netted 1.
Callard also had 2 assists as Gray, Kroening, Jimmy Dieter, Luke Duffina and Caden Kingsbury each had 1.
The Mustangs improve to 2-0 in the league and 4-0 overall while Akron is 0-2 in N-O action.
Albion 5, Roy-Hart 1
Leo Bolton and David Rosario each scored 2 goals and Adrian Figueroa-Fuentes 1 to lead Albion to a 5-1 N-O win over visiting Roy-Hart.
Michael Fuller scored for Roy-Hart.
Albion is now 2-0 and Roy-Hart 0-2 in the league.
Wilson 8, Newfane 0
Wilson blanked rival Newfane 8-0 as Keegan Hermann scored 4 goals and Aidan Neumann 2.
The Lakemen are now 2-0 and the Panthers 0-2.
N-O Girls Soccer
Akron blanked host Medina 7-0 and Wilson downed rival Newfane 3-1 in N-O girls soccer action today.
BASOM – With a warm, sunny weekend ahead, consider a visit to Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge now to experience bird migration, natural abundance, and wildlife activity.
