4 candidates for coroner on ballot for 3 positions on Tuesday

Pictured from left include Dr. Julie Woodworth, Kevin Dann, Rocco Sidari and Scott Schmidt.

Registered Republicans go to the polls on Tuesday in a primary featuring four candidates for three county coroner positions.

Two of the candidates are incumbents – Scott Schmidt and Rocco Sidari. The other two – Dr. Julie Woodworth and Kevin Dann – are seeking to become a new coroner.

Woodworth, Dann and Sidari all have the Republican Party endorsement. Schmidt, the county’s chief coroner, submitted petitions signed by registered Republicans and forced a primary.

Charlie Smith, a long-time coroner from Ridgeway, isn’t seeking re-election. He has endorsed Woodworth to succeed him. The two are co-workers as registered nurses at Medina Memorial Hospital.

Julie Woodworth works per diem as Medina Memorial, picking up more shifts during the summer when she isn’t teaching nursing full-time at SUNY Niagara (formerly called Niagara County Community College). She works in Medina Memorial’s surgery department as supervisor and in the emergency room.

Woodworth, 55, of Lyndonville has been recognized as a distinguished professor at SUNY Niagara. She is the only one in the college’s history to receive the SUNY system’s “Distinguished Teaching Professorship.”

She continues to work at Orleans Community Health in the surgery department, as supervisor and in the emergency room.

Woodworth, who has a doctorate degree in nursing, has taught at SUNY Niagara for 22 years. She has been a registered nurse for 34 years, including 24 years at Medina Memorial.

She said Charlie Smith suggested to her two years ago she consider becoming a coroner. She researched the psotiion, and even took the initial training class to be a coroner.

“I feel like it’s a calling,” she said about working part-time as a coroner. “It’s a public service and I can help those families.”

She said her extensive medical knowledge would be an asset in determining the cause and manner of death.

“As nurses we work with the highest integrity,” she said. “I can bring that and compassion. I think I can explain that well to family members and help them through the process of death of a loved one.”

Kevin Dann, 41, of Holley has 25 years of experience in the fire service, including as a past fire chief in Holley. He is currently the assistant fire chief for the Murray Fire District and works full-time as a firefighter/EMT in the Town of Greece.

He also works part-time as a public safety dispatcher for the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office, as a state fire instructor and an EMT.

“I know with my life and work experience, along with the close working relationship with the law enforcement and fire agencies in Orleans County, I would be an asset to the county as a part of the coroner team,” he said in a letter to the editor to the Orleans Hub.

He said his field experience as a firefighter and an EMT has prepared him to expect the unknown and overcome the challenges that come with the passing of a loved one.

“Over my years of service, I have found compassion and understanding for the challenges our community members face when they are looking for help during their darkest moments,” he said.

Rocco Sidari of Albion has been a coroner for nearly 10 years. He has been part of the volunteer fire service for almost 40 years, and served five years as fire chief in Albion.

Sidari, 52, works full-time as a general mechanic at the Orleans Correctional Facility in Albion. He also has been a youth football coach the past 10 years.

He said he feels like he provides comfort to families, as well as determining the cause of why a loved one has died.

“I’ve met a lot of people,” he said about the coroner’s job and many are friends he has met through his involvement in the community. “It’s always nice to have a friendly face in a difficult time.”

Scott Schmidt, 60, of Medina has been a county coroner for the past 30 years, and has been the chief coroner for over 20 years. He also is president of a state-wide association of coroners, the NYS Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners. He has led that group the past 16 years.

Schmidt works as a funeral director at Mitchell Family Cremations and Funerals. He said he has worked with thousands of families in his career during the most tragic time in their lives.

Schmidt also is a member of the US Department of Health and Human Services National Disaster Medical System Federal Mortuary Team, and spent 20 days at Ground Zero in New York City following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. He helped recover and identify human remains. That experience caused him to author the Orleans County Mass Fatality Response Plan.

Schmidt also has been an Albion firefighters and past president of the Albion Fire Department. He also currently leads Orleans Recovery, a community organization dedicated to reducing the stigma of addiction and providing Narcan training and Narcan kits along with Fentanyl test strips to the community.

“My experience and training is extensive, my commitment to my community, the county, the state and our country is unquestioned,” he said in a letter to the editor to the Orleans Hub.

Polls are open in each town in the county from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday.