By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The Albion Merchants Association held its annual holiday window decorating contest and Pratt Works was declared the winner on Saturday after judges looked over the decorated storefronts in the downtown and on Main Street.
Pratt Works will receive a plaque for first place. These photos were all taken this evening.
The Hazy Jade Gift Shop came in second place.
Bloom’s Flower Shop tied for third place.
Dance Reflections by Miss Heather also came in third in a tie with Bloom’s.
Several other merchants decorated for the season with lighted displays in their storefronts. This photo shows Bindings Bookstore.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – FFA students in Albion delivered more than 30,000 pounds of food to Community Action this morning. The top photo shows Vivian Rivers, FFA president, handing a box of food to Emilie Barleben.
The FFA has been organizing, collecting and delivering the food to Community Action since 2010. The 30,656 pounds delivered today set a new record for the FFA, topping the 27,000 pounds from last year.
Jared Hollinger, an FFA member, hands a heavy box of produce to Adam Krenning, FFA advisor and Albion agriculture teacher. Kelsee Soule, FFA vice president, is also on the truck.
Students boxed up the produce on Thursday and Friday, and then stacked it on the tractor trailer this morning.
Emilie Barleben and Natalie DiCureia work together carrying a big box of squash.
Garrett Derisley and Katie Mann carry boxes of squash to a second trailer full of food.
The FFA members gathered for a quick photo after loading the tractor trailer. They hold a sign saying “Thank You” to the farms and businesses that donated for the food drive.
There were 22 farms and businesses that donated to the effort, including Call Farms, Costanzo Bakery, Barry Flansburg, Kast Farms, Kirby Farms, Kludt Brothers, Kreher’s Egg Farm, L. Brooke Farms, Müller Yogurt, Nesbitt Fruit Farm, Orchard Dale Fruit Farm, Orleans County Farm Bureau, Panek Farms, Partyka Farms, Pawlak’s Save-A-Lot, Rich Products, Dale Root, Root Brothers, Starowitz Farms, Torrey Farms, Triple G Farms, and CY Farms.
Angela English, a member of the Lord’s House in Waterport, carries a sack of cabbages for the food pantry at the church.
Ten food pantries and three food kitchens received food this morning.
When the trucks pulled up with the food, many of the food pantry volunteers clapped. Annette Finch has worked 38 years at Community Action. She started crying when she thanked the FFA kids for their work on the food drive. FFA students started calling farms about two months ago, trying to line up donations.
“This is a real tribute to young people and we don’t hear enough about the good that young people do,” Finch said.
Russ Peters, pastor of the Alabama Full Gospel Church, carries a bag of potatoes for the church’s food pantry.
Andy Ebbs is the maintenance supervisor for Community Action. He said the FFA food drive is a big help in stocking the food pantry shelves. He also said the Boy Scout food drive is important for Community Action.
Ebbs marvelled about all of the produce, which will be used through the winter.
“It’s simply amazing, especially seeing these girls throw their backs into carrying heavy bags of cabbage,” Ebbs said. “This is a real life-saver for us.”
FFA member Ellen Narburgh carries a sack full of cabbage.
When the Albion FFA first organized a food drive for Community Action during the holidays in 2010, the student organization was able to secure 3,000 pounds in donations. That jumped to 9,000 pounds in 2011, 17,000 the following year and 19,000 in December 2013. Last year it was 27,000 pounds. The FFA set a goal for 30,000 this year and surpassed that mark.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 12 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Volume 1, Issue 37 supplement
(Editor’s Note: This week’s column for Old-Time Orleans is a supplemental issue connected to last week’s piece on the St. Mary’s Athletic Club baseball team.)
On occasion, my weekly column flushes out a piece of related local history. New photographs, documents, records, and even artifacts have surfaced thanks to the willingness of the Orleans Hub and Batavia Daily News to publish the column every week.
I greatly appreciate the feedback, both positive and negative, regarding the content of each piece and hope that the community continues to provide these responses.
Following the publication of my most recent article, I received several photographs from Clarendon Town Historian Melissa Ierlan of several baseball uniforms. The pieces were loaned to her by Larry and Brenda Swanger, who graciously allowed the uniforms to be cleaned and displayed in Clarendon.
Without a doubt, the uniforms are the exact style worn by the players from last week’s photograph so I thought it would be fitting to not only share images of these amazing artifacts, but provide some additional insight into the formation of the St. Mary’s Athletic Club in Albion.
In 1912 a local Polish Roman Catholic Union branch was established in Albion thanks to the diligent work of Frank Turski of Buffalo and Rev. Charles Mioduszewski of St. Mary’s Assumption Parish in Albion. It was on Sunday, Dec. 1, 1912 that a delegation of PRCU members from Buffalo including Turski, Antoni Kazmierczak, Frank Andrezjewski, and Jacob Graczyk arrived in Albion to install the organization’s newest branch in Western New York.
Established at Chicago in 1873 by Rev. Teodor Gieryk and Rev. Wincenty Barczynski, the PRCU was active in developing social programs aimed at supporting widows, orphans, and the needy. Nearly a decade later the organization developed an insurance program, similar to the Knights of Columbus, and led the way in promoting gender equality in fraternal organizations. Many branches, including Albion’s Branch 654, promoted local sporting events and sponsored teams throughout major cities such as Detroit, Chicago, and Buffalo.
We can see that one uniform is marked St. Mary’s P.R.C.U. A.C., representing the St. Mary’s PRCU Athletic Club, the precursor to the officially established St. Mary’s Athletic Club now located on Moore Street in Albion.
Both shirts include a patch on the left sleeve, a gold circular patch with crossed flags, a heart, and shield. The patch, the crest of the PRCU, contains a Polish flag and United States flag crossed with the Sacred Heart and Polish Falcon. The crest shows the assimilation into American society that many Poles sought while retaining their religious and cultural heritage. The St. Mary’s Athletic Club officially established itself in 1924 as a men’s social club, strange considering the height of prohibition at the time.
The organization existed as an extension of the local Polish Catholic Church until the 1940s when the Athletic Club cut ties with the Parish. Expressing distaste for the debauchery and poor behavior of those drinking at the club, some parishioners voiced a concern that many men would consume alcohol at the St. Mary’s Club, stagger uptown, and draw unwanted and unwarranted attention to the church.
The organization continues to support baseball programs locally and until recently, provided death benefits for “regular” members who could claim Polish lineage.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 December 2015 at 12:00 am
File photos by Tom Rivers – John Dady, part of the Dady Brothers with his brother Joe, performed along the Erie Canal in Albion on July 12, kicking off the concert series on Thursdays. The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council approved funding for the concerts in 2016.
BATAVIA – The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council has announced $52,283 in funding for several cultural programs in Orleans and Genesee counties for 2015.
The funding in state decentralization grants is up from the $41,600 approved in 2015.
GO ART! also approved $5,000 total for two Ripple Grants to support local artists who wish to involve the community in their creative process.
One of those $2,500 goes to Bill McDonald of Batavia for the Travelling Towpath Troubadors, a concert series along the Erie Canal. The Troubadors performed several canal concerts from a boat this past summer. The group will be back for more music in 2016.
Members of the “Old Hippies” play as the Travelling Towpath Troubadors in a concert on July 12 in Medina’s Canal Basin. The group includes Vinny Pastore, Jim Catino, Kay McMahon and Bill McDonald.
The decentralization grants approved for projects in Orleans County include:
Lake Plains Players for its fall musical (to be announced), $1,819.73;
Lake Plains Players summer musical (to be announced), $638;
Lake Plains Players, Summer Youth Theatre Camp, $1,324.73;
Lee-Whedon Memorial Library in Medina, “Finally Fridays!” – 15th annual series of free music programs during winter, $1,969.73;
Lyndonville Lions Club for Concert Fun in Lyndonville, $2,794.73;
Mental Health Association for pottery and print making, $835;
Orleans County Cornell Cooperative Extension, 4-H Fair Flower Show, $585;
Orleans Renaissance Group, Inc. for an evening with Irish Tenor, Ronan Tynan, $3,619.73;
Julie Patel portrays Olive Ostrovsky, one of six contestants in the The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which was perfomed last summer at Leonard Oakes Estate Winery by the Lake Plains Players. Patel is singing, “My Friend, the Dictionary.”
Tale for Three Counties Council for three-county community reading effort “A Tale for Three Counties,” $2,094.73;
Village of Albion, Concerts on the Canal, $2,509.73;
World Life Institute in Waterport for “Voices from the Earth,” $4,875;
Yates Community Library for “More than Just Books,” $2,969.73
GO ART! welcomes artists and organizations to apply for funding again next year. Workshops for the 2017 grant cycle will be in the summer of 2016 at select local libraries and at the GO ART! building in Batavia.
Megan Brenner-Zwara plays Mary and Joseph Kusmierczak is George Bailey in the Lake Plains Players production of the It’s A Wonderful Life, which was performed last month. The Players were approved for funding in 2016 for three different theater projects.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
BARRE – Santa Claus gets ready for a big hug today from a local Girl Scout. Santa is making the rounds today and on Sunday in Barre, visiting local children. He has traded his sleigh for a Barre fire truck as he makes his rounds around town.
Ben Flansburg, a Barre firefighter, is in back at right.
Girl Scouts in Barre and Albion were having a Christmas party at the Barre fire hall when Santa stopped by around 10:30 a.m. Barre firefighter Bert Mathes is in back at left.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 11 December 2015 at 12:00 am
ALBION – The Village Board has approved a 20-year agreement for solar power at the water and sewer plants, a deal that is expected to reduce the electricity costs for the village by at least $2 million over two decades.
The Village Board accepted SolarCity’s proposal to install and own the solar energy systems that would be mounted on panels at the sewer plant on Zig-Zag Road and the water plant on the shores on Lake Ontario on Wilson Road in Carlton.
SolarCity will sell the power at a reduced cost to the village. SolarCity also will be eligible for federal tax incentives for installing and operating the system. The company also has most of the upfront costs for installing the system.
“It’s really kind of ground-breaking for us to be where we are with the project,” said Dean London, the Albion village mayor.
The village currently pays 12 cents per kilowatt-hour. SolarCity will sell electricity to the village for about half of what Albion is currently paying.
The agreement was approved by the Village Board on Wednesday, pending final review of the document by village attorney John Gavenda.
SolarCity will construct the solar energy system next year using two parcels of land by the sewer plant and one parcel by the water plant.
“It’s a new thing for us,” London said. “There is a potential for huge savings.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 11 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – Some of the members on the toy drive effort for Community Action of Orleans & Genesee include, from left: Kris Hartwig, administrative assistant at S.B. Whistler and Sons (Phinney Tool and Die); Annette Finch, community services director for Community Action; Marsha Rivers, executive director of the Orleans County United Way; Michelle Figueroa, case manager for emergency services at Community Action; and Megan Piccirilli, administrative assistant for Community Action. Some other committee members include Carolyn Wagner, human resource manager for BMP in Medina; and Wendy Hinkley. The toys in this picture were donated by Gary the Happy Pirate in Rochester.
ALBION – Businesses and residents accepted the challenge to play Santa Claus to nearly 400 children in the Albion area.
The community members bought toys for 377 children in a toy challenge. Donors were given gift tags for children, listing their first name, age and three desired gifts. The residents, business owners and employees then want out and shopped.
It was the first time Community Action of Orleans & Genesee tried the gift tags where donors knew the name of the child they were shopping for and their desired gifts.
“It became more personal,” said Kris Hartwig, an administrative assistant at S.B. Whistler and Sons in Medina, a regular participant in the Community Action toy drive. “You know you’re getting them something they like.”
There were 53 donors who gave gifts to 377 children and 54 adults. Donors also gave $2,500 to the effort and Community Action and volunteers will use the money for gifts and food for the families.
“I like the feeling of helping the family,” Hartwig said. “Everything that is given stays in our community.”
Each family will get a holiday basket with food, and much of that will come Saturday morning when the Albion FFA chapter delivers food collected from local farmers. Some of that bounty will be shared with food pantries around the county.
Michelle Figueroa works as case manager for emergency services for Community Action. She has helped organize all the toys and food. She is impressed by the community’s generosity.
“I think it’s awesome,” Figueroa said. “It’s showing the love. They have that holiday spirit.”
In addition to the effort in the Albion area, Community Action has organized a toy and holiday basket drive in Holley and Kendall for about 125 children and their families. The Lyndonville Lions are collecting toys for about 125 children. The Medina Area Association of Churches also runs a toy drive for children in the Medina area.
Altogether, the organizations will direct toys to 800 to 1,000 children in Orleans County, said Annette Finch, community services director for Community Action.
Donald Stirk could be sentenced to 20 years in prison
BUFFALO – U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Donald Stirk, 36, of Albion pleaded guilty to importing αPVP into the United States before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.
The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.
Stirk was arrested in April for importing synthetic drugs. Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank T. Pimentel, who is handling the case, stated that on March 5, 2015, Customs and Border Protection officers in Memphis, Tenn. conducted a routine inspection of a package mailed from China and addressed to the defendant “Donald Starks” in Albion.
The contents of the package were listed as “Betaine HCL,” a dietary supplement. Further inspection revealed the package actually contained Alpha-PVP, a Schedule I controlled substance, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
Law enforcement officers on March 13 determined there was another package from China addressed to “Donald Starks” at the Albion Post Office. Further inspection revealed the package contained Alpha-PVP, according to Hochul’s office.
As the investigation continued, law enforcement officers continued to identify more packages from China intended for Stirk. On April 15, 2015, officers performed a controlled delivery of several of the packages to Stirk at his Albion residence on Route 31 and then executed a search warrant at the residence revealing an additional quantity of αPVP.
According to Hochul’s office, the defendant purchased the chemicals to help him with his mental illness. Stirk also sold the chemicals to another individual, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
The plea by Stirk is the result of an investigation by Special Agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 23, 2016 at 11 a.m. before Judge Wolford.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 11 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Here is another photo of the breath-taking sunset on Sunday. This picture shows a silhouette of some of the churches at the Courthouse Square including, from left: Pullman Memorial Universalist Church, St. Joseph’s Catholic Church (Holy Family Parish) and First Baptist Church.
The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory until 7 p.m. today for Orleans County and much of Western New York. There will be southwest winds from 15 to 30 miles per hour with gusts up to 50 miles per hour.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 11 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – Downtown Albion is decorated with banners and wreaths for the holiday season. Many of the merchants also have lighted displays in their storefront windows.
ALBION – Albion business owners will host their fourth annual “Hometown Holiday” on Saturday. The event has grown with new activities including a “Where’s Rudolph” challenge.
“This is our annual community program where we encourage people to shop local,” said Carolyn Ricker, president of Albion Merchants Association and owner of Bindings Bookstore. “There will be a lot of activities for kids and families to do together.”
There will be a Rudolph at 19 sites and children who can find at least five will receive a goody bag. Each participating merchant will have a passport for all of the reindeer locations.
Merchants will host other activities, including ornament making, letter writing to Santa, story time, coloring contest, and cookies with Mrs. Claus. The events run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with Santa at the Cobble-Ridge Co-op at 14462 Ridge Rd. from 1 to 3 p.m.
The event also includes a Christmas Gift Fair with several vendors at the Pullman Memorial Church from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information on the day, visit one of the businesses or check the Merchant’s Association Facebook page by clicking here.
A slender Santa who resembles Jim Knight helps promote the Christmas Gift Fair last Saturday. Vendors will be back tomorrow at the church.
