By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 December 2014 at 12:00 am
6.8% is down from 8.5% a year earlier
New York State’s unemployment rate fell to 5.9 percent in November, the lowest state-wide rate since September 2008, according to the state Department of Labor.
In Orleans County, the rate was at 6.8 percent in November. That was up from the 6.4 percent in October, but down from the 8.5 percent rate in November 2013.
Orleans has the highest rate among the four GLOW counties. Genesee was at 5.3 percent in November, followed by Livingston at 5.6 percent and Wyoming at 6.1 percent.
Tompkins County has the lowest rate in state at 3.8 percent while Bronx County is the highest at 9.5 percent. The 6.8 percent rate in Orleans was lower than 10 of the state’s 62 counties.
For more information on the unemployment report, visit labor.ny.gov.
MURRAY – In this picture from June 1940 we see the Daily-Vacation Bible School, which was held in Brockville.
It was conducted by Mrs. Carl Bergerson, standing at far left. She was assisted by several Albion pastors. Front row: Jean Jackson, Robert Monacelli, Maralee Juliano, Susan Lauretani, Betty Ann D’Amico, Laura Jane Biaselli and Harold Christopher.
Second row: Nickolas Monacelli, Louis Biaselli, Louise Bower, Florence Nenni, Florence Biaselli and William Buell, Jr.
Third row: Joseph Valentine, Daniel Fiorito, Vincent Biaselli, William Biaselli, Arlene Fiarito, Jack Piedmont, Vernie Nenni and Wilma Vandetta.
Back row: Michael Christopher, E. Clark, Marjorie Moore, Glenn Brown, Vernice Buell and Jane Wolfrom.
SHELBY – An Alden man is in stable condition at a Buffalo hospital after crashing his car this morning in the Town of Shelby.
The incident occurred shortly before 7 a.m. in the 5200 block of South Gravel Road (Route 63), just south of Fletcher Chapel Road. Jonathon R. Hull, 23, was operating a 1998 Volkswagen sedan and travelling north on Route 63, when he lost control of the vehicle.
The car ran off the east side of the roadway and struck a drainage ditch, causing it to become airborne. After grounding, the car rolled several times before coming to rest on its roof.
Hull, sole occupant, was removed from the car by Shelby firefighters and transported to Erie County Medical Center by Medina Fire Department ambulance.
The incident was investigated by Deputy K.J. Colonna, assisted by Chief Deputy T.L. Drennan. While the investigation continues, it does not appear that either alcohol or drugs were contributing factors.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 December 2014 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Jim Andre has been with the all-volunteer veterans’ van service since it started 16 years ago. He offered to drive veterans to medical appointments. A Korean War veteran, Andre of Kent continues to give his time with the service coordinated by the Orleans Joint Veterans Council.
Andre, right in photo, was one of three volunteers recognized during a luncheon on Tuesday at the Joint Veterans Council. The group also recognized Owen Toale, left, for his fund-raising efforts that helped the Council purchase two lower-mileage vans.
Gloria Kuhn, center, is volunteer coordinator for the program. She goes to the office on Route 31 at the Veterans Service Agency and connects drivers with veterans who need rides to appointments.
There are about 25 volunteers, including drivers and people in the office. The service has five vans. In 2013, they transported 1,040 veterans to medical appointments at no cost to the veterans.
This year, drivers transported 1,627 veterans to appointments (with a week to go), the most since the service started, said Paul Fulcomer, the county’s Veterans Service Agency director.
“We are the only county with a volunteer-run program,” Fulcomer told the group. “It’s veterans helping veterans.”
Kuhn said the service tends to have a shortage of drivers during the winter, when many volunteers head to Florida, Arizona and other out-of-state locations.
“My Christmas wish is more help during the winter,” she told the group.
Fulcomer and Kuhn said many veterans still don’t know about the program. In a marketing effort, she passed out hats to all the volunteers that say “Orleans County Joint Veterans Council.” The hats include a flag.
For more information on the program, call (585) 589-2856.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 December 2014 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The asking price for a former mansion that served as a community library for a more than a century: less than $100,000.
The “For Sale” sign is in the front yard of the former Swan Library at 4 North Main St. The 8,118-square-foot building is also listed by the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors.
Snell Realtors of Albion was hired by the Swan Library Association to list the building, which has been idle since June 2012 when the community library moved to the new Hoag Library site.
The Library Association has received an undisclosed offer for the building, which is in a commercial district that is included on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Library Association is eager to sell the site, which has been costing about $25,000 annually for utilities, insurance and maintenance.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 December 2014 at 12:00 am
Village officials push forward several projects
File photo by Tom Rivers – The former Starlite Dry Cleaners has been vacant on Main Street in Medina since a fire damaged the building a decade ago. Environmental concerns have been a holdup in the site’s redevelopment.
Editorial
MEDINA – One of the things I feared with the dissolution talk and impending vote in Medina is the Village Board would use it as an excuse to stand down and not push forward any projects.
Thankfully, the Village Board isn’t sitting around twiddling its thumbs, waiting for the results of the Jan. 20 vote. Whether the village government is dissolved or not on Jan. 20, important projects need to tackled and the current board is engaged in many issues.
It is in talks with the Genesee County Economic Development Center about providing sewer services to the STAMP site in the Town of Alabama. The village’s sewer plant is vastly underutilized and the STAMP users could be a major revenue windfall for the sewer plant, whether it’s owned by the village in the future or another government entity.
(If dissolution is approved, the village government would continue anyway for two years while some or all of its services could transition to the towns of Shelby or Ridgeway, or non-for-profit local development corporations.)
The talks with the Genesee County economic development officials are important. The STAMP site is about 1 mile south of the Orleans County border.
The 1,250-acre site will accommodate nanotechnology companies including semiconductor 450mm chip fab, flat panel display, solar manufacturing, and advanced manufacturing. The site, in full build-out, is expected to employ 10,000 people with many making $100,000 or more. Another 50,000 jobs will be created in the region to support the companies at STAMP.
The companies at the site will need sewer, and Medina has several millions gallons of excess capacity. Besides working on a deal with GCEDC, the village plans to spend $1.2 million upgrading equipment and adding more capacity for the sewer plant.
Boxwood Cemetery has been nominated for the National Register of Historic Places.
Medina’s downtown has enjoyed a rebirth in the past decade with many new businesses joining Main Street mainstays. The downtown is drawing notice as a destination for visitors. But there are some empty storefronts, including two problem spots at 331-333 North Main St.
Environmental concerns have prevented redevelopment at the sites, Mayor Andrew Meier said. The village has paid for environmental audits of the sites and is trying secure state funding to help with remediating the properties, which would include a partial takedown of the former Starlite Cleaners, a building that was damaged in a fire a decade ago.
These sites are in the Town of Ridgeway, Orleans County and Medina Central School District, as well as the village. The Village Board deserves credit for committing money and effort on these sites. They’ve largely been acting alone, trying to address two spots that are blemishes on the downtown.
Village Historian Todd Bensleyalso deserves praise for working with the State Parks Department to have Boxwood Cemetery nominated for the state and national registers of historic places. The designation would give the cemetery long overdue lofty status and could bring in resources for projects in the historic burial grounds on Route 63, north of the village.
The 20-acre cemetery is considered a distinctive example of several cemetery movements. It was originally established in the Rural Cemetery manner in 1850. The cemetery grew in size, and later sections were added in the Lawn Park and Memorial Park styles.
Village officials see the cemetery as a great resource in the community, and one worthy of state and national recognition.
Some of the village efforts in recent months should pay dividends for years to come, whether dissolution passes or fails.
MEDINA – In this tin-type photo from the 1890s, we see James H. Gray and E. Searles from Medina. Gray is on the left with ice tongs holding a small cake of natural ice.
These two men may have worked for an ice company and are shown delivering their product, which could have easily been harvested from Oak Orchard Creek in colder weather.
ALBION – In this color postcard published around 60 years ago we see Charles Howard as Santa by his sleigh in the stable at Christmas Park.
The message printed on the obverse side is as follows: “Santa’s bag and sleigh all packed with wonderful presents for good girls and boys as he starts out on his annual trip. Which package is which, only he knows, but try and guess which one is yours at Christmas Park.”
Editor’s Note: Howard started a Santa Claus School in Albion at the corner of Phipps Road and Route 31. Howard started the school after noticing many Santas didn’t have training, and didn’t always interact with children well or meet a standard for dress. He established decorum for Santas and his Santa Claus suits became popular.
The school, now in Midland, Mich., still bears Howard’s name. He ran it until his death in 1966.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 December 2014 at 12:00 am
United Methodists expect to leave historic site in 2015
Photos by Tom Rivers – Tiffany Crawford lights the candles in the sanctuary for the Christmas Eve service at the Albion First United Methodist Church.
About 100 people attended the Christmas Eve service inside a church built in 1860.
ALBION – It was an emotional service last night for Christmas Eve at the Albion First United Methodist Church. In addition to reflecting on the birth of Jesus Christ, the congregation faced the reality of what it believes will be the group’s final Christmas Eve service in their historic church building.
“This is the first of many lasts we have to endure,” said church member Kim Pritt, who sang with the church choir last night. “Every year we walk out of here on Christmas Eve full of joy and emotion. But tonight it won’t be a pleasant emotion.”
The building needs about $1 million in roof repairs. The congregation doesn’t have the money. It has tried for grants but hasn’t found help for the project.
For more than two years it has rented tall wooden pillars to support the roof. That isn’t a long-term solution and those pillars are costing the church about $15,000 a year.
The congregation expects to leave the site in 2015. The board will meet with denomination leaders on Jan. 12 to discuss if the church will be sold at an auction or put on the market, or if it will be torn down.
Marie Follet leads the Joyful Good Shepherd Ringers during last night’s service.
The bell ringers are perched up high in a loft by the sanctuary.
The church is one of seven church buildings that are part of the Courthouse Square, a district that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1914, the United Methodist church reoriented the sanctuary. When that happened, some members didn’t like that lower beams that helped support the roof truss system were more visible. The church removed the lower beams. A century later, the roof is in danger of collapse from a truss system that needs to be totally rebuilt.
The Rev. Jack Laskowski leads the Christmas Eve service last night.
The congregation has tried to make the best of the wooden pillars in the sanctuary, decorating them for the holiday season.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 December 2014 at 11:55 pm
Photo by Cheryl Wertman – It may not be a white Christmas, but after a cloudy day, there was a gorgeous sunset before tonight’s high winds barreled through the area.
Fierce winds have knocked down several trees tonight in Orleans County.
Orleans County dispatch reported that trees are down on Marshall Rad in Yates, Brown Road in Gaines, and West Shelby, Fletcher Chapel and Harrison roads in Shelby.
The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Orleans, Genesee and Monroe counties until 11:30 p.m. with winds expected to top 60 miles per hour.
An Orleans County dispatcher said the damage doesn’t appear serious and National Grid crews are expected on scene soon.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 December 2014 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
MEDINA Two sisters have been collecting bottles since the summer, with a big push on Dec. 6 at a local redemption center. The effort resulted in a $278.50 donation to Community Partners for its wellness effort through Medina Memorial Hospital.
Paige Smith, 12, and her sister Gabby, 10, handed over a bag of change and dollar bills on Tuesday to Cindy Perry, director of health education, wellness and outreach for Orleans Community Health/Medina Memorial. In the top photo, Paige, left, is pictured with Perry and Gabby.
The sisters teamed with Shawn and Anna Callard, owner of Route 104 Redemption, for the “Cans 4 Cancer” drive on Dec. 6. The girls wanted to help battle cancer after their grandmother and grandfather both fought the disease.
Perry said the donation will go towards paying for mammograms and other health screenings.
Photo by Tom Rivers – The clock on Main Street in Albion stands outside the former Citizens National Bank at 121 North Main.
It’s going to be a windy Christmas. The National Weather Service has issued a high winds warning for Orleans and several other WNY counties beginning at 8 p.m. today and ending at 4 p.m. on Thursday.
There will be southwest winds from 30 to 40 miles per hour with gusts up to 65 mph, the Weather Service said.
“The greatest risk for damaging winds will be from late this evening through early Christmas morning,” according to the Weather Service.
The strong winds could take down some trees and power lines, resulting in scattered power outages. Holiday decorations could also be damaged.
The warning was issued for Orleans and the following counties: Niagara, Monroe, Genesee, Wyoming, Chautauqua, northern Erie and southern Erie.
It won’t be a white Christmas. Today’s temperature is forecast for a high of 58, followed by a high of 40 on Christmas, with temperatures peaking at 45 on Friday, 46 on Saturday and 33 on Sunday.
By Nola Goodrich-Kresse, Public Health Educator for Orleans County Health Department
It is holiday time and if you look at TV schedules, you will see a lot of classic holiday shows “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” might come to mind when thinking about how to celebrate the holidays.
If you are not familiar with the story, a mean-hearted Grinch tries to steal Christmas from the sweet, generous residents of Whoville. So what does a Grinch have to do with health? Let’s take a look.
The Grinch did not like that the Whoville community sang and enjoyed one another’s company because he was all alone on top of a mountain. If you are having trouble with being alone, consider inviting family or friends over for a visit. It does not have to be anything fancymaybe a dish to pass and some board games, taking time to enjoy each other’s company.
When the Grinch and his trusty dog Max made plans to stop Christmas, they decided to take everything they thought made the holiday fun. For many, the best part about holiday time is not getting, but giving and seeing the joy of the recipient.
When shopping for gifts, think about the age, likes and needs for those you are gifting. Gifts that are homemade can be cherished for years and be gentle on your budget. Always make sure you check the age guidance for children’s toys for safety sake.
If buying bikes, scooter, roller blades, make sure you remember safety equipment such as helmets and pads. The best way not to be a Grinch after the holiday season is to not over spendset a budget and stick to it. Consider sponsoring a family or child and provide food and gifts to someone who may not have as much as you do.
As the Grinch slithered through the homes, he took all the food including the Who-hash. When hosting meals at your home during the holidays, consider simple meals and/or ask your guests to share their favorite holiday foods.
If you are trying to maintain your weight, have plenty of fresh veggies and drink water throughout the day to have a full feeling. It is OK to sample treats, just remember to limit how much you have.
The last thing the Grinch stole from the Who’s were their decorations. When decorating, remember to follow the lighting directions so you do not overload outlets. Consider putting your lights on timers and never leave them on when you are not at home or while sleeping.
If you have a real tree, make sure it is well watered and if the needles start falling, do not turn the tree lights on as the tree will become a fire hazard. Make sure your smoke detector and carbon monoxide detectors are working properly. Also remember your pets. Decorations and chocolate treats can make them sick if they eat them.
Later in the morning after the Grinch and Max made their way back to the mountain with all of Whoville’s gifts, food and decorations, he hears the Whos singing joyfully celebrating the day. Realizing he did not stop Christmas, the Grinch returns everything to Whoville and receives a gift in returnthe gift of forgiveness and friendship.
Forgiving someone actually makes you feel better as it takes away the burden of bitterness and unforgivenesseven if you feel you were right, reaching out the hand of forgiveness will give you peace.
Spending time with friends and family does not have to be stressful. Set time limits if you feel you need to be around someone you would rather not be around. Choose wisely who you want to spend time with, some feel the need to add extra stress wherever they go.
Only you can decide whom you want to share your holidays with. When traveling to visit others, plan for the weather, drive wise, put the cell phone away so you are not distracted and never drive after drinking alcohol or when you are too drowsy.
May the hearts of all the Grinch’s you know grow three times the size this holiday season! From all of us to all of you Merry Christmas!
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 December 2014 at 12:00 am
ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge James Punch set bail for at least $100,000 for two people in jail on drug charges.
Bail was set at $100,000 for Vickie L. Hughes, 49, of 71 West Ave., Apt. 45 in Brockport. She was arrested on Dec. 3 and charged with two counts of criminal sale and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, 2 counts of CSCS in the fourth degree and four counts of CPCS in the fifth degree.
She was arraigned by Albion Town Justice Gary Moore on Dec. 3 and remanded to Orleans County Jail on no bail, due to a previous criminal history.
Judge Punch set bail at $200,000 for a Brockport man who was arrested on Friday and charged with five counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree.
Jesus M. Vargas, 35, of 18 North Main St., Apt. 111, is likely to be charged with additional drug crimes, the Orleans County Major Felony Crime Task Force reported.
Vargas was arraigned on Friday in the Town of Murray Court by the Judge Gary Passarell. Vargas was committed to Orleans County Jail without bail due to his previous criminal history.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 December 2014 at 12:00 am
Roger Fisher is selling his business to Mark Farone
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – After 48 years of being on call 24 hours a day, Roger Fisher (right) is eager to retire. He has eight more days and then he will pass his business assets on to Mark Farone.
The two worked together for 13 years at Barclay and Fowler in Brockport. Then that business was bought by Griffith Energy. Fisher started his own business, Roger Fisher Heating and Air Conditioning, about 20 years ago. Farone followed not long after, venturing out on his own with Farone Heating and Cooling.
In 2002, Farone suffered a broken back in a car accident. He was laid up for nearly a year. Fisher handled many of Farone’s customers, and didn’t take them as his own.
That gesture allowed Farone to return to work and his business.
“He covered my calls for me,” Farone said today. “Without that I probably would have lost my business.”
Fisher found it difficult to go on vacation once he was in business for himself. But Farone, when he returned to work, urged Fisher to take a break. In recent years, Fisher has been able to take off five or six weeks a year, with Farone and his staff of two technicians handling Fisher’s customers.
Fisher, 73, relished the getaways, the chance to ride his snowmobiler and not be jostled by late-night service calls.
He is selling his inventory to Farone and turning over his list of 1,200 customers. He said they will be in good hands with Farone.
“He’s done a real good job over the years,” Fisher said. “He’s local and he’s young enough to do it 24-7.”
Farone lives in Barre. He has two employees, James Pinson and Ed Snyder. Farone will officially take over Fisher’s business on Jan. 1.
Fisher said he is looking forward to that day, and getting on his snowmobile.
“I’m going to be 74, but when I’m on the snowmobile, I’m 42,” he said.
