By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 6 August 2014 at 12:00 am
Editorial:
File photo by Tom Rivers – Joe Martillotta is pictured with Sue Holmes, who recently purchased the Crooked Door from Joe and his wife Debbie. The Martillottas did extensive renovations of the site.
File photo by Sue Cook – Jeri and Lou Becker sit in front of one of the blackboards in the Erie Canal Room at the bed and breakfast they operated for eight years.
ALBION – Two entrepreneurial husband and wife teams both pulled off major projects that bettered the village of Albion and Orleans County.
In eastern end of the village Joe and Debbie Martillotta brought back a tavern at the corner of East State and Brown streets. It was a major renovation for the Martillottas, but they were resilient in their efforts to fix up a prominent building and they did it with class.
The Crooked Door Tavern has employed about 20 people, and drawn many visitors to the county, generating sales tax and likely customers for other local businesses. The Martillottas recently sold the site and it continues under the ownership of Albion native Sue Holmes.
Just across the canal, Jeri and Lou Becker also faced a daunting project: turning a former Catholic School into a bed and breakfast. The Beckers opened the Erie Canal Schoolhouse Bed and Breakfast about seven years ago. They, too, sold their business with the site soon to open as an assisted living center.
The Beckers lovingly operated the B & B, extending a warm welcome to cyclists on the canal and other visitors to the community. They were active in the community, and were especially fond of Albion’s heritage. They hosted a Santa Claus reunion in one event that was a tribute to Charles Howard, who founded a Santa Claus School in Albion.
The Martillottas and Beckers worked well as a team, referring customers to each other. Both couples deserve the community’s praise and admiration for working so hard to build successful businesses, preserving buildings that have deep roots in Albion.
If they hadn’t accepted the challenge a few years back to fix up the buildings, there might not be businesses to succeed them at the sites. The Martillottas and Beckers have a left a legacy that should continue for years to come.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 5 August 2014 at 12:00 am
Provided photos – Students from Albion, Lyndonville and Medina rehearse for an first-time elementary honors band concert that was performed last Thursday in Medina.
MEDINA – It was a first-ever concert for elementary band students last Thursday. A group of top musicians from three elementary schools got together for a concert – in the summer.
Nearly 100 first- and second-year instrumental musicians from Albion, Lyndonville and Medina rehearsed last week for four days before a Thursday concert before about 300 people at Medina.
“We wanted the kids to keep playing during the summer,” said Jeanette Sheliga of Medina, who helped coordinate the program. “It’s a way to keep them engaged.”
The students gather for a photo with teachers John Bailey of Lyndonville and Jeanette Sheliga of Medina.
Sheliga is the elementary band teacher in Medina. She and John Bailey, the band teacher in Lyndonville, spearheaded last week’s program.
Sheliga said she first pushed for the program with Wayne Burlison, the Albion band teacher. The two attended Fredonia State College together. They wanted to have the bands and teachers at the elementary schools collaborate.
“Wayne wanted to get the kids together,” Sheliga said. “The kids would become friends with kids from other districts.”
Burlison was diagnosed with colon cancer in December and died from the disease at age 36 on March 26. He was remembered during Thursday’s concert.
Sheliga said the three districts want to continue the program and could alternate schools to host the concert in the future.
“We were very pleased for our first year,” she said. “It’s something we want to keep doing.”
Students practice for their concert last week in Medina.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 5 August 2014 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
GAINES – Fairhaven Treasures recently installed three new flag poles and started work on what will be an International Peace Garden. The poles hold flags for the United States, Canada and also a yellow flag that says, “Don’t Tread On Me.”
Ray Burke and his wife Linda own the property at the southeast corner of routes 98 and 104. They celebrated the grand opening for Fairhaven Treasures on May 3-4.
They will have the second International Peace Garden in Orleans County, following Brown’s Berry Patch. The new garden by the flag poles should be in place by the end of the summer, Mr. Burke said.
ALBION – The Albion Police Department conducted “Operation Safe Crossing” today. This law enforcement operation focused on pedestrian safety while crossing streets in marked crosswalks.
An undercover police officer dressed in bright visible clothing walked in marked crosswalks. If motorists failed to yield to the officer, which is required under section 1151 of the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law, they were stopped and issued uniform traffic tickets.
Police issued 48 tickets to drivers who failed to yield during this three-hour detail. Only motorists who blatantly failed to yield were stopped and ticketed. The officer was inside a clearly marked crosswalk in the roadway crossing when the violations occurred.
The detail focused on the cross walks in the Village of Albion at the intersection of South Main Street at Park Street, and West Avenue at Hamilton Street. Both of these intersections are where pedestrians have been struck and killed by motor vehicles in the past.
The Albion Police Department has received numerous complaints from citizens regarding motorists failing to yield to pedestrians walking in crosswalks. The Police Department uses many tools, including the issuance of traffic tickets, in an attempt to make motorists aware of their obligation to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks.
The Albion Police Department is focused and dedicated to making our highways and streets safer for all who use them. We will continue to use operations similar this Operation Safe Crossing as well as other measures to make our community as safe as it can be.
The Albion Police Department was assisted in the operation by the New York State Police.
WATERPORT – Project Life is thrilled to welcome three orphans from war-torn regions of Afghanistan, arriving in Buffalo today to take part in Western New York’s War Orphan’s Rehabilitation Program.
Iqbal Satar, Mohammad Meer and Nasratullah Lal have all overcome great challenges – including recent massive technical problems with the U.S. visa system – to join orphans from around the world for the two-month program.
“We are pleased that we were able to get the Afghan orphans here, despite the enormous difficulties,” said Linda Redfield, Program Director for Project Life. “They live in a country that has been torn apart by war for decades now, so their physical and social needs are very high.”
Project Life is an all-volunteer, locally based program that brings small groups of orphans to the countryside of Western New York every summer from international war zones. The children are hosted by caring local families and benefit from daily English instruction, art therapy, physical recreation, and lots of field trips in the area.
They also receive free medical and dental care donated by local health professionals and medical facilities. At the end of the program the orphans return to their extended families in their home countries.
“Two months of rest and relaxation, with good nutrition and medical care, can literally save the lives of these children,” Redfield said. “They go home healthier, happier and much more hopeful, knowing they have friends here who care deeply about them.”
Project Life is funded by donations from private citizens and benefits from the generous support of local faith organizations, service clubs and small businesses.
Senator Chuck Schumer and Congressman Chris Collins – along with the great staff of the American embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan – have helped Project Life hugely in making it possible for Afghan war orphans to travel to the United States for this life-saving program.
EAST SHELBY – It is believed this photo was taken around 1910 in East Shelby. It shows the Hagerman children.
The buggy is being pulled by one horse that is wearing a fly net. This helped keep horse flies from landing on the horse and biting. As the horse moved, the fly net jiggled.
No doubt the photographer who took the picture thought it was very cute with one child holding the reins.
Photos by Sue Cook – Olde Dogge Inn owner Jennifer Stilwell sits out front of the business with Frank the pug.
By Sue Cook, staff reporter
GAINES – Since 2000, the Olde Dogge Inn has been a staple in the community as one of the only stand-alone pet stores in the county. Jennifer Stilwell opened the business on Route 104 in Gaines.
The store carries a wide variety of pet products to help keep pets healthy and happy. Olde Dogge offers an assortment of services to assist owners with pet care and boarding. Some small animals are also for sale including several species of fish.
The business will be featuring its pet festival on Saturday, which Stilwell plans to make an annual event. Stilwell is excited to see how far the business has come in its 14 years.
Stilwell holds William. Some of the birds that Olde Dogge Inn sells are behind.
Q: Tell me a little about yourself.
A: I have four kids. They’re 15 to 20. I live right here in Gaines about 2 miles from the kennel. I grew up in Albion. I’ve been here since 3rd grade. I graduated from Cornell University with an Animal Science degree and started dog grooming out of college. That’s kind of what led me to this.
Q: Did you always plan to open a pet shop?
A: When I was 15, I worked for Starrview Kennels (in Barre). I remember saying, “This is what I want to do with my life.” They looked at me and said, “You’re crazy. It’s a 365-day-a-year job.” I said, “I don’t care. This is what I want to do.” So since I was 15, I wanted to open a kennel.
Q: Was this business originally yours?
A: I opened this business in 2000. Right out of college, I bought a kennel in Rochester called Lakewind Kennels. I still own it, although I’m in the process of selling it. In 2000, when I started having children I wanted to be closer to home when I worked. This was just an old rundown building. It hadn’t been opened in probably 15 to 20 years. So we renovated it and opened The Olde Dogge Inn.
Q: What sort of services do you offer here?
A: We have boarding for dogs, cats, small animals and birds. We also offer grooming and training, then we have the store on top of that.
One of the back rooms contains the aquariums, as well as fish care products.
Q: What are some of the types of products you offer here?
A: We have premium foods, some small animals like birds, all kinds of pet health products, plus lots and lots of dog and cat toys. There are items like leashes, harnesses, even some outfits and we have plenty of treats! We have tropical fish and all sorts of aquarium products, too. We have 23 tanks of aquarium fish and I think a lot of people aren’t aware of that.
Q: Do certain breeds present a challenge for the groomers?
A: The huge hairy ones are time consuming, but not especially difficult. You’d be surprised because sometimes it’s the smallest dogs that are difficult. It might take three people to calm down an upset little poodle. For grooming, if it’s a difficult dog, we will assign two groomers, or even three, and help to distract the dog or help to hold it. We try to make it as easy as we can on both the pet and the groomer.
Groomer Lindsay Moore is giving a bath to a happy little customer.
Q: How do you handle some of the naughty or scared animals for boarding?
A: For boarding, our runs are set up so that we don’t have to touch the animal if it doesn’t want to be touched. We would prefer to give it attention, but there are some dogs that just do not want us touching them. They can get outside on their own, we can feed them and clean their runs without touching them.
A lot of people have a fear about boarding their dogs and think it’s terrible, but the dogs usually settle in within a couple hours of coming here and the people worry the whole time they’re on vacation. I’d like people to know the dogs are almost always settled and calm. We’ll send videos to people or pictures on cell phones to show them how well the dogs are doing. A woman called her dog from England and we held the phone up to the dog’s ear so she could talk to the dog. A lot of people worry about the whole boarding thing, but the dogs do great.
We provide lots of blankets so it’s nice and cozy. We also have an “uptown area” of upscale runs where they can watch TV. They’re very quiet runs segregated from the rest of the dogs. They have raised brass beds. They’re a kind of fancy area.
We also the puppy room, which is for small dogs, not necessarily just puppies. It’s for the small dogs who would be nervous about the big dogs barking in the regular runs. They can play together with other small dogs and there’s a big yard they can all go out in. Senior dogs could go in there, too.
We try to make it as comfortable as possible for the dogs they are. So nervous dogs or older dogs can be separated.
This is just one of the many kennel areas at Olde Dogge Inn.
Q: How many employees do you have here?
A: I have 10 employees. The sales clerks are also kennel attendants. Anybody that runs the desk has the job of making sure animals are okay in the back. We have groomers that also are kennel attendants when they are not performing grooming duties. Everybody that works here knows how to do just about everything, so if there’s a question, people can come in and ask almost anyone.
Q: What about the trainer?
A: We have a trainer that comes from Harmony Dog Training and has years and years of experience. She does it on her own and rents space when she comes here.
Q: How did you choose and hire your groomers?
A: Right now in New York state there’s no certification or licensing requirements. All of the groomers here have been trained personally by me. They started out interning by bathing, grooming and brushing and slowly worked their way up to clipping and learning the styles. All of them have learned this from me. Most of them have been here since day one. So we’ve been open almost 15 years and three out of four of them have been here since day one.
Q: Who are the store pets?
A: We have Edward the white cat who is pretty well known to customers. He was a stray that we brought in. We also have Carlisle, the black and white cat, who was left on our doorstep. He was left on Christmas Day about six years ago. He and Edward just fell in love immediately so we kept him. We have Bob the pitbull. He’s just a big doof who’s very sweet. We have Ruby, a chow mix. We also have Present, a pitbull corgi mix. All of these dogs are rescues. I also bring Frank, William and Josephine with me to work every day and then they go home with me. Frank is a pug, William is a Chinese crested and Josephine is a Boston terrier.
Q: On Valentine’s Day, Edward was pink on his ears and tail! How did he end up like that?
A: We tell Edward that he has to pay rent to live here. He does our grooming advertisement and on holidays we use our pet dyes on him. He’s been lots of colors like green, purple and pink. He’s been red, white and blue for the Fourth of July, too.
The pink lasted a long time. You can’t wash it out, so we wait for it to grow out. We kept saying we’d pick a new color for Easter, but he was still pink so we left it.
Stilwell and Josephine show off one of the walls of dog toys in the store.
Q: What sorts of events does Olde Dogge have throughout the year?
A: We did a free toenail trimming clinic in January. We usually do holiday photos, too, around Christmas time. We’re going to do them again this year with an old-fashioned vintage Santa and vintage costumes.
Q: You have the pet festival coming up on Saturday, Aug. 9. What will be happening there?
A: It’s the second time we’ve had the pet festival and we want to make it an annual event. We’re doing old-fashioned dog photos during that. My son is a photographer and he’ll be doing those. Cindy the Pet Psychic is coming. The Orleans County K-9 Unit will be here doing demos with their dog. The 4-H kids from Orleans County Heelers will be doing agility, obedience and flyball demonstrations and they’ll be selling some concessions. There’s going to be pet costume and talent contests.
From 1 to 2 p.m. there will be a power hour sale! There’s also going to be a $5 nail trim clinic. Rescue groups will be there with adoptable pets. We’ll have food companies with info and free samples. We’re also going to have $5 pet ID tags, too. There’s going to be lots of stuff going on throughout the day and the festival runs from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Petpalooza Magazine’s Petmobile will even be there!
Q: So I thought the psychic sounded like kind of a cool thing. How did you get in contact with her and what are her readings like?
A: We had a pet psychic here our first year of the pet festival. A friend had recommended her to come. She had done a reading on my English bulldog. She said that we were going to have a litter of puppies coming up and that Annabelle wanted to make sure we kept one of her babies. Shortly after that, we did have a litter. The psychic had said it would be five puppies and we had five puppies. We kept one of the babies for Annabelle and they were best buddies. I was at a Petpalooza event in Rochester and Cindy the Pet Psychic was there and she did some readings for some of my employees. They said they were dead on. We had her come to our Christmas party and she did readings for all of us. She was really really accurate. She just seems to tell you what your dog is thinking, so we wanted her here for this festival.
Q: So what are future plans for Olde Dogge Inn?
A: We work alongside PAWS animal shelter adopting cats out for them. We’ve adopted 12 or 13 cats out for them. We’d like to continue that. We’d also like to continue our free toenail clinic every six months. For people who can’t really afford it, we don’t want their dogs suffering. We’ve talked a little about expanding. This building is huge and we thought we’d never run out of space, but now we actually are running out. Maybe down the road we’ll talk about it more. We want to focus more on community-based events that are helping dogs out and keeping them healthy at reasonable prices. I’ve found a lot of people in this area can’t afford a lot of the services, so we try to make costs reasonable and give them options.
To learn more about Olde Dogge Inn or the pet festival, click here.
POINT BREEZE – A 24-pound Chinook still leads the Orleans County Fishing Derby, but there are new leaders in the brown trout and salmon divisions.Clifford Stout of Northeast, Md., leads the derby with 24-pound, 1-ounce Chinook. In other categories, Heather Saeva of Albion now leads the Salmon Division with a 23-pound, 15-ounce Chinook. Destiny Bickel of Burt leads with an 18-pound, 11-ounce brown trout.
In other divisions, Mike Schaeffer of Sligo, Pa., has the biggest rainbow trout with a 14-pound, 1-ounce fish and April Johnson of Rochester is in first place with a 16-pound, 4-ounce lake trout.
The grand prize is $4,000 for the heaviest fish. The Albion Rotary Club will give away about $8,800 in prizes with the derby, which continues until Aug. 17.
ALBION – The Orleans County Courthouse is closed until Wednesday so the historic site can be rid of fleas.
The State Supreme, County and Surrogate Courts will remain closed Tuesday, with Family Court shifting to the Albion Village Hall, 35-37 East Bank St., The Daily News is reporting.
Remediation work started today after an infestation was discovered throughout the courthouse, The Daily News reported.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 4 August 2014 at 12:00 am
Photo by Tom Rivers – Carolyn Ricker, left, and Debbie Grimm have been working hard on Albion’s “Sip and Stroll Through History,” a wine-tasting event on Saturday from 3 to 7 p.m. A VIP reception begins at 2 p.m. at Hoag Library.
ALBION – The Albion Merchants Association hopes wine and heritage will bring people to several Main Street and downtown stops this Saturday for the first “Sip and Stroll Through History.”
There will be about a dozen stops for people to try taste wine from 11 different wineries. The wine-tasting event begins at Hoag Library and includes write-ups on the history of each location and as well as profiles of the current operators.
“We decided to add history because everyone is interested in that,” said Debbie Grimm, coordinator of the event and a vendor at the Hazy Jade Gift Shop. “We want to showcase our businesses.”
Tickets for the wine-tasting are $15 with a VIP pass for $22. The Merchants have been working on more events to promote the business district with help from the village.
That includes a new Thursday evening concert series, as well as a fresh brochure listing the amenities in the downtown as well as on routes 31 and 98.
The poster for the event includes images of historic Albion buildings.
The Merchants Association has seen the success of the wine-tasting events in other communities, including the one in Medina that sells out with 750 tickets in February. (Medina has added a “Sweets in Summer” event this Saturday.)
“You can go at your own pace,” Carolyn Ricker, president of the Merchants Association and owner of Bindings Bookstore, said about the wine tastings. “It’s a nice event to do with a friend.”
The wine-tasting will include a souvenir glass, two farms selling produce, a photo booth and also is a chance to see some of the recent street-scape improvements, including 10 benches painted in heritage themes.
Ricker said the downtown has a cluster of businesses with available storefronts for more entrepreneurs.
“If you want to attract more businesses you have to support the ones that you have,” Ricker said. “That makes more people want to come here.”
For more information about Sip and Stroll, call Bindings Bookstore at 283-4498. The following businesses are selling tickets: Bindings, Hazy Jade, Xpress Fitness and Tanning and Fischer’s News Room. Tickets are also available on-line by clicking here.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 4 August 2014 at 12:00 am
MEDINA – The accident Friday morning that closed a section of Maple Ridge Road for several hours left a Shelby firefighter with serious injuries.
John L. Miller, 36, is an active member of the Shelby Volunteer Fire Company. In 2012, he led all firefighters in Orleans County by taking 10 training classes and accumulating 176 hours of training.
On Friday morning, just before 8 a.m., Miller was on West Avenue when he allegedly pulled in front of a dump truck on Maple Ridge Road, Medina police said. Miller was heading south in a 2000 Chevy Suburban.
He pulled in front of a dump truck driven by Stephen Spencer of Oak Orchard Concrete. The dump truck was empty and Spencer was returning for another load of sand, Medina police said.
Miller was flown by Mercy Flight helicopter to Erie County Medical Center, where he is being treated for a broken right leg and other injuries.
He has been charged with failure to yield. Spencer was not injured in the accident and declined medical attention at the scene.
ALBION – Printed information on this photo indicates it was taken on June 5, 1908, when the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Temple was dedicated in Albion.
A grand arch made of bunting was erected over Main Street to welcome everyone. The symbol for the Odd Fellows – the three links of chain for friendship, love and truth – is prominently displayed.
A speakers’ stand in the middle of our picture is draped in flags. The temple rooms were located on the second floor with three store fronts at the street level.
The one to the right was an early move theater known as Bijou Dream. Next to it was a restaurant called The Iroquois. Looking up Main Street to West State, we note that it was a dirt street.
Provided photos – “Satan’s Garden” was written by Kit Lyman and has received a positive response from her hometown of Albion.
Kit Lyman’s debut novel gets good reviews
By Sue Cook, staff reporter
ALBION – Kit Lyman is coming home to Albion this week to lead a writing workshop and also sign copies of her debut novel, a self-published psychological thriller “Satan’s Garden.”
Lyman will be returning to Albion from Texas to visit the community that has helped make her a success. She has sold about 1,100 copies of her book and earned some strong reviews.
“It’s been the Top Rated Kidnapping Thriller on Amazon for the past three months now, and I’ve also received top ratings from renowned reviewers, such as Amazon Top 500 Reviewers, IndieReader, and Readers’ Favorite,” Lyman said. “I’m currently a finalist for two categories in Readers’ Favorite’s 2014 Book Awards Contest, and the winners will be announced in September.”
The Huffington Post also took an interest in Lyman’s novel. Nina Sankovitch, Huffington Post reviewer and author of two best-selling books, was approached by Lyman’s sister Laura Sidari. Laura convinced Nina to review the book on her Huffington Post blog.
In July, Lyman traveled to Chicago for a book talk at City Lit Books, an independent bookstore. Albion grad Tara Garcia Mathewson approached City Lit’s events coordinator about hosting Lyman. Two months after that, Lyman was welcomed as the featured event.
“It was a very surreal experience,” said Lyman. “I owe so much to the readers and friends who speak up about the book and vouch for it. Pursuing a full-blown book tour is challenging as a self-published author, so events tend to evolve on their own and come about when there is public interest.”
Kit Lyman
On Monday, Lyman will be at the Hoag Library for a writers’ workshop event, beginning at 9 a.m. Della Morales, the Albion High School Media Specialist, had originally asked Lyman to speak to high school students. As the community began to hear about the event on the Authors at Albion Facebook page, interest grew to the point that the event was opened to the public.
“I’m thrilled about the event,” Lyman said about the program at the library. “I think high school is such a defining time, and I feel privileged to have this opportunity. A good portion of my book focused on high school pressures and the coming-of-age struggles that we all go through. I would love to talk at other high schools in the future, and I think Albion is the perfect place to start.”
Lyman plans to begin the event as a book discussion and Q&A focusing on what she has learned in the last five years. The workshop portion will revolve around the style, substance and structure of story.
“I have found that there are basic foundations and building blocks to all types of storytelling,” she said. “Inspiration is largely about unveiling those secrets and finding ways to use that knowledge to your advantage.”
Lyman will also be at Bindings Bookstore for a book-signing at 3 p.m. on Saturday. That event will be at 28 West Bank St. and is timed to coincide with the Sip and Stroll wine-tasting in Albion. She plans to have a more informal meet-and-greet during that time. She is excited to talk individually to readers and answer more specific questions about her book.
“Having that kind of opportunity is so important because it allows me to learn more about what is working and what isn’t,” she said. “It also gives me a chance to address any unanswered questions people may have about the book.”
Bindings Bookstore will have copies available during the Hoag workshop or the book can be requested for the Sip and Stroll event by calling the bookstore at (585) 283-4498.
