By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 2 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Photo by Kristina Gabalski – Holley Elementary School Assistant Principal Ashley John Grillo, Elementary Library Media Specialist Julie Bader and Principal Karri Schiavone are pictured last month when Bader was presented with a Soaring to New Heights award.
In October, Holley elementary students decorated pumpkins to look like book characters, including this one that resembles Junie B. Jones.
HOLLEY – Julie Bader, Holley Elementary School Library Media Specialist, was presented with the Soaring to New Heights Award during a recent Holley Board of Education meeting.
Karri Schiavone, Holley Elementary School principal, and Ashley John Grillo, Holley Elementary assistant principal, nominated Bader for the award recognizing her efforts to bring the Elementary School Library to life.
“There is always something great inside and outside the library,” Schiavone told Board members on Dec. 21. She noted the library “is always full of kids.”
Schiavone described Bader as “so clever and so creative. There is always something fun happening in the library.”
In their nomination, Schiavone and Grillo praised Bader for collaborating with teachers to incorporate themes and skills being taught in the classroom.
“She designs activities during the day and after school to involve children in the ‘fun’ of reading,” the nomination stated. “She helped design and is teaching integrated technology classes to all of the third through sixth graders. Julie has really taken the library from a place to simply exchange books to a child friendly, adventure filled literacy rich media center.”
School Board President Brenda Swanger said she also has been impressed with the activity surrounding the Elementary Library.
“I walk by and then I turn around and go back,” she said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers – Brown’s Berry Patch announced on March 3 it would close its retail operation, a popular site along Route 18 in Carlton for about three decades.
When the Brown family announced on March 3 that it would close the retail operation of Brown’s Berry Patch, the story on Orleans Hub went viral throughout Western New York.
The site for about 30 years was a very popular agri-tourism site, providing fun for families throughout the region. The Brown family opted to retire from the retail side of the business, while continuing to grow apples and other fruit. The family has been farming in Carlton since 1804.
The closing of Brown’s was by far the most-viewed story on Orleans Hub in 2015 with 25,322 “clicks,” about 15,000 more than the No. 2 story.
Bob Brown stands next his wife Deborah during the dedication of a Peace Garden on Oct. 5, 2013. Brown’s ancestors helped fight the British during the War of 1812. Paula Savage, the Peace Garden Foundation president, is at right.
Here are the other most-viewed stories from 1 through 10.
Many of the police officers who attended the funeral on Sept. 19 for Deputy Erin Fuller included a black band over their badges in honor of Fuller. This photo shows the badge worn by Deputy Josh Narburgh.
Photo by JC Photography (Jesse Colmenero) – The Bellan family is pictured in the fall 2014 at Mount Albion Cemetery. The group includes, front row, from left: EmmaLee and Karina; Second row: MiKayla, Richie, Da’Ron, Austin and Elizabeth; Back row: Briana, Porter, William, Kyson, Bryce, Kim and Brian. Mr. Bellan and his wife have 12 children, including eight who are adopted.
Photo by Tom Rivers – Emil Smith is pictured doing a blacksmith demonstration in August 2012 with his friend George Borelli. Smith hosted the event at his property on Route 63, just south of the Village of Medina. Smith, 54, was driving a truck in Wyoming County when he was killed in an accident.
A 67-year-old man drowned on Aug. 6 after jumping off the Kenyonville Road bridge in Carlton. Several fire departments and law enforcement agencies responded to the recovery effort. The man was from Cincinnati and was in town with friends for a charter fishing trip.
Two people were seriously injured in a one-car accident on July 19 on Horan Road in Ridgeway. The car left the road and the back end crashed into a tree. The driver of the vehicle was pinned and it took firefighters and Lyons Collision more than an hour to free the driver, who was then taken by Medina ambulance to a Mercy Flight landing zone.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Holley man inspired many in campaign for sheriff
Photos by Tom Rivers – Randy Bower is joined by many members of the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department when he was sworn in as new sheriff on Dec. 30.
Randy Bower in early 2015 met with many Republican Party leaders, trying to make his case to be the next sheriff of the county. When it was time to endorse a candidate on May 7, Bower would get about 40 percent of the vote from the Orleans County Republican Committee.
The majority chose Tom Drennan as the party candidate. Drennan worked as chief deputy for nine years. He certainly had the resume to succeed Scott Hess, who would retire on Dec. 31.
Bower, on May 4, secured the Conservative Party endorsement ahead the GOP committe vote. He was guaranteed a spot on the November ballot, but to win, he would likely need the Republican Party line in November. To do that, Bower would have to force a Republican primary against Drennan and win.
Bower, 50, may have seemed like an unlikely sheriff candidate. He didn’t have experience as a police officer. He worked 29 years as public safety dispatcher.
He also has been confined to a wheelchair after a serious car accident at age 18.
Bower has been active in the community, even coaching the Holley varsity girls basketball team when his daughter Jessica played. The team went from winless to the playoffs with Bower earning coach of the year honors.
If people thought Bower would quietly go away after the Republican Party endorsement, they were wrong. The following week he announced Chris Bourke, a long-time lieutenant and K9 handler, would be his undersheriff.
“Randy is an organizer,” Bourke said during a May 13 interview at Bower’s home in Holley. “I have no doubt he can do the job.”
On June 6, Holley held its annual June Fest parade. There were a few political candidates in the parade, usually the candidate and maybe one or two supporters passing out candy.
Bower had about 50 supporters. They were wearing red “Bower for Sheriff” T-shirts and many of the people in the parade were deputies and employees for the Sheriff’s Department. Drennan didn’t march in the Holley parade.
Randy Bower, left, had a large contingent of supporters wearing red during the Holley parade, helping him in his campaign for Orleans County sheriff. Holley is Bower’s hometown.
Bower’s supporters on the parade routes would grow at Lyndonville’s Fourth of July Parade and the Kendall Firemen’s Carnival. Drennan also appeared with many supporters at those parades.
By June, Bower hand more than 500 signatures of registered Republicans to force a Primary on Sept. 10 versus Drennan.
Bower had his own display and outside booth at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds and met with residents daily. While many candidates seem to get worn down in a campaign, Bower maintained an enthusiasm throughout.
He met frequently with his supporters and assigned team captains to get out the vote throughout the county. He built an organization outside the leadership of the Republican Party, which has long dominated local politics.
On Primary Day, Bower would hold a razor-thin 27-vote lead, 1,588 to 1,561, over Drennan. When the absentee ballots were counted on Sept. 15, Bower won 1,671 to 1,650.
Randy Bower is all smiles outside the Board of Elections office on Sept. 15 when he realizes he has won the Republican line for Orleans County sheriff in the Nov. 3 election. Chris Bourke, left, campaigned with Bower as Bower’s choice for undersheriff.
Drennan also wouldn’t go away quietly. He believed he had the experience in law enforcement and the proven leadership skills to lead the department. He also had the Reform and Independence party lines.
Drennan showed plenty of fortitude and commitment in his campaign.
A third candidate also would emerge for the November election. Don Organisciak, a retired Medina police investigator, had the backing of the Democratic Party.
Orleans County residents were witnessing one of the most competitive and grueling local elections in recent history. On Nov. 3, the election felt like a tossup.
Bower won by a comfortable margin. He topped Drennan, 3,951 votes to 3,507, with Organisciak getting 847.
“I think the people are ready for a change,” Bower said after the results came in Nov. 3. “Now we have to go to work for the people of Orleans County.”
Bower was busy after the election meeting with law enforcement leaders in the county and region. He attended a state-wide conference for sheriffs in Albany.
He ran with several goals for the Sheriff’s Department, including bringing mental health and drug addiction services to inmates in the county jail. “These are our people,” Bower has said.
During the Albany conference, he heard from sheriffs who have success helping inmates with mental health problems. Last month, the Orleans County Legislature announced its support for a similar effort in the county jail after hearing a presentation from Bower; Scott Wilson, the jail superintendent; and Mark O’Brien, the director of mental health in Orleans County.
Mark O’Brien (right), director of the Orleans County Mental Health Department, presents the Stepping Up Initiative to Orleans County legislators on Dec. 16. O’Brien is joined by Scott Wilson (center), the jail superintendent, and Randy Bower.
Bower has shown he can bring people together and inspire them to a higher purpose. During a time of voter apathy and public disenchantment with politicians, he inspired an army of “Randy Red” in his campaign for sheriff.
Bower said it wasn’t just about winning an election. During his swearing-in on Dec. 30, about 125 people filled the main courtroom at the Orleans County Courthouse.
“Now we go to work for the people of Orleans County,” Bower again told the group.
Judge James Punch has sworn in many elected officials the past two decades and he said he didn’t recall such a crowd for one of the ceremonial events.
He told the group at Bower’s swearing-in that the new sheriff is an inspiration for the community, bringing an upbeat attitude and strong desire to serve the public.
“He’s an unstoppable force,” Punch said.
Punch recalled when he was in his late 20s and he met Bower when he was 19, soon after his serious accident. Bower, even then, exuded optimism and gave people a boost, the judge said.
Bower said he lives a blessed life with his wife Robin and their two grown children: Jessica and Jacob. In addition to working as a dispatcher, he has been a member of the Sheriff’s Department’s Off-Road Patrol from 1992-1998, riding all-terrain vehicles to help locate missing persons, stolen property and respond to other situations.
“This wheelchair is just a perception,” said during a campaign speech. “I can do anything I want.”
As we start 2016 today, it’s time to take a look back of “some” of my favorite pictures from 2015. Note: I always consider all of my photos to be my favorites as I post them daily for you to see and it becomes very hard each year to just narrow it down to the 15 I am highlighting today. I hope you enjoy the photos that have been published in the “Hub” this year and I hope I can give you plenty more in 2016.
My No. 1 favorite is this shot of Roy-Hart’s Aaron Metz laying full out to catch a fly ball against Medina. Those types of pictures are a special shot and while I have taken similar pictures, this one stands out as the best one ever.
No. 2 is this shot of Jalin Cooper of Medina going up to block Justin Heschke of Roy-Hart. The amazing part of this shot is that Tyler Ames (22) of Medina is 6’7″ and standing flat footed, Heschke is 6’2″ and jumping about a foot off the floor and Jalin is 6’2″ and is at least two feet higher that the other two to block the shot.
No. 3 is Andy Xapsos of Roy-Hart pitching against Medina during a snow storm at Vets Park. It seemed like Spring was never going to come this year and this shot reinforced that notion as the snow kept coming down during this game in April.
No. 4 is Albion’s Emily Blanchard showing either how hard her head is or how soft the soccer ball was that day. Most people don’t realize how hard a soccer ball is until they try to kick one or how much force is generated when it is headed by a player.
No. 5 is Tania Arellano of Kendall driving to the basket. Tania loved driving to the basket and her facial expressions showed her determination to get there at any way possible.
No. 6 is Kendall’s Mookie Nauden looking to shoot but having the Alexander defender climbing on his back instead.
No. 7 is Emily Kams of Medina showing her concentration to set the volleyball by sticking her tongue out. Emily led Medina in sets and earned All league and All WNY honors.
No. 8 is Kendall’s Jenna Jacobs making a leaping save in the sectionals. Jenna’s goal against average was phenomenal and saves like this one kept her team in the game when the score was low.
No. 9 is Ashley Bocach of Albion diving to make a serve return and showing the agony of putting knees to the floor and hoping the ball goes where it’s supposed to. Albion won it’s third straight N-O volleyball title and as the Libero she was a big part in getting the serve receptions to her teammates to set.
No. 10 is Medina’s Jake Cotter with the fingertip catch. Jake led the Mustangs in rushing and scoring this year and this catch accounted for one of his many touchdowns.
No. 11 is Dylan Bader of Albion jumping over a defender to try to get the the soccer ball. Soccer lends itself to plays like these as defenders try to slide under the offensive player trying to get to the ball.
No. 12 is Medina’s Brett Pecararo laying out trying to shoot towards the goal in lacrosse.
No. 13 is Nick Passarell and Zach Day of Holley doing a wishbone maneuver on the Notre Dame running back in an attempt to tackle him.
No. 14 is Albion’s Morgan Seielstad swimming in the Freestyle. This swim move is the hardest to get a photo of due to how the swimmer’s arm goes over his head. Sometimes you just get lucky.
Last but not least, No. 15 is the Metro 10 Race that was held in Albion pitting Rochester runners against their counterparts from Buffalo. This shot was taken along the canal facing the Densmore Road bridge as a group heads towards the finish line at the 8 mile mark.
Provided photo – Bill Owens, Praxair Inc.’s senior engineer consultant, met with students at the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center in Medina.
Press Release, Orleans-Niagara BOCES
MEDINA – Praxair Senior Engineer Consultant Bill Owens recently stopped in to the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center to talk to students about workplace safety and show how cryogenics will affect them in their chosen career field.
Mr. Owens, who has been at Praxair for 31 years, said that that his company, which is the largest industrial gases company in North and South America, has a no-tolerance policy for employees who are lax with their safety. Anyone texting while working and/or driving a car will be automatically terminated from employment.
“We call it DWI, Driving While Intexticated,” he says. “If you are injured you can’t play a sport and it is the same idea with our workplace. Look at the statistics for text-related driving accidents. In 1.3 million crashes, 6,000 deaths can be directly linked to cellphone use. We use the acronym of BVSAFE which stands for Be Very Safe.”
Mr. Owen encouraged students to question what their teachers tell them.
“You have the most powerful computer in the world at your fingertips and that is your brain,” he said. “Challenge what you hear and do research to gain better understanding.”
He talked to the students about the advantages of going into the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields. “I guarantee you if you get a STEM education, you’ll have no problem getting a job.”
And then the cryogenics demonstration began. First he told the students about all the uses for the cryogenic process, which is a science domain where super cold materials, like liquid nitrogen and oxygen can change matter.
“It is used in the healthcare field, computers, food and beverages, special effects, aviation and rockets, gasoline, welding, metals, auto production, electronics and firearms,” Owens said.
He then gave a demonstration of how reactive oxygen is by mixing grease and pure oxygen together and hitting them with a spring loaded hammer. The explosion brought cheers and amazement to the audience. He also showed how the cold temperatures can drastically change the properties of certain materials.
“It was a fantastic demonstration,” says Science teacher Peter Jablonski. “He definitely encouraged students to look at the world critically and to make sure they understand the real truth of what they do before they do it. He was also very effective in discussing how important workplace safety is. The students loved it.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 January 2016 at 12:00 am
A barn and snowy field are pictured Tuesday on Countyhouse Road near the Albion-Ridgeway town border.
The Weather Channel issued a severe weather alert at 8:12 p.m., warning that a band of lake effect snow will impact southwestern Orleans, northwestern Genesee, northeastern Erie and southern Niagara counties tonight.
“A band of heavy lake effect snow producing snow fall rates of up to 3 inches per hour was located along a line from Kenmore to Amherst, and extending through Clarence Center and Wolcottsville,” the Weather Channel said.
“This band of heavy lake effect snow will continue to slowly drift north this evening.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 31 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Frank Carter
ALBION – An Albion man allegedly poured a flammable liquid on a victim who was sleeping in a bed this morning and then ignited the liquid, causing burns to victim’s hands and feet, Albion Police Chief Roland Nenni said.
Frank G. Carter II, 50, of 431 West State St., Lot 17 has been charged with attempted arson in the second degree (B Felony), assault in the second degree (D Felony), and reckless endangerment of property (B Misdemeanor). He was arraigned in Albion Town Court and has been jailed on $25,000 bail.
Albion police officers were dispatched at 5:05 a.m. to 431 West State St., Lot 17.
Officers arrived on scene and encountered Carter in the street holding a knife, Nenni said.
Carter was taken into custody. Albion police officers units then located the victim, an adult male, who resides with Carter. The victim had burns to his hands and feet and was transported to Medina Memorial Hospital by COVA ambulance with non-life threatening injuries.
Carter is to return to Town Court on Jan. 6 at 9 a.m.
ALBANY – Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced that three increases in the minimum wage in New York will take effect today. Workers in the fast food industry, tipped positions, and all other industries will each receive a higher wage beginning Dec. 31 as the governor continues to push for a $15 statewide minimum wage.
“No one who works full time should ever be condemned to a life of poverty,” said Governor Cuomo. “As we prepare to ring in the New Year, we are making a fundamental difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of workers across this state. I am proud to mark these milestones in the fight for fair pay for workers in fast food, tipped industries, and others – but too many home health care workers, airport workers and so many others continue to be left behind. That’s why we will continue fighting for a $15 minimum wage so that all workers can afford a decent life and a decent opportunity in New York State.”
The following minimum wage increases will take effect today:
Overall Minimum Wage: In the third of three annual changes secured by Cuomo in 2013, New York State’s minimum wage will be $9.00 per hour.
Tipped Hospitality Workers: All tipped workers in the hospitality industry (food service workers, service employees and service employees in resort hotels) will be moved to the same category and rate for tipped cash wage. Effective Dec. 31, 2015, the tipped cash wage amounts will increase from their current rates of $4.90, $5.00 and $5.65 to $7.50 per hour.
Fast Food Workers in fast food chains: In New York City, the minimum wage for workers in fast food chains (30 or more locations nationally) will be increased to $10.50 on December 31, 2015. For fast food chain workers in the rest of the state, the minimum wage will be increased to $9.75.
Minimum Wage Enforcement
Failure to comply with increased minimum wages can result in fines, charges and civil or even criminal punishment.
The Department of Labor, which enforces the minimum wage law, has fact sheets, frequently asked questions and additional resources for all employers and employees on its website: www.labor.ny.gov/minimumwage.
“The Department of Labor works with employees to help them understand their rights and also works with businesses to ensure they know their responsibilities,” said Acting State Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon. “I strongly encourage anyone with questions to use our Department’s resources to make sure they’re being paid the right wage, or paying workers properly and won’t be penalized.”
The Department will also provide one-on-one support and a streamlined reporting process to help businesses understand and come into compliance with the new rate.
A business in need of assistance or a worker with questions or who is looking to file a complaint should call: (888) 469-7365.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 31 December 2015 at 12:00 am
With several contentious issues, race for sheriff tops the list
Photos by Tom Rivers – Randy Bower answers a question during a candidate forum on Oct. 20. Bower ran for sheriff against Don Organisciak, center, and Tom Drennan, left. Bower emerged the victor in an upset after Drennan was endorsed by the Republican Party and Organisciak had the backing of the Democratic Party.
There was no shortage of news in Orleans County in 2015. The news was often dominated by three contentious issues.
In January, Medina village residents voted whether or not to dissolve the village. That topic was a big story in 2014. On Jan. 20 it finally went to a vote and it was defeated, 949-527. The village government will stay intact. The issue seemed to fade from the spotlight after the vote.
Two other issues spurned significant citizen involvement throughout the year: the race for a new county sheriff and the proposal for a large-scale wind turbine project in Somerset and Yates.
The wind turbine plan has been met largely with opposition. A citizens’ group, Save Ontario Shores, formed and ran candidates for the Yates Town Board. Two of those candidates, including Jim Simon for town supervisor, were elected in November.
Orleans County generally has quiet elections with most candidates at the county level typically running unopposed. This year three candidates vied to replace Scott Hess, the retiring sheriff. The race was contentious and Randy Bower, a public safety dispatcher the past 30 years, emerged as the winner.
Here are Orleans Hub’s picks for the top 10 stories for 2015 in Orleans County:
1. Sheriff race stirs passions in community
Randy Bower is out in front of his group of supporters on July 4 during the parade at Lyndonville. Bower attended several parades with a big following on supporters on the parade routes.
Scott Hess announced in January he wasn’t seeking re-election as sheriff and would end a 32-year career in law enforcement, including 12 years as sheriff.
Tom Drennan, the chief deputy of the Sheriff’s Department, seemed the likely successor. He was the No. 3 in the Sheriff’s Department, where he worked for 23 years. He also was endorsed by the Orleans County Republican Party in May, gaining the support of the party leaders.
But Randy Bower, a public safety dispatcher, believed he had the vision for the Sheriff’s Department and support of the community to serve as sheriff. Bower mounted a vigorous challenge to Drennan and would defeat him in the Republican Primary, 1,671 to 1,650.
Bower and Drennan both had big groups of supporters in local parades, and they spent a lot of money in the campaign.
They would face each other again on Election Day in November and Bower was the victor getting 47 percent to Drennan’s 42 percent. (Drennan ran under the Indpendence and Reform parties.) Don Organisciak, a retired Medina police investigator, ran as a Democrat and received 10 percent of the vote.
Normally the local election season is pretty quiet and turnout is low. The turnout on Nov. 3 was 38.2 percent.
That compares to a mere 24.5 percent in Erie County, which had a race for county executive in a market with lots of television and radio ads. In Orleans County, the sheriff candidates used door-to-door campaigning, lawn signs and local ads to get the word out.
2. Wind turbine proposal fires up Yates residents
These signs against a wind energy project were distirbuted on April 1 during a meeting at the Barker Firehall.
The Town of Yates generally sees little controversy. But that changed in December 2014 when Apex Clean Energy announced its plan for Lighthouse Wind, a large-scale wind turbine project. Apex wants to build as many as 71 turbines in Yates and Somerset near the Lake Ontario shoreline.
A citizens’ group, Save Ontario Shores, formed in opposition to the project and two of its leaders were elected to the Yates Town Board in November.
The Somerset Town Board and Niagara County Legislature opposed the project after a June survey of town residents showed strong oppisition to the project. State Sen. Rob Ortt, Congressman Chris Collins and the Orleans County Legislature came out against the project in December.
The Town of Yates also surveyed residents about the issue and about two-thirds of the respondents oppose the project.
Apex in November submitted its preliminary scoping statement about the project to the Public Service Commission. Company officials say they will answer concerns and are committed to advancing the project.
3. Dissolution is rejected in Medina
About a year of bitter and divisive debate, village residents went to the polls in droves on Jan. 20 to answer the question, “Shall the Village of Medina, New York be dissolved?”
Dissolution was rejected 949-527 in one of the largest turnouts for a Medina election in recent memory. (There was a village election for trustee position on March 18 and only 311 voters came out to elect Todd Bensley and Owen Toale.)
Dissolution proponents said dissolving the village government would reduce taxes for vllage residents by about 25 percent. But opponents said some of those savings would raise taxes to Shelby and Ridgeway residents outside the village. Resdents also worried the village would lose responsive fire, police and other services.
“We still have a declining tax base, a shrinking population and climbing costs,” said Mayor Andrew Meier, after dissolution was defeated. “Our sustainability predicament remains.”
4. Parents, students opt out of state tests in big numbers
Julie Wantuck, president of the Holley Teachers Association, wore this button in March in protest of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s plans and actions about education.In Holley, 40 percent of students would opt out from tests in April.
A movement from parents against standardized testing of students in grades 3 through 8 became a phenomenon this spring with widespread “opting out” of the tests.
About 20 percent of students did not take the grades 3-8 math and ELA tests in April, but the “opt-out” rate was higher in Orleans County.
“This year, there was a significant increase in the number of students refusing the annual assessments,” Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl H. Tisch said in a statement in August. “We must do more to ensure that our parents and teachers understand the value and importance of these tests for our children’s education.”
Gov. Cuomo would later announce the state wouldn’t test students so much and teachers’ evaluations wouldn’t be so closely tied to student performance on the standardized tests. He called Common Core “deeply flawed” in New York.
Despite the outcry about the tests and the state linking them to teacher evaluations, local school superintendents urged parents to have students take the tests.
“We appreciate and understand parent’s right to refuse the assessments,” said Julie Christensen, Kendall school superintendent. “However, this is an adult political debate that places students in the middle of the discord and that is unfortunate.”
5. December 2015 was warm, but February was coldest ever
This tractor is pictured in a field of snow along Holley Road in Albion last February when about 2 feet of snow were on the ground.
It was never colder in Western New York for an entire month than February 2015, according to National Weather Service. Buffalo averaged a temperature of 10.9 degrees and never once went above freezing. That average temperature broke the previous record-low of 11.6 degrees in February 1934, according to the National Weather Service.
Rochester was a little bit warmer but the 12.2-average temperature was below the previous record of 12.6 degrees also set in February 1934.
It was a punishing winter with long stretches of bitter cold that closed schools and made travel difficult in Orleans County. Holley in particular was plagued with frozen waterlines that burst and needed to fixed in the dead of winter.
When winter came back later in the year, the weather was the opposite extreme. It was in the 50s on Christmas and several days topped 60 and even 70 degrees in December. There was no measurable snow until close to Christmas and that snow quickly vanished.
6. Pride Pak commits to Medina, first tenant lined up for STAMP
Steve Karr (right), chief executive officer for Pride Pak Canada, in October meets village officials and others working on the company’s new 64,000-square-foot vegetable processing facility. He is pictured with Mauro LoRusso, vice president of finance for Pride Pak (center); Gabrielle Barone, vice president of business development for the Orleans Economic Development Agency (far left); and Marguerite Sherman, village trustee (second from left).
Two big economic development projects were announced within a day of each other in October.
Pride Pak officials attended a Medina Village Board meeting on Oct. 6 and presented the company’s plan to build a 64,000-square-foot vegetable processing plant on Route 31A, across from the GCC campus. Pride Pak is from Canada, and the Medina site will be its first U.S.-based facility.
The company is spending about $15 million for the new facility in Medina and expects to hire 85 to 100 people in 2016. The site could be expand to up to 200 workers.
Just south of Orleans County, for years Genesee County officials have been working to develop a high-tech business park known as STAMP. The first tenant for the site was unveiled on Oct. 7, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo joining leader of 1366 Technologies at the annoucement in Batavia.
1366 Technologies Inc. of New Bedford, Mass., committed to an initial $100 million manufacturing plant at STAMP, which is about 2 miles south of the Orleans County line.
The company has revolutionized manufacturing silicon carbon wafers – considered “the heart” of solar panels. It looked at 300 sites for its new factory and picked the site in the Town of Alabama.
1366 Technologies expects to expand and make a $700 million investment in the area, starting with 600 full-time workers and growing to 1,000. The company will use about 100 acres of STAMP, a 1,250-acre site.
Cuomo said the project will be a “game changer” for the area by providing hundreds of high-paying jobs.
7. Wyoming County man opens fire on police in Clarendon
A vehicle driven by James Ellis hit a telephone pole on Route 31A at about 3 a.m. on March 21 and the vehicle came to a rest in front yard of Christopher and Denise Wing.
In the dark, early morning hours of March 21, James Ellis of Wyoming County went to an ex-girlfriend’s house in Shelby. Ellis had a gun and a friend of Ellis’s ex-girlfriend called 911.
Ellis fled from the property and was chased by police. He would crash into a telephone pole on Route 31 in Clarendon. His vehicle was in a resident’s front yard and Ellis fled to the nearby woods.
When police arrived, he opened fire, hitting Deputy James DeFilipps twice in the abdomen. DeFilipps was wearing a bullet-proof vest. He fatally shot Ellis, ending the threat. DeFilipps was found to have acted with justifiable force by a grand jury.
It was an unusual to have a shootout for law enforcement in Orleans County. DeFilipps, who works the night shift, recovered from a wound to his stomach and returned to work.
Pastor sentenced to 15 years in prison for sex abuse
Roy Harriger is led to the courtroom on April 6 when he was sentenced to state prison.
There were other high-profile incidents in the county this year. The sex abuse trial of Roy Harriger, a former local pastor, attracted media attention from Rochester and Buffalo.
Harriger was convicted by a jury after testimony from family members, including grandchildren, who claimed he sexually abused them.
During his sentencing on April 6, Harriger, 71, was called “a wolf in shepherd’s clothing,” by Orleans County Court Judge James Punch.
Harriger maintained his innocence and many parishioners sent letters to the judge in support of Harriger and his work as a church leader.
The judge sentenced Harriger to 15 years in state prison.
“One could say you were a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but you are a wolf in shepherd’s clothing and that’s much worse,” Punch said.
“The bullying, the use of charisma, the power of your personality were all brought forward to victimize these children and keep them quiet.”
8. Organizations merge to preserve services
Mike Woodward, a member of the Self Advocate All Stars at The Arc of Orleans County, is pictured on the group’s float during a parade in Holley in June. The All Stars won a first place award in the parade.
It was a big year for organizations merging with others. The Arc of Orleans County and Genesee County ARC announced the groups would merge into a single agency serving people with disabilities in two counties. Both have operated independently for about 50 years.
The merger will reduce administration expenses and better ensure services and programs for people with disabilities and their families, said Donna Saskowski, executive director for both agencies.
“We are rural, neighboring, agricultural communities, roughly the same size in area and among New York’s smallest in terms of population,” Saskowski said. “Looking ahead, we feel our similar cultures will allow for a smooth transition.”
The Mental Health Associations in Orleans and Genesee also merged. The Boards of Health in the two counties also formed a single joint board, a first for two counties in the state. Genesee and Orleans share the same ublic health director and other staff.
Leaders from the two counties say they are looking for more cooperation and perhaps consolidation of services. Orleans and Niagara counties have formed the Niagara-Orleans Regional Alliance to advocate for shared issues such as broadband Internet access.
9. Kendall schools transformed with renovation project
Photos by Kristina Gabalski – Kendall Junior-Senior High School students check out new lockers during an open house in September for the community to tour the renovated school campus.
Kendall Jr./Sr. High School Librarian Sara Baglioni stands in the newly renovated, tech-savy library. Upgrades include a smart board and wired tables for laptops and other electronic devices. New upholstered seating offers space to relax, read and study. “I was completely taken aback with the change and how wonderful it is,” she said.
Kendall Central School received some radical changes to the elementary and junior-senior high schools this year.
The improvements are part of a $25 million capital project.
The work included a new cafeteria in the junior-senior high school, new roofs for both school buildings, as well as energy efficient improvements, heating and ventilation work, and updated security measures.
Contractors also made improvements to parking lots and sidewalks.
“People are walking in and saying ‘Wow,'” Kendall Superintendent Julie Christensen said during the open house.
“They say it is beautiful and amazing. People who went to school here are shocked at the transformation.
“The kids are beaming.”
Community members have gushed about the improvements.
“I haven’t been here in 16 years,” former Kendall student Kate Czeh said.
“I’m getting lost. It’s so different. It’s beautiful. I don’t even recognize it as Kendall.”
10. Orleans County grapples with decline
Photo by Tom Rivers – Wargo Enterprises, an Akron company specializing in demolition, takes down the Clarendon Street bridge in Albion on April 7. The Albion Village Board opted not to replace the bridge due to the costs of the project. The street is now closed off by the railroad tracks.
It was a tough year for Orleans County with decline. One bridge was demolished and wasn’t replaced. The Lake Ontario State Parkway continued to fall into disrepair, making for a bumpy ride that many motoroists are choosing to avoid.
Local officials worry about infrastructure in the county. They have pressed state officials to better maintain canal bridges, in particular. The closed bridges or ones with weight reductions limit school buses, fire trucks and farm equipment from crossing the canal.
Some Medina village officials pushed dissolution of the village government due falling tax assessments and rising tax rates. Some organizations and government services have merged with neighboring counties.
School districts have shrinking enrollments and some districts are sharing athletic teams and extracurricular programs.
The 50 members of the First United Methodist Church in Albion held their final Sunday service at its historic church at the corner of Platt and East State streets on March 29.
The church left the building due to the expense of fixing the roof and building at a cost of about $1 million. The church building has been for sale for seven months with no buyers. The United Methodist congregation has been meeting since Easter at Christ Episcopal Church.
Other churches have small congregations faced with the upkeep of large, historic buildings.
Pat Davis has been coming to the United Methodist since she moved to Albion 25 years ago. She marvels about the architecture of the building from 1860. It’s one of seven churches that are part of the Courthouse Square, which is included on the National Register of Historic Places.
“It’s a beautiful church,” Davis said on March 29. “We have to remind ourselves it’s a building and the people make the church.”
ALBION – An Orleans County man is facing charges for deliberately running over and killing 16 seagulls with his car in the parking lot of the Albion Walmart, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Regional Director Paul D’Amato announced today.
“This type of illegal activity will not be tolerated,” D’Amato said. “Protection of New York State’s fish and wildlife resources is an important mission for DEC, and anyone who kills animals for fun and with disregard of the laws will face punishment.”
A DEC Environmental Conservation Officer arrested 19-year-old Tyler Nicholas Strassner, of Kendall, on Dec. 18 after he allegedly aimed, drove and accelerated his vehicle into a flock of seagulls in the store’s parking lot.
He was charged with illegally killing protected wildlife, illegally taking wildlife with a motor vehicle, and illegally taking wildlife during a closed season.
Strassner is scheduled to appear in the Town of Albion Court on Jan. 12, 2016 and faces a potential fine of up to $12,000 and/or 720 days in jail.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The windows on the upper floors of 39 North Main St. have been boarded up for years.
On Monday, the windows were turned into art. Adam Johnson, owner of the building, installed 16 of the painted boards that are 8 ½ feet high. The boards were painted by local high school art students, except for one. The window in the top right was painted by Jasmine Almeter of Holley, a former Johnson employee.
His daughter Corinne Johnson painted the two to the left of Almeter’s on the third floor. Corinne, 16, is a junior at Holley Junior-Senior High School.
Albion students painted all eight on the second floor. Lyndonville students did the top three on the left, and Kendall students did the two in the middle on the third floor.
This painting depicts Grace Bedell, the Albion girl who wrote a letter to Abraham Lincoln, encouraging him to a grow a beard in his first presidential race. Lincoln took her advice.
The Albion students tried to use historic and community themes in the paintings.
These windows highlight the former Santa Claus School in Albion and the current Strawberry Festival, a two-day event the second Friday and Saturday in June.
These windows highlight the Pratt Opera House, the Erie Canal and the historic Mount Albion Cemetery.
Johnson delivered the boards to Albion, Holley, Kendall and Lyndonville schools in early fall. He left the artwork up to the students and teachers.
He saw similar efforts in the cities of Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse, where art helped rejuvenate older buildings.
Johnson is working to turn the first floor of the building into a restaurant, with a goal to have it open by the Strawberry Festival in June. He was going to partner with J.J. Heideman, owner of BAD-Ash-BBQ, on the project, but the two decided against the effort. Heideman continues to run BAD-Ash from a trailer and attends many community events and parties.
Johnson said he has a different concept for the restaurant. In the meantime, he is pleased with the effort by the art students with the windows.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – After getting hit with sleet and snow on Monday night, much of the precipitation melted on Tuesday, leaving big puddles. This one on East Park Street shows the reflection of the First Baptist Church and St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
Today the National Weather Service in Buffalo is forecasting a high near 39 in Orleans County. There will be a high near 36 on New Year’s Eve with a chance of snow showers around midnight, the start of the new year. Friday, Jan. 1, is forecast for a high of 33 with a chance of showers, mainly after 11 a.m., according to the Weather Service.
Seagulls take off in flight along the Erie Canal in Albion near the Gaines Basin Road bridge on Tuesday.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Orleans County is blessed to have many dedicated volunteers and generous residents, who give of their time, talents and financial resources for a better community. Each year since the Orleans Hub started in April 2013 we’ve recognized outstanding citizens and we want to do it again.
This time there are two – Melissa Ierlan of Clarendon and Al Capurso of Gaines – who are first-time “repeat winners.” We have no limits on how many times someone can be recognized. Many residents make big contributions to the community, year after year.
This year’s “Outstanding Citizens” include:
Kendall Community Chorus hits the right notes
Photo by Kristina Gabalski – Mary Campbell, far right, directs the Kendall Community Choir during a holiday concert in November. The concert also served as a benefit for the Kendall Food Cupboard.
In 2008, Mary Campbell put notices in Kendall churches and public buildings, looking for singers. Campbell retired as a Kendall music teacher in 2007. A year later, she was eager to lead voices again.
Campbell hoped 20 people from Kendall would volunteer for the Kendall Community Chorus. The first practice, 50 people showed up. The choir has performed in numerous concerts since then, including a big bash for Kendall’s bicentennial in 2012. They have sung in the school, at the town park, and many local nursing homes. They begin the annual Kendall Fireman’s Carnival Parade with the “Star Spangled Banner” and “America, the Beautiful.” They even sang a patriotic medley in a flash mob at Wegmans in Brockport.
The group’s annual November concert benefitted the Kendall Food Cupboard, with people urged to bring canned goods or cash donations.
“We tried to go where there were people we knew,” Campbell said.
Sixty-eight people have sung in the choir since it started. Many have become close friends through the group. Campbell announced after the November concert she was retiring from directing. She thanked the many dedicated singers. About 30 have stayed with the group since it started.
Campbell has been the group’s leader as it enriched the community, and built strong bonds of friendship. She said the singers have all given of their time to make the group a success.
Provided photo
Eighteen members of the Kendall Community Chorus sang in October 2014 at the Middleport Community Choir Invitational. The 18 members from the Kendall Community Chorus are, from left, first row: Kristy Markham, Alissa Grimm, Lisa Rowley, Katie Presutti, Marilynn Kundratta and Mary Campbell. Second row: Cindy Curtis, Debbie Collichio, Eileen Young and Candy Mael. Third row: Carol Duerr, Marietta Schuth and Mary Lou Lockhart. Fourth row: Jeremy Rath, Nancy Grah, Christopher Tobin, Robert Bissell and Eileen Grah.
Animal lover has boosted dog and cat adoptions, improved shelter
Photo by Tom Rivers – Joette McHugh of Albion, center, is pictured with her husband Bill and Gina Smith of Hilton. They are with Zurie, a Shar-Pei/Lab mix. About 20 volunteers are regulars at the Orleans County Animal Shelter, feeding animals, taking dogs for walks, socializing cats and performing other duties.
Ever since she retired nine years ago, Joette McHugh has been a devoted volunteer at the Orleans County Animal Shelter. She knows all of the dogs and cats by name, and has been instrumental in adopting out many of the animals.
She also has been a driven fund-raiser and spearheaded the start of the Friends of the Orleans County Animal Shelter. She is president of that group, which had a fund-raising gala at The Pillars in May, bringing in about $7,000.
That has helped to have all dogs neutered at the shelter, and also paid for a new washer and dryer.
Most of the animals at the shelter are chipped which makes it much easier to find their owners if the animals are ever lost or on the loose. The number of adoptions has actually gone down in the past couple years because the shelter has been able to find many of the owners.
However, many cats and dogs don’t have homes. McHugh, the other dedicated volunteers and Animal Control Officer Kathy Smith have adopted out 1,500 dogs and cats in the past seven years.
McHugh brings enthusiasm and joy to the shelter, whether its feeding the animals, walking dogs, playing with cats or cleaning cages.
“I love the animals and thought if there was anything I could do to help I would,” McHugh said.
Medina churches unite throughout the year to help community
Some of the members of the Medina Area Association of Churches are pictured on Dec. 19 after toys. clothes and food were delivered to Medina families, including about 150 children. The group includes, from left: Grace Pries from the First Baptist Church, Rosey Boyle from the United Methodist, Donna Johnson from the Presbyterian Church, Sue Metzo from the Presbyterian, Pastor Tony Hipes of the United Methodist, Joanne Arnett with United Methodist, and Ronnie Barhite from St. John’s Episcopal Church.
For more than four decades a group of Medina churches have played Santa during the holidays for local families.
The annual MAAC toy drive allows about 150 children to have several toys each year, as well as food, and new hats, mittens, scarves and socks.
The churches also work together throughout the year running the clothing depot at the Calvary Tabernacle Assembly of God, the former Medina High School. The depot sells clothes below thrift store prices. It generates about $30,000 to $35,000 annually that the churches give back to the community for many causes.
The humanitarian work has brought Christians from several churches together, strengthening their fellowship while they provide for local residents.
“You don’t see this in many other communities,” said Tony Hipes, pastor of the United Methodist Church and current vice president of MAAC. “It’s the body of Christ. We’re giving back throughout the year.”
MAAC members Sue Metzo (left) and Sylvia Riviere are pictured in December 2014 inside the Medina United Methodist Church at the former Apple Grove Inn, which has become the headquarters for the annual present sorting.
Charter boat captain has been instrumental in raising trout, salmon for local fishery
Bob Songin, in red, lead the pen-rearing project from 1998 to 2014 until passing off the reins to a new group of volunteers this year. Songin remains active in helping to raise the fish in the Oak Orchard River.
Orleans County’s top tourism draw are big salmon and trout in Lake Ontario and local tributaries, such as Oak Orchard River, Johnson Creek and Sandy Creek. Fishing has a $12 million economic impact in the county each year.
A local charter boat captain has given countless hours to improve the fishery through a pen-rearing project. With that effort, begun in 1998, about 100,000 baby fish are delivered to pens in the Oak Orchard River from the Altmar Hatchery.
The fish arrive at about 2 inches long. The are babied and nurtured for a month in the Oak Orchard, doubling in size before they are released from the pens. They are fed five times a day, beginning at 5 a.m.
The month in the Oak Orchard allows the fish to imprint on the river, increasing the chances they will return to spawn when they are mature.
Without the pen-rearing, the fish would more likely head near Oswego and the Salmon River, near the Altmar Hatchery.
Bob Songin is charter boat captain with Reel Excitement.
Songin and the volunteers have increased the survival rate of fish, and charter boat captains say more bigger fish return to the Oak Orchard for fall fishing runs since the pen-rearing.
“He has spent untold hours getting it off the ground,” said Mike Waterhouse, the county’s sportsfishing promotion coordinator. “The whole community benefits because it ensures our fish will remain at a level to draw fishermen from all over the country.”
Songin also has shared the success of the Oak Orchard pen-rearing with other fishing communities. Now there are similar efforts in Olcott and the Genesee River in Rochester. This year he handed off the main pen-rearing responsibilities to Mike Lavender, Bob Stevens, James Cond, Chris Efing and Ian Scroger.
Downtown business owner spearheads several efforts in Albion
Lisa Stratton is dressed in costume during Beggar’s Night in October, when hundreds of children stopped by Albion businesses for treats.
Lisa Stratton, owner of the Hazy Jade Gift Shop in downtown Albion, remains one of Albion’s biggest boosters and tireless workers.
Each spring she and a few other volunteers fill concrete planters with dirt and flowers. She also arranges for the hanging baskets on Main Street.
Stratton organizes volunteers to water the flowers on weekends. She also helps plan many of the events through the Albion Merchants Association, including a wine tasting, Beggar’s Night with candy for children, and other activities throughout the year that provide fun for the community while promoting the locally owned businesses in the downtown.
She attends many of the Village Board meetings, advocating for the downtown businesses, and often will step forward to help with a community event.
Old farmhouse turned into hunting retreat for wounded warriors
Photos by Thom Jennings – Hunters pose with some of the birds harvested during a hunt in September in Shelby, the first for The Warrior House.
Peter Zeliff Jr. turned an old farmhouse in West Shelby into a therapeutic site this year for wounded veterans.
Zeliff and a team of volunteers fixed up the house and connected with veterans’ groups to bring injured soldiers to the site for a few days of hunting. The property was renamed The Warrior House.
The site hosted its first hunt in September with 13 wounded veterans. Other groups have followed and The Warrior House will be made available to spouses and children of veterans as well.
Zeliff sees the site as a ministry for people who served the country. Some bear obvious injuries and walk with a cane. Others suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and constant physical pain.
Shannon Girard from Lafayette, La. was out for a hunt at The Warrior House in late October-early November. Girard, 40, said he “slept like a baby” over the weekend on his hunting retreat. That is a big deal for Girard and the other veterans.
Girard was deployed as a medic to Iraq in 2004-05. The Louisiana resident said the hunting getaway is a perfect way for veterans to calm their nerves and bodies, while connecting with others in the military.
“The best therapy is bringing people together,” Girard said on Nov. 1 after a morning of bow-hunting. “You can decompress when you come out here and be in nature and see the beautiful sunrises and sunsets.”
Zeliff, through his generosity and hard work at The Warrior House, is making a big difference for many soldiers.
Peter Zeliff Jr. is pictured in July during a workday at The Warrior House.
Volunteer made farm market a Medina hotspot
Photo by Tom Rivers – Gail Miller stepped forward this year as volunteer coordinator of the new Canal Village Farmers’ Market in Medina.
A farmers’ market that operated in the Canal Basin for about a decade ceased after the 2014 season. The Orleans Renaissance Group saw a farmers’ market as a draw for the downtown and residents’ quality of life.
The ORG decided to start a new market, The Canal Village Farmers’ Market. The market date was moved from Thursdays to Saturdays, and the location shifted from the Canal Basin to the parking lot across from the Post Office.
Gail Miller volunteered to lead the market, working with vendors and lining up entertainment and exhibitors. Some Saturdays, 450 to 500 attended the market.
“It’s been a great group effort,” said Mrs. Miller on the market’s final day of the season, which was Halloween. She dressed as an Angry Bird character that day.
Next year the market will start in June, and Miller said there will be more entertainment and demonstrations. She has been a key to the market’s success and it’s bright future.
One of oldest cobblestone schools gets new life
Al Capurso is pictured with a new historical marker that was unveiled Oct. 17 by a former one-room schoolhouse on Gaines Basin Road, just north of the Erie Canal. The schoolhouse was built in 1832 and is one of the oldest cobbesltone buildings in the area.
Orleans County is home to about 100 cobblestone buildings and many other historic sites that are a source of pride. But there could be more if the wrecking ball, fires and neglect hadn’t destroyed former mansions, schoolhouses and other sites established in the 1800s.
Al Capurso didn’t want to lose another building that is important to the county’s past. This year Capurso rallied volunteers to save a former one-room schoolhouse on Gaines Basin Road. The building from 1832 is one of the oldest cobblestone buildings in the county and region.
The building has been largely abandoned since 1944. This year it got a new roof. Boards were removed from windows and sashes restored. Junk was cleared out.
Capurso and members of the Orleans County Historical Association also put up a historical marker for the school. The marker notes that Caroline Phipps taught at the school. She went on to be a distinguished educator and ran the Phipps Union Seminary in Albion from 1837 to 1875. That spot later became the County Clerks Building.
The 913-square-foot building needs more work and Capurso has a game plan to get it done. Next year he said there will be repairs to the floor, and the building will be rewired and ceiling and walls plastered. Some missing sections of cobblestones will be replaced with appropriate soft lime mortar.
In 2017, Capurso said he expects the site will receive donations for a piano, school desks, teachers desk, wood stove, tables, chairs and wall hangings. The site, where hundreds of children were educated, will add to the county’s historical fabric. A treasure that could have caved in has been saved.
Capurso was recognized as an outstanding citizen by the Orleans Hub in 2014 for leading the effort to have the federal government name a creek in honor of a pioneer resident, Elizabeth Gilbert. It flows 6.5 miles along Brown Road in Gaines across Ridge Road to Carlton.
It took a year of lining up local support, and gaining permission from the federal Bureau of Geographic Names. The agency on April 10, 2014 formally approved the naming request.
Faded signs about local history get a makeover
In August, the historical marker for Balcom’s Mills on Fancher Road in Murray was reinstalled with fresh paint. Melissa Ierlan, the Clarendon town historian, repainted the marker. She is right of the marker in light purple shirt. Ierlan repainted nine historical markers in the past two years.
It started in 2014 when Clarendon was celebrating the 150th anniversary of Carl Akeley’s birth. Akeley grew up in Clarendon on Hinds Road and became one of the most famous taxidermists in the world.
Melissa Ierlan, the town historian, noticed the historical marker on Hinds Road about Akeley could barely be read due to flaking paint. She took the marker down, stripped off the remaining paint and repainted it blue and gold.
She did three others in Clarendon. It’s tedious work, but she wanted the markers to look good.
Other communities also had markers in need of fresh paint and Ierlan this year has redone five markers, including one for the Elba Muck, one in Albion for Grace Bidell, two on Ridge Road in Gaines, and one in Murray.
She has three others and some will require welding.
The restored markers not only make it easier to read about prominent people and places in the community’s past but also project a message that the community cares about its historical assets. Ierlan has done a nice service in reviving some of these markers.
She was also an outstanding citizen in 2014 for her efforts to save the chapel at Hillside Cemetery. Ierlan received good news on that project on Dec. 10 when the state announced a $126,210 grant for the chapel.
Deputy survives shootout, prevents mayhem
Deputy James DeFilipps is pictured with his wife Marie and their infant son Jake at the Orleans County Public Safety Building on May 19 during a recognition program.
It was 3 a.m. on March 21 when James DeFilipps was shot twice following a high-speed chase with James Ellis of Wyoming County. Thankfully, the deputy was wearing a bullet-proof vest.
DeFilipps was the first police officer on scene when Ellis wrecked his vehicle in Clarendon on Route 31A. Police were pursuing Ellis after a 911 call when he threatened an ex-girlfriend in Shelby with a gun.
DeFilipps was the first on the scene. Ellis had fled to a nearby wooded area and opened fire on DeFilipps and other deputies and police to arrive on the scene. DeFilipps, despite getting hit twice by gunfire, shot Ellis, killing him and ending his threat.
Police feared Ellis could have shot more officers on the scene if DeFilipps hadn’t been there. Ellis could have fled to a neighbor’s house.
A grand jury reviewed the evidence and found DeFilipps was justified in the shooting. After recovering from his wound to his stomach, he returned to the night shift for the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, where he has worked nearly 13 years.
Orleans Hub will recognize the outstanding citizens during a reception in February.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Big crowd fills courtroom for swearing-in
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Randy Bower is sworn in as the new sheriff of Orleans County this afternoon. Orleans County Court Judge James Punch, right, administers the oath and Bower’s wife, Robin, holds The Bible. The Bowers’ children, Jacob and Jessica, join their parents for the swearing-in.
Bower officially takes over as sheriff on midnight Jan. 1. He replaces Scott Hess, who is retiring after 12 years as sheriff.
Bower was joined for a group photo by many members of the Sheriff’s Department. Chris Bourke, right of Bower, will serve as undersheriff. Bourke started his 31-year career in law enforcement as a corrections officer in the county jail and has worked as a deputy on road patrol. He has been a lieutenant the past 18 years and is the department’s K-9 handler.
Bower also introduced Michael Mele as the new chief deputy. Mele has worked 18 years as a police officer with the first two years at the Holley Police Department and the past 16 years as a deputy with the Sheriff’s Department.
“He is challenge-driven and goal-oriented,” Bower said about Mele.
Clara Martin, standing behind Bower, will serve as his secretary. She has worked in the Board of Elections as a deputy elections commissioner.
Bower has worked the past 30 years as a public safety dispatcher. He was seriosuly injured in a car accident when he was 18 and has been paralyzed from the waist down.
Judge Punch told about 125 people at the swearing-in ceremony that Bower has been an inspiration to many in the community.
“He’s an unstoppable force,” Punch said.
Bower will take over a demanding job, that Punch said has become more difficult in recent years.
“It’s helping and protecting the people of the county and giving justice,” Punch said.
There was a big turnout for the swearing in at the main courtroom of the Orleans County Courthouse.
