By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 6 September 2016 at 7:47 am
Photos courtesy of Bruce Landis
Contractors have been busy this summer at Albion and Kendall school districts replacing roofs at both school districts. The top photo shows work at the new front entrance to the junior-senior high school at Kendall.
Bruce Landis of Photo by Bruce in Albion took photos from up high of the new roofs.
Kendall has replaced roofs on both the elementary school and junior-senior high school buildings as part of the capital project that included many other upgrades and improvements to the school campus. Elmer W. Davis of Rochester did the roof work $5,782,177.
Albion tackled about $2.5 million of roof work over the summer. J & B Installations replaced about two-thirds of the roof on the middle school (pictured) and about half of the elementary school roof over the summer.
This photo shows nearly the entire Albion school campus, where school starts on Wednesday.
Eight Boy Scouts from Troop 164 in Albion, along with four advisors, covered more than 100 miles backpacking on a 10-day trip to the Philmont Scout Ranch, a High Adventure Base in Cimarron, New Mexico.
This photo shows the Scouts and their advisors. Front row kneeling, from left: Daniel Grabowski and Freeman Lattin. Back row: Dr. Tom Madejski, John Kast, Paul Pettit, Tyler Kast, Noah Shiffer, Harrison Brown, Caleb Pettit, Nick Fleming and Joe Madejski. Eric Brown, who took the photo, also was an advisor.
Harrison Brown tests his climbing skills.
The hiking trip included elevations between 7,000 and 12,500 feet. Along the way the boys engaged in various activities such as rock climbing, panning for gold, spar pole climbing, shot gun shooting, burro racing, challenge courses, horseback riding, metal forging and a conservation project where they helped blaze a new hiking trail for future scouts to use.
The Scouts left Aug. 7 and returned Aug. 20. Here are some other highlights from the trip.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 4 September 2016 at 10:06 am
Company with Canadian roots is Orleans County Chamber of Commerce ‘Business of the Year’
Photo by Tom Rivers: Matt Beadle, plant manager for Freeze-Dry Foods in Albion, and Karen Richardson, president and co-owner of the company, are pictured with some of the Freeze-Dry products.
ALBION – In 1999, soon after the former Ontario Foods left Albion for a bigger plant in Medina, Freeze-Dry Foods moved into the Albion site on East Avenue, a sprawling site that used to be home to Lipton’s.
Ontario Foods (now Associated Brands) was a Freeze-Dry customer and the Canada-based company welcomed the chance to make its products in Albion at a site that has long been used for food processing.
Matt Beadle, plant manager, and Karen Richardson, co-owner and president, are pictured outside the Freeze-Dry plant in Albion that has a long history of food production, from Lipton’s to Ontario Foods and now Freeze-Dry.
Freeze-Dry has steadily grown in the past 17 years, overhauling the plant, adding new product lines and committing to a long future in Albion.
The Orleans County Chamber of Commerce has recognized Freeze-Dry Foods as the 2016 Business of the Year. The company and other Chamber award winners will be recognized on Sept. 16 at The Village Inn.
Albion has been a good fit for Freeze-Dry, said Karen Richardson, company president and co-owner.
“We like the location,” she said. “We’re only a couple hours away from Canada and we’re close to many customers. We’re in a transportation hub.”
Richardson said she expects more investments in the Albion plant and workforce as the company continues to grow.
Freeze-Dry has benefitted from many dedicated workers, including three current managers who started at entry level positions, Richardson said.
Provided photo: Freeze-Dry employees are pictured Friday after a picnic when the company celebrated being picked as the Chamber’s Business of the Year.
Freeze-Dry has 60 employees and has strived to reward them, plant manager Matt Beadle said. Twice the company has raised pay scales the past two years, and also has employees taking leadership and professional development classes at Genesee Community College in Albion.
The company had an employee picnic and celebration on Friday with nearly everyone wearing T-shirts noting that Freeze-Dry was picked as Business of the Year.
Beadle said the company had a recent job fair and 35 people showed up to fill out applications.
“The word is definitely getting out that we have good substantial jobs,” Beadle said.
The company, based in Oakville, Ontario, is one of the few freeze dry companies in the United States. (The technique dehydrates frozen foods so the moisture content changes directly from a solid to a gaseous form. The product maintains its original size and shape with a minimum of cell rupture. Removing moisture prevents a product from deteriorating at room temperature.)
Matt Beadle holds a new Campfire Meals product line launched last year by Freeze-Dry. The meals are in pouches and are ready by simply adding hot water.
Freeze-Dry has added new drying chambers because of increased demand. This year it plans to modernize the controls on its refrigeration systems, which follows a recent effort to install LED lights throughout the building. The new lights and refrigeration controls, as well as recirculated water, reduce the company’s energy draw, Beadle said, making the plant more sustainable.
Beadle joined Freeze-Dry two years ago. He says the employees and owners are committed to excellence, and building a stronger company.
“I see a lot of potential here,” he said. “I see a chance to grow a great business.”
Freeze-Dry declined to show how it makes its products, citing proprietary issues. The plant is certified by the United States Department of Agriculture.
The company specializes in freeze-dried meat & seafood to include poultry, beef, ham, sausage crumbles, pork, pizza toppings, flavored beef and pork, and numerous types of fish & seafood, Beadle said.
The products have a shelf life of up to 25 years because Freeze-Dry eliminates moisture and oxygen, while preserving nutrients, flavor, taste, color and aroma.
Beadle said Freeze-Dry food tastes better than competitors in China partly because of the meat and other ingredients used by Freeze-Dry. Beadle said the company strives to use ingredients that are locally sourced in the United States.
Karen Richardson holds a popular Freeze-Dry product: an emergency “Bug-out bag” that has a backpack, emergency food supply, and gear for short-term survival situations.
Freeze-Dry works with several major food companies, and also has worked to grow its own line of products, including camping/backpacking meals, a line of meals called Piper’s that can be prepared in an office, and emergency food products that are sold as part of survival kits. (Click here to see the Freeze-Dry product line.)
Beadle’s office has a hunting décor, with deer heads mounted on the wall. He has attended outdoor shows, including a recent major event in Utah. The campfire meals come in pouches with 12 different meal options that easy to prepare by adding hot water. The product hit the market last year and was developed in Albion, Beadle said.
“We did all the R & D right here,” Beadle said.
The product, and others made by Freeze-Dry, can be purchased at the Albion plant, 111 West Ave.
Beadle also thinks the company has a winner with the Pipers product, a three-pack of meals that are targeted for time-crunched office workers. The meals – rice & pulled pork, lasagna with meat sauce, rice and chicken tortilla – can be ready in 10 minutes with Keurig coffee machine that adds hot water.
“This is a real meal,” Beadle said. “It’s not astronaut food.”
Freeze-Dry also just started kosher food, and is looking to give back more to the community. It recently donated more than $10,000 of food to the Open Door Mission in Rochester.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 September 2016 at 4:08 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – All of the gas pumps are currently out of service at the Crosby’s in Albion after a driver backed into one of the pumps, knocking it over at about 3:30 p.m.
The safety valves kicked in and prevented gas from spewing at the scene, Albion Fire Chief Harry Papponetti said.
Crosby’s turned off the service at all of the pumps after the incident. No information was available on when service was expected to be restored.
ALBION – The union representing corrections officers at the Orleans Correctional Facility today presented a check for $500 to the Knights-Kaderli Memorial Fund, which assists cancer patients and their families in Orleans County. The fund helps families pay for nutritional supplements and prescriptions, as well as medical supplies and bills.
Corrections officers are pictured with Stacey Pellicano, a representative from Knights-Kaderli. The corrections officers include, from left: Matt Lamar, Craig Stalker, Kenny Gold and Bob Andelora. Gold, a union representative for the officers, said members gave of their money to support Knights-Kaderli.
“They’re a community based organization and we’re part of the community,” Gold said. “We want to keep our money in the community and support organizations that do a lot of good.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 September 2016 at 5:55 pm
GOMOC delivers about 700 couches, refrigerators, other items a year
Photo by Tom Rivers: Laverne Bates executive director of the Genesee-Orleans Ministry of Concern, stands by the furniture truck that has been sidelined due to engine trouble, bad brakes and other breakdowns.
ALBION — A popular local program that connects used donated furniture and appliances with needy recipients has come to a standstill.
The Genesee-Orleans Ministry of Concern has been using a 2004 GMC Savana van. The vehicle has about 160,000 miles and needs another engine, and other costly repairs totaling $8,000.
“It’s been in deteriorating mechanical health,” said Laverne Bates, executive director for the Ministry of Concern, which is known as ‘The Agency of Last Resort.”
The Ministry of Concern would prefer to buy a used vehicle for about $10,000. That could get a delivery truck with about 100,000 miles.
The Ministry of Concern doesn’t have the money for either repairs or another vehicle. Donations from the community will be needed to get the furniture program back on the road.
The delivery vehicle has been sidelined for three weeks now. Thursday morning two people called to donate items. There are about 100 people on a waiting list for furniture and appliances – refrigerators, stoves, washers and dryers.
“These are costly items that can be nearly impossible for poor and working poor families to afford new and even harder to locate in second-hand stores,” Bates said.
The furniture program is the costliest effort by the Ministry of Concern. It accounts for about $50,000 of the agency’s annual budget of about $180,000. Two part-time employees run the furniture program, which on average makes deliveries to 23 families each month or nearly 300 a year.
Bates and Nyla Gaylord, GOMOC’s grant writer, say there is a rising number of working poor in the community who can use the furniture and appliances that are given by others.
The Ministry of Concern provides the important service of picking up the items and matching them to a different owner. GOMOC also has a storage area on Platt Street for many of the items.
Bates said the program often comes through with dressers and beds for families, including those who have suffered fires, flooding and infestations. Sometimes families are in transition due to domestic violence, job loss or other family issues, he said.
Bates was happy this morning when a check for $100, the first donation towards the van, arrived in the mail.
Donors should send checks marked “Furniture Truck” to GOMOC, 121 N. Main St., Albion, NY 14411. For more information on GOMOC, visit www.ministryofconcern.com, or call the agency at (585) 589-9210.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 31 August 2016 at 10:23 am
Local organization now beneficiary instead of American Cancer Society
File photos by Tom Rivers The Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk at Watt Farms drew big crowds to the farm on Route 98 for a walk through the orchard. This photo is at the beginning of the walk in October 2013.
ALBION – In 11 years, a breast cancer awareness and benefit walk at Watt Farms raised $350,000 for the American Cancer Society.
The event is changing its focus. The beneficiary will now be Cancer Services of Genesee and Orleans, a group based in Batavia that serves people battling all types of cancers. That organization pushes to provide mammograms, colonoscopies and other services to people underinsured or without insurance.
That mission is more in line with Karen Watt’s focus. She wants more help for local residents and their families facing the cancer health crisis.
Watt, a breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed in 2005, also wanted to expand the walk’s mission to assist people fighting all types of cancer.
The walk will shift from a pink theme for breast cancer to a purple color to represent all cancers during the event at Watt Farms on Oct. 29. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. with the walk starting at 10 a.m.
“We wanted to make it more local and to step up preventive services,” Watt said.
Kevin Dann and other Holley firefighters have been regular participants in the walk at Watt Farms. They are pictured last October.
She wanted to partner with an organization that serves Orleans and Genesee counties because she said many of the participants on the walk have been from outside Orleans in Genesee County.
Watt is chairman of the board of directors for Oak Orchard Health, which has healthcare sites in Albion, Lyndonville, Brockport, Warsaw and Hornell, as well as a mobile dental unit.
Oak Orchard is a sponsor of the Oct. 29 walk, and so is Orleans Community Health, which runs Medina Memorial Hospital, the Urgent Care site in Albion, Dialysis Centers in Batavia and Medina, and other health services in Orleans County.
The Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk was a big draw to Watt Farms, sometimes with crowds of nearly 1,000 people.
Watt isn’t sure what to expect on Oct. 29. She hopes the community will continue to support and participate in the event.
For more on the walk, including registration information, click here.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 31 August 2016 at 7:49 am
ALBION – For nine years Bonnie Velez has been awarding a $250 fine arts scholarship to a graduating senior. Velez started the scholarship as a memorial to her son, Brandon Bruski, who was 18 when he was killed in a car accident.
Brandon Bruski in his senior picture in 2006.
Brandon graduated from Albion in 2006. He was a hard worker with a creative side. He enjoyed art. He had just finished his first year at Monroe Community College, when he fell asleep while driving and was in a fatal crash. He was also working with his mother at the Bonduelle vegetable packing facility in Brockport.
“He was a good kid,” Velez said. “It’s been horrible losing him.”
Velez has collected bottles, including many left at her East Park Street home as donations, to help pay for the annual award.
Velez decides the recipient of the scholarship. She reviews student’s portfolios, their collections of photography and paintings. She also looks over their report cards and wants to know college plans.
Rick Ebbs was Brandon’s Little League coach when he played for the American League team. Brandon was a hard-working player and a great teammate, Ebbs said.
He has become friends with Brandon’s family and Ebbs suggested a spaghetti dinner would raise money for the Brandon Bruski Memorial Scholarship. That idea has turned into a Sept. 24 event at the St. Mary’s Athletic Club on 538 Moore St., where Ebbs is a member.
The 3 to 7 p.m. dinner includes a basket raffle and 50/50 raffles. The goal is to raise $5,000 so the scholarship can be endowed with $250 given away every year.
“It will mean a lot the family to keep it going forever,” Ebbs said. “It can be done.”
Velez said she appreciates Ebbs and several other people stepping forward to help with the event.
Dinners are available at the door the day of the event or presale by calling Velez at 589-4688, Ebbs at 507-9171, Pam Taylor at 331-0863, Linda Lewis at 261-2191 or Debbie O’Mara at 590-6104.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 30 August 2016 at 11:38 am
ALBION — In July the Albion Police Department launched a new “Caught Doing Good” program where police officers would ticket kids who were spotted doing good deeds in the community.
The tickets are actually coupons for free ice cream. The Albion Betterment Committee is paying for the frozen treat. Initially the program teamed with The Frosty Bucket on Main Street. But that business has since closed. Now the coupons are redeemable at Cone Zone, a popular stop on Route 31 across from the Albion Central School campus.
The tickets are good for a $3 ice cream, with the Betterment Committee paying $2 and the Cone Zone, owned by Karen and Chris Kinter, covering the rest.
Pictured include, from left: Chris Kinter, ABC directors Joe Gehl and Gary Kent, Lt. David Mogle of the Albion Police Department, and ABC director Gary Derwick.
The Betterment Committee and Police Department hope the tickets will build trust in the community for police among children and teens. Police leaders say officers have their own discretion in recognizing kids. It won’t be used for kids who help police in investigations, Police Chief Roland Nenni said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 August 2016 at 5:07 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The Albion Betterment Committee presented two landscape awards to businesses on Friday. Christopher Mitchell Funeral Homes and Dunkin Donuts were both recognized “for their commitment to the betterment of Albion.”
The top photo shows ABC directors – Gary Kent, Gary Derwick and Joe Gehl – presenting the award to Josh Mitchell, a funeral director at Christopher Mitchell.
Josh manages the grounds at both Albion and Holley. Josh joined the family business in 2011. He mows and waters the lawn, plants flowers, and pulls weeds. Soon after he started at Christopher Mitchell, Josh put up hanging baskets with flowers at the back entrance of the funeral home on Route 31.
“I want to make it colorful and feel homey,” he said about the property.
His father David said he is impressed how Josh has been so committed to the lawns at the funeral homes.
“He’s always been detail-oriented,” David said. “That’s why he is good at his job. It’s nice to see someone young take pride in their surroundings.”
Dunkin’ Donuts opened in August 2014, building a new store after taking down a dilapidated warehouse on South Main Street. The Betterment Committee said Dunkin’ represents a big improvement visually for the street, and the company has been committed to its landscape.
The following are pictured, from left: Joe Gehl; Gary Kent; Dave Eckhart, director of operations for 34 Dunkin’ stores from Medina to Syracuse; Albion store manager Tamara Gaita; and Gary Derwick.
Dunkin’ has an underground irrigation system that turns on at 4 a.m. every day.
ABC for the second year in a row has presented the awards, honoring a locally owned company and a corporate franchise. Last year, the Betterment Committee gave the awards to Albion Agencies and Burger King.
