Photo by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – Murray Joint Fire District Chief Rick Cary, left, and Mark Porter, the fire district chairman, are shown with the district’s new fire engine. The pumper-tanker carries 1,000 gallons of water and also has a capacity to pump 1,500 gallons a minute.

It replaces a pumper-tanker from 1992. The new truck was manufactured by Spartan in South Dakota. The fire district picked a white color for the truck, instead of red as part of an rebranding effort for the joint district, which includes the former Holley and Fancher-Hulberton-Murray districts.

Murray also has a refurbished rescue truck in service that functions as a mini-pumper. It holds 300 gallons and has a capacity to pump 1,500 gallons a minute.

Voters in the Murray Joint Fire District on Feb. 21, 2023 approved spending up to $900,000 for the new pumper-tanker fire truck and a refurbished rescue truck that will serve as a mini-pumper – with $680,000 for the new pumper-tanker and $220,000 to convert the rescue truck into a mini-pumper.

Mark Porter, the district chairman, said the joint fire district had $200,000 in reserves towards the trucks, and will borrow about $700,000 through a bond.

Photo courtesy of Bob Barton

HOLLEY – Multiple fire departments have been on scene this afternoon of a fire at 34 High St. in Holley. Firefighters were dispatched for a car fire in a garage at a single-story ranch.

David Hull has now written stories for 28 different books in the series

(Left) This is the cover of the latest Chicken Soup for the Soul book, featuring 101 tales about the Christmas holiday, including two written by David Hull of Holley. (Right) File photo from 2018 shows David Hull holding two of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books that include a story he wrote.

HOLLEY – David Hull is a prolific contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series. He has written stories that are featured in 28 of the books.

The latest book with a Christmas theme include two of his stories. “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Time for Christmas! 101 Tales of Holiday Joy, Love and Gratitude” totals 339 pages. There are now more than 300 Chicken Soup for the Soul tiles that combined have sold more than 110 million copies and been translated into nearly 50 languages.

Hull, 64, is a retired preschool teacher. He has a story in the Christmas book in a section about Holiday Hijinks. In “The Separation,” he writes about his mother not being happy that Hull and sister weren’t visiting for the holidays. She tricked them into thinking she and her husband were getting a separation, which prompted her children to make an emergency trip home – for the holidays.

In a section about Gratitude and Grace, Hull has a story, “Gramma’s Good China.” Hull shares how his father tried to reconnect with him after leaving the family for 16 years. Hull wasn’t happy about seeing his dad and refused to shake his hand or converse with him in that first meeting.

Hull’s grandmother urged him to let go of the bitterness and anger. Hull reached out to his father, invited him for Thanksgiving and they ate on Grandma’s good China, dishes that were only used on special occasions. Hull said the dinner and reconnection with his father helped to soothe his hard feelings.

Hull grew up in Brockport. He did a reading at the Lift Bridge Book Shop in Brockport on Dec. 9, sharing some of his stories from the Chicken Soup series.

Hull said he checks the Chicken Soup website for future book themes and also gets emails from them about topics. He sends in submissions and said he is accepted about 50 percent of the time.

“If you get rejected you have to try again,” he said.

The most popular Chicken Soup books tend to be humorous ones, and books about pets, Hull said.

“At heart I’m really a writer,” he said. “I write quite a bit. I really enjoy seeing my stories get in print.”

Hull studied English in college and earned a degree in education. He worked 28 years as a teacher at the Brockport Child Development Center at Brockport State College. He retired about a decade ago.

The latest Chicken Soup book is one of several in the series earmarked to raise funds for nonprofits. Royalties from this book go to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program.

Provided photos

HOLLEY – Wreaths are placed on veterans’ graves on Saturday during Wreaths Across America. Holley for the first time participated in the event, which is celebrated in about 4,000 communities across the country.

The Holley Rotary Club took the lead in raising the funding and organizing the event at Hillside Cemetery. The club set a goal for 100 wreaths, but doubled that with the 200 on Saturday.

Kim DeFrank, a Holley resident and the Orleans County treasurer, was among about 35 volunteers who placed wreaths at graves.

Craig Lane, an Air Force veteran, spoke at the ceremony before the wreaths were laid.

Wreaths are set at a veterans’ memorial at the cemetery. The memorial includes five granite etched stones for the Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. The memorial has a pentagon-shaped concrete base and a 25-foot flagpole.

Laura Bentley, right, of the Holley Rotary Club pushed the wreaths in Holley. She is joined by Kerry Lane in getting the out of a box. Bentley said the group of volunteers were pleased to be out honoring veterans.

Hillside Cemetery has a new look with the wreaths at the veterans’ graves.

Medina placed 1,008 wreaths, with most at Boxwood Cemetery. In Lyndonville, about 450 wreaths will be placed at Lynhaven Cemetery on Housel Avenue in Lyndonville with others put at Yates Center Cemetery, Robin Hill Estate, the Greenman Road Cemetery, Lott Cemetery on Angling Road and a cemetery on Marshall Road.

Lyndonville first joined the Wreaths Across America effort in 2019. Medina has been doing it since 2013.

MURRAY – Voters in the Murray Joint Fire District elected two fire commissioners to five-year terms on Tuesday, and also approved creating capital reserve accounts.

Chris Middleton was the top vote-getter for “Commissioner A” with 46 votes, to 27 for Tom Knight and 22 for Dave Knapp, an incumbent and original commissioner for the joint fire district.

For Commissioner B, David Smith was elected with 56 votes, followed by 37 for Joseph Morlino and 4 for Greg Johnston.

Voters also approved a proposition to create reserve accounts with 79 yes and 16 no.

The fire district will establish repair and replacement capital reserve accounts for apparatus and motor vehicles, equipment and buildings.

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – A crowd gathers at the Public Square for Holley’s annual tree-lighting ceremony on Saturday evening.

Holley Mayor Mark Bower reads many names of residents honored with memory bulbs on the tree before the lights were turned on.

Holley added a large Santa statue to the Public Square that will be out during the Christmas season greeting people.

Many of the street lights in the Square also have red and green bulbs to add to the holiday ambiance.

The village put in two tall ornament stackers by the community Christmas tree.

There is also an 8-1/2-foot wide ornament arch in front of the old Holley High School, which are now apartments and the village offices.

Holley students in grades four to six sang Christmas carols before the tree was lighted on Saturday.

There also was an inflatable igloo for people to go inside and get a photo.

The Holley Community Free Library hosted a Christmas social after the tree-lighting.

Provided photo

HOLLEY – Melissa Ierlan, Clarendon town historian, stands next to a new historical marker that will go in front of the former Holley High School in the spring.

The marker notes the ultimate sacrifice of nine young men from Holley who were killed during the Vietnam War: John P. Davis, David D. Case, Ronnie P. Sisson, David P. States, Howard Bowen, Gary E. Bullock, Gary L. Stymus, George W. Fischer Jr. and Paul S. Mandracchia. Holley had one of the highest per capita casualty rates in the country during the Vietnam War.

The marker is planned to be dedicated in front of the school on Memorial Day in 2024. The young men attended school there. The building is now used for apartments and also the Village of Holley offices.

Home Leasing, owner of the property, agreed to allow the sign be installed in the front yard of the building, Ierlan said.

Funding from the Elizabeth Dye Curtis Foundation, Clarendon Historical Society and Murray-Holley Historical Society.

Nicholas D’Amura, a middle/high school history teacher at Holley, and his students helped with the wording on the sign.

“This marker is to commemorate the nine young men who lost their lives in service to their country during the conflict in Vietnam. The ‘Holley Boys’ attended classes here at the high school in the heart of the village before war called them to adulthood. They grew up with stories of their fathers from battlefields past, and each of them served with distinction when the great battle of their age arrived.

“Holley sent her finest when called.”

The marker ends with a quote from Abraham Lincoln: “I pray that our Heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.”

MURRAY – The Town Board voted unanimously to approve a $52,860 contract with Monroe Ambulance on Monday for the Rochester-based company to provide ambulance services in the community.

Murray is one of seven towns in a $300,000 contract with Monroe Ambulance for 2024. The seven towns are divvying up the cost based on a percentage of call volume.

Murray is paying the second-biggest bill after the Town of Albion at $155,820. The other shares of the $300,000 include Barre at $13,740, Carlton at $22,350, Clarendon at $25,350, Gaines at $12,030 and Kendall at $17,850.

Murray’s bill is up from $30,600 in 2023, the first year the town had to pay for ambulance service.

Murray is at least the third of the seven towns to approve the contract, following Barre and Albion.

Murray Town Board members said the new contract is conditional on all seven towns approving the agreement.

Photos courtesy of Sandra Shaw, director of Community Free Library

HOLLEY – The Community Free Library was very happy to host a program called “Christmas Cards for Vets” on Veterans Day this past Saturday.

More than 100 people visited the library on Saturday and signed more than 400 cards that will be delivered to the NYS Veterans Home in Batavia and the VA Medical Center in Batavia. Assemblyman Steve Hawley was among the community members who attended and signed cards.

Elected officials from Holley, Murray and Clarendon also signed messages of appreciation for veterans.

Many veterans, and scouts from Troop 59 and 62 also were part of the effort, and so was Holley Police Chief Bob Barton.

 Sandra Shaw, library director, thanked the community for their time and heartfelt messages in signing the cards.

Khan ran Holley Pharmacy, now working with developer to bring in Dollar General with groceries

HOLLEY – Holley Mayor Mark Bower, left, presents the Mayor Vaughn Award to Sabir Khan during Tuesday’s Village Board meeting. In back are village trustees Rochelle Moroz and Jessica MacClaren. Khan is the sixth recipient of the award which was started by Holley’s mayor from 1976 to 1982.

Khan retired as a pharmacist and owner of Holley Pharmacy in 2014 after nearly 30 years in the village. He has continued to own the building for the former Jubilee and Save-A-Lot grocery store and is close to selling it to Dollar General’s real estate company. The deal is expected to close this month and would bring a DG Market to Holley. Those stores are Dollar Generals with fresh produce and more grocery items.

Mayor Bower said Khan is being recognized by the village for his long-term commitment to the community.

“He has always kept the best interests of Holley at heart,” Bower said.

Khan came to Holley in 1985, preferring to own his own business in a smaller community. He had worked for a large pharmacy chain in Binghamton, Batavia and then in Rochester.

In Holley, he expanded the pharmacy to deliveries, including local customers in the Holley and Kendall area. He would expand that to serving nursing home and healthcare sites. He had drivers in four vans delivering scripts from Medina to Palmyra.

Khan sold the Holley Pharmacy to Luke Miller in 2014. Miller started with Khan at age 16, stocking shelves and cleaning. He eventually became a pharmacist and owner of the business.

“He took me in at 16, gave me a job and taught me everything I know about pharmacy,” Miller said.

Miller sold the pharmacy in 2021 to CDS Life Transitions. He remains the manager.

Khan said he is grateful to the Holley community for making the pharmacy a success and for trusting him for so many years.

“I feel blessed that this town has been so good to me,” he said.

Khan lives in Brockport but spends the winters in Florida.

Sabir Khan said he is thankful for a career in Holley where the community supported his business. “You do your work honestly,” he said about his business philosophy. “You have to do the right thing by the people.”

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – An enthusiastic Holley student body, teachers and staff celebrated the girls soccer team with a pep assembly this afternoon. This photo shows the Holley X-Factor running around the girls soccer team to pump up the crowd.

The Holley team leaves Friday morning for a 2 ½-hour drive to Homer in Cortland County for the state soccer tournament. Holley made the final four after defeating Frewsburg from Section VI last Saturday.

Holley won the Section V title by beating long-time rival, Byron-Bergen. Making it to the state tournament is unprecedented for the Holley girls.

Coach Renee Wolf said the strong support from the school and community has made a big difference for the team, creating life-long memories for the players.

Renee Wolf, Holley’s girls soccer coach the past nine seasons, speaks during a pep assembly today in the junior-senior high school gym.

Holley fire trucks have sounded their sirens to welcome the team home after winning Sectionals and then Regionals. Many community members stood in the Public Square to greet the players coming home on the bus.

“It makes the whole experience even more special,” Wolf said. “Our community as a whole, I can’t express my appreciation enough to them.”

Wolf’s daughters, Alivia and Zoey, are both juniors on the team. Renee Wolf said many of the players come over to her house to hang out with her daughters. That has made her feel closer to the players. She has coached them since sixth grade through indoor soccer.

Many of the players have been on teams together going back to when they were 4. Wolf said they know their positions, and trust each other to be in the right spot and make plays.

Samantha Bates is Holley’s top scorer with 29 goals, but Holley had many players who can find the net. Fifteen different players scored goals this season.

Will Kruger is a member of Holley’s X-Factor, a rabid group of fans. He is leading the students in chanting, “I believe that we will win.”

Kruger is on the boys soccer team. He said his teammates have really taken their fandom to a higher level in the playoffs for the girls team, wearing face paint, lots of red for the school colors, and bringing lots of noise.

“It’s been crazy and so exciting to be at the games,” Kruger said. “We like to support each other. It’s a small community.”

Will Kruger gets the crowd fired up during the pep rally.

Samantha Bates, one of the Holley captains, said the energetic crowd makes a difference. She said the girls team cheered for the boys during their games and actually was louder. However, the boys have been stepping up their X-Factor game and really making a difference for the team.

Emma Brady, another captain, agreed.

“It pumps us up,” she said about the fans and support from Holley. “We don’t want to lose in front of everyone.”

Leigha Walker said the team has tried not to look down the road too far, and is focusing on one game at a time.

If Holley wins on Saturday against Waterford-Halfmoon, the Hawks play in the finals Sunday for the state championship.

“We don’t want the season to end,” she said.

Provided photo: The Holley girls soccer team is shown as the X-Factor during one of the boys soccer games earlier this season. Both teams cheer for each other during the season.

Holley will be taking a spectator bus to the game on Saturday, and another one if the team wins and advances to the finals on Sunday.

Brian Bartalo, the district superintendent, has been to all the playoff games and many of the regular season games. He is impressed by the team, and the support for the Hawks.

“Things like this bring what is already a close community even closer together,” he said.

X-Factor members Trent Walker (with ball), and then Tyreek Garrett and Jax Richards-Dyson participate in one of the skits that also included teams from the girls soccer team and teachers. The X-Factor won this competition.