About 250 attended event last year at White Birch

Photo by Tom Rivers: Hundreds of eyeglass frames were on display for people to pick from at the pop-up eye glass clinic last year on March 19 in Lyndonville. The frames and lens were all available for free.

LYNDONVILLE — The Lyndonville Lions Club is planning its second annual eye glass clinic for Saturday, April 29, at the White Birch Golf Course.

About 250 people attended the debut event on March 19, 2022 with people receiving a vision screening, fitting for glasses and glaucoma screening.

Several optometrists and ophthalmologists will be on hand to assist with the clinic. The event is led by the Lyndonville Lions Club.

This year’s clinic will again be first come-first served with a cap at about 200 people.

That club recently purchased a iCare 200 tonometry machine with support from the Lyndonville Area Foundation. That handheld machine measures intraocular pressure.

The tonometry machine will allow for glaucoma screenings. Glaucoma is one of the most common forms of preventable blindness in the United States, the Lions Club said.

Provided photo: Russ Martino, Shelly Harling and Wes Bradley are shown with an iCare 200 tonometry machine that will be used an the upcoming eye glass clinic. The three are all members of the Lyndonville Area Foundation, with Martino and Bradley also in the Lions Club.

Those people who screen positive will be referred to specialists for further care. For those who cannot afford advanced testing, financial assistance will be available through the Lyndonville Lions Club and donated services from participating optometrists and ophthalmologists.

There was a big turnout at last year’s pop-up eyeglass clinic. About 250 people filled the site not long after doors officially opened at 10 a.m. About 100 people arrived by 9:30.

“Last year’s event was a huge success with over 200 people receiving screening services,” said Harold Suhr, Lions Club president. “This year’s event will have the donated services of several local eye specialists that will dramatically improve this year’s event.”

The Lyndonville Lions Club also will be involved in several other upcoming events. Most immediately, the club is collaborating this Saturday with the Lyndonville United Methodist Church for an Easter Egg Hunt for all Lyndonville children from preschool through Grade 6. The church will set up the hunt and supply all of the eggs, candy and prizes. The Lions Club will provide hot dogs and beverages to all participants of this event.

The Lions Club will also sell long stem roses for Mother’s Day and is working on its 49th annual July Fourth celebration.

Photos by Tom Rivers

LYNDONVILLE – Dorothy, played by Elizabeth Whipple, is surrounded by Munchkins who sing “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” after Dorothy’s house lands in Oz and flattens the Wicked Witch of the East.

Lyndonville is performing the Wizard of Oz with performances at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $5 and available at the door or online (click here).

The district in the previous 11 years did a combined show with Medina, with Lyndonville hosting the joint program. This year the districts are back to doing their own shows. Medina did Little Mermaid last week.

Sarah Corser glides into the stage as Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. She greets Dorothy and tells her she is in Oz. When Glinda presents the magic ruby slippers to Dorothy, the Wicked Witch of the West is enraged.

Corser said flying during the show, “is very, very cool.” She is one of five characters who take flight in the show.

Lyndonville has 108 students in the cast, crew and orchestra. That includes 38 students in grades 1 through 6 who are Munchkins.

Meagan Hardner is the Wicked Witch of the West who is very angry and vows retribution after seeing her sister has been killed by Dorothy’s house.

The characters fly in the show by using harnesses with wires and pulleys.

“It’s fun, and a little scary,” she said about soaring over the stage.

Hardner, a senior, thanked the Lyndonville program for putting so much effort into making the musical a success, including the aerial abilities for some of the characters. She has been in the shows since seventh grade.

“It’s a really good experience,” she said.

Amir Huzair performs the role of the Scarecrow. He sings, “If I Only Had a Brain.” He is the first friend to join Dorothy on her trip to see the Wizard. They need to follow the Yellow Brick Road.

Noah Fox is the Tinman who has rusted and can barely move. He gets oiled up so he can move more easily. He sings, “If I Only Had a Heart.”

Annabelle Follman plays the role of the Cowardly Lion who seeks courage. Here the Lion sings, “If I Were The King Of The Forest.”

Amber Grabowski plays the role of the Emerald City Guard.

The great Oz, appearing as a scary disembodied head demands the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West before helping Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin man and the Lion. Greyson Romano is the voice of the Wizard of Oz in the musical.

Elizabeth Whipple, who plays Dorothy, said the musical has a strong theme about friendship and also a love for your hometown.

“Many people who graduate from Lyndonville come back because there is no place like home,” Whipple said.

She thanked the many community members for contributed to the show, from set construction, to musicians in the pit orchestra, to costumes and financial support. The Follman family also let their dog Max be in the show as Toto.

“It’s been a community effort for everything,” Whipple said. “I feel very fortunate to be a part of it.”

The Wicked Witch of the West (Meagan Hardner) sends her flying monkeys – Nikko played by Amir Zimmerman and the other is Gavyn Draper – to capture Dorothy and Toto.

The musical is directed by Jennifer Trupo. She praised the Lyndonville students and the production team for putting on a “phenomenal show.”

She said more Lyndonville students are in the cast and crew in the return of it being a Lyndonville-only musical.

“We have a lot more kids involved who normally wouldn’t be,” Trupo said. “The kids know everybody. There is a whole different level of comfort.”

$2.5 million project to be recognized in Binghamton ceremony

Photos by Tom Rivers: Yates Town Supervisor Jim Simon speaks during a Sept. 24 ribbon cutting for upgrades at the Yates Town Park. Simon also announced the new pavilion at the park would be dedicate in honor of Russ Martino, the retired town supervisor and elementary school principal.

YATES – The Yates Town park improvements will be recognized this week as a project of the year by the New York State chapter of the American Public Works Association.

Yates already was honored by the Genesee Valley Branch of the APWA on Jan. 26. Now it will receive statewide honors on Thursday in Binghamton.

Yates will receive the award for project of the year in the category for Small Cities/Rural Communities Structures.

The $2.5 million park upgrades include a 75-foot-long pier, a pavilion with bathrooms, new playground equipment, a kayak launch, a crusher-run walking trail, and new parking lot with sidewalks.

The project was 95 percent funded by the state, which made $300 million available to southshore communities  through the state’s Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative or REDI.

That was in response to historic flooding along the shore in 2017 and 2019. That flooding destroyed part of the shoreline at the Yates park and the town used a separate $400,000 grant from the state to put in a massive breakwall.

The park upgrades included a new elevated platform or pier that extends out into Lake Ontario. Other projects at the park featured a pavilion with bathrooms, new playground equipment, a kayak launch, a crusher-run walking trail, and new parking lot with sidewalks. There will also be horse-and-buggy turnaround with hitching posts.

The project turned a small park with few amenities into a site that Yates officials believe will become a vibrant destination

The town worked with the MRB Group for engineering services and Keeler Construction in Barre served as the general contractor.

Town Supervisor Jim Simon plans to attend the awards banquet on Thursday with Jon Hinman, the Town Engineer from MRB; and  Dave Herring, representing Keeler Construction.

By winning the state award, NYS APWA will submit the Yates project to APWA National for consideration for a national award. Those awards will be announced later in the spring.

Press Release, Lyndonville Central School

LYNDONVILLE – The school district is accepting applications for its 2023-24 pre-kindergarten and kindergarten programs.

If you are a resident of the Lyndonville Central School District and your child will be 3, 4 or 5 by Dec. 1, 2023, they are eligible to enroll. Space is limited, but openings are available for all age groups.

The five-day-a-week, developmentally appropriate PreK program engages students in planned educational activities, play time, and breakfast and lunch are provided. Our 3-year-old PreK runs from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day, and our 4-year-old PreK runs from 7:30 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. (with an option for parent pick up at 12:30 p.m.). Transportation is provided for children ages 3 and up.

If more students are pre-registered for Pre-K for the 2023-24 school year than there are available seats, a lottery will be held on May 15. If Pre-K seats remain, they will be filled per UPK and district guidelines.

It is important to begin the registration process as soon as possible! Lyndonville CSD will be hosting a PreK Open House on July 4, but seats fill up quickly. Getting your application in as soon as possible will ensure a higher chance of an available spot for your student.

If you have any questions or would like more information about the program, please call or email Dr. Elissa Smith, Elementary School Principal, at (585) 765-3122 or esmith@lcsdk12.org.

You will need to provide your name, address, child’s name and child’s date of birth. More information can be found at lyndonvillecsd.org/registration.

Photos by Tom Rivers

LYNDONVILLE – Amelia Symons of Albion plays the euphonium during Saturday’s All-County Music Festival at the Stroyan Auditorium at Lyndonville Central School.

The event is presented by the Orleans County Music Educators Association and features top music students from Albion, Holley, Kendall, Lyndonville and Medina.

The concert featured an elementary band, junior high chorus and senior high band.

This was the second All-County concert. The first on Feb. 4 featured the elementary chorus, junior high band and high school chorus.

Roger Chagnon III, director of instrumental music at Westfield in Chautauqua County, directs the elementary band. They performed “March of the Phantom Brigade” by John Edmondson, “Haunted Clocks” by Brian Balmages, and “Tempest” by Robert W. Smith.

Kimberly Harrison, choral director at Sweet Home High School in Amherst, served as guest conductor for the junior high chorus which performed four songs: “Bonse Aba” arranged by Victor C. Johnson, “Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho” arranged by Lon Beery, “Homeward Bound” arranged by Jay Althouse, and “Don’t You Worry ’Bout a Thing” arranged by Roger Emerson.

ChrisJen Winters of Albion and Ava Blount of Medina were soloists for one of the songs by the Junior High Chorus.

Angela Dray, director of the concert band and jazz ensemble at North Tonawanda High School, served as guest conductor of the senior high band.

The senior high band performed  “Captain America March” arranged by Michael Brown, “English Folk Song Suite” arranged Ralph Vaughan Williams, and “Imaginarium” arranged by Randall D. Standridge.

The elementary band included 70 students from the five public school districts in the county.

The junior high chorus included 77 students in the county.

There were 74 students in the senior high band.

Thailer Seibert of Albion plays the tenor sax in the elementary band.

Senior high band students perform on Saturday. March is Music in our Schools Month and the local districts will be hosting their own concerts and events.