By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 April 2021 at 10:11 am
MEDINA – The Village Board will meet this afternoon to adopt a village budget for 2021-22. The Village Board will look to reduce a tax increase that was at 2.6 percent during a public hearing on Monday evening.
“We think there is a little bit more we can for reductions,” Mayor Mike Sidari said during the hearing.
The tentative budget increases taxes by 2.9 percent, with the tax levy going up $92,060, from $3,197,059 to $3,289,119.
The tax rate would increase by 2.7 percent from $18.46 to $18.95 per $1,000 of assessed property.
The budget increases overall spending 2.9 percent or by $173,784, from $5,925,742 to $6,099,526.
The board will meet today at 4 p.m. at the Village Clerk’s Office to go over the spending plan and then vote on it. The budget needs to be passed by April 30.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 April 2021 at 1:49 pm
Provided photos
MEDINA – Boy Scouts from Troop 35 and Cub & Webelos Scouts from Pack 35 participated in Canal Clean Sweep on April 17 and filled several bags of trash.
The Scouts picked up garbage starting at the Culvert Road tunnel and worked on the area on the canal towpath to the Beals Road Bridge, and also about a mile east of Culvert Road.
Troop 35 and Pack 35 have registered with the Canal Clean Sweep program for the past several years.
“This is a great way for the scouts to earn their community service hours and help keep the community and its resources looking great,” said John Dieter, Scoutmaster of Troop 35.
MEDINA – The annual meeting of the Lee-Whedon Memorial Library will be held at the library on Monday, May 10, at 7 p.m.
Agenda items include voting on a trustee position, the presentation of the annual report and the presentation of the proposed budget. Trustee Steve O’Dea is seeking re-election to the Board for a five-year term.
The Board has prepared another conservative budget for 2021-2022. There will be no increase in the library tax with the amount unchanged at $546,285.
“The Board is sensitive to the pressures felt by taxpayers, particularly in the Village of Medina,” said David Schwert, Board President. “As fiscal stewards, we constantly strive to balance increased operation costs with a conservative revenue request. We are proud of our staff and our high standards of service.”
Residents of the Medina Central School District are invited to attend this public meeting. The library is located at 620 West Ave.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 April 2021 at 9:37 am
Provided photos
MEDINA – The Medina Rotary Club was part of Saturday’s Canal Clean Sweep, with community organizations and residents along the canal system out picking up garbage along the historic waterway.
The Medina Rotary Club worked on the area near the Marshall Road bridge, taking the path west to Fruit Avenue. They filled several bags with trash.
The Rotary Club rejoined the cleanup effort this year. Some of the participants included Carl Tuohey, Jeanne Tuohey, Jackson Tuohey, Cindy Hewitt, Joe Pane, Ben and Lydia McPherson, David Nixon, and organizer Gary Lawton.
Lydia McPherson finds a can and other debris near the canal during Saturday’s cleanup.
Local resident Colleen Brakenbury also led a cleanup on Saturday in Medina for the Canal Clean Sweep. That group met at the Prospect Avenue bridge and went to the State Street canal bridge. They filled about 20 bags with trash.
The Medina Sandstone Society also is planning to pick up garbage near the Canal Culvert this Friday and may work on other areas as part of the United Way’s “Day of Caring.”
The Medina Lions Club is planning its annual environmental cleanup day on May 1. Volunteers will pick up trash from Medina village parks and streets, and spread mulch along the north bank of the canal in the village.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 April 2021 at 3:16 pm
Provided photos
MEDINA – Tessa Costich, a sixth grader at Wise Middle School in Medina, turned 12 on April 22. This year she didn’t want any presents. Instead, she asked family and friends to use money they would have spent on gifts to buy birthday kits that she could distribute to community groups.
So far Tess has put together 165 kits and donated some to the Gasport Food Pantry, Hands 4 Hope ministry and St Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Medina. She is looking to connect with another church to give away more of the kits.
The kits are a disposable tin pan, a box of cake mix, can of frosting, sprinkles, candles and party blowers. Some have vanilla cake with chocolate frosting, some red velvet cake. There have also been some cookie and brownie kits minus the frosting.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 25 April 2021 at 10:29 am
Provided photos: The Masterminds team competed virtually against the other teams and is undefeated so far this season.
MEDINA – A team of students at Medina High School are undefeated in a national academic varsity quiz tournament.
The Masterminds is led by algebra teacher Jeff Dole and includes freshman Alex Balaban, juniors David Berry, Isaac Pace and Arian Cayea, and seniors Suvi Biesinger, Alwyn Cayea and Carter Green, who make up the varsity team.
Jeff Dole, math teacher at Medina High School and adviser for the undefeated Masterminds, talks with senior David Berry, a member of the team. They will compete in the league playoffs on April 30 in Rochester.
The team is 12-0 for the first time in its history. Balaban is high scorer in the league with 570 points. Pace is fourth with 345 points.
There are also two junior varsity teams, one of which is 7-5 and the other 4-8.
The varsity Masterminds have placed first before, but have never been undefeated until this year, Dole said. Their score as of a week ago was 3,250 points, while the nearest competitor was 1,460 points.
Due to the Covid pandemic, the teams have had to compete online this year in the league, which includes teams from Albion, Holley, Kendall and Pembroke. They will face off April 30 with nine teams in the Rochester league. The top three will advance to the next round of the playoffs.
Topics of trivia can be on any subject, Dole said. This includes everything from comic books, sports and history to current events in the world and math.
Dole said the kids like competing in trivia, and whenever they can go to a competition they make an event of it.
“We stop and eat and socialize on the bus,” Dole said. “The kids also like talking to the students at other schools.”
Dole said some of the students decided not to join the team this year because they didn’t like the online format.
Each of the members of the team is especially knowledgeable in a different subject. Alex is an expert in geography and history; Isaac is well rounded; and David knows a lot about sports. Carter knows a lot about pop culture, while Alwyn’s strong points are Greek mythology, science and Roman gods.
“They all have their strong points,” Dole said.
In addition to the Masterminds, Dole coaches varsity track and junior varsity volleyball.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 23 April 2021 at 8:57 pm
Provided photo: From left, Brian Fox, ETR president/CEO of Iroquois Job Corps; John Thomas, operations director; Rafael Rodriguez, Independent Living adviser; and Dennis Essom, Center director, pose in the Conference Room after Rodriguez was honored for saving the life of a fellow Job Corps employee.
MEDINA – An employee of Iroquois Job Corps was recognized this week for saving the life of a fellow employee.
Rafael Rodriguez is an Independent Living adviser who, without hesitation, put his First Aid/CPR training to work by performing the Heimlich maneuver on another staff member who was choking on an object lodged in his throat.
His actions saved the fellow staff member’s life, said Dennis Essom, Center director, in a press release.
Rodriguez was presented with a certificate of recognition, a monetary award and a paid day off.
The award was presented by Brian Fox, ETR president/CEO; John Thomas, operations director; and Dennis Essom, Center director.
Provided photo: Nicole Tuohey and Case-Nic Cookies, which is owned by her mother Mary Lou Tuohey, sold cookies last month in a fundraiser for the Arc of Genesee Orleans.
Press Release, Arc of Genesee Orleans
MEDINA – Arc of Genesee Orleans extends heartfelt thanks to Nicole Tuohey and the team at Case-Nic Cookies for an impressive $3,200 raised to benefit Arc services during Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month in March.
The proceeds came from Nicole’s “Have a Heart” campaign which included a window raffle and the sale of frosted heart cutout cookies!
Arc’s Director of Development Shelley Falitico was on hand at Case-Nic Cookies recently to accept the donation and thanked Nicole and her mother, Mary Lou, for always keeping Arc of Genesee Orleans and Arc Services close to heart.
“The Tuohey family has been connected to our agency for decades and they’re always ready and willing to help,” Falitico said. “We’re so appreciative!”
Nicole and her family urge people not to label others who may seem different because of disabilities and remember that while people share a lot of differences, they are also alike in many ways.
Auto body students converting Brinks truck into a command vehicle
Provided photos: Brayden James (Niagara Academy), Lt. Todd Draper, Noah Poler (Lyndonville) and teacher Ron Jackson are shown with some of the steel targets made for the Medina PD to use for firearms training.
Press Release, Orleans/Niagara BOCES
MEDINA – Lieutenant Todd Draper of the Medina Police Department says the department has always enjoyed their relationship with Orleans/Niagara BOCES.
Not only does Lt. Draper serve on the Advisory Committee for the Security and Law Enforcement program at the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center (OCTEC), the auto body program and the welding program have been helping the Police Department with projects to assist in their mission.
A finished target is shown next to a Medina patrol car.
“The OCTEC principal Mike Mann has been terrific to work with and so have the teachers,” Lt. Draper said. “They have helped us with safety planning and allowing us to tour the building. The auto body teacher Tom Struebing and his class are converting a Brinks truck into a command vehicle, which we can share with the Medina Fire Department. Now the welding program, taught by Eric Farrell and Ron Jackson, is helping with making steel targets for the police to use for our firearm training.”
Lt. Draper says the targets will make the training for the police officers more exciting.
“There is something very satisfying hearing that ‘clang’ when you are at the range,” Draper said. “It helps to mix the training up and make it more realistic since they will show the upper torso and head and there are also targets that represent hostages or good people. We think we will get a lot of positive response from our officers using these instead of paper targets.”
Three junior welding students: Brayden James, Noah Poler and Dillion Wagner were assigned the project.
“It is pretty cool to be helping the community with the skills we are learning here,” Brayden said.
“I really enjoyed this project,” Dillion said. “It’s rewarding, we actually get to build something and help the police department.”
Lt. Draper has stopped in to the class to see their progress. He said he enjoys his time with the students as they tell him what equipment and techniques they have used to make the firearm targets.
“It has been very beneficial to us,” Draper said. “We are a small department and our budget is not the largest. The targets are very expensive to buy, so having the class help us has been gratifying and beneficial for all of us.”
Lt. Draper said he and the Medina Police Department would like to extend their thanks to the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center for all their time and energy.
“We truly appreciate all the effort the students and teachers have put in to helping out the department,” he said. “On a personal note, I really enjoy talking to the students and seeing their excitement in showing me what they have accomplished. It is great to see the sense of pride they have in their work.”
Teacher Eric Farrell, Brayden James (Niagara Academy), Dillon Wagner (Barker) and Lt. Todd Draper are shown with some of the targets made by the welding students.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 19 April 2021 at 9:10 am
MEDINA – The high school will be virtual for learning the next week due to a Covid outbreak. The district plans to have students back for in-person later at the high school next Tuesday, April 27.
All BOCES programs also will be virtual during this time. The other Medina schools are fully open.
The district will also have to postpone the state assessment tests for grades 7 and 8 until when students are back for school in-person.
Mark Kruzynski, the district superintendent, said there are currently seven students in the high school who have tested positive and many others are quarantined. Kruzynski said all of the cases have been traced back to transmission outside of school.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 18 April 2021 at 8:59 am
Isabelle King Schultz feels the love during celebration at the Willows
Provided photos: Ariana McCuen, 7, gets a hug from her great-great-grandmother, Isabelle Schultz, during a 100th birthday celebration on Saturday.
MEDINA – Isabelle King Schultz celebrated a milestone birthday on Saturday in a very special way.
Schultz, who turned 100 on Friday, was honored on Saturday with visits from her family and friends and a parade of cars through the Willows to wish her happy birthday.
Born April 16, 1921 in Johnson Creek to James and Anna Annable Noble, Schultz spent some of her early childhood in Canada, but lived most of her live in the Middleport/Medina area.
She married Emory Bauer, with whom she had three children, Bill Bauer of Texas, Mary Ann Bauer of Niagara Falls and the late Dian Bauer Grove. After they separated, she married Robert King and had twins Susan King Webber of Middleport and Sharon King Kusmierczak of Brockport and Steven King. After Robert died, she married Donald Schultz.
She has 16 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and eight great-great-grandchildren.
Schultz, who has lived at the Willows for the last 15 years, is a member of the United Methodist Church in Middleport, where she ran their turkey dinners for many years. She drove Tri-Town Ambulance and also worked in the Roy-Hart School cafeteria for 15 years. She loved to go camping with her family.
Schultz noted she had seen the coronation of Queen Elizabeth and her marriage to Prince Philip, and the day she celebrated her 100th birthday, Schultz watched Prince Philip’s funeral.
She remembers her family’s first car – a Ford, and also remembers their house had no indoor plumbing and they used an outhouse.
While in her teens, Schultz taught herself to knit, a hobby which became her passion and which she still enjoys today. The hundreds of items she has made include lap robes, Mary Maxim sweaters, Christmas stockings, baby hats and mittens, many of which she gave to church groups.
Although she is hard of hearing, she can still see well enough to knit, and friends were invited to bring her a skein of any kind of “Red Heart” yarn for her birthday.
The family set up a table and chairs outside the entrance to the Willows, where Schultz sat bundled up in front of a little heater, so cars could drive down the driveway and wish her a happy birthday. Many stopped to hand a gift bag out the window or run up and give it to her with a hug.
She still enjoys having her nails and hair done and reads her Bible faithfully.
Isabelle Schultz, who celebrated her 100th birthday on Saturday at the Willows, is surrounded by four of her children. From left are Mary Ann Bauer of Niagara Falls, Sharon Kusmierczak of Brockport, Steven King of Newfane and Susan Webber of Middleport.
Isabelle Schultz celebrated her 100th birthday on Saturday at the Willows with four of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and one great-great-granddaughter. She is pictured here with her grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-granddaughter.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 April 2021 at 12:26 pm
MEDINA – There are three seats up for election on May 18. Candidates for the positions need to submit petitions signed by at least 25 registered voters in the school district by 5 p.m. April 19 to be eligible to be on the ballot.
The following Board of Education seats are open this year:
Two 3-year terms for seats currently held by Dr. Ann Webster-Bunch and Lori Draper
One 1-year term for the seat currently held by Brian Koch. (The winner of this seat will begin immediately after the election on May 18.)
For information about a petition, please call Julie Kuhn, District Clerk, at 798-2700, option 6, 1.
Provided photos: A group of kayakers led by Coby Albone paddle down the Erie Canal near Medina before the pandemic. Albone oversees the kayaking program for the YMCA.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 14 April 2021 at 7:50 am
MEDINA – A new program started by Greg Reed, director of the Orleans County YMCA, is designed to attract tourists and give local residents a chance to be active by experiencing more of Medina has to offer – on land and water.
In 2019, Reed wrote a grant to the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation’s Legacy Fund for $25,000 to purchase bikes and kayaks, which can be rented by tourists and Medina residents.
Kayakers taking part in the YMCA’s Canal Club, paddle near Medina Falls on Glenwood Lake. YMCA director Greg Reed started the club in 2019 with a grant from the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation Legacy Fund.
He started the YMCA Canal Club, which he sees as being able to promote Medina and the canal year round.
“We have a great natural resource in the canal, and this provides a great opportunity to run such a program,” Reed said.
He thinks not only bikes and kayaks would be popular, but mountain bikes and snowshoes. The Canal Club members would receive lower rental fees, but the equipment would be open to the community, as well.
Reed said he came from Denver, where bikes can be rented year round. He pitched his idea to the Medina Village Board at its last meeting, asking to have a small shed in the canal basin to store kayaks and a bike rack in Rotary Park from which to rent bikes.
The bikes and/or scooters would be e-bikes, which means an individual can unlock them and pay the rental with an app on their phone.
Last year, Reed applied for and was approved for a $40,000 matching grant from the Erie Canalway Corridor’s Consolidated Fund. He ordered bikes and then the pandemic hit. They arrived in August, and Reed has been waiting for guidance from the state to be updated so they can be used.
Reed said the New York State Power Authority is promoting their Staycation Program and while they are on board with rentals, they have not said what they will do regarding excursions until the pandemic is over.
The YMCA has purchased 10 bikes, and depending how it goes, Reed said he would like to order 20 more. He would also like to have some suited for people with disabilities.
In the meantime, he said the YMCA will continue its regular biking and kayaking programs from the canal basin to Culvert Road and back. He said Pittsford did a similar program last year and he wants to replicate it here.
He said when tourists come to Medina, they are looking for things to do and this would promote tourism and local businesses.
“This will be complimentary to our business,” Reed said.
Coby Albone is heading the Canal Club programming. Another local sporting enthusiast is David Fuller of Medina, who is also planning to do waterway recreation, such as tubes and kayaks. He has wanted to have rentals for some time and recently partnered with the Erie Canal Boat Company in Lockport to make it happen.
Coby Albone instructs kayakers how to paddle before entering Glenwood Lake.
Fuller said he will be working with the Erie Canal Boat Company, which also has a launch pad in Fairport. In addition, Fuller has a friend who lives on the Oak Orchard River at 3359 North Gravel Rd. and has agreed to make his property available for kayakers and canoers.
Fuller will keep his equipment there and plans to install an outdoor bathroom and changing room. He said boaters can travel the river to Bates Road, where a resident allows launching there, but asks that users respect the property. From there, it is possible to continue to Oak Orchard on the Ridge or Knowlesville Townline Road.
Fuller will also provide shuttle service for kayakers and canoers who need a ride back to their cars. Bikes are available for rent now, and other equipment will be available May 7. Fuller has tubes, kayaks, boats and two stand-up paddle boards. Information on rentals can be found by logging on to the Erie Canal Boat Company’s website and clicking on the Medina section.
Fuller’s bikes include two e-bikes which can be rented at Vine Street Park.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 9 April 2021 at 2:27 pm
Photo by Ginny Kropf: George Bidleman, an owner of Orleans Ford and Hartway Motors in Medina and Bidleman Chevrolet in Albion, stands amid a row of new vehicles at Orleans Ford after wrapping up a month-long promotion at his dealerships to benefit United Way of Orleans County.
MEDINA – United Way of Orleans County got a boost in its fundraising efforts with the announcement from George Bidleman that a fundraiser he conducted in March has resulted in a donation of $9,200.
Bidleman, a long-time supporter of United Way and president of United Way of Orleans County, pledged to donate $25 for every vehicle sold at his dealerships during the month of March and to give each buyer an opportunity to match the donation.
Bidleman has been in the automotive business for 38 years, with 34 of them in Orleans County, where he has continued to grow and expand his holdings. His first dealership was Molye Chevrolet in Honeoye Falls. He next opened Orleans Ford in Medina. In 2018, he became co-owner of Bidleman Chevrolet Buick GMC in Albion, and last year acquired an ownership stake in Hartway Motors in Medina. He just recently purchased Bidleman Ford in Auburn.
United Way director Dean Bellack thanked Bidleman for his leadership and generosity.
“George lives up to his belief of ‘Give Back, Get Back,’” Bellack said. “George has set a path for us to follow with his personal and business investments to make Orleans County better for us all.”
Bidleman said he was happy for the opportunity to give to United Way and thanked the customers who participated in the fundraiser for their generosity.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 7 April 2021 at 8:23 am
Photo by Ginny Kropf: Members of the John E. Butts Memorial Fund pose around the monument in Butts Park paying tribute to the Medina native who was killed in World War II. From left are Jim Freas, Peter Huth, Dave Barhite, Dave Kusmierczak and Steve Johnson. The fund awards a $500 scholarship in Butts’ name to a senior at Medina High School each year.
MEDINA – The John E. Butts Memorial Fund is seeking donations to support the organization and its efforts to award scholarships to graduating Medina seniors.
The fund in honor of the Medina native who was killed during World War II was started in 1981 by a group of Medina citizens who wanted to build a memorial to Butts. After a monument honoring the soldier was built in Butts Park, there was money left over and a scholarship was started.
John Butts was awarded the Medal of Honor for acts of valor in the Normandy invasion in June 1944.
John Edward Butts was a 2nd lieutenant in the United States Army and a rifle platoon leader who received the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions above and beyond the call of duty during the Normandy Campaign in World War II. Butts was one of five brothers who served in the war and the only one to be killed in action. He was born Aug. 4, 1922 in Medina and died in action June 23, 1944.
The fund, which also maintains the monument in Butts Park, awards a $500 scholarship each year to a senior at Medina High School. The organization relies on donations from the community to keep the fund going, said Dave Kusmierczak, secretary-treasurer of the John E. Butts Memorial Fund.
Other members of the organization which manages the fund are Peter Huth, president; Dave Barhite, vice president; and Steve Johnson, Jim Freas, Dave Morien and John Pera, board members. Jacquelyn Organisciak from Key Bank oversees the finances.
Kusmierczak said Huth goes to the school every year with applications for students to fill out, indicating life and career goals, their school activities, student income, a summary of the college they’d like to attend and what they want to study.
The scholarship isn’t awarded until the student enters college. In the event a scholarship isn’t awarded, leftover money is used for flowers around the monument in Butts Park.
Anyone wishing to make a donation in honor of Butts can send a check to the John E. Butts Memorial Fund in care of David Kusmierczak, 413 East Oak Orchard St., Medina, 14103.
