MEDINA – The Village Board is seeking a grant for up to $250,000 through the Tony Hawk Foundation and Ralph C. Wilson Foundation.

The Medina Skate Society will write the application and do the fundraising for the local match for the grant, said Alex Feig, who is leading the effort to upgrade the skate park at Butts Park. (The Orleans Renaissance Group, a non-profit organization, has agreed to accept any donations for the skate park.)

He told the Village Board on Monday that $22,000 has already been pledged for the project from a local business owner who requests anonymity.

Feig, 32, said other fundraisers and donations, as well as grants can meet the local match. The grant through the Hawk and Wilson foundations requires a local contribution of at least $50,000. Medina’s grant, if approved would range from $50,000 to $250,000, depending on the local contributions Feig said the community would have a year to raise the local share from when the grant is announced.

Feig has highlighted deficiencies at the current skate park, which is used by skateboarders and scooters. Feig said the skate park has aging equipment and cracks in the asphalt surface. He wants to reduce the size of the skate park, and put in a concrete surface and obstacles.

Feig was the lead organizer of a Skate Jam on Sept. 15. He used the event as an opportunity to survey skate park users and highlight the need to upgrade the site. The skate park was built on a former tennis court and has 20-year-old ramps, ledges and quarter pipes. The asphalt is prone to deterioration.

He told the Village Board an improved skate park would appeal to people who aren’t tied to traditional sports. He said it would also draw people to the community.

Tony Hawk is one of the most famous skateboarders in the world, and Ralph Wilson is the late founder and owner of the Buffalo Bills. Feig said the two foundations are embracing skate parks to promote recreation.

“It may well be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Feig said about the grant funding. “An impressive new skate park will increase the quality of life for residents of all ages while attracting new visitors to our community.”

If Medina is successful with the grant application, Feig said the Medina Skate Society will lead public meetings to see what features the community would like at the park.

The current skate park is 13,200 square feet, about twice the size of other skate parks in Western New York. Feig would like to see a skate park with a surface of 4,000 to 10,000 square feet. He would like public seating, new landscaping, and a stormwater management system in the new design.

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Medina firefighters Aaron MacKenzie and Tim Miller deliver filled red barrels to the First Methodist Church on Monday.

MEDINA – It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the First Methodist Church of Medina, where on Monday volunteers began sorting toys and gifts for MAAC’s annual Christmas giveaway.

This year, 75 families will receive toys, gifts and free Christmas dinner, thanks to the generosity of the Medina community.

Each year in early November, Medina firefighters distribute nearly two dozen red barrels to local businesses, churches and organizations, where they are filled with donations.

On Monday, those firefighters returned to collect the barrels and deliver them to the First Methodist Church, where up to 25 volunteers will work for the next three days to sort and pack holiday boxes.

Each family who applied and was approved will receive gifts, hats, mittens, scarves, socks and Christmas dinner, said Sherry Tuohey, who took over coordinating the project from Sue Metzo, after four years as a volunteer.

In addition to a ham, potatoes, vegetable, stuffing and dessert, other food items will also be included.

Eligible families who live in the Medina School District applied before Thanksgiving at Calvary Tabernacle and St. Peter’s Lutheran Church.

MAAC also accepts monetary donations, which are used to buy meat.

Holiday boxes will be delivered to applicants’ homes by Medina firefighters between 9 a.m. and noon on Saturday.

Sherry Tuohey, left, and Sue Metzo, organizers of MAAC’s Red Barrel program wait for Medina firefighters to bring back the red barrels to the First Methodist Church in Medina, where donations will be sorted.

Chris Horgan, left, and Hal Goodwin assemble boxes at the First Methodist Church of Medina, which will be filled with food and gifts for needy families.

Pastor Chad Wirth of Faith Covenant Fellowship in Medina delivers a red barrel full of donations to the First Methodist Church in Medina on Monday, where volunteers began packing holiday boxes.

Sherry Tuohey, coordinator of MAAC’s Red Barrel Campaign, accepts a check from Don Marchner on behalf of Jr. Wilson’s Sportsmen’s Club. The money will be used to buy hams and other food for Christmas dinner for needy families.

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Rita Zambito of Medina, front, joined a handful of exercise buffs Saturday at the YMCA to do burpees for money to provide Christmas for underprivileged children. At rear are Mike Zambito, Teresa Wilkins, and Lindsay Eaton.

MEDINA – A personal trainer in Medina found a unique way to turn muscles into money to help at-risk and underprivileged children have a happy Christmas.

On Saturday morning at the YMCA, Will King, who recently opened Studio Fit on Main Street, sponsored a fundraiser called Burpees 4 Gifts, in which he challenged anyone to come and do burpees for 30 minutes.

For those who aren’t familiar with a burpee, it is an exercise used in strength training which combines a squat, push-up and thrust (or jump-up).

King wanted to do something to help those less fortunate and chose to donate to New Directions Family Services in Lockport, an agency which helps at-risk and foster children in Orleans, Niagara, Monroe and Genesee counties. He formerly worked there and knows the need which exists, he said.

When King approached the YMCA, director Gred Reed offered to let King have use of a fitness room for the event, in which those participating got sponsors and then did burpees for 30 minutes.

One of those was Sandra Baxter of Albion, who thought the event was pretty exciting.

“I like to exercise and have done it for years, so I joined Studio Fit as soon as he opened,” Baxter said. “And I enjoy doing things to help others.”

Participants jumped and moved to a variety of holiday tunes, including “Jingle Bell Rock” and “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” taking an occasional break to catch their breath before starting a new round.

Several, including Kelly Moriarty and Vanessa King did 60 burpees before taking a short rest.

Among a dozen supporters who participated in Burpees 4 Gifts Saturday morning at the YMCA are, from left, Mike Zambito, Megan King, Rita Zambito, Teresa Wilkins (partly hidden), Kelly Moriarty, Lindsay Eaton, Vanessa King, David King, Fredericka King and Sandra Baxter.

At the end of the 30 minutes, the group had completed a combined 2,753 burpees and raised $1,100 in donations.

The object of the event wasn’t to be a fitness challenge, but a way to do something enjoyable for a good cause.

Rita Zambito, owner of Zambito Realty, trains with King and wanted to show her support, she said.

Anyone may still make a donation to the cause by sending or bringing a check for New Directions Family Services to Will King at his studio, 525 Main St., upstairs, from 5 a.m. to noon and 2 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“Since I had such a great turnout and support from local businesses and the community, I have plans to do this fundraiser again as an annual event,” King said.

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Lynn Creasey, president of Senior Citizens of Western Orleans, reads a comical version of ’Twas the Night Before Christmas to seniors at their annual Christmas luncheon today.

MEDINA – A visit by Medina High School’s A Capella Select Choir has been a holiday tradition at the Senior Center of Western Orleans for many years.

That tradition was repeated today during the Senior Center’s annual Christmas luncheon.

There was a new face in the crowd this year, however, a new director for the choir.

After 34 years as its leader, Medina High School graduate Lisa La Machia Roessler has retired.

The group’s new director is Jeremy Rath of Brockport, a former music teacher at Kendall Central School.

Rath said he met Roessler several times at county music functions, and when she suggested he apply for her job, he did.

“I am honored, scared and intimidated to follow in her footsteps,” Rath said. “It is such a treat to make music with these great musicians.”

The 25 members of the A Capella Select Choir make up about one-fourth of the award-winning A Capella Choir, Rath said.

The seniors’ Christmas celebration began with a comical reading of ’Twas the Night Before Christmas by Senior Center president Lynn Creasey, followed by lunch.

Director Jeremy Rath accompanies Medina’s A Capella Choir in singing Christmas songs at the Senior Center of Western Orleans. Their visit to the Senior Center has been a Christmas tradition for many years.

The choir arrived by bus and sang a variety of holiday tunes, including traditional carols, special arrangements, such as Biddy Bum, So This is Christmas, Carol of the Bells and a medley from “Charlie Brown’s Christmas.”

Ray Paull of Medina has been a member of A Capella going on three years and has been in the Select Choir each year, he said.

“I’ve come here to the Senior Center every year, and I really enjoy it,” he said.

In a new twist this year, after their performance, the choir took copies of sheet music to the seniors and sang with them.

The entire A Capella Choir will be featured in its annual Christmas concert at 7 p.m. Sunday at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.

Alissa Blount turns the pages for director Jeremy Rath, as he plays a lively number at the Senior Center of Western Orleans.

After entertaining the seniors today at the Senior Center of Western Orleans, members of the A Capella Select Choir went into the audience and sang with the crowd.

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The 314-page book tells the story of Medina’s cemetery that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

MEDINA – There’s no denying Todd Bensley’s fascination with history.

“As the Village of Medina historian and a history teacher at Medina High School, I guess you could say history is definitely my thing,” said Bensley, who has written a book on the history of Boxwood Cemetery.

Bensley will sign copies of his book Boxwood Cemetery: Where the Past is Present from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday the Book Shoppe, 519 Main St.

Bensley realized what a gem Boxwood Cemetery was when in 2015 he successfully wrote the application for the cemetery to be included on the National Register of Historic Places.

“As I delved into the cemetery’s history, I realized it is a great example of three movements in cemetery trends in the 19th and 20th centuries,” Bensley said.

These included being rural (on a hill), lawn/park areas and the memorial park.

For several years, Bensley brought his students to the cemetery to do research.

“It was most interesting how the cemetery reflects American history,” Bensley said. “People who are buried here made a name for themselves, locally, state-wide and nationally.”

Bensley said perhaps the most prominent person buried in Boxwood is S. Mainville Burroughs, who grew up and lived in Medina. He became involved in the pharmaceutical industry and his company became the giant GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals.

In addition to his students’ essays, Bensley has included in his book hundreds of obituaries, a listing of veterans buried in the cemetery and a compilation of other information related to the cemetery which cannot be found anywhere else.

The 314-page book includes 50 photographs. The books sell for $25. All proceeds will go to the Friends of Boxwood – an organization dedicated to the upkeep and promotion of the local treasure.

While this is Bensley’s first book, he has some ideas for another, but nothing definitive yet, he said.

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‘Nothing compares to the sound of a pipe organ’

Photo by Lisa Hancock: Judith Hancock will play the organ during a concert Sunday in Medina.

MEDINA – Dedication of Trinity Lutheran Church’s newly-expanded pipe organ in a concert Sunday will be like deja vu for nationally acclaimed organist Judith Hancock.

The 1968 Holtkamp organ, which was relocated from Christ Church Cathedral in Cincinnati, was played by Hancock’s late husband Gerre, who supervised its installation and performed when it was originally dedicated 50 years ago at Christ Church Cathedral. He passed away in 2012.

Judith Hancock is one of America’s leading concert organists, said Trinity Church’s organist Andrew Meier. Her husband was also revered for his skills with the instrument.

The organ is being expanded by the Timothy E. Smith Company.

“Trinity Medina is honored to have Dr. Hancock perform on the 50th anniversary of the Holtkamp’s original dedication,” Meier said.

Hancock has degrees from Syracuse University and Union Theological Seminary. She previosuly held positions of associate organist at St. Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue, and organist/director of music at St. James’ Church on Madison Ave., New York City. She has performed all over the world in solo performances, in concert with St. James Church choir and with her late husband.

Meier has been organist at Trinity Lutheran Church since 1995, when they had a small pipe organ. In 1998, they switched to an electronic organ, but returned to a pipe organ in 2015.

“Nothing compares to the sound of a pipe organ,” Meier said. “It is really authentic.”

Meier explained the Holtkamp organ is a rare instrument. The company, founded by Walter Holtkamp in Cleveland, only made about 300 of them. It’s probable he worked on Trinity’s organ himself, Meier said.

Meier said the Trinity church is honored to have Judith Hancock coming to perform in concert for this re-dedication of the Holtkamp organ.

“She is an exceptional organist, acclaimed nationally and internationally,” Meier said. “When her husband was named music director at St. Thomas Church in New York City, she became associate music director with him. She has extraordinary performance ability.”

Meier said it is amazing that 700 miles and 50 years later, she’s playing at the Holtkamp’s re-dedication.

The concert will begin at 3 p.m. and a reception will follow at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1212 West Ave.

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ARG Disposal disguised this truck as Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer for Medina’s Parade of Lights Saturday night. ARG used recycled materials it reclaimed at its Albion business to make the display.

MEDINA – It was a night to remember in Medina.

Saturday’s 10th annual Parade of Lights unfolded before a crowd of thousands who packed Main Street to view the spectacular event.

Earlier in the day, a light rain was reason to worry whether the parade should be canceled. But after a meeting of the committee with village officials, the decision was made the show would go on, said parade chairman Jim Hancock.

The day began with the arrival of Santa Claus at noon. All day in the village, vendors lined the streets and merchants offered special deals to shoppers.

The dinner hour found Megan McGraph and her children, Aiden, 15, Owen, 10 and Brinn, 4, taking a break from shopping to have supper at the Country Club Restaurant.

“Although I live in Albion, we come to this every year,” McGraph said. “I work in Medina and have a lot of friends here, and this event is so phenomenal. I’m so impressed with all the businesses who participate.”

The family arrived early so the children could see Santa. Brinn told him she wanted building blocks and a baby that cries for Christmas.

Fireworks were a spectacle in the sky before the start of the parade.

Former Medina mayor Adam Tabelski, his wife Rachel and two children came to spend the day and watch the Parade of Lights.

“I’ve been back several times for the parade,” said Tabelski, who now lives in Batavia. “We’ve had hot chocolate at the Shirt Factory Café, chocolates at Della’s and now supper at the Country Club and then the parade.”

Tabelski was excited about seeing the statue of the World War I-era soldier which was going to be introduced to Medina for the first time in the parade.

“I was mayor 10 years ago when the pedestal for the monument was dedicated,” he said. “I’m anxious to see it completed.”

The statue of a doughboy was a lead float in the parade, having just been delivered from the foundry at the University of Buffalo, where it was fired. It is the culmination of a dream by the late Bill Menz to pay tribute to the men who trained for four world conflicts at the Medina Armory – in Company F and later Company C.

A bronze statue made its public debut during the parade with a message, “Thank you veterans!”

Menz died in July, just four months before the statue was completed.

Bill’s widow Betty and daughter Mary Beth Germano had front row seats for the parade.

“This is going to be so emotional,” Betty said. “Once Bill started this project, everything took a back seat. He may not be here physically, but his spirit is all around us.”

Daughter Lynne Menz picked up the ball where her dad left off, and saw the project to completion. She rode in the parade with Cathy Fox and Cathy Whittleton Iorio, both daughters of Company F veterans.

Also at the event were Bill and Betty’s daughter Teresa Menz, son and daughter-in-law Tim and Karen Menz and granddaughters Alissa, Meghan and Natalie.

As the statue was removed from storage at the Pickle Factory to head to the parade, the family took a minute to offer a toast to Bill and all those whose support resulted in completion of Bill Menz’ dream.

The Mark Time Marchers performed in the parade.

Donna Johnson of Medina volunteered in the Santa House in Rotary Park, working with the scavenger hunt. Children had to find certain items in the stores and then bring their results to the Santa House.

Photo by Ginny Kropf: Prime Time Brass of Rochester plays Christmas music in Rotary Park as the giant Christmas tree is lit.

In spite of rain most of the afternoon, Johnson said there were good crowds, and everyone was having a wonderful time.

“People were wet but happy,” she said.

The rain had subsided by late afternoon, and crowds gathered near Rotary Park at 5 p.m. to hear the Mark Time Marchers from Churchville play Christmas songs and some old favorites. This was followed by lighting of the giant Christmas tree in the park and then fireworks over downtown.

Shortly after 6 p.m., the parade led off from the Pickle Factory, and down Park Avenue to Main Street, where people filled the sidewalks.

The 45 floats featured entries by fire companies, service groups, churches and local businesses.

All entrants were asked to incorporate the number “10” in their float, honoring the 10th anniversary of the parade.

Bentley Brothers of Albion entered 10 RVs, all named for reindeer. In addition to the eight original reindeer and Rudolph, the 10th was “Kubota,” a reindeer in training.

ARG Disposal was hardly recognizable as a garbage truck, adorned with lights to look like a reindeer.

Interestingly, according to Hancock, almost 40 percent of the entries were first-timers. Judging was very close for all the awards, he said.

“We thank all groups who entered a float in our 10th anniversary edition of the most spectacular parade in all of Western New York,” Hancock said. “See you next year.”

Velocitii was one of the Medina businesses who decorated a float for the parade.

Dunkin’ Donuts and Grace Baptist Church put together festive displays.

The Medina Marching Band, including some alumni, showed their holiday spirit.

Santa Claus and Buddy the Elf greet their many fans along the parade route.

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