MEDINA – Medina High School English teacher Karen Jones recently had an honored guest in her classroom. Medina High School alumni and author, Julie Berry, paid a visit to Mrs. Jones’ 7th and 9th period seniors to discuss her book, “All The Truth That’s in Me.” The students had just finished reading it for an assignment.
The book is about a young woman named Judith and what happens to her after her best friend and she disappear from their small town. She returns permanently mutilated, reviled and ignored by those around her and eventually finds her voice again.
The book has won critical acclaim and has an Edgar Award nomination, A YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Top Ten Title, A Junior Library Guild Selection, A School Library Journal Best Book of 2013, A Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book for 2013, A Horn Book Fanfare 2013 title, a 2014 TAYSHAS Top Ten Pick and was on the short list for the Carnegie Medal.
“It was such a pleasure to have Julie in my class. We went to school together,” says Mrs. Jones. “It was a great opportunity for my students to be able to discuss the book with her. She also shared with them her new book that has recently been released. I am very appreciative she came in and spent time with all of us.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 May 2016 at 12:00 am
MEDINA – The school district’s budget for 2016-17 reduces taxes for the fourth straight year.
The Board of Education approved a $35,825,184 budget that goes before district voters on May 17. The budget is up about $1 million from the $34,802,870 in 2015-16.
The state has boosted aid by nearly $900,000 and Medina is tapping some of its reserve funds to lower taxes in 2016-17, Mark Kruzynski, the district’s business administrator, said.
“We’re in a great spot with our reserves and we’re going to use some,” he said this morning.
The new state budget boosts aid to Medina from $23,769,997 to $24,860,152. That increase is a big factor in Medina’s ability to cut taxes by 1.3 percent, from $8,774,760 to $8,660,915.
The budget keeps all existing programs and also boosts the gifted and talented offerings.
Voting will be from noon to 8 p.m. on May 17 at the District Office.
The vote includes the Board of Education election. There are six people running for three three-year terms, including incumbents Lori Draper and Wendi Pencille.
Retired Medina school administrator Alberta Suozzi also is running for the board along with Timothy Dunham, Virginia Nicholson and Brenda Lindsay. (Draper and Pencille are seeking re-election and John McCarthy opted against seeking another term.)
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 April 2016 at 12:00 am
Students join in tree planting at State Street Park
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – The Village of Medina celebrated Arbor Day today with help from students from Oak Orchard Elementary School. The village held a tree-planting celebration at State Street Park.
The village has planted about 1,500 trees in the past 15 years. This Arbor Day marks the ninth year in a row that the Village of Medina has been awarded the Tree City USA designation by the National Arbor Day Foundation. The award honors Medina’s commitment to community forestry.
Medina is planted 71 trees this spring, mostly along areas of West Center Street with additional plantings on West Avenue, Gwinn Street and State Street Park.
Aidyn Jackson, a Medina first-grader, puts the final shovel of dirt on a flowering pear tree at State Street Park. The village planted six flowering pear trees along the park’s perimeter.
This first grade class poses for a picture in front a newly planted tree.
Dan Doctor, the Oak Orchard principal, gets a picture of students by a new tree. Doctor told the kids to “Say Trees!” when he took the picture.
Medina Mayor Michael Sidari is pictured with Tree Board Chairman Chris Busch on a stage during the Arbor Day celebration. Sidari said saplings will go to be tall trees. He told students to return to the park often as adults and take pride in the new trees.
The mayor also read a proclamation about Arbor Day.
Sidari and Busch presented a “Friend of the Urban Forest Award” to Bob Sanderson, a Medina resident who donated $5,700 to plant many of the new trees. Sanderson owns Candlelight Cabinetry and Kitchen World in Lockport, employing 230 people. The company uses lots of wood, and Sanderson said the business is committed to planting new trees through several “Tree Hugger Initiatives.” Sanderson said Medina is becoming known as “the town that plants all of the trees.”
Medina third-graders Garrett Koch, center, and Elizabeth Thompson read a poem about Arbor Day. They are joined by teacher Nicole Goyette.
Mayor Sidari poses with elementary students after planting trees at State Street Park.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 April 2016 at 12:00 am
File photo Tom Rivers – The Worthington Cylinders plant, which closed on July 31, 2014, had its assessment lowered from $2,397.400 to $925,700 in 2016. That has shifted more tax burden to other village property owners.
MEDINA – Village Board members on Monday unanimously approved the village’s budget for 2016-17, which barely raises taxes.
The $5,045,818 budget increases spending by only $8,727 or 0.17 percent. The village will collect $2,855,336 in the tax levy, which is up only $6,728 or 0.23 percent.
Village property owners, however, will see their tax rates rise by 1.0 percent or 17 cents per $1,000 of assessed property because of the continued shrinkage of the village’s overall tax base. The tax rate will increase from $17.13 to $17.30 per $1,000 of assessed property.
The village’s tax base is down by $1,255,721 or 0.76 percent (from $166,252,163 to $164,996,442). That decline was driven by a reassessment of the Worthington Cylinders plant in Medina, which closed on July 31, 2014, putting 152 people out of work at the former Bernz-O-Matic site. The property’s assessment was reduced by more than $1.4 million from $2,397,400 to $925,700.
The village’s tax base would have been up slightly if not for the Worthington reassessment, Mayor Michael Sidari said. He sees the stabilization of neighborhood values as a good sign. Future budgets will also show tax revenue from the new Pride Pak vegetable processing plant and village may work out a contract for tax revenue for providing sewer service for the STAMP site in the Town of Alabama, in addition to sewer charges.
Sidari and village trustees on Monday praised the village department heads for working hard to contain costs in their budgets. That helped prevent a bigger tax increase for 2016-17, a fiscal year that starts June 1.
“It was a very difficult budget with the lost taxable value from Bernz-O-Matic,” said Trustee Owen Toale. “I’m very pleased with the budget. This year we’re going to find more ways to be responsible with taxpayer money.”
The budget appears to be below the tax cap, which generally allows for about a 2 percent increase in taxes. However, a complicated formula from the state sometimes means the tax cap will be less.
The Village Board unanimously voted to override the tax cap on Monday, “just to be on the safe side,” said Village Clerk-Treasurer Debbie Padoleski.
Provided photo – Students from the Orleans/Niagara BOCES spent part of Friday picking up trash along the Erie Canal in Medina. The group includes, front, from left: Haley Fronczak, Noel Mireles, Catherine Bruscino and Matthew Johnidas. Back Row: Mrs. Wiley, Justin Wargala, Brandon Mazur and Brianna Reilly.
Press Release, Orleans/Niagara BOCES
MEDINA – Orleans/Niagara BOCES students from the Orleans Learning Center headed out to Lions Park in Medina to lend a hand in honor of Earth Day.
Teacher Kim Wiley and her class have been discussing the significance of Earth Day and decided they would like to do something to honor the day. The students headed to the park, armed with trash grabbers and trash bags, and spent a sunny afternoon cleaning up litter from the canal area.
“We had a great day,” says Mrs. Wiley. “When we got back to our classroom the students all wrote about how helping out made them feel. They all said they were happy to do their part and liked being outdoors.”
MEDINA – The Medina Mustang Band kicked off its Spring Street Season traveling to Disney World in Florida with 130 students performing in the Magic Kingdom’s Grand Parade on Friday.
The repertoire was a selection of themes from Disney movies. The parade is about 1/2 mile long and 9 bands perform per day. A band has to be approved by Disney to perform in the parade and that is done by sending a video to them for their review.
While there is no scoring or rating system, Band Director Jim Steele said the kids did a great job. There were many positive comments from the crowd afterwards, and that included people who were not from Medina. There was a large contingent of Medina people there to cheer the kids on. The chaperones did a great job as well.
The next opportunity to see the band perform is the Seneca Falls Pageant May 20-21.
This photo includes back row, from left: Teacher Nicole Homme, Kathryn Young, Jamie Boyce, Taylor Hurrell, Hannah Sones, Alexandria Sargent. Front Row: Hailee Ogden, Bryanna Sikorski, Mercedes Wilson, Megan Dunn and Morgan Roach.
Press Release, Medina Central School
MEDINA – Mercedes Wilson is 2000 graduate from Medina High School. Recently she found herself back on campus with a new mission.
She spent several days talking with the high school girls about feeling confident in expressing themselves and being their own advocate when it comes to their health.
“When I was 28 years old I was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer,” says Mrs. Wilson. “I thought I had a pulled muscle and when I discussed it with my doctor they assured me that I was too young to be concerned about anything. I was fortunate enough when I started to go to a new doctor that they insisted that I get it checked out. It was devastating to think if I had pushed to be tested earlier, I would not have had to undergo what I did.”
Her journey inspired her to start the organization For Our Daughters (click here). Its focus is to empower young women to break down communication barriers and become advocates for their own health and wellness.
“Our youth are under an immense amount of pressure and while they are developing, it is our job to teach them valuables,” she says. “Not only do we address self-esteem issues, but encourage communication with parent/guardians.”
Mrs. Wilson was invited to talk to the students during their gym period by teacher Nicole Homme. The girls ran different scenarios on how to communicate with their mothers showing a productive way to do that and a negative way. Mrs. Homme says she thinks the students respond better to hear these important strategies from someone on the outside.
“Her story is very personal and she has experience of what happens if you don’t learn communication skills earlier on in life,” Homme says. “She tells the students if they feel something is not right, they need to advocate and communicate what it is that they are feeling. It is a very valuable lesson.”
This group participated in Zumba led by Ashley Ramsey, owner of FIT Method in North Tonawanda. She is in front of photo. Other participants include second row, from left: Abigail Neuman, Abbigail Lilly, Kali Worley, Lillian Alberi, Regan Dole, Brooke Bearss, Paige Dunn and Shelby Weese. Back row: Syiera Dow, Alexis Greco, Jessica Lawrence, Nicole Cooper, Jelia Howard, Nodia Osby, Hannah Heil, Divere Brown, Brianna Bearss and Jizzell Banks.
As part of the workshop, a Zumba instructor, Ashley Ramsey from FIT Method in North Tonawanda, came in to teach a class to the students.
“Being active is a key to promoting a healthy life,” says Mrs. Wilson. “Hopefully it will instill a desire to do some sort of activity for the rest of their lives. We can do better, if we know better.”
Mrs. Wilson talks regularly to many local high schools and hopes to reach her goal of reaching 1,500 young women in the Western New York area.
“These girls deserve a world where they feel confident, empowered, and their voices are heard,” she said.
Provided photos – Cattrianna Hernandez (left), Megan Seefeldt and Madison Kenward clean up on the high school campus on Monday.
Press Release, Medina Central School
MEDINA – Instead of leaving for their half day at school, many Medina High School students chose to stay behind and help to clean up around the school and the community on April 18.
Students, along with their teacher-mentors, divided into groups and kicked off the day with a luncheon and some team-building activities in the auditorium. Students had to work together with some string to make a star and had to see how long they could keep balloons afloat before they hit the ground. The teams then headed to their assigned locations, whether it was the high school or the community to help out for the afternoon.
Jon Sherman, Lillian Duffield, Lincoln Pace and Connor Berg assist with clean up outside the Medina City Hall.
The idea originated from the IMPACT (Influencing Many People As Concerned Teens) students themselves and the staff thought it was a wonderful idea.
“The students were picking up trash outside the school, fire station and police station and Medina’s parks, painting picnic tables, cleaning trophy cases and cubbies around the school,” said Assistant Principal Julie Webber. “They also wrote letters and put together care packages for our military. I am so proud of our students for helping out in the community.”
Nick Bogan, Melanie Hibbard, Trevor Luthart, Courtney Bailey, Ian Wagner and Madison Holland do team-building activities in auditorium prior to departing for day’s activities.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 20 April 2016 at 12:00 am
Provided photos – The new owner of the former United Methodist Church in Medina had a crane brought in on Tuesday morning to remove the church bell.
MEDINA – The 4,500-pound bell was removed from the tower in the former Medina United Methodist Church on Tuesday morning.
The church building was recently acquired by The Church of God Pentecostal, a Hispanic congregation that has been meeting in Medina for about three years. The weight of the bell was causing some structural problems in the building, said Sergio Rosario, the church pastor.
He said the bell is about 120 years old. Some community members have offered to buy the bell, but Rosario said he and the church plan to keep it for now.
The church was built in 1876 and originally had a steeple. It toppled after a windstorm in 1889.
The congregation of about 20 to 25 people is working “little by little” to improve the building and make it a viable church for years to come, Rosario said.
The former congregation held its last service at the site, 222 West Center St., on Oct. 27, 2013. The United Methodists moved to the former Apple Grove Inn, following nearly $1 million of renovations to the former restaurant.
The United Methodists moved out of the historic church, built in 1876, due to its deteriorating condition. It sold the building, with all of its contents, as is to The Church of God Pentecostal.
MEDINA Julie Berry discusses her latest book, “The Passion of Dolssa,” with the Medina Historical Society on Tuesday. Berry, a 1991 Medina graduate, is promoting her ninth novel with book launch parties, including Tuesday’s visit to Lee-Whedon Memorial Library.
Berry now lives in Los Angeles. Her latest young adult novel is a historical thriller published by Viking Children’s Books. “The Passion of Dolssa” is set in 13th Century Europe. Dolssa is a mystic accused of heresy and sentenced to death. She flees and is chased by an inquisitor until she is rescued by a pair of peasant girls. Dolssa’s presence creates problems for the tavern-owning sisters and other village residents.
Her book is available at The Book Shoppe in Medina and Bindings Bookstore in Albion. For more on Berry and her books, click here.
Provided photo – Hundreds of Medina school children participate in Medina’s annual Arbor Day celebration. This year’s Arbor Day celebration will be a State Street Park.
Press Release, Medina Tree Board
MEDINA – Arbor Day 2016 will mark the ninth year in a row that the Village of Medina has been awarded the Tree City USA designation by the National Arbor Day Foundation. The award honors Medina’s commitment to community forestry.
Overall, this year Medina will plant 61 trees, mostly along areas of West Center Street with additional plantings on West Avenue, Gwinn Street and State Street Park.
The Tree City USA program is sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation in cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters, and the USDA Forest Service. Tree City USA is a national designation.
“We commend Medina’s elected officials, volunteers and its citizens for providing vital care for its urban forest,” said John Rosenow, chief executive and founder of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Trees provide numerous environmental, economical and health benefits to millions of people each day, and we applaud communities that make planting and caring for trees a top priority.”
Medina’s annual Arbor Day Celebration is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Friday, April 29, at State Street Park, corner of State Street and East Center Street in the village. Hundreds of K-2 school children from Oak Orchard School are expected to attend and participate. Mayor Mike Sidari will read the annual Arbor Day Proclamation.
Newly elected, Sidari is looking forward to his first Arbor Day as mayor. A long-time supporter of tree planting in Medina, he is pleased to be part of the annual event.
“J. Sterling Morton founded Arbor Day 144 years ago and during a speech he was quoted ‘This Arbor Day generations will come together to plant trees for future generations to enjoy.'” said Sidari. “I have said previously that we have a great Main Street and now we have to improve our side streets. With the ongoing urban forestry efforts on our side streets, these too will become a show place for generations. I am pleased that the Village of Medina will be taking part in this tradition.”
This year, a large number of the 61 trees being planted were made possible through a generous gift from Candlelight Cabinetry in Lockport and Kitchen World in Williamsville. Several of the trees being planted in State Street Park are representative of the hardwoods used by the company in their cabinet making operations. Those trees include maple, birch and cherry.
Medina resident Robert Sanderson approached Tree Board Chairman Chris Busch with the idea of sponsoring tree plantings. Sanderson is vice president of marketing and a managing partner at Candlelight Cabinetry.
“The Tree Board was absolutely thrilled with Bob’s offer and the generous support from Candlelight and Kitchenworld,” Busch said. “It made perfect sense to have such a great woodworking company sponsor tree plantings. As budgets grow tighter, we were extremely grateful for the support.”
MEDINA – Orchard Manor Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Medina hosted a luncheon on Thursday for its volunteers in recognition of National Volunteer Week (April 10-16).
The following were recognized, from left, front row: Robin Dubai and Jan Pritchard. Back row: Ray Levesque, Gail Nellist, Laurie Seager (volunteer coordinator) and Paula Banazwski.
The theme was “Volunteers, Our Greatest Natural Resource.” Residents also created a decorative mural to show their appreciation. Anyone wishing to learn more about volunteering at Orchard Manor should call Laurie Seager, Volunteer Coordinator, at (585) 798-4100.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 12 April 2016 at 12:00 am
Kasiah Jones, a fourth grader, is moving to Atlanta to be close to doctors
MEDINA – Kasiah Jones, 9, (center) is pictured with her mother, Jennifer Chinn, this afternoon along with other students that ride Bus 142 in the Village of Medina.
Kasiah has Sickle Cell Anemia and Type 1 Diabetes. She is undergoing a medical trial at a hospital in Atlanta, Ga. She has been travelling back and forth each month since January and her family, including five other siblings, are planning to move to Atlanta this summer to be closer to the hospital.
Her friends on the bus collected money with a bucket for loose change last month. That added up to $125 and Rob Dennis, the district’s transportation director, agreed to match what the students raised, making the total donation about $250.
Rob Dennis holds one of the jars used to collect change for Kasiah and her family to help them with the cost of relocating to Atlanta.
Kasiah was born with Sickle Cell Anemia and was diagnosed at age 4 with Type One Diabetes. The diabetes has become more severe. Kasiah’s mother said no hospitals in Buffalo or Rochester do bone marrow trials for the problem affecting Kasiah.
“These kids felt helpless when they heard what Kasiah was going through,” said bus driver Cindy Ames. “This is what they accomplished with pennies, nickels and dimes.”
Kasiah is presented with jars of change from her friends, from left: Elijah Nottingham, Miyah Horn, Kasiah and Zackius Chinn.
Kasiah’s family and friends also organized a benefit last Saturday at Medina Theatre. There were 105 baskets with items up for bid and several bands played.
Jennifer Chinn said she appreciates the support from the community helping the family with their relocation expenses.
“On my God it has been magnificent,” she said about the donations and support. “I just want to say thank you for going above and beyond.”
There is a GoFundMe created to help Kasiah and her family. Click here for more information.
Another donation came in for Kasiah and her family today from her friends on Bus 142. Justine Fitzsimmons, second from right, and Marie Morehouse, right, present a bag full of change to Kasiah.
Event in Knoxville considered Celebration of Creativity in the World
Photo courtesy of Medina Central School – Medina’s Destination Imagination team includes, from left: Jack Masse, Layna Valoria, Mary Flores, Abigail Newman, Margaret Klotzbach, Elle Gross and Nate Sherman.
Press Release, Medina Central School
MEDINA – After achieving honors for creativity, teamwork and innovation in regional and state academic tournaments, Medina High School has earned the right to compete in Destination Imagination’s Global Finals, the world’s largest celebration of student creativity, to be held May 25-28 in Knoxville, Tenn.
Medina team members include Jack Masse, Abigail Newman, Layna Valoria, Margaret Klotzbach, Elle Gross, Mary Flores and Nate Sherman.
They will compete with other teams in Get A Clue, one of seven, open-ended challenges that require students to apply science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills, in addition to their talents in improvisation, theater arts, writing, project management, communication, innovation, teamwork, community service and social entrepreneurship.
“The team is so excited,” said Nicole Goyette, district coordinator. “They have worked since second grade as a team toward this goal. We are extremely proud of them.”
The Medina team is among more than 8,000 students representing more than 1,400 teams that will advance to Global Finals, which will be held at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville May 25-28.
“It’s amazing to see students from all over the state come together to showcase their talents and teamwork,” said Julie Webber, Medina High School Principal. “It was awesome to see the teamwork displayed by our Medina students over the past several months of preparation. I know their excitement and energy will continue to the Global competition.”
This year, 150,000 students have participated in Destination Imagination tournaments throughout the U.S. and 30 countries in hopes of earning a spot at the Global Finals competition in May.
“The Destination Imagination program is a fun, hands-on system of learning that fosters students’ creativity, courage and curiosity,” said Chuck Cadle, CEO of Destination Imagination. “Quantitative reasoning, collaborative problem solving, risk taking, collaboration, presentations and thinking on your feet are some of the important skills learned in the program.”
Destination Imagination is a leader in project-based learning opportunities that blend STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education with the arts and social entrepreneurship. Its academic challenges are designed to teach kids how to think, not what to think, and then present their solutions at regional and state tournaments.
Each year, DI competitions begin with a regional tournament, where team solutions are assessed by a panel of trained appraisers, ranging from educators to artists to engineers. Each team solution is scored on a variety of elements, including originality, workmanship, presentation and teamwork. Teams with the highest scores advance to the Affiliate (state or country) tournaments. The top-tiered teams from the Affiliate tournaments advance to Global Finals.
For more information about Global Finals, click here.
MEDINA – Students at Medina Central School on April 2 put on a carnival, spaghetti dinner and basket raffle to benefit the family of Karissa D’Ambrosia, a 9-year-old who sadly passed away on March 4. The former Oak Orchard Elementary student was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
The top photo shows the basket raffle with, from left: Christina Rivera, Emily Silversmith and Sherri Bensley.
Karissa was initially diagnosed with AML in late August 2013. She did not complete her planned therapy course due to life-threatening infections. She had a relapse of AML in March 2015, and received a bone marrow transplant in May 2015. Then in January 2016, Karissa’s leukemia returned. The benefit on April 2 raised enough money to pay for a headstone for Karissa.
The JV lacrosse team helped with the benefit on April 2. The group includes, front: Mason Eick. Second row, from left: Colby Petrie, Wesley Hughes, Blair Prest, Zach Blount, Christian Silversmith, Chase Prest, Da’Ron Bellan, Joe Gates, Ethan Leonard, and Alex Strickland. Row three: Rhett Wagner as Maverick, Kyson Bellan, Luke Wilson, Bobby Geiger, Dylan Weese, Mason Pecoraro and Tim Roy.
Ian Joseph, Medina FFA Co-Treasurer, serves beverages.
Monica Silversmith, one of the benefit organizers, thanked the Medina community for supporting the benefit.
“The community had given so much,” Silversmith said. “So many businesses, teachers, friends and family had donated. Anywhere from spaghetti to sauce and paper products to drinks and baskets were donated. Most everything was donated. We had well over 115 baskets for the raffle.”
Silversmith also said many students volunteered to make the event a success.
“We had a free carnival for the kids that the FFA and JV lacrosse team took care of it all,” she said. “They cooked, cleaned and played with the kids. There is no way we could have done it without them. Mr. Eick, whom is the FFA teacher and JV Lacrosse coach, made it mandatory but the fun those kids had I think they enjoyed it just as much.”
FFA member Jake Bensley runs one of the carnival games.
