Press Release, Medina Fire Department (Steve Cooley Lieutenant/Public Information Officer)

MEDINA – At 6:31 this morning Orleans County Public Safety Dispatchers received a call from a residence in the Village of Medina for a 15-year-old female that was unconscious and unresponsive.

Further information was received from the caller that natural gas was smelled during the evening last night. EMS crews arrived quickly to find the 15-year-old female conscious with signs and symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure.

Upon evacuating all residents from this multi-residence on Park Avenue and assessing all 8 people, it was evident that all 8 residents had symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, said Steve Cooley, lieutenant and public information officer for the Medina Fire Department.

Treatment was initiated on all patients on scene and all 8 were transported

to local hospitals for further treatment. Two of those patients had carbon monoxide levels over 25% as detected by our monitoring devices. Simultaneously Fire Department personnel investigated the source for the carbon monoxide and began ventilating the structure.

A power vent pipe for one of the two furnaces in the basement had become disconnected and was venting carbon monoxide unabated into the basement for an undetermined amount of time.

Carbon monoxide is colorless, odorless gas that is a product of combustion, it is lighter than air and that is the reason the apartment on the second floor had reading of over

350 parts per million. The gas meter was shut off and NYSEG crews were requested. After proper ventilation, NYSEG entered the home and found the fire departments assessment accurate regarding the exhaust pipe. Contractors are on scene now making

repairs to the damaged exhaust pipe and residents will not be displaced from their apartments once discharged from the hospital. Carbon monoxide detectors will also be installed.

No working carbon monoxide detectors were found in any of the apartments. At the time of the incident, we were just passed the end of Daylight Savings time clock change when fire departments across the nation advocate for checking al your detectors.

This morning could have easily ended up a tragedy. It was at least the fourth significant CO event with multiple patients we have encountered in the last 14 years.

If you have any plans for today, please first check all your detectors first, both smoke and carbon monoxide to ensure they are functioning properly. If for some reason you can not or you have questions, please call the fire house at (585) 798-1661 and speak to a firefighter.

Businesses with video of downtown area asked to let police see images

MEDINA – The Medina Police Department is investigating a stabbing that occurred in the Canal Basin overnight and is asking business owners with cameras to allow officers to review video in the downtown area.

“We are asking anyone who may have witnessed the incident or who has information regarding this incident to reach out to the Medina PD,” the department stated on its Facebook page.

Businesses with video and others with information are urged to contact dispatch at (585) 589-5527 and ask to speak to an officer.

“We will provide an update as more information becomes available,” the Medina PD posted.

Provided photo: Chefs prepare and pour hot chocolate in preparation for a train ride on the Polar Express last Christmas season at the Medina Railroad Museum.

MEDINA – The Medina Railroad Museum is looking for male and female characters to portray chefs on the upcoming Polar Express train rides.

Duties include making and serving hot chocolate during the ride to the “North Pole” set up along the tracks between Middleport and Gasport. The positions can be paid or volunteer.

Anyone interested in participating should arrive at the Railroad Museum between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday for auditions.

Polar Express rides are scheduled Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, Dec. 7 and 8, Dec. 14 and 15 and Dec. 21 and 22.

Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased through the Medina Railroad Museum website.

MEDINA – A new pedestrian bridge over Oak Orchard Creek on Maple Ridge Road is expected to be complete by October 2025, Medina village officials said.

The project also includes a sidewalk from Crosby’s to the Medina Business Park.

The village in 2021 was awarded a $1,094,196 grant to construct the bridge and sidewalks as part of a multi-use path for pedestrians and bicycles. The funding was awarded by the state through a federal Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant.

That is covering 80 percent of the project. The remaining 20 percent is to be paid locally from the village, Town of Shelby, Orleans County and Orleans Economic Development Agency.

The Village Board on Monday voted to pay $14,195 from village funds to the state Department of Transportation to go towards right-of-way acquisition. The sidewalks and shoulders near the bridge will cut into some residents’ property and they will be compensated for that land, board members said.

Mayor Marguerite Sherman said the project will make it much safer for residents and cyclists along that stretch of Maple Ridge. The spot by the creek, in particular, has a very narrow space for pedestrians and cyclists. The bridge will keep them back away from a busy road.

Construction is expected to start in the spring.

Press Release, Medina Central School

MEDINA – The school district is hosting a Tri-County College and Career Day Conference on Saturday at the Junior-Senior High School located at 1 Mustang Drive. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This annual celebration of educational opportunity is a major event for talented, first-generation college-bound students, parents and community members in Orleans, Niagara and Genesee counties.

“We expect students, parents, community members from neighboring counties, and other educational opportunity programs to be in attendance,” said Daniel Doctor, Medina’s director of community partnerships. “The purpose of the College and Career Day conference is to expose anyone planning their future to a variety of careers in order to jumpstart their thinking about career paths. By preparing early, students will more likely be college and career ready after high school graduation. Students in middle, high school and adulthood may participate in the conference.”

Attendees will have the opportunity to speak with representatives from multiple organizations, discuss potential job opportunities and establish professional relationships.

Event planned to celebrate 200^th anniversary of Erie Canal, Orleans County

Gregory Hallock

MEDINA – The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council is working on a three-day artisan festival next year in Orleans County that could draw 100,000 people to the community.

Gregory Hallock, GO Art! executive director, spoke at the Medina Village Board meeting on Monday evening. He said the arts council is pushing to get all the details together for what he said will be a big celebration for the 200^th anniversary of the Erie Canal and also Orleans County.

GO Art! is looking at Aug. 22-24 or Sept. 26-28 for the festival, which would have events in the villages of Medina, Albion and Holley, as well as a boat regatta going 21 miles from Medina to Holley.

Hallock said he expects there would be 400 artisan vendors for the event at the three villages and two concerts – at the waterfalls in Holley and State Street Park in Medina.

He plans to meet with village officials in Albion, Holley and Medina soon to firm up the details. He will be seeking funding from the State Canal Corp. and New York Power Authority to help pay towards the festival. The vendors also will be pay a fee to be at the event which will help cover the costs.

GO Art! was leaning towards the three days in late August for the celebration, but moving It back to September would allow the festival to be timed with the voyage of the Seneca Chief, a replica of the canal boat that took Gov. DeWitt Clinton on passage of the original canal in 1825.

Hallock said the festival also will include theatrical performances and a car show.

GO Art! would like to make it an annual event, with the bicentennial celebration giving it a big start.

The arts council sees an opportunity with a big artisan festival with the Letchworth Arts & Crafts Show taking a break.

“It’s exciting,” Medina Mayor Marguerite Sherman said about the event.

Jess Marciano, a village trustee, said GO Art! does a great job with events in the community, including the recent Day of the Dead celebration at the Orleans County YMCA.

“Thank you for putting the time into this,” Marciano told Hallock.

GO Art! today also will announce plans for a cultural center in Medina. That announcement will be 5:30 p.m. today at the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

MEDINA – The Medina Rotary Club is trying a new event that promises an awesome meal highlighting the “foodie” strengths of the local community.

The club will offer a “Taste of Autumn” at 5 p.m. on Nov. 9 at the Sacred Heart Club. Chef Lionel Heydel will prepare a five-course gourmet dinner, paired with wine from Leonard Oakes Estate Winery.

“Medina gets to showcase the culinary talent in the area to people from all across Upstate NY,” said Peter Bartula, Medina Rotary president. “It will raise money for the Rotary Club that we will give back to the community, and our members and guests get to have a great meal!”

There is space for 65 people at the event. Tickets are $95, and proceeds go toward Rotary’s projects in the community. Tickets can be purchased on online by clicking here.

“Since we have such great food, wine, and chefs in the area it is a great event to showcase the talent and produce from Orleans County,” Bartula said.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Alma de México does a folkloric dance on Saturday during a Day of the Dead celebration at the Orleans County YMCA.

The event was co-sponsored by GO Art!, the YMCA, Mariachi de Oro Mexican Grill, and Maizal Mexican Kitchen.

There were 325 people at the event in the first two hours of the four-hour celebration. They were on pace of surpassing last year’s record crowd of 425 for the event.

Carys Dumitrescu of Penfield gets her face painted by Dan Butler, an artist from Perry.

There were at least four artists doing face painting. There also were Mexican crafts, dance and music performances, ofrenda displays, and food tastings.

An ofrenda was created by Lionel Rosario and his wife Delores Alvarado, and the display drew many onlookers.

The Mexican Day of the Dead Celebration (Mexican Día de los Muertos) is a time of joyful remembrance of deceased loved ones, filled with an array of colors, scents, sounds and stories, said Karen Canning, director of GLOW Traditions at GO Art!

An ofrenda is an altar that is typically in homes. The altars welcome returning souls and feature candles, wild marigolds, incense, photographs, mementos and loved ones’ favorite foods like fruit, tortillas, tamales, chocolate and bread.

There was also a community ofrenda where people could place a an electric candle and write a remembrance of loved ones.

Many people wrote notes remembering their loved ones.

Mary Lou Tuohey and her daughter Nicole of Caee-Nic Cookies made these frosted cookies for the Day of the Dead. The skulls are used to honor the dead.

Other hosts and volunteers came from Della’s Chocolates, The Downtown Browsery, Oak Orchard Girl Scouts, Orleans Head Start, and Medina High School students. Canalside Tattoos offered temporary tattoos. Las Toxicas had Mexican jewelry and clothing. Candy Creations Facepaint of Medina hosted face painting, and Mariachi de Oro will provided samples of Mexican hot chocolate and pan de muerto (bread of the dead), a typical food of the holiday. Maizal Mexican Kitchen had several items for sale, including tamales, fruit with tajin, and snacks.

Press Release, Medina Central School

Photo courtesy of Medina Central School: English Teacher Beth Dickhut holds a copy of her first published novel, “Still Water.”

MEDINA – For many years Medina Junior-Senior High School English teacher Elizabeth Dickhut toyed with the idea of writing her own novel, “Still Water.”

“Several years ago I was thinking about some students I had who had experienced losing a parent suddenly,” she explained. “They were obviously going through a very hard time and I couldn’t help but think what was going on in the inside. It inspired me to start writing about a group of boys who were friends and experienced that loss.”

Mrs. Dickhut kept returning to her story throughout the years refining it until she felt comfortable enough to share with colleagues.

“I am so grateful to my coworkers and friends who took time out of their busy lives to read this and give me their honest feedback,” she said. “It really meant so much to me.”

Dickhut says “Still Water” is a story of loss and grief; but is also a story of hope, the kind that is rooted in friendship, family and forgiveness.

Another key element of the book deals with the romantic side of adolescence and the protagonist having feelings for one of his friend’s girlfriends.

“I do think young adults will really enjoy the story,” Dickhut said. “I hope they see themselves in some of the characters.  I really want this book to be a teachable moment for some of them and I want them to know that their teachers do care about what is going on in their lives.”

There were a couple more hoops to jump through before she could publish her book. In “Still Water” two poems are referenced, “The Peace of Wild Things” by Wendell Berry and Robert Frost’s “Going for Water.”

There is also a passage from the book “A River Runs Through It and Other Stories” by Norman Maclean. “I had to get permission to use Maclean’s and Berry’s works, and I was so thankful to the estate and the publishing company to allow me to use them since they meant a great deal to me and to the story. The Maclean estate sent along a nice compliment and said they found the story compelling and wished me the best of luck.”

She also designed the cover in Canva. With her book getting ready to launch on Amazon on Nov. 8, Dickhut said she can barely contain her excitement.

“I won’t lie, I am nervous, but it just feels awesome,” she said. “I have a real sense of accomplishment that I finished the book and people are going to get to read it. It would be really great if I saw students here carrying it around since they inspired it.”

To learn more about the book and Beth Dickhut, you can follow her on Instagram @elizabeth_d_writes.

“Still Water” will be available in paperback and Kindle formats.

MEDINA – A Medina student has been charged with making a terrorist threat for allegedly making a threat on social media.

Medina police interviewed witnesses and collected evidence and determined there is no threat to school staff, students of community members, Medina Police Chief Todd Draper and district superintendent Dr. Mark Kruzynski stated in a press release.

The student has been charged with a felony. The police and school district were made aware of the threat on October. 18, and the student was charged on Monday. The name isn’t being released due to the age of the person.

The police department and school district urge community members to report any threats so they can be investigated.

“The Medina Police Department and Medina Central School District recognize and take very seriously any mention of violence or threats made against our school district or community,” Draper and Kruzynski stated in the press release.