Photos by Sue Cook – Parked in one of the last few remaining spots was a 1936 Chevrolet 2-door.

By Sue Cook, staff reporter

MEDINA – Tonight the Medina Canal Basic was packed with approximately 100 classic and antique vehicles while music from the ’50s and ’60s was played over speakers by a DJ. The evening kicks off the summer schedule of Medina cruise-ins.

David Green, co-chairman of the event, said cruise-ins have been going on for 18 years. They regularly draw between 90 and 100 classic cars each week.

“We just get together, listen to music and show off our cars,” Green said. “We’re very fortunate here in Medina because all the businesses put in. Businesses donate to pay for the DJ for the season. We have a Super Cruise on the last night up on Main Street and have an Elvis impersonator there. All the businesses help pay for him. The support from the community is what really makes this as successful as this is.”

Fred and Lori Aquina came from Batavia to admire the beautiful cars lined up in the Canal Basin.

Mike Dagobert of Lyndonville brought his 1957 MGA that he had to replace the engine in.

“I like this cruise-in because it’s quiet, it’s relaxing, it’s a hometown,” he said. “Lots of people show up and there’s lots of cars to look at, and I needed to get the car out and make sure it was running OK. This was a good excuse.”

Lynn Southcott of Medina came with her husband, Harold, and they brought their ’64 Chevy Belair stationwagon.

“We always come to the cruise-in on Friday night down here. We’ve been coming to it since it started,” she said.

Harold added, “I’ve just always monkeyed around with old cars, so we come. It’s something to do. I’ve been doing this stuff for 50-plus years. I’ve had cars ever since I was 12 years old.”

Many participants in the cruise-in events use it as a way to network with others who share their interests, while showing off their vehicles. People from outside the area are able to come to Medina and make connections to the county through new friendships found at the cruise-in nights.

Woody Staples of Barker cleans his ’76 Trans Am. “I’ve been coming here for 10 years or more. I just sit and relax and enjoy the cars.”

Mike Lyons runs his business, Solar-Powered Ice Cream, that serves as one of the food vendors. He appreciates the way old cars look and says that’s why a lot of people come who aren’t into the car culture.

Lyons explained, “If you look at the grills of the cars, some of them are modern, and some of them you look and it’s something you don’t see anymore. It’s like a sculpture. It’s art. The car guys come and look at each others cars, but other people come here and it’s like art to them.”

Cruise-in nights feature themes such as foreign cars, rat rods, trucks and more. Cruise-ins are Friday nights from 5:30 p.m. For more information about theme nights and locations, call 585-798-0445. The Super Cruise on Main Street is Wednesday, Aug. 27.

Photos by Tom Rivers – Adam Wakefield is one of the new owners of the Boiler 54 performance venue in the back of the former R.H. Newell Shirt Factory in Medina at 115 West Center St. The new concert series kicks off on Friday. Wakefield is teaming with Kody Wagner with Boiler 54.

Dee Adams and Dave Kimball of Buffalo perform last August in Boiler 54. The concert series runs Fridays and Saturdays until near Thanksgiving.

MEDINA – An outdoor performance venue that serves beer and food has new owners and a new season that will kick off on Friday.

Adam Wakefield, 31, and Kody Wagner, 30, are friends since their junior high days in Medina. Now they are co-owners of Boiler 54, an open-air music and performance venue in the back of the R.H. Newell Shirt Factory building on West Center Street.

Boiler 54 will have musicians performing Friday and Saturday nights until Thanksgiving. The new owners may add Thursday and Sunday performances as well. They also are working on other amenities for the site, including a farmers’ market.

“This is a great space,” Wakefield said about the venue. “The acoustics are great.”

Many local and regional bands and musicians have played at Boiler 54 since it opened in 2012. Wakefield helped line up the bands last year. He said Boiler 54 is building a reputation in Western New York among musicians and music lovers.

“There is nothing like this in Western New York,” Wakefield said. “We hit our stride last summer. This is definitely becoming a very popular place.”

Friday’s shows start at 8 p.m. with performances by Dirty Vernon, a rock and roll cover band, and Minglewood, which performs Grateful Dead tunes.

Boiler 54 this season is dropping the $5 cover charge for everyone, including people 21 and under.

Wakefield and Wagner have a pub inside the building. Wagner built the bar himself. Concerts will shift inside when it is rainy or cold outside.

“Our aim is to turn this into a beer garden,” Wakefield said.

He sees synergy in downtown Medina, especially in the R.H. Newell building, which includes the Shirt Factory Café, a boutique hotel and a meadery to open in November. 810 Meadworks will produce alcoholic drinks combining some of the arts of making wine and beer.

Wakefield and Wagner are part of emerging group of young professionals and business owners in downtown Medina. Wakefield had been living in Buffalo and was part of the music scene there for the past decade.

He has seen Buffalo neighborhoods become vibrant places by embracing the arts, farmers’ markets and young adults.

“Entrepreneurship will save this town,” Wakefield said about Medina. “There’s a lot of good stuff going on right now. You just have to blaze a trail.”

Photos by Tom Rivers – Bill Olinger, owner of Baughn’s Shoe Store at 438 Main St. in Medina, is retiring and will close the store at the end of August.

MEDINA – A mainstay in downtown Medina since 1960, Baughn’s Shoe Store, will close in late August.

Bill Olinger is selling the building to Laura Gardner, owner of a lily and a sparrow, a women’s clothing, jewelry and fragrance store. Gardner is moving her shop to 438 Main St. After renovating the site, she expects to reopen her store there in late November.

Olinger, 61, has spent a lifetime in the shoe business. His grandfather, Jim Baughn, opened his first store in Albion in 1957. That store was at the current Peter Snell Realtors building at 107 North Main St.

Olinger’s father Ralph Olinger joined the shoe business and the family had stores in Albion, Medina, Lockport, Geneseo and Warsaw. Bill Olinger started working in the business at age 13.

“We’ve had several generations of people coming here,” Olinger said this morning at the shoe store. “I’ve had kids that I fit for shoes bring their kids in and even their grandchildren.”

Olinger has worked with his wife Pat in the business. Besides selling shoes, they did sewing and alterations work. They also rent out tuxedos. Mrs. Olinger will take that business across the street to Blissett’s Specialty Shop after Baughn’s closes.

Bill Olinger talks with a customer on the phone this morning at the shoe store, a fixture in Medina’s downtown since 1960.

Olinger has sold brand name shoes at Baughn’s. He rejected the cheapest shoes, preferring to sell quality and service.

“It’s hard to go to a store and get your feet fit these days,” he said. “If you go to Wal-Mart, they point you to the shoe department and you’re on your own.”

Olinger put up a banner in the front window, announcing the store would soon be closing and he was retiring.

“We’ve had a lot of people come in and say hello and wish us good luck,” he said.

Olinger said shoe fads would come and go and his biggest challenge was trying to guess which styles would be popular with women.

“You have to pick out what women like and that can be a tough job,” he said. “We’d have 50 styles of women’s shoes and we’d be doing good if six or seven were popular.”

Olinger said he valued his repeat customers, who were critical in the business staying open for so many years.

Baughn’s will be selling shoes at discounted prices as it pushes to sell its inventory by late August. The store is open every day except Sunday.

MEDINA – Nine months after employees approved unionization at Orchard Manor, the union has yet to be recognized and workers say the 160-bed facility continues to be short-staffed without needed investments in equipment.

Orchard Manor management has filed challenges with the National Labor Relations Board, contesting the union’s election.

The NLRB thus far has sided with employees with Orchard Manor’s challenges. The site’s owner, OMOP LLC from New York City, was ordered to give back pay after one worker was suspended and OMOP was required to give back pay and reinstate the jobs for two employees who were terminated during the push to unionize last year.

Two current employees say the latest NLRB challenges are a “stall tactic.”

Employees want a union so it has bargaining power to push for updated equipment, and adequate staff and supplies for resident care, said Chris Penna, a licensed practical nurse.

She said OMOP “is trying to bust our union.” She wants the company to withdraw its NLRB objections so the union will be certified and given a say in the 160-bed nursing home’s operation.

“We want to work as a team with management,” Penna said. “We want to work with them for the residents.”

Orchard Manor administrator Dave Denny did not respond to a phone call seeking a comment.

OMOP purchased Orchard Manor from Medina Memorial Hospital last year. The new owner plans renovations and a marketing push for the site on Bates Road, Penna said.

She would like to see OMOP also invest in its 110 employees, as well as needed equipment and supplies.

“Our main goal is we want resident care to be first,” said Pam Frasier, a certified nursing assistant. “These residents are like our family. They deserve to have a full staff there.”

The two employees said the workforce has been trimmed under the new owner.

“We want to attract good employees, and a fair contract would attract good employees,” Frasier said.

Provided photos – The Medina Marching Band won first place for its performance in the parade at Gorham. Medina also won the grand championship trophy.

Press release
Medina Marching Band

The Marcus Whitman Central School District welcomed 17 school districts to participate in the 53rd Annual Pageant of Bands held in Gorham on Friday and Saturday.

This pageant represents an opportunity for students in the various band programs to come together and perform.  While concert and parade bands remain a strong focus, the event also includes twirlers, dancers, percussion, color guard and jazz bands.

In High School Jazz Band competition Class A, Medina took first place with a score of 99,  seconded by Batavia with an 85. Medina Middle School took second place with a score of 93. Medina was bested by Buckman Heights (Greece Central School District) with score of 94.

Specialty awards for Jazz were Medina Middle School and High School for Best Rhythm section; Medina HS for Best Brass and Woodwinds Sections.

In Twirler competition, Medina took first place with a score of 79.5 followed by South Seneca with a 78.5.

In Color Guard competition in the Regional A class, Medina took first place with 86.1 followed by Batavia with 74.4.

Percussion Stand Still (PSS) competition involved five schools competing with Medina taking first place with a score of 83.8.

Concert Band competition concluded with Medina MS taking first place in the JRA class with score of 194.25 while Medina High School in the HSA class finished first with a score of 196.

The parade down Main Street in Gorham included 10 schools. Medina HS took first place with a score of 96.5. Medina also won Best Drum Major and Best Guard unit. Medina also took Best Class Championship in HSA with 292.5.

The Grand Championship Award took an interesting twist this year. In the High School class Medina and South Seneca were tied.

According to the rules the tie-breaker is the Concert Performance. Therefore, the HS Grand Championship Award went to Medina.

The Medina Mustang Band and all of its components are under the co-direction of James Steele and Cheri Pritchard.

Shaina Schmigel, 21, was recently promoted to sergeant

Schmigel

MEDINA – An Army paratrooper from Medina died on Friday when she was found unresponsive after a night jump at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

The Army is investigating the death of Shaina Schmigel, 21. She enlisted in the Army four years ago after graduating from Medina High School in 2010. She was promoted to sergeant in January and recently committed to four more years with the Army, said Krissi Gress, a friend of the family’s.

“Once she got in, she loved it,” Gress said. “She loved the discipline and the structure.”

Schmigel was also an intelligence analyst with the 82^nd Airborne Division. She served a four-month tour of duty in Iraq in 2012. She was to be deployed to Italy with the 173^rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Gress said.

Schmigel

Schmigel’s family has not been told details of her death. They’ve only been told she was found after a night-time training exercise.

“It has come as quite a shock,” Gress said.

Schmigel was a cheerleader at Medina. She spent most of her childhood in Batavia before moving to Medina about six years ago.

“She was an all-around good girl,” Gress said. “She had a peppy spirit and a big dimple.”

Schmigel excelled in the Army, taking many classes and gaining a promotion.

“She was doing everything she could,” Gress said. “Nothing was too out of reach for her.”

Schmigel is survived by her mother Karie, an older brother Matthew and a sister Sheniqua, 16, who is a student at Medina.

Orleans Hub reached out to the press office at Fort Bragg for any more information about  Schmigel’s death, but hasn’t heard back from Fort Bragg yet.

Gress said the Michael S. Tomaszewski Funeral & Cremation Chapel in Batavia will be handling funeral arrangements.

Schmigel

FORT BRAGG, N.C. The 82nd Airborne in Fort Bragg has issued a news release about the death of Medina native Sgt. Shaina B. Schmigel, a paratrooper who died during a T-11 airborne training exercise at Holland Drop Zone on Friday.

The cause of death is currently under investigation, the 82^nd Division said today.

“All of the Paratroopers in the brigade are deeply saddened by the loss of an extraordinary and much-respected member of our team,” said Lt. Col. Albert Paquin, commander of the 2nd BCT. “Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends during this time of great loss. Our chaplains and our health care professionals are available to help comfort and support all of her fellow Paratroopers affected by this tragedy.”

Schmigel joined the Army in Aug. 2010. She completed Basic Training at Fort Jackson, S.C., Advanced Individual Training at Fort Huachuca, Az. and Basic Airborne Course at Fort Benning, Ga., according to the news release. She reported to the 82nd Airborne Division where she was assigned to 2nd BCT in June 2011.

Schmigel is a 2010 Medina High School graduate. She moved from Batavia to Medina about six years ago. She was a cheerleader at Medina.

As a paratrooper in the Army, she deployed to Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn from July to November 2011.

Her awards and decorations include the Army Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon, and the Parachutist Badge.

The Michael S. Tomaszewski Funeral & Cremation Chapel in Batavia will be handling funeral arrangements.

Mass casualty drill trains responders to limit chaos as much as possible

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – About 25 police officers and 25 firefighters and medics spent several hours this morning at Medina Central School, training for an active shooter drill with mass casualties.

Members of a multi-agency SWAT team are pictured outside the Clifford Wise Intermediate/Middle School before the start of a drill this morning. It was the largest mass casualty drill in the county’s history.

Tom Drennan, chief deputy for the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, gives firefighters some last-minute instructions about the drill, where 10 people were role playing as victims.

Drennan has been working with police and firefighters for more than a year on mass casualty and active shooter training. Drennan said recent school shootings in the country prompted local law enforcement to press for training to improve their response to try to minimize any chaos and casualties.

Corey Black, an investigator with the Sheriff’s Department, talks with police officers before the drill began. Black said the training will be helpful for responders at any larger location in the country with dozens of people, including schools, factories and government buildings.

“Denial is what gets people hurt,” Black said.

Police officers enter Medina High School and put the building in lock down.

School officials from several districts in the county observed the drill. Michael Cavanagh, Medina High School co-principal, role plays with an injury near the front entrance to the high school.

Drennan, the chief deputy, said the drill will be critiqued.

“We’ll see what we’re strong at and what we need to improve,” he said.

Mercy Flight flew in with a helicopter as part of the drill that included many medics and firefighters. (This photo was taken by Valerie Childs.)

MEDINA – Residents shouldn’t be alarmed to see emergency vehicles and police at Medina Central School on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon.

The school is hosting a multi-agency emergency response drill.

“This drill will include emergency services from the area and school officials from Orleans County will also be on hand,” Medina school officials posted on the district’s Facebook page. “This collaborative drill is the culmination of months of planning. Thank you for your continued support.”

Editorial

MEDINA – It was nearly 18 years ago when I debuted as a professional journalist. My first story appeared in The Journal-Register in Medina. It was the first Tuesday in July back in 1996. I covered an Albion Board of Education meeting from the previous night.

It felt good to be in print, right on the front page of the community newspaper. Not long after the paper was printed and delivered, JR editor Owen Toale got a call from a School Board member, saying he needed “to do something about his reporter.” The Board member didn’t like how a few disagreements among board members were highlighted, and other less contentious news was glossed over.

That was my introduction to the business. Owen had my back and stood up for his staff. Back then in mid-1996, there were five news reporters at the JR.

Today is the final edition for The Journal after 111 years of chronicling life in Orleans County. It’s a sad day for those of us in the news business and for former JR staffers. (Two of the JR reporters I worked with went on to become lawyers. Another became a government planner and another a college professor.)

I actually started my journalism career with the Albion Advertiser, which was a weekly newspaper that shared the same owner and some of the same staff as the Journal. (That paper ceased publication a year ago.) The Journal used some of my stories from the Advertiser.

I had to go to The Journal offices on Mondays to drop off my film from a week’s worth of photos. I was back the next day to lay out the paper using X-Acto knives, wax on the back on paper and pica rulers. It was tedious, with a lot of hunching over. When I was done with the Tuesday morning ordeal I liked to treat myself to a doughnut at Corky’s Bakery.

Besides the five news reporters, the JR back then also had Mike Wertman. I marveled at his work ethic, and his amazing productivity in covering local sports. Mike also wrote the editorials and determined how the news pages would be designed with the placement of the stories.

Many of the community’s power brokers stopped in the downtown building that backed up to the Canal Basin. If people didn’t like stories, the phone rang or they showed up in person. It was all very exciting – and a little scary and overwhelming for a 22-year-old.

I was part of The Journal culture for about a year before joining The Daily News in Batavia. I was there 16 years before leaving on March 1, 2013 to help start the Orleans Hub.

I don’t regret the move, but I do miss seeing the articles and photos in print. The news stories feel more permanent when they’re in print. But clearly the Hub has an audience. We average over 4,000 unique visitors and about 12,000 page views each day. The Journal’s circulation has fallen from a high of over 5,000 to about 1,500.

The Hub has been growing. Mike Wertman joined us in late August and continues his relentless pace in covering local sports. The Hub has also been a showcase for Cheryl Wertman’s sports photography. Sue Cook also has been working part-time as a reporter.

The Hub is based out of The Lake Country Pennysaver in Albion. We get phone calls and people show up at the office when they don’t like things. We get letters to the editor and some folks have threatened to sue.

We’ve tried to fill some of the gap in local news coverage. We have a lot of news you don’t see in The Journal or The Daily News in Batavia, and they get some scoops that we don’t always have.

In many ways it’s felt like an old-fashioned newspaper war around here the past 14 months since the Hub debuted. There have been three publications with reporters covering the county, vying to be first and the most aggressive.

Orleans County is fortunate, in that way. Some communities don’t have a newspaper anymore. There isn’t an on-line news site, either.

Although many may think the Orleans Hub is a competitor to The Journal, we certainly didn’t want to see them go. The paper has been an institution for more than a century and many of its readers rely on The Journal for news.

The Journal has also been a force in recent months, especially with reports by Howard Balaban about the possible dissolution of the village of Medina. Balaban has looked at how dissolution has succeeded and failed in other communities. He has pressed local officials for their views on the topic, and has been tenacious in trying to track down Ridgeway and Shelby expenses in opposing dissolution. When the newspaper announced last month it would be closing, Balaban didn’t just coast to the finish line.

JR sports reporter Corey Desiderio also showed he is a hard-working journalist, capturing the action in local youth and high sports.

I was impressed the JR staff worked so hard, right up until the end.

This isn’t an easy time to be in the news business. Many newspapers have shut down in the past five years, including some in big cities. Many of the papers are a shell of themselves, with reduced staffs, pages and impact in the community. That’s not the fault of the reporters and editors. Many are putting in long hours, working hard and connecting with readers.

The community will miss The Journal. Through the years the staff has been committed. They deserve to take a bow.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Four years ago “Frank” was introduced to the Medina community. He has been popular from Day 1, with people posing for photos with him.

Frank is about 6 feet high. He stands outside Rudy’s at 118 West Center St. The giant hot dog was a gift to Rudy’s owner, Kelly Duffied, from her father Joe Russo. Joe and Debbie Russo started Rudy’s, a diner, in 1988.

Their daughter now runs the business. She keeps Frank in the back behind the business over the winter. He recently came out front next to the Post Office for a new season.

“He has many friends,” Duffield said about Frank.

Final issue of newspaper is more than a commemorative piece

The final issue of The Journal-Register includes a picture of former Publisher Alonzo L. Waters, left, and pressman Bill Knuth, shown here in the 1950s.

MEDINA – The final issue of The Journal-Register is more than souvenir or nostalgic piece as the newspaper printed its final edition on Friday after 113 years.

The paper issued a call to action to residents, urging them to “exercise your right to know.”

Managing Editor Joyce Miles expressed her disappointment with Shelby and Ridgeway town officials for missing a deadline to fulfill a Freedom of Information Act request from J-R reporter Howard Balaban.

He sought information on the towns’ expenses for a PR firm and attorney in the towns’ push to fight an effort to dissolve the village of Medina and shift some services to the towns. That would push up the tax burden in the towns, while cutting the cost for village residents.

Balaban sought all expenses from the two towns for a “Cares and Concerns” hotline, and other print, electronic advertising for the hotline. He also sought the expenses for three mailers that were sent to residents in Shelby and Ridgeway from the two Town Boards.

His FOIA request also sought copies of written and email correspondence from the town officials as it relates to dissolution, consolidation or political campaign.

The towns missed the legal deadline for providing the information. The final issue of the J-R and the newspaper’s website includes the full FOIA request. Miles urges residents to submit their own requests for the information. Orleans Hub hand-delivered its request for the information at both Town Halls on Friday.

“I feel personal outrage at the way Howie has been treated,” Miles said on Friday.

The final issue of the paper is mostly a commemorative edition with reflections from readers, current and former staff about the publication and its role in community life. Miles said she wanted to honor the paper’s long history in the community, and its faithful readers and dedicated employees.

Miles started as a reporter with The Journal on Sept. 4, 2001. That was the day a Medina police officer, Mike Russell, was shot and wounded while on duty. A week later, the country was under attack by terrorists.

She would later shift to the Lockport Union Sun & Journal. Last September she filled the dual role of managing editor for both the Lockport and Medina newspapers.

Miles said she is a “public policy nerd” and enjoyed the dissolution issue. She supports further discussion of the issue and would like to see village residents have a vote about the issue.

“I’m sorry we’re leaving just when things are starting to get interesting,” she said.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Pro Seal and Paint of Batavia is out on high ladders today working on a building at 112-114 East Center St. Kathy Blackburn is working to turn the vacant building into an old-fashioned ice cream parlor. The new business is expected to open this summer.

Blackburn will have the storefront façades match their original 19th century appearance. The storefronts will have new awnings, fresh paint and new signs.

In the top photo, Michael Neth descends the ladder after painting part of the third floor of the building.

Neth said the wind was calm today, so he didn’t mind being up high, painting the building in Medina.

Justin Carlo of Pro Seal and Paint works on the exterior of the building that is next to Rotary Park.