Provided photos: Front row from left includes Faith Baker, Taylor Frentz, Evelyn Phillips, Emma Jacobs and Jesse Cudzilo. Back row includes YMCA board member Dean Bellack, Emiliana Batista, Jacob Rissew, Dahvid Anderson, Addison Paul, Brandon Christiaansen, Henry Winters and Camryn Eick.

Press Release, Medina Central School

MEDINA – Medina students have assisted the YMCA with some projects to make the facility better for the public.

The site, the former Medina Armory, has been a YMCA since 1997. Now residents take exercise classes, use the workout room and participate in afterschool programs at the site.

Over the years the Y has replaced the roofing, lighting and the exercise rooms. They have launched capital campaigns to modernize the facility that included a handicapped accessibility ramp, a vestibule, lobby expansion for a social space, a child watch area, two unisex bathrooms and shower areas to make the space as functional as possible.

Unfortunately, there are still areas that need to be improved and reconfigured such as the women’s locker room and a basement kitchen. The locker room space is equipped with two private showers, an oak bench and lockers, some original to the building and also made out of solid oak. Sadly, some of the lockers had been sold off over time.

“This facility is so unique and we want to make it the best for our patrons,” said Jesse Cudzilo, the Y executive director. “There is damage to the floors, the showers need to be replaced and it is somewhat of an awkward layout.  Since we are community partners, we decided to tap our community to see if we could get some help in the remodel.”

He reached out to Medina Junior-Senior High School Counselor Audralee Doll, who put him in touch with Technology and Engineering Education teacher Mike Lepkyj. He jumped at the opportunity to give his students a chance to use their skills.

“This is a great opportunity for my Interior Design students,” he said. “They will get some real-world experience and a chance to help out an organization that does so much for our community.”

On Feb. 16, the class showed up for their initial walk through of the space and took measurements of the room and the features that needed to be incorporated. The students seemed excited about the project.

When they got back to the classroom, they broke into groups to start their design process.

Brandon Christiaansen, front, and Jacob Rissew measure inside the YMCA.

Student Emma Jacobs says she has been a member of the Y for over a year and she is excited to put her vision into her proposal.

“When I go there, I am always thinking of what they could do to improve it,” she said. “I have a lot of ideas and I am really stoked to actually work on a project that is for something in the real world.”

Classmate Evelyn Phillips said she is enjoying the creative process. “It’s really fun and I am looking forward to reimagining the spaces and make them more practical.”

Mr. Lepkyj says the students will work on about five proposals to show Mr. Cudzilo and the Board of the YMCA. “What an amazing thing to be able to put on their resume,” said Mr. Lepkyj. “How many high school students can say they designed a space for a local organization?”

Cudzillo also contacted Orleans/Niagara BOCES’ Principal Nicole Goyette. She told him that the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center’s Building Trades students with their teacher Matt Anastasi would love to assist with the rehab and construction of the space.

“We are very excited about the partnerships with these classes,” Mr. Cudzilo. “It will be a lot of work. We firmly believe that when kids are invested in their community it becomes a source of pride for them. I can’t wait to see their vision for the space and I think their input will be invaluable. We are hoping that this generation coming up will embrace the history of this facility and we can pass the torch to them to keep it viable for generations to come. Our goal is to leave this building better than how we found it.”

Press Release, Lee Whedon Memorial Library

MEDINA – Lee Whedon Memorial Library will be holding programs in March and April in recognition of the total solar eclipse happening on April 8.

Orleans County is in the path of totality for the eclipse, making it an ideal place to view the astronomical event.

A mobile planetarium from the Challenger Learning Center will be at the library Thursday, March 21 from 3 to 5 p.m. Geared for ages 5 to 16, this is a wonderful opportunity for youth to be introduced to the movements of the night sky. Presentations are in 20-minute blocks. Call the library to sign up today!

The library will also be hosting a viewing of the solar eclipse from their location on April 8. The program begins at 2:30 p.m. and will include activities, games and snacks for all ages, followed by a chance to see the eclipse. Safe solar-viewing glasses will be provided at no cost.

Eclipse viewing glasses are available to anyone in the community and can be picked up at the library through April 8, while supplies last.

To register for our events, call (585) 798-3430 or visit the library.

MEDINA – The Village Board filled some vacancies on committees and is seeking more applications for other openings.

The board on Monday made the following appointments:

• Planning Board alternate: David Flynn
• Zoning Board of Appeals alternate: Randy Reese
• Parks Commission: Randy Reese
• Tourism Board: Barbara Gorham
• Parks Committee: Michelle Capstick

The Village Board has other openings it would like to fill, including three spots open on Boxwood Cemetery Commission, one position on the Tree Board, and one spot on the Parks Commission.

Residents interested in the position can click here to see a volunteer application to be submitted to the village. Click here to see some of the current committees and their members in the village.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Nick Joy, left, and Tanner Ferris takes the oaths of office and are sworn in as new police officer for the Village of Medina.

Joy’s dad Scott, right, is holding the Bible for while Ferris’ grandmother Darlene Sullivan holds the Bible while he recites the oath of office.

The two new officers were sworn in during this evening’s Village Board meeting.

Joy of Lyndonville is already well known in Albion and Medina, where he is a trainer and co-owner of the Hustl House gym. He will continue at Hustl House while starting a new career as a police officer.

“It is a really great opportunity to serve the community even more,” Joy said.

Ferris is a 2017 Albion graduate. He has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from SUNY Brockport. He has been working for Keeler Construction.

“This is a great way to make a difference,” Ferris said about working as a police officer.

His grandfather, Richard Ferris, was a deputy with the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department.

Tanner Ferris is grateful for the chance to work for the Medina PD.

“This is a smaller community where you can make a difference and not just be a number,” he said.

The two officers will take a six-month police academy starting Monday at Niagara County Community College then they do field training with the Medina PD.

Press Release, Medina Central School

MEDINA – The application for Medina’s Full Day Universal Pre-K (UPK) program is now available on the Primary School’s website or by accessing the link found here.

Parents of children not already enrolled in UPK who are interested in enrolling their child in kindergarten for the 24-25 school year are also asked to complete the application form.

To be eligible for UPK, children must be 4 years old by Dec. 1, 2024. To be eligible for kindergarten, children must be 5 years old by Dec. 1, 2024.

For any families looking to learn more about the full day UPK program, the Medina School District will be hosting an Information Night on Thursday, March 14th from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m., held at Oak Orchard Primary School. Childcare will be provided for any children eligible to attend school in the 2024-25 school year.

Doors will open at 5:15 p.m. and the evening will begin promptly at 5:30 p.m. There will be a brief general session for adults in the auditorium, and then participants will visit scheduled locations throughout the building. Please plan to arrive by 5:30 and stay for the duration, in order to receive all the information prepared.

Families interested in learning more about Medina’s UPK program are encouraged to attend the Information Night. If you are unable to attend, information will be shared afterward on Oak Orchard Primary School’s website.

Timeline for UPK Application, Acceptance, Registration and Screening:

• Feb. 16 to April 1: UPK applications accepted by calling the Oak Orchard Main Office, or through our website, starting on Feb. 26
• Thursday March 14: UPK Information Night 5:30 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. at Oak Orchard Primary
• April 2: Families notified of acceptance into UPK Program or if program capacity is reached, that lottery is to be held.
• Week of April 1: Lottery held, if needed, and registration packets mailed.
• Week of May 6 – May 10: UPK Student Screening, applicants should bring all registration materials to the screening. A parent and the child are expected to attend the screening. Applicants will be contacted by phone to schedule their screening time.

Any questions can be directed to the Oak Orchard Main Office by calling 585-798-2700, option 3 and then 0, between 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

File Photo: Roger Hungerford speaks during Dec. 9, 2021 in the Bent’s Opera House events center.

MEDINA – An announcement, which Roger Hungerford once said would “blow the medical industry out of the water,” is forthcoming on a project which Hungerford and head medical researcher Jason Maine have been working on for four years.

Hungerford has numerous patents for medical devices, including an intravenous delivery pump and a cardiopulmonary bypass pump. His father Van also is credited with designing the first heart pump for a physician at the Cleveland Clinic.

Roger has formed AMGIS, headquartered in the Olde Pickle Factory on Park Avenue, where work is progressing on a revolutionary approach to intravenous fluid and drug delivery. Fifteen engineers have been working remotely on this project, Hungerford said in an interview.

Most recently, Hungerford and his team developed an advanced clinical guidance software tool which electronically connects and integrates patient data from multiple units, such as seizure pumps, infusion pumps and cardiopulmonary pumps.

Hungerford anticipates his newest invention, an intravenous drug and fluid delivery device, will be ready to submit to the FDA for review in two parts the second half of this year. He said it will be tied up at the FDA for a year before AMGIS can begin manufacturing it in Medina. He anticipates a large number of patents will be associated with the device.

He said the new invention will make every other device in its field obsolete.

“We are using things that have not previously been considered until we engineered all these breakthroughs,” Hungerford said.

Photo by Ginny Kropf: Vassilious Bitsas, left, and his dad Jim hold a pizza ready for the oven at Cusimano’s. The family, who also owns Country Club Restaurant in Medina and pizzerias in Lockport and Brockport, believe in supporting their community. They regularly donate pizzas to Little League teams and gift cards for benefits and charitable organizations.

MEDINA – If there is one thing the Bitsas family believes, it is in feeding the hand that feeds them.

The Bitsas’ story began in 1980 when Bill Bitsas and his family immigrated from Greece to Toronto, and then to Rochester. The trip from Toronto, through Orleans County, would set the stage for the success that was to come.

Bill worked at a restaurant in Rochester, owned by his maternal grandparents, but when he started looking for an opportunity to expand, he remembered his drive through Medina.

In 1972, with his wife Frances, he opened the Country Club Restaurant on Main Street. Twenty-two years ago, his son Jim and his wife Mindy took it over.

“Our son Michael loves pizza, and we started thinking about opening a pizzeria here,” Mindy said.

The building on Maple Ridge Road, at the corner of West Avenue Extension, was available, and Jim and Mark Massaro bought it. They opened Cusimano’s Pizzeria in 2017, the year son Vassilious graduated from Medina High School.

The pizzeria was named after Massaro’s late mother, Jim said.

When Covid hit in the spring 2020, Cusimano’s donated food regularly to workers at Medina Memorial Hospital, firefighters and policemen.

“We wanted to support the first responders and emergency personnel who had to be on the job every day,” Mindy said. “We continue to donate to them.”

They provide free pizzas to Little League teams after games and to other sporting events. They support benefits and fundraisers with gift cards. This summer Vassilious wants to do something for Little League softball and baseball. They will rotate teams to invite in for free pizza after each game.

The Bitsas family also owns Cusimano’s pizzeria in Lockport and Brockport, as well as the Olive Leaf in Lockport. In Brockport, they support a reading program at the school, where students who complete their reading assignments can come in get free pizza.

In addition to Vassilious, 24, Jim and Mindy have a son Michael, 21, and daughter Elaina, 17, all of whom come in and work in the restaurants.

Bill, who is retired, spends six months in Medina and six months in his home country of Greece.

“We love taking care of our customers and showing the community we appreciate all the customers we’ve had over the years,” Jim said. “Many of them have become good friends.”

Jim said they want their restaurants to feel like home, and for customers to feel comfortable.

The Country Club, at 535 Main St., is a full service restaurant, open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Cusimano’s  sells, pizza, wings, salads, subs, wraps and newly-introduced beef-on-weck. Dessert options include cannoli, ice cream, cheesecake and brownies. Specials are made daily. They are open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Angela Waldriff has offered guidance to about 250 businesses, including Diago Russell of Home Town Lawn Care

Photos by Tom Rivers: Angela Waldriff has owned Ashlee’s Place in downtown Medina for 33 years, withstanding pressure from Walmart, Big Box stores and the online marketplace.

MEDINA – Angela Waldriff opened a clothing store for women 33 years ago in downtown Medina. She has defied intense business competition over years, from Walmart, other Big Box stores and the online marketplace.

Waldriff said she strives to connect with her customers, sending them birthday cards, newsletters and letting them know they are valued. Waldriff sends about 100 birthday cards a month with hand-written notes.

She was at a meeting 12 years ago with the Medina Business Association when two SCORE volunteers – Jon Costello and Jim Hancock – said the community could use more SCORE mentors who offer advice and guidance to small business owners in Orleans County. Costello tends to focus on banking and financing, while Hancock connects businesses to services in the community to make the businesses stronger.

Waldriff has been committed the past 12 years to volunteering as a SCORE counselor through the U.S. Small Business Administration., focusing on marketing and building the business’s brand.

“It is satisfying to being able to help someone with their business,” she said. “It’s bouncing off ideas.”

Angela Waldriff works with Diago Russell of Home Town Lawn Care, a business Russell started about two years ago. Russell is a long-time friend of Waldriff’s son, Tanner. They both graduated in Medina’s Class of 2019.

Waldriff gives people suggestions for advertising and getting the word out about their business, often through social media and being an active participant in the community.

Keys to long-term success come from being reliable, offering a quality service or a product, and showing customers they are cared about, Waldriff said.

She has adapted her business when she sees opportunities. The women’s-only clothing store sells shoes and accessories. Ashlee’s also rents out tuxedos.

“You have to know who your customer is,” she said.

Waldriff also suggests using colors to help make the business stand out. She uses pink in her storefront, in her newsletter, and even with the color envelopes she sends out.

Waldriff has been working with Diago Russell, a lawn care business owner she has known since he was a young kid. Russell, 22, graduated with Waldriff’s son Tanner in Medina’s Class of 2019.

She knows Russell is a hard worker. He has been a personal trainer at the Orleans County YMCA the past three years. He started Home Town Lawn Care about two years ago. His first job was with Zambistro, starting as a dishwasher at age 16 and working up to the salad and service line.

Diago Russell is ready for the busy spring season in the lawncare business. He would like to expand services to have a year-round business.

Russell runs an active Facebook page showing some of the jobs he’s done with lawn care and landscape. He completed the Microenterprise Assistance Program and used a grant through MAP to add equipment including zero-turn mowers, a leaf blower and weed wackers.

Russell will start the busy spring season with one employee and expects to add more. He has run the business with four workers at its peak.

Home Town Lawn Care does lawn mowing, landscape, hedge trimming, power washing, edging, flower bed installation and other tasks.

Russell said he is looking to send out newsletters to connect with customers. He already has a sense of what some customers prefer with their lawn. Home Town Lawn Care has a Google business page and he puts out yard signs when he completes a job.

He enjoys helping people keep their properties looking neat. Most of the customers are in the Medina and Lyndonville area, but Russell said he is willing to drive farther if needed.

“With Home Town Lawn Care, I wanted to produce something here that would stay,” Russell said. “I’m a reliable person and someone you can trust.”

Press Release, Lee-Whedon Memorial Library

MEDINA – Resiliency kits are now available for checkout at Lee-Whedon Memorial Library.

Life is full of challenges and stressors for the little ones in your life. These kits are to help teach your child how to manage their “big emotions.” Teaching coping skills, social skills and emotional regulation will help your child be better prepared for the future.

The library has 18 resiliency kits available for two weeks at a time. They range in theme from “Happiness” to “Anger” to “Overwhelmed.”

In addition to Resiliency kits, we also circulate Discovery Kits, for hands on STEM learning, and Little Learners kits, for teaching the building blocks of literacy. All kits must be borrowed from and returned to Medina. Contact the library for more information.

Photo by Ginny Kropf: Rochester pianist Gregg Herman practices on the new piano in the Harvest restaurant at Bent’s Opera House.

MEDINA – Diners at the Harvest restaurant in Bent’s Opera House can now enjoy music with their meals, with the addition of a new piano.

The piano was a Christmas gift from Bent’s owner Roger Hungerford to his wife Heather, who has always loved the piano and wanted to learn how to play.

“Growing up in a family of nine children, it was difficult to afford piano lessons” Heather said. “When Roger learned Denton, Cottier and Daniels in Buffalo was closing, he said we should go and look at purchasing one. Rather than put it in our house, I thought adding a piano here in this historic building would be a wonderful thing. Now everyone can enjoy it.”

She is hoping she and daughter Isabella can take lessons together this summer.

On a recent Thursday night, Rochester pianist Gregg Herman played music for diners. He has been playing jazz since he was 10.

“I’m looking forward to experiencing this wonderful place,” Herman said, as he sat down at the piano.

On nights when there isn’t a pianist, diners will be able to listen to dinner music, as the instrument is a player piano. It has been placed in the front window in the room off the bar, which will now be known as the “Piano Lounge.”

Walk-ins will now be welcome to stop in for a cocktail or order a meal, while they listen to the music, Heather said.

Justin Bruce, operations manager at Harvest, said they are thrilled to be able to provide an additional space where people can come in and relax.

“This is more casual,” he said. “We now offer something for everybody.”

Harvest is open for dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and for brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. For more information, click here.

Gregg Herman likes the new piano at Harvest.

MEDINA – The Village Board is looking to follow the lead of the county and several other municipalities in expanding the income eligibility for senior citizens to qualify for a discount on their village taxes.

The board held a public hearing on the issue last week and plans to vote on increasing the income levels for the tax discount during the 7 p.m. meeting on Monday.

The County Legislature voted in November 2022 to increase the income levels for residents 65 and older to qualify for the tax break. The senior exemption previously was last changed in 2014.

The senior exemption previously gave 50 percent off property taxes for those 65 and older with an annual income at $15,500 or less and then dropped in 5 percent increments.

The new exemption levels offer 50 percent off at annual incomes of $19,000 or less. It then drops in 5 percent increments until bottoming out at 20 percent off between $23,800 and $24,699.99.

‘We feel very blessed to have the types of neighbors who show up when they are needed. They came together to help us at this trying time and asked for nothing in return.’

Provided photos: Ron Jackson is shown with his grandson Cole Jackson and daughter-in-law Jamie Jackson.

Press Release, Orleans/Niagara BOCES

MEDINA – Last month Ron and Debi Jackson’s family were devastated to watch their roof of their 40 by 90-foot barn off during a vicious windstorm that rocked the Medina area.

“It was just horrible,” said Ron, who is a welding teacher at Orleans/Niagara BOCES’ Orleans Career and Technical Education Center.  “We had our hay stored in there and there were metal pipes flying everywhere.”

The following day 18 inches of snow fell and then another 10 inches a day later.

“We were blessed that no one got hurt and some of my students, friends and neighbors came and helped us move the hay, remove some of the pipes and shovel off the snow floor so there was not more damage,” Jackson said.

“I really have to thank my friends, neighbors and students Jimmy Poler, Noah Poler, Jeremy Botting, Mike Gehl and his son Matthew who all were first on the scene,” Jackson said. “There was a lot of site work to prepare for the barn raising, we needed many hands and could not have been completed without the help from Dave Alt from Alt Farms, brother-in-law Dean Bancroft, son and daughter Josh and Mikayla Jackson, Jay Wozniak from Absolute Property Maintenance, Robert Schumacher, Elliot Vanderwalker, Amanda Baker and two of my students Hanna Zastro and Conner Dwyer. It meant so much to our family that they were there.”

They are also fortunate to live in an Amish community who consider the Jacksons not only neighbors, but friends. One of those neighbors, Marcus, stopped at their farm and told Ron that his church heard about his plight and they wanted to help.

“I was completely in awe of their generous offer to help us out by the community donating their time and raising a new roof,” Jackson said.

“We feel that it was something we wanted to do,” said community member Jonathan. “The Bible teaches us to ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ and to ‘Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ’.”

More than 20 members of the Amish community came together the beginning of February to rebuild the barn roof starting at 8 a.m. and finishing the project before sundown.

“Thanks to our insurance company’s speedy response we were able to get the wood, metal and trusses paid for that we needed to get the project done,” Ron said about Porter Insurance. “We used an Amish business, Lake Shore Metal, for the materials and when the company that makes the trusses heard our plight, they pushed up production and got us the materials two weeks ahead of schedule. It is very touching to see how many people were willing to help us with this catastrophe. I am really blown away.”

The Jacksons says they were overwhelmed by the response of the volunteers who showed up on a cold winter day to help then out. Their neighbor Roger Yutzy who owns Fairview Fencing said he and the rest of the volunteers are not only there to help a neighbor, but are enjoying the camaraderie of working together.

“I think technology has made many people more isolated and disconnected from each other,” Yutzy said. “You would not believe how many times I am working with a customer and they tell me they don’t ever talk to their neighbors. I find that so sad. In stressful times we should be pulling together.”

To thank their volunteers Ron, Debi, Nate and Jamie Jackson made a spread of food for lunch: smoked brisket and pork, macaroni and cheese, cole slaw, baked beans and corn bread to share.  “Their acts of kindness and concern have made us so grateful for the connection we have with them,” Jackson said. “We feel very blessed to have the types of neighbors who show up when they are needed. They came together to help us at this trying time and asked for nothing in return. We are very fortunate to live in this community and to be able to count these people as friends.”

133 ‘Hometown hero’ banners can be picked up Wednesday, Thursday at village office

File photo: The banner for Asa Hill, a  Civil War soldier, was among the 133 banners that debuted in 2021. He was wounded in battle and lost a leg due to the injury. He came home to Shelby and was a farmer until his death in 1881.

MEDINA – A new group of Hometown Hero banners will go up this spring and 133 banners that first went out in 2021 won’t be back.

The banners from three years ago will be available for pickup at the village office at 119 Park Ave. on Wednesday from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1 to 4 p.m., and then on Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Mary Woodruff, coordinator of the program, will be at the village office on the two days. She has the banners organized with a signature sheet in the crate with a serviceman/woman’s last name.

She asks people having someone else picking up a banner to notify her at mbwoodruff16@gmail.com.

“I am most humbled by your tolerance while you all waited so patiently for your banners,” Woodruff said in a message to the families. “2021 was the year that broke the record of banners sponsored by all of you. While cleaning each banner, I was sure to say goodbye to each serviceperson and a prayer for each also. I get sentimental when the banners are sent back home where their families/friends have waited for their return.”

This year there will be 78 new banners going up. They will join others from 2022 and 2023, making for about 190 total.

The banners are on a three-year cycle from when they first go out and then are “retired.”

Woodruff thanked the Medina Village Board, the DPW led by Superintendent Jason Watts and village clerk’s office led by Jada Burgess for assisting with the banners and supporting the effort.

“When you think the world is becoming a negative hive of angry, uncaring people stroll down the streets of Medina and your attitude will soar towards positivity in a moment!” Woodruff said.

Woodruff in July will start to accept applications for new banners for 2025. Woodruff said she already has a waiting list for 2025.