By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 7 November 2021 at 6:18 pm
Photos by Ginny Kropf
MEDINA – Local officials turned out to help the family of Jim and Cindy Robinson celebrate the grand opening of their new store, Vintage Cigar, at 513 Main St., Medina, with a ribbon cutting Saturday morning. From left are village trustees Owen Toal, Jess Marciano and Tim Elliott, Ridgeway supervisor Brian Napoli, Medina mayor Mike Sidari, Dave Burd, Assemblyman Steve Hawley, Joseph and Amanda Robinson with daughter Cindy, Becky Robinson and Cindy and Jim Robinson.
Medina mayor Mike Sidari, second from left, congratulates the Robinson family on the grand opening of Vintage Cigar and reads a proclamation from Senator Rob Ortt during a ribbon cutting Saturday morning. Waiting to present his proclamation is Assemblyman Steve Hawley, center. Those looking on are Ridgeway supervisor Brian Napoli, left, Dave Burd, Joey and Amanda Robinson and Cindy and Jim Robinson.
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Members of the Medina Fire Department picked up the MAAC Red Christmas barrels Wednesday morning and delivered them throughout the Medina area. Shown here at the Grove United Methodist Church on West Center Street are, from left, Dustin Pahura, Chief Matt Jackson, Steven Long, Nick Lee, Adam Fisher and program coordinator Sherry Tuohey.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 4 November 2021 at 4:12 pm
MEDINA – The Medina Area Association of Churches’ annual Christmas Barrel program got a kickoff Wednesday morning with delivery of 40 barrels to locations throughout Medina.
This marks about 40 years Medina firefighters have volunteered to deliver the barrels, which this year went to schools, the library, YMCA, churches, the Senior Center, Lakewood Village and two dozen businesses and medical offices.
This is the fourth year Sherry Tuohey has been coordinator of the MAAC barrels. Last year she spent hours and hours cleaning and prepping them and applying new holiday decals.
She said they were very happy the barrels could be placed in Medina’s three schools this year, after being unable to due to the pandemic last year.
Medina firefighters Dustin Pahura and Steven Long load MAAC Red Christmas barrels on a pickup truck for delivery to stores, churches, schools and other locations in the Medina area.
Medina Fire Chief Matt Jackson said the firefighters are grateful for the opportunity to help with this tradition every year.
“We are happy to be able to bring a little cheer to the community,” he said.
The community is asked to start filling the barrels with new gifts, including toys, games, puzzles, books, stuffed animals and crafts for all ages, especially teenagers.
Also part of the MAAC Christmas program are the mitten trees, headed by Marilyn Hiwiller, who has distributed them to area churches and Lee-Whedon Memorial Library for many years. Area residents are asked to place new hats, mittens, gloves, scarves and socks for all ages on these trees. Every member of a family who receives a Christmas box from MAAC will receive a hat, scarf, gloves and socks.
The Red Barrels will be out in the community until they are picked up Dec. 8 and returned to Grove United Methodist Church, where MAAC volunteers will fill Christmas boxes for eligible families.
Tuohey stresses that all donations of gifts, clothing and cash to MAAC stay in the Medina area to help families who reside in the Medina and Knowlesville zip codes. This includes children to age 18, parents/guardians and senior citizens 62 and older.
She said each gift box will contain food for Christmas dinner, to include meat, boxed potatoes, stuffing, vegetables and dessert, as well as canned fruit and cereal.
The Red Barrels will be delivered to families on Dec. 18 by members of local firefighters, including Medina, Ridgeway, Shelby and East Shelby.
Monetary donations can be made to MAAC’s Christmas Box Program by mailing a check to 536 Orient St., Medina.
Applications for Christmas boxes can be made at St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1355 West Ave., from 10 a.m. to noon Nov. 9 and 16; at the Senior Citizen’s Center, 615 West Ave., from 5 to 7 p.m. Nov. 9 and 16; and at Calvary Tabernacle Assembly of God at their new church at 11031 Maple Ridge Rd., from 10 a.m. to noon Nov. 11 and 18.
Income guidelines apply. Applicants should bring proof of household (birth certificates, Social Security cards), proof of residence (any household bill), proof of income (Social Services award letter, SSD/SSI/SSP award letter, pay stubs or most recent tax return) or SNAP letter.
Asa Hill’s banner hangs on East Center Street in Medina, near Rotary Park.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 4 November 2021 at 7:15 am
MEDINA – Among the 132 banners hanging throughout Medina is one paying tribute to a local farmer and veteran of the Civil War.
Asa Hill enlisted Nov. 14, 1863 and served in Company D, 28th New York Infantry.
This monument in Millville Cemetery for Asa Hill, a Shelby farmer and Civil War veteran, is unique, as it is the only one in Orleans County to have been selected for inclusion in Save Outdoor Sculpture, a joint project of the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution and the National Institute for the Conservation of Cultural Property.
His banner was sponsored by his great-granddaughter, Joyce Hill Cook, now a resident of Florida.
Asa’s farm, known as Hill Top Farm, was located on Sanderson Road. An article in the Medina Journal Register on April 22, 1993 by county historian C.W. Lattin reports the once-stylish house, tenant house, barns and outbuildings are all gone. The Root brothers farm part of the farm today.
It is also interestingly noted Asa is depicted on his monument with both legs, although he had lost one in battle, and he is poised looking toward his farm two miles to the west.
Cook shared that her ancestor was a faithful member of the Shelby Center Baptist Church. He married Catherine “Kate” Bodine of Clinton, N.J. in 1875, with which he had a son, Asa Bodine Hill, Cook’s grandfather.
Asa was wounded Aug. 9, 1862 in the battle of Cedar Mountain, Va., taken prisoner on Aug. 18, 1862, taken to Libby Prison Sept. 25, 1862 and exchanged Oct. 6, 1862 at Harrison’s Landing. He was discharged Jan. 14, 1863.
Cook remembers hearing stories about the loss of his leg. While in Libby Prison, he was give whiskey and a broom handle wrapped in a towel when they sawed his leg off with a meat saw. Afterward, gangrene set in and they put live maggots into the wound to eat the dead flesh. Cook says it must have worked, and Asa was confined to Central Park Hospital until his discharge. He died in 1881.
The village of Medina will begin taking the banners down around Veterans’ Day. Woodruff has already accepted her quota of applications for 2022 banners.
Photos by Ginny Kropf: The Robinson family sits in the smoking lounge of their new cigar store on Main Street in Medina. Clockwise from left are daughter Heather Burd, son Joey Robinson, son-in-law Dave Burd, Cindy and Jim Robinson and daughter Becky Robinson.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 3 November 2021 at 4:30 pm
MEDINA – A new cigar store and smoking lounge is the latest venture of an entrepreneurial Medina family.
On Saturday, Jim and Cindy Robinson, their son and daughter-in-law, Joseph and Amanda Robinson, daughter and son-in-law Heather and Dave Burd and daughter Becky Robinson will welcome customers at the grand opening of Vintage Cigar, the area’s first cigar store and smoking lounge at 513 main St.
The Robinson’s son-in-law Dave Burd, who lived with his wife Heather Robinson Burd in Texas, came up with the idea for the business during a visit here.
“We used to come home every year, and I said this town needs a man cave,” Burd said. “There’s nothing for guys in Medina, other than restaurants.”
He said the nearest lounge where people could smoke was in Buffalo or Rochester, until one recently opened in Batavia.
It was three years ago when they started talking about a smoking lounge in Medina.
Jim and Cindy already owned the building at 513 Main St., which they had purchased in 2001. When the Bread Basket closed, the store was vacant.
The lounge is a total Robinson family venture, Cindy said.
In addition to being involved in the cigar store, each individual still has a job. Jim is a veterinarian, Cindy owns English Rose Tea Shoppe, Heather is a nurse, Dave is in fabrication and construction, Amanda is a pre-school teacher, Becky is in computers/accounting and Joseph is a lawyer in Batavia.
Dave said he has been a cigar smoker for some time, and when Joey started smoking them, he got on board with the idea.
“Growing up my friends and I occasionally enjoyed a cigar,” Joey said. “It’s a nice way to sit down and relax.”
Dave said one couple came in the store who both smoke cigars. He said there has been a huge uprising in cigar smoking, including women. There is a group of cigar smoking women on social media called “Sisters of the Leaf,” he said.
“It’s a great way to get to know people and socialize,” Joey said.
So far, the store has generated a lot of interest. As the family was working in there, people kept coming in to buy cigars and inquire about the grand opening.
“Even women have asked me if we were going to carry a particular brand of cigar,” Cindy said.
The Robinsons have created a lounge in the back of the store, with overstuffed chairs, a sofa and even a counter where a customer can use his computer while enjoying a cigar.
Dave said the lounge will give smokers a comfortable place to sit and relax, when it’s too cold in winter to smoke in the garage. Going to a lounge to smoke is like going to a bar to have a drink, he said. This is a place where men can come in and relax while their wives go shopping.
Joe said their goal is to have a large selection that cigar aficionados can choose from.
Cindy Robinson points out vintage wallpaper on a section of wall in the family’s new cigar store in Medina. She said the building dates back to 1863 and she believes this wallpaper is from the 1800s.
Bob Gilsinan of Medina has been a cigar smoker for more than 50 years. He has been entertaining a group of cigar smokers in his basement and looks forward to enjoying the new lounge. His late wife, a nurse practitioner, also used to have a cigar once in a while, he said.
“We enjoy cigars,” he said. “I’ve been to a lot of cigar lounges all over the country, but my favorite is in Key West.”
Dave said he has had several customers asking for key lime cigars. He added there is a huge health difference between smoking cigars and cigarettes. Cigar smokers don’t inhale, he said.
Because smoking lounges only deal with tobacco products, they are exempt from the New York State Clean Act law, which prohibits smoking in public buildings.
Gilsinan said you can smoke the same cigar for an hour and a half.
The ladies in the Robinson family who don’t smoke say they like the smell of cigars.
Jim, Joey and Dave built the humidor of Spanish cedar from Pennsylvania. That species of wood retains humidity without warping, Jim said.
Cindy peeled as many as six layers of wallpaper off the walls, uncovering a final layer still in good condition. She estimates by the women in vintage clothing that it dates back to the 1800s. The block burned in 1860, and this building was built in 1863.
Vintage Cigar currently carries 50 brands of cigars and expects to have 50 more by the grand opening from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. Ray Wendling from North Ridge Distillery in Lyndonville will be set up from 2 to 8 p.m. with cigars and tastings.
Cindy said they have a line of coffee coming and snacks and candy will be available in the smoking lounge. They will also have a giveaway where customers can enter to win a door prize.
They sell a line of pipes and are looking into Zippo lighters, as well.
Current hours of operation are 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. They are anxious to hear customers’ wishes as to what hours would be most convenient for them.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 1 November 2021 at 4:05 pm
Photo by Ginny Kropf: This banner hanging by Creekside Floral on Main Street in Medina pays tribute to Medina’s legendary Dan Paul, known to all as “Dan Spaghett.”
MEDINA – Only a few days remain until this year’s Hometown Hero banners come down for the winter. But before that happens, Mary Woodruff would like to call attention to two very special veterans who are honored in Medina’s downtown.
One is Dan Paul, known to the Medina community as Dan Spaghett, and the other is Civil War soldier and Shelby farmer Asa Hill.
Woodruff first got the idea for the banners after she attended a ceremony in Alfred Station where her father-in-law Willis Burr Woodruff was one of the town’s residents whose banner was on display in a local gymnasium. Burr served in Africa during World War II. He came to Medina as manager of the Agway plant in Knowlesville.
When Woodruff walked into that room with all the banners, she was awestruck, she said.
She came home and immediately started making plans to start a Hometown Heroes program in Medina.
The results have been overwhelming, not only the number of banners which have been purchased, but the stories of the veterans honored.
Two very special banners hanging this year are those of Civil War soldier Asa Hill and Medina’s legendary Dan Spaghett.
When Woodruff posted on Facebook she was looking for comments from people who had memories to share of Hill and Dan, whose real name was Dan Paul, she was overwhelmed with responses.
Most people didn’t know much about Dan, except he was our town “hobo” and always wore his long coat. His portrait is prominently displayed at the Rudy’s diner in Medina.
Legendary Locals of Orleans County, a book by Holly Canham, has the most information known about Dan, who was born in 1892 (location unknown) and died in 1976.
Legendary Locals says he came to Medina as a young boy to work on railroad maintenance gangs. He stayed with the Paul family and adopted their surname. He was a veteran who served in World War I, returning to Medina after the war, at which time it was said he displayed signs of trauma.
He was never seen without his long coat and felt hat, even in summer. It was often said his coat was lined with money, and Legendary Locals reports when he was once hospitalized they found considerable amounts of money hidden in the folds of his coat. Later in life, while at the VA, many uncashed pension checks were found in his coat. It was also reported his only known possession was a trunk full of lacy items, such as doilies, which it is suspected his mother made and which he occasionally gave as a gift.
In spite of his reclusive lifestyle, he was trusted by Medina merchants, for whom he often ran errands, made bank deposits, delivered telegrams and performed handyman jobs.
The most often-told tales about Dan involved his walks to Lake Ontario to bathe in the lake.
Dan’s banner was suggested and paid for by Lee and Maureen Blackburn, Medina natives who now live in Fredonia.
Their reasons for remembering Dan with a banner were because he was friendly and honest, but most of all, because he was a veteran, Maureen said.
“Dan was a regular strolling along Main Street,” she wrote in an e-mail to Woodruff. “Sensing the reluctance of my two daughters when Dan approached, we stopped and waited for him to greet us. The girls weren’t sure of this exchange, but I assured them he was a friend. He greeted them and, as he often did, played a slight-of-hand coin trick. They loved it. Being preschool age, it was natural they were hesitant, and only with an adult nearby would this be ok. This was over 50 years ago and I can still see the image of two little girls enjoying Dan’s kindness.”
Donna Piedmont Bryant recalled Dan walked to Shadigee every day to wash his feet.
“We often picked him up and gave him a ride,” she said. “My dad and he would have a great visit. He got to ride up front and we had to get in the back seat.”
Anita Wigley Weese shared her memories of Dan when she worked at G.C. Murphy’s in the early 1970s.
“Dan would always hang around there,” she said. “He was never any trouble, just sat around quietly and smiled. One day some kids started picking on him. Dan went into the stairwell and grabbed the broom that was always kept there. He took off chasing them and swinging the broom at them. I can still see that.”
Joann Sellers’s memory of Dan is when her family would go downtown and the kids would stay in the car.
“Dan would come up to the car and we would roll down the window just a little and he would give us one piece of Juicy Fruit gum,” she said.
Laurey Kenward said Dan had lived in a run-down house on Park Avenue, a couple of blocks from her family. It was a corner house one block east of Davis Avenue, and she said it was torn down after his death.
Fran Kenward’s memories of Dan are when they had first moved to Medina in 1966 and walked uptown every day with her children, age 1 and 4.
“We were always greeted by Dan when we walked through Murphy’s,” Kenward said. “He was one of the most friendly people in town. He would walk to the stop light with us and would sing to us. What a wonderful voice he had.”
Gloria Fierch remembers Dan very well. She said Dan used to walk by their house on Paddy Hill every night in the summer.
“We assumed he spent the night on Erin Road in this little old house,” she said. “I think he stayed with this little old bag lady, Mrs. Barney, but I’m not sure. He was a very fascinating man.”
Donna Graves said Dan is buried in the front of Boxwood Cemetery and each time she visits her parents’ graveside, she visits his. She asks everyone to stop by and say a prayer “for a very memorable man to many of us.”
There were many more responses to Woodruff’s request for memories, most of whom recalled Dan’s walking to the lake, his honesty, his attention to children and his beautiful voice.
The story of Asa Hill will be shared in a future story.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 November 2021 at 12:02 pm
Provided photos: The Medina Marching Band closes out its first-place finish Sunday at the Carrier Dome.
MEDINA — The Medina Marching Band won the championship on Sunday during the New York State Field Band Championships at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.
Medina had the highest score, 94.75, among the nine bands in the Small School 1 Division.
The seniors in the band gathered for a group photo.
Medina’s performed a program called “Together Again” in a return to competition after the 2020 season was wiped out due to Covid-19. Medina also won the title in 2019.
Medina’s score on Sunday topped New Hartford at 92.40; Mineola at 92.25; Malvern at 90.60; East Syracuse-Minoa at 89.65; East Irondequoit at 88.45; Central Square at 87.50; Oswego at 87.10; and Mohonasen at 82.70.
Jim Steele, the band director, said he is proud of the band program. He views the band as a huge family. There were 50 bands that performed during the championships and each developed a program. Steele said they are all winners, no matter what their score, especially in these times of Covid and other budget cuts. These schools are to be commended for their persistence and dedication, Steele said.
This was the 15th time that Medina has won the championship in their class with the prior titles in 1982, 1989, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2019.
Sunday’s event also included the induction of retired Medina Marching Band director Joseph McKain into the 2021 NYS Field Band Conference Hall of Fame. McKain led the marching band in Medina from 1970 to 1999.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 30 October 2021 at 9:02 pm
Courtesy of Jeanne Upton: Pouring rain blurred the camera, but it didn’t stop hundreds of children and their parents from lining up at the Medicine Shoppe Friday evening for Beggar’s Night in Medina.
This young creature is one of hundreds who lined up outside the Medicine Shoppe in Medina for Beggar’s Night Friday evening.
MEDINA – Pouring rain Friday night didn’t dampen the spirits of hundreds of children who came out for Beggar’s Night in the village of Medina.
Children started lining up well before 5:30 p.m. for the Medina Area Partnership-sponsored event, according to MAP president Scott Robinson.
Robinson said they feared the bad weather might result in a light turnout, but it turned out to be quite the opposite.
“We typically have between 600 and 800 children who come out for Beggar’s Night, and this year was no exception,” Robinson said.
Some of the business owners also dressed in costume to welcome the little beggars, Robinson said.
“Everyone was in the spirit,” he said. “And everyone was having a blast.”
Sue Phillips was one of the deacons at the First Presbyterian Church who gave out candy.
“It was a good turnout of children in costumes and parents with umbrellas,” Phillips said. “All the deacons who helped went home damp and cold, but it was a lot of fun, seeing all the costumes and handing out candy. We had lots of laughs.”
Courtesy of Sue Phillips: The deacons from the First Presbyterian Church on Main Street in Medina gave out candy for Beggar’s Night Friday evening. From left are Ginny Roberts, Sue Phillips, Peggy Pearce (seated), Rollie Phillips and Yvette Nevins. Also participating were the Rev. William Wilkinson and his children, Patty and Jeremy.
The Lee Whedon Library participated in Beggar’s Night by giving each child candy, a toy and a book of their choice. Books were donated by Tops, said children’s librarian Kelsey Withey.
Robinson said they were thrilled to be able to have the event this year, as last year they couldn’t, due to Covid. Instead, they held a scaled-down event, where they handed out candy to children in a drive-thru format.
He said this year they adhered to Health Department guidelines for Friday night, and store owners wore masks as suggested.
“Beggar’s Night is not about MAP, it’s a time to give back to the kids,” Robinson said.
He added Beggar’s Night is a perfect introduction to the upcoming holiday events in Medina, beginning with Christmas in Medina and the Parade of Lights the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
Albion also hosted Beggar’s Night on Friday.
This was the scene on Main Street in Medina, as hundreds of children braved the rain for Beggar’s Night Friday.
MEDINA – Several young treat-or-treaters got to choose a book, along with candy and a toy at Lee Whedon Memorial Library in Medina on Friday during Beggar’s Night.
Provided photo: Medina Rotary Club President Ben McPherson, right, presents checks to representatives from volunteer fire companies including Debbie Taylor (East Shelby), Jen Thom (Ridgeway) and Jason Watts (Shelby).
Press Release, Medina Rotary Club
MEDINA – On September 11 of this year the Rotary Club of Medina held a Chicken & Ribs Dinner. Part of the proceeds were designated to go to volunteer fire departments in the area.
On October 27 the Rotarians presented representatives from the Ridgeway, Shelby and East Shelby Volunteer Fire Departments with checks for $250 each for their share of the dinner proceeds.
Representing the fire departments were East Shelby Fire Chief Debbie Taylor, Ridgeway Fire Department Accountant Jen Thom and Shelby Fire Department Fire Chief Jason Watts.
Jason Watts informed the club that Shelby has had a record number of ambulance calls this year with over 400.
All three representatives talked about their organizations current and future needs. The biggest being aging buildings, equipment and members.
A lack of volunteers is a major concern. This is due to an increase in the number of hours required for training before becoming certified.
A majority of calls are no longer for fires but for ambulance services. This is due to the fact that people are home more the past year and a half.
The fire departments were proud of how well they work together and cover for not only each other but also assist the Medina Fire Department.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 26 October 2021 at 2:42 pm
MEDINA – The Village Board isn’t opting out of allowing legal dispensaries for marijuana, a vote that means the village will be opting in.
The board voted 4-1 on Monday evening to take no action on opting out. Medina officials think they are the first municipality in the county that will allow the legal dispensaries.
Mayor Mike Sidari said it may not come to fruition for 12 to 18 months as the village awaits guidelines and regulations from the state, and to see if a business can work through the permitting process from the state.
Sidari said marijuana was decriminalized by the state. He compared it to easing off the Prohibition laws about a century ago.
“I liken this to back in Prohibition time,” Sidari said. “They probably had the same exact meetings that we’re talking about with the marijuana. With marijuana I have a feeling it’s here and now.”
During a public hearing on Sept. 26, several speakers urged the village to not oppose legal dispensaries. Those speakers said they would have access to a safe, regulated product, and the village would stand to gain tax revenue.
Medina will get a 3 percent tax for every dollar spent at the dispensary, part of an overall 13-percent excise tax on marijuana.
“We don’t know what the dollar amount will be,” said Tim Elliott, a trustee on the board. “But we know it will be better than zero.”
The village has struggled in recent years to keep taxes from rising, partly because it’s revenue from the local sales tax has been frozen by the county since 1996. The state also hasn’t increased the share to the village in AIM funding.
“This is a guarantee of tax revenue, we just don’t know the amount,” Elliott said. “But we can definitely use those funds.”
The Village Planning Board is expected to weigh in on the matter, whether the dispensaries should be limited to certain locations in the village.
Elliott said he doesn’t want to see the dispensaries banned from the downtown.
“I have no problem with them being on Main Street,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for someone to open a business. I don’t see why they should be secluded. It will bring people into town and they will spend money at other businesses.”
Marguerite Sherman, a trustee on the board, cast the lone vote against taking no action. Sherman said there are currently too many unanswered questions about the legal dispensaries, especially with no regulations yet from the state.
Medina also set a public hearing for 7:05 p.m. on Nov. 22 on whether to allow on-site marijuana use at smoking lounges in the village.
Provided photo: Christian Navas is officially promoted to sergeant in the Medina Police Department during Monday’s Village Board meeting. Lt. Todd Draper, right, and Chief Chad Kenward pin Navas with his collar brass insignia. Navas’s wife Stephanie held the Bible during the swearing-in ceremony.
Press Release, Medina Police Department
MEDINA – Christian Navas was officially promoted and sworn in as a new sergeant of the Medina Police Department during Monday’s Village Board meeting.
He will be assigned as the afternoon shift sergeant. Sgt. Navas has been a member of the Medina Police Department for 5 ½ years. Through these years he has become certified as a law enforcement instructor, including specialty topics of principled policing and spike strips. Sgt. Navas is a member of the county’s multijurisdictional tactical team, a member of the Medina Police Advisory Committee, and also handles sex offender registry for our department.
Sgt. Navas’ wife Stephanie held the Bible as he was sworn in by Chief Chad Kenward. Chief Kenward and Lt. Draper pinned Navas with his collar brass insignia, and his wife pinned him with his Sergeant’s badge. In attendance at the swearing in was the Medina Village Board, colleagues, and Sgt. Navas’ wife, daughter and parents.
Our sincere congratulations go out to Sgt. Navas on a well-deserved promotion. Sgt. Navas is a respected member of our department and the community and his hard work and dedication are to be commended.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 25 October 2021 at 8:05 am
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Brockport, St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Canandaigua also recognized
Photos courtesy of David Miller: Bent’s Opera House in Medina looks stunning after a three-year restoration effort.
MEDINA – Three new sandstone structures were inducted into the Sandstone Hall of Fame on Thursday, in a ceremony which also included recognition of five sandstone homes built by architect William Jackson between the 1820s and 1860s.
Inductees include the Bent’s Opera House in Medina, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Brockport and St. Mary’s RC Church in Canandaigua.
Jim Hancock, chairman of the Hall of Fame committee, said the first sandstone induction took place in 2013. Since then, including this year’s inductees, 32 buildings and monuments have been named to the Hall of Fame.
“Purpose of the Hall of Fame was to recognize beautiful structures made of our stone,” Hancock said. “Medina Sandstone can be found in buildings and roads across the United States, and from Cuba to Buckingham Palace.”
Hancock explained to be selected to the Sandstone Hall of Fame a nominee must fall into one of several classes – church, private residence, public building or any architecturally unique structure.
Criteria considered include its age, if it is still in use, it’s beauty and architectural uniqueness.
The 2021 class of inductees into the Sandstone Hall of Fame hold their plaques after the ceremony Thursday at City Hall. From left are Anthony DiPrima, director of finance and administration at St. Mary’s Church in Canandaigua, Karen Baase from Luke’s Harvest Kitchen at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Brockport and Justin Bruce, general manager of Bent’s Opera House in Medina.
Bent’s Opera House is one of the oldest surviving theaters in the entire nation, having been built at the height of the Civil War. From 1865 to the early 1920s, it was the cultural center of the Medina area. Its construction is of native Medina Sandstone, laid in a random ashlar pattern with a hammered finish.
The opera house was built by Don Carlos Bent, a wealthy local farmer, who secured the services of local sandstone builder Patrick O’Grady.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Canandaigua
The building was in danger of collapse in the early 21st century when it was donated by Bank of America to the Orleans Renaissance Group. They then sold it to Talis Equity, who took on one of the community’s most ambitious renovation projects in history, working more than three years to fortify the building and redesign it to include a restaurant, hotel and entertainment/lecture hall in the former opera house.
In accepting the plaque for Bent’s, Justin Bruce, general manager, said owners Roger and Heather Hungerford appreciated the honor, although they were unable to attend.
Anthony DiPrima, finance director at St. Mary’s Church, said the Sandstone Hall of Fame committee visited his church two years ago, but the church didn’t make the list for induction. Then the committee returned this year, and viewed extensive renovations which had been done to the interior of the building.
“We felt pretty confident our church would be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year,” DiPrima said. “This is the first honor I’m aware of that our church has received for its architecture, and with all our interior renovations, this is the cherry on the ice cream.”
St. Mary’s RC Church at 59 North Main St., Canandaigua, traces its parish back to 1843, when a small group of Catholic families began meeting. The first St. Mary’s Church was built in 1846, but by 1865 membership had grown, and a new church was needed. The old J. Albert Granger property was purchased in 1873, but construction was delayed to pay off the debt.
Construction of the current church was started in 1903. Architects were Gordon & Madden of Rochester. The building was dedicated Dec. 17, 1905.
The Building Committee was pleased with the use of pink Medina Sandstone and they got good terms for the sandstone and favorable railroad rates for the delivery of this beautiful stone.
In 2007, St. Benedict’s Parish was established when St. Mary’s in Canandaigua and St. Benedict’s in Bloomfield became clustered.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Brockport
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church at 14 State St., Brockport, has been a dominant, soaring presence on Brockport’s Main Street since 1855.
The congregation paid $6,897 to have the church constructed of Medina Sandstone from 1854 to 1855 in a Gothic Revival style. In 1903, a parish hall was added in Medina sandstone with a Romanesque style. It has been used as a church school, meeting space, gymnasium in the basement, stage on the third floor and was even set up as a hospital at one time for a week-long clinic for tonsillectomies.
St. Luke’s continues to be used for many outreach programs, such as food, clothing, music and ministry. The church has hosted the Brockport Ecumenical Food Shelf since 1972.
The church features several Tiffany windows, including two groupings of three windows. Tiffany created a scene of “The Nativity” at the narthex. St. Luke’s was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990 and was declared a “Historic Landmark” by the Brockport Historic Preservation Board in 2000.
Several people attended the ceremony from St. Luke’s in Brockport, including the Rev. Elizabeth Harden and members Bill Henderson and Karen Baase.
The Rev. Harden said she is from Utah, so Medina Sandstone was all new to her.
“This is an honor, for sure,” she said. “St. Luke’s has been so well cared for. The building has been repurposed several times to meet the needs of the community, so this is a fitting tribute.”
“Getting this recognition is amazing considering the number of places to be considered,” Henderson said. “I knew the church was made of Medina Sandstone, but I didn’t know about the Hall of Fame and Sandstone Society.”
Baase, who lives near Barre, said she was part of the group which gave the Hall of Fame committee the grand tour when they visited.
“We are pleased and honored to be recognized, and are so fortunate to learn more about sandstone,” she said.
Dave Miller, president of the Sandstone Society, shared the history of sandstone in the Medina area.
He explained sandstone was first discovered when the canal was dug in 1825.
“If it wasn’t for the canal, Medina wouldn’t be here, and we wouldn’t know so much about Medina Sandstone,” he said.
At least 30 quarries existed at one time, and a few lasted until the 1950s, Miller said. Most of Medina’s sandstone was used for roads.
Homes built by William Jackson are, clockwise from top left, 10598 Ridge Rd., 10923 West Center St. Ext., 11986 Telegraph Rd. and 3531 Fruit Ave. In the center is the original Jackson homestead at 3669 Fruit Ave., which was stuccoed over about 75 years ago.
Following induction of these three structures, Miller explained their reason for including the five sandstone homes designed by Jackson.
“This is a departure from what we’ve done in the past,” Miller said. “It goes back to last year when we couldn’t travel due to the pandemic. We wondered if there wasn’t something we could do to recognize the two dozen sandstone homes in Medina and vicinity. They are simple, but have a beauty of their own.”
Miller explained many farmers came to Medina from Central New York in the
1800s, built log cabins and then brought their families here. William Jackson was one of these settlers, who came to the town of Ridgeway in 1826 and purchased 100 acres of land. One of the earliest settlers in the town, he was also one of the first to build homes from what would later become known as Medina sandstone.
Pioneer History of Orleans County reports that “In a short time, he purchased more land which he fitted and cultivated into one of the finest farms in the area.”
This was before any commercial sandstone quarry had been established, but the Erie Canal construction had revealed readily accessible sandstone in Medina, some of it very close to the ground.
The five homes acknowledged by the Sandstone Hall of Fame include the original Jackson homestead at 3669 Fruit Avenue, which was stuccoed over about 75 years ago; 10598 Ridge Rd., 10923 West Center St., 11986 Telegraph Rd., and 3531 Fruit Ave.
Miller noted the similarity in the homes Jackson built – all have a center door with two windows on each side and five windows in the second story.
The Sandstone Hall of Fame is located at City Hall on the corner of Main Street and Park Avenue.
Photo and information courtesy of Medina Marching Band
GREECE – The Greece school district hosted a field band competition on Saturday, the last performance for Medina before the championships on Oct. 31 at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse.
Fourteen bands competed in five classifications at Greece. In SS1, Medina earned 1st place with a score of 92.10 followed by East Irondequoit with 87.50.
In SS3, Marcus Whitman earned 1st place with 80.85 followed by LeRoy with 78.90. In LS3, Greece earned 1st place with 82.65 followed by Hilton in 2nd with 82.0.
Webster was the only contender in LS2 with 87.60. Victor was the only National band and had a score of 90.10. The evening was capped off with a performance by The All In Brass Band.
The championships at the Carrier Dome will include 50 marching bands competing, involving more than 4,000 students. The day’s events are broken down into three shows with bands in different classifications in each show.
Medina is in Show #3 which starts at 5:30 p.m. and includes SS1 and National class bands which start at 7:45 pm. Medina performs at 5:45 pm. Additional info about the championships can be found by clicking here.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 October 2021 at 9:04 pm
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Erin Allis, 8, of Medina gets her face painted today at the Orleans County YMCA as part of the fourth annual Mexican Día de los Muertos celebration or the Day of the Dead.
The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council, Mariachi de Oro Restaurant and the YMCA, organized the event that remembers ancestors, and included free activities with Mexican crafts, face painting, dance and drama performance, sand painting and ofrenda displays, and special food tastings.
The celebration included Mexican dance, music and dramatic performances by Alma de México, a group from Rochester led by Karla Alcalá.
Twin brothers Lucas, right, and Chase Livingston, 3, of Medina make colorful masks. They also had their faces painted. Mexican celebrations of the holiday often include animated skeletons and colorfully decorated skulls (calaveras), which emphasize life’s continuing vibrancy in the midst of mortality.
People dance inside these puppets were more than 10 feet tall. The street puppets were created by artist, Antonio Cruz Zavaleta.
Some helpers make sure the puppets are ready for the dance.
Live music was provided by La Marimba, a marimba band from Buffalo, led by Tiffany Nicely.
The gymnasium at the Y was transformed into a celebration of the Day of the Dead.
Sue Fuller of Della’s Chocolates led a paper flower-making activity.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 22 October 2021 at 6:10 pm
This case at DeSales Catholic School Nunzio T. Maiorana Art Center holds a painter’s box, top, which belonged to Maiorana in 1956. Medina artist Arthur Barnes bought it at a yard sale years later. When he realized DeSales was dedicating their new Art Center to the Medina educator, Barnes restored and donated it to Mairoana’s former high school.
A much-loved Medina educator and graduate of DeSales High School was honored last Saturday at DeSales Catholic School in Lockport by dedication of their new Art Center in his name.
A large crowd gathered in the school to pay tribute to Nunzio T. Maiorana, who was described by family and school personnel as a man who not only loved DeSales, but every human being. He had been a popular teacher and school administrator in Medina, as well as athletic director.
Kim Knuutila, director of Admissions and Marketing at DeSales described Maiorana as a highly respected leader in both education and athletics throughout Niagara and Orleans counties.
“In addition to his educational talents, he was also an accomplished self-taught artist who specialized in pen and ink drawings of historic lighthouses and buildings from across the world,” Knuutila said in a press release prior to the dedication. “Each of his drawings was hand-drawn using jeweler’s glasses and each art piece contained more than 500,000 lines and dots.”
Some of his works are on display in the Art Center, along with a display case with a painter’s box which belonged to Maiorana in 1956. The box had been purchased many years ago at a yard sale by Medina artist Arthur Barnes, who restored the box and donated it to DeSales. Maiorana’s name and the date are etched in the cover. When Barnes heard about the art center being dedicated to Nunzio, he knew that was where it belonged.
Nunzio T. Maiorana
The dedication began at 1 p.m. with a ribbon cutting by Nunzio’s widow Charlotte, his children David and Ann-Marie, the Rev. Walter Szczesny and Assemblyman Michael Norris.
David, a general contractor in New York City, said Harvey Mack and his men did the shell of the room, while David built the cabinets.
David said his dad loved DeSales, his teachers, his football coach and his teammates.
He described his father as a man who looked deeper into everyone, and didn’t write them off if they were struggling.
“I’ve heard so many times from someone who graduated, got a job or became a teacher because of my dad,” David said. “He knew families of his students, their parents and their lineage. That’s why people respected him.”
Nelda Toussaint of Medina looks at a display of pen and ink drawings by the late Nunzio T. Maiorana, a Medina educator and graduate of DeSales High School, for whom the new Art Center was dedicated on Saturday.
As an example, he related the story of a kid who was ready to expelled by the principal. Nunzio was superintendent at the time and called the kid into his office. According to David, his dad told the boy, “Here’s a pass. Go back to class.”
“And now, that man is a mechanic for Mercedes-Benz,” David said.
Ann-Marie thanked everyone who had anything to do with the event – from her family to friends and school personnel.
“Dad would be so proud,” she said. “Last Thursday night, Dad was inducted into DeSales Distinguished Hall of Fame, and we were here. Our father was a man of God’s own heart.”
She said her father, who died in January 2018, was born in Lockport and graduated from DeSales in 1958. She called him “kind, loving and giving of himself – a naturally talented artist and leader of his students.”
She continued, saying, “He was a block of granite on the (football) field, a rock for his family and a positive role model for all who knew him.”
He joined the faculty of Medina High School in the fall of 1963, where he taught pre-vocational studies, English and history and was assistant high school football coach. He was also superintendent of curriculum and finance.
The family of Nunzio T. Maiorana, a long-time Medina educator and graduate of DeSales High School, cut the ribbon to officially dedicate the Nunzio T. Maiorana Art Studio Saturday afternoon at DeSales Catholic School. From left are Maiorana’s daughter Ann-Marie Maiorana, widow Charlotte, the Rev. Walter Szczesny, Assemblyman Michael Norris and Maiorana’s son David.
Ann Marie said creation of an art center in honor of her dad was the idea of her mom’s friend of 71 years, Brenda Crow.
“She came to Mom and said,” We need to do something to honor Nunzio in some way.”
David said his mom asked him if he could make it happen. He commended everyone from the employee of his company who drew the plans to the men who built it to perfection.
Many people were instrumental in making it happen. David did a lot of the communication, made sure they had an architect and hired a contractor. Takeform in Medina provided signage. Family friends, Christiana and Joseph DeVoe of Lockport were the local contacts and arranged for the catering from Zambistro’s in Medina.
Remarks were also made by art teacher Kristen McCabe, who said this art center will impact students forever. She said DeSales opened as a high school in 1946, and now serves students in kindergarten through Pre-K.
“Projects like this art center will help us attract new students in the future,” she said.
David’s 40th class reunion at Medina High School is tonight and Saturday. He also plans to attend the Homecoming football game tonight in Medina.
“We used to come home every year, and I said this town needs a man cave,” Burd said. “There’s nothing for guys in Medina, other than restaurants.”
