Photos by Tom Rivers

BASOM – Leaders of the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge have brought some of the creatures and habitat of the refuge inside for visitors to experience as part of a $4.5 million upgrade to its headquarters and visitor center.

Tanya Preisch, an administrative assistant for the refuge and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Fisheries, holds a racoon pelt that is part of a new visitor center with many wildlife exhibits.

The entrance of the visitor center includes flocks of birds, suspended high near the ceiling. The birds have a reflective material, giving off changing colors.

Refuge leaders celebrated the new center with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday. Today the grand opening celebration continues with demonstrations of live birds of prey from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and other games and crafts from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the refuge on Casey Road.

The exhibits mimic some of the habitat in the refuge. The new headquarters and visitor center gutted and upgraded the previous building and added 5,000 square feet of space.

The project was driven by the co-location of the refuge staff with employees of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Fisheries. The 18 to 20 employees from Fisheries moved from East Amherst to work out of the refuge.

This exhibit shows a muskrat in its marshy habitat.

This display notes that Native Americans were once prominent at the refuge, a 10,808-acre site in the towns of Shelby and Alabama.

A large fish tank highlights fish in the Great Lakes.

Photos by Tom Rivers – U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand chats with carpentry students at the Iroquois Job Corps Center in Medina today.

MEDINA – U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand hailed the Iroquois Job Corps Center as a model for success, a program very deserving of the government’s support.

Gillibrand stopped by the center today and met some of the students and staff. The center has 225 students who stay in dorms. There are seven Job Corps in the state. This was the first residential program Gillibrand visited.

The students learn hands-on vocational training. She met with students in the carpentry program where they were building a small lighthouse today that will have solar panels on it.

“This is the kind of program we need to support,” she said after meeting students. “It’s good for the economy.”

Sen. Gillibrand tours the carpentry shop with Michael Wisor, a carpentry instructor.

Many of the students learn skills and can enter the workforce. Others pursue college or the military. Job Corps staff will stay in touch for students for two years following their graduation, providing guidance and support, Gillibrand said.

“This program is vital,” she said. “It is a great environment that is 24-7.”

The Iroquois Job Corps is on the wildlife refuge. It opened in 1966. The federal government created the Job Corps program 50 years ago.

Iroquois staff invited Gillibrand as part of the program’s 50th anniversary. She also plans to visit a center in Oneonta on Wednesday.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer has visited the Iroquois Center before. The site is down about 25 students from its capacity of 250. The Department of Labor froze enrollments last year due to a budget shortfall. Gillibrand, Schumer and Congressman Chris Collins have written letters to the DOL to allow the centers to again operate at capacity, said Melinda Maedl, business and community liaison for the Iroquois Job Corps.

“They’ve all been great supporters of the program,” Maedl said.

Gillibrand is pictured with Melissa Volpe, director of the Iroquois Job Corps.

MEDINA – U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand will be in Orleans County this morning to tour the Iroquois Job Corps Center on Tibbitts Road in the Town of Shelby.

Gillibrand will meet with students and staff. Job Corps is a no-cost education and career technical training program for disconnected young people ages 16 through 24. Gillibrand wants to hear firsthand from students how the program is preparing them for 21st century jobs.

The Iroquois Job Corps Center is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor and uses its training programs to help its students improve the quality of their lives through career technical and academic training. The center is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Photos by Tom Rivers
SHELBY – Firefighter Mark Watts congratulates Eddie Southcott for making a big difference in the community. Southcott was treated to a big party on his 100th birthday today at the Shelby Fire Hall.

Southcott is a World War II veteran and a long-time leader for the fire company. He was led to the fire hall in an antique car. He is currently staying at The Willows, an assisted care residential facility.

Southcott is all smiles after arriving for his surprise party.

Bob Bracey provides a steady arm for Southcott. Many community members turned out for the party today. Bracey is one of Southcott’s neighbors and also serves as a firefighter.

Ron Lasal grew up next to Southcott on South Gravel Road. Lasal made a point of stopping by and congratulating Southcott today.

“He was like a second father to me,” Lasal said. “He was great. I was over there all the time.”

Southcott is pictured in this photo when he served in World War II.

State Assembly members Steve Hawley and Jane Corwin were at the party and presented proclamations from the state, congratulating Southcott for his milestone birthday and his years of community service.

“Anytime you can recognize a veteran it is special,” Hawley said. “It’s a testament to the Greatest Generation. There are not a lot of veterans left from that time.”

The Shelby Town Board presented a proclamation to Southcott and declared it “Eddie Southcott Day.”

“It gives you an opportunity to honor a lifetime resident and a person who has contributed to others his whole life,” said Skip Draper, the Shelby town supervisor.

Southcott is a special person to Shelby firefighters. Many stop by The Willows to see him and take him out to dinner.

“It’s good to honor somebody, especially someone like Eddie,” said Sidney Watts, a past president for the fire company. “None of our members have even come close to 100 years.”

SHELBY – The Medina community and the Shelby Volunteer Fire Company will honor Ed Southcott on Saturday for his 100th birthday.

There will be a processional of antique cars and a fire truck from The Willows, where Southcott is a resident, to the Shelby firehall on Route 63. The community is encouraged to be out on Main Street at about 4 p.m. on Saturday when Southcott and his family head to the fire hall.

“He’s a local guy who’s super nice,” said Tom Fuller, who is chairman of the celebration party for Southcott.

Southcott is a former chief of the fire company. He has been a member for more than six decades. He also is a World War II veteran who flew bomber planes.

Saturday’s celebration will include proclamations from the U.S. Senate, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the Shelby Town Board, Orleans County Legislature and State Legislature.

Press Release, Orleans County Sheriff Scott Hess

SHELBY – The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is releasing the name of the teenager who died late Friday afternoon after sustaining a gunshot wound at his home in the Town of Shelby.

Jacob A. Stahl, 15, was a 10th grade student at Medina High School. He and a teenaged friend were in an upstairs bedroom when the incident occurred.

While the investigation is continuing, Sheriff’s Investigators are reasonably certain that Stahl’s death was a tragic accident that resulted from the careless handling of a loaded firearm. There is no evidence at this time that suggests foul play. The other youth, whose name is being withheld, has fully cooperated with investigators.

Medina Central School District officials were notified early in the investigation so they could make preparations for grief counseling when students and faculty/staff return to school on Monday.

Photo by Tom Rivers  – Police officers are parked along Salt Works Road in West Shelby this evening after a 15-year-old died from a gunshot wound in the house in the back right.

Press Release
Orleans County Sheriff Scott Hess

SHELBY – A 15-year-old boy is dead tonight, apparently from a fatal gunshot wound sustained late this afternoon.

The incident was reported to Orleans County 9-1-1 at about 5:30 p.m. Sheriff’s deputies and first responders were dispatched to a single-family home in the 5000 block of Salt Works Road. The deceased resided in that home.

The youth was pronounced dead at the scene by Orleans County Coroner Joseph Fuller. The boy was transported to the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office in Rochester for autopsy.

Another male youth, who is not a relative, was present at the time of the incident. The deceased boy’s father was also at home, but was in another part of the house when the incident occurred.

The incident remains under investigation by the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were assisted at the scene by State Troopers from the Albion barracks, the Shelby Fire Department, and Medina Fire Department Ambulance.

The Sheriff’s Office will release additional information as the investigation evolves.