Photos by Tom Rivers

BARRE – About 50 kids do baseball and softball drills today at the Barre Town Park with instructors from NextLVL Sports Institute in Georgia.

North Point Chapel in Albion brought the baseball and softball academy. Retired Major League Baseball pitcher Chris Hammond will be joining the group from Wednesday through Friday with a special presentation for families on Wednesday evening at North Point Chapel.

Hammond pitched 14 seasons in the big leagues with the Reds, Marlins, Red Sox, Braves, Yankees, A’s and Padres. He had his best season in 2002 with a 0.95 ERA with the Braves. He is only the third pitcher in the history of the Major Leagues to maintain an ERA under 1.00 for a full season.

Matthew Kemp, general manager of NextLVL Sports Institute, offers fielding instructions during the camp today at Barre Town Park. The camp continues through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. There is still time for people to sign up if they arrive before the 9 a.m. start time Tuesday to register. The camp is open to boys and girls, ages 8 to 18, in Orleans County and other nearby communities outside Orleans.

NextLVL is teaching hitting, agility and footwork, as well as strength training, diamond work and the fundamentals of the game.

The North Point Chapel Facebook page has more information.

Alex Rustay fires at a target during the competition on Saturday. He nearly qualified for the finals on Sunday.

ALBION – Three members of the clay target shooting team at Albion High School capped off the first year of the program by competing in nationals over weekend.

Patrick Brien, Alex Rustay and Shane Hastings were among 1,800 students in the USA High School Clay Target League National Championship at Mason, Mich., traveling seven hours each way.

Saturday’s event was the qualifier for the championship on Sunday. The top 400 shooters from Saturday advance to Sunday’s finals. This year the shooters needed to hit at east 92 out of 100 targets to advance to the finals on Sunday.

Alex Rustay was the closest for Albion, missing the competition on Sunday by 1 target.

“I am proud of all the student athletes that participated in the program,” said Jeff Atwell, one of the coaches. “The program would not be possible without the help of the coaches, parents and the cooperation of the school. I would like to especially thank Chris Rice. Without him, there would not be a high school clay target club in Albion! His dedication to the program is outstanding. We hope to be back next year!”

Provided photo: From left include Joseph W. Benedict, Jr., executive director Construction Exchange of Buffalo; Michael Kuchey of Royalton-Hartland; Chaise Prest of Medina; and Matt Anastasi.

Press Release, Orleans-Niagara BOCES

MEDINA – Two students in Matt Anastasi’s Building Trades Program at the Orleans Career and Technical Education Center received $2,000 each in scholarships from the Construction Exchange.

Michael Kuchey, a senior from Royalton-Hartland, and Chaise Prest, a senior from Medina, can use the money to purchase tools or use towards tuition to continue in the construction trades pathway.

The Construction Exchange created a foundation where they serve 900 members by expanding their workforce development and seek out high school career and technical programs to offer students scholarships to use towards careers in construction.

“All my students were interviewed by the Construction Exchange Board who came out to the school,” said Mr. Anastasi. “Michael and Chaise were selected because the board felt they had similar goals for their future to help our labor shortage gap that is plaguing companies that they represent.”

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Veterans this morning at about 10:30 raised an American flag for the first time on the new flag pole that was erected last week at Hoag Library.

The veterans at the flag pole include from left: Earl Schmidt, director of the Orleans County Veterans Service Agency; John Pera, commander of the American Legion in Orleans County and also in Holley; and Dave Kusmierczak, chaplain for the American Legion.

The addition of the flag pole follows the recent construction of a new digital sign to promote library events. With the sign and flag pole, the library has completed the projects that were part of the orginal blueprint for the a new library which opened in July 2012.

“It feels like the property is now complete with this flag,” said Betty Sue Miller, library director.

Veterans and library staff and supporters watch the trio get ready to raise the flag for the first time.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – A big section of a towering maple tree broke off about 10:30 last night on East Park Street. The big branch landed on a Jeep Liberty but the vehicle doesn’t appear to be badly damaged. There aren’t any broken windows.

Meghan and Stephanie Cox, two sisters, live at the house where the tree came crashing down. Stephanie is grateful no one was on the sidewalk when the branch broke.

“Nobody was there and nobody was hurt,” she said. “If someone was walking by they could have been severely injured.”

They are waiting for an insurance adjuster who they hope will approve having the big tree limbs removed and cover any damages to the Jeep.

Albion police officers and firefighters are on the scene at about 10:45 Sunday night They made sure people stayed back away from the live wires. National Grid also responded. The police and firefighters were at the scene until about 1:15 a.m.

Photo courtesy of Char Olick: A double-rainbow appeared over the Main Street lift bridge and downtown Albion on Saturday evening.

There will be community engagement sessions this week in Lockport and Brockport as part of the State Canal Corp.’s goal to “Reimagine the Canals.”

There will be a session today in Lockport from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Challenger Learning Center, 160 Washburn St.

Then Brockport will host a session on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the SUNY Brockport Cooper Hall.

The Rockefeller Institute of Government is leading the series of community engagement sessions this month for Reimagine the Canals, a state-sponsored initiative to identify new uses for the Erie Canal.

The initiative, launched in May by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, builds on last year’s Reimagine the Canals Competition, which sought innovative ideas to boost local economies, increase recreation and strengthen environmental resilience along the Erie Canal.

“These sessions are a great opportunity for the public to help shape the future of the Erie Canal,” said Joanie Mahoney, the Reimagine the Canals Task Force chair. “The public’s input will be crucial in formulating the final recommendations about the Canal that will be sent to Governor Cuomo.”

First opened in 1825, the Erie Canal spans more than 360 miles. Today it is overseen by the New York State Canal Corporation, a division of the New York Power Authority.

As the Canal nears its third century, Governor Cuomo viewed this as the time to reimagine the future of this essential piece of New York State infrastructure as a resource for agricultural irrigation, ecological restoration, flood mitigation, boating, fishing and tourism.

The community engagement sessions will integrate the voices of Canal communities into the Reimagine initiative. Community members will learn about Reimagine the Canals and will discuss the Canal’s current uses and its potential future. The insights from these sessions will be presented to the Reimagine the Canals Task Force.

Participants can RSVP prior to attending. The Reimagine the Canals website offers more information about the initiative, as well as a portal where members of the public can submit feedback if they are unable to attend a community engagement session. The Rockefeller Institute will hold a second series of meetings later in the summer.

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – The Rev. Tom Gardner, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Holley, leads a special service on Sunday afternoon to celebrate the 200^th anniversary of the church.

The service on Sunday included remarks from previous pastors of the church, including Bob Kaiser and Cheryle McCann.

There were magnets available for the church’s 200^thanniversary. The church is located at 34 West Albion St.

A combined choir from the Albion and Holley Presbyterian churches sings “In One Accord” during the service. The Amadeus Chorale Youth Singers also participated in the service.

The Rev. Deb Swift, pastor of the South Presbyterian Church in Rochester, leads the group in a prayer. She also gave the sermon, “Ride Loose in the Saddle,” during the bicentennial celebration.

Swift leads a church on Mount Hope Avenue in Rochester that decided to sell its building in 2014. That has freed the congregation to have more focus on outreach and serving the community, rather than trying to attract people to a historic building for services. “Go out and be the church,” she said.

Swift said churches should be riding on the back of the Holy Spirit.

“Trust we’re on a ride and we might get jostled around a little bit, but we need to hold on to the reins,” she told about 75 people at the service.

Swift praised the courage and vision of the pioneers who established the congregation for the Holley community 200 years ago, back when the community was known as Saltport and the Erie Canal hadn’t opened yet. The canal was complete in 1825.

Sue Machamer played the organ during the service. The organ is from 1856 and was transported to Holley from Utica along the Erie Canal. Machamer said she has been playing the organ at the church, “for as long as I can remember.”

People stand for one of the hymns sung at the service.

Sue Machamer is pictured up by the organ before the start of the service.

A banner outside the church notes the Holley Presbyterian Church is 200 years old as a congregation this year. This summer the church services start at 9:30 a.m. on Sundays.

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – Jared Bowen, a member of the Clarendon, Holley, Hulberton Fire Youth Group, was out early this afternoon in a boot drive to raise money for the youth group, which includes 14 teens in the Clarendon, Holley and Hulberton communities.

The youth group started about five years ago. The students learn First Aid and CPR, and practice hose advancement skills, extrication and patient packaging, and also learn about firefighting tools on the trucks.

Mike Snell, a member of the youth group and also a new member of the Holley Fire Department, collects a donation today.

The money will help pay for field trips for the students. In September, they are headed to New York City to see the Sept. 11 memorial. There were 343 firefighters killed in NYC during the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack.

CARLTON – The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the recovery of a body this morning in Lake Ontario.

Dispatchers received a call from at 9:27 a.m. from a fisherman about a body floating about 3 miles off shore from Point Breeze.

The Orleans County Marine Patrol Unit along with the State Police Marine Patrol unit located the body. The Sheriff’s Office also was assisted by the scene by state troopers out of Albion and the State Park Police.

The Sheriff’s Office is currently working with the Orleans County Coroner’s Office, the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office, and the NYS Parks Police in Niagara Falls to make a positive identification of the deceased, said Sgt. David Foeller of the Sheriff’s Office.

POINT BREEZE – The Orleans County Marine Patrol has recovered a body that was seen by boaters this morning, floating in Lake Ontario directly north of Point Breeze.

Boaters called the 911 dispatch to report they saw the boating.

Orleans County Marine Patrol with the assistance of State Police Marine Patrol then recovered the body, according to the Video News Service.

No other information is available.

GAINES – The Cobblestone Museum today will celebrate the completion of a new marketing video for the museum, the only National Historic Landmark solely in Orleans County.

OhDavidson Creative made the video for the museum. Albion native Megan O’Hearn-Davidson and her husband Andrew Davidson produced the video under direction of Diane Palmer, a former trustee for the museum.

The museum will host a viewing and celebration today at 3 p.m. for the video, “Our Cobblestone Heritage.”

That event will be in the lower level of the Cobblestone Church, 14389 Ridge Road West.

The museum wants to use the video to promote tourism in Orleans County.

Photo by Tom Rivers: Bent’s Opera House, which is currently undergoing an extensive renovation, is pictured in the background of this photo on Friday looking through the apple-themed bike rack on Main Street in Medina.

Today will be sunny with a high near 77, followed by another sunny day on Monday with a high near 83, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.

The Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for Orleans and other counties in western and central New York.

“The tropical remnants of Barry will cross our region Wednesday and Wednesday night,” the Weather Service said. “This will lead to some showers and thunderstorms that will likely contain torrential downpours.

“Thursday through Saturday will then be oppressively warm and humid with apparent temperatures (heat index values) forecast to climb to between 95 and 100,” the Weather Service said. “At these levels a heat advisory would be required. The peak of this heat should be on Friday.”

Friday is forecast to reach 91, followed by a high of 88 on Saturday.

Photos by Tom Rivers

CARLTON – Avion Johnson, 11, of Medina holds an 11 ½-inch largemouth bass he caught this morning at Point Breeze in the first youth fishing derby organized by DC Outdoors.

DC Outdoors put on the event, which was followed by a cookout with prizes and awards at the Orleans County Marine Park. Dan Conrad, leader of the group, is trying to promote the outdoors in the community, especially with young people and families.

Several volunteers helped with the event, and many businesses and organizations donated prizes and items for the basket raffle.

There were 60 participants, and they all received a T-shirt about the derby.

Ben Spencer of Lyndonville helps his kids – Carly, 5, and Parker, 4 – in the fishing derby. Kids 5 and younger tried to catch fish at Captain’s Cove. The Parkers are shown under the Route 18 bridge that goes over Oak Orchard River.

Kids ages 6 to 10 fished at Point Breeze, with many trying their luck from the eastern pier.

Aubree McAdoo, 7, of Albion fishes from a dock at Point Breeze. She caught three fish in the derby.

Prizes were given in three age groups for most fish caught, longest fish and heaviest fish.

Older kids, ages 11 to 15, fished form the state boat launch on Archbald Road.

Caliyah Boston, 8, of Medina caught this fish. She used her grandfather’s fishing pole. DC Outdoors had fishing poles and tackle available for kids who didn’t have any.

Iyla Lilleby, 12, of Medina tries to catch a fish in the Oak Orchard Harbor. She said she caught two fish by noon.

Photo by Tom Rivers: John Torsell-Isaascon is halfway through his chemo treatment for stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma. He is pictured with his girlfriend of five years, Amanda Blackburn. The chemo has shrunk the cancer and the Torsell-Isaacson is optimistic for a full recovery.

MEDINA – John Torsell-Isaascon, 24, is thankful for a big support system that has rallied around him while he fights stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma.

Torsell-Isaascon of Lyndonville was diagnosed with the cancer in early April and started chemotherapy on April 29. He has completed six of the 12 treatments, and gained 30 pounds.

Torsell-Isaascon’s weight had plunged before his diagnosis. The cancer was absorbing the nutrients.

Now that the cancer has shrunk significantly, Torsell-Isaascon has been able to regain the lost pounds. He is up to 160.

Many of friends and family are planning a big fundraiser next Saturday, July 20, for Torsell-Isaascon at Leonard Oakes Estate Winery on Ridge Road. The “Jam4John” from 4 to 9 p.m. includes music, food, prizes and many baskets up for auction.

“It’s really humbling,” Torsell-Isaascon said Friday at the Shirt Factory Café, where he joined his girlfriend Amanda Blackburn for lunch. “I’ve learned to accept help. I’m so grateful. I can’t begin to express my gratitude.”

The Oakes family is hosting the benefit for Torsell-Isaascon. He has worked for the family the past three years in the apple packing line at LynOaken Farms and also a truck driver, delivering apples to grocery stores in New York State.

Torsell-Isaascon had a lump under his right arm that prompted him to go to the doctor. He was diagnosed with the advanced Hodgkin lymphoma, which is curable with chemotherapy.

His girlfriend Amanda Blackburn is in her last year at Niagara University, pursuing a degree in nursing. She has been key in helping to understand the cancer and tackle the treatments at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo. Torsell-Isaascon goes every two weeks for chemo.

“It’s a huge curveball, but we’re staying positive,” Amanda said.

The two met about five years after a soccer game at Lyndonville. John was waiting to pick up a sibling. Amanda was coming from volleyball practice. They started talking and became friends.

Torsell-Isaascon comes from a big family with 12 siblings. His is the second oldest.

His mother, Deborah Isaacson, has been working on the benfit, with lots of help from Gretchen Albone, Christie Mombrea and Mandee Heinsler. Wendy Oakes Wilson from LynOaken has also been supportive in the Jam4John, where Torsell-Isaascon hopes to join the musical performers.

The Knights-Kaderli Fund, which assist Orleans County families fighting cancer, also has helped Torsell-Isaascon.

Tickets to the Jam4John provide admission to music and food, as well as a chance to win a 50-inch Smart TV. There are many items at the basket auction, included signed merchandise from Buffalo Sabres and Bills players.

Tickets are available at Automotive Solutions at 11197 Ridge Rd., Medina, and Signature Styles, 1610 North Lyndonville Rd., Lyndonville. Click here to see the Jam4John Facebook page.

Pictured include from left, in front: SSgt. William Simpkins, Jr., Sgt. George Buske, Sgt. Stanley Moody, TSgt. Forrest Vosler, Sgt. Ralph Burkart, and Sgt. Edward Ruppel. Back row: Capt. Merle Hungerford, 2Lt. Walter Ames, 2Lt. John Henderson, 2Lt. Woodrow Monkres, and 2Lt. Warren Wiggins.

“Overlooked Orleans” – Vol. 5, No. 27

LYNDONVILLE – Until David Bellavia received his Medal of Honor on June 25, 2019, John Butts was the most recent recipient of the prestigious honor. However, Forrest Lee Vosler was the last Orleans County native to receive the medal while still living.

Born on July 29, 1923 at Lyndonville to William and Lottie Vosler, Forrest graduated from Livonia High School and enlisted in the U.S. Army at Rochester on October 8, 1942. Following basic training at Atlantic City, he received training as a radio operator at Scott Field, Illinois and later completed gunnery training at Harlingen, Texas. He received a promotion to the rank of Sergeant in May of 1943 and was again promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant in October of 1943 as his unit prepared for deployment overseas.

Vosler was assigned as a radio operator and aerial gunner aboard a B-17 Flying Fortress nicknamed the “Jersey Bounce Jr.” with the 358th Bombardment Squadron, 303rd Bombardment Group stationed out of England. On Dec. 20, 1943, the Jersey Bounce Jr. departed RAF Molesworth as part of its 28th combat mission; the flight was Vosler’s fourth combat mission. Capt. Merle Hungerford of El Paso, Texas was at the controls and Clarendon native George Buske manned the tailgun as nearly 500 bombers departed England for Bremen, Germany.

Dr. Ivan Brown, a physician who treated wounded aviators with the 8th Air Force, authored an account of the Jersey Bounce Jr.’s Dec. 20 combat mission. “At 26,000 feet, the assigned bombing altitude, the air temperature was below -50 F. Heavy condensation trails left by the bomber engines spread like white clouds in which large numbers of German fighter planes could hide to launch their attacks unseen.” The flyers were unprepared for the heavy anti-aircraft fire that targeted their planes with deadly precision.

Brown continued, “Suddenly, an anti-aircraft shell burst knocked out the Jersey Bounce’s No. 1 engine. Moments later, just after the bombardier called out “bombs away,” another shell knocked out the No. 4 engine, leaving its propeller, which could not be feathered, windmilling out of control.” The plane quickly fell out of formation as it lost altitude with only two engines intact. The nose, waist, and tailgunners maintained defensive fire against the onslaught of enemy fighters, which riddled the fuselage with machine gun bullets and exploding 20-mm shells. One of these exploding shells struck Vosler in the legs and feet while Buske suffered a bullet wound to the abdomen before an exploding shell struck him in the chest.

Propelled backwards, Buske was knocked unconscious as Vosler quickly maneuvered himself into the tailgun. Another 20-mm shell hit the aircraft, sending shrapnel into Vosler’s chest, face, and eyes. He continued to deliver defensive fire upon German aircraft until the attacks subsided. Nearly out of fuel and losing altitude quickly, the crew jettisoned every piece of equipment to lighten the plane.

Vosler, severely wounded and floating in and out of consciousness, begged the crew to throw him out of the plane to reduce weight. As the aircraft plunged into the frigid waters of the North Sea, Vosler crawled out of the aircraft onto a wing as other crewmembers pulled Buske out of the craft. Realizing that the unconscious Buske would slip into the cold water, Vosler grabbed him by the waist and held him in place until inflatable dinghies were ready for use.

A passing Norwegian trawler quickly picked up the crew and transferred them to a British rescue vessel. Brown wrote, “Vosler was sent to a Northampton Hospital and later to the States for a long hospitalization. One of his eyes had to be removed, and the other required extensive surgery but partial sight was restored.”

As for Buske, “There was a large…wound of his right anterior chest, which exposed his right lung and continue through a disrupted diaphragm as a single gaping wound into the right upper abdomen.” He suffered a fractured liver, shell fragments scattered throughout his chest, abdomen, and legs, and bullets lodged in his back. In 1952, Buske had a surgical procedure to remove shell fragments from his abdomen and a coronary bypass procedure in 1988, which included the removal of a shell fragment found near his heart.

Vosler received the Medal of Honor from President Franklin Roosevelt on September 6, 1944, “For conspicuous gallantry in action against the enemy above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a radio operator-air gunner on a heavy bombardment aircraft in a mission over Bremen, Germany, on 20 December 1943. The extraordinary courage, coolness, and skill he displayed in the face of great odds, when handicapped by injuries that would have incapacitated the average crewmember, were outstanding.”

After the war, Vosler enrolled at Syracuse University where he struggled to earn a degree. Unable to complete his studies due to the eye injuries he sustained during the war, he was posthumously awarded a Liberal Arts degree from Syracuse as part of the Class of 2015. He died in Florida on February 17, 1992, and is buried in Section 60, Grave 4924 at Arlington National Cemetery.