Press Release, Orleans County Sheriff Chris Bourke

ALBION – Sheriff Christopher Bourke has announced the upcoming civil service exams for both Deputy Sheriff and Police Officer.

Sheriff Bourke

The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office hires from the eligible list established as a result of the Deputy Sheriff exam, and the Villages of Albion, Holley and Medina hire from the eligible list established as a result of the Police Officer exam.

Candidates must be legal residents of Orleans, Erie, Genesee, Monroe or Niagara counties for at least one month immediately preceding the date of the examination. Preference in certification for appointment to Deputy Sheriff may be given to successful candidates who have been residents of Orleans County for one month immediately preceding the date of the examination.

The last filing date for the exam is Aug. 21 with the physical fitness (agility) test on Sept. 21, followed by the written exam on Sept. 28.

Applications, qualifications and additional information may be obtained by clicking here or contact Kate Harvey, the Orleans County Director of Personnel and Self-insurance, at (585) 589-3184.

Orleans County is an equal opportunity employer.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Lyla Page, the back field conductor, helps direct the Medina field band on Thursday evening during a preview show for parents at Vets Park. Some of the students leaders wore capes during the preview show.

Mackenzie McGrath, the drum major, is on an elevated platform on the other side.

The band has about 90 students and did the preview show during band camp which went from about noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, with today’s camp from noon to 4 p.m.

The band does a run-through of this year’s show, “Reflections.” The band camp is usually held in a parking lot at the high school, but that area is under construction this summer. The camp instead was held at Vets Park.

These band members keep their focus on their music and the right steps during the preview show.

The season starts on Sept. 14 in Hilton. Medina hosts the “Fall Festival of Bands” on Sept. 21. The season concludes on Oct. 27 with the championships in Syracuse.

River Jones plays the trumpet in the band.

Matt Jaeger, the band director, praised the students for working hard all week, including in the heat.

The band has 14 seniors this year, up from six last year. The band is continuing to rebuild after the Covid pandemic knocked down the numbers.

Here are some more photos from the preview show.

MEDINA – Sunshine and warm weather created a perfect day for the annual picnic of Orleans Community Health’s North Wing this afternoon.

Activities director Adrienne Belson was in charge of arranging the picnic, which featured a buffet meal and music by David Stockton, a guitarist, flutist, percussionist and singer.

“Adrienne does a wonderful job,” said Rebecca Mannella, director of nursing in the North Wing.

Rebecca Mannella, standing, director of nursing in Orleans Community Health’s North Wing, talks with residents and families during the annual picnic. From left are Rindy Punch, a 20-year resident of the North Wing; Mary Siedlecki, Sue Monell and her husband, Jack Monell, a resident since November.

Twenty-five of the North Wing’s residents were able to come outside and enjoy the picnic with family members, which included a buffet meal of macaroni and cheese, baked beans, seasonal vegetable salad, fruit bowl, watermelon and hot dogs and hamburgers cooked on the grill by Marquis Hammonds, who has been a cook at the hospital for 16 years.

The hospital has been treating North Wing residents to a summer picnic for more than 15 years, Mannella said.

“I look forward to the picnic every year,” said Rindy Punch, a North Wing resident for 20 years. “It’s a chance to get outside.”

Marquis Hammonds, a cook at Orleans Community Health, grills hot dogs and hamburgers for the North Wing picnic on Thursday.

Punch and Mary Siedlecki of Medina enjoyed each other’s company, sharing things they have in common. Siedlecki’s husband Richard and Punch’s dad “Pook” Bielak grew up together in the Polish section of Medina.

Also at their table was Sue Monell, visiting her husband Jack, who transferred to North Wing last fall.

A table away, Fulton Rogers’ sister Nicki Fredericks of Medina and niece Cheryl Nages of Sidney were his guests for a picnic supper.

The evening activities concluded with musical entertainment by David Stockton, who sings and plays guitar, flute and percussion.

A large tent in the parking lot accommodates 25 residents of Orleans Community Health’s North Wing and their guests at the annual picnic this afternoon.

Press Release, Congressman Joe Morelle

ROCHESTER – Today, Congressman Joe Morelle announced the introduction of his Veteran Caregiver Re-education, Re-employment, and Retirement (Veteran Caregiver RRR) Act: bipartisan legislation to support veteran caregivers and ensure they have access to the benefits they deserve.

Joe Morelle

“When our veterans return home from the theatre of war, it’s critical they receive the world-class care they deserve—and we cannot leave behind their caregivers, who dedicate their time and energy to supporting our nation’s best and bravest,” said Congressman Joe Morelle. “I’m proud to have authored this legislation to ensure caregivers have the same benefits and stability provided to other members of our workforce. I’m especially pleased this bill is bipartisan, because supporting our caregivers shouldn’t be controversial—it’s an essential part of uplifting our veterans, which is why I look forward to passing this legislation into law.”

The federal Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) was created in 2010 to provide a monthly income for caregivers to disabled (>70% rating) veterans. Today, there are over 55,000 caregivers participating in the program. The Veteran Caregiver RRR Act would increase and extend certain benefits to PCAFC caregivers to encourage more participants and better retain existing participants including employment assistance, retirement planning, bereavement counseling, and more.

Specifically, this legislation would:

• Ensure family caregivers enrolled in the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) remain enrolled for up to 180 days following their dismissal from the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers, unless they have been dismissed for fraud, abuse or mistreatment.
• Require VA to reimburse family caregivers up to $1,000 for fees associated with maintaining the caregiver’s professional licensure and allow family caregivers to access VA training modules for the purpose of gaining credit for continuing professional education requirements.
• Require VA, in consultation with the Departments of Defense and Labor, to allow family caregivers access to certain employment assistance programs.
• Require VA to provide retirement planning services and/or assistance returning to the workforce to family caregivers.
• Require VA to provide bereavement counseling and support for former family caregivers when their veteran loved one passes away.
• Study the feasibility and advisability of establishing a returnship program for family caregivers to assist them in reentering the workforce following their time as a caregiver.
• Study barriers and incentives to hiring former family caregivers to work for VA.
• Study the feasibility and advisability of establishing a retirement plan for family caregivers.

This bill is co-sponsored in the House by Representative Ciscomani (R, AZ-6) and in the Senate by Senators Sinema (I-AZ) and Moran (R-KS). Numerous nationwide veterans’ advocacy groups also support this legislation, including: the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), the Quality of Life Foundation, the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), Disabled American Veterans (DAV), and the American Legion.

Shannon Sander, the Department of New York DAV Commander, said: “When veteran caregivers make the noble choice to selflessly serve their loved one, they knowingly do so at the expense of their professional lives. This bill begins to correct an unintended hindrance for caregivers who require more employment and retirement support than currently available. They didn’t turn their backs on their veteran when needed the most, and we must remember how their sacrifice impacts their lives when the caregiving mission ends.”

To learn more about the Veteran Caregiver Re-education, Re-employment, and Retirement (Veteran Caregiver RRR) Act, read the full text of the bill by clicking here.

ALBION – The Orleans County Soil & Water Conservation District is seeking volunteers for its annual shoreline cleanup on Sept. 14.

Volunteers will collect and record the litter they pick up at nearby waterways. They will meet at 9 a.m. on Sept. 14 at Bullard Park. After a brief introduction, they will disperse to several predetermined locations throughout the county to begin the collection.

The volunteers will return to Bullard at noon, where the trash will be weighed and the volunteers will be treated to pizza.

All volunteers will be supplied with gloves, trash bags, and data sheets to record litter found for the American Littoral Society.

Any interested individuals can call Soil & Water for more information at (585) 589-5959 ext.5 or email this year’s beach captain, Andrea, at Andrea.Centola@ny.nacdnet.net. Volunteers are asked to RSVP at the number or email listed above.

Press Release, Orleans/Niagara BOCES

MEDINA – At the August 14th Orleans/Niagara BOCES Board of Education meeting, Tricia Andrews, a representative from NYSSBA (New York State School Board Association) presented the board with two Champions of Change awards.

The NYSSBA Champions of Change Recognition program highlights the many district and BOCES programs and initiatives that are bringing positive, meaningful change to the students, communities and districts of New York.  The organization picks stories that are featured in their E-clips and chose the Niagara Academy’s Interactive Bulletin Board and the Career and Technical Education’s Allied Health program.

Orleans/Niagara BOCES Board of Education President Wayne Wadhams welcomes new superintendent, Dr. Taweepon Farrar.

The Niagara Academy’s Student Council created the bulletin board in response to a conversation they had on diversity, equity and inclusion in order to build awareness and spread a message of hope.  The school’s counselors helped the students bring the idea to life.

On hand to accept the award, with the Board of Education, was Assistant Principal Michelle Kulbago, Jen Herko (school counselor), Amanda Labernardo (school counselor), Amy Crocker (school social worker) and Stephanie Walker (school counselor).

The Allied Health program was recognized for their partnership with Lockport Memorial Hospital/Catholic Health Services.  The students, all aspiring health care workers, spend two mornings each week rotating through eight different departments at the hospital with the goal of gaining a broad perspective on careers in the medical field.

Niagara Career and Technical Education Center Assistant Principal Maureen Bartlett, Allied Health teacher Deb Rettig, Susan Brooks (Lockport Memorial Hospital Vice President of Patient Care Services) and Grace Ayoub (Lockport Memorial Hospital People Advocate & Community Strategy Administrator) were present for the award to represent the program.

The Board of Education consists of Rae Amacher (Starpoint), Keith Bond (Royalton-Hartland), Vincent Cancemi, Sr. (Niagara Falls), Anthony Casinelli (Newfane), Carol Feltz (Barker), Dr. Bruce Fraser (Lockport), Ed Grabowski (Medina), Thomas Klotzbach (Lyndonville), Timothy Kropp (Wilson), Robert McDermott (Niagara Wheatfield), Danielle Mullen (Lewiston-Porter), Colleen  Osborn (North Tonawanda) and Wayne Wadhams (Albion). They welcomed Dr. Taweepon (Pon) Farrar on her official first day as the new Orleans/Niagara District Superintendent.

Press Release, Arc GLOW

ELBA — Walk or run along rolling country hills and past corn and hayfields to help support individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

Arc GLOW will be hosting its 20th annual Friends & Family 5K and Fun Walk on Sept. 21. It is an event which gives people of all ages and skill levels an opportunity to participate. It also welcomes and embraces the participation of the people Arc GLOW serves, aligning with their mission to support people with disabilities in partnership with their families and community.

Taste of Country, the signature event within the Friends and Family 5K, features a wonderful display of fruits and vegetables donated by area farmers. Runners, walkers, sponsors and volunteers each have the opportunity to take some home with them.

Arc GLOW expects over 300 runners and walkers this year. The event’s post party features live music by The Buffalo Road Show with Jim and Babe Catino, kid’s activities, food, beverages and award ceremony.

Sandy Konfederath has been the race director since the event began. It originally started in Batavia, but due to planned road reconstruction, the event was moved to the country in 2008.

“It was our best decision ever,” Konfederath said. “Because along with the country route, we incorporated the country theme.”

The Friends and Family 5K began as a memorial to Mary Anne Graney, a parent, educator, advocate and friend to Arc GLOW who died in 2004. Her dedication to people with IDD and their families enriches countless lives. The Bluebonnet sponsorship is in honor of Graney’s Texas roots.

The Graney family is pleased funds raised in the 5K help support education through the Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarship program, which is presented to area high school seniors planning to further their studies in human services, special education or related fields. The event also helps fund various programs and services Arc GLOW offers for individuals with IDD.

In 2017, the Friends and Family 5K combined forces with the former 5K held in memory of Arc staff member Terri Carr Krieger. Krieger was a longtime employee who lost her battle with cancer in 1997. The Blue Spruce sponsor level is in Krieger’s honor.

Finally, for many years the Livingston-Wyoming 5K was held in memory of Dr. Ramon M. Rocha. He passionately believed in the possibilities of life, and has been an endless source of inspiration for people of all ages and abilities.

A beloved family man and enthusiastic volunteer, the Blue Knight sponsorship connects Dr. Rocha to SUNY Geneseo where he was a respected professor.

“We’ve had sponsors and donors support us in this event since day one,” Konfederath said. “It’s an inclusive event for people of all abilities, and we’re so incredibly thankful for the continued support we receive to make sure this can happen every year.”

The Friends & Family 5K will take place Sept. 21 where check in begins at 8:45 a.m. and the race beings at 10 a.m. Race t-shirts will be guaranteed for all participants who register by Sept. 10 and until quantities last for walk-ins. It will be held at the Arc Day Habilitation Center, located at 4603 Barrville Road in Elba.

For anyone who wishes to sponsor the 5K, contact Sandy Konfederath at (585) 343-1123 ext. 1715 or skonfederath@arcglow.org by Aug. 26.

Walkers and runners wishing to pre-register and save can do so online at ArcGLOW.org/Event/Friends-Family-5K-and-Fun-Walk or by contacting Konfederath. Runners cost $25 and walkers are $20.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – About 75 people attended a tour on Sunday evening at the cemetery for the Orleans County Alms House on County House Road.

The event is part of the Sunday evening cemetery tours this month organized by the Orleans County Historical Association. The first tour on Aug. 4 featured the West Ridgeway Cemetery. The next tour at 6 p.m. will be at St. Mary’s in Medina followed by Mount Albion on Aug. 25.

Tim Archer, a retired teacher at Albion, speaks during Sunday’s evening highlighting a once-forgotten cemetery.

Archer was working as a service learning teacher at Albion in 2010 when his seventh-grade students became interested in the site. Bill Lattin, the county historian at the time, was speaking in Archer’s class about how there used to be the Alms or “Poor House” on County House Road from 1833 to 1960. The Alms House closed in 1960 when the county nursing home opened on Route 31 in Albion.

The Alms House was torn down and now the site is the Orleans County Emergency Management Office with a fire training tower.

Bill Lattin speaks during Sunday’s tour of the cemetery. In 2010, Lattin visited Tim Archer’s classes and Lattin mentioned there was a cemetery behind the former Alms House. At the time the site was overgrown and largely inaccessible.

Archer went on his own and found a headstone with a number on it. He then brought three students and they found 10 more head stones with numbers.

Archer and his class addressed the County Legislature about having the site cleared and cleaned up. The students researched the site and found old records with names of 250 people who died at the Alms House.

An interpretive panel was unveiled in 2019 with the names of 250 people who were buried in the cemetery. Some had headstones with numbers, and others were just buried with no marker.

Lattin praised Archer and the students for their concern and action in pushing to get the site cleared and to provide a more fitting final resting place for the residents.

“Tim is a great citizen, a great teacher and a lifetime friend,” Lattin said about Archer. “He did a great job cleaning up this mess. Tim you’ve put a great of your heart and soul into this.”

The reclaimed stones were reset at the cemetery in 2011. The project led by the Albion students garnered widespread media attention around Western New York. Archer said it was perhaps the most ambitious and most meaningful of all the service-learning projects during his career.

He spoke to the crowd on Sunday about the residents of the alms house, some whose stay was short-term for a few weeks while they “dried out” from intemperance.

Others were there for years, suffering from mental and physical disabilities. Some of the oldest records from the alms house were destroyed in a fire. But Archer has looked through an annual reports about the alms house, where staff lists why people needed to stay there.

Some of the reasons listed that caused people to be at the alms house: vagrant, homeless, “pain in the bones,” delinquent, paralysis, dropsy, consumption, syphilis, hernia, “feeble minded,” “bad business management,” senile, lunatic, opium habit, breast cancer, “peg leg,” “frozen hands,” skull wound, “one arm off,” cirrhosis of the liver, crushed foot by railroad car, fingers cut off by a buzz saw.

He saw 1,500 entries over decades for the “inmates.” They weren’t prisoners or in trouble with the law. But they were away from their home, or they didn’t have a home.

“These were real people with real lives that ended unceremoniously,” Archer said.

The cemetery is in the back behind the Emergency Management Office, surrounded by a corn field. When the cemetery was rededicated in 2011, 74 grave markers were reset.

The site is open to the public and continues to be maintained by Orleans County.

Scouts from Albion’s Troop 164 raised the flag at the cemetery during Sunday’s event.

ALBION – Tax bills in the Albion school district will soon be coming out and will show significantly lower tax rates for property owners in the towns of Albion and Gaines, which completed townwide reassessments earlier this year.

In Albion and Gaines, the tax rate dropped $4.25 per $1,000 of assessed property for the school while the library rate is down 32 cents. The rate is down from $14.69 to $10.44 per $1,000 in both towns.

The school district’s total taxable value is at $775,416,283, which is up 22.7 percent or by $143,199,243 from the $632,217,040 a year ago. That increase is driven by the changes in Albion and Gaines. The Town of Albion’s assessed value is up $92,793,967 – 39.3 percent, while Gaines is up $50,703,658 or 37.4 percent.

The tax levy remains at $8,449,039 for the school district. Albion hasn’t increased the school taxes in 16 of the past 18 years.

The school tax bills also include the bills for the Hoag Library. The library’s tax levy will be $664,510, up from $654,510 last year.

Albion, Gaines and Elba are all at full 100 percent equalization rates after completed their town-wide reassessments. Other towns have lower equalization rates set by the state which results in higher tax rates. That is done to try to have those property owners pay their fair share.

Ridgeway and Carlton are at 97 percent equalization rates, Kendall at 94 percent, Barre at 80 percent and Murray at 66 percent.

Here is a snapshot for each town in the school, with the past year in parentheses:

• Albion, assessed value – $329,042,669 ($236,248,702); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library
• Barre, assessed value – $105,801,769 ($106,749,208); tax rates: $13.05 school, $1.03 for library
• Carlton, assessed value – $146,333,432 ($145,684,900); tax rates: $10.76 school, 85 cents for library
• Gaines, assessed value – $186,362,530 ($135,658,872); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library
• Kendall, assessed value – $1,247,077 ($1,240,031); tax rates: $11.10 school, 87 cents for library
• Murray, assessed value – $5,977,846 ($5,989,786); tax rates: $15.81 school; $1.24 for library
• Ridgeway, assessed value – $252,759 ($251,914); tax rates: $10.76 school; 85 cents for library
• Elba, assessed value – $398,201 ($393,627); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library

Site will add monument to 1859 bridge collapse victims, and bench and lamppost made of old steel from Main Street lift bridge

Photo by Tom Rivers: The park by the canal recently added the concrete planters with flowers. More elements are headed to the site.

ALBION – The small park along the Erie Canal across from the Albion Fire Hall has been referred to as Canal Park and Firemen’s Park over the years.

Now it has an official name,” Erie Canal Park.”

Village Clerk/Treasurer Tracy Van Skiver said the park has never been formally named. She and her staff combed through the village records.

Provided photo: Bill Schutt made a lamppost from old steel from the Main Street lift bridge.

The village plans to dedicate the park with a ceremony at noon on Sept. 28. During that event, a monument will also be unveiled to the 15 victims in the Sept. 28, 1859 bridge collapse. The Main Street bridge at the time gave out when 250 people crammed on the bridge to watch a wirewalker. The Albion Rotary Club is taking the lead in working with Brigden Memorials of Albion on the project.

The village also is installing two pieces made from old steel from the Main Street lift bridge which has been closed since November 2022 for a major rehabilitation.

A park bench is being made by village employees from some of the discarded steel from when the bridge was originally built in 1914.

The village also used a grant from GO Art! to pay artist Bill Schutt to make a lamppost from the old steel. The lamppost will provide another light at the park.

The village also has moved some of the concrete planters that were in the downtown to the park. They are on the back perimeter of the site.

The gazebo also will get new shingles and paint as Albion tries to create a more inviting spot for local residents and visitors on the canal. The Village Board said it is open to naming the gazebo in honor of someone and will take suggestions from the community.

The park includes a historical marker dedicated for a Revolutionary War hero, Marquis de Lafayette. The French military officer provided critical aid to George Washington in securing American independence. Lafayette traveled on the Erie Canal from Lockport to Rochester in June 1825 to great fanfare.

There also is an interpretive panel at the site about different facets of the Erie Canal in Albion.

The park is between Platt and Ingersoll on the south side of the canal.

MEDINA – When Medina Lions agreed to take over the Medical Loan Closet from Lyndonville Lions prior to the Covid pandemic in 2020, they couldn’t have imagined the scope of the service they would provide.

Now, they are preparing to expand that service even further by donating medical equipment to war-torn Ukraine.

The idea was born when little more than a week ago. Lion Bill Jurinich of Lyndonville attended a family reunion in Pennsylvania.

Jurinich explained his grandfather immigrated to Pennsylvania from Ukraine, and subsequently was responsible for a large number of relatives joining him.

During the recent reunion, Jurinich learned that a family member from the Salvation Baptist Church in State College was coordinating a drive to gather supplies for families in Ukraine and Moldova.

Lion Dave Bellucci points to a huge supply of crutches which have been donated to the Lions Medical Closet. The Lions are preparing to join a Lions Club in Pennsylvania in supplying medical equipment to Ukraine.

Jurinich said his relative’s church was also looking into the logistics of getting walkers and wheelchairs, even hospital beds, to Ukraine.

In 2019, Jurinich’s Pennsylvania relatives and their church sent more than 150 coats to Orleans County for Hands for Hope, and knowing the abundance of medical equipment in the Medina Lions’ Medical Loan Closet, Jurinich approached Medina Lions with the idea to help the Pennsylvania Lions in their mission project.

He explained his Pennsylvania relatives were looking into obtaining a container to ship items such as wheelchairs, toilets and even hospital beds to Ukraine.

Jim Punch, who heads the Lions’ Medical Loan Closet, said they continue to accept donations and to loan medical equipment. Anyone wishing to donate or borrow equipment should call (585) 205-3502.

From left, Dave Bellucci, Jim Punch and Bill Jurinich look over some of the many walkers in the Medina Lions Medical Closet.

ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church sentenced a Medina man to 364 days in the county jail this morning for felony driving while intoxicated and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Lawrence Miller, 31, was charged after a rollover accident on June 25, 2023 on Maple Ridge Road.

The judge also revoked Miller’s license for a year and said he will need to use an interlock-ignition device for a year when he starts driving again.

In other cases:

• An Albion man was sentenced to 10 years probation for a criminal sexual act and sexual abuse, as well as endangering the welfare of a child. He allegedly had sexual contact with an underage girl.

The man, now 22, was a juvenile when he committed the crime. The judge gave him youthful offender status. His name shouldn’t be published.

He is receiving treatment and has no other criminal history, the judge said.

• Andre Coley, 33, of Albion was arraigned for charges of second-degree strangulation, third-degree menacing and fourth-degree criminal mischief.

The judge kept bail at the $1,000 set in town court and issued an order of protection for the victim in the case.

• Bradlee Pescara, 32, of Lyndonville pleaded guilty to criminal contempt in the second degree for having contact with a woman who had an order of protection against him. He will be sentenced on Nov. 1.

• Arthur Dukes of Medina was sentenced to weekends in jail for a month and a year of probation for attempted assault in the third-degree.