Provided photo: Roberto Nunez is surrounded by Orchard Manor therapists and staff members during a birthday party today.
Press Release, Orchard Manor Rehabilitation & Nursing Center
MEDINA – Roberto Nunez celebrated his birthday at Orchard Manor today with a surprise party from his daughter and family.
It was a special birthday. Roberto and his family relocated to Medina from Puerto Rico just after Hurricane Maria. His home lost its roof, was flooded and destroyed. The family lost everything.
Roberto was taken from the Rochester airport to Strong Memorial Hospital with a poor prognosis as he had been bedridden at home in hospice care with leukemia and lung cancer.
After several months at Strong, Roberto came to Orchard Manor Rehabilitation & Nursing Center in Medina. He’s been working hard in rehab and is now walking with a walker, and doesn’t need oxygen or hospice.
His daughter Cristal said it’s like a miracle from God. She is grateful for all the staff who have helped with his healing and progress.
Today they celebrated Roberto’s 83rd birthday and his chance of living. He was surprised with the cupcakes and decorations. Family, therapists, and staff celebrated his birthday. His family is preparing to take him home, hopefully next month.
Press Release, Civil Service Employees Association
ALBANY – CSEA and the New York State Canal Corp. have reached a tentative agreement on a 10-year contract that runs retroactively from July 1, 2012, through June 30, 2022.
The agreement, which covers more than 400 Canal Corp. employees, includes raises in the last seven years, including retroactive payments, a lump sum bonus, an added service award payment for 20 years of service, establishment of a leave exchange program to be applied towards health insurance premiums, a new provision for prescription safety glasses, increased safety boot allowances and improvements for seasonal employees.
It maintains dental, vision and health insurance benefits, with incremental increases in employee premium contributions over the last five years of the agreement.
“CSEA worked hard to reach an agreement we believe is in everyone’s best interest,” said CSEA President Danny Donohue. “This tentative agreement is reasonable and responsible for the long term, and recognizes the value and importance of Canal employees who make the system work every day. “
“Canal employees are proud of the work they perform in all kinds of conditions,” said CSEA Deputy Director of State Operations Guy Dugas, the union’s chief negotiator. “They deserve a fair contract.”
CSEA members employed by the Canal Corp. maintain and operate New York’s 524-mile canal system that links the Hudson River with Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes, the Niagara River and Lake Erie, passes through 25 counties and is near more than 200 of our state’s communities.
The state’s canal system includes 57 locks, 20 lift bridges, 22 reservoirs, 203 buildings, 114 dams and over 1,500 other structures. Dating back to 1918, much of the historic equipment requires substantial maintenance and the skills of often second and third generation canal employees.
The agreement is subject to ratification by CSEA members employed by the Canal Corp., as well as approval by the Canal Board.
Contract ratification meetings will be held across the state for each CSEA Canal Local over the next few weeks. A ratification vote is scheduled for March.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 January 2018 at 3:43 pm
Jodi Gaines
ROCHESTER – Jodi Gaines, the CEO and founder of Claims Recovery Financial Services in Albion, will be recognized this evening with an ATHENA Award.
Gaines is one of 15 finalists for the award, which is given by the Women’s Council and the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce. The award recognizes professional women who are leaders in business and community service.
Gaines has grown her company from one employee, operating out of her kitchen to 2002, to more than 500 employees in Albion at the former Chase site on East Avenue.
The company assists banks and investors to recoup money when a home is foreclosed. Gaines and her employees work with attorneys, county clerks, utility companies and investors from all over the country. CRFS works to recover past-due interest, unpaid principal, unpaid taxes and unpaid insurance on houses.
Gaines is on the board of directors for the United Way of Orleans County and also is in the first class of the new Leadership Orleans program. She also was active in Albion’s youth soccer program, serving as commissioner.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today signed an executive order to combat the flu epidemic in New York. The executive order allows pharmacists to administer flu vaccines to children ages 2 to 18 – increasing access and convenience for New Yorkers seeking the flu vaccination as the number of reported cases across the state continues to rise.
Over the past week, 7,779 laboratory confirmed influenza cases were reported to the state and 1,759 New Yorkers have been hospitalized with confirmed influenza, the highest weekly numbers in both categories since reporting began in 2004 and surpassing last week’s previous high of 1,606 hospitalizations.
“With flu cases reaching epidemic proportions in New York, we must do everything in our power to fight this virus and keep New Yorkers safe,” Governor Cuomo said. “Once again, I urge all New Yorkers to help us combat this quick-spreading strain of flu and make sure they and their loved ones are vaccinated.”
To raise awareness on the high rates of influenza and to continue to encourage New Yorkers to get vaccinated, Governor Cuomo has also called on the Department of Health to immediately expand the state’s influenza public service advertising campaign targeting the areas of the state hardest hit by influenza. Additionally, subscribers to the New York State text line will receive a message encouraging them to get a vaccine and providing resources to find a location to receive the vaccine.
The Executive Order, effective today, suspends the section of state education law that limits the authority of pharmacists to administer immunizing agents to anyone under age 18 to allow vaccines to be administered to anyone age 2 and up. Parents and guardians are encouraged to call pharmacies ahead of their visit, to ensure they are ready to receive patients in this age group. Parents and guardians with children between the ages of 6 months and 24 months are still encouraged to see their primary care provider for the vaccination.
To receive a flu shot, contact your local health care provider or pharmacy, or find information about vaccination clinics by contacting your local health department. Flu shots may also be found through the HealthMap Vaccine Finder at www.vaccinefinder.org.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 January 2018 at 8:13 am
County will establish cost recovery procedure to recoup costs in providing services due to crisis
ALBION – Orleans County legislators want pharmaceutical companies to pay for the county’s added costs in providing services for people affected by the opioid epidemic.
The epidemic has hit the county. Last year there were 39 opioid overdoes in Orleans, and seven deaths from overdoses, said County Legislator Don Allport, R-Gaines.
The county has added services in the jail and community to assist people with addictions.
The County Legislature voted to set a public hearing for 4:25 p.m. on Feb. 28 so Orleans can declare the opioid epidemic and its effect on the county “a public nuisance.” The Legislature also wants to establish a cost recovery procedure for the county’s expenditures incurred for services due to the epidemic. The public hearing will be at the Legislature’s meeting room on the second floor of 3 South Main Street, Albion.
The County Legislature in September also voted to join a growing number of municipalities in a lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies for allegedly fueling an opioid crisis.
The Legislature retained Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, a Manhattan firm, in the lawsuit. The firm is paying any upfront costs for staffing and retaining expert witnesses, County Attorney David Schubel said.
The counties are contending the pharmaceutical manufacturers knew that opioids were effective for short-term or trauma-related pain, as well as palliative (end-of-life) care. However, the manufacturers also knew for years that opioids were addictive and subject to abuse, especially when used for more than three months.
The lawsuit contends that prescription painkillers, as well as heroin abuse, are the prime causes for an increase in overdose deaths.
“There was a concerted effort by pharmaceutical companies to promote opioid use in excess of what was necessary,” Schubel said during Wednesday’s Legislature meeting.
He said the pharmaceutical companies have responded they only made the drugs. They said it was the doctors who prescribed the opioids.
But Schubel said there is evidence showing the pharmaceutical companies went to great lengths to promote their products – at the expense of public health.
“They almost make the tobacco industry look like the good guys,” Schubel said.
Donna Saskowski, executive director of the Arc of Genesee Orleans, accepts a $2,500 check from Jim Kelly, the Hall of Fame quarterback for the Buffalo Bills. Kelly presented checks for $244,773 to different organizations last week that have programs serving disadvantaged and disabled youth in Western New York.
The funds are awarded through the Kelly for Kids Foundation, which has distributed more than $5 million since 1986. The Arc will use the $2,500 to help maintain Camp Rainbow on Townline Road in Ridgeway. The camp serves children with and without disabilities.
By Kristina Gabalski, Correspondent Posted 24 January 2018 at 5:29 pm
Photos by Kristina Gabalski
HOLLEY – A group of Holley Elementary students were treated to a limo ride and lunch at McDonald’s in Brockport today. The students were all winners in this year’s PARP – Pick a Reading Partner – program sponsored by the PTSA.
This year’s winners include: Leon King, William Butler, Calista Maggard, Peyton Caufield, Mason Girangaya, Bella Hernandez, Alyssa Lipke, Liam Jenks, Zach Fichtner, Laura Moak, Stephanie Miles, Cora Hudzinski, Carter McGuire and Bella Thom.
A group of Holley Elementary students prepares to head out for their limo ride to lunch at McDonalds in Brockport today.
PARP winners enter the limo. Several said they planned on ordering chicken nuggets for lunch.
The limo prepares to leave Holley Elementary School.
Provided photo: Lisa Roeseler, a music teacher at Medina since 1986, will retire at the end of this year.
Press Release, Medina Central School
MEDINA – Lisa Roeseler started at her career as a music teacher Towne Primary School in September 1986 and moved to the High School in September 1987. She has been a popular teacher at Medina, with her vocal ensembles performing in the community, especially the annual holiday concert by the A‘Capella Choir at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.
Roeseler will retire at the end of this school year. She said there are many highlights in her career, including when her choir twice sang at Kleinhan’s Music Hall in Buffalo. One of those times was working with Grammy and Emmy winning music director and composer John McDaniel.
“He was working as the music director at The Rosie O’Donnell Show and he was the guest conductor with the BPO that year,” she recalled. “He had tears in his eyes because he was so moved by our choir.”
Roeseler also said that her A’Cappella Select Ensemble singing backup for the group Foreigner at Art Park was a big thrill.
“We performed ‘I Want to Know What Love Is’ with them,” she said. “That was June of 2012, ten thousand people in the crowd. It was fabulous. It was an awesome experience.”
She also points to her choirs getting A+ ratings at level six at the NYSSMA (New York State School Music Association) competitions.
“I wanted to build the choir back up to where Mr. Connor left it,” she said.
Mr. Connor was her choir teacher when she attended Medina High School.
“I have so many fond memories of being in the choir,” Roeseler said. “He did a lot of great things and taught so many people, myself included. It was a great honor when he attended our St. Mary’s concert right before he passed away. He always supported me in my career.”
Roeseler also said it has been wonderful to work at the district that she graduated from and that her mother and father worked at.
“I am so grateful to Mr. Snyder, the principal at the time, for taking a chance on me,” she said. “I was a trumpet player and intended to be an instrumental band director. He interviewed me and gave me the job as high school choir director. When I began teaching at the high school, there was just one big choir.”
Right away, she split the group into two choirs, just as Mr. Connor had.
“And so, I began with 17 in Mixed Chorus and 43 in A’Cappella,” she said. “The program began to grow throughout my career and A’Cappella now averages 92 to 100 and Mixed Chorus 85 to 90. I am very happy that the Medina community continues to embrace the choirs. I really hope the tradition of the A’Cappella Choir continues after my retirement because that is part of Medina, when I think of it.”
File photo: The A’Cappella Choir, led by Lisa Roeseler, performs a holiday concert at a packed St. Mary’s Catholic Church.
The irony of her career is that she never intended to be a music teacher.
“I started out in music therapy at Slippery Rock,” she said. “My first calling was to be a nurse, but I was afraid of the needles and blood. Then I thought, music therapy is kind of medical. Back in the day, they didn’t really exist though except for jobs out in California. I thought I better find another career and a friend of mine was studying music education at Mansfield University and suggested it to me, so I transferred.”
She said Christmas time is hard for any music teacher, but to her, the Community Christmas Concert at St. Mary’s is too much of a tradition to let go.
“We started out at the Presbyterian Church where Mr. Connor had it, but we simply outgrew that church,” Roeseler said. “I was the organist at St. Mary’s, so I asked the rectory if we could move it there. We’ve held it there ever since. I have been asked why I don’t have this particular concert at the high school. I never wanted to, because it then becomes a high school concert. It is for the community, so I wanted to keep it in the community. It is a lot of stress every year, wondering if the A’Cappella can learn the 14 songs, and if they’re going to be ready for the concert. They always pull through with flying colors! I am fortunate enough that my husband and sons have been so supportive of me through the years. My husband is the founding (and only) member of my booster club. He has been there for me for 27 years to help set up and tear down at every community concert. He has been a saint.”
Looking back, she says she had wished she knew the first few years of teaching were probably her greatest.
“A lot of my students back then are now teachers, like Mrs. Woodruff, Mrs. Jones and Mr. Eick, just to name a few,” she said. “They were my first students. We laughed a lot and it was just a simpler time. I have a lot of great memories, but it is time for me to move on.”
Roeseler said she looks forward to a slower pace in retirement.
“I just want to tend to my lawn and work in our vegetable gardens,” she said. “Maybe take a part-time job at a local store or be a receptionist in a medical office. All I can say is that it has been a wonderful, wonderful career here. I hope whoever takes over continues with our traditions. I think the A’Cappella Choir is one of Medina’s best kept secrets. I get emotional when I look at my choirs and I see the smorgasbord of students from athletes, the highly academic, and the kids who just go home after school and watch TV. It’s a melting pot, but when you get them together for the purpose of expressing themselves through singing, they just shine. When that happens, I feel like I have succeeded.”
Mark Kruzynski, the district superintendent, said that Roeseler is a true treasure for the Medina Central School District.
“One of the highlights every year is watching her choirs perform, both at St. Mary’s and in the school,” he said. “Personally, I am really going to miss working with Lisa. I would like to wish her all of the best for a long and happy retirement. It is going to be impossible to replace her.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 January 2018 at 11:04 am
MEDINA – The school district is working to present a budget to the public in May that won’t raise property taxes.
The 2017-18 school budget reduced taxes by 0.22 percent, down from $8,660,915 to $8,641,861. The Medina Board of Education and school administrators are trying to keep the tax levy at $8,641,861 in the 2018-19 budget.
The district has steadily been reducing taxes in recent years. The 2013-14 budget had a $9,135,636 tax levy. Medina has reduced school taxes by $493,775 since then, a 5.4 percent decrease.
The district has already cut more than $600,000 from early budget requests for the next school year. It still has about $385,000 to either cut and find more revenues in order to keep taxes flat.
The district expects the final state budget will help fill the gap. The district also will keep looking for ways to reduce spending, said Marc Graff, director of finance and human resources.
Medina’s total school aid in the governor’s budget is up by $129,429 to $24,585,767, about two thirds of the district’s budget that will be about $37 million in 2018-19.
Mark Kruzynski, the district superintendent, said he expects state legislators will push for more school aid as part of budget negotiations.
Will the extra aid cover the entire $385,000 gap? If it doesn’t, Kruzynski said school officials need to find more reductions in the budget. There is a chance the Legislature could come through with more aid beyond the $385,000. If that happens, Kruzynski said some of the cuts thus far might not have to be made. Some of the reductions identified so far for 2018-19 include an elementary summer school program and not replacing some retiring teachers.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 24 January 2018 at 9:46 am
Photo by Cheryl Wertman: Helmets for the Mustang football team are lined up in the end zone on Sept. 15, when Vets Park hosted its first game after renovations.
MEDINA – The Board of Education said on Tuesday it would welcome football players from Barker to play on Medina’s team.
Medina already has players from Lyndonville. They practice and play their home games in Medina, and wear the Mustang uniforms. That’s how David Sevenski, the board president, wants it to continue with Barker.
“Just so Barker knows they would be Mustangs,” Sevenski said during Tuesday’s board meeting.
The two schools need to iron out an intermunicipal agreement. Barker has proposed paying $400 for each of its players to be on the Medina team. That would help with the cost of uniforms and coaches, said Mark Kruzynski, Medina district superintendent.
The Lyndonville players have fit in well with the Medina program, and have been contributors to the team, Board of Education members said. The Medina helmets include Tiger paw prints on the back to recognize the Lyndonville players.
Sevenski, the Medina board president, didn’t want to alter the Medina uniforms to accommodate the Barker players, citing the cost. Barker could have 8 to 10 players on the Medina team, Kruzynski said.
Medina and Lyndonville also have a shared soccer team. They typically wear Medina uniforms and play in Medina. However, they do wear Lyndonville uniforms for at least one game a year in Lyndonville.
Roy-Hart ended its agreement with Barker after the recent football season. That change will drop Roy-Hart into a lower classification as a C school. Roy-Hart believes it can better compete in the C division, rather than against B-size schools, Medina officials said on Tuesday.
Medina currently is a B school with the Lyndonville students. Medina would continue in the same classification with Barker, Kruzynski said.
Wendi Pencille, a Medina BOE member, said she would like to see Medina make a commitment to Barker for more than a year so the Barker players don’t have to worry about not having a team.
“I’d like to make sure we never pull the rug out on these kids like Roy-Hart did,” Pencille said during the board meeting. “That was grossly unfair.”
Kruzynski said Medina and Barker will work on the details for Barker to play on the Medina team.
Renee Paser-Paull, a Medina board member, said she is concerned about football and other high-impact sports where players can suffer cognitive issues due to concussions and “micro head hits.” She urged the board and school district to be mindful of the emerging research on head injuries in sports.
“The high-impact sports can have an impact on the futures of our kids,” she said.
Press Release, New York State Corrections Officers Benevolent Association
ALBION – A package delivered to the Orleans Correctional Facility on Friday contained illegal drugs and a screwdriver, the union representing corrections officers is reporting today.
Based on information obtained in an investigation, officers searched a package that was delivered to the prison and seized 286 grams of synthetic marijuana – commonly known as “K2” – and 120 homemade pills. The pills are being tested to determine what substance they contain. A screwdriver also was located inside the packaging.
In a separate incident at the facility on Sunday, an officer was assaulted by an inmate. The officer sustained a fractured bone in his right hand and abrasions to the side of his head.
The assault occurred while the inmate was being escorted from the visiting area. He became very aggressive and boisterous when he was ordered by officers to calm down. The inmate then turned suddenly and punched the officer in the mouth and head, the union said.
The officer and a second officer who was on the scene put the inmate in body holds. They were able to apply mechanical restraints. The inmate, 22, is serving seven years after being convicted for burglary in the second degree in 2013. The inmate was removed from the visiting area and placed in a special housing unit.
The officer was treated by facility medical staff and followed up at an outside hospital. He did not return to duty.
“The reality we face is that contraband and violence is still a prevalent issue in state correctional facilities,” said Joe Miano, NYSCOPBA Western Region Vice President. “Inmates are still finding innovative ways to smuggle contraband into our prisons. The contraband, ranging from drugs to weapons and more, compromises the safety and security of inmates and staff in our correctional facilities. Unprovoked attacks on staff still continue at an alarming rate and proactive steps must be taken to provide a safer environment for our members.”
BARRE – The Town of Barre will celebrate its Bicentennial June 29-July 1, with events primarily at the Barre Town Park on Route 98. A full weekend of entertainment is planned including an antique car and tractor show, game booths, a parade, contests, fireworks and live music. A delicious array of food will also be available all weekend long.
History will be on display with photos, recipes, and stories from Barre’s past highlighted throughout the weekend. Many organizers will be in period dress and attendees are encouraged to dress in historical costume as well.
Historical exhibits will highlight notable residents such as former US Congressmen Lorenzo Burrows and John G. Sawyer, American anthropologist and ethnologist Frank Hamilton Cushing, and Marvin V. Frey, an evangelical minister and writer of the well-known spiritual song “Kum-Ba-Yah.”
The event’s planning committee is looking for historical contributions from the public. If you have a story or item of significance from Barre’s history, or would like to be involved with the planning or fundraising for the event, please contact one of the committee members or the Town Hall.
Several fundraisers are planned, including can/bottle drive bins available for returnables located at the Town Hall and the Barre Deli. Several fundraiser dinners are planned with the next one, a spaghetti dinner, on Feb. 3 at the West Barre United Methodist Church. Tickets will be available at the door. Any monetary donations would be gladly accepted as well.
There will be contests for residents to participate in including beard growing and photography. Participants can start growing their beards now.
In addition to the weekend-long celebration at the end of June, the town will officially mark its 200-year anniversary on March 6, 2018. There will be a recognition ceremony at the Barre Town Hall on that date and another ceremony on March 3, 2018 at 1 p.m. with local politicians and press invited.
About Barre:
The Town of Barre was founded in 1818 and was named after the birthplace of an early settler, Judge John Lee. The town, at 55.1 square miles, forms the southern border of Orleans County. In the quiet Town of Barre, there are country roads, small churches, friendly neighbors, and some of the best chicken barbecues around.
The Town of Barre remains much the same today as when it was founded; it is still a friendly agricultural community. The farms in the town are small family owned operations and among these are several century farms.
The town also contains approximately 4,000 acres of muck land. Along with the farms are some small businesses and other community services including two churches, a volunteer fire company, and an airport. There are also two sportsmen clubs in town and many acres of wide-open spaces providing countless opportunities for outdoor fun, hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, and trail riding.
For further information, please contact the Town of Barre Bicentennial Planning Committee:
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 January 2018 at 4:57 pm
Provided photo: Matt Grammatico is pictured with his wife, Rhonda.
CARLTON – A dinner with more than 100 gift baskets and other items up for auction on Saturday will raise money for an Albion man who needs a heart and liver transplant.
Volunteers are prepared to make 1,000 spaghetti dinners on Saturday during a benefit from 2 to 7 p.m. at the Carlton Rec Hall.
Matt Grammatico, 44, is awaiting a heart and liver transplant. He owns an auto repair shop in Hamlin. He opened MPG Automotive last year. His wife Rhonda is a long-time lunchroom monitor at Albion Central School. Their son, Nate, is a junior at Albion and is heavily involved in the music and theater programs.
Many of Nate’s classmates will be performing during the benefit on Saturday.
“The kids have really stepped forward to support Nate and his family,” Seielstad said. “It’s amazing. I’m getting choked up just thinking about it.”
Seielstad said the Grammatico family is very giving, always quick to respond to help others.
“They have touched the lives of people far and wide,” Seielstad said. “They’re the kind of people that when somebody needs something they’re the first to say, ‘How can I help you?’”
Matt is the son of Mike Grammatico, a retired Albion music teacher. Matt grew up in the Barker school district.
Matt was born with a serious heart condition called Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome. He underwent his first operation at 6 weeks old, followed by an open-heart reconstructive surgery when he was 11. Matt also needed multiple procedures and surgeries throughout the next 30 years of his life.
During one of the surgeries as a child, Matt was unknowingly given a Hepatitis C tainted blood transfusion. The virus attacked his liver, undiscovered, for more than 20 years, further complicating his health. He has been diagnosed with end-stage liver disease.
Photo by Tom Rivers: Retired Albion instrumental teacher Mike Grammatico plays in a saxophone duet with his grandson Nate Grammatico during a concert on Jan. 30, 2015. Nate and many of his classmates, as well as music teachers, will be performing during Saturday’s benefit for Nate’s father.
Matt and his doctors in Rochester and at the Cleveland Clinic are working to keep him stable and prepare him for a heart and liver transplant. While Matt waits for the transplant, he is struggling to perform everyday activities and to keep the auto business going. The family faces significant medical expenses as well as the loss of income while Matt is unable to work.
Event organizers are hoping the fundraiser will help sustain the family until Matt receives his transplant.
“We are giving it all we have – the rest is up to a higher power,” Seielstad said.
The benefit on Saturday will give the family funding for trips to Cleveland Clinic for extended stays; costly medicines and medical bills; and some current living expenses because Matt sometimes can’t work due to health issues.
Seielstad said many in the Albion community will be volunteering at the dinner. Matt Moore is heading the cooking effort and Karen Krieger is organizing the team of volunteers.
There are about 100 baskets to be auctioned off, and 10 other items will go to the highest bidder in a silent auction. Some of those items include an iPad Mini, Sabres tickets, golf packages, custom end tables, a kayak and a quilt.
Dinner tickets are available at the door or at Bloom’s Flower Shop and Snell Realtors. Donations can dropped off at Seielstad’s home at 302 W. Park St., Albion, or through Pay Pal (click here).
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 23 January 2018 at 11:01 am
ALBION – A Murray man was given the maximum of four years in state prison for first-degree attempted sex abuse.
Joseph Quarella, 41, was living at Skyline Circle in Murray when he allegedly subjected a 16-year-old girl to the crime, which occurred in November 2016.
He pleaded guilty on Oct. 30, when he admitted to forcibly touching the victim’s private parts.
Quarella is a second felony offender and already has served a sentence in state prison for second-degree assault in Cayuga County in 2005.
In court on Monday he said the girl, 16, was a “problem child” who would cut herself. He started “sexting” with her, sending sexually explicit messages, thinking it would make her feel better.
Sara Sheldon, the interim County Court judge, told Quarella he is the adult who took advantage of the victim, giving her drugs and alcohol.
In addition to four years in prison, Quarella will face 10 years of post-release supervision and will be a registered sex offender.
He also has to pay a $1,000 sex offender victim fee, $375 court surcharge and $50 sex offender registration fee.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy will remain eligible for state-funded Medicaid, regardless of any federal changes to or termination of the program.
There are approximately 42,000 DACA recipients in New York, many of whom are at risk of losing their employment-based health insurance if the federal government changes or terminates the program. Under New York law, DACA recipients are considered PRUCOL (Permanently Residing Under Color of Law) and eligible for state-funded Medicaid or CHIP.
“The federal government’s failure to take action to protect DACA recipients is appalling, un-American, unjust and puts hundreds of thousands of children at risk,” Cuomo said. “Here in New York we will do everything in our power to protect DACA recipients and ensure they receive health care. As Washington holds DACA recipients hostage for funding for a wall, we will not allow vitriol and dysfunction to put lives at risk. We will continue to stand up for the rights of immigrants, and will continue to defend the principles of opportunity and equality that this state and this nation were founded upon.”
DACA allows for undocumented immigrants who entered the country as minors to be eligible for work permits and receive renewable periods of deferred action from deportation. After the Trump Administration announced plans to terminate the DACA program, New York State filed a complaint to protect New York Dreamers.
Information on applying for or renewing Medicaid coverage for DACA recipients is available by clicking here. The state funds all of the costs associated with this coverage.
