Photo and information courtesy of Albion Central School

ALBION – National Junior Honor Society students at Albion Middle wrapped up their annual food drive this week.

On Wednesday, NJHS students and their advisor, Lisa Castricone, finished counting and sorting the donations before they were delivered to Community Action. Pictured from left include NJHS members Kendall Peruzzini, Kamryn Peruzzini and Stryker Braley.

The group is built on promoting scholarship, service, leadership, character, and citizenship. The NJHS hosts this annual event to help ease the stress of the holiday season.

Press Release, Hoag Library

File photo by Tom Rivers: Weston Burgio, 5, of Albion stepped up to meet Santa Claus on Dec. 2, 2019 at Hoag Library in Albion. Santa returns to Hoag on Dec. 2.

ALBION – Hoag Library invites the community to a wonderful variety of programs this November and December, featuring literary events, historical talks, and festive gatherings to celebrate the season.

Local Author Book Signing with Daniel Southcott 

Saturday, Nov. 16,  at noon – Join author Daniel Southcott for a book signing of Oh, Danny Boy. Meet the author, gain insights into his writing process, and purchase a signed copy.

Shipwrecks of Lake Ontario: A Journey of Discovery with Jim Kennard 

Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 6 p.m. –  Join the most successful shipwreck hunter in Lake Ontario on a personal and historic exploration of some of the most important shipwrecks discovered in Lake Ontario by his team and shipwreck peers.

Visions: Confessions of a Ghost Writer with Eric Weatherbee (The Humble Bard) 

Saturday, Nov. 23, at 6 p.m. – Join us for an evening of wonder as Eric Weatherbee reads aloud some of his latest works.

A Tale of Two Disasters: The Buffalo Blizzards of 1977 & 2022 with Dr. Timothy Kneeland

Tuesday, Nov. 26, at 6 p.m. – This program will offer an in-depth look at two historic blizzards that swept through Buffalo.

Santa visits the Library

Monday, Dec. 2, at 6 p.m. – Santa is coming to Hoag Library! Children and families are invited for a festive evening with Santa, spreading holiday cheer and joy.

Friends of the Library: Tasty Treats

Thursday, Dec. 5, at 6 p.m. – The Friends of the Library invite everyone for a delightful evening of seasonal treats and goodies. Join us for a sweet celebration of the holidays featuring Confection Connection. Call 589-4246 to register.

Hoag Music Series: Rochester Ukulele Orchestra 

Saturday, Dec. 7, at noon – Enjoy a lively performance by the Rochester Ukulele Orchestra, bringing a unique and cheerful sound to the library. This project is made possible with funds from the Statewide Community Regrant Program, administered by GO ART!

Friends of the Library: Holiday Sing-Along with Gary Simboli 

Saturday, Dec. 7, at 2 p.m. –  Gather with friends and family for a sing-along led by Gary Simboli. This joyous event is sure to fill the library with holiday spirit.

American Red Cross Blood Drive 

Saturday, Dec. 28. from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. – Help save lives this holiday season by donating blood at Hoag Library. The American Red Cross will be on-site, and all eligible donors are encouraged to participate in this life-saving event.

Celebrate the season with Hoag Library’s exciting lineup of events!

Provided photo: Albion eighth-graders Mary McCormick (left) and Kendall Peruzzini (right) are shown with Craig Lane of the Orleans County Department of Public Works after a headstone was delivered for a Civil War soldier buried in an unmarked grave at the Alms House Cemetery on West Countyhouse Road. The public is invited to a dedication ceremony this spring on May 17 at the cemetery.

ALBION – For more than a century, Daniel Walterhouse has been buried in an unmarked grave at the Alms House Cemetery on West Countyhouse Road.

That will change in the spring when a headstone is placed by at the cemetery for Walterhouse, who served with 4th Michigan Infantry during the Civil War.

Two Albion eighth-graders, Kendall Peruzzini and Mary McCormick, spent part of their summer vacation, researching Walterhouse and preparing the application for a headstone.

Tim Archer, the student’s service learning teacher, was tipped off that Walterhouse served in the Civil War by researcher in Michigan, George Wilkinson. He includes many documents about the 4^th Michigan Infantry on a website. Wilkinson came across a news clipping that Walterhouse was living in Western New York after serving in the war.

Walterhouse was wounded in 1862 after being was stabbed with a sword in a battle.

Walterhouse and about 200 other residents were buried in a cemetery not far from the Alms House, which was a home for penniless, destitute, sick and others with infirmities and challenges.

Walterhouse lived there for about a decade. He was 87 when he died in 1910.

Peruzzini and McCormick scoured records from more than a century ago, working with Orleans County Historian Catherine Cooper and Albion Town Historian Sarah Basinait.

They were able to prove Union soldier Daniel Walterhouse was buried in an unmarked grave at the cemetery about 114 years ago. They found a death record and a 1902 ledger from the Orleans County Alms House listing him as a resident.

The Alms House or “Poor House” was open from 1833 to 1960. It closed in 1960 when the county nursing home opened on Route 31 in Albion.

Peruzzini, McCormick and their teacher Tim Archer submitted an application to the National Cemetery Administration, seeking a headstone for Walterhouse. That headstone has arrived and will be set in the spring by the Orleans County Department of Public Works.

There will be a dedication ceremony for the public to attend on May 17, Archer said.

ALBION – District Attorney Joe Cardone and the defense attorney for Noah Magee made their opening statements in the trial against Magee where he faces second-degree murder for the death of Roger Kingdollar III.

Roger Kingdollar III

Magee was driving a 2006 Chevrolet Silverado that struck Kingdollar who was driving a motor bike on Feb. 8.

Cardone said Magee, 19, crossed the center line and purposely drove at Kingdollar, who was riding on the grass by the road.

“He showed a tremendous indifference to the life of Mr. Kingdollar,” Cardone said in his opening statement just after 10 a.m.

Magee was in a 9,200-pound pickup truck while Kingdollar was on a 236-pound dirt bike, Cardone said. Three of Kingdollar’s friends were near him on four-wheelers.

The collision happened at about 4 p.m. on McNamar Road in Barre. Magee had just turned off Angevine Road.

Magee’s attorneys, Paul Vacca Jr. and his brother James Vacca, say the collision was an accident.

James Vacca said Magee had just turned off Angevine Road and there was no proof he knew Kingdollar was on the dirt bike.

Vacca said Cardone “over-charged” in the case, seeking second-degree murder when Vacca said the case better warrants reckless driving or criminally negligent homicide.

Cardone said Magee was driving at a high rate of speed and crossed the center line in targeting Kingdollar. A home surveillance camera clearly shows the incident and Magee going into the wrong lane of traffic and into the grass, Cardone said.

“This is murder in the second degree based on his reckless conduct and depraved indifference to life,” Cardone said in his statement.

Magee also faces charges of reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident and failure to keep right.

Magee left the scene after one of Kingdollar’s friends threatened to kill him, James Vacca said. But Magee did return and spoke to State Police.

Paul Vacca Jr. said there is “a lot of emotion in the case.” But he said there is “a dearth of evidence to show he acted with depraved indifference and murder.”

The first witness to testify was Quenna Bennett, Kingdollar’s mother. She confirmed he was born Jan. 24, 2000 and was 24 at the time of his death. His full name is Roger Kingdollar III.

State trooper Kevin Bentley then testified. He was the first law enforcement officer on the scene.

He said Kingdollar was in a ditch and wasn’t breathing.

Bentley and Kingdollar’s friends attempted CPR before Barre firefighters arrived and took over.

Bentley said he taped off the scene, and called a State Police investigator. Several photos of the scene and Kingdollar were entered into evidence.

Magee waived his right to a jury trial on Wednesday. Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church is presiding over the bench trial.

Photo by Tom Rivers: McKinstry Street is a popular route for school kids in the mornings and afternoons.

ALBION – The Albion Village Board agreed on Wednesday to reduce the speed limit on McKinistry Street from 30 to 25 miles per hour. That limit will go on McKinstry from East Avenue to East State Street, and will be in effect the same time as the school zone, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on school days.

Trustee Greg Bennett led the effort to lower the speed limit. He said McKinstry is a popular route for students walking to school in the morning and at home in the afternoon.

He wanted the speed to drop to 20 miles per hour but village attorney John Gavenda advised against that, saying the state’s Vehicle and Traffic Law suggests keeping a village speed limit at no lower than 25 miles per hour. A school zone limit can be lower but a school zone needs to be right in front of a school building. McKinstry is a side street near the school.

Bennett said signs about the lower speed limit and enforcement should bring down the speeds and keep pedestrians safer.

Jay Pahura, the DPW superintendent for the village, said pedestrians often walk in the street with earbuds and don’t try to get out of the way of traffic, including village snow plow trucks.

“A lot of the kids don’t get out of the road,” Pahura said during the Village Board meeting.

Bennett said parents and the kids need to do their part with safety on the street. He said the village is doing right by reducing the speed limit.

“We’re trying to slow down the traffic on a busy road,” he said. “It sends a message as a village because there is a lot of foot traffic there.”

ALBION – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday announced $11 million in funding to expand high-speed internet in Orleans County.

The funding was part of $140 million announced on Wednesday in ConnectAll grants. Other award winners include: City of Jamestown, $29.9 million; Schoharie County, $30 million; Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board in Cayuga and Cortland counties, $26 million; Franklin County, $13.1 million; and Sullivan County, $29.9 million.

“Access to high-speed internet is not luxury, but a necessity, a utility as vital as electricity for everyday life,” Schumer said in a news release. “Upstate NY takes a major step towards closing the digital divide.”

Gov. Hochul said the grants are “a transformative step forward in our mission to connect every New Yorker to affordable, high-speed internet.”

The grants are funded primarily through the U.S. Department of the Treasury Capital Projects Fund via the American Rescue Plan.

The Orleans County Legislature last month announced the funding had been awarded to the county. The Legislature on Oct. 22 accepted the $11,562,698 grant to upgrade wireless internet service throughout the county.

The Orleans County Department of Planning and Development applied for the grant through Empire State Development’s ConnectALL Municipal Infrastructure Program. This will allow the county to increase wireless internet speeds from the current 25 Mega Bit Per Seconds (Mbps) to 100 (Mbps).

The county recently completed a build-out of a wireless internet system. There are now 19 towers and the county will add two or three more, likely near Lake Ontario where there are gaps in internet coverage, county officials said.

Orleans has two years to complete the project, upgrading the internet infrastructure on all the towers so 100 Mbps is available in download and upload speeds. The grant also will include a digital literacy component to help people learn about the technology.

County legislators on Oct. 22 accepted a bid of $11,216,500 from North Shore Networks LLC in Medina to implement the faster internet service. That company is led by Duston Ellis, who worked over a decade in Kentucky for Broadlinc, helping run a high-speed internet service in a rural area.

The press release from Schumer states the following about the Orleans County expanded high-speed internet service:

“Orleans County will utilize $11 million in MIP funds to extend its wireless internet network to serve more than 11,000 locations with 100/100 Mbps speed. In 2020, thanks to American Rescue Plan funding that Schumer provided to Orleans County, the County was able to realize a decade-long dream to expand high speed internet access across the County.

“This new $11 million project will build on that successful 2020 wireless internet project the County launched with RTO Wireless, by installing 21 wireless hubs on existing and new towers. The County will own the network, which RTO Wireless will design, construct, maintain, and operate. The towers will be open for lease to other ISPs.

“The County will also extend its partnership with the United Way to provide digital literacy training and community outreach, addressing the adoption barrier among low-income households. The project addresses the challenge of providing high-speed internet in rural areas with a low population density of 103 people per square mile.

“The County’s cutting-edge wireless solution, combined with strong community partnerships, provides a cost-effective alternative to fiber networks, promoting digital equity and enhancing connectivity for residents, businesses, education, and the agricultural community.”

Press Release, Community Action of Orleans & Genesee

As the season of gratitude and giving approaches, Community Action of Orleans & Genesee is thrilled to announce the return of its annual Holiday Basket giveaways.

These events are designed to help income-eligible families celebrate the holiday season by providing them with a bountiful basket filled with traditional holiday essentials.

The Thanksgiving basket includes a turkey or chicken, traditional side dishes, and a seasonal produce box, offering a wholesome, nutritious feast for families to enjoy.

The Christmas basket giveaway includes toys for children under 18 years of age and essentials for the holiday meal.

Eligible families are encouraged to sign up before Friday, Nov. 15, to receive a holiday basket. Interested individuals can contact the agency for more information or to sign up:

Nicole Targa in Albion at (585) 589-5605 or ntarga@caoginc.org; Rachael Escobar in Holley at (585) 638-6395 or rescobar@caoginc.org; Shannon Harris in Batavia at (585) 343-7798 or sharris@caoginc.org.

Community Action is also looking for businesses or organizations that would like to adopt a family for the holiday season. For more information on adopting a family, please call Kristina at the main office (585) 589-5605.

Joanna Gardner, a Medina native who now is a professor at Pacifica Graduate Institute in California, will be in Medina on Nov. 23 to discuss her book, The Practice of Enchantment.

MEDINA – With a lifelong interest in mythology and a sister who is a New York Times Best Selling author, it is no surprise Joanna Gardner’s first literary effort would be a book on mythology.

A Medina native and sister of Author’s Note owner Julie Berry, Gardner, a PhD, will visit Author’s Note on Nov. 23, where at 3 p.m. she will debut her first book, The Practice of Enchantment.

“I’ve been following in Joanna’s footsteps my whole life,” said Berry, who is four years younger than her sister. “She taught me to read before I ever entered school, and she taught me to love books and stories with my whole heart. She is an exemplary scholar, an inspiring educator and a true creative. I can’t wait to celebrate her new book at Author’s Note.”

Gardner will read from her book, discuss her research and insights and answer questions.

Like her sister, Gardner grew up in Medina and graduated from Medina High School. She now makes her home in Santa Barbara, Calif., where she is adjunct professor in Pacifica Graduate Institute’s Mythological Studies program, and is director of marketing and communications for the Joseph Campbell foundation. She is also the lead author of Goddesses: A Skeleton Key Study Guide, and co-founder of the Fates and Graces, hosting webinars and workshops for mythic readers and writers. More about her work can be found on her website at www.joannagardner.com.

Gardner said she has been interested in mythology since she was very young and was given the Big Golden Book of Mythology.

The Practice of Enchantment is published by the Joseph Campbell Foundation. Campbell was a renowned scholar and mythologist, best-known for his exploration of widespread themes in mythology and storytelling, particularly through his influential concept of the “Hero’s Journey” and his groundbreaking book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces.

During the Covid pandemic, Gardner wrote 14 essays, which she was inspired by Campbell’s work to compile into a book, The Practice of Enchantment. This volume demonstrates that applying the power of myth to the challenges of life can bring new perspectives to difficulty, and transform monotony into enchantment.

Gardner brings her expertise as a mythologist, writer and teacher to these essays, which explore myth as it intersects with life and creativity, Berry explained.

With essay topics including tricksters, dreams, goddesses and family, The Practice of Enchantment is perfect for lovers of myth and the classics, seekers of magic and wonder who may feel lost in the modern day, and any readers interested in expanding their lens of understanding our world.

“Writing these essays helped me experience imagination, metaphor, beauty and bliss, and helped me understand more fully that these abstract ideas are renewable resources,”

Gardner said. “I believe they surround us like radio waves of enchantment. The more I tune into them, the more the signal strengthens.

“My favorite thing about mythological stories is how they activate the imagination,” she said. “They are obviously not literally true, but you imagine, and that activates your imagination and makes it stronger for your creative.”

While this is Gardner’s first book, it won’t be her last.

“I have lots of ideas, but I don’t know yet what the next one will be,” she said. “But there will be another, and it’s a good chance it will be strongly influenced by mythology.”

She said she is so grateful to her sister for the event at 3 p.m. Nov. 23 at Author’s Note, and thrilled it gets to be in her home town.

The event is free and open to the public. Pre-ordering copies is recommended. For those unable to attend, signed books can be ordered at www.authorsnote.com. For more information, Author’s Note can be contacted at (585) 798-3642 or online at www.authorsnote.com/events.

Agreement includes 2 BLS ambulances, 1 ALS flycar for 24-7 in seven Orleans towns

Photo by Tom Rivers: A Mercy Flight EMS ambulance and crew was in service on Sept. 20 at an Albion varsity football game.

BARRE – The Barre Town Board this evening unanimously approved a three-year contract with Mercy Flight EMS to provide ambulance services in a seven-town block in Orleans County.

Mercy Flight submitted the lowest bid for the service at $250,000 in 2025, compared to $570,000 from Monroe Ambulance. The two entities offered similar services in the bid.

The contract calls for Mercy Flight to stage two basic life support ambulance, and one advanced life support fly car in the seven towns for 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The fly car doesn’t transport patients, but would have personnel that can provide higher levels of care than the BLS ambulances.

The seven towns are divvying up the costs based on a percentage of current call volume. Barre pays the least of the seven towns at $11,000 in 2025, compared to $13,740 in 2024.

Here is the financial breakdown for the seven towns in the contract:

• Albion, $93,000 ($155,820 in 2024)
• Barre, $11,000 ($13,740 in 2024)
• Carlton, $18,500 ($22,350 in 2024)
• Clarendon, $28,000 ($25,350 in 2024)
• Gaines, $38,500 ($12,030 in 2024)
• Kendall, $12,750 ($17,850 in 2024)
• Murray, $48,250 ($52,860 in 2024)

All seven towns need to approve the contract for it to take effect. The agreement starts Jan. 1. Mercy Flight plans to stage ambulances and the fly car at the former COVA base on South Main Street in Albion and the Fancher-Hulberton-Murray fire hall on Hulberton Road in Murray.

Monroe Ambulance has had the contract, done annually in 2023 and 2024. Monroe was paid $300,000 by the seven towns this year. In the first year of the contract in 2023 with Monroe, the towns paid $181,200. But that was from six towns. Kendall didn’t contribute the first year when Monroe was seeking $200,000 from the seven towns.

The three-year contract calls for Mercy Flight to be paid $275,000 in 2026 and $300,000 in 2027.

Photo by Susan Watts/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul: Gov. Kathy Hochul tours Greenwood Lake in Orange County on Tuesday,  an area affected by wildfires.

Gov. Kathy Hochul has imposed a burn ban until Nov. 30 after wildfires have spread in parts of the state.

The Jennings Creek/Sterling Forest State Park fire has moved across 5,000 acres across New York and New Jersey, becoming the largest wildfire the state has faced since 2008. A New York State Parks employee was killed in this fire.

There are currently dry conditions throughout the state. Some controlled burns in Orleans County have recently turned into brush fires, needing firefighters to contain them from spreading, said Justin Niederhofer, the emergency management director for the county.

“Fire resources are stretched thin across the state responding to wild fires, and we have already had several brush fires here in the county that started out as control burns,” he said.

Hochul, in remarks on Tuesday, stressed the importance of public cooperation during these heightened fire risks. With the burn ban in effect, all brush burning, open fires, and uncontained recreational fires are prohibited until further notice.

ALBION – The state Department of Transportation plans to pave a section of Ingersoll Street in the Village of Albion next week.

Ingersoll has suffered far more wear and tear than usual in the past two years while the Main Street lift bridge has been closed and some of that traffic has been redirected down Ingersoll Street.

The DOT has notified village officials Ingersoll will be repaved, one lane at a time, between Caroline and Bank streets on Nov. 18-19.

“The street will be open to one-lane traffic at that time,” said Joyce Riley, Albion’s deputy mayor. “The paving will be delayed if it rains.”

ALBION – Noah Magee, who is on trial for second-degree murder, decided to waive his right to a trial by a jury of his peers today.

Noah Magee

Joyce McNutt, the commissioner of jurors, had processed 132 jurors when Magee’s attorney, Paul Vacca Jr., announced Magee is waiving his right to a jury trial. The prospective jurors then streamed out of the courthouse about 10:30 a.m.

The trial will continue at 10 a.m. on Thursday with Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church acting as both “the finder of fact and trier the law.”

In a jury trial, the jury is the finder of fact, responsible for deciding what happened in the case. The judge applies the relevant rules of law to the jury’s findings to reach a decision.

The prospective jurors filled out 15-question forms on their marital status, education level, occupation, employer, spouse’s occupation, number and ages of children, children’s occupations, hobbies and special interests, and what clubs or associations they are involved in. The questionnaire is designed to assist the defense counsel and court in selecting fair and impartial jurors.

Magee, 19, faces a second-degree murder charge for driving a pickup truck and allegedly intentionally striking Roger Kingdollar, who was riding a dirt bike.

Kingdollar, 24, was killed in the collision on Feb. 8 in Barre. Police say Magee of Brockport drove a pickup truck the wrong way on McNamar Road when he hit Kingdollar on a dirt bike.

Magee also faces charges of leaving the scene of fatal motor vehicle accident, reckless driving and failure to keep right.

District Attorney Joe Cardone said he expects the trial will take about a week.

ALBION – Jury selection has started this morning in the trial against Noah Magee, who is accused of driving a pickup truck and intentionally striking Roger Kingdollar, who was riding a dirt bike.

Kingdollar was killed in the collision on Feb. 8 in Barre. Police say Magee, 19 at the time, of Brockport drove a pickup truck the wrong way on McNamar Road when he hit Kingdollar on a dirt bike.

Magee is on trial for second-degree murder, an “A” felony with a maximum sentence of 25 years to life.

He was initially charged with reckless endangerment 1st degree (D felony), leaving the scene of a fatal motor vehicle accident (D felony) and other vehicle and traffic infractions.

After more investigation in the incident, the charges were upgraded to second-degree murder.

District Attorney Joe Cardone said Magee showed reckless conduct and a depraved indifference to life.

Magee is represented by attorney Paul Vacca Jr., who said the collision was “an automobile accident and not a murder.”