Photo by Cheryl Wertman – The annual Albion football camp got underway Monday evening with players taking part in a variety of fitness and skill drills. Here Purple Eagles Head Coach David Skrip keeps a keen eye as several of his linemen work on a blocking drill. The camp is a tune-up for the start of fall practice next Monday for football teams across the state. The Purple Eagles will open the season September 6 at Olean.
Provided photos: This year’s tour of homes sponsored by the Cobblestone Museum will feature a dozen historic buildings in the Albion area. Shown here are Mount Albion Cemetery chapel and the Ebenezer Rogers house on South Main Street.
ALBION – The Cobblestone Museum’s annual tour of homes this year will feature a unique variety of buildings.
When the tours started in 1961 they were originally just cobblestone buildings, said Doug Farley, director of the Cobblestone Museum. There were 20 cobblestone structures all located along Ridge Road, between Childs and Oak Orchard on the Ridge. Six of those sites offered indoor tours. The tours continued on and off for many years, and more recently, historic buildings with different construction materials were added.
Twelve stops are included in this year’s tour, all with indoor access and all located in a quick and easy short drive from each other, Farley said.
This year Sue Starkweather Miller was asked to help plan the tour, as it is centered in the Albion area.
“While planning this year’s tour we thought about adding homes and buildings in Albion that are historically significant, that many people may not know about or haven’t had the opportunity to visit,” Miller said.
The tour also includes the Joseph F. Hart house on South Main Street, and the Day and Day Building on North Main Street.
Some of those buildings are the Ebenezer Rogers home, the oldest home in the village and current home of Mr. and Mrs. John Gailie at 352 South Main St.; the Grand Army of the Republic room at the Day and Day Building; and the chapel at Mount Albion Cemetery.
Miller is a former board member of the Cobblestone Museum and the current historian for the village of Albion, so she is well versed on the village’s historical structures.
“As soon as you step inside the beautiful entryway of the Ebenezer Rogers home, you get a real sense of what a colonial home looked like in the 1820s,” Miller said. “Also, many people have never seen the GAR Room in the Day and Day Building, or even knew it existed, so it is a unique opportunity to enjoy and appreciate its historical significance.”
Participants in the tour will have to climb two flights of stairs to see the GAR Room on the third floor, but the end result is well worth it, Miller said. The Pratt Opera House will also be part of that tour stop.
Mount Albion Cemetery’s chapel was built in 1875 of locally quarried Medina sandstone. It is the focal point of the cemetery’s entrance. Tour participants will be able to peek into the chapel that has suffered water damage due to the original slate roof needing to be replaced. Miller will soon be announcing plans for a community campaign to help raise the funds for a new slate roof and necessary interior repairs.
“Back in 1976 the Albion community came together to raise funds to ‘Save the Tower,’ and I am hopeful our community will come together again to help us save the chapel, which is also an important Mount Albion landmark,” Miller said.
Other stops on the tour are the Cobblestone Museum’s Thompson-Kast Visitors Center at 14386 Ridge Rd., Childs; the Bullard/Lattin cobblestone house at 3178 Gaines Basin Rd.; Gaines Basin District No. 2 Schoolhouse, 3286 Gaines Basin Rd.; Orleans Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution home at 249 North Main St.; the former Presbyterian manse and Harriette Greaser home at 31 East State St.; Marti’s on Main (Kim and Neal Muscarella), 20 South Main St.; Christ Episcopal Church, 26 South Main St.; Joseph F. Hart House, home of Diana Kay Dragan Reed at 349 South Main St.; and Mount Albion Cemetery’s Soldiers and Sailors Monument Tower, all in Albion.
At the Day and Day Building, visitors are asked to park on North Main Street and enter in the front; at the Ebenezer Rogers house and Joseph F. Hart house, park at Oak Orchard Dental, not along Route 98.
The 2024 Tour of Homes is scheduled for Sept. 21. Tickets are $20 for Cobblestone Society members and $25 for non-members. They may be ordered online (click here) or by calling the museum at (585) 589-9013.
Provided photos: (Left) Three youngsters check out the bike helmets which were given away at a bike safety event last week at the YMCA. (Right) A young rider navigates the course during a bike helmet safety event at the YMCA on Friday, sponsored by Orleans Community Health in collaboration with the YMCA and Medina Area Partnership.
MEDINA – A bike helmet safety event held at the YMCA on Friday was considered a success by sponsors, in spite of a rainy day.
The event, sponsored by Orleans Community Health in collaboration with the Orleans County YMCA and Medina Area Partnership had to be canceled in early July because of weather and was rescheduled for Aug. 2 at the YMCA. In spite of rain that day also, 15 children did show up for the event which took place inside.
“It wasn’t what we were hoping for, but it was well worth it,” said Scott Robinson, director of Marketing, Communication and Outreach at Orleans Community Health. “It’s something we intend to do again in the spring.”
All the children were provided with information on bike and helmet safety, Robinson said. These safety tips included hand signals, what to wear, the importance of riding with others and a variety of other useful pieces of information.”
The event was designed to promote bicycle safety and the overall importance of wearing helmets during certain activities. Members of the community donated bicycle, skateboarding and even snowboarding helmets to the effort, Robinson said.
“A large thank you goes out to members of the community, supporting organizations and the YMCA for hosting this event,” Robinson said. “Any time we can come together to promote health and safety activities, we’re helping to create positive change. Thanks also goes to the Medina Police Department for stopping by and speaking with the children.”
The event included an indoor course, bicycle décor, helmets and safety tips for young riders. Helmets not handed out that day will be donated to the Medina Police Department for National Night Out this evening and future bike safety activities.
Press Release, Orleans Renaissance Group
Provided photo: Tommy Z, an award-winning blues guitarist and songwriter, closes out Medina’s Blue Thursdays concert series on Thursday.
MEDINA – With record crowds, the 2024 Blue Thursdays series comes to a close this Thursday with a much anticipated grand finale featuring the Tommy Z Band from Buffalo.
Among his numerous claims to fame, Tommy Z has had two albums that debuted in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Blues Albums Chart– Plug In And Play (#5) in 2021, and Blizzard Of Blues (#8) in 2016.
“Three years ago, Blue Thursdays set out to bring the extraordinary to Medina– an array of the best, award-winning, hall-of-fame caliber bands that people wouldn’t normally get a chance to see,” said Chris Busch, one of the event organizers.
“That’s the bar we’ve set for Blue Thursdays, and the grand finale with the Tommy Z Band accomplishes just that. His accolades and accomplishments on a national level are a mile long. To say we’re pumped to be able to bring this caliber of music to Medina is an understatement.”
As noted on tommyzband.com:
“Tommy Z is a contemporary blues/rock artist and radio host from Buffalo, NY who has been described as a ‘blues treasure’ (Jim Santella, Buffalo News), and ‘one of WNY’s best kept secrets’ (Sarah French, Blues Matters Magazine).”
“He is a guitar-driven, electric blues-based stylist onstage, but in the studio composes a variety of music. Experienced and versed in traditional blues, jazz, funk and rock styles, he is an artist who puts that soulful blues feeling into all the different music he performs or creates. His work and talent has been recognized with numerous awards over the years, including being voted Top Blues Vocalist in Western New York 2003/2004/2006, Top Blues Guitarist 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2006 and his band has won the Top Blues/Crossover Blues Band categories 1994, 2005, 2006, and was honored with the Muddy Waters Award for “Artist of the Year” by the Blues Society of WNY in 2004 and 2024.”
“In 2007 Tommy was inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame, recognizing him alongside some of the best talent come out of WNY (including Rick James, The Goo Goo Dolls, Billy Sheehan, etc.). He has had the opportunity to perform, write, record and/or co-bill with some of the world’s top artists in the blues/rock genre including: B.B. King (and daughter Shirley), Buddy Guy (2023 Farewell Tour guest), Tom Hambridge, Johnny Winter, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Jimmie Vaughan, Robert Cray, Jeff Healey, Colin James, Tinsley Ellis, Roomful of Blues, Blues Traveler, Derek Trucks, Joe Bonamassa, Robert Randolph, Peter Frampton, Ian Gillan (Deep Purple), Carey Bell, John Mayall, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Tommy Castro, Duke Robillard, Elvin Bishop, Eric Gales and many more.”
“All good things must come to an end and so it is with Blue Thursdays 2024, but not before we blow the doors off the park with Tommy Z,” said Busch.
Busch went on, “In talking about the gig last week, Tommy remarked, ‘Looking forward to it! I’ve got my touring band of Dave Herr from Charleston, Ray Hangen and Tom Scime from Florida coming up for this (gig).’”
The performance is scheduled for Thursday at 6 p.m. at State Street Park, Medina. Up-to-the-minute updates can be found on Facebook at “Blue Thursdays Medina.” The performance is free an open to the public with multiple food and beverage vendors on site.
By Karen Kinter, CEO, Oak Orchard Health
National Health Center Week (August 4-10) is a time when we celebrate, and increase awareness of, America’s 1,400 Community Health Centers (CHCs) that serve 31.5 million patients annually across nearly 15,000 communities. Oak Orchard Health (OOH) is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) and has nine health centers in the Genesee, Monroe, Orleans, Steuben, and Wyoming Counties. We continue to grown over the years, in 2019 we served 23,399 patients and have grown to over 31,602 in 2023. We truly value the trust our patients have in our health center.
Impact of Oak Orchard Health in Our Community
Beyond offering essential medical, dental, and behavioral health services to all, regardless of insurance status, OOH significantly contributes to our local economy. In 2022 alone, OOH injected $67,765,000 into the community and fostered the creation of 520 local jobs. Moreover, the center’s employees, by spending their earnings locally, further amplify this positive impact. It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement for our community!
What Our Patients Say
We greatly value feedback from our patients, as it helps us better understand their needs and enhance the care we provide. A heartfelt thank you to all our patients who take the time to complete our surveys.
Here are a few heartwarming comments from our incredible patients:
“Doctors are always kind and attentive, truly listening to what you have to say.”
“Oak Orchard Health’s staff is exceptional, going above and beyond to assist their patients. I am immensely grateful for them!”
“The office staff is friendly, and my doctor explains things thoroughly. I’ve been a loyal patient here for a long time.”
“Our local, fully staffed medical facility delivers excellent service with top-quality medical equipment. Without funding, small communities would lack essential services.”
Thank you for being part of our Oak Orchard Health community.
National Health Center Week: Powering Communities Through Caring Connections
At Oak Orchard Health we’ll be celebrating National Health Center Week (NHCW) in a variety of ways from August 4-10.
Tuesday, August 6th is Agricultural Worker Health Day. Our roots run deep in the agricultural community. Oak Orchard started by caring for farmworkers. During NHCW we will reach out to our patients and deliver items that will help keep farmworkers safe while they work to put food on our tables. We’ll be visiting farmworkers this day and giving out helpful items such as first aid kits, sunscreen, etc.
On Thursday, August 8th at 2 p.m., join us for a Ribbon Cutting at the Albion Wellness Center. We’re celebrating the expansion of our Behavioral Health program for children and adolescents. Dr. Goetz, who dedicated over 45 years as a pediatrician at Oak Orchard, will be in attendance, along with Assemblyman Steve Hawley and many community leaders.
Dr. Goetz played a pivotal role as an early advocate for this program. Collaborating with Oak Orchard’s Robin Govanlu (Chief of Behavioral Health), Dr. Danielle Mead (Chief Medical Officer), and the Western Monroe County Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Coalition, they developed this vital initiative. Recognizing the increased need for children’s behavioral health services post-pandemic, we’re committed to swiftly connecting our young patients to essential mental health care.
As part of this commitment, Oak Orchard Health will expand child and adolescent behavioral health services at both the Brockport Health Center and the Albion Wellness Center
Saturday, August 10th at the Brockport Arts Festival we’ll be highlighting Health Center Week’s Children’s Wellness Day. We’ll have the Teddy Bear Clinic, games, and giveaways available for the youngsters who stop by with their parents and guardians. We’ll also have the Mobile Medical Unit there which goes to community organizations and provides medical and mental health services. Stop by to learn more about our services for children.
We take pride in being an integral part of the community health network. This affiliation empowers us to deliver top-quality care and essential services, addressing barriers that may otherwise prevent individuals from accessing medical, dental, and behavioral health services. To schedule an appointment or learn more, please reach out to us at (585) 589-5613.
Join us for the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the Albion Wellness Center on August 8th at 2 p.m.
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Erica Wanecski, left, and Nancy Walker, both master gardeners, pose with some of the entries in the Flower Arrangement contest at the fair.
KNOWLESVILLE – As the Orleans County 4-H Fair heads into its final days this week, tribute is paid to the importance of vendors, who provide entertainment, food and education to fairgoers.
“This is the most vendors we’ve ever had,” said Robert Batt, director of Orleans County Cornell Cooperative Extension. “Vendors give fairgoers more options of things to do. Some people come every day just to eat the food.”
One of the longest attending food vendors is Scott Jolasso with his taffy and lemonade booth. Batt has been coming to fair since he was a youngster in 4-H and he remembers Jolasso being there most of those years.
Photographer Bruce Landis, right, chats with Matt Lehr of Brighton in his booth at the Orleans County 4-H Fair. Lehr’s goal is to attend every county fair in New York state. Landis set up his first booth in the early 1970s.
Bruce Landis with Photos by Bruce has to be one of the longest attending, if not the longest vendor at the fair. When asked if he knew how many years he had been exhibiting, his reply was “About 106 years.”
“It was some time in the 1970s when I first came,” Landis said. “The big thing is I do it to support the kids. But I get benefits, too.”
He said the first year was a challenge, because he had nothing to set up a booth with. He had to buy plywood, lumber and frames.
For several months after the fair, Landis said he heard no feedback. Then, in November a call came in from a lady who said, “I saw you at the fair and I’d like you to do a family photo for Christmas.”
“Then I realized I’m not selling anything that can be used today,” he said.
But he also realized many people would eventually need the service he provided.
“One big reason I keep coming back is the pie booth,” Landis joked. “I average two pieces a day.”
Mary Ellen Hamill of Holley purchases a rice bag from Darrell Wright of Bergen on Wednesday afternoon at the Orleans County 4-H Fair. Looking on is her companion Ron Swan. Write annually exhibits at four or five fairs in the area, but this is his first time at the Orleans County 4-H Fair.
Master Gardeners are also long-time exhibitors at the fair. On Wednesday night, Erica Wanecski and Nancy Walker were enjoying talking to fairgoers in the Master Gardeners’ booth.
“We’ve always had a booth at the fair for as long as I can remember,” Walker said. “We want to make people aware of the educational information on gardening that is available.”
Wanecski said it is their hope to get more people interested in gardening.
“We’re here to help if we’re needed,” she said.
The ladies explained the Flower Show, which was new last year, in which the public submits their arrangements to compete for a prize. This year, instead of judges, the winning entry will be the “people’s choice,” selected by votes from fairgoers.
Fairgoers can also count on seeing Judy Szulis of Medina at the Orleans County 4-H Fair. She has been a vendor with her Tupperware products for at least 15 years, she said.
“I love meeting the people,” Szulis said. “This place is the only time I see some of them all year. I meet new customers and many of them come back every year.”
The vendor barn has something for everyone. Most of the vendors had some kind of gift to give away, whether it be a sucker or small toy for children, or water bottles, key chains, letter openers, pens, lip balm, candy and lanyards.
Lake Ontario Fruit set up a booth as an opportunity to recruit new employees.
Although she will run uncontested for county district attorney in November, Susan Howard had a booth to say thank you to voters and provide information on the office.
The Orleans County 4-H Robotics Club is represented in the vendor barn at the fair this week. Here, Jonathan Dix of Knowlesville demonstrates a robot made by the club.
Youth were represented by the Orleans County 4-H Robotics Club, where Jonathan Dix of Knowlesville was demonstrating a number of robots made by club members.
Vendors provide information on a variety of subjects. Orleans Recovery Hope is giving away Narcan kits and showing how to use them. On Wednesday evening, Lori Reed and Nelson Gauthier handed out kits.
“Opioid use is on the rise and we want to get the word out so people can help someone who has overdosed,” Reed said.
She said many of the people who stopped at the booth had lost a loved one to a drug overdose and wanted to be able to help someone else.
Darrell Wright of Bergen was making his first appearance at the fair with his booth of rice bags, goat milk products and skin care creams. He normally has a booth at four or five local fairs every summer.
“I decided to come here this year because I live nearby and I like supporting local fairs,” Wright said.
One of his customers was Mary Ellen Hamill and her companion Ron Swan of Holley.
“We’ve been coming to his fair for 30 years,” Hamill said. “I glad to see the rice bags. You heat them in the microwave and they really help if you’ve got a sore neck or back.
Another first-time vendor was the Orleans County Chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation, an organization which promotes healthy food choices. Two of its members are Terry Rogelstad of Mockingbird Bell Farm in Holley and the Beam farm on Oak Orchard Road, Albion.
Rogelstadt and Valerie Beam of Waterport handed out pamphlets on healthy traditional diets, cancer protection with food, the dangers of vegetarian and vegan diets and cholesterol myths and truths.
“We decided to have a booth at the fair this year because we needed more exposure to education people on growing and eating healthy food,” Rogelstadt said.
Other first-time vendors are Dream Tea Bubble Tea; New Orleans Style Snoballs; For Clucks’ Sake Village Chickens (the group trying to have chickens allowed in villages); Storm Song Hollow Minerals; and Caricatures by Alex.
“This is the first time we’ve had a caricature artist in a long time, and she’s drawing a lot of attention,” Batt said.
Batt also explained they had established a new vendor area on the lawn south of the Trolley Building. Here, a first-time exhibitor, Pretty Bird Paradise, is offering free entertainment to fairgoers who can enter the enclosure and see the birds up close. While there is no charge to enter, feed can be purchased to feed the birds.
Terry Rogelstad and Valerie Beam promote healthy food choices at their booth at the Orleans County 4-H Fair. Rogelstad is vice president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, which promotes healthy, traditional diets. The Beam farm on Oak Orchard Road in Albion is also a member of the Foundation.
Press Release, Orleans County Local Development Corporation
ALBION – The Orleans County Local Development Corporation is pleased to announce registration has begun for the Microenterprise Assistance Program (MAP).
Beginning Sept. 19 and running through Nov. 21, MAP classes will be held on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Cornell Cooperative Extension in Albion. This comprehensive business education initiative is funded in part by a Federal Community Development Block Grant and the OCLDC to foster small business growth and entrepreneurship within Orleans County.
Prospective entrepreneurs aged 18 and older, who maintain a permanent residence in Orleans County, are encouraged to apply. The course fee is $300. However, financial aid is available for qualifying applicants based on financial need.
Participants will benefit from a new curriculum designed to provide essential business education, training, technical assistance, and access to potential capital resources.
Led by industry professionals, the course spans a 10-week period and covers topics such as: legal requirements for starting a business, forms of ownership, business plan development, taxation for sole proprietors, marketing and advertising strategies, bookkeeping and record keeping, banking essentials, pricing goods and services, and cost analysis.
“The Orleans Microenterprise Assistance Program is a resource for individuals looking to establish or expand their small businesses,” said Matt Holland, MAP manager. “We are committed to providing participants with the knowledge and tools necessary to thrive in today’s competitive business environment.”
Since 2002, there have been 544 MAP participants. Over 200 of them started a variety of businesses in Orleans County, while more than 120 were already in business.
Interested individuals can complete the application online in under 10 minutes or contact the OCLDC with further program questions at (585) 589-7060 ext. 1 or MHolland@orleansdevelopment.org.
About the Orleans County Local Development Corporation:
A division of the OEDA, Orleans County Local Development Corporation (OCLDC) is committed to fostering sustainable economic growth in Orleans County, New York. Dedicated to building a supportive ecosystem that nurtures entrepreneurship, OCLDC improves access to small business development opportunities, education, and training, while ensuring greater equity for our rural communities to thrive in the global marketplace.
Press Release, Genesee Community College
These GCC faculty or staff honored with Chancellor’s Awards include, from left: Karlyn Backus, Amy Conley and Richard Schlesinger.
BATAVIA – Seven exceptional members of the Genesee Community College team have been recognized by the State University of New York for outstanding contributions to their profession, the campus and the community.
The SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence is given in recognition of consistently superior professional achievement and encourages the ongoing pursuit of excellence.
The following faculty and staff members earned a SUNY Chancellor Award for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Richard A. Schlesinger was awarded the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching. This award recognizes consistent superior teaching at the graduate, undergraduate or professional level in keeping with the State University’s commitment to providing its students with instruction of the highest quality.
Dr. Schlesinger has been a member of our college’s communication faculty since 2016 and has taught a variety of courses including Interpersonal Communications, Speech, First Year Experience, Career Explorations, and Argue and Debate. Communication courses go well beyond the textbook since lessons need to come to life with real-world applications, and Dr. Schlesinger creates well-crafted lessons which are designed to build practical skills.
He is a highly experienced individual known for creativity and adaptability both inside and outside the classroom and is committed to student success. In addition, he is the author of: “If You Don’t Ask The Answer Is No: A Practical Guide for Getting Through College Without Falling Through the Cracks” and is currently working on his second book.
Michele L. Terry was honored with the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in the Classified Service, a system-level award established by SUNY to give system-wide recognition for superior performance and extraordinary achievement by employees in the Classified Service. These awards demonstrate the University’s commitment to individuals who provide superior service to its students and the community at large.
Terry has been a member of our college’s classified staff since her arrival in 2002. She began as a Clerk-Typist, became a Secretary, and has been in the role of Executive Secretary since 2009. She has cheerfully transitioned to different job responsibilities under different supervisors over the years and continually maintains a positive atmosphere.
Terry has proven to be a “patient teacher” to new employees and often steps up to help at the Hub of the Student Success Center. Terry is involved in, and assists with, many campus events. In addition, she serves as secretary to the GCC Association Board and became a notary public in 2019.
These honorees include Elizabeth Simmons, Teresa Sukiennicki, Laura Taylor and Michele Terry.
Teresa L. Sukiennicki received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service, which recognizes the consistently superior service contributions of teaching faculty. This service must be sustained over multiple years and may occur in a variety of venues.
Sukiennicki has been a member of the college’s biology faculty since 2006 when she started as an adjunct instructor prior to becoming a full-time faculty member in 2009. She has been regularly involved with the Academic Senate, including being co-chair of the Academic Standards Committee for over eight years. She was the Outdoor Adventure Club advisor for eight years, and regularly volunteers within the community. Sukiennicki maintains her connections with educators outside of the College through her participation in several professional associations and gives back to the community through her weekly volunteer work at EquiCenter.
Elizabeth M. Simmons was awarded the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Librarianship, which recognizes consistently superior professional achievement in the field of librarianship.
Simmons has been a member of our college since 2017 where she started as a Reference and Cataloging Librarian, and in 2019, she became a Systems & Electronic Services Librarian. She has served in a critical role as she navigated the library through some impactful changes including migrating the library’s website, establishing technical workflows and training staff for a new Library Services Platform, implementing a laptop loaning program for students, and configuring and implementing a study room booking software in the library.
Simmons is GCC’s SUNY Librarians Association campus delegate and is an active member of other state library organizations in addition to holding positions on a variety of college committees.
Karlyn M. Backus was recognized with the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service. This award recognizes consistently superior professional achievement within and beyond the position.
Her service to the college began in 2009 as an adjunct instructor, in 2011 she was hired full time as an ACE Program Specialist, she joined the college’s Records Office in 2019 as the Assistant Registrar and was then promoted to Registrar.
Backus has always been an individual that embodies the spirit of “Serving Beyond Expectations.” She is well known not only on campus for her contributions of knowledge, teamwork and innovative solutions, but at the SUNY level as well. A few examples of her work include leading and supporting several digital transformation efforts, implementing a collaborative collegewide professional development group, and leadership roles within the college’s Academic Senate and Information Technology Advisory Council.
Amy V. Conley was awarded the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities, which supports the pursuits foundational to sustaining the intellectual growth of SUNY institutions by recognizing consistently outstanding scholarly and creative productivity, conducted in addition to teaching, by SUNY’s instructional faculty.
Conley has been a member of our college faculty since 2009. Some of her career highlights at GCC include her work with the Business Creators Club over the past 14 years and innovative contributions on delivering course content, specifically through hyflex. In addition, Conley is a faculty liaison with the pTECH Program, a 23-24 SUNY Online Ambassador, works extensively with The BEST Center to create and teach classes, mentors student participants in the annual business idea pitch competition, and is an active member of GCC’s Educational Initiatives and Career Services Committees. Beyond the classroom, she organizes countless activities including networking events and promotes student involvement in the community.
Laura J. Taylor was honored with the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. This award recognizes consistently superior teaching at the graduate, undergraduate or professional level in keeping with the State University’s commitment to providing its students with instruction of the highest quality.
Taylor has been a member of our college since 2017, and since joining GCC, has transformed the college’s fashion degree program in several important ways. She oversaw the transition of the annual fashion show from the Forum to the Arena; and perhaps even more remarkably, was able to find a way to make the event possible during the pandemic. Taylor works to maintain connections with fashion business leaders nationwide, strengthen relationships with fashion programs at 4-year institutions, and has been instrumental in transforming GCC’s fashion degree program to modernize course content and provide students with the best possible resources available.
“We are incredibly proud of the exceptional individuals who have received the SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence,” said Dr. James Sunser, president of GCC. “Richard Schlesinger, Michele Terry, Teresa Sukiennicki, Elizabeth Simmons, Karlyn Backus, Amy Conley, and Laura Taylor have consistently demonstrated outstanding contributions to their respective fields, our campus, and the community. Their commitment to excellence and dedication have had a profound impact on our students and the overall educational experience at Genesee Community College.”
Photos by Ginny Kropf: Staff of Factory Espresso at Hart, which opened in the Newell Building at 113 West Center St., include from left: owner/general manager Richard Sarrero and baristas Riley Tompkins, Katie Hilobuk and Tatianna Mason.
MEDINA – The building formerly known as Newell Shirt Factory has a new tenant brewing up business under its roof.
Richard Sarrero, who owns the building with local attorney Andrew Meier, has opened Factory Espresso at Hart, serving espresso, breakfast and lunch.
Factory Espresso opened for business on June 1 and is slowly growing. The business added a breakfast and lunch menu this week and plans to release a full menu next week.
The current menu includes some old favorites from the Shirt Factory Café, such as the Bob Hope and Rich Little sandwiches.
The espresso menu features the basic flavors, along with specialty drinks, such as Ube latte (a sweet and nutty root vegetable, also known as a purple yam), blackberry lavender white mocha and muddled mint and pistachio.
Factory Espresso also offers online ordering as well as curb service.
“If you call in your order, you can pull up in front, put on your four-way flashers and we will run it out to you,” Sarrero said.
A lot has evolved at the Shirt Factory in the last few years, but Sarrreo is quick to mention more is in the works.
Richard Sarrero, owner/general manager of Factory Espresso at Hart, watches barista Katie Hilobuk prepare a drink.
The Newell building has undergone a number of major changes since Meier purchased it in 2005. His first step was to open the Shirt Factory Café in 2007.
He would later remodel the entire building, creating offices on the second floor for the law firm of Webster, Schubel and Meier and two hotel rooms, and hotel rooms on the third floor.
The hotel rooms are known as Hart House Hotel, after the hotel which existed there from 1876. The Hart House Hotel served guests until 1918, when Robert H. Newell established his high-end shirt business there. The business would exist in some form until 2004.
Sarrero entered the picture in 2013.
“I needed something fresh in my life, and was looking for a career change,” Sarrero said.
He purchased the Shirt Factory from Meier and had started a wine bar in back, which they closed and then opened the Boiler Room in space that actually was the boiler room for the shirt factory.
In 2015, 810 Meadworks opened where Factory Espresso is now and leased space for the Beegarten in back as a performance venue. Sarrero at that time added a juice and smoothie bar to the Shirt Factory Cafe.
In 2018, Medina natives Scott Robinson and his wife Alix Gilman decided to return home from Washington, D.C. and were looking for a place to open a craft cocktail lounge in town.
“It all happened at the right time,” Gilman said. “Rich needed a change and Scott and I were looking for a spot to open a cocktail bar.”
At that time, a barber and a knitting store once occupied two spaces in the building.
Covid raised havoc with the Shirt Factory (Café had been dropped) and business became strictly takeout. 810 Meadworks moved from the downtown site to Leonard Oakes Estate Winery on Ridge Road in Medina. The knitting store moved out in 2020, while the barber had left some time before. Sarrero and Baillie McPherson had a beauty salon in the Shirt Factory, before moving to a larger space on Main Street. They were the last business to occupy the space which is now Factory Espresso.
The Shirt Factory is still in business as a cocktail lounge, operated by Gilman’s brother, Christopher Kozody. It is open from 3 to 10 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, serving craft cocktails and a variety of elevated bar food and small plates. They are also open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays, serving brunch.
Gilman called it a “Boozy Brunch,” featuring mimosas and Bloody Mary’s.
She is happy to see Sarrero has opened Factory Espresso at Hart.
“It’s exciting to see Rich back doing what he loves,” Gilman said. “It completes the building and serves as an amenity to the hotel.”
By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian
“Illuminating Orleans” – Volume 4, No. 21
The Erie Canal has facilitated the transportation of a variety of cargo over the course of 200 years.
We have not one, but two occasions to marvel at the immutable principles of buoyancy and floatation this week.
The first, of course, was the announcement that a pedestrian bridge, manufactured in Italy and destined for the new Ralph Wilson Park in Buffalo will be conveyed along the Erie Canal on two 195-foot-long barges from the Hudson River Port of Coeymans to Buffalo.
Then, a collector in Massachusetts asked for information about this poster announcing:
“Large Whale on Exhibition in this Place on a Large Barge on the Canal.”
The colorful description reads:
“This Mammoth Whale is 65 feet long spanning 35 feet around the body and weighing 75 tons when captured. You must consider the monster size of this animal when his tongue weighed 3,500 pounds and made 120 gallons of oil.
“His lower jaw will seat 25 persons. His mouth has been fitted up as a reception room. A person six feet tall or a team of horses can stand between the monster’s jaws. We have seen 27 young ladies and their teacher in his mouth all at the same time. We have also seen 12 gentlemen seated in his mouth enjoying an oyster supper.
“His Whaleship has been on exhibition for over three years in the principal cities of seven states and viewed by thousands of astonished people. It is not only a wonderful site (sic), but instructive to men, women and children; an exhibition the most refined ladies and children can visit. The captain and his staff will instruct you in the different species and their many peculiar habits and how the whale is captured, showing you the ancient or modern weapons used to capture them. Come and see for yourself and if you find this is not a real whale, WE WILL CHEERFULLY REFUND YOUR MONEY.”
The poster was obviously designed for general distribution as specific details such as place and date are not included. At first glance, we wondered why this inquiry was directed to Orleans County, but a closer look shows what appears to be “Herald Print Albion” on the very last line and we gather that the exhibit is travelling by canal.
Traveling novelty shows were popular in the pre-television era. The mammoth whale exhibit was a feature of the 1880s and early 1890s, with over 8,000 Buffalo residents viewing it over a four-day period in 1881. Should you question the logistics of displaying a deceased whale over a long period of time, we discovered that the whales were embalmed.
Soon to celebrate its bicentennial, the Erie Canal was successful from the beginning because it provided faster access to markets. We tend to associate it mainly with the transportation of products such as wheat, apples, sandstone, etc. But it also facilitated the transportation of novelty cargo, entertainers and circuses.
Referring to the transportation of the pedestrian bridge, also a novelty cargo, destined for a place of entertainment, Carver Laraway, President and CEO of Carver Companies, the maritime management company overseeing the project, stated that “utilizing a vital piece of American history to transport a modern marvel is a testament to both innovation and tradition.” And to physics.
Photo by Ginny Kropf: Carolyn Wagner, secretary of the board of Orleans County Accredited Learning Services, stands in front of the window of Case-Nic Cookies, where a basket raffle is taking place all month to benefit the agency.
MEDINA – A basket raffle in the window of Case-Nic Cookies this month will benefit an agency dedicated to providing free literacy services in Orleans County.
Founded in 2006 as Orleans County Adult Learning Services (or OCALS), the agency now known as Orleans County Accredited Learning Services is helping children and adults throughout the county. With a paid staff of two part-time employees and a volunteer board of directors, conducting fundraising events would hardly be possible, so when United Way of Orleans County insisted they do more fundraising to be eligible for funding, they had to think outside the box.
Carolyn Wagner, secretary of OCALS’s board, knew about Mary Lou Tuohey making the windows of her store, Case-Nic Cookies, available to non-profits for basket raffles. For the last two years, Wagner almost single-handedly, has put together a basket raffle which netted OCALS much needed, although not astronomical, funds.
“We do pretty well here for a small community,” she said.
This month, Wagner has repeated her efforts and filled Case-Nic’s window with a variety of baskets geared to appeal to all ages, men, women and children.
Forty-nine baskets include gift cards to a variety of stores and restaurants, lottery tickets, jewelry and purses, books and toys for children, household items and more.
Tuohey had come up with a system so shoppers could enter the drawings even when the store is closed. She makes up a list with the number of all the baskets. Each sheet has the numbers of a sheet of 26 raffle tickets. The list, a pen and ticket stub are placed in a plastic bag with an envelope and put in a bucket outside the door of her store. At any time of the day, a customer can open the bucket, take out a packet, enter the number of tickets he wants placed in the baskets of his choice, put $10 in the envelope, seal it and drop it through the mail slot in the door.
When the store opens the next morning, the organizations’ volunteers open the envelopes and place the requested number of tickets into the designated baskets.
Tickets can be purchased through July 30. Winners will be drawn on July 31 and notified to come and pick up their prize.
Wagner said she canvasses all the local businesses asking for donations, and while she understands the merchants get inundated with requests, she is grateful for the response she receives.
She is always looking for bargains throughout the year and buys things on sale, saving them to create a basket.
“I always send a thank you to everyone who donates a basket,” she said.
The other fundraising effort by OCALS is a book sale at Medina’s annual community yard sale.
OCALS has come a long way since its founding by Rose Ruck, then a resident of Clarendon, who realized the need for an active literacy group in the county. For the first years, the organization operated with all volunteers and annual donations from Rose and Don’s daughters.
OCALS is accredited by ProLiteracy and funded by United Way of Orleans County.
They have expanded to provide free confidential tutoring services to adults, children and families who are residents of Orleans County and want to improve their reading, writing and English skills. They also provide one-on-one training for the county’s digital literacy initiative, and have worked with school children struggling with literacy.
As part of their mission to promote their services and let the community know what they offer, OCALS has a presence at Medina’s Canal Farmer’s Market, the 4-H Fair and Night Out in Medina.
Crucial to their program are tutors, and they are always looking for anyone interested in volunteering. OCALS will provide the necessary training.
New board members are also welcome. Anyone interested in joining OCALS in any capacity can contact them at www.ocals.org; on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OCALS1 or by calling (585) 590-1202.
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Crosby’s celebrated the grand reopening of its Albion north location this morning. The store was closed for most of April for a remodeling. The store reopened on May 1. Today, company officials joined the local employees and community for a reopening celebration a 202 North Main St.
The inside of the store has an expanded kitchen area, and the Crosby’s has added subs to its food menu that includes pizzas, calzones and a wide variety of breakfast items, including breakfast pizzas.
Linda Pickett, a Crosby’s associate, cleans a surface in the kitchen area. The store has seven employees.
Crosby’s presented a $500 donation to the Albion Fire Department. From left include store manager Becca Smith, district leader Brenda Thompson, Deputy Fire Chief John Papponetti and Dave George, director of operations for Crosby’s.
The business also is giving Albion Central School 40 pizzas to be used from the My Crosby’s Rewards card. Crosby’s also donated $100 to the Orleans County History Department in appreciation for use of historic Albion photos that are inside the store.
Several images from Albion from years past are part of the new store redesign. This photo shows Main Street in the 1940s.
The Reid Group, headquartered in Lockport, owns the store. The Reid Group is comprised of Crosby’s and Reid Petroleum Corp. The group operates 90 Crosby’s locations throughout Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania.
Reid officials noted the site at 202 North Main St. was a Mimi’s Gulf store that opened in the mid-1950s by Carol and Dominic Martillotta. The site was a Genesee Farms from 1982 to 1997, and a Yellow Goose until it became a Crosby’s in 2017.
Dave George from Crosby’s said the company wants to continue the tradition started by the Martillottas in the mid 1950s.
“It was more than a business,” he said. “It was a cornerstone of the community.”
Press Release, Crosby’s
ALBION – Crosby’s is welcoming back customers to its convenience store located at 202 North Main St. State and local leaders, first responders, school officials and other community members will be in attendance at the grand reopening event on Friday at 10 a.m. when there will be a ribbon cutting.
“Crosby’s is proud to be a part of the Albion community,” said Lenny Smith, vice president and general manager of Crosby’s. “We are excited for our customers to experience our newly remodeled store. And we will continue to add a smile to your day with fresh pizza and subs, convenient shopping and service with a personal touch.”
During the ceremony, Crosby’s is presenting a $500 donation to the Albion Fire Department. In addition, a My Crosby’s Rewards card is being donated to the Albion Central School District loaded with enough points for 20 of Crosby’s signature pizzas. Crosby’s will also make a $500 donation to the Village of Albion Historical-Preservation Society.
The Albion store, equipped with mobile ordering, offers a full range of food options including Crosby’s signature fresh-baked pizzas, served whole or by-the-slice; fresh subs prepared in-house; calzones, and a wide variety of breakfast items, including breakfast pizzas.
LYNDONVILLE – The Yates Community Free Library’s concert series was scheduled to start on June 24, but the first concert has been pushed back a week due to unforeseen circumstances, said library director Emily Cebula.
The first “Concert on the Lawn” for the 2024 season will be July 2 at 11 a.m. featuring Dave Stockton on a variety of instruments. The morning show on a Tuesday will include special audience guests – the residents of Medina Memorial Hospital’s Skilled Nursing Home.
The concerts in the series are all free to attend and people are encouraged to bring a lawn chair. Besides the Tuesday concert on July 2, the events are all on Monday evenings.
The schedule includes:
The library’s concert series is funded by the state with money administered by the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council.
Yates Community Library also is planning its first “Lace Up for the Library” 5K on July 20. Walkers and runners are welcome to event which starts and finishes at the Yates Town Park. The race starts at 9 a.m. and people who register by July 12 will receive an official race T-shirt. Click here for more information.
This headline from The Buffalo News, Sept. 10, 1981, refers to the Morrison Road site in the Town of Yates.
By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian
“Illuminating Orleans” – Volume 4, No. 18
YATES – The Town of Yates will hold a referendum on Thursday to decide whether the town may acquire 153.3 acres of land from NYSEG for $700,000 using grant funds for public recreational use. The site is part of a larger area referred to as the Morrison Tract, a rural lakeside property which has had a dramatic and often contentious history.
The first recorded refences to the area are to an active bootlegging operation during Prohibition which was operated by Joseph J. Winghart, his wife Mayme and brother Bernie. They supplied the Lyndonville area and made deliveries to Niagara Falls. They also operated a speakeasy at a farmhouse on the corner of Lake Road and Morrison Road in the Town of Yates.
The Prohibition era has since been romanticized, but it was a dangerous and volatile time. The Wingharts were associated with “The Black Hand Gang” of Niagara Falls, who assured them of a market and of “back-up” if the need arose.
The farmhouse later became the location of Winghart’s Grill. Following several changes of ownership, it opened as Lakeshore Villa in 1959. Owner, Joseph Perry, was killed in an automobile accident in 1960. It subsequently operated as the Park House, this was destroyed in a “spectacular blaze” on March 26, 1981.
Beginning in the 1960s, NYSEG acquired parcels of land totaling 800 acres in the Town of Yates area bounded by the Lake Ontario shoreline, Foss Road and Morrison Road. Referred to as the Morrison Road site, it was selected as a possible location for the construction of an atomic power generating station in 1972.
However, local public opposition was loud and clear. The discovery of an earthquake fault near the area caused NYSEG to abandon plans for Yates and concentrate on a location in Somerset instead.
In September 1981, William Lyman, Chairman of the Orleans County Industrial Development Authority (COIDA), announced the potential development of a shipping port at the site.
Cross-Lake Shipping, formerly Ro-Ro of Toronto, proposed to operate a truck trailer ferry service from Toronto to the Morrison Road site to import a wide variety of raw materials and products to the US, thereby avoiding the substantial fees then levied for overland cross-border transportation.
The plan was quite ambitious. Sixty workers would be employed on the construction of this $8.5 million port which would include a double pier that could accommodate barges capable of carrying 120 semi-trailers.
When fully operational, 120 workers would be employed. Housing, retail and hotels would surely follow, and the development would be beneficial for the Town of Yates tax base.
Attractive as it might have seemed, local residents balked at the prospect of several hundred tractor trailers containing unknown contents traversing rural roads and narrow canal bridges on a daily basis.
A committee of Yates residents formed to oppose COIDA’s proposal. As it transpired, Ro-Ro was unable to secure adequate financial backing and the proposed project was dropped.
Subsequently, the Morrison Road tract was one of two sites in the town considered as a possible location for a state-operated toxic and hazardous waste plant. A site in Cayuga County was chosen instead.
In 1986, a group of citizens and investors formed the Ontario Shore Land Committee which proposed to purchase the site for multi-use development: camping, flea market, a pioneering village, and senior citizen housing as well as light industrial and commercial growth.
While these development proposals highlighted the potential of the site, they also exposed the town’s vulnerability when faced with the power of state agencies. Though local opposition played a part in the dismissal of the atomic power generating station and the port proposal, ultimately other external factors determined the decisions. The success of either of these proposals would have drastically altered the rural nature of the town.
It is remarkable that such a small location should have been the site of so much discord. Some places have a strange energy. Perhaps it is not surprising that trees nearby produce shoe-fruit.
