Press Release, Orleans County DSS

Photo by Tom Rivers: The Strand in Brockport will host a free showing on Sunday of an inspirational film about a small church in Texas where members adopted 77 children in the local foster system.

The Orleans County Department of Social Services’ Safe Harbour program announced it is sponsoring a free showing of the movie Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot, this Sunday, Sept. 8, at 6:30 p.m. at the Brockport Strand Theater, located at 93 Main St. in Brockport.

Tickets are limited and available on a first come, first served basis.

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot is the true story of Donna and Reverend Martin and their tiny church in East Texas.  The Martins adopted two hard-to-place children from the foster system and encouraged others to do the same. The result was that 22 families adopted 77 children from the local foster system, igniting a movement for vulnerable children everywhere. The movie was released earlier this summer.

Cynthia Stumer, Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Social Services, said the theater is reserved for the Orleans County Safe Harbour program for this showing. While the tickets are free, individuals are responsible for their own transportation and any concession stand purchases.  The movie is rated PG-13.  All youth must have a chaperone to attend.

“We are very pleased to provide this free showing of a truly inspirational film and hope people will take full advantage of this opportunity and join us,” said Stumer.

While tickets are first come, first served basis, preference will be given to Orleans County residents.

Those wishing to attend should please email safeharbour@orleanscounty.gov with the number of tickets that you are requesting for your immediate family, including how many youth & how many adults.

For the purposes of Safe Harbour, a youth is an individual under 21 years of age. Therefore, if you have a 20-year-old that is attending, please count them as a youth.

MEDINA – Orleans Community Health Foundation has announced the appointment of three new members to its board of directors.

They are Matt Backlas, Barbara Outten and Jennifer Buondonno. Backlas is a web developer with Websystems. Outten is owner of Maple Ridge Storage and Buondonno is assistant branch manager of Tompkins Community Bank.

All bring a set of skills that will help to future the foundation’s efforts to strengthen health services to the community, said Scott Robinson, director of marketing, communication and outreach at Orleans Community Health.

“I am very happy to welcome our new board members,” said Jeanne Crane, board president. “New members bring new ideas and new energy.”

Executive director Megan Johnson added they are thrilled to welcome the three to the Orleans Community Health Foundation board.

“Their diverse expertise, community involvement and passion for our mission will be invaluable in fundraising to advance the care and services provided by Orleans Community Health,” Johnson said.

The Orleans Community Health Foundation looks forward to the contributions of its new board members and their role in supporting the Foundation’s mission to enhance community health and well-being.

The new members join Crane, Foundation vice president Gloria Brent, treasurer Clark Godshall, secretary Pam Canham, governing board chair Shannon Blount, OCH president/CEO Marc Shurtz, Matthew Kennedy, Nicole Goyette and Scott Robinson.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Orleans County Treasurer’s Office opened Tuesday at the former Bank of America branch at 156 South Main St., next to Subway.

Pictured from left this afternoon at the front window include Roxie Basinait, senior account clerk; Kristen Snell, senior account clerk; Alisha Richardson, principal clerk; and County Treasurer Kim DeFrank. Missing from the photo include deputy treasurer Melynda Brown and Susan Proietty, a part-time account clerk.

The Treasurer’s Office is at the former Bank of America site, which has a drive-through and is handicapped accessible with no stairs to climb for the general public.

County Treasurer Kim DeFrank praised the county Department of Public Works for moving the office from a historic building at 34 East Park St. just in time for school tax collection season. The Treasurer’s Office collects the taxes for Albion, Lyndonville and Medina school districts.

Treasurer Kim DeFrank sits in her new office today. She said the public has been positive so far about the drive-through and not having to go up any stairs to get inside.

The office was on East Park Street for 44 years. The Orleans County Legislature last September voted to pay $250,000 to buy the former bank site, which had been vacant since the bank closed the branch in Albion on Aug. 15, 2017.

There is still some finishing touches to do on the building, including signage and some interior touch-ups.

The county is tentatively planning a ribbon-cutting after the 4:30 p.m. Legislature meeting on Sept. 24.

The staff members are shown inside the Treasurer’s Office with the drive-through window in back. From left include Roxie Basinait, Kristen Snell, Alisha Richardson and Kim DeFrank.

The interior has been repainted with new carpet added. The cubicles and other office furniture were moved over beginning early last week.

The Treasurer’s Office still operated on East Park Street up to 5 p.m. on Friday, with 2 staff members using folding tables and a printer.

On Tuesday at 9 a.m., the office opened at the former bank site, a day after the Labor Day holiday.

DeFrank said she didn’t want the office to close to the public while it was being moved to 156 South Main.

“We didn’t miss a beat,” she said.

The building also includes a basement where many old records are stored, with tax rolls going back to 1994.

The Treasurer’s Office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  The drive-through should be entered through the adjoining plaza’s parking lot.

For tax payments, the office accepts cash, check and VISA, Mastercard and Discover cards, with an additional fee for credit cards.

Photos by Tom Rivers

RIDGEWAY – Orleans County Historian Catherine Cooper leads a tour last month at the West Ridgeway Cemetery on Route 104 at the Marshall Road intersection.

The cemetery opened in 1810 when the area was still under jurisdiction of Genesee County. (Orleans County became independent of Genesee in 1825. Next year is the bicentennial of Orleans.)

Catherine Cooper highlights some of the early settlers who are buried at the cemetery.

The first burial was in 1810 after a 12-year-old girl died from rabies after getting bitten by a dog. She is in an unmarked grave.

The first marked grave was in 1814.

The site was known as the Barrett Cemetery until 1870, when it became the West Ridgeway Cemetery.

Cooper said the early pioneers needed to tame a wilderness. Seymour Murdock is one of the pioneers in the cemetery. He camped for six weeks in a wagon while building a house. It also took him 2-3 days each way to get to Batavia and the Holland Land Office to buy land for $2 to $2.50 an acre, Cooper said.

Those early settlers were drawn by the prospect of cheap land. Others were refugees from the War of 1812 who had their homes burned out by the British and then moved east into Ridgeway and Orleans County, Cooper said.

Catherine Cooper talks with Gordon Grimes, president of the cemetery association that oversees the active cemetery. Grimes said there is typically about 11 burials a year at the cemetery, but that is down to three this year with two cremations.

The tour on Aug. 4 started at a chapel in with windows in a Gothic architectural style on the back side and Romanesque in front. The building was constructed in 1899. From left include Catherine Cooper, retired county historian Bill Lattin, and Todd Bensley, Medina historian.

Catherine Cooper shared about some recent community leaders in the cemetery.

Charles R. Owen, a staff sergeant in the Army during World War II soldier, was a recipient of Purple Heart and a prisoner of war. He shared his POW experience during community talks, including with local schools. He died at age 90 on Nov. 21, 2012

Richard Knights, who died of cancer in 1984 at age 39, continues to be honored by his family as part of the Knights-Kaderli Memorial Fund that supports families battling cancer in Orleans County.

Richard’s father William C. Knights (1917 to 1973) also is buried at the cemetery. He was elected to the State Assembly and died from injuries in a car accident on Feb. 5, 1973, just a few weeks into his term.

Warren P. Towne, a principal at Medina, was a leader of a school after centralization in the 1950s. Medina named one of its school buildings in his honor.

Milford Phinney, who led the Phinney Tool & Die company in Medina, also is at West Ridgeway. He was a prominent community leader with the Boy Scouts, Lions Club and Shelridge Country Club.

The Mason monument is one of the most striking at the cemetery. Cooper shared how Oliver and Martha Mason endured the loss of three young daughters to sickness. Their son Theodore died at Great Bend, Nebraska on Nov. 28, 1874 at age 24. Martha travelled by train to Kansas to bring his body home. She went about 3,000 miles in seven days.

The tour on Aug. 4 was one of four of local cemeteries last month organized by the Orleans County Historical Association.

ROCHESTER – Today, Congressman Joe Morelle announced support for legislation to better protect kids’ privacy and safety online.

Rep. Morelle was joined by educators in support of the Kids Online Safety (KOSA) Act and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection (COPPA 2.0) Act, bipartisan legislation that will address the student mental health crisis by cracking down on Big Tech’s ability to promote dangerous and predatory content to children.

“We are at a critical inflection point in our relationship with the internet and its impact on our everyday lives. The evidence is clear on the direct harm social media and Big Tech is having on our children—we have a moral obligation to take action before it gets even worse,” said Congressman Joe Morelle. “As kids go back to school, this issue is top of mind for parents and grandparents everywhere. I’m proud to support bipartisan legislation to address this crisis head on and protect children from data collection, harmful content, cyberbullying, stalking, and other exploitative actions and practices online. The internet should be a positive resource and safe place for everyone, which is why I’m working tirelessly to pass these bills into law.”

There has been a recent rise in suicide attempts and negative mental health reports among students in the United States. The National Institute of Mental Health officially considers suicide to be a “major public health concern” and reports suicide as a top three leading cause of death among Americans aged 10-34.

In Rochester, according to the 2023-2024 Monroe County Youth Risk Behavior Survey, nearly one out of every four students reported feeling “so sad or hopeless… that they stopped doing their usual activities” and 11% of students reported seriously contemplating suicide.

There is research to link this decline in mental health to a rise in social media prevalence and usage. According to the U.S. Surgeon General and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), up to 95% of 13-17 year old Americans report using at least one social media platform, with nearly one-third of that group reporting “almost [constant]” usage. HHS also reports children and adolescents who spend more than 3 hours a day on social media face double the risk of mental health problems including experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety and 46% of adolescents aged 13-17 said social media makes them feel worse.

The legislation Rep. Morelle co-sponsors seek to limit the influence of social media on young people, all while giving parents more transparency and control over what their children see online.

Specifically, the Kids Online Safety Act would:

• Outline a set of harms to minors—including the promotion of suicide, depression, eating disorders, substance abuse, sexual exploitation, and certain unlawful products for minors like narcotic drugs, tobacco products, gambling, and alcohol—and require tech companies to take reasonable measures to prevent and mitigate them;
• Require social media companies to enable the strongest possible privacy settings for kids by default and provide minors with options to protect their information, disable addictive product features, and opt out of personalized algorithmic recommendations;
• Give parents new controls to help protect their children and spot harmful behaviors, and provides parents and educators with a dedicated channel to report harmful behavior and require platforms to substantively respond in a timely manner;
• Empower parents and inform policymakers about individual social media platforms’ efforts to reduce risks to kids;
• Direct covered platforms to implement controls to protect against stalking and exploitation of children;

Additionally, COPPA 2.0 would:

• Build on the original COPPA, which created protections for children under 13 years old, by prohibiting internet companies from collecting personal information from users who are 13 to 16 years old without their consent;
• Ban targeted advertising to children and teens;
• Create an “Eraser Button” by requiring companies to permit users to eliminate personal information from a child or teen when technologically feasible; and
• Establish data minimization rules to prohibit the excessive collection of children and teens’ data.

 To learn more about the Kids Online Safety Act, read the full text of the bill (click here), and to learn more about the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act, read the full text of the bill (click here).

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The school starts today in Albion and there is a redesigned middle school loop. Contractors removed the island of grass that was in between the driveway and the school.

The district said the goal of reconstructing the Middle School’s front loop was three-fold: to improve the overall flow of traffic, to move more cars off of Route 31 and onto campus (especially during the busy morning drop off when a line of cars would often back up on East Avenue), and to help improve the drop off and pick-up process.

Here is a photo from Aug. 4 that shows the building of the new driveway and loop at the middle school.

The school district posted this map of the loop, which school leaders say should help with traffic flow.

The district reminded motorists to be especially vigilant of students on foot with the start of the school year. Pedestrians will be crossing streets, and buses frequently stopping when school begins.

“It can be easy to be distracted, especially if you’re in a rush,” said Mickey Edwards, the district superintendent. “But please take an extra second and check your surroundings.”

ALBION – The Martin-Linsin Residence has temporarily closed or is on “pause” following a thorough analysis that showed “significant financial losses due to the increasing operational costs” at the residence, according to a statement this evening from Niagara Hospice, which is running Hospice of Orleans.

Hospice of Orleans is expanding and enhancing the home-care model for hospice care, Niagara Hospice officials said in the news release.

The eight-unit residence opened in 2012 following a $2.3 million capital campaign.

Martin-Linsin used to have a waiting list, but was down to one resident last week. No new residents had been admitted for about three weeks. The clinical staff also was laid off last week after the death of the remaining resident at Martin-Linsin, a Hospice employee said.

Niagara Hospice, in its statement, said it is dedicated to caring for the local community, and hospice care “continues to be delivered throughout Orleans County without interruption.”

Hospice care is provided in patient homes, nursing homes or assisted-living facilities.

“Hospice of Orleans is committed to building and cultivating community partnerships to further develop and enrich its already exceptional hospice care model,” according to the statement.

Anyone interested in learning more about hospice care, or to make a referral for care, can call the Hospice of Orleans at (585) 589-0809.

Press Release, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Office

SYRACUSE – Governor Kathy Hochul, last week at the Great New York State Fair, signed three pieces of legislation expanding resources and protections for the State’s agricultural industry.

Legislation S.6320/A.6821 allows the leasing of State land to be used for sap production and tree tapping for ten years to increase the return on investment for producers, including maple producers. The legislation authorizes the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation to enter into contracts for the lease or use of State lands for the purpose of tree tapping and sap production for a term of up to, but not more than, ten years.

Legislation S.9232/A.10199 would allow licensed farm wineries to use apples grown outside of New York State to manufacture or sell State labeled cider, in certain circumstances. This legislation provides crop loss determination for farm wineries to authorize the use of apples grown outside of New York State to be used for state-labeled cider when needed due to a loss of crops.

Legislation S.9248/A.7020A establishes the Beginning Farmer Advisory Board on Agriculture. The legislation establishes the Beginning Farmer Advisory Board on Agriculture with the goal of implementing a plan that moves forward the State’s efforts to bring new entrants to the farm.

“As we celebrate the State Fair, we recognize that New York’s agriculture is a central component to our State’s economy,” Governor Hochul said. “With the signing of this legislation, we continue our mission to uplift this community and prove we are here to support them every step of the way.”

Press Release, GLOW With Your Hands

BATAVIA – GLOW With Your Hands organizers are seeking 15 additional volunteers to support the coordination of 1,000 students from across the GLOW region for the 6th annual career exploration event being held on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at the Genesee County Fairgrounds in Batavia.

“The success of GLOW With Your Hands is made possible through the generosity of volunteers in a variety of event-day roles, including tour guides for individual schools, and support at the entrance at the fairgrounds, parking and lunch areas,” said GLOW With Your Hands Co-Chair Karyn Winters said. “We are fortunate to have so many volunteers already registered but we need more to cover all our bases.”

The annual GLOW With Your Hands event provides students with hands-on career exploration in high-growth and high-demand careers. Activities such as welding, bricklaying and heavy equipment operation, and interactions with employers provide students with the insight to explore career opportunities with companies across the region.

“We’re tremendously excited to once again welcome so many companies and students to GLOW With Your Hands. The commitment and dedication of so many volunteers is what makes this amazing event possible,” said Angela Grouse, GLOW With Your Hands Co-Chair.

Registration for volunteers is available by emailing Karyn Winters at kwinters@geneseeny.com or filling out the volunteer form at www.glowwithyourhands.com/manufacturingvolunteers.

LOCKPORT – The Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival will celebrate its 23rd year on Sept. 14 and 15 at Niagara County Fairgrounds.

Founded by Philip Banks of Burt, the event has proven increasingly popular every year and annually features more than 2,500 participants from throughout Western New York, including Orleans County. These include clans, musicians, pipers, dancers, vendors and artisans.

Banks said he and his wife Beth started the event in 2001 as a grassroots economic development project, after reading about something similar in Readers Digest, done in a small town in Texas.

“We had been long time attendees of the now defunct Amherst Scottish Festival and Ontario, near Lake Huron, several times and saw people celebrating their Celtic heritage,” Banks said. “We were from the Olcott area and knew that could be a good venue for an event. Beth is Scottish/German and I am Irish/German. We could have never known this festival would become so big we’d have to relocate to the Niagara County Fairgrounds in 2019.”

Banks said volunteers have been recruited from Orleans County since the festival’s founding, and at least several dozen volunteers annually come from Orleans County. In addition, several hundred Orleans County residents buy tickets for the event, he said.

The Niagara County Celtic Heritage Festival this year will welcome an impressive lineup of massed pipe bands, in addition to as many as 30 Scottish groups to the Clan Village, making it the largest gathering of family reps in New York State, according to Banks.

A total of eight pipe bands and one brass band from across the local region will perform in ceremonies, individual concerts and massed bands on both days.

Banks invites everyone to join the thousands of people who attend each year, when “everyone is Celtic for the weekend.”

On Saturday, the Gordon Highlanders Pipes & Drums, 96th Highlanders Pipes & Drums, MacKenzie Highlanders Pipes & Drums and the Celtic Spirit Pipe Band will entertain. The D Company Gordon Highlanders were formed in 1837 and is the oldest continuing organization in the city of Buffalo. The 96th Highlanders of Jamestown are proud to represent their region in and around Chautauqua County.

The MacKenzie Highlanders from Youngstown have roots dating back to 1913. Their tradition continues as they offer free lessons to all interested in becoming a member. Celtic Spirit is also from Niagara County and mixes traditional pipe music with various modern instruments in unique arrangements.

The Glengary Bhoys also will be featured during the festival.

On Sunday, visitors can enjoy the Niagara Regional Police Pipes & Drums, the Rochester Scottish Pipes & Drums, the Buffalo Niagara Scotia Pipes & Drums and the Feadan Or Pipe Band. The Niagara Regional Police are from Niagara Falls, Ontario, and perform across Canada and the United States, both as a concert and a competition band. The Rochester Scottish are the City’s Celtic Ambassadors to the world. The band has a broad repertoire playing both traditional martial and modern tunes.

One of Western New York’s newer pipe bands is Buffalo Niagara Scotia from Tonawanda, and is dedicated to strengthening Scottish pride in the region. They welcome newcomers of all ages. Feadan Or from the Finger Lakes promotes traditional Scottish bagpiping, drumming and dancing, in performances and through teaching.

Also on Sunday, to give the feel of a “military tattoo,” the festival will welcome the Mt. St. Mary’s Academy Marching Band from Kenmore. Wearing kilts, they are the only fully instrumented all-girls’ marching band in New York state.

The clan group practice dates back to the 1700s when so many people in Scotland were forced to leave their homeland for other countries. Each clan can trace its lineage to ancestors from Scotland, dating back many centuries. In fact, Banks said most clans still have a hereditary chief in Scotland.

The clans display all sorts of materials related to their families, including their tartans, and answer questions about their generations of ancestors. During the weekend, visitors can experience the sight of them marching in the opening ceremonies, see the “Calling of the Clans,” when torches light the ceremonial bonfire, and take part in the Memorial Service to honor their members who have passed since the last festival.

Each group was formed for charitable, religious, educational and/or scientific purposes to support the family name, with all the sub-group names and variations. Typically, their mission is to protect cultural, artistic and historic endeavors and acquire, preserve, restore and act as custodians for historical records, relics and heirlooms.

They encourage the preservation of historical buildings and landmarks related to the family in countries throughout the world. The individual societies are divided into regions, with hundreds or thousands of members active throughout North America, Australia and other countries. Any person who is of the clan lineage or the dozens of associated family names can join to learn about and celebrate their traditions and genealogy.

Clan representatives will come from New York, Pennsylvania and Ontario, Canada. The names include Baird, Blair, Barclay, Bruce, Buchanan, Claus, Cumming, Donnachaidh, Douglas, Ferguson, Forsyth, Grant, Gregor, Gordon, Hall, Hannay, Hay, Henderson, Hunter, Home, Keith, Kerr, Lindsay, Little, MacBean, MacFarlane, MacGillivray, MacNachtan, MacNeil, Masonic, Morrison, O’Keefe, Thompson and Wallace, as well as the Daughters of Scotia, the Rochester Scottish Society, the Clans and Scottish Societies of Canada and the Scottish Military Society.

In addition to the nine bands, the cultural celebration will include Highland athletics, dancers, national and regional musicians, merchandise vendors, artisans, food and beverage vendors, a kid’s area, clans, reenactors, seminars and local community groups.

The festival will also showcase a wide variety of food vendors at the event.

“Food and beverages rank very high among the reasons people attend cultural celebrations, because traditional dishes maintain ethnic heritage through the generations,” Banks said. “The event will have 30 vendors offering 150 menu items of all types, including entrees, finger foods, sweets, snacks and vegetarian options.”

“Many events don’t put a priority on food and beverages, but the fact is that most visitors consider it a high priority,” said Beth Banks, festival director. “This isn’t just boring fair food. We have something for every taste. We have a team dedicated to finding vendors that fit our festival priorities. You don’t wait in long lines and there is plenty of seating.”

The director explained vendors come from as far as North Carolina to serve Celtic specialties, such as a full Scottish breakfast, Guinness meat pies, Scottish dragon eggs, colcannon, cranchen, potato pancakes, potato soup, salt potatoes, shepherds’ pie, vegetarian shepherd’s pie, Guinness meatballs, Irish beef stew, Irish lamb stew, Jameson braised beef and chicken wings, Scottish barbecue and banger sausages. There are several kinds of haggis and even a haggis eating contest Saturday night.

Celtic sweets include Irish bread pudding, Irish oat cookies, Scottish shortbread, sticky toffee pudding, Welsh cookies and several Celtic-themed ice creams. An assortment of adult beverages includes Ginness, harp, Smithwicks, hard cider, mead, wine, wine slushies and gourmet coffees.

Many visitors, according to Beth Banks, attend just for the variety of food and beverages.

The Niagara Celtic Heritage Society is a 501c3 not-for-profit educational organization, founded in 2001 and focused on preserving the culture of the seven Celtic nations in this region. The annual festival is its primary fundraising activity.

Parking is free, as is the Festival Guidebook. A detailed schedule and ticket information can be found at www.niagaraceltic.com.

LYNDONVILLE – Orleans Community Health has announced the annual For Women Only will take place this year on Oct. 3 at White Birch Golf Course.

The event will again kick off Breast Cancer Awareness Month, while providing an evening with keynote speakers, cancer survivors sharing inspirational stories, honoring loved ones, socializing and participating in various raffles.

“While there is a traditional focus on Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we want to recognize those who have battled any form of the disease,” said Scott Robinson, director of Marketing, Communication and Outreach at Orleans Community Health. “There are plenty of individuals to honor, as well. In addition to basket raffles and other returning highlights, we’re continuing with last year’s opportunity to have loved ones included in a slide show that honors those we’ve lost, current fighters and survivors.”

Anyone wishing to honor their loved one – with or without a picture – should submit their name, photograph and information on whether or not the individual is still surviving, or date of death to Robinson at srobinson@medinamemorial.org.

For Women Only has been an annual event for many years, except during a hiatus from the Covid pandemic, Robinson said.

The event has often been a sellout, and women are encouraged to get their tickets as soon as possible by calling Lori Condo at (585) 798-8422 or online at FWO 2024 (auctria.com). Sponsorships are also available for purchase.

“We’ve all known someone who has had their lives affected by cancer,” Robinson said. “FWO allows us to bring these individuals together for an evening of strength through numbers. Everyone in the room has a story to tell, and we’re lucky enough to hear many of them.”

Tickets are $30. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Anyone interested in participating in the event or donating a basket should contact Robinson at srobinson@medinamemorial.org or Lori Condo at lcondo@medinamemorial.org.