By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 3 August 2024 at 9:16 am
Provided photo: Passengers disembark from Medina Railroad Museum coaches on a wine train to Spring Lake Winery in Lockport. The event will return on Aug. 17 when passengers will ride in three air-conditioned dining cars.
MEDINA – The Medina Railroad Museum is sponsoring a special rail adventure on Aug. 17 on a wine train to Spring Lake Winery in Lockport.
Passengers can step aboard the museum’s vintage rail cars, then sit back and relax in air-conditioned coaches during the 40-minute train ride to the winery. A complimentary bottle of water will be given out onboard.
After disembarking at Spring Lake Winery, passengers will savor the tastes of wine, beer and Sangria, served by the winery.
But it doesn’t stop there, according to Dawn Winkler, events coordinator at Medina Railroad Museum.
An open bar will be available for two hours, while passengers enjoy a buffet lunch, which will feature a Mediterranean Station with hummus, tzatziki and olive tapenade served with grilled flat bread pita and vegetables; in addition to seasonal soup, potato salad, Greek pasta salad, pulled chicken sandwich with herb aioli, Italian club sandwich of prosciutto, salami and capicola with provolone and herb oil and homemade macaroni and cheese.
As a memento of this unique experience, passengers will receive a commemorative Medina Railroad Museum wine or beer glass. Chocolates and a bottle of water are included on the return ride.
If someone is looking for a memorable romantic day out for couples, a fun meet-up with friends or an exciting office outing, this excursion will fit the bill, Winkler said.
She advises dressing for the weather, as the excursion will go on, rain or shine.
Passengers are asked to check in at the museum at 10 a.m., pick up their tickets and then take time to view the historic museum. Boarding will begin at 11:15 a.m. and the train will depart at 11:30 a.m. The train will return to the museum at 3:30 p.m.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 3 August 2024 at 9:05 am
ALBION – Orleans Community Health has announced a special event at the Albion Healthcare Center to support students of the Albion Central School District.
Between now and Aug. 17 the community is invited to join the Albion Healthcare Center in gathering essential school supplies for the upcoming school year.
The hospital and Albion Healthcare Center realize school supplies can often be costly expenditures, especially with all the other costs for going back to school.
“We’re hoping our team’s effort is able to help some families, even if just a little,” said Scott
Robinson, director of Marketing, Communications and Outreach at Orleans Community Health.
Members of the community are encouraged to donate backpacks, folders, pens, pencils, colored pencils and notebooks and drop them off at the Albion Healthcare Center.
“Your generous contributions will help ensure that students in the Albion School District start their school year prepared to learn,” Robinson said.
On Aug. 17, the public and parents are invited to visit the Albion Healthcare Center between noon and 2 p.m., when some supplies will be distributed and tours given of the facility, offering an opportunity to meet with members of the Albion team. Items not distributed during the event will be provided to the Albion Central School District to be distributed as they see fit, ensuring that every donation finds its way to a student in need.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 3 August 2024 at 8:20 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Highway 31 performed on Friday night from the amphitheater stage at Bullard Park. It rained hard earlier in the day on Friday, but the drizzle stopped in time for the bands at Bullard. This photo is taken looking through from under a big tent.
Highway 31 followed Lonesome Road and Triple Play. Today is the second day of Albion Summer Music Festival/Rock the Park 9. Musicians will be on stage from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
The lineup includes Chris Moore and Ryan & Company, followed by bands Distant View, Zackstreet Boys, Shotgun Pauly, driVen, The Who Dats, 7th Heaven and Tryst.
Highway 31 includes Rich Nolan as the lead singer, Aaron Clark of Holley and Tim LaPorte Sr. on guitar, Clinton LaPorte on bass, and Timmy LaPorte on drums.
Rich Nolan, lead singer for Highway 31, kept the crowd entertained with ’90s music, contemporary country and some rock. Here he is singing “Something Like That” by Tim McGraw.
Sheri McIlvene, left, and Susan Oschmann are selling $5 tcikets for a chance to win beer and wine packages. Oschmann has been selling the tickets this summer as a fundraiser for pickleball courts at Bullard Park.
The winning tickets will be announced at about 8:45 p.m. today in between the performances by 7th Heaven and Tryst.
Jill Albertson is selling tickets for a chance to win a guitar and starter kit. This year’s Rock the Park is dedicated in memory of Dan Ryan, who was a key promoter of the event.
Ryan passed away at age 39 on June 23. He donated refurbished guitars as a fundraiser for past Rock the Park events. Ryan also helped with the sound, worked security and played drums in bands that performed at the music festival.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2024 at 4:21 pm
ALBION – Orleans County will be 200 years old next year. The county was officially “born” on April 15, 1825, when the State Legislature recognized Orleans as its own county, approving a separation from Genesee County.
The Orleans County Legislature wants to celebrate the milestone anniversary next year and named members to a Bicentennial Committee to help coordinate information and events for the bicentennial.
County Historian Catherine Cooper will serve as chairwoman of the group.
Other members include:
Robert Batt, executive director of the Cornell Cooperative Extension in Orleans County
Mark Bower, mayor for Village of Holley
Doug Farley, director of Cobblestone Museum and Society
Nadine Hanlon, Orleans County Clerk
Melissa Ierlan, Town of Clarendon Historian
Lynne Menz, Orleans County Tourism coordinator
Susan Starkweather Miller, Village of Albion Historian
Tom Rivers, Orleans Hub editor
The committee is to be dissolved on Dec. 31, 2025, legislators stated in a resolution.
Cooper welcomes the community’s participation in the 200th anniversary next year. She would like to see many of the existing festivals around the county in 2025 include the bicentennial as part of a theme in parades and celebrations.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2024 at 4:06 pm
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature approved a new two-year agreement with the Albion school district to have a deputy from the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office working as a school resource officer.
Matt Prawel from the Sheriff’s Office has been working as the SRO for Albion the past two years.
The new agreement runs from Sept. 1, 2024 through June 30, 2026. The Sheriff’s Office will be compensated $509.74 per day in the 2024 calendar year, $553.89 per day in 2025, and $601.99 per day in 2026.
Any additional hours requested by the school district for after-hours events will be an overtime hourly rate including incremental fringe expense rate of $60.73 per hour for the calendar year 2024, $66.02 per hour in 2025, and $71.81 per hour in 2026.
For the first two years of the agreement, the Sheriff’s Office was paid $502.10 per day in the 2022-2023 school year (about $91,000) and $510.26 per day in 2023-24. Overtime was $61.05 per hour the first year and $62.53 per hour the second year.
HOLLEY – Holley Central School is thrilled to introduce Mackenzie Swartz as the new assistant principal of Holley Elementary School. She will be formally appointed by the Holley Board of Education at the Aug. 19 meeting.
Before working at Holley, Swartz was a teacher on special assignment (TOSA) in the East Irondequoit School District, providing strategic instructional support for elementary teachers.
She previously taught first grade at Kendall Elementary School and second grade at Ivan Green Primary School in East Irondequoit, where she also served as Literacy Leader and Equity Facilitator. She received her bachelor’s degree in Childhood Education and her master’s degree in Literacy from Roberts Wesleyan University. Swartz received her School Building/District Leadership Certificate from SUNY Brockport.
She is very excited to join the Holley community and share her passion for elementary education.
“I truly believe that I am a better person today because of all the students I have worked with,” Swartz said. “Elementary school is so special because you get to see students grow so much in their time with us. I am looking forward to learning from and with students here at Holley, and seeing all the unique qualities each student contributes to the school community. I know that this is an incredible community, and I am thankful for the opportunity to be joining the team.”
The district extends a very warm welcome to Swartz as she embarks on her journey at Holley.
“Mackenzie brings valuable and unique elementary experiences to our building, and we look forward to learning from and growing with her,” said Tim Artessa, principal at Holley Elementary. “We couldn’t be more excited for Mackenzie to be joining our school community. Her enthusiasm for elementary education is going to be very well received by both our students and staff, and I truly believe that her impact will be immediate as she is ready to hit the ground running!”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2024 at 12:57 pm
Provided photo: Makenzie McGrath accepts an award from Marlene Seielstad in honor of Seielstad’s parents, Marge and Jim Davis.
KNOWLESVILLE – Makenzie McGrath, 16, of Medina has received the first memorial award in honor of the late Marge and Jim Davis of Barre.
Mr. and Mrs. Davis were long-time 4-H leaders of the Moonlight Dreamers, teaching younger generations about heritage skills related to natural resources, agriculture and home economics.
The Jim and Marge Davis Memorial Award is for $100 and is presented to a 4-Her between the ages of 13 and 19 who is an Orleans County resident. The winner of the award achieves the highest overall point total in environmental education, personal development and leadership, special and unique exhibits, heritage art exhibit, sewing and textiles, and baking and recipe collections.
Makenzie McGrath donated the $100 award to the Church of the Abundant Harvest in Millville/Knowlesville, where the couple where members.
Julia Graham of Albion was the runner-up winner and received $50.
The $100 award was funded by Rebekah Green, who was a teen evaluator at the fair for Mrs. Davis as she judged fair exhibits. Marlene Seielstad and her husband Erik covered the cost for the $50 reserve award.
“She taught me a lot about how to look for quality items for both the home and kitchen,” Greene posted on the Orleans Hub Facebook page about Mrs. Davis. “It was a true privilege to visit with her and Jim many times after my 4-H years on Hemlock Ridge. They were both awesome natural teachers and good friends!”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 2 August 2024 at 9:39 am
ALBION – Orleans County is doing a once-every-8-year review of the county-wide agricultural district and about 7,600 additional acres will be added with nearly 6,000 to be taken out.
That is how it stands now, but the numbers could change before an Aug. 16 deadline, said Corey Winters, planner with the Orleans County Department of Planning.
The agricultural district covers about 118,000 acres or approximately 48% of the land mass of the county. The county every year gives property owners a chance to be included in the district, but parcels can only be removed every eight years. This year is that chance to pull out property.
Undeveloped land that is in the district is not allowed to hook into waterlines for non-agricultural use because of the potential adverse effects on agriculture, Winters said. Existing homes, residences, and farms within an agricultural district are not prohibited from connecting to new water lines.
Winters said some of the land being removed from the district is owned by older property owners who want to give their relatives the option to connect to waterlines in the near future.
The County Agricultural Farmland Protection Board and Department of Planning are leading the review. Winters and Barry Flansburg, chairman of the Farmland Protection Board, went over the data during a public hearing on Tuesday with the County Legislature.
The review right now would add about 1,600 acres to the district.
“We’re thrilled we’re not losing agricultural acreage,” Flansburg said.
The county tried three times to get a response from 139 parcel owners, representing 3,150.9 acres. That land will be removed from the ag district unless there is an affirmative response by an Aug. 16 deadline.
Parcels that did not respond: 139 parcels – 3,150.9 acres
Town of Albion: 6 parcels – 166.6 acres
Town of Barre: 19 parcels – 579.8 acres
Town of Carlton: 18 parcels – 451.6 acres
Town of Clarendon: 11 parcels – 632.6 acres
Town of Gaines: 5 parcels – 13.8 acres
Town of Kendall: 17 parcels – 276.9 acres
Town of Murray: 8 parcels – 98.9 acres
Town of Ridgeway: 32 parcels – 522.9 acres
Town of Shelby: 11 parcels – 201.7 acres
Town of Yates: 12 parcels – 205.9 acres
Parcels to be excluded from district: 88 parcels – 2,804.8 acres
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 1 August 2024 at 9:10 pm
GAINES – Susan Pescara waited eight years to have her camera ready when a bunny appeared in front of a rabbit crossing sign by her driveway on Route 279 in Gaines.
The magic moment finally happened on Wednesday evening.
Pescara said her property is frequently visited by rabbits. She put up a bunny crossing sign because there are so many.
She wanted a photo of a rabbit in front of the sign and Wednesday she was able to sneak a photo of one before it hopped away. She happily shared the photo with the Orleans Hub.
Press Release, Orleans County Department of Social Services
ALBION – Registration is now open for the Orleans County Department of Social Services’ (DSS) Lilypad Safe Harbour Program, according to DSS Deputy Commissioner Cyndi Stumer.
The goal of Lilypad is to educate young people on healthy relationships and building self-esteem, while also teaching how to recognize red flags that will protect them from online predators. The program is open to those 12 to 21 years of age.
“Many can remember a time when the internet first gained traction and the online world was limited to your home computer,” Stumer said. “Today’s youth have the constant presence of cellphones and access to the entire world in a few seconds, connecting with strangers through Tik Tok, Facebook, online gaming and host of other platforms. And as we know too well, this connectivity is not without its own set of problems and dangers.”
The Lilypad program is structured to help protect young people form online predators, recognizing the signs of grooming and exploitation. The program consists of three sessions that will each cover a different topic. The sessions are scheduled for Sept. 19, Sept. 26 and Oct. 3 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Hoag Library, 134 S. Main Street in Albion.
“We approach each session in a manner that allows young people to feel comfortable discussing these serious topics,” Stumer said. “We will also be providing snacks, holding raffles and handing out prizes throughout the evening to lighten things up.”
Advance registration is preferred for planning purposes, however, walk-in registrations are also welcome. To register your youth for Lilypad, please contact Orleans County Safe Harbour at Safeharbour@orleanscountyny.gov or by telephone at (585) 589-2837.
GAINES – Susan Pescara waited eight years to have her camera ready when a bunny appeared in front of a rabbit crossing sign by her driveway on Route 279 in Gaines.
