ELBA — Walk or run along rolling country hills and past corn and hayfields to help support individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Arc GLOW will be hosting its 20th annual Friends & Family 5K and Fun Walk on Sept. 21. It is an event which gives people of all ages and skill levels an opportunity to participate. It also welcomes and embraces the participation of the people Arc GLOW serves, aligning with their mission to support people with disabilities in partnership with their families and community.
Taste of Country, the signature event within the Friends and Family 5K, features a wonderful display of fruits and vegetables donated by area farmers. Runners, walkers, sponsors and volunteers each have the opportunity to take some home with them.
Arc GLOW expects over 300 runners and walkers this year. The event’s post party features live music by The Buffalo Road Show with Jim and Babe Catino, kid’s activities, food, beverages and award ceremony.
Sandy Konfederath has been the race director since the event began. It originally started in Batavia, but due to planned road reconstruction, the event was moved to the country in 2008.
“It was our best decision ever,” Konfederath said. “Because along with the country route, we incorporated the country theme.”
The Friends and Family 5K began as a memorial to Mary Anne Graney, a parent, educator, advocate and friend to Arc GLOW who died in 2004. Her dedication to people with IDD and their families enriches countless lives. The Bluebonnet sponsorship is in honor of Graney’s Texas roots.
The Graney family is pleased funds raised in the 5K help support education through the Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarship program, which is presented to area high school seniors planning to further their studies in human services, special education or related fields. The event also helps fund various programs and services Arc GLOW offers for individuals with IDD.
In 2017, the Friends and Family 5K combined forces with the former 5K held in memory of Arc staff member Terri Carr Krieger. Krieger was a longtime employee who lost her battle with cancer in 1997. The Blue Spruce sponsor level is in Krieger’s honor.
Finally, for many years the Livingston-Wyoming 5K was held in memory of Dr. Ramon M. Rocha. He passionately believed in the possibilities of life, and has been an endless source of inspiration for people of all ages and abilities.
A beloved family man and enthusiastic volunteer, the Blue Knight sponsorship connects Dr. Rocha to SUNY Geneseo where he was a respected professor.
“We’ve had sponsors and donors support us in this event since day one,” Konfederath said. “It’s an inclusive event for people of all abilities, and we’re so incredibly thankful for the continued support we receive to make sure this can happen every year.”
The Friends & Family 5K will take place Sept. 21 where check in begins at 8:45 a.m. and the race beings at 10 a.m. Race t-shirts will be guaranteed for all participants who register by Sept. 10 and until quantities last for walk-ins. It will be held at the Arc Day Habilitation Center, located at 4603 Barrville Road in Elba.
For anyone who wishes to sponsor the 5K, contact Sandy Konfederath at (585) 343-1123 ext. 1715 or skonfederath@arcglow.org by Aug. 26.
Walkers and runners wishing to pre-register and save can do so online at ArcGLOW.org/Event/Friends-Family-5K-and-Fun-Walk or by contacting Konfederath. Runners cost $25 and walkers are $20.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 August 2024 at 9:15 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – About 75 people attended a tour on Sunday evening at the cemetery for the Orleans County Alms House on County House Road.
The event is part of the Sunday evening cemetery tours this month organized by the Orleans County Historical Association. The first tour on Aug. 4 featured the West Ridgeway Cemetery. The next tour at 6 p.m. will be at St. Mary’s in Medina followed by Mount Albion on Aug. 25.
Tim Archer, a retired teacher at Albion, speaks during Sunday’s evening highlighting a once-forgotten cemetery.
Archer was working as a service learning teacher at Albion in 2010 when his seventh-grade students became interested in the site. Bill Lattin, the county historian at the time, was speaking in Archer’s class about how there used to be the Alms or “Poor House” on County House Road from 1833 to 1960. The Alms House closed in 1960 when the county nursing home opened on Route 31 in Albion.
The Alms House was torn down and now the site is the Orleans County Emergency Management Office with a fire training tower.
Bill Lattin speaks during Sunday’s tour of the cemetery. In 2010, Lattin visited Tim Archer’s classes and Lattin mentioned there was a cemetery behind the former Alms House. At the time the site was overgrown and largely inaccessible.
Archer went on his own and found a headstone with a number on it. He then brought three students and they found 10 more head stones with numbers.
Archer and his class addressed the County Legislature about having the site cleared and cleaned up. The students researched the site and found old records with names of 250 people who died at the Alms House.
An interpretive panel was unveiled in 2019 with the names of 250 people who were buried in the cemetery. Some had headstones with numbers, and others were just buried with no marker.
Lattin praised Archer and the students for their concern and action in pushing to get the site cleared and to provide a more fitting final resting place for the residents.
“Tim is a great citizen, a great teacher and a lifetime friend,” Lattin said about Archer. “He did a great job cleaning up this mess. Tim you’ve put a great of your heart and soul into this.”
The reclaimed stones were reset at the cemetery in 2011. The project led by the Albion students garnered widespread media attention around Western New York. Archer said it was perhaps the most ambitious and most meaningful of all the service-learning projects during his career.
He spoke to the crowd on Sunday about the residents of the alms house, some whose stay was short-term for a few weeks while they “dried out” from intemperance.
Others were there for years, suffering from mental and physical disabilities. Some of the oldest records from the alms house were destroyed in a fire. But Archer has looked through an annual reports about the alms house, where staff lists why people needed to stay there.
Some of the reasons listed that caused people to be at the alms house: vagrant, homeless, “pain in the bones,” delinquent, paralysis, dropsy, consumption, syphilis, hernia, “feeble minded,” “bad business management,” senile, lunatic, opium habit, breast cancer, “peg leg,” “frozen hands,” skull wound, “one arm off,” cirrhosis of the liver, crushed foot by railroad car, fingers cut off by a buzz saw.
He saw 1,500 entries over decades for the “inmates.” They weren’t prisoners or in trouble with the law. But they were away from their home, or they didn’t have a home.
“These were real people with real lives that ended unceremoniously,” Archer said.
The cemetery is in the back behind the Emergency Management Office, surrounded by a corn field. When the cemetery was rededicated in 2011, 74 grave markers were reset.
The site is open to the public and continues to be maintained by Orleans County.
Scouts from Albion’s Troop 164 raised the flag at the cemetery during Sunday’s event.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 15 August 2024 at 8:39 am
ALBION – Tax bills in the Albion school district will soon be coming out and will show significantly lower tax rates for property owners in the towns of Albion and Gaines, which completed townwide reassessments earlier this year.
In Albion and Gaines, the tax rate dropped $4.25 per $1,000 of assessed property for the school while the library rate is down 32 cents. The rate is down from $14.69 to $10.44 per $1,000 in both towns.
The school district’s total taxable value is at $775,416,283, which is up 22.7 percent or by $143,199,243 from the $632,217,040 a year ago. That increase is driven by the changes in Albion and Gaines. The Town of Albion’s assessed value is up $92,793,967 – 39.3 percent, while Gaines is up $50,703,658 or 37.4 percent.
The tax levy remains at $8,449,039 for the school district. Albion hasn’t increased the school taxes in 16 of the past 18 years.
The school tax bills also include the bills for the Hoag Library. The library’s tax levy will be $664,510, up from $654,510 last year.
Albion, Gaines and Elba are all at full 100 percent equalization rates after completed their town-wide reassessments. Other towns have lower equalization rates set by the state which results in higher tax rates. That is done to try to have those property owners pay their fair share.
Ridgeway and Carlton are at 97 percent equalization rates, Kendall at 94 percent, Barre at 80 percent and Murray at 66 percent.
Here is a snapshot for each town in the school, with the past year in parentheses:
Albion, assessed value – $329,042,669 ($236,248,702); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library
Barre, assessed value – $105,801,769 ($106,749,208); tax rates: $13.05 school, $1.03 for library
Carlton, assessed value – $146,333,432 ($145,684,900); tax rates: $10.76 school, 85 cents for library
Gaines, assessed value – $186,362,530 ($135,658,872); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library
Kendall, assessed value – $1,247,077 ($1,240,031); tax rates: $11.10 school, 87 cents for library
Murray, assessed value – $5,977,846 ($5,989,786); tax rates: $15.81 school; $1.24 for library
Ridgeway, assessed value – $252,759 ($251,914); tax rates: $10.76 school; 85 cents for library
Elba, assessed value – $398,201 ($393,627); tax rates: $10.44 school, 82 cents for library
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2024 at 10:07 pm
Site will add monument to 1859 bridge collapse victims, and bench and lamppost made of old steel from Main Street lift bridge
Photo by Tom Rivers: The park by the canal recently added the concrete planters with flowers. More elements are headed to the site.
ALBION – The small park along the Erie Canal across from the Albion Fire Hall has been referred to as Canal Park and Firemen’s Park over the years.
Now it has an official name,” Erie Canal Park.”
Village Clerk/Treasurer Tracy Van Skiver said the park has never been formally named. She and her staff combed through the village records.
Provided photo: Bill Schutt made a lamppost from old steel from the Main Street lift bridge.
The village plans to dedicate the park with a ceremony at noon on Sept. 28. During that event, a monument will also be unveiled to the 15 victims in the Sept. 28, 1859 bridge collapse. The Main Street bridge at the time gave out when 250 people crammed on the bridge to watch a wirewalker. The Albion Rotary Club is taking the lead in working with Brigden Memorials of Albion on the project.
The village also is installing two pieces made from old steel from the Main Street lift bridge which has been closed since November 2022 for a major rehabilitation.
A park bench is being made by village employees from some of the discarded steel from when the bridge was originally built in 1914.
The village also used a grant from GO Art! to pay artist Bill Schutt to make a lamppost from the old steel. The lamppost will provide another light at the park.
The village also has moved some of the concrete planters that were in the downtown to the park. They are on the back perimeter of the site.
The gazebo also will get new shingles and paint as Albion tries to create a more inviting spot for local residents and visitors on the canal. The Village Board said it is open to naming the gazebo in honor of someone and will take suggestions from the community.
The park includes a historical marker dedicated for a Revolutionary War hero, Marquis de Lafayette. The French military officer provided critical aid to George Washington in securing American independence. Lafayette traveled on the Erie Canal from Lockport to Rochester in June 1825 to great fanfare.
There also is an interpretive panel at the site about different facets of the Erie Canal in Albion.
The park is between Platt and Ingersoll on the south side of the canal.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 14 August 2024 at 8:48 pm
MEDINA – When Medina Lions agreed to take over the Medical Loan Closet from Lyndonville Lions prior to the Covid pandemic in 2020, they couldn’t have imagined the scope of the service they would provide.
Now, they are preparing to expand that service even further by donating medical equipment to war-torn Ukraine.
The idea was born when little more than a week ago. Lion Bill Jurinich of Lyndonville attended a family reunion in Pennsylvania.
Jurinich explained his grandfather immigrated to Pennsylvania from Ukraine, and subsequently was responsible for a large number of relatives joining him.
During the recent reunion, Jurinich learned that a family member from the Salvation Baptist Church in State College was coordinating a drive to gather supplies for families in Ukraine and Moldova.
Lion Dave Bellucci points to a huge supply of crutches which have been donated to the Lions Medical Closet. The Lions are preparing to join a Lions Club in Pennsylvania in supplying medical equipment to Ukraine.
Jurinich said his relative’s church was also looking into the logistics of getting walkers and wheelchairs, even hospital beds, to Ukraine.
In 2019, Jurinich’s Pennsylvania relatives and their church sent more than 150 coats to Orleans County for Hands for Hope, and knowing the abundance of medical equipment in the Medina Lions’ Medical Loan Closet, Jurinich approached Medina Lions with the idea to help the Pennsylvania Lions in their mission project.
He explained his Pennsylvania relatives were looking into obtaining a container to ship items such as wheelchairs, toilets and even hospital beds to Ukraine.
Jim Punch, who heads the Lions’ Medical Loan Closet, said they continue to accept donations and to loan medical equipment. Anyone wishing to donate or borrow equipment should call (585) 205-3502.
From left, Dave Bellucci, Jim Punch and Bill Jurinich look over some of the many walkers in the Medina Lions Medical Closet.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2024 at 3:12 pm
ALBION – Orleans County Court Judge Sanford Church sentenced a Medina man to 364 days in the county jail this morning for felony driving while intoxicated and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.
Lawrence Miller, 31, was charged after a rollover accident on June 25, 2023 on Maple Ridge Road.
The judge also revoked Miller’s license for a year and said he will need to use an interlock-ignition device for a year when he starts driving again.
In other cases:
• An Albion man was sentenced to 10 years probation for a criminal sexual act and sexual abuse, as well as endangering the welfare of a child. He allegedly had sexual contact with an underage girl.
The man, now 22, was a juvenile when he committed the crime. The judge gave him youthful offender status. His name shouldn’t be published.
He is receiving treatment and has no other criminal history, the judge said.
• Andre Coley, 33, of Albion was arraigned for charges of second-degree strangulation, third-degree menacing and fourth-degree criminal mischief.
The judge kept bail at the $1,000 set in town court and issued an order of protection for the victim in the case.
• Bradlee Pescara, 32, of Lyndonville pleaded guilty to criminal contempt in the second degree for having contact with a woman who had an order of protection against him. He will be sentenced on Nov. 1.
• Arthur Dukes of Medina was sentenced to weekends in jail for a month and a year of probation for attempted assault in the third-degree.
ALBION – The Albion Elks Lodge on July 23 had the privilege of hosting and cooking a chicken barbecue picnic for the residents of the Batavia VA Medical Center.
The Elks received a Freedom Grant from the Elks National Foundation to purchase the food to grill up an old-fashioned chicken BBQ picnic with all the fixins’. The Elks grant also provided the funds to provide entertainment at the picnic and hand out games and puzzles designed to help enhance brain activity and maintain memory skills for our vets.
It was the Elks honor to honor the veterans who have put their life on the line so we, as a nation, can remain free.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2024 at 12:31 pm
ALBION – A man who was in a brief standoff in Shelby with law enforcement on May 1 was arraigned in Orleans County today.
Jacoun Harden, 38, was arraigned for violating his probation, and then several charges from the Shelby incident including criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth degree (firearms), criminal possession of controlled substance in the second degree (narcotic drug at 4 ounces or more), criminal possession of controlled substance in the third degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, and unlawful possession of cannabis (more than 3 ounces).
District Attorney Joe Cardone said he was prepared to offer Harden a plea deal that would cap his sentence in state prison at 8 years, and also satisfy the punishment for violating probation.
Harden pleaded not guilty today. Judge Sanford Church continued the bail at $5,000 cash and $10,000 bond for the new charges. However, Harden is being held in jail for violating his probation. The probation violation is on the charge of criminal possession of a weapon in the 2nd degree (loaded firearm).
Harden was in a brief standoff on may 1 when law enforcement went to execute a bench warrant Harden after he didn’t show up in Orleans County Court.
Orleans County Sheriff’s deputies, county probation officers and State Police went to serve the bench warrant to Harden at his residence on West Shelby Road.
The law enforcement officers saw a loaded Smith and Wesson 9mm pistol on the floor and drug paraphernalia. Harden allegedly ran to the upstairs of the residence to hide and refused to come out. The Orleans County Special Response Team was activated and responded to the location.
After a brief stand-off Harden gave himself up to the S.R.T. and he was taken into custody.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2024 at 9:12 am
Photos courtesy of Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation District
HOLLEY – The popular Holley Falls and Canal Park has many dead ash trees, including trees that have toppled.
The Orleans County Soil and Water Conservation District has been able to secure a $350,046 grant from the United States Forest Service to pay to clear out the dead trees.
Gov. Kathy Hochul last month announced the recipients of the Urban and Community Forest Grants. Soil and Water Conservation Districts applied on behalf of municipalities and communities that face environmental challenges due to climate change as well as economic disparities.
“As many residents of the Village of Holley and throughout Orleans County visit the park for hiking, fishing, and picnicking, keeping the park safe for visitors as well as protecting this environmental resource remained a high priority for our organization,” said Katie Sommerfeldt, district manager for Soil & Water in Orleans County.
“We are excited to take on new and challenging projects that will benefit the community we serve.”
The Village of Holley DPW will be doing the work over the next three years. Sommerfeldt said the work could start this winter.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 August 2024 at 8:31 am
Photo by Tom Rivers
ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature shared a proclamation on July 30 in honor of the 60th anniversary of the Iroquois Job Corps.
Pictured from left include Luke Kantor (Admissions and Career Transition Services manager for the Iroquois Job Corps), Deshawn Knights, Logan Abeyta, Unique Weeks, Janissa Legister, County Legislator Fred Miller and Job Corps operations director JT Thomas.
The proclamation states that Job Corps has been an integral part of the employment and training system for young adults aged 16-24 throughout the United States, an essential partner in Orleans County, and the nation’s largest residential training organization with over 120 campuses.
The Iroquois Job Corps Center in Shelby has helped to train and launch the careers of young adults from Orleans County and the Northeast Boston Region 1 of Job Corps to help them earn essential, field-leading credentials in a vocational trade that will allow them to then obtain gainful employment to better themselves, legislators said.
Job Corps was launched as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Economic Opportunity Act in 1964. Job Corps has provided opportunities for individual advancement for over 3 million young Americans, the proclamation states.
“The program is rooted in a culture of support and compassion that emphasizes hard work, education, and training to serve local communities connecting with local businesses, unions, and employers to ensure that today’s youth are equipped with the necessary tools to build the future of tomorrow,” legislators said.
The program also teaches life skills that assist young adults to be successfully well-rounded individuals to obtain and hold careers and assist with breaking cycles of generational poverty, the proclamation states.
“Job Corps provides student graduates with transitional support services, such as job hunting, finding stable housing, child care, transportation, and drivers education programs as they enter the local workforce, join apprenticeship/training programs, pursue higher education at a college, and/or enlist in the military,” according to the proclamation.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 August 2024 at 2:44 pm
ALBION – The town boards in Albion and Gaines on Monday both appointed two commissioners to the new Albion-Gaines Joint Fire District.
That follows the decision by the Albion Village Board to appoint a commissioner last month.
The Albion Town Board appointed Chris Kinter, the code enforcement officer, and Joe Martillotta, a retired school teacher and business owner.
Gaines appointed Al Cheverie, a former Albion Fire Department president, and Craig Lane, the deputy highway superintendent for Orleans County.
The Village Board appointed Dave Buczek, a former village trustee, to be the village representative.
The terms for the commissioners became effective on Monday. The five will serve until the end of this year.
Commissioners will be elected in December, in terms of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years, depending on the vote totals for each. The highest vote-getter gets the 5-year term and then the term length goes in descending order of votes. After the December election, the commissioner election should be just one position up for election each year.
The first commissioners will focus on a budget for the joint fire district. The five will have an organizational meeting this month and will pick a chairman. That meeting date hasn’t been set yet.
The decision to appoint the commissioners follows a referendum last week where voters in both towns approved the joint fire district.
Both towns passed the fire district by about a 2-to-1 margin during the Aug. 6 referendum. Albion voted 125 yes, 61 no, while the results in Gaines were 70 yes, 43 no.
Albion and Gaines town boards also appointed Victoria Taber to serve as the treasurer for the joint fire district. The elected commissioners will decide who will serve as treasurer when the joint fire district officially starts on Jan. 1.
The district will replace the current structure where the Albion Fire Department is part of the village budget, with the two towns paying the village a contract for fire protection.
The joint fire district will be its own governing structure with five commissioners. The district will have its own tax rate that will be in the town and county tax bills.
Albion and Gaines follow Lyndonville and Yates, and Fancher-Hulberton-Murray and Holley which have moved their fire protection to fire districts.
Press Release, Orleans County Sheriff Chris Bourke
Provided photo: Jeff Cole is shown with Otto. The two have worked together the past eight years.
ALBION – K9 Otto has served the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office for 8 years and is scheduled to retire soon.
Otto was born in Holland on July 26, 2014, and was imported through Upstate K9 in October 2016 where he was then paired with Deputy Jeff Cole. Throughout his career so far, Otto has worked over 22,000 hours, has 192 deployments and has patrolled over 175,000 miles in Orleans County. Otto has also loved participating in community events and putting on demonstrations.
The Sheriff’s Office K9 Unit serves all of Orleans County, including assisting the Village Police Departments when needed. We also help our neighboring counties whenever needed. When incidents occur, it is always a collaborative effort with the Sheriff’s Office K9 Unit and our law enforcement partners.
“Words cannot begin to describe how much Otto means to me, my family, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office and the community he has so faithfully served,” Cole said. “He has been a great partner.”
The Orleans County Sheriff’s Office is looking to purchase another dog to fill the spot of Otto when he retires.
“The next dog has big shoes to fill,” Cole said.
Deputy Cole plans to purchase Otto from the county so he can finish his retirement years in the home he has known most of his life.
The training and certification process requires a tremendous commitment of time and effort on behalf of Deputy Cole and the Sheriff’s Office, but the value of this team is beyond any monetary value. One lost child or elderly person found, one piece of evidence found by the K9 for a critical case to help a victim, drugs found in a search to keep them out of the hands of loved ones…the list goes on.
There are costs involved with obtaining and deploying a K-9 Team. In our case we have an experienced handler in Deputy Cole, but choosing the correct dog is critical to success. The dog must possess the right physical capabilities, temperament, and clarity to complete the training and become certified. K-9 training includes obedience, tracking, article search and apprehension ability for the less than lethal option we need to have available to us. We then add the Drug Detection or Bomb Detection training as well.
Sheriff Christopher Bourke and the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office appreciate any support possible from businesses and community members, as we look forward to continuing the Sheriffs K9 Team with Deputy Cole and a new partner.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 13 August 2024 at 11:48 am
Group will take ideas from public at Sept. 10 meeting
The late Charles Howard, leader of a Santa Claus School and also Christmas Park, works with a Santa portrayer in Albion in this undated photo. Howard died in 1966. The Betterment Committee may utilize some of his designs and concepts in a new Santa House.
ALBION – The Albion Betterment Committee is ready to tackle its next project celebrating Albion’s Santa legacy.
The group wants to build a Santa House on village-owned land next to the First Presbyterian Church on Main Street. The Village Board has given the Betterment Committee permission to pursue the project, with the understanding the board gets a final say on the design of the building and site layout.
The Betterment Committee wants to hear from the public about the project. The group is planning an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. on Sept. 10 at Hoag Library. The public can share its ideas for the how the building should look.
The village doesn’t want the structure to be more than 200 square feet.
The Betterment Committee has $21,000 raised already towards the project. It is pricing out materials and other expenses for the Santa House and site improvements.
The group is also planning to have a sleigh built and installed in the Waterman Park where there is a bronze Santa statue. The Betterment Committee unveiled that statue during the Albion Strawberry Festival in June 2023. The new sleigh will also be a tribute for Howard’s grandson, the late Charles Bergeman. He passed away at age 64 on Oct. 31, 2023.
The Betterment Committee has also put “Believe” signs in Albion, a welcome sign with an image of Charles Howard in a Santa suit, while supporting other projects to highlight Howard and the Santa School that operating in Albion from 1937 until Howard’s death in 1966. (The school continues in Howard’s name today in Midland, Mich.)
The new Santa House will include display areas for memorabilia from the Santa School and the Christmas Park that was also run by Howard.
Natasha Wasuck of the Betterment Committee wants the house to be “cute with a lot of personality.”
The Santa statue is shown in June 2023 with a mural of Santa in flight over the courthouse and downtown Albion. Stacey Kirby Steward created the 24-foot-long mural in 2018. Brian Porter made the bronze statue.
