MEDINA – The ninth season of Medina’s Canal Village Farmers’ Market’s summer season launched on Saturday with a big crowd at the summer location in downtown Medina.

“Our winter market had a great season, but the summer market season is what everyone looks forward to,” said Chris Busch, president of the Orleans Renaissance Group, which sponsors the market. “Opening day was amazing, with more than 400 visitors who gathered throughout the morning and early afternoon to enjoy the vendors, live music and food trucks. Everyone had a great time.”

The Orleans Renaissance Group or ORG, is a local 501(c)3 arts and culture organization, which operates Canal Village Farmers’ Market on their corner lot at West Center Street and West Avenue. Gail Miller is manager of the market.

“We had a fantastic opening day,” she said. “We have a lot packed into the Saturday market, with regular and rotating vendors, food trucks, kids’ scavenger hunts, crafters and community groups. The vibe was incredible. One of the best ever.”

Regular vendors were joined by new vendors this season, including Confection Connection Bakery and Wild Dahlia Designs selling fresh flowers.

Wineries, mead and spirits will make a return. Scheduled throughout the season are 810 Meadworks, the popular Black Button Distilling from Rochester and other area wineries, to be announced.

Food trucks and vendors will again be at the market.

“We have a great line-up of food trucks and there’s a nice variety for all tastes this year,” Miller said.

TN Smoke House from Middleport had customers lined up at the opening day of Canal Village Farmers’ Market, selling out of their brisket and pulled pork.

TN Smoke House, El Gran Burrito and NOLA Concessions were a huge hit opening day, with TN Smoke House selling out.

TN Smoke House was a much-anticipated new addition, Busch said.

“We’re so excited to welcome pit-master Scott Gypson and TN Smoke House to our lot at 127 West Center St.,” Miller said.

Gypson, a Middleport native, spent a number of years living in Tennessee where he learned and mastered the fine art of smoking meat, Busch said.

“Many told us throughout the day that his brisket and pulled pork were the best they’d ever had,” Busch said. “The line at his truck was non-stop.”

TN Smoke House will appear at numerous times during the season. In addition to weekly anchor food truck, El Gran Burrito, other food trucks will be rotating in and out throughout the season as well, including Dubby’s Wood Fired Pizza from Albion and Greenlief’s on the Go from Middleport..

Another new food vendor is NOLA Confections, selling New Orleans style snow cones– a sweet made with a mound of fluffy shaved ice flavored with sweet syrups and topped or stuffed with a number of mix-ins and add-ons.

The ever-popular weekly Kid’s Scavenger Hunt also returned to the summer market. The scavenger hunt has again been generously sponsored by Maureen Hungerford.

Miller said that products available each Saturday are listed every week on the market’s Facebook page – Canal Village Farmers Market. Customers are encouraged to like and follow the page for up-to-date information on vendors, food trucks and general information on activities.

The market will again have multiple options for making sales transactions, including, cash, credit via Square, PayPal and Venmo, as well as also accepting Senior Coupons, WIC, SNAP and Fresh Connect Checks. Double Up Food Bucks to SNAP recipients will soon be available.

The market is open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Miller can be reached at canalvillagemarket@gmail.com or via Facebook Messenger with questions or vendor inquiries.

Terms for office increased from 2 to 4 years

Mark Bower

HOLLEY – Three names will be on the ballot for the June 18 village election and all three are current members of the Village Board.

Mark Bower is unopposed for mayor. He is running under the “Historic Holley Party.” Two incumbent trustees also are unopposed. Jessica MacClaren is running under the “Four Holley Party” and John Morriss is under the “Family Party.”

Voting will be from noon to 9 p.m. in the village office foyer. Holley’s terms of office used to be for two years but this election they will be for four years. The board voted to increase the terms on Jan. 10, 2023. This is the first election it takes effect.

Bower was elected mayor in June 2022. A retired school administrator, he wants to see projects to completion, including with street repairs. White Street is the first on the list for upgrades.

“There are a lot of unfinished things I want to bring to closure,” Bower said.

In the past two years some new businesses have opened in Holley. Bower said other projects are close, including a new Dollar General in the former Jubilee and Save-A-Lot grocery store building.

“We’re just waiting on that,” he said. “I’m trying to be a champion and an advocate for the businesses in Holley.”

Bower said the board members have a good working relationship, and respectfully disagree at times.

“We have a very good board,” he said. “It is a pleasure working with them. We don’t agree on everything.”

MacClaren is a fourth-grade teacher in Brockport. Morriss is a retired teacher and former Murray town supervisor.

Amber Harrier, who lost both parents to a car accident when she was 10, will graduate with high honors

Photo by Tom Rivers: Amber Harrier, a senior who will graduate on June 28, said the school district and many local families have helped her reach this point. Her parents were killed in a car accident when she was 10 in September 2017.

KENDALL – These days when Amber Harrier, 17, looks in the mirror, she sees her mother. Amber has her mom’s long curly hair and their facial features are a close match.

Seeing that resemblance makes Amber happy – and sad.

Amber was 10 when both her mother and father were killed in a car accident on Route 31 near the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds in Knowlesville. Rebecca Harrier had slowed to make a left hand turn onto Taylor Hill Road when her Chevrolet Corsica was rear-ended. Mrs. Harrier was pronounced deceased at the scene on Sept. 17, 2017. Her husband Randy, 38, was a passenger and died from his injuries the following day.

“I miss them,” Amber said during an interview last week. “I have dreams where they are magically there.”

Amber is the youngest of their three children. She said she continues to feels grief, and anger from the loss of her parents. She has managed high honor roll grades in school, but she admitted she struggled her junior year and considered dropping out.

But teachers, staff and friends kept her going. She has refocused this year and will be attending St. Bonaventure University in Olean to major in psychology with a goal to become a mental health counselor.

Amber says she kept a consuming anger bottled up for several years. As a freshman, she started to let it out. That has helped.

She has come out of her shell, and this year tried things outside her comfort zone, including singing and dancing in the school’s musical of Beauty and the Beast.

“I never thought I’d see myself doing that,” Amber said about performing on stage.

In the musical program, she thanked two teachers, Jeff Decker and Maggie Allocco, for their extra care during her high school years. They helped fill some of the void from losing her parents. Amber said in the program she hoped she made her mom and dad proud.

Photos courtesy of Amber Harrier: Amber Harrier is shown with her mother Rebecca and her father Randy. Amber said she thinks about them every day.

Decker teaches technology and has had Amber in class for four of the past five years. He said she is a role model who has become a leader.

“Everyone should follow in her footsteps and persevere,” Decker said.

He sees Amber taking apart contraptions, trying to figure out how they work. In his principles of engineering class, Amber and her classmates had a challenge in Power Tool Drag Racing where they had to take apart a power toll and repurpose it into a drag racing vehicle.

When others were stumped, Amber kept searching on how to build a chassis, and use old gears and pulleys.

In his classes since 8^th grade, Amber has explored electronics, woodworking, 3-D modelling, photography, computer graphics and other technology.

“She has a strength that most kids don’t have,” Decker said. “She doesn’t see it, but I do. It’s the way she overcomes obstacles.”

Decker can relate to losing a parent. He was 17 and living in West Irondequoit when his father died unexpectedly.

Amber said Decker is very patient – “He is chill.”

He helps students work through their problems in the classroom, offering praise for their successes and some gentle correction when they are stuck.

“He is just there for me,” Amber said.

Decker said many students have challenges outside of school, and some have suffered tremendous losses and pain.

“You have no idea what a kid is going through,” he said.

Decker said his teachers were a critical support for him when he lost his father.

Amber Harrier has kept high grades in Kendall and looks forward to attending St. Bonaventure University.

Amber also cited Allocco, an earth science teacher, for giving her extra kindness.

“She reminds me of my mom,” Amber said. “She has taught me life. I would be a totally different person without her.”

Marjim Bauer also has been a big support for Amber during her junior high and high school years. Bauer has worked as a counselor at Kendall for 25 years.

She gives Amber some “tough love,” and helps her complete some of the daunting paperwork to enroll into college, including the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and the form for TAP (Tuition Assistance Program).

Bauer was a teen when her mother died. Bauer said she is committed to helping students work through barriers to their success.

Amber also said some of her friends and their families have been very welcoming, in particular the Stonewell, Reis and Allen families.

“They have let me be part of their families,” Amber said. “I’m very thankful.”

This year Amber has stayed with her friend Callie Allen and her family. Amber and Callie are both headed to St. Bonaventure.

Amber said her goal is to become a mental health counselor to work with teens struggling with anger, grief and other issues.

She said Bauer, the school’s director of counseling, is her role model for what she wants to do with her career.

Bauer said Amber is self-driven to excel. She deserves lots of credit for showing such resilience amidst so much adversity, Bauer said.

“She has pride,” Bauer said. “She wants to do well.”

MEDINA – Medina’s annual community yard sale on Saturday, sponsored by Medina Lions, certainly has to be one of the most successful in the event’s history.

Carol Bellack, Char Smith and Jason Cogovan dish up sides for Medina Lion’s chicken barbecue Saturday during the community yard sale. A record 559 dinners were sold.

Perfect weather, yard sales all over the village, shoppers filling the streets, an abundance of vendors and sold-out chicken barbecue made for a perfect day, said chairman Jim Hancock.

“Such a perfect day brought everybody out,” Hancock said. “Whether you went north, south, east or west in the village, people had signs up and tents in their yards.”

Streets were filled with cars, sometimes making them impassable. At the Olde Pickle Factory, there was hardly an empty parking spot in the entire parking lot.

The Lions sold a record 559 chicken barbecues, cooked by Chiavetta’s. The Lions’ Weinermobile, manned by Pete Kaiser, Howie Gardner and Vickie Hutchison was kept busy selling hot dogs all over the village, so shoppers could grab a bite and run to the next sale.

On the corner of Main and Center streets, volunteers chaired by Tim Moriarty handed out all 750 of their maps between 8:30 and 11:30 a.m.

The Lions’ food tent, chaired by Chris and Julie Keller, also had a very successful day, selling hot dogs and hamburgers.

One of the shoppers named Grace of Medina said this was the second community yard sale she had attended.

“I like doing community things, and everybody is out today,” she said. “With the sunshine and chicken barbecue, it’s a fun day. I did a few yard sales Friday night. I found an antique pitcher I’ve been looking for.”

Gary and Lisa Lemke and daughter Allison have had a yard sale almost every year, Gary said. He and Allison and her friend Katie Melock of Buffalo were watching the yard sale while Lisa was out shopping at other sales.

“We’ve been doing this for the last 10 to 12 years,” Gary said. “With prices so high these days, anything extra we can make helps out. And we clear out stuff we’re not using. What we don’t sell, we give to MAAC. They helped us out a few years ago and we want to repay them, now that we’re able to do that.”

Gary Lemke and family of 505 Erie St. have participated Medina’s community yard sale for more than a decade. Their yard was full of bargains, including beautiful cupcakes daughter Allison made.

Above all, Gary said they just liked talking to people who stopped by.

Allison said she loves Medina and yard sale day.

“It’s better than any others in the area,” she said.

She said she goes to Goodwill and buys things and stops at other yard sales and then saves the stuff to resell at their own sale.

The Community Yard Sale and other Lions’ projects allows them to support many causes and organizations in the community and in support of the blind, according to Hancock.

“At our last meeting of the Lions’ year this month, we will vote on giving away $10,000 to $11,000,” Hancock said. “I want to thank the community, because without their support, our events wouldn’t be a success.”

Vendors filled the field on the west end of the Olde Pickle Factory parking lot during the Medina Lions’ annual community yard sale and chicken barbecue on Saturday.

CARLTON – A woman is facing multiple charges, including second-degree assault, for allegedly hitting a man in the head with a machete, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office reported today.

Deputies were called to Heritage Meadows Apartments on Baker Road at 1:25 a.m. on Sunday after a 911 caller said a 32-year-old man was unconscious and bleeding from the head.

Deputies arrived and located a man with a laceration to the back of his head. He had been in an altercation with Katelyn Jimenez, 31, whose last known address is in Batavia, said Rob Riemer, chief deputy for the Sheriff’s Office.

After allegedly hitting the man in the head with a machete, Jimenez then went into another apartment at Heritage Meadows to hide. Deputies were let into that apartment and found her hiding behind a couch. She was then placed under arrest without incident, Riemer said.

A machete was located in the apartment. The injured man was transported to Strong Memorial Hospital by ambulance. He was treated for the laceration to his head and released.

Jimenez, a former Medina resident, was charged with assault 2nd degree (Class D-Felony), criminal possession of a weapon 3rd degree (Class D-Felony), criminal possession of a weapon 4th Degree (Class A-Misdemeanor) and criminal impersonation 2nd degree (Class A-Misdemeanor).

Jimenez was taken to Orleans County Jail where she was processed and held for CAP Court arraignment. She also had several outstanding warrants from the Medina Police Department and Genesee County Sheriff’s Office.

Photos by Tom Rivers

HOLLEY – Shannon Brett, right, gets ready to sound the horn to start the Jim Ferris Memorial 5K on Saturday in Holley. It was the first event of the day for Holley’s June Fest celebration.

Brett and the Holley Rotary Club brought the race back after an absence in recent years. The race started on North Main Street Road, just north of the elementary school.

There were 91 participants in the race.

Ferris was one of the top runners in the Rochester region in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He died at age 53 from a sudden heart attack on May 7, 1994.

Lucas Lyons, 22, of Rochester was the first overall finisher in 20:57, just ahead of Jose Quiros of Medina.

Emma Brady was the first female to finish the race. The 17-year-old from Holley ran the 3.1 miles in 24:02. She finished ahead of Tyler Moore, 15, of Holley, who was done in 24:10.

(Left) Matt Feldman, the Holley Jr./Sr. High School principal, heads to the finish line. He completed the 3.1 miles in 27:25. (Right) Holley students painted these rocks which were given to the top 3 finishers in the different age groups.

Carsyn Mogle, 13, edged her father David Mogle down the stretch in the race. Carsyn finished in 27:46, 2 seconds ahead of her father, who is the Albion police chief. Kathryn Berner, no. 152, finished in 27:52.

Brian Bartalo, the Holley school district superintendent (in red), was among the runners in the race. Bartalo is retiring in June after six years of leading the school district. He is next to Grace and Tom Torpey of Holley.

Josh Mitchell and his dog cross the finish line, just ahead of Makenna Seaward, 11, of Holley. Mitchell is co-owner of Mitchell Family Cremations & Funerals. He brought his dog Charles along for the race. Charles is a Golden Doodle grief therapy dog. Mitchell was impressed Charles conquered the course.

“He is a stallion,” Mitchell said.

There were 49 craft, food and other vendors along the canal trail in Holley for the June Fest celebration.

Holley also unveiled a “Telephone of the Wind” in memory of Helene Gleason Calleri.

“This phone is for everyone who has lost a loved one,” according to the plaque with the phone. “This phone is an outlet for those who have messages they wish to share with friends and family. It is a phone for memories & saying the goodbyes you never got to say.”

Photo by Tom Rivers

ALBION – The Albion Rotary Club has awarded $3,000 in scholarships to graduating seniors. Pictured, from left, include Meganne Moore and Jackie Santiago Garcia. Missing from photo is Gina Sidari, who was unable to attend last Thursday’s Rotary meeting at the Tavern on the Ridge.

Meganne Moore won the Dick Eddy “Service Above Self” Scholarship, a $1,250 award that is given to a student committed to community service and leadership, and who displays high potential for future accomplishment.

Meganne is the class valedictorian. She also earned her associate’s degree from Genesee Community College last month. She has been involved in student government and is the current class treasurer. She also competed in cross country, swimming and track, and has been a member of the concert band and marching band.

Meganne also is in Rotary Interact, mock trial, National Honor Society, select chorus, and has been active in 4-H. She will be attending Geneseo State College this fall working towards a career goal of becoming a wildlife veterinarian.

Gina Sidari

Gina Sidari won the $1,250 Edward Archbald Memorial Scholarship, given to a senior who shares Archbald’s love of sports, recreational activities, community service and work experience.

Gina has run cross country and competed in swimming and track, while also being involved in student government as an officer, band, FFA, National Honor Society, mock trial and Rotary Interact.

Gina also is going to Geneseo with a goal to be a veterinarian working with small and large animals.

Jackie Santiago Garcia was awarded the $500 Rotary Career Advancement Prize for a senior committed to community service, school activities and work experience. Jackie has played soccer and tennis for Albion, and has been in the drama club, diversity club, National Honor Society, Latin Club, Interact and FFA. She also earned her degree from GCC last month.

She will be attending Brockport State College and working towards a career goal of becoming an immigration lawyer.

Photos by Tom Rivers

BATAVIA – Jami Allport, executive director of the Genesee-Orleans Ministry of Concern, speaks to about 130 people on Saturday night during a black tie gala for “The Agency of Last Resort.”

The Ministry of Concern started a gala benefit in 2019 to raise funds for the agency and expand its base of supporters.

The Ministry of Concern has expanded its services for people in need, including reaching out to those who are homeless or in danger of becoming homeless.

GOMOC in late March moved into its new offices in the First Presbyterian Church of Albion after 15 years at the Albion Visitor’s Center on the third floor at 121 North Main St.

The Buffalo party band, Captain Tom and the Hooligans, provided high-energy music for the evening. Trevor Jennings, an Albion, is drummer for the band that plays polka, Celtic folk, folk rock and other genres.

These interns, Micky Stowell (left) and Abigail Kinkaid, pull the tickets and announce the winners for about 25 items and baskets up for auction. Jami Allport and her husband Geno are at right.

Chris Forrester was one of the keynote speakers at the event.

One of the keynote speakers during the gala, Chris Forrester, shared how GOMOC was critical in getting her through a rough patch.

“They helped hold me together,” Forrester said, noting former director Nyla Gaylord and board member Sister Delores O’Dowd. “They didn’t judge me.”

Forrester said she was living by the canal bank when GOMOC helped her secure housing, set goals and get back on track.

She is now an active volunteer with GOMOC, and makes it a personal mission to help the local homeless population.

She will drive at night looking for people who are homeless, especially during the cold weather months, and will try to connect them to the warming center or other housing.

Jami Allport, the executive director, said GOMOC assists people in unexpected emergencies, and helps people in other crises, including mental health, domestic violence and addiction.

“We are here to fight alongside people,” Allport said. “Remember, they are people.”

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Sarah Thom, a member of Albion’s Class of 2024, reads 1 John 3: 1-2 during a baccalaureate service on Sunday evening at the First Baptist Church of Albion.

About 30 seniors attended the service, which is optional. There were 11 local clergy members who participated in the baccalaureate which is organized by the Albion Ministerium. About 180 people attended.

The Rev. Jason Tarnowski, pastor of Community of Hope (Albion Free Methodist Church), gives a prayer of blessing for the graduates.

He asked the students to face the crowd and for family and friends to stretch out a hand to show their support.

In his prayer, Tarnowski asked God “to love, guide and protect these graduates in everything they do. Please watch over them as they move on to new adventures.”

The Rev. Susan Boring, pastor of the Eagle Harbor United Methodist Church, stands with graduates, including Liana Flugel, as they lit candles. The students were told God’s light and love with be with them at all times, even in dark places. Graduates were also offered a cross necklace.

The Rev. Susan Thaine, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, gives a blessing to Auston Johnson.

Jason Anstey performed a trumpet solo, “The Church’s One Foundation.”

Father Mark Noonan, pastor of a family of Catholic parishes including in Albion, gave the keynote address. He said choosing positive words and encouragement builds strong and confident people.

He told the graduates that no matter what happens in their lives Jesus, the Good Shepherd, will always love them.

“Every one of you is a beloved child of God,” Noonan said. “That defines you more than anything else.”

Press Release, Steve Goodrich, commander of Houseman-Tanner Post

LYNDONVILLE – Flag Day June 14th, 1777 is the day the Second Continental Congress adopted the Stars & Stripes as our official national ensign.

This day is set aside to honor the flag and to officially retire those flags that have become faded, worn and unserviceable from usage.

The Houseman-Tanner Post 1603 of the American Legion will be hosting a retirement ceremony on June 14 at 5 p.m. at Lynhaven Cemetery in Lyndonville. Anyone who has an unserviceable flag (including Military Service or foreign national flags) in need of dignified disposal, may bring them to this ceremony. Anyone interested in seeing this ceremony is asked to meet by the flagpole and cannon in Lynhaven Cemetery on June 14.

If there are any questions you may contact the post at americanlegion1603@gmail.com or myself directly at sjgoodri6511@gmail.com or my cell at 585-765-5049 by voicemail during day or directly anytime between 5:30 to 9 p.m.

Photo and information courtesy of Medina Mustang Band Boosters: Medina’s marching band took first place in the parade competition at Sherburne on Saturday.

The Medina Mustang Marching Band traveled to Sherburne in Chenango County to participate in the 75th annual pageant of bands. This is the oldest pageant of bands in NYS.

Thirty-three bands performed in competition in the parade. There were other competitions including jazz, concert, saxophone quartet and drumline.  Medina earned several awards as follows:

• Wind Ensemble: 2nd place
• Middle School Jazz Band: 1st place tying with Fonda-Fultonville
• Jazz Band AA: 2nd place
• Middle School Small Ensemble (flutes): 2nd place
• High School Small Ensemble (saxophones): 1st place
• Parade AA: 1st place
• Cadence AA (drumline): 1st place
• Parade Color Guard AA: 1st place
• Drum Major (entire parade): Medina
• Color Guard (best overall): Medina
• Color Guard: Medina
• Outstanding Director Award: Medina
• Overall Class AA (best in class): Medina
• Grand Champion: Medina

The 2023-2024 band season will come to a close with the band banquet June 3.

Howard wants people to decide issue in referendum

Photos by Tom Rivers: John Sansone, a candidate for Orleans County district attorney, passes out candy during a parade in Carlton on Saturday.

John Sansone, an assistant district attorney, is breaking from DA Joe Cardone in a high-profile issue in Orleans County.

Cardone has been pushing in recent years for a district court that would serve multiple towns. Cardone would like to see a county-wide district court that would handle most of the cases at the town court level.

“The current district attorney is a person I respect very much,” Sansone said. “I know that we disagree on this issue. We have different points of view based upon our sincere beliefs. I am happy the will of voters will decide this issue.”

Cardone said state aid should cover most of the cost of a district court. The county provides the facility and the state is expected to cover the salaries for judges, clerks and security.  Cardone said having the cases be handled by a full-time court would move matters more expeditiously through the courts system. He said it would be a savings for the District Attorney’s Office, Public Defender and law enforcement by having a centralized court, rather than a patchwork of 10 town courts.

But Sansone sees a lot of negatives with the proposal.

“In addition to the potential financial burden on taxpayers, the creation of a district court eliminates local town oversight of its residents to their detriment,” Sansone said in a news release. “The current system of criminal justice ensures the vast majority of cases begin in a person’s residential locality.”

Sansone faces a June 25 Republican primary against Susan Howard for Orleans County district attorney. Cardone isn’t seeking re-election after 32 years as the county’s top prosecutor.

Sansone joins a chorus of opposition to the district court, which includes the Orleans County Magistrates Association and some of the town boards. The local town justices and many of the board members say the current system is closer to the people, operates at a low cost and the state funding in uncertain, and could ultimately lead to a higher local expense.

“Our current court system has some very important elements to safeguard fairness and one of them is that all issues are local in their nature,” Sansone said. “Our county is not like many in our state. We are a county of many differences based on where you live and what you do and I believe that for the justice system to work best, knowing, recognizing and protecting that localness is very important. Town courts do that, and I believe the structure should remain the same to the benefit of all.”

Howard was one of 13 on the District Court Committee. Three of the members – Albion Town Justice Joe Fuller, Carlton Town Justice Kevin Hurley and former Barre Town Justice Richard Decarlo – cast votes dissenting from the recommendations of the committee. Dean Puleo, a layer who works with village and town courts for the 8th Judicial District, abstained from an opinion on the report, and so did Sheriff Chris Bourke.

Howard is listed as accepting the report recommendations. Others who cast affirmative votes include DA Joe Cardone, Public Defender Joanne Best, Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson, Legislator Skip Draper, Legislator John Fitzak, Susan Howard, former Gaines Town Justice Bruce Schmidt, and County Chief Administrative Officer Jack Welch.

Click here to see the report.

Susan Howard passes out candy during Carlton’s parade.

Howard said she ultimately wants to have the issue go to a public vote where the community decides the issue.

“I don’t oppose it, but I’m not pushing for it either,” she said.

Howard believes a district court will eventually be mandated by the state and required for the county.

“It’s coming,” she said. “We know it will be shoved down our throat.”

She said the county could get ahead of a state mandate and try to implement a district court, or it could wait until there is a state decree in the future.

“I’m leaving it up to the people to decide,” she said. “I will implement whatever they decide.”

Howard, the first assistant DA, said she wanted to be an active member on the District Court Committee.

“I try to keep myself educated and informed because I feel that’s my job,” she said.

There will be a second public hearing this Tuesday at 7 p.m. on the district court. The hearing is in the second-floor legislative chambers of the Orleans County Office Building at 14016 Route 31 West, Albion.

Sansone says the county report doesn’t take the full costs of a new court into account.

“I know that the idea of a district court has been described as a cost saving measure, however, I have not seen studies of substance to substantiate that contention,” he said. “Many financial aspects related to the creation of district court are speculative and fail to account for costs such as improving the current condition of buildings to required state standards for courtrooms and costs related to transporting defendants from the jail for court appearances, to name a few.”

Sansone said the state funding isn’t guaranteed. He said there is no evidence the state will force counties to implement district courts.

“Quite to the contrary, only two downstate counties have created district courts in the 1970s,” he said. “None of the remaining 60 counties have implemented a plan for a district court in over 40 years.”

If the state mandates a district court in the future, Sansone said the county should respond then.

“At that time, issues will be clearer, such as what the state will require for courtrooms, staffing, salaries, etc., and most important, who will be paying for what,” Sansone said. “In my opinion, there is absolutely no benefit to create something of this magnitude now only to have to change to satisfy New York State later on. Proceeding under that reasoning doesn’t make sense.”

Albion village sets June 10, June 17 informational meetings about fire district

Photo by Tom Rivers: The Albion Fire Department ladder truck is from 1997 and the fire department would like to replace it soon. A new truck could top $2 million.

ALBION – Petitions have been turned in to try to force a public vote on whether a new Albion Joint Fire District should be created serving the towns of Albion and Gaines.

On Thursday, petitions were turned in to the Gaines town clerk signed by 107 people, to the Albion town clerk signed by 95 people and to the Albion village clerk signed by 259 people. Thursday was the deadline to turn in the petitions.

The town boards for the two towns plus the Albion Village Board on April 30 voted to create a joint fire district. The new district would move the fire department out of the village budget and into its own taxing jurisdiction with elected commissioners.

The two towns currently pay a fire contract to the village for fire protection. With the current budget of about $350,000 the village pays $113,456 (32 percent), the Town of Gaines contributes $120,422 (35 percent) and the Town of Albion pays $116,122 (33 percent).

Some community members want more information about the fire district, including a budget breakdown. During a public hearing on April 24 at the Albion High School LGI, residents were told the fire district budget would likely be $750,000 to $850,000 a year, well above the current $350,000 for the fire department. That $350,000 has left the fire department without a reserve fund for a new ladder truck at an estimated $2.2 million and another fire engine at about $1.1 million. Those trucks will be needed in the near future to replace aging apparatus, deputy fire chief John Papponetti said.

Laura Bentley supports a referendum on the issue. Bentley, owner of Bentley Brothers, lives in Carlton but owns property in Albion and Gaines. She didn’t collect petitions but helped with the process.

“I support a fire district,” she said on Saturday. “It needs to happen. But they need to share more information. During the public hearing, they didn’t respond to questions.”

Bentley said a big jump in the fire department budget will be hard on local taxpayers who are seeing many cost increases in taxes and other expenses.

The two towns require signatures from at least 5 percent of the registered voters in the last gubernatorial election or about 100 people. But the village requires signatures from at least 20 percent of the registered voters or about 650 people.

Bentley said the group seeking a referendum believes it met the threshold to force a public vote in the two towns. It didn’t get enough at the village level. However it is a moot point because village residents are also in either one of the two towns and it doesn’t make sense to also have a referendum at the village level when they are voting at the towns.

Gaines and Albion town officials are expected to review the petitions and meet to set a date for the referendum, which is 60 to 90 days from when the petitions are turned in.

If a vote is set for Albion and Gaines, this would be the second referendum forced by the public on an issue in Orleans County this year. Yates is having a public vote on June 20 on whether the town can spend $700,000 in grant funds to acquire 153.3 acres from NYS Electric and Gas to expand the Yates Town Park on Lake Ontario.

Albion Village Board urges support for fire district

The Albion Village Board issued a press release announcing there will be informational meetings about the fire district at 6 p.m. on June 10 and June 17 at Hoag Library.

“The intent is not to point fingers, but to provide facts about what the next steps should be,” The Village Board states in the press release. “In an effort of continued transparency, our goal is to address any remaining questions.”

The Village Board states the fire department needs a bigger budget. The board stated the following problems with the current situation and the reasons for its support of the fire district:

Benefits of forming a Joint Fire District for the Town Albion and Town of Gaines:

• The district offers a way to right the mismanagement of past fire protection service and spread the cost of this necessary service evenly across a larger tax base.

• Every registered voter in the Joint Fire District has a say and has the ability to run for commissioner.

• Every registered voter has the ability to vote for commissioners, bonding referendums, creation of reserve accounts, etc. that affect the operation of the fire district. You eliminate “taxation without representation.”

• Your tax bill will have a separate line item with the Fire District Tax. You will have peace of mind that your fire tax dollars are being spent on fire protection.

What happens if the Joint Fire District is not approved:

• If the Joint Fire District is not approved, the Village of Albion will be forced to raise village taxes about $5 per $1,000 of assessed value (a 25 percent increase in village taxes). In addition, once the fire protection contracts with the towns expire at the end of 2026, the village will be forced to negotiate higher-rate contracts with the towns to properly fund and operate the fire department. The towns will then need to increase taxes to pay the higher rates.

By Randy LeBaron

Let me start once again by saying thank you to all who have contacted me regarding my last few articles. I appreciated that you shared some of your own stories with me and I hope to hear more as time goes on. 

Today I want to talk about thin places. Thin places are considered to be those geographical locations where the distance between heaven and earth collapses and the divine is more readily felt. In the Celtic tradition it is thought that they can relax us and transform us or, more accurately, unmask us. For some it is a place in their home, for others the altar, and for some a special place of spiritual significance. One of those places for me is The Abbey of the Genesee.

For those who are unfamiliar with it it is a small Benedictine Monastery in Piffard, about an hour south of here just outside of Geneseo. And yes, it’s where they make Monk’s Bread! It is a place where silence, solitude, and hospitality are held in high regard and where you can retreat to connect with God outside of the chaos of this noisy, busy world that we live in.

I first encountered The Abbey back in 2012 while taking a sabbatical following my parents’ passing. It provided me with a place to rest, reflect, and reaffirm my call to ministry. Much like Elijah in 1 Kings 19, it was my broom tree and mountain cave all rolled into one and, whenever I go back to visit, I feel a closeness with the Lord simply because of the healing that I received while I was there.

Since then, I have discovered other thin places closer to home such as Holley Falls. Having spent a significant amount of time there in prayer and study during the pandemic, as well as participating in The Walk to Remember in honor of my mother,  I have found it to be a great place to visit in between ministry visits, if even for a few minutes, in order to pause, breathe, and get recentered.

So where is your thin place? Where do you go where you sense God speaking louder and clearer than other places? Let me know… See you in two weeks!