By Randy LeBaron

Good morning! Grab your favorite cup. Fill it up. And let’s start this week right… TOGETHER!!!

I am writing this on the last day of October, Halloween, but instead of focusing on ghosts and ghouls my mind is already looking ahead to November, a month marked by gratitude and generosity.

I had planned to write an article about what it means to be generous and remind you of some opportunities to practice generosity, such as helping out on the Hands 4 Hope Street Ministry Truck, helping serve others at the Koinonia Kitchen, or supporting one of our many local missions or organizations like: Care-Net, Hospice  of Orleans, GOMAC, Community Action, etc., but when I started to write what actually came out was this poem. I hope it will give you pause and inspire you to practice true generosity in the days ahead!

Being generous of heart means more than just being kind. It means much more than the giving of our money, effort, or even our time.

Though each one of these does play a part I dare say, generosity is truly measured by what we do for others each day.

It is a lifestyle of gratitude of giving to others as we have received, not only when it’s convenient but whenever someone has a need.

To be generous without sacrifice though is to not be generous at all. For when we give only out of abundance our thinking is too small.

Like the rich, Jesus spoke of who shared a little of their wealth as a tithe, compared to the poor widow seated beside them who gave the last two coins she had to survive.

Sacrifice alone though does not a generous person make, if the gift comes with strings attached we give only so that one day we can take.

By giving without expectation we will come closer by far, and treating others the way we wish to be treated will help us set the bar.

The key to generosity is not in keeping score. It is not about meeting a quota, about giving this much and no more.

It is about humility, and compassion, thinking of others and not just yourself. It is about graciously feeding the hungry stranger that last can of soup upon your shelf.

It is making time for others in the midst of a busy day. It is leaving a considerable tip rather than complaining how much you have to pay.

It is giving someone your umbrella even though you may get wet. It is paying for someone’s lunch when you know that they’re in debt.

Being generous is a way of life, seeing and acting from a particular point of view. It is a series of daily decisions that starts with me and it starts with you.

See you in 2 weeks!

Pastor Randy

Photo by Cheryl Wertman

CALEDONIA – The Holley girls soccer team celebrates after winning today’s Far West Regional, 2-0, against Frewsburg at Caledonia-Mumford.

The victory sends Holley to the state semifinals on Nov. 11 at Homer High School in Cortland County.

Holley, the Section V champ, is now 18-3 on the season after today’s defeat of the Section VI winner.

For complete coverage from the game check Orleans Hub sports.

Polling site open today and Sunday, and then sites open throughout county for general election on Tuesday

ALBION – The first seven days of early voting 322 ballots were cast. The county has one early voting polling site – the Orleans County Board of Elections Office, 14016 State Route 31 in Albion.

That site is open today and Sunday for early voting from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The site is available for all 10 towns in Orleans County.

On the general election on Tuesday, each town will have their own polling location.

The early voting numbers so far include 44 on Oct. 28, 39 on Oct. 29, 52 on Oct. 30, 56 on Oct. 31, 42 on Nov. 1, 41 on Nov. 2 and 48 on Nov. 3.

To see a list of all the candidates for all 10 towns and the county positions, click here.

Orleans Hub has also posted many letters to the editor about the election. Click here to be directed to the letters to the editor section.

MEDINA – The Butts-Clark American Legion Post is planning two events this month in support of veterans.

The first is a Veterans’ Appreciation scheduled from 3:30 to 7 p.m. Nov. 10 at the post, 305 North Main St.

Veterans will receive a free drink and appetizers will be available. All veterans are welcome to attend.

The second event is operation SAVE, a suicide prevention training program from 6 to 7 p.m. Nov. 28. The reason for this training is due to the high rate of suicide among veterans, said Jim Wells, commander of the Butts-Clark American Legion Post.

Plans for this training were developed as the result of a conversation when Sara Andrew with the Veterans Administration in Batavia stopped at the Orleans County American Legions’ booth at the Orleans County 4-H Fair.

Wells, his wife Valerie and Kathy Kage from the Lyndonville American Legion Post coordinated the training. They had tried to have it in October, which is “Buddy Month,” but no date was available.

“Buddy Month” is a program of the National American Legion urging people to check on their veteran buddies.

“The idea is to ‘be the one who reports a veteran’s illness or suicidal thoughts,’” Jim Wells said.

SAVE stands for Signs of suicide; Asking about suicide; Validating feelings; Encouraging help and expediting treatment.

Those wishing to attend are asked to RSVP to Valerie Wells by texting (585) 339-8500 or e-mailing medinaaux204@gmail.com.

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Ella Trupo plays the lead role of Captain Louie in the high school drama department’s production of Captain Louie Jr. The first show was Friday. There are performances today at noon and 7 p.m. in the middle school auditorium. Tickets are $5 at the door.

In the show, Louie is lonely after his family moved to a new neighborhood. He plays with a toy airplane he calls Red. Here, Trupo is singing, “Big Red Plane.”

The show is the directing debut in Albion for Kailey Winans, a third grade special education teacher, and Elliott Michki, the high school chorus teacher. Kailey’s mother, Kathy Winans, also is a co-director for the show. She has been helping to lead the production for more than three decades.

Kailey Winans said the show sends a message about welcoming change.

“We should be open to new opportunities,” Winans said. “Change can be hard but we should embrace it because you never know what is on the other side of that change.”

Louie gets transported to his old neighborhood, but finds none of his friends are there. Instead he is met by a sinister gang, including a flower (Mallory Kozody), a mouse (Mallory Ashbery), a broom (Danielle Wyant) and a cat (Neveya Barnes).

Louie eventually realizes the characters are his old friends in Halloween costumes.

Alexis Hand is the “Monster” and Zackary Baron plays the role of Jack, who is dressed as a baseball.

Clocks should be turned back an hour tonight with the with the end of Daylight Savings Time and a return to standard time at 2 a.m.

AAA is advising drivers that although they can get an extra hour of sleep tonight with clocks going back an hour, the time change can cause potential distractions to their normal routine.

An earlier sunset and darkness can lead to an increase in the number of pedestrians killed or seriously injured by vehicles, AAA said.

Drivers, pedestrians, joggers, walkers and bicyclists are advised to take added safety measures so they are seen on the roads.

AAA recommends the following:

Drivers

• Always watch out for pedestrians when backing up in parking lots or driveways. Use headlights to be visible.
• Leave more following room. In the morning, when the sun is in your eyes it can be hard to see what the car ahead is doing. Use sunglasses and your sun visor.
• Be mindful of children and others who are outdoors in the afternoon and evening as it gets dark earlier.
• Pay attention and eliminate all distractions including cell phones and car clocks that are off by an hour.
• Scan the road for wild animals, mainly deer. There were 36,743 animal-related crashes in New York in 2022 – up 7% from 2021 – that’s equivalent to one animal-related crash every 15 minutes, often outside of daylight hours.

Pedestrians

• Be visible. This is especially important in dark places or poor weather. Remember to stay in well-lit areas and to wear light or reflective clothing. Never assume drivers see you just because you see them.
• Use sidewalks and pathways. If a sidewalk is not available, stay to the far side of the road and always face traffic.

Headlights

• With 50% of crashes occurring at night, drivers should check their headlights for signs of deterioration and invest in new headlights or, at a minimum, try a low-cost headlight cleaning and restoration to boost the safety of driving after dark. Headlights can show signs of deterioration after three years but most commonly by year five.
• AAA suggests drivers check their headlights for changes in appearance such as yellowing or clouding. If the bulb is difficult to see, it is time to have the lens replaced or restored as soon as possible. Replacement and restoration services are available at most repair shops.

School Safety

• Moving clocks back one hour means it will be darker in the late afternoon. It is important to remember that children will be on their way home from school during this time, so drivers must remain vigilant.
• Slow Down. A pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling at 25 mph is nearly two-thirds less likely to be killed than a pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling just 10 mph faster.

“Daylight saving time begins on March 10, 2024,” AAA said in a news release. “The Sunshine Protection Act that passed the Senate in March 2022 was not approved by the House of Representatives, so the effort to eliminate clock changes has been stalled for now.”

CARLTON – State Police have charged a Carlton man with numerous felony firearms charges.

Benjamin T. Hayes, 25, was charged on Thursday by the State Police out of Albion with 25 counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon 3rd degree (D felony), two counts of Criminal Possession of a Firearm (E Felony), Unlawful Purchase of Body Armor (E Felony) and 5 counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon 4th degree (A Misdemeanor).

The State Police said its Bureau of Criminal Investigation on Oct. 30 received a report of a possible illegal weapons possession. Investigation determined after a search warrant was executed on the suspect’s residence that Hayes was in possession of numerous illegal weapons including a privately manufactured ghost gun, 3-D printed pistol receivers, pistols, unregistered Safe Act rifles, high-capacity magazines, body armor, ammunition and electronics involved in private manufacturing of gun parts.

Hayes was arrested and transported to Orleans County Jail for centralized arraignment.

The State Police Forensic Identification Unit, Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Orleans County Sheriff’s Office and the Orleans County District Attorney’s Office assisted in this investigation, State Police said.

Hayes was working as a county employee in the Information Technology Department and is no longer with the county.

Jack Welch, the county’s chief administrative officer, issued this statement:

 “Yesterday, the Bureau of Criminal Investigation out of State Police in Batavia arrested Benjamin Hayes of Carlton on 20 felony gun charges.  Mr. Hayes had been a probationary employee with Orleans County in our IT Department. He has since been terminated.”

Ofrenda, crafts among activities as school welcomes Mexican tradition

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Albion eighth-grader Tra’Monie Walker and Spanish teacher Casey Flynn pause and reflect at an ofrenda during a Day of the Dead family night at the Albion Middle School.

The school hosted its first Day of the Dead observance. The Mexican Day of the Dead Celebration is a time of joyful remembrance of deceased loved ones, filled with an array of colors, scents, sounds and stories.

Josefino Paz (right), an ESL teacher at Albion, created the ofrenda in the school library. Paz made the display in memory of his late siblings, Felipe and Vicente.

An ofrenda is an altar created in Mexican homes to welcome the returning souls. An ofrenda typically features candles, wild marigolds, incense, photographs, mementos and loved ones’ favorite foods like fruit, tortillas, tamales, chocolate and bread.

Alondra Hernandez Rodriguez painted her face like a skull, a common tradition on the Day of the Dead. The face-painting represents a deceased loved one.

The middle school cafeteria hosted several activities to celebrate Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead.

Brad Pritchard, the middle school principal, the school district has an increasing number of ELL students or English language learners who are learning to be fluent in English. The school wanted to make those students and their families feel welcome, and also host a fun family activity that was open to the entire school community.

“We want everyone to feel comfortable coming into the school,” Pritchard said.

Daisy Brave-Lopez, a seventh-grader, works on a flag in the middle school cafeteria. About 60 people attended the day of the Dead celebration in the evening.

Sophie Kozody , seventh-grader, decorates a sugar skull.

Provided photos: Katie Oakes, facilitator of the Master Gardener Training program, shows students how to conduct a soil pH test.

Press Release, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Orleans County

KNOWLESVILLE – The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Orleans County is gearing up to offer the Master Gardener Training course again in early 2024. Applications are being accepted now until Dec. 1st.

The Master Gardener program is a nation-wide volunteer service program, started in 1973 in Washington state. Each state has a land-grant university that offers extension offices in each of their counties.

Master Gardener volunteers support the mission of Cornell Cooperative Extension by “extending” the research-based information and guidelines put forth by Cornell University to their county residents.

The Master Gardener Training Course is offered every other year and is the first step for those who are interested in becoming a Master Gardener Volunteer with Cornell Cooperative Extension.

The course in 2024 will once again be a hybrid course with a large part of the lessons taking place online. The online part of the course is broken down into “modules” – different sections with “Read,” “Watch,” and “Do” portions to guide students through various horticultural subject matter.

The online course is self-paced, meaning students are given a time frame within which to complete each module and they can choose when to complete the coursework based on their personal schedule.

“I learned so much from taking MG training about ways to garden that support the environment,” said Deb Roberts, a 2022 MG graduate, “It gave me a good basis of science-based knowledge that I can build on and gives me hope.”

In addition to the online portion, students will meet once a week with CCE Horticulture Educator Katie Oakes, who is the coordinator of the Master Gardener programs as well as the facilitator and main instructor for the Master Gardener Training Course.

Sue Starkweather Miller shows a dahlia tuber during her Final Project presentation for 2022 Master Gardener Training.

“The feedback I heard most often following that first run of the hybrid training course is that the students wished they had been able to meet more frequently in person,” Oakes explained the change this year. “Everyone agreed that it was so valuable to have the in-person meetings to really drive home key points in each module, and to have that hands-on learning that so many students appreciate.”

This coming year, the course will start Feb. 1 and will run through May 2,  with in-person classes occurring every Thursday evening at the Extension office’s “Buzz” Hill Education Center from 6 to 8 p.m.

“The Master Gardener program was an excellent experience; it changed the way I garden and look at my environment. The research based educational materials were thorough, interesting, and challenged me to think differently,” explained Sue Starkweather Miller, who completed the Master Gardener Training Course in 2022. “There was a lot of new information for me to learn, so I would have preferred to have had the weekly group sessions Katie is planning for this coming training session.  It will give the new students more time to reinforce what they learn in the online modules.”

Once students complete the training program, they serve 50 hours with the MG program to become official Master Gardener volunteers.  Those service hours can include attending monthly Master Gardener meetings, helping out at various Master Gardener educational programs, tabling at public events like the Home and Garden Show and the Orleans County 4-H Fair, or finding answers to gardening questions that come in from county residents.

“The best part about the program is finding a group of people who care about the same things that I do, and who are excited to share what they know,” said Peggy Thomas, another graduate of the 2022 MG training. “I learn something new every time we meet.”

Orleans County CCE will close the application process on Dec. 1, after which participants for the course will be selected and notified of acceptance into the program. Preference will be given to Orleans County residents and those who are interested in becoming long-term volunteers with the Master Gardener Program.

The cost of the course is $250. If you are interested in the course, but require financial assistance, please contact Katie Oakes directly at 585-798-4265 ext. 125 or by email at klo54@cornell.edu.

Applications can be found online by clicking here.

Students in a past Master Gardener Training class learning about diagnosing plant problems.

Photos and information courtesy of Albion Central School

ALBION — Some Albion eighth-grade art enrichment students went to Chautauqua Institution recently to see the Washed Ashore sculptures and participate in a few activities.

The students on the trip had learned about Washed Ashore when they took art with Mrs. Kamie Feder last year.

“Once we learned the sculptures were being displayed nearby, I knew we had to go see them,” Mrs. Feder said.

Washed Ashore is “Art to Save the Ocean.” Volunteers collect junk that has washed ashore on beaches and turn the collection into beautiful sculptures.

During the visit, students participated in a recycled self-portrait and STEAM poetry activity, involving exploring lake water through microscopes. The group also took an interactive tour around the grounds to view all of the pieces. Students were allowed to touch all of the sculptures and see the scale of these creations up close.

Now, the students are working on brainstorming, designing and creating an art piece that raises awareness about an issue in our building, district or community.