Provided photo
ALBION – The staff at the Orleans County Department of Social Services wore blue in honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
“April is Child Abuse Prevention Month and serves as a reminder for our community to come together to support, strengthen and celebrate families,” said Cynthia Stumer, deputy commissioner of the DSS.
The staff wore the shirts on April 12. The county DSS receives about 800 referrals a year through Child Protective Services.
Return to topPress Release, Genesee Community College
Provided photos: GCC professors Amy Conley, left, and Lauren Paisley will serve an online teaching ambassadors for SUNY.
BATAVIA – Genesee Community College is proud to announce that Lauren Paisley, professor of Business, and Amy Conley, professor of Accounting and Business, have been selected as SUNY online teaching ambassadors for 2023.
As SUNY Online Teaching Ambassadors, both Ms. Paisley and Ms. Conley will be working with faculty and staff throughout SUNY to share their expertise in teaching online and in hybrid formats. They will also be promoting the benefits of online education and sharing best practices with their colleagues.
Lauren Paisley has been a dedicated full-time faculty member at GCC for 18 years and has been teaching online since 2003. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Medical Technology from D’Youville College and a Master’s in Business Administration from SUNY University of Buffalo.
Her passion for learning was ignited by her mother, who made a lateral career change when Lauren was in middle school and impressed upon her young daughter that it is never too late to make a change and seize an opportunity.
Lauren’s extensive experience includes coordinating the academic appeals process, active participation in SUNY Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) and SUNY’s Global Initiatives committee, and serving as advisor to GCC’s International Students Organization. She is also a recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities and the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service.
Amy Conley is a Certified Public Accountant and has been a full-time faculty member at GCC for 14 years, teaching online since 2010. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from St. John Fisher College and a Master’s in Business Administration from Rochester Institute of Technology.
Her work experience includes serving as the Chief Financial Officer of a major subsidiary of a public energy company for eight years. Ms. Conley has extensive curriculum experience and has been an active participant in GCC’s Curriculum Committee for over nine years. She is also a recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.
“GCC is proud to have such outstanding faculty members as Lauren Paisley and Amy Conley,” said Judith Littlejohn, GCC director of Online Learning. “We look forward to seeing the impact they will have as SUNY Online Teaching Ambassadors in 2023. Congratulations to both of them on this well-deserved honor.”
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Provided photo: Holley students picked up trash along the Erie Canal at last year’s Canal Clean Sweep, going from the public boat launch on County Line Road at Route 31 to Transit Road.
Many local organizations and residents will be out on Saturday picking up garbage along the Erie Canal towpath and in the canal communities as part of the 18th annual Canal Clean Sweep.
Last year, not-for-profit organizations, civic groups, businesses, and social clubs took part in more than 130 events along the Canal System and the Canalway Trail as 2,700 volunteers helped clean up nearly 1,500 bags of garbage in the events that are promoted by the NYS Canal Corporation and Parks & Trails New York.
Many cleanup crews will be out on Saturday in Orleans County. The Canal Clean Sweep website shows many locations with groups registering to work on trash pickup.
Those organizations and spots in Orleans County include:
• The Medina Rotary Club will do a trash pickup on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon from the Fruit Avenue bridge to the Marshall Road bridge.
• The Medina Lions Club will do its environmental clean-up day at Lions’ Park next to the North Gravel lift bridge on May 6 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The club will pick up any trash, spread mulch around the trees in the park and along the road in the park. We will also clean up a walkway with memorial bricks. Hot dogs and drinks to be served after the cleanup is completed.
• The Sons of the American Legion in Medina will do trash pickup, debris removal and landscaping along the Erie Canalway from the American Legion in Medina east one mile to the Bates Road Boat Launch from 10 a.m. to noon.
• The Ashwood Wesleyan Church will have a group meet at the church at 12540 Platten Rd. in Lyndonville at 9:30 a.m. and then will go to a spot along the canal until noon.
• BSA Troop 35 and Cub Pack 35 will perform cleanup of the canal banks over and around the Canal Culvert at Culvert Road in Ridgeway from 9 to 11 a.m. The Scouts will also remove any debris and garbage in the culvert tunnel.
• In Albion, volunteers are welcome to meet at the Lockstone on the northside of the canal at 10 a.m. to pick up trash along the towpath until noon. The Marling family, Doherty family, and Albion Rotary Club and Interact Club will be part of the effort.
• In Holley, the Rotary Club and Interact Club will have a large group of students and volunteers out on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon, covering about 9 miles of the towpath. They will meet in the high school parking lot. Holley Cub Scout Pack 3062 will also be part of the effort.
To register to volunteer click here to be directed to the Canal Clean Sweep website which has a map of locations for clean-up events.
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Photos by Ginny Kropf: This group has been a member of the Middleport Community Choir since its founding 25 years ago. From left are Sarah Shanley, Doris Hinkson, Joy Bohnet, Carol Blumerick, Kelly Eick and accompanist Debby Clark (front).
MIDDLEPORT – The Middleport Community Choir’s spring concert will be joint performance with the Festival Chorus from St. Benedict’s in Amherst.
The Community Choir’s director, Ric Jones of Medina, first became acquainted with the director of the Festival Chorus, Heather Lovelace, at a rehearsal of the Genesee Chorale, which Jones also directs. After talking with her, the idea for a joint concert was born.
The concert, titled “Music Changes the World,” will be performed at 7 p.m. May 5 at St. Benedict’s, 1317 Eggert Rd., Buffalo, and at 4 p.m. May 7 at Hartland Bible Church in Gasport.
Ric Jones of Medina leads the Middleport Community Choir in rehearsal for their spring concert titled “Music Changes the World.” The choir will put on a joint performance this year with the Festival Chorus from St. Benedict’s in Amherst. Performances are on May 5 at St. Benedict’s, 1317 Eggert Rd., Buffalo, and on May 7 at Hartland Bible Church in Gasport.
In addition to the two choirs, the Beltones, led by Middleport Community Choir accompanist, will also perform, and celloist Gil Pease, brother of Middleport Choir member Carol Blumerick, will be featured.
The concert will feature music which honors America and its people, Jones said.
“We wanted to do something patriotic, which touched on social justice,” Jones said. “We found ourselves discovering how you can change through music. Our music is a mix of very familiar and patriotic songs.”
One is Bob Dylan’s rendition of “The Times They Are A-Changing.” The concert will also include “God Bless America.”
Another highlight will be two pieces with narration by a member of the Festival Chorus, one using text on the Statue of Liberty and the other using excerpts from Martin Luther King’s speeches.
At least six singers and accompanist Debby Clark of Lockport have been members of the Middleport Community Choir since its founding 25 years ago. They are Joy Bohnet of Lyndonville, Carol Blumerick and Doris Hinkson of Middleport, Kelly Eick of Medina, Carol Shanley and Mark Christensen of Lockport.
Their love of music and singing is what keeps them coming, they said.
Bohnet loves to sing and all through school and later in life, she was always the accompanist, she said. Now she gets to do what she loves.
“And the social aspect is big,” she said.
Blumerick and Eick added they love singing and the friends they’ve made.
The concert will feature 70 singers, songs by the Middleport choir, two songs by the combined choirs and a piece by the bell choir.
The Middleport Community Choir rehearses at 7:30 p.m. Thursday evenings at the Methodist Church in Middleport. New voices are always welcome.
Return to topGas prices went up an average of 7 cents nationally in the past week to $3.67 a gallon for regular unleaded and 8 cents in New York to $3.62. A year ago, the NYS average was $4.19, according to AAA.
Among WNY counties the average prices today include:
“Gas prices continue to rise,” AAA said in a news release this morning. “The main culprit is the high cost of oil, gasoline’s main ingredient, which is hovering in the low to mid $80s per barrel. The national average has risen daily since March 29.
“When the cost of crude oil crosses the $80 a barrel mark, that puts a lot of upward pressure on pump prices. Unfortunately, as long as oil costs remain at the current level, drivers will likely see incremental price increases for now even though demand has subsided.
“Diesel prices remain steady. The national average price for a gallon of diesel is $4.20, no change from a week ago. Here in New York, the current average for diesel is $4.82, down 2 cents from last week.”
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Photo by Ginny Kropf: Tom Costa chats with Community Action’s executive director Renee Hungerford during his first week as the organization’s new chief financial officer.
ALBION – Renee Hungerford, executive director of Community Action of Orleans and Genesee, has announced that Tom Costa has joined the organization as the new chief financial officer.
Costa brings a broad range of business, finance and technical experience, Hungerford said.
He grew up in Rochester until his family moved to Hamlin when he was 12. He graduated from Brockport High School and went on to earn a bachelor of science in business administration/finance and a master’s degree in business administration. Currently, he is pursuing a PhD in business administration.
Costa, a Churchville resident, most recently served as CFO at Normal Communications since 2003.
“His wealth of experience will be extremely valuable as we transition into our new accounting system,” Hungerford said.
Community Action’s finance and payroll team, which includes Danielle Riches, Barb Kieffer and Debbie Schiavone, will report directly to Costa.
Costa said his relationship with Community Action goes back to when he was a child and a friend’s mother worked there. He used to come to Albion and play basketball at Bullard Park.
His decision to accept the position at Community Action came about when he realized his boss at Normal Communications was getting close to retirement.
“I always wanted to work for a non-profit,” Costa said. “I thought this might be an interesting job, so I applied.”
He said his goals in his new position are to get systems and policies in place that are more efficient.
“Tom is going to be a key player in implementing our new accounting system, which will bring us more accurate reporting and budgeting,” Hungerford said. “That will allow program managers to better manage their spending, which will give me the rudders to better steer the ship.”
She said when they strategize, then they build, stop the bleeding, heal the wound and strengthen the agency.
Costa said when he earns his PhD, he will be able to teach personal finance courses and marketing courses.
“If there are ways I can help in communication, that’s a good thing,” Costa said. “Orleans County needs more entrepreneurs in business. When people see that, they want to come and invest in our county.”
Hungerford said she was excited when Costa indicated an interest in the job at Community Action.
“I almost didn’t call him back,” she said. “I was very concerned he wouldn’t want to make the drive out here. After talking to him on the phone, we realized we have a lot in common and a lot of the same goals for this agency. We are both musicians and play saxophone and guitar. I knew pretty quickly I was going to make him an offer.”
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By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian
Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 3, No. 13
MEDINA – Medina’s Main Street buildings have been photographed at different times and from every possible angle, with the glaring exception it turns out, of 613-615 Main Street, the former cold storage building damaged by fire on April 7.
While the red trim of recent years accented the rounded entrance and ground floor windows, this functional monochromatic building just could not compete visually with adjacent structures. The recent fire has made us more aware of the building, how its heft anchors Main Street, how its bulk now seems reassuring and what a gaping hole it would leave if demolished, as the loss of the buildings at the “Four Corners” did in 1971.
Cold storage buildings, like barns, are visual records of our agricultural heritage. Built of fieldstone and architecturally unremarkable, these large warehouse-type structures were built around the turn of the century in every village or hamlet that had a railroad depot. The ability to extend the shelf life of produce and to have more control over market fluctuations contributed significantly to the agricultural economy.
The Main Street Cold Storage was built in 1901 by Frank Austin and Charles Dye. The three-story structure and basement comprised 24,000 square feet, and it was the first fully mechanized cold storage in the area. Apples, pears and peaches were the principal fruits stored.
But a tragedy occurred there soon after construction. Frank Austin was killed on September 23, 1904, when he fell through the elevator shaft. The Medina Daily Journal reported the story in detail:
“About a quarter after eight last night, the night watch, Bill James, left the building and went to the Opera House to attend the show. He claims to have left everything all right, even going over the entire building to see that the temperatures in the various rooms would hold till the play was over, and that things in general were safe to leave for the three hours that the entertainment would likely last.
“Upon returning, James, and Mr. Austin’s son, Floyd, who had also been at the play, found the outside door of the storage open and no lights burning. They at once started to investigate and finally found Mr. Austin at the bottom of the elevator shaft, lying against the side of the wall. His coat was over his head and a bicycle, which belongs to his daughter, which stood outside of the building where his son had left it when he went to the show, was lying on top of him.
“A physician was at once sent for and the police notified. It was found that there were still signs of life, but he never regained consciousness. A few hours later, he was moved to his home on West Ave., where he was attended to by Drs. Turner, Rogan, and Whiting, who found that the back of his head was crushed in.
“Mr. Austin was one of Medina’s most enterprising businessmen, having moved here from Shelby a few years ago.
“His keen business instincts assured success from the start, and the farmers of this section have lost a business friend who they are sure to miss.
“Mr. Austin was forty-six years old and left a wife, two daughters, Misses Fern and Onieta, and one son, Floyd.”
As an aside, the press presentation of this story is interesting. The Medina Daily Journal of September 24, 1904, ran this sensational headline:
However, the article clearly states that these dramatic suppositions were unfounded:
“An examination revealed the fact that he had fifty dollars in his hip pocket and a number of valuable papers in his inside vest pocket. There was nothing to show that there had been any attempt whatever at robbery. Throughout the whole building there was not the least sign of any struggle, and the conclusions point to accident.”
The Medina Tribune headline was less sensational:
It includes an account of the inquest. Coroner Munson concluded that the death was the result of an accident “however mysterious it may seem.” He concluded that the unfortunate man, finding his son’s bicycle outside as he started to leave, carried it in, and fell down the elevator shaft, while groping about in the darkness.
Following Mr. Austin’s death, the company was re-organized in 1907 as the Austin & Rowley Cold Storage, with Irving G. Rowley, President; F.W. Floyd Austin, Vice-President; and Frank A. Rowley, Secretary/Treasurer.
In addition to cold storage, the business acted as an agent for the International Harvester Company, selling and servicing agricultural machinery such as hay balers, manure spreaders and mowers.
They also sold cars. In 1910, they promoted the Studebaker wagon and in 1916, Maxwell, “The Wonder Car”, which cost $655. The Austin & Rowley enterprise prospered and expanded to include two other buildings. However, in the late 1920’s, lighter apple crop yields reduced revenue and a foreclosure sale was eventually necessary to satisfy three mortgages totaling $92,000, which were held by Charles Dye and the Central Bank of Medina.
On August 1, 1928, Claude W. Grinnell and J.C. Posson, principal stockholders of the Medina Cold Storage Company, purchased the Austin Rowley Cold Storage plants for $100,000 (currently $1.8 million approx.). This was not the most auspicious timing for such an investment, but the Medina Cold Storage weathered the Depression and even expanded in the 1940s.
The building’s long connection with cold storage ended in 1973 when it was sold to Jeff and Hugh Fuller who moved Nu Floor, a floor covering business there from 410 Main St.
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Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – A group of wrestlers try to knock each other out of the ring in the opening battle royale for Empire State Wrestling’s “Spring Smash” at Medina High School gym on Saturday.
About 450 people attended the event in the return of the ESW to Orleans County. Previous events were held at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds with 350 attending the debut event in April 2018 and then about 200 in May 2019.
The move to the high school resulted in a much bigger crowd and more space for the wrestlers to leap off the top rope. The event was also a fundraiser for the East Shelby Volunteer Fire Company.
In the opening battle royal, the last wrestler in the ring earned the right to take on the Kevin Bennett, the ESW Heavyweight title champ. Space Monkey won the battle royal to earn a shot at the title.
Kevin Blackwood, an Albion native, flies off the top rope to hit Cheech from Infinity And Beyond. Blackwood, whose real name in Kevin Lockwood, flew in from Los Angeles to wrestle in front of his family and friends in Albion.
Blackwood, 32, has been a professional wrestler for six years. He also works as a tattoo artist in LA.
Cheech puts Kevin Blackwood in a painful hold during their match. Blackwood said he wrestles all over the United States and Canada almost every weekend, sometimes at two different events.
He tries to be relatable to the audience and is known for athletic moves in the ring, including a double stomp from all angles.
Kevin Blackwood is victorious in his match against Cheech, and many of the hometown fans show their appreciation.
Jacob Miller of Medina wrestles as Maxx Cannon – “The Filthy One.” Miller, 29, has been wrestling for three years including the past year with the Empire State Wrestling. Here he has Frank Feathers on his shoulders before tossing him to the mat. Cannon won the match against the former ESW champ.
“I try to be someone the crowd remembers,” Cannon said.
Maxx Cannon makes his entrance and greets some of the fans. Cannon was a member of Medina’s football, basketball and baseball teams. He works with his father Wayne Miller doing siding and roofing jobs.
Cannon said he enjoys the atmosphere at the wrestling events, and training with the other wrestlers.
“I’ve made some of the best friends of my life through wrestling,” Cannon said. “Wrestling really is like a family.”
Thomas Green, 21, of Albion made his debut on Saturday with Empire State Wrestling as “Big Budget.” Green, left, threw a member of the High Seas – “Your Captain” Nick Ando – out of the ring and then pounded on him in front of the ringside crowd. High Seas are the tag team champs for ESW.
Green is part of a tag team with “Lotto” in a team called Greed and also the Body Bag Brothers. Green said his role as a wrestler will shock many from Albion. He graduated from 2019 and was vice president of the art club and sang in the choir. He didn’t play any sports.
Green waits to be tagged in by Lotto in their match on Saturday. The two delivered many blows to the High Seas team, which retained its title. Green picked up the opponents and flung them in the air with ease.
Green works at Wegmans in Brockport, and has been training as a wrestler for about two years. He wrestles with Ground Zero Wrestling in Rochester and hopes he can be a regular with Empire State Wrestling, which usually has its events in Buffalo.
“It’s entertaining being in front of people,” Green said.
He is one of the bigger wrestlers at 350 pounds, but shows a lot of nimbleness in the ring.
Gavin Glass (left), a Medina native, delivers a kick to “Hybrid” Sean Carr. Glass returned to ESW after being off nearly a year following the birth of his daughter. Glass wrestles as “A Cut Above The Rest.” He also is a graphic artist and designs many of the T-shirts and merchandise for the wrestlers.
Glass, 25, now lives in Lockport. He has been wrestling for almost nine years.
He was happy to be back in the ring and wrestling in front of a home crowd on Saturday.
“It’s something that I love,” he said about wrestling.
Gavin Glass jumps from the top rope at the “Hybrid” Sean Carr.
Haley Dylan of Buffalo puts the squeeze on “The Queen of the Silver Screen” Katie Arquette in the only match among women wrestlers.
Katie Arquette was victorious in the match against Haley Dylan.
Space Monkey does a flying somersault off the top ropes to crash into Kevin Bennett, the ESW champion. Their match concluded three hours of action. Bennett was able to retain his title.
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Downtown Chittenango, NY with their quaint yellow brick sidewalks
Did you know you can visit the Wonderful Land of Oz without leaving New York State? You don’t have to ride a house in a tornado. You don’t have to wear magical ruby slippers. You only need to take about a two and a half hour drive – give or take, depending on the route you take – to Chittenango, NY. And…you just might encounter a wicked witch, a cowardly lion, a scarecrow looking for a brain, a rusty tin man, and a sweet girl named Dorothy while you’re there.
Chittenango is the birthplace of L. Frank Baum – author of the Wizard of Oz books. The small village of Chittenango embraces their connection to the famous author with Oz-themes everywhere you look – including yellow brick sidewalks, a lovely Oz-themed public library, and the All-Things-Oz Museum. Just outside the village, they have an Oz-themed casino with an active tornado in the lobby and the Wicked Good Pizza place next door. There are several other Oz-themed shops in and around the village making sure that you can experience Oz anytime you want in Chittenango.
Their big claim to fame is the Oz-Stravaganza festival held the first weekend in June every year – this year’s festival is June 2-4. They have all kinds of costume contests and activities for young and old, alike. One end of town is dedicated to vendors, food trucks, music, and carnival-type rides and games. All the Oz characters come to life and wander around the village for photo opportunities and to delight the kids. They also have guest appearances by authors and others giving talks and book signings. The village is small enough that you can walk all over to experience all the different parts of the festival.
Dorothy, Scarecrow, and Tim Man on the lookout for the Wicked Witch at the Oz-Stravanganza Festival in June 2017.
The weekend is capped with a big parade. I attended in 2017 and the Grand Marshall that year was Jane Lahr – daughter of Bert Lahr, who played The Cowardly Lion in the movie. I got to meet her and have a nice conversation with her. Come as you are or dress like your favorite Oz character – you won’t be out of place at the Oz-Stravaganza. The closing ceremony usually includes a balloon lift-off to take Dorothy back to Kansas. Unfortunately, the year I was there the threat of severe afternoon storms caused them to cancel the balloon lift-off. I will have to go, again, sometime to see that part!
But, Oz isn’t all that Chittenango has to offer. Back in the early days of the Erie Canal, Chittenango Landing was known for building and repairing canal boats. They have a wonderful Canal Boat Museum that is open to the public and they give school children tours to teach them all about building canal boats. Also, just four miles down the road is Chittenango Falls with great walking trails. Then, another five miles or so is the lovely village of Cazenovia with wonderful shops, restaurants, and a stunning lake.
One of my favorite things about the entire weekend was visiting The Wild Animal Park just north of Chittenango. It is an awesome park with lots of opportunities to get up close and personal with various animals that you can feed and pet. There are also some animals in enclosures for your protection or theirs. They also have snack huts and a bounce house for the kids, as well as a nice picnic area overlooking a lake. It is one of the better animal parks I’ve ever been to and is well worth the two hour or so drive.
Remnants of dry docks unearthed and restored at the Canal Boat Museum. The dry docks were used to repair canal boats in the early days of the Erie Canal
That’s me feeding one of the giraffes some carrots at the Wild Animal Park outside Chittenango, NY
I highly recommend the Chittenango / Cazenovia area for a quick get-away. Whether you go the first weekend in June to participate in the Oz-Stravaganza or just go anytime to enjoy a bit of Oz and all the other wonderful things to do in the area, you’re sure to have an awesome time! And….it isn’t that far to make a day trip to the Wild Animal Park and a walk down the yellow brick sidewalks in Chittenango.
Check out these links for my blog with more info and photos from my time in “Oz” and for the official 2023 Oz-Stravaganza Festival website:
Visit to the Land of Oz: https://thoughtsbykim.com/2017/07/16/visit-to-the-land-of-oz-june-2017/
Wild Animal Park Adventure: https://thoughtsbykim.com/2017/07/16/wild-animal-park-adventure-june-2017/
For more info on this year’s Oz-Stravaganza Festival: https://www.oz-stravaganza.com/
Happy Adventuring!
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Photo by Tom Rivers: A banner for Rick Engle is among about 100 that have been on display in Albion highlighting local veterans. Engle was 19 when he was killed in Vietnam on Feb. 2, 1968. Engle’s banner will be displayed on Route 31 near Albion Central School just before Memorial Day. Engle and other veterans who were killed in action will be featured about a month before the full group of banners goes up in downtown Albion, on Main Street and along Route 31.
ALBION – The Village of Albion will put up banners of veterans who were killed in action in mid-May, about two weeks before Memorial Day.
Village officials want to honor the sacrifices of those veterans and send a strong message about the meaning of Memorial Day.
After the Strawberry Festival from June 9-10, the banners for other veterans will be displayed. There are about 100 in all.
The village puts up about 40 banners for the Strawberry Festival in the downtown area. Last year, with the return of the festival after being cancelled in 2020 and 2021, there were some hard feelings when the Strawberry Festival banners went up and the banners for veterans didn’t go up until June, after the festival.
The village started displaying the “Hometown Hero” banners in 2020. The first two years of the Hometown Hero banners there wasn’t a Strawberry Festival. There are only so many poles to display the banners, and sponsors paid to be included on the festival banners.
The village believes it has found a good solution by highlighting the veterans who died in service first. That grouping is being finalized. The village is working with the Veterans Service Agency to check the records. The list currently includes as many as seven veterans who have been featured on the banners in the past.
It definitely includes Jason Johnson. He is the last person from Albion to be killed in the line of duty. Specialist Johnston was 24 when he was killed in Afghanistan by a roadside bomb in the War on Terror on Dec. 26, 2009. Johnston was on his second deployment. He also was a paratrooper.
The banners for those killed in action will be on Route 31 near the school district, where the community holds a Memorial Day service and there is a Vietnam War memorial.
Mike Bonnewell, retired Albion school district superintendent, made the suggestion that the first group of banners to be displayed in time for Memorial Day include those who were killed in service to the country.
“As a Marine Corps infantry veteran myself, I am thankful and proud of each member who gave the ultimate sacrifice,” said Mayor Angel Javier Jr. “Without these veterans we wouldn’t be here today.”
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This trio organizes the monthly craft sales that benefit local organizations. From left include Michelle Wiseman, co-owner of Best of Tymes Party Rental, Gertrud Montulli of Sewing With a Twist, and Beth Kidney.
KNOWLESVILLE – A trio has been organizing monthly craft sales and basket raffles to raise money for charities and organizations in Orleans.
The effort is headed by Gertie Montulli, Michelle Wiseman and Beth Kidney. They started the monthly event at the Arnold Gregory Office Building in January. But moved to the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds to accommodate a bigger crowd and have more room for vendors, keeping them all on the same floor, Montulli said.
The first on event on Jan. 21 raised funds for Hope for Justice which focuses on human trafficking. The Feb. 18 event backed the Hands 4 Hope ministry.
The first event at the fairgrounds highlighted the Best of Tymes Bunny Run. Today the organization in focus is Make a Difference Rescue of WNY or the MAD Rescue of WNY. It is led by Jennifer Stilwell of Albion and rescues, rehabilitates and adopts abandoned, abused and neglected dogs of Puerto Rico.
Montulli said $520 has already been raised for MAD Rescue of WNY with basket raffles to generate more today.
“We give all the proceeds from the fee of the craft vendors to the organization,” Montulli said. “If the organization would like to have a basket raffle we then ask all the vendors to donate a basket and the organization has to oversee the basket raffle.”
Montulli and the other organizers are looking for more organizations to benefit at the monthly events, including on Oct. 21 and Nov. 25. Any organizations interested in being highlighted at the craft vendor sale should contact Wiseman at (585) 820-0776. All charities or organizations must be located in Orleans County to be featured at the event, Montulli said.
The sale and basket raffles on May 27 will benefit the Medina Dog Park, June 17 will support Orleans Koinonia Kitchen in Albion, with the 4-H program highlighted on Sept. 16. There isn’t a craft vendor sale in July or August.
Return to topALBION – The Village of Albion has a new historian who has been deeply involved in the community in many roles.
Sue Starkweather Miller
Sue Starkweather Miller retired about three years ago after a career at Albion Central School as the public information officer, school-to-career coordinator and grants manager. While at the school she was part of many heritage and service projects, including helping to organize the annual ghost walk at Mount Albion Cemetery where students portrayed residents from Albion’s past.
Starkweather Miller will succeed Dr. Neil Johnson who served with distinction for about 40 years. Johnson started as village historian in 1980. He wrote a weekly column, “Albion, Oh Albion,” in the Albion Advertiser for 26 years, compiling 1,313 columns about village history, often highlighting regular folks in the community. He has written books about the history of Swan Library and the Orleans County 4-H Fair.
Johnson was honored with a lifetime achievement award and as a “Heritage Hero” by Genesee Community College and the Orleans Hub for his efforts to document and promote local history.
He teamed with historian Bill Lattin to do an inventory of all the historical markers in the county. They are included in a book in 2001. Johnson was a key force in the effort in 2000 for the establishment of a monument at Mount Albion Cemetery for at least 50 pioneer black residents in the county.
Starkweather Miller said she doesn’t plan on being such a prolific writer about Albion history, but she will put together articles about local history. Those articles are expected to be included on the village website.
Starkweather Miller would like to highlight prominent early Albion residents. Village streets bear the names of those early movers and shakers, such as Nehemiah Ingersoll. She wants people to have a deeper awareness of how the community grew in its early days, and the people who pushed that growth. She also would like to write features about key figures in Albion school history.
Starkweather Miller also is active as a master gardener with the Orleans County Cooperative Extension, as a member at Holy Family Parish in Albion, and also as a volunteer with the Brockport welcome committee along the canal.
At Brockport she has seen how heritage tourism can enliven a community, bringing economic vitality to a small canal town.
Starkweather Miller remains proud of the many service learning projects that connected students to Albion history, including many unappreciated residents.
The service learning initiative at Albion started in 1995 with a project by the late Jeff Evoy. He was a social studies teacher at Albion at the time. He later would serve as Medina district
Evoy and his students were studying the Vietnam War. He wanted students to talk with local Vietnam veterans, and get their stories. The students learned that many of those veterans felt forgotten. Evoy and the students decided there should be a memorial for the Vietnam veterans, and it would be dedicated in front of the Middle School.
Some other district-led projects included a monument to pioneer Black residents of the community that is placed prominently at Mount Albion Cemetery, and a monument at the Alms House for people in a cemetery at former “poor house” on County House Road. This was a precursor to the Orleans County Nursing Home. When residents from the Alms House died, they were often buried in a cemetery on the property with numbered tombstones, but no names.
Starkweather Miller worked in the background for many of the district’s service learning projects, connecting students to historians, and other resources in the community.
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