MEDINA – The big fire at 613 Main St. has been completely extinguished as of 8 this morning, the Medina Fire Department reported.

Provided photo: The inside of the building is shown on Saturday. The roof and floors caved in.

The blaze brought in 150 firefighters from four counties. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

A structural engineer toured the site with village officials on Saturday and determined there is no sign of imminent collapse of the building despite the roof and floors caving in.

“An agreement between the property owner and the Village is in place for the future of the property,” the Fire Department said in a news release this evening.

The building is owned by Jeff Fuller. He was one of two residents in the site, and both safely got out from the fire. There also was a carpet business on the first floor.

Security fencing has been put in place around the building, and Fire Department personnel will be on site for the immediate future.

Main Street also is fully reopen after a section had been blocked off between Park Avenue and North Avenue.

“Thank you for all your support, assistance, and patience as we move forward,” the Fire Department stated.

Highs in 70s from Wednesday through Saturday, including 80 on Friday

Photo by Tom Rivers: The Orleans County Courthouse is reflected in one of nine golden eggs during Saturday’s Easter Egg Hunt on the Courthouse lawn. There were 10,000 eggs scattered on the lawn.

The temperatures will be on the rise this week in Orleans County. Today it will be sunny with a high of 50 on Easter, and then climbs to high of 63 on Monday.

That is followed by a high of 67 on Tuesday, high of 71 on Wednesday and 77 on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo.

The forecast includes highs of 80 on Friday and 74 on Saturday.

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

Over this past week I have had the privilege of experiencing Holy Week in many different ways such as: playing Peter in a Passion Play, celebrating Palm Sunday with songs of Hosanna, enjoying an intimate Maundy Thursday Meal at the 1st Baptist Church of Medina, participating in the MAAC Cross-Walk and the PACT Good Friday Service, and speaking at a sunrise service this morning at the Boxwood Cemetery in Medina. 

I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing Holy Week in this way but nothings compares to actually reliving each event in an immersive manner which is what I did in February of 2017 when some fellow pastors and I traveled to Israel. My colleagues from Orleans County, Pastor Dan Thurber (Oak Orchard Assembly of God) and Pastor Russ Peters (Alabama Full Gospel Fellowship), literally walked where Jesus walked Scripture came to life for us in a new way. So, in an effort to give you a glimpse of what we experienced, I would invite you to take a walk with me. Feel free to check out video as well at https://youtu.be/Otl6J308YR8

Starting in Tel Aviv we spent one very full week traveling to: Caesarea, Magdala, Capernaum, Bethesda, Tiberias,  the Golan Heights, Galilee, Nazareth, Jerusalem, the Judean Wilderness, Masada, and The Dead Sea. In doing so we were able to visit various sites where Jesus had ministered. 

The Sea of Galilee was often mentioned in Scripture. Jesus not only taught beside it, and took his disciples out on it in a boat, but he even walked on it once all while imploring Peter to do the same. We spent a meditative ride where we contemplated what it must have been like to engage with Jesus while on the water whether it be a disciple calling for help during a storm or a fisherman calling for his partners to come help because where Jesus had said to let down their nets caused them to catch way too many fish. We also spent time on the shore and hillside stopping where Jesus would have fed the five thousand or delivered his famous Sermon on the Mount.

Many of the events that we think of in regard to Holy Week take place once Jesus and the disciples entered Jerusalem. On Palm Sunday Scripture teaches that Jesus rode in on a donkey but, as you can see from the photo, I chose to ride a camel instead. Once in Jerusalem we made our way down the Mount of Olives to the place that probably had the most profound impact on me of the entire trip. You may recall that after celebrating Passover in the Upper Room Jesus went down to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray just prior to being arrested. Something to note here is that the olive trees in the garden are actually the same ones that have been pruned for 2,000 years. We were able to take some branches back with us which I treasure as a keepsake.

Before even entering the garden I started to weep when I considered the anguish Jesus must have felt knowing what agony was to come but still choosing to go through it for our sake,  “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Luke 22:42 (NLT)

Eventually we made our way from Golgotha, the site of Jesus’ crucifixion, to The Garden Tomb where he was laid to rest. And of course I couldn’t go all the way to Israel without seeing for myself, like Mary and the disciples almost 2,000 years ago, that the rock was rolled away and that the tomb was empty. He is risen! He is risen indeed! Hallelujah!!!

I hope you have a Happy Easter and I will see you again in two weeks! 

See you in two weeks!
Pastor Randy

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – Kids ages 6 to 10 take off at the start of an Easter egg hunt today on the Courthouse lawn in Albion.

The egg hunt started at 1 and in about a minute the kids had scooped up 10,000 eggs filled with treats.

One of nine big golden eggs is placed at the far end of a taped off area for the egg hunt. The kids were placed in three different age groups: 1 to 5, 6 to 9, and 10 to 14.

The golden tickets gave a chance for bigger prizes including an extra-large chocolate bunny, a scooter, a bicycle, cash, GoGo toys and McDonalds gift certificates.

Al Wilson, pastor of the Royal Body Shop Outreach Ministries, and his wife Ykeeta Wilson welcome the kids for the egg hunt.

The 10,000 eggs is up from the 3,000 last year in the debut event organized by the Royal Body Shop Outreach Ministries. The kids took off fast at the beginning and quickly grabbed the eggs. The First Presbyterian Church is in the background.

The church spent about three months filling the eggs with candy and treats, and also putting together 600 Easter baskets which were all available for free to the community. The church ran out of baskets due to the demand.

A big crowd gathers to get an Easter basket after the egg hunt.

John Hollenbeck gets an order of French fries ready. The Masonic Lodge, which is led by John’s brother Matt, served 800 hot dogs and 125 pounds of fries for free.

Maciel Gomez of Mr. FineLines in Brockport gave haircuts for free. He is working on the hair of Kaiden Gray, 9, of Albion.

Nick Prest, an Albion high school student, volunteered to help kids move in inflatable balls. There were six bounce houses as part of the fun from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Pam Bennett hands out candy to sisters Alexis Stinson, 10, and Amber, 8, at Pretty Sweet Bakery.

This was part of an Easter Hop at 29 locations in the downtown, on South Main Street and Route 31. North Point Chapel donated 288 baskets and kids went to businesses to get treats. There were 430 baskets in all available for kids at the Easter Hop.

Ben Curfman (center), pastor of North Point Chapel, gave out 300 stuffed animals of dinosaurs, teddy bears and rabbits. The church also had packs of flower seeds.

Oliver Stoffa and Lux Froman gave out candies at The Coffee Joint, one of the 29 spots for the Easter Hop.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Firefighters used five aerial ladder trucks work to put out a fire on Friday at 613 Main St. The village is having a structural engineer come to determine if the building can be saved or if it needs to be knocked down, Mayor Mike Sidari said this morning.

The roof and floors are gone, but the Medina Sandstone walls remain.

If the building can be saved, Sidari said a developer would like to take charge of the site.

The building from 1901 was used to sell carpet and also had two residents on the second floor.

This is the first building on the east side of Main Street when people cross the railroad tracks. The mayor said he is hopeful the structure can continue to stand.

“Right now it’s a wait-and-see,” he said.

Medina firefighters are keeping close tabs on the site for hot spots following the big blaze. About 150 firefighters from three counties were able to contain the fire to the building without it spreading.

Fire investigators also are on the scene this morning trying to determine the cause, Sidari said.

Traffic was closed off to Main Street from Center Street to Maple Ridge Road for part of Friday. This photo is from about 2 p.m. on Friday.

Main Street remains blocked off to traffic this morning from Park Avenue to North Avenue.

The three-story sandstone building was built by Charles Dye and Frank Austin as the first “mechanical” cold storage building in Medina, the Medina Sandstone Society said.

“Prior to the invention of mechanical refrigeration, ice cut during the winter was used to refrigerate locally grown fruit – mainly apples, peaches, pears and plums,” the Sandstone Society posted on its Facebook page.

The organization said it hopes the historic structure can be saved.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – The Rev. Neil Samborski of the Glad Tidings Missionary Baptist Church is dressed as the Roman Centurion in leading a procession at about 12:45 p.m. today. The group is crossing Main Street while firefighters battle a blaze down the street at a carpet store next to the railroad tracks.

The Rev. Randy LeBaron, interim pastor of the First Baptist Church in Medina, carries the cross in front with Dale Cameron holding the other end.

The Rev. Randy LeBaron and the group prepare the leave the Canal Basin. The group made seven stops in the downtown and near the Canal Basin, sharing Scripture and singing hymns.

The annual Good Friday walk had a modified course. About an hour before the “Cross Walk” was scheduled to start the fire broke out at the carpet store.

The Cross Walk usually starts at City hall, but that was off limits due to the fire almost across the street. The group instead started at the Presbyterian Church. They also didn’t venture to three stops on West Avenue, instead staying on North Main Street.

The Rev. Randy LeBaron reads scripture from John 19: 23-30. The group then sang “The Old Rugged Cross.” They are shown in front of the Bent’s Opera House.

Pastor Dan Thurber of the Oak Orchard Assembly of God and Jarred Saj carry the cross to the last station in front of the Presbyterian Church.

Provided photos: Congresswoman Claudia Tenney chats with students at the Iroquois Job Corps during her recent visit.

MEDINA – The Iroquois Job Corps Center welcomed Congresswoman Claudia Tenney to their facility on April 3.

She was accompanied by her staff members, Michael Stadelmaier, district director; George McNerney, regional director; and Zev Siegfeld, legislative assistant.

Tenney spent several hours at the center, visiting with staff and students.

“She truly seemed to enjoy her time here,” said Jeanette Barr, administrative assistant at the Job Corps. “She toured some of our trade buildings and tried her hand at bricklaying. She said she would like to return again at some point.

Tenney talked with the center’s staff instructors about the pre-apprentice programs at Iroquois Job Corps, and the importance of the certifications students earn at Job Corps which assist them in gaining employment after the program in both union and non-union placement. These include carpentry, bricklaying and home builders.

Job Corps leaders discussed with Tenney the eligibility and suitability for their programs and how they can benefit low-income families in need of career training. Success stories of students were shared, along with how they went from high school drop-outs struggling in part-time jobs, homelessness and a lack of family support to getting their high school diploma, obtaining a driver’s license, earning Career Technical Trade certificates, apartment and vehicle searches, and obtainment for relocation, Barr said.

“Students get total life transformation with our program’s assistance, thus helping to break the poverty cycle and improve our communities,” Barr said.

The masonry class at Iroquois Job Corps Center got to meet Congresswoman Claudia Tenney during her visit there last week. Masonry instructor Robert Kelichner, left, watches as Tenney tries her hand at laying a brick.

Photos by Tom Rivers: Multiple ladder trucks were called in to help douse the fire at 613 Main St., a three-story sandstone building next to the railroad tracks.

MEDINA – A big fire on Main Street has been contained to one building with 150 firefighters from three counties battling the blaze.

The response includes five ladder trucks – Albion, Lockport, Medina, Murray and Shelby.

The fire isn’t out yet, and firefighters will likely stay on scene for the next two days in case there are any hot spots, said Steve Cooley, a lieutenant with the Medina Fire Department.

Firefighters were called to the scene at 10:49 a.m.. There was smoke coming out of the chimney. Once on scene, firefighters observed the blaze was most intense in the basement and could tell it was a serious fire, Cooley said.

“It was a heavy, putrid smoke so they could tell it was a problem right away,” Cooley said.

The fire was most intense in the back of the building.

Firefighters rescued a man from the second floor, taking him out of the second floor window facing Main Street. He was treated on scene and declined to be transported for additional treatment at a hospital.

The roof has caved in on the main structure. Once the scene is fully under control, Cooley said a structural engineer and the village code enforcement will determine the next steps with the building.

The fire required an enormous amount of water. Firefighters drew from four hydrants, and also from two spots at Oak Orchard Creek – near Butts Park and by the Brookfield power plant near State Street Park.

Cooley said fire investigators will work to try to determine the cause of the blaze, which closed off traffic in the vicinity of the site.

“This is the biggest fire in Orleans in quite some time,” Cooley said.

A big response from firefighters from Orleans, Genesee and Niagara counties kept the fire from spreading.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Wide swaths of smoke spread from a three-story sandstone building that has been on fire since about 11 a.m.

Residents in the southeast portion of the village are urged to close doors and windows, and shelter in place as much as possible to avoid smoke and any unknown contaminants in may carry, according to a message from the village.

“Please conserve water until further notice,” village officials stated in a text notification to the community.

The building has been used to sell carpet. The structure is owned by Jeff Fuller. Multiple fire departments remain on scene.

Photos by Tom Rivers

MEDINA – Dark smoke spews out of a cavernous building on Main Street in Medina at about noon. The fire is at a sandstone building at 613 Main St., a site owned by Jeff Fuller that sells carpet.

The building is next to the railroad tracks.

Medina firefighters were dispatched to the scene at 10:50 a.m. Multiple fire departments have been called to help put out the fire. This photo is the front of the building facing Main Street.

The dark smoke can be seen from several miles away. This photo is from the municipal lot behind Main Street.

A Medina firefighter is up high on a ladder at the back end of the building.

Orleans Hub will have more on the fire later today.

Photo by Tom Rivers: At last year’s Day of Caring on April 22, Britney Ruiz, left, and Cheryl Vangorden, employees at Baxter Healthcare in Medina, help sort clothes at Project Stork in Barre, assisting the agency with a big outdoor sale.

United Way of Orleans County is seeking volunteers to help non-profits with various small tasks for the annual Day of Caring. This year it is set for May 19.

United Way director Matt Holland is seeking volunteers who can do such jobs as paint, landscaping chores (planting flowers, pulling weeds), rake, canal cleanup, window washing, minor cleaning projects or general office work.

Last year, about 100 volunteers did chores such as tending the memorial garden at Hospice, painting a shed and sorting donated food for a local pantry. They helped 13 organizations and businesses with minor projects.

Holland said he has already had requests from several non-profits for jobs they would like done and from several volunteers who are looking for a way to help.

On May 19, volunteers are asked to arrive at the pavilion at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds by 8 a.m. for a light breakfast. After a brief orientation, they will head off to their assigned duties by 9 a.m. For those who cannot leave work on Friday, but would like to participate, there are limited opportunities to volunteer on Saturday morning.

Day of Caring is a nation-wide project of United Ways, and the Orleans County unit has been sponsoring the event for more than 10 years.

Anyone who wishes to volunteer or any non-profit needing help with a project may contact Holland at (585) 205-0541 or by e-mailing director@orleansunitedway.org.

Photo by Tom Rivers: The Clover Hill assisted living site at 355 South Main St. closed in March 2022.

ALBION – Six residents spoke out at a recent Village Board meeting against having the former Clover Hill Adult Residence being turned into an in-patient drug rehab center.

Randy Cimino, president of Gates to Recovery, spoke at the Feb. 22 Village Board meeting and said his organization wanted to invest $1 million in interior and exterior improvements to the property. It would like to operate a 35-bed residential treatment program with a focus on mental health.

Mayor Angel Javier Jr. and Deputy Mayor Joyce Riley told Cimino then they didn’t want to see another tax-exempt property in the village, and they didn’t think the site was a good fit. Clover Hill is on Route 98 at the southern entrance of the community, leading into a residential neighborhood with many stately homes.

Cimino left that meeting discouraged, but said that feeling changed when he saw hundreds of comments on the Orleans Hub Facebook page in support of the project. Cimino said Gates to Recovery offers longer-term residential stays, up to 18 months, and will work to address mental health issues behind the addiction.

Cimino said this week his organization remains very interested in Clover Hill for the rehab site, which he said will save lives in the community.

Six residents – Diana Reed, Diane Heminway, Jason Dragon, Terry Wilbert, Quincy Washburn and Rachael Spearance – spoke at Monday’s Village Board meeting. They said they don’t want Clover Hill to become a rehab site. They support those facilities that provide treatment and assistance to those with addictions, but think those being served would do better in a more remote location.

Diane Reed bought the house next door last year. It was her childhood home until she was 10 in 1954. The home came back on the market about a year ago and Reed left Florida to move back after 60 years away from Albion.

Reed, 78, said Albion has declined in those 60 years with many beautiful homes demolished for chain stores or carved up into apartments. She said South Main is a rare neighborhood in Albion that has retained its character.

“If you want to keep it that way, you do not cap it off with a drug rehab facility,” she said.

The site should be in a non-residential area out in the country, Reed said.

Jason Dragon and Quincy Washburn both shared their concerns that another tax exempt site would deprive the local municipalities of needed revenue – about $30,000 total.

Dragon also questioned whether the zoning would allow such a use. He said Clover Hill is in a limited business district. He doesn’t think a drug rehab facility fits the criteria.

“I’m not opposed to a rehab facility, but I’m opposed to it at this location,” Dragon said. “We need to protect the property values in the village. Dozens of nearby properties could lose values.”

Rachael Spearance and Terry Wilbert also said there are better spots in the community than Main Street for a drug rehab site.

Diane Heminway also said she supports such a facility, but not in a residential area.

“Drug addiction continues to be on the rise as synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, infiltrate even small communities,” Heminway told the Village Board. “Today, addiction crosses all social strata, regardless of education, occupation, financial status or IQ. Sadly, drug addiction has touched has touched the lives of most of us as we’ve helplessly watched families torn apart emotionally, financially and sometimes physically by this tragic, progressive disease, which too often takes its victims by overdose or suicide.”

Heminway said that despite the best intentions of family and friends, those with drug addictions will often take advantage of them and steal from them.

Heminway said there is a high relapse rate among addicts – 40 to 60 percent within the first month of leaving a facility and 85 percent within a year.

“South Main Street is not an appropriate location for such a facility where neighbors’ homes and yards could be ‘cased out’ for future looting,” Heminway said. “There are far better locations away from homes for this vitally needed facility.”

Press Release, Assemblyman Steve Hawley

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C-Batavia) signed on to a letter calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul to respond and investigate the nursing home mismanagement disaster from the Covid-19 pandemic in a more timely and open manner.

As many New Yorkers are aware, nursing homes were some of the most highly volatile areas where the coronavirus spread. This was largely due to elderly citizens being particularly vulnerable, and then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo deciding to relocate hospitalized patients to nursing homes once there were no more beds in hospitals. Hawley, like many legislators, wants accountability from those who made the decision that led to so many deaths.

“This saga has gone on for three long and painful years, and it’s time for the governor to be more transparent with what her plans are,” Hawley said. “We’ve had families plead for justice, for answers, for accountability, but they have gone unheard thanks to a government that has tried its hardest to sweep its mistakes under the rug. We owe it to all New Yorkers to be transparent and timely with them about this matter.”

Western New York had a particularly notable case that demanded answering for. The Village of Orleans is currently facing a class action lawsuit and a separate lawsuit from the New York State Attorney General’s office regarding the mishandling of the elderly in their care during Covid-19. With incidents like these in our own backyard, Hawley is eager to see wrongs be righted.

“Families deserve justice, plain and simple. Both here in Orleans County and across this state,” Hawley said. “I sincerely hope the governor agrees to our request and makes this process more transparent.”

Provided photo: There is police tape on an orchard on Kendrick Road in Carlton while an investigation continues into a murder and suicide on Sunday, where a father killed his 14-year-old son and then took his own life.

ALBION – Orleans County law enforcement officials are trying to determine why a father from Lockport killed his son and then took his own life.

Henry Frank “Hank” Spoon Jr., 39, was a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Iraq War. Friends of his posted on the Orleans Hub Facebook page that he suffered from PTSD from the war. Despite his actions on Sunday, his friends say he dearly loved his 14-year-old son, Shawn.

District Attorney Joe Cardone said law enforcement has interviewed Spoon’s family and they are surprised by his actions and didn’t see any signs he was a threat of such violence.

“This is just a horrible tragedy,” Cardone said today at the Public Safety Building in Albion.

Law enforcement has recovered cell phones that Spoon threw out of the car before reaching an orchard in Kendrick Road, where the father and son died.

Cardone said law enforcement also will be looking at a tablet and computer from Spoon, to try to determine what was going through his mind.

The DA also will reach out the VA to see if mental health counselors can provide any insight about Spoon.

“We’re getting results on that data,” he said.

Sheriff Chris Bourke also said Spoon tossed a 20-by-20 party tent out of the vehicle and that tent landed in the front yard of a homeowner on Harris Road in Carlton.

Spoon appears to have picked the orchard at random. Bourke said the orchard owner did not know Spoon.

The Sheriff’s Office and Orleans County District Attorney’s Office also are working on the investigation with the Major Felony Crime Task Force, the Lockport Police Department, the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office, the State Police, and the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Shawn Spoon was a student at Lockport High School. The district is making grief counseling available next week when students returns to school.

Grief counseling also is available today from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Lockport Family YMCA at 5833 Snyder Drive, Lockport’s Superintendent of Schools Mathis Calvin III advised the community in a message on the district website.