Stories from

Press release:

The City of Batavia Fire Department is sponsoring the fourth annual Fire Prevention Week Poster Coloring Contest. This coloring contest is open to students from grades K – 5.

“Our hope is to get the children to discuss fire safety with their teachers and fellow students, as well as parents and guardians,” said City fire Lt. Greg Ireland. "Information has been distributed to City schools, but we wanted to include any City area home-schooled children as well."

Copies of the official coloring page and contest rules can be picked up at City Fire Headquarters, 18 Evans St. All eligible students are encouraged to participate.

The 2016 Fire Prevention Week (October 9-15) theme is “Don’t Wait – Check the Date! Replace Smoke Alarms Every 10 Years.” Additional information can be found at the Fire Prevention Week website www.FPW.org

Poster submission deadline is 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13.

Judging of the posters will take place between Oct. 14 – 16. The winner of each group will receive a ride to school on a City Fire Engine, and be invited to a special awards luncheon with their family held at the fire station. Second- and third-place finishers in each group will also be invited to the fire station awards luncheon.

The best of luck to the students! Full rules are available at the City of Batavia Fire Department on Evans Street or by contacting the fire department via email or Lt. Ireland at:    gireland@batavianework.com

Press release:

The History Club at Genesee Community College is planning an educational spring break trip to Richmond, Virginia and the surrounding area in March. In an effort to support the experiential learning opportunity and raise the necessary funds, the club is hosting a special event at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 19, in room T102 of the Conable Technology Building at the GCC Batavia campus.

"Four Days After Appomattox" with General Robert E. Lee will take the audience back in time to the end of the Civil War just days after Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. General Lee recounts the war and imagines a future for himself and his countrymen.

"Tom Schobert's impression of Robert E. Lee is the very best historical impression I have ever witnessed," said Derek Maxfield, GCC associate professor of History and History Club advisor. "I have seen the 'Four Days' presentation several times and am always profoundly moved by it. He really captures Lee's character and manner and gives a spellbinding presentation."

The very moving program features Thomas Schobert, a Robert E. Lee impressionist of many years' experience. Schobert began his impression on the eve of the Civil War Sesquicentennial in 2011. Prior to donning the famous gray uniform, Schobert had been a longtime Union re-enactor doing a medical impression. Schobert brought to his impression many years of military experience in the Army, retiring as a lieutenant colonel.

"It seems so appropriate to host the Lee presentation when the History Club has determined to go to the Richmond, Virginia area on spring break," Maxfield added. "I am excited by the prospect of taking the Club to Richmond and Washington, D.C. There are so many great historical sites we could visit! The problem will be the selection process given the limited amount of time, and raising the necessary funds."

Tickets for the event are $15 each or two for $25 and will be available at the door; cash and checks only. To reserve tickets, contact Derek Maxfield at ddmaxfield@genesee.edu or by calling (585) 343-0055, ext. 6288. Ticket-holders will have an opportunity to have their picture taken with General Lee at no additional charge after the presentation.

A pickup truck struck a pole near 6481 North Bergen Road, Byron, and it knocked the pole down. The driver is out of the vehicle and claiming no injuries. Wires are down and the accident is blocking traffic. Byron and South Byron fire departments are responding.

"National Grid will need a crew out here," says a first responder to dispatch.

Traffic will be stopped at the intersection of Route 237 and at Bird Road. National Grid has been notified.

UPDATE 1:01 p.m.: The Byron assignment is back in service.

Press release:

Join us for some spooky fun on Saturday, Oct. 22nd, when the Batavia Cemetery Association will host a candlelight guided ghost walk through the Historic Batavia Cemetery on Harvester Avenue in Batavia.

The tours will feature the famous and infamous movers and shakers who shaped and influenced the City of Batavia.

The guided tour will bring guests to meet men and women of Batavia, who, for various reasons, held great power and exerted great influence in their day, were victims of tragic events, or both: Philemon Tracy, one of the few Confederate officers buried in the north; Ruth, the unknown victim of a horrendous murder; Joseph Ellicott, a man of great power and great flaws; and William Morgan, the man who disappeared and was allegedly murdered before he could reveal the secrets of the Masons. These are some of the ghosts who will tell their stories on the tour.

Also visiting will be: Thomas Hunt, a Union soldier who was wounded at Gettysburg during Pickett’s Charge; Rev. John H. Yates, poet, preacher, philanthropist, journalist and author of nationally known hymns; and Civil War veteran General John H. Martindale, who was Military Governor of the District of Columbia in 1865.

Dean and Mary Richmond, who greatly influenced civic life in Batavia in the 1800s, will meet with guests in their mausoleum on the last stop of the tour. Mr. Richmond made a great fortune in Great Lakes shipping and was the second president of the New York Central Railroad. Mrs. Richmond vastly expanded her husband’s fortune after his death and sat on the boards of many businesses and civic organizations.

Tours begin at 7 p.m. and run every 15 minutes until 8:30 p.m. Admission is $10 and includes refreshments. 

Tickets are available at the gate the day of the event at Historic Batavia Cemetery, Harvester Avenue, Batavia. Reservations are suggested. Proceeds benefit the upkeep and restoration of the cemetery.

For more information, or to make reservations, contact 343-0248.

The 13th annual Fur Ball to benefit the Volunteers for Animals' Spay/Neuter Program at the Genesee County Animal Shelter will be held starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22, at the Days Inn in Batavia. The hotel is located at 200 Oak St. in the City of Batavia.

Tickets are $25. Children 12 and under, $15. Tables of 10 are $250.

Only 200 tickets will be sold.

Fur Ball features food, fun, auctions and surprises.

New items are being accepted for the auction. You can drop them off at the shelter during adoption hours.

The shelter is located at 3841 W. Main Street Road, Town of Batavia.

Adoption Hours:

Sun, Mon, Tues, Fri  --  1 - 3 p.m.
Wednesday  -- 1 - 3  & 7 - 9 p.m.
Saturday  --  11a.m. - 1 p.m.

Email Volunteers for Animals at:   info@vol4animals.org
Phone:  585-343-6410 (phone)

Press release:

For students, the junior and senior years of high school are filled with many critical decisions about the future. The College and Career Counseling Center at Byron-Bergen Jr./Sr. High School is working hard to make preparing for life-beyond-school easier for students and their families.

This is the second year for the school’s dedicated Center, led by counselor Rob Kaercher. The Center is busy in the fall with a full schedule of visits and special presentations from a wide range of regional and national two- and four-year colleges, trade schools, and military branches.

(A Financial Aid Night is scheduled at 6:30 on Oct. 20 to help families from Byron-Bergen, Elba, and Oakfield-Alabama with the Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application.It will be held in the Byron-Bergen High School auditorium.)

Jr./Sr. High School Principal Patrick McGee said, "Our goal is to provide a wide variety of opportunities for our students in the areas of college and/or career. I feel we are ahead of the curve in this area as our students now have a daily chance to identify a pathway and gain a much better sense of what their post-secondary plans will be."

Students at the school not only have access to extensive in-person and online resources in the Center; they also get invaluable hands-on, one-to-one guidance from college-and-career expert Kaercher.

“This is a small school, and I can really get to know our kids as individuals,” Kaercher said. “I start as early as possible with them, so they have more options. I can help them find educational and career directions that match up with their interests and values.

"I enjoy working with them and their parents on financial aid, exploring scholarships, and completing their college applications. The commitment our district has to this initiative is extraordinary—kids at B-B can have a similar support experience to what they might find at a private school or with a paid independent college counselor.”

The College and Career Center has greatly expanded its services this year:

• Instant Admissions Week is being offered Nov. 7-10. Participating colleges include Erie Community College, Finger Lakes Community College, Genesee Community College, Monroe Community College, Niagara Community College, The College at Brockport, and SUNY Alfred State. “It is an exciting opportunity for kids to present themselves, have a short interview, and potentially get an on-the-spot decision from that college,” Kaercher said.
• Students will be ready for that interview thanks to another innovation the Center offers: virtual interviews with online avatars. The district’s teachers use an interactive professional development tool called Mursion, which employs practice with avatars to improve teaching technique. The Center has adjusted and expanded the program for students to use to develop better interviewing skills.
• The Naviance Family Connection, which was introduced to seniors last year, is now available to juniors, too. The online program helps students inventory their interests, research careers, search for colleges, create resumes, and submit applications. "Our current focus has been working with upperclassmen,” Kaercher said. “But as the Center continues to become established, more opportunities, including Naviance, will be available to junior high school students."
• The Center has also increased its college and industry visits this year. “We have found these to be very important,” Kaercher said. “Students have the chance to make connections directly with the actual decision makers, the admissions counselors and company human resources directors.”

“This can be a difficult and confusing time if you are trying to navigate it all by yourself,” Kaercher said. “We want to help make the process much easier. We are reaching out to parents and families—we hope they will contact the Jr./Sr. High School office to get more information.”

Press release:

To make it easier for customers in Genesee County to get the most up-to-date information about RTS news, events, routes, and service and schedule changes, RTS today announced that customers can now sign up to receive this information via text message and email alerts, and our email newsletter.

“The introduction of these text message and email alerts is part of our ongoing effort to make it easier for customers to get the information they need, when they need it,” said Bill Carpenter, CEO of RTS. “With these new communication tools, we can now provide customers with an instant update if we have to implement a detour at the last minute or encounter a delay on a specific route.

"By improving the timeliness and frequency of information that is important to our customers, we are making it easier for them to enjoy the ride.”

Signing up is easy. Customers can fill out a subscription form online or in person, or opt-in via text message.

The directions for each option are as follows:

·         Sign-Up Online: Visit myRTS.com, click the “Stay Connected” banner on the homepage, and complete the subscription form to receive alerts and updates from RTS via text or email

·         Opt-In Via Text Message: Text the words “OPT IN GEN ALL” to (585) 433-0855 to receive all the information we distribute. If customers only want alerts for a specific route, they can replace the “ALL” with the specific route number. For example, to sign up for text message alerts for the Route 1 customers would text “OPT IN GEN 1”

·         Contact Customer Service: Call (585) 343-3079 to enroll over the phone with a customer service representatives assistance

·         Sign-Up in Person: Fill out a subscription form at RTS Genesee at 153 Cedar Street in Batavia

For all other information, visit www.myRTS.com.

Press release:

Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI) has a simple hope; someday universal human rights will be a fact, not just an idealistic dream. In order to achieve its mission, YHRI, a nonprofit organization teaches youth about human rights and uses both classrooms and nontraditional educational settings such as the annual Human Rights Summit.

Hosted at the United Nations in New York City on Aug. 25 – 26, the 13th annual International Human Rights Summit invited some of the brightest young men and women from across the country. Representing countries from across the globe, the Summit focused on bringing an end to human trafficking, police brutality, bullying, poverty, war and gang violence.

Among the 72 activists working toward the goal were GCC's Arsenio Ferreira and Jorguino Savio, international students from the Southeast Asian island nation of Timor-Leste who are finishing up their associate degrees in Food Processing Technology.

"In East-Timor, especially in villages, the parents believe that only men have the right to education," Savio said. "Because of the lack of education, gangs in East-Timor are responsible for over 200 deaths each year.

"But as human rights defenders in East-Timor, we are teaching people about the importance of knowing their human rights and respecting every person's human rights."

Award-winning filmmaker Ronald Lang emceed the event and made it clear that human rights violations are not just a problem in developing countries.

"Human trafficking happens all over the world," Lang said. "Even in my own backyard here in New York, and we need to put an end to it."

Youth delegates presented their work to their peers and to the 400 attending guests, and they heard from human rights luminaries including six ambassadors and representatives from permanent missions to the United Nations.

"Our efforts are working. Now, many of the over 300,000 young people who were causing the problem have become human rights defenders in East-Timor," Savio added. "Our team continues to reach out to parents, preaching that education is not just for men, but for everyone."

YHRI is the youth component of United for Human Rights founded in 2001 in Los Angeles. There are now more than 100 YHRI chapters around the world and their award-winning educational materials are available in 27 languages, bringing the message of human rights to 195 nations.

For more information on the YHRI, including the annual International Human Rights Summit, visit www.youthforhumanrights.org.

Press release:

The Wellness Committee at Elba Central School is sponsoring its second annual Walk to School Day on Wednesday, Oct. 5^th. About 100 students from Elba Central School will join schools from around the world to celebrate International Walk to School Day.

Parents, teachers and community members will join them. They will gather at 7 a.m. at the Elba Baptist Church, located at 31 S. Main St., Elba. Upon arrival to the school cafeteria at about 7:20 a.m., there will be special activities associated with the walk.

Genesee County's Safety Officer, Tim Wescott, will give a talk to the students. There will be a healthy light snack that has been donated by Harrington’s Produce, Yancey's Fancy Cheese, Alpina Yogurt, and Post Farms. Every student participant will be allowed to enter a drawing to win a backpack full of school supplies. They will also be given a one-day pass to the YMCA. Thank you to our sponsors!

Walk to School Day raises awareness of the need to create safer routes for walking and bicycling. It emphasizes the importance of issues such as increasing physical activity among children, pedestrian safety, traffic congestion and concern for the environment. This event builds connections between families, schools and the community.

The Wellness Committee at Elba Central School organizes events such as this to promote health and wellness among our staff, students and community through healthy events.

For additional local information, please contact Jennifer at jmanley@elbacsd.org, 757-9967

For additional information, please visit these websites:

Walk to School Day in the USA:    www.walkbiketoschool.org              

National Center for Safe Routes to School:    www.saferoutesinfo.org

From the Attica Police Department:

On Sept. 29, Officer Phillips of the Attica Police Department responded to a motor-vehicle accident at 4:47 p.m. on Market Street in the Village of Attica.

During the investigation of the accident, Victoria Bakos, 46, of Seward Road, Alexander, initially told the officer that she had been driving and was arrested for DWI. After further investigation it was determined Bakos was not the driver and was covering up for her boyfriend -- 44-year-old Robert Geandreau, also of Seward Road, Alexander, who had multiple DWIs in the past and a suspended driver's license.

Bakos was arrested for hindering prosecution in the third degree and Geandreau was arrested for DWI, first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, operating a motor vehicle without an ignition interlock device, unlicensed operator, refusal to take breath test and fail to yield right of way. Bakos was issued an appearance ticket to appear in person at the Attica Village Court at 10 a.m. on Nov. 14.

Geandreau was put in Wyoming County Jail on $10,000 cash or $20,000 bond. He was to appear at the Attica Village Court at 10 a.m. this morning (Oct. 3). Officer Phillips was assisted by NYS Trooper Lunser and Officer Zufall from the Attica Police Department.

Press release:

Join the Batavia Bulldawgs for their last home game this season on Saturday, Oct. 8, at 2 p.m. at Van Detta Stadium in Batavia. They will play against Akron.

This will also be an opportunity to assist one of their own, whose family is challenged by serious illness.

Savannah Heick, a Mini CheerDawg, has been going through a tough time. She is fighting PANDAS -- pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal -- which she was diagnosed with last season.

Since then, she and her family have been traveling to medical specialists in New York, New Jersey and Ohio. Currently, she is said to be seeing "an amazing specialist" in Cleveland and it has helped "tremendously." With all the battles she faces, she continues to work hard and has been doing an incredible job cheering on the Dawgs.

As you can imagine, this fight has caused some financial burdens for the family.

All Bulldawgs and CheerDawgs, families and supporters, community members, friends -- please come out and help one of our own!

Along with the contents of a donation jar that will be located at the concession stand, the Bulldawgs will donate ALL 50/50 raffle prizes to Savannah's family.

Go Bulldawgs!

Misty Dawn Souza, AKA Misty Dawn Smith, is indicted for the crime attemped second-degree robbery, a Class D violent felony. She is accused of going into the Smoke Rings Smoke Shop, located at 449 Shanks Road, in the Town of Alabama, on May 20 with the intent of forcibly stealing property, engaging in conduct which "tended to effect the commission of such crime," while aided by another person who was present. In count two, she is accused of the same and in the comission of the crime or the flight from it, causing physical injury to a person who was not a participant in the crime. In count three, she is accused of the same, while displaying what appeared to be a pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, or other firearm. In count four, she is accused of second-degree assault, a Class D violent felony, for intending to cause physical injury to another person, causing such injury to such person or to a third person by means of a dangerous instrument. In count five, she is accused of the same crime as in count four, and in the course of and futherance of the commission or attempted commission of a felony or the immediate flight thereafter causing phsical injury to a person other than one of the participants.

Patrick D. Neaverth is indicted for the crime of second-degree burglary, a Class C violent felony. He is accused of knowingly entering or remaining unlawfully in a house on Kingsbury Avenue in the City of Batavia on Aug. 13 with the intent to commit a crime therein. (In July, he was indicted for the same crime at the same location, which occurred in March.)

Press release:

Cornell Cooperative Extension Genesee County will present a Cheese Tasting and Evaluation workshop at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 10 at the Extension Center at 420 E. Main St., Batavia. If you love cheese, then you won’t want to miss this two-hour class!

Learn all about the cheese making process while sampling a variety of cheeses, all made in New York State!

The cost to attend the class is $15 per person and class size is limited! The last class sold out quickly, so be sure and register today. To register and for payment information, please contact Samantha at 585-343-3040, ext. 123 or sls428@cornell.edu. Registration deadline is Nov. 3.

All information about the workshop can be found by clicking here. 

The class (6:30 to 8:30 p.m.) will be presented by Carl Moody, Dairy Processing Specialist with Harvest New York. Carl is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and holds a bachelor’s degree in Food Science. Following graduation, he worked at the Friendship Dairy in Friendship, NY, and most recently held a position as a quality assurance manager for 13 years with Lactalis American Group Inc. (Sorrento Cheese) in Buffalo.

For more information about Harvest New York, visit http://harvestny.cce.cornell.edu/.

The Oakfield Alabama Central School Alumni Hall of Fame Committee will honor the Alumni Hall of Fame Class of 2016 at an induction dinner and ceremony Oct. 22 at the high school. It is located at 7001 Lewiston Road in Oakfield.

Tickets are on sale now and only available through Oct. 9. Cost is $15. You can buy them at the high school main office, Warner's flower shop on Main Street in Oakfield or by contacting committee member Jamie Disalvo at bak2good@hotmail.com or by sending payment to Disalvo at: 7604 S. Pearl Street Road, Oakfield, NY 14125.

Doors for the event open at 5:30 p.m. and it begins at 6 o'clock.

The Hall of Fame recognizes outstanding OACS alumni who have achieved distinction in their lives after high school through significant contributions to their career, community or through personal achievements.