Fifteen years ago longtime Le Roy resident Stu Freeman noticed that leftover potatoes were sitting in fields rotting after harvest season, so he got farmers in the community to allow him to glean the vegetable to donate to local food pantries. That year he brought about 300 pounds of potatoes in and he's been doing it every year since.

Since then the "Potato Man" as he is affectionately known, has also gotten farmers to donate cabbage, carrots, onion and butternut squash. So much so that he couldn't keep up with the demand.

Two years ago he recruited members of his congregation, Bergen First Presbyterian Church, to assist. They regularly gather, sort, wash, pack and deliver fresh produce to food pantries every two weeks throughout the fall and winter. Last year they delivered more than 15,000 pounds to The Salvation Army and Community Action in Batavia, as well as Go Christian Church in Churchville.

Congregation member Kelsey Hill got involved and she is grateful for the opportunity to live out her faith in a practical way.

"I rounded up high school kids from the Sunday school class that I was co-teaching and we volunteered together," Hill said. "I was excited for the opportunity to show the students that faith isn't just something to talk about on Sunday mornings, but something to live out every day."

There are about 10 area farmers who participate. Although the farmers are committed to helping, they prefer to remain anonymous. The Batavian agreed not to print their names or the names of their farms.

Besides food, Freeman also collects coats and shoes for The Salvation Army in Batavia, Open Door Mission in Rochester and Teen Challenge in Buffalo. In the past three years, he has brought them hundreds of both, with help from his church and community.

He is an extremely humble man who is hesitant to talk about himself or his accomplishments, but having come from a family of 10 children, he knows how hard it is to make ends meet.

"I've done what the good Lord has put in my heart to do," Freeman said. "I don't want praise or publicity, I just want other people to get involved by donating food to the hungry. One church can't do it all."

Hill also encourages individuals, families and churches to give food or money to charities for families in need.

"We could also use more hands to wash and dry vegetables this Saturday and it's open to whomever would like to help," Hill said

Among those extra hands will be the Byron-Bergen Soccer team.

The next "Potato Wash" will be held 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday at First Presbyterian Church of Bergen, 38 S. Lake Ave., Bergen.

Emisha Marie Milton, 19, of Thurston Road, Rochester, is charged with petit larceny. Milton is accused of shoplifting at Walmart.

Jacob Lamar Jenkins, 32, of Manitou Road, Rochester, is charged with petit larceny. Jenkins is accused of shoplifting at Walmart.

Christopher Brian King, 22, of Pearl Street Road, Batavia, is charged with aggravated harassment, 2nd. King is accused of contacting a person by phone after being told not to contact that person.

A Dellinger Avenue resident has been arrested and accused of dealing crack cocaine.

Amanda J. Slack, 26, is charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance, 3rd, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, following a nine-month investigation by the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force.

Slack is accused of selling a quantity of crack to an undercover agent.

A grand jury issued a sealed indictment and Slack was arrested yesterday and jailed on $10,000 bail.

Photos and information provided by Pete Welker.

In girls soccer, Notre Dame beat Lyndoville yesterday, 3-0. Seventh-grader Callie McCulley scored her first goal and Bailee Welker had two goals to lead ND to victory. McCulley and Taylor Perzia both had assists in the game.

Top photo: Taylor Perzia.

McCulley is congratulated by teammates on her first goal.

Bailee Welker

Hannah Bowen

Hannah Green

A motor-vehicle accident with minor injuries has been reported at Akron Road and Tesnow Road, Pembroke.

A victim is trapped in a vehicle, however.

Pembroke fire and Indian Falls fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

Akron's fire department put on standby in case personnel are needed to assist with extrication.

UPDATE: The patient is out of the vehicle. There is a gas leak.

Reason: On Debt Ceiling.

A person was treated for apparent smoke inhalation after a pot was reportedly left on a stove burner in an apartment at 18 Genesee St., Le Roy.

Le Roy Fire Department responded to the call after an alarm sounded in the apartment building. With a hallway seeming to fill with more smoke, and no immediate cause of the smoke yet discovered, a chief asked dispatchers to upgrade the call to a structure fire.

Bergen and Pavilion fire companies were dispatched.

Within seconds, a resident apparently emerged and reported the pot on fire, but said she had put the fire out.

Once it was confirmed that the fire was out, the second alarm was cancelled.

The resident was treated by Le Roy ambulance medics and Le Roy fire ventilated the apartment.

Le Roy fire is now back in service.

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On a beautiful day, my day was lining up beautifully for me to have time in the late afternoon to go around looking for pictures to make.

Then we had the traffic snafu on Oak Street, so I got out and about some 45 minutes later than would be ideal.

All I came up with was this shot on Chick Road, Darien, which apparently, I've never been down before because I'd never before seen this car planted around a tree.

An accident is reported on the westbound Thruway at mile marker 384.4. Le Roy fire and ambulance are responding. Injuries are said to be minor. Traffic is backing up. "Sounds like a truck was stopped on the shoulder of the road and a vehicle may have rear-ended it," says a dispatcher.

UPDATE 6:47 p.m.: A responder says one passenger is "sitting up but is disoriented."

A two-car accident, with one person complaining of abdominal pain, is reported at Town Line Road and South Lake Road in Bergen. It is blocking traffic. Mercy and Bergen ambulances and Bergen fire are responding. Two others in the accident are minors and need to be evaluated.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m.: About 15 minutes ago, Bergen ambulance transported one patient to South Lake Hospital in Brockport.

UPDATE 7:10 p.m.: Medics are back in service with two sign offs.

Usually, a second career is something you do later in life. For Richard Calkins the second career came first and now it's time to go back to his first career.

Today was Calkins worked his final shift as a senior corrections officer in the Genesee County Jail.

"I enjoyed everything that happened, but I'm going back to my original profession," Calkins said. Even though it might be 31 years late, I'm going back to what I originally went to school for."

Calkins is going to become, once again, a diesel mechanic.

After mechanic school in Ohio, Calkins moved to Kentucky to start his career, but family circumstances brought him back to Batavia.

Sgt. Bill Scott and the late Dick Dietzman helped Calkins get his first job with the Sheriff's Office, as a part-time animal control officer. He started Nov. 11, 1982. In 1983, he transferred to the jail and was promoted to senior corrections officer in 1987.

Sheriff Gary Maha praised Calkins in a statement for his dedication to his job and willingness to take on additional tasks, such as contributing to jail renovation and maintaining the jail's records. During his career, Calkins received three commendation awards and a meritorious award for continuous service.

“Senior Correction Officer Calkins has been a valued employee for 30 years with the Sheriff’s Office and everyone here wishes him all the best for his future,” Maha said.

It was a challenge sometimes, Calkins said, dealing with some of the people who come through the jail, but it was also a rewarding job.

"It was something where you always think you could make a difference in somebody's life and you strive to make a difference in people's lives," Calkins said.

He said he couldn't thank enough Scott and Dietzman for opening the door to him for his second career. Now to begin the first.

If you're heading north, be aware that Oak Street heading north has been mired in traffic jams all day.

Road reconstruction at Oak and Park seems to be the cause for the delays.

Currently, traffic is piled up from Park all the way to Richmond and at times even to Main Street.

UPDATE 4:45 p.m.: Southbound Route 98 is being shut down at West Saile Drive because of traffic congestion.

UPDATE 5:17 p.m.: Howard spoke with the construction supervisor on duty who said the work is supposed to be done at nighttime, but the temperature must be 50 degrees or higher. With colder nights lately, they had to do the work during the day to keep the project schedule on track.

Genesee Community College hosted a Harvest Festival today with vendors, speakers and agri-business displays. Students could explore opportunities in the agri-business field and speak with potential employers as well as purchase farm-fresh produce.

For the second time in three years, The Batavian has won a General Excellence in Digital Journalism Award from the Inland Press Association.

This time, The Batavian comes in second in the under 50,000 circulation category (we're placed in that category based on our area's population size) behind The Santa Fe New Mexican.

Three years ago, The Batavian received a third-place award.

The judges wrote:

The Batavian is what good digital news sites should aspire to be. It features excellent journalism, creative interactivity and is clearly ingrained in its community. Readers feel they know what it's like living in Batavia from reading this site.

The awards will be presented later this month at Inland's 128th annual meeting later this month in Chicago. The Batavian, unfortunately, won't be attending.

There are more than 1,200 print newspaper members of Inland and The Batavian is just one of only a few online-only publications that have joined.

Here's a photo I took returning from the fire yesterday, from Walker Road overlooking South Street Road, Pavilion.

Leon C. Bloom, 31, of 122 State St., Batavia, is charged with burglary, 2nd, strangulation, 2nd, assault, 3rd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Bloom is accused of unlawfully entering a dwelling of a family member Sept. 22 and assaulting and strangling the victim while children were present.

David Lee Langdon, 27, of 219 N. Spruce St., Batavia, is charged with forcible touching and unlawful imprisonment. Langdon was arrested following an alleged domestic incident. No further details released. Langdon was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Trevor M. Rich, 32, of 13 Clay St., Le Roy, is charged with disobeying a mandate. Rich is accused of violating an order of protection.

Terry L. Ritchey, 41, of 8927 Alexander Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speeding and unlawful possession of marijuana. Ritchey was stopped at 11:50 p.m. Wednesdayon Jackson Street, Batavia, by Officer Jason Davis.

Carla L. Spikes, 23, 39 S. Pearl St., Oakfield, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Spikes is accused of being involved in a domestic incident with a city resident.

William Edward Atherton, 62, of Pearl Street, Oakfield, was arrested on a warrant related to an alleged violation of probation. Atherton was arrested in Warsaw and arraigned in County Court then released to County Probation.

Daniel Thomas Henning, 33, of Bank Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Henning allegedly stole $40.85 in merchandise from Walmart.

Devon L. Heveron, 21, of Medina, is charged with DWI and unlawful possession of marijuana. Heveron was stopped at 2 p.m. Tuesday on Route 63, Town of Pavilion, by State Police.

Carrie A. Stewart, 33, of Attica, is charged with petit larceny, criminal trespass, 3rd, and false personation. Stewart was arrested by State Police Batavia at Target. No further details released.

Forbes: E.U. Decides Not To Interfere With E-Cigarette Sales; Will The FDA Follow Suit?

Ten adults living in rental property on Ellicott Street, Batavia, were displaced tonight after a sewage leak was discovered in the basement of their apartment building.

City fire was called to 665 Ellicott St., Batavia, at 7:45 p.m. for a pump detail, but when firefighters arrived what they discovered wasn't just water in the basement, but sewage as well.

The cause of the sewage leak wasn't determined, said fire Capt. Greg Shilvok, adding that many times such leaks can be minor and easy to repair, but until it is, the residents need to be evacuated.

The landlord will repair the leak in the morning.

In the meantime, the Red Cross assisted with relocating the residents to temporary shelter and the landlord was also able to provide overnight accommodations to some of his tenants, Shilvok said.

City fire cleared the scene at 10 p.m.

Jim Bearce said he always worried about fire. He and his brother kept several fire extinguishers around their house at 7635 Telephone Road, Pavilion, just in case.

The extinguishers proved inadequate today for a fire that swept through their home at 2:30 p.m. With smoke filling the house, they took their dogs to their cars and called 9-1-1. By the time firefighters arrived, the home was fully engulfed in flames.

It's unclear even tonight what Bearce and his brother might have lost and what might have been saved, but he was worried most about decades worth of recordings made in their music studio, important papers and his tools.

Since Bearce couldn't afford a fire safe, his 1/4 inch and eight-track tapes, along with important papers, were stored in refrigerators.

One refrigerator, which did contain tape recordings, was recovered, said Pavilion Chief Paul Dougherty, but the other is still missing and presumed destroyed.

Bearce and his brother Ken -- both musicians who played in touring bands for most of their lives -- set up a recording studio in the house. After switching to digital years ago, they've only recorded themselves, but they used to bring in other musicians to record starting in the 1970s.

Both are originally from Pavilion.

The cause of the fire is still undetermined but it appears to have started in the basement, Dougherty said.

The house was built on the side of a hill and the basement was at ground level in the back of the house and contained a workshop.

Jim and Ken had been working in the backyard cutting firewood and had been in and out of the basement with chainsaws prior to the fire starting.

"One of the chainsaws wasn’t working well, so I took it into the basement to repair it," Ken said "I took part of it apart and I came back out to start putting logs on the trailer and I heard my fire alarm go off in the basement.

"I walked back in there and it was basically full of smoke, particularly over in the left-hand side," Ken added. "I grabbed my fire extinguisher and shot it in there and it didn’t seem to do too much good. At that point we thought we’d better get upstairs and save the dogs.

"Jim braved the smoke and grabbed the fire extinguisher that was in the living room but he couldn’t do anything with it, because he was choking when he came out. So we just gathered up the dogs and threw them in the car and called the fire department.”

Ken said he had stored a couple hundred rolls of music recordings in the refrigerators. He also had thousands of dollars of tools because he works as a mechanic and painter.

Asked by a fire chief if the house was insured, Jim said he wasn't sure and the chief looked at him rather quizzically. 

"Well, I pay the premimum every month," Bearce said.

Bearce said when he called the insurance company a few months ago about insuring his tools, an agent on the phone said what they would do is increase the policy to cover up to $60,000 for the contents of the house. 

“I hope it covers everything,” Ken said.

Years ago, the brothers sold their good analog recording machines and went digital. Since then they've just recorded their own songs together. Last night, Jim took the computers to Rochester to have them rebuilt, he said, so the digital files are presumed safe.

Since the house is a bit set back in a wooded area with only a single, tree-lined driveway up a hill, it was hard to get apparatus close to the house to fight the fire, Chief Dougherty said, but with the fire moving so fast, there was never much of a chance to fight the fire internally.

By early evening, crews were on scene to knock the house to the ground with a backhoe.

Assisting Pavilion were Le Roy, Bethany, Bergen, Town of Batavia, Stafford, Caledonia, Perry, Alexander and Churchville filling in for Le Roy. Inmates from the Wyoming Correctional Facility assisted with scene clean-up once the fire was out. The Sheriff's Office also assisted at the scene as did the American Red Cross.

Ken Bearce talking with Bergen Chief Jeff Dodson, who was assisting with the fire investigation.

To purchase prints of these photos, click here.

A possible house fire is reported at 7635 Telephone Road. The homeowner called dispatch and said the house was full of smoke. Pavilion Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Le Roy. The location is between South Street Road and Asbury Road.

UPDATE 2:34 p.m.: The first responder says "I've got a lot of smoke." A second platoon is called.

UPDATE 2:35 p.m.: Mercy medics are also called along with mutual aid from Stafford, which is sending a tanker to the scene and a fill-in crew at Pavilion Fire Hall. The occupants are out of the home. The first floor is fully involved.

UPDATE 2:43 p.m.: Bethany is responding, too. National Grid is called. A power line is down and dangerously close to firefighters -- "about five feet away."

UPDATE 2:50 p.m.: Bergen is called as well as Town of Batavia. Caledonia, which is to fill in for Le Roy, will also be asked to help access or set up apparatus to aid the firefighters.

UPDATE 2:53 p.m.: National Grid is asked to expedite the response because "there are power lines down all over the place.

UPDATE 2:56 p.m.: National Grid has a 15-minute ETA. Firefighters can't access part of the structure until power is shut off. "There's a power line right in front of it, can't access the east side at all."

UPDATE 3:01 p.m.: National Grid is on scene.

UPDATE 3:04 p.m.: Wyoming County dispatched Perry to the scene. The power is cut off.

UPDATE 3:10 p.m.: Firefighters are told there is gunpowder inside the home along with guns and propane cylinders.

UPDATE 3:21 p.m.: Alexander is on scene.

UPDATE 3:41 p.m.: The American Red Cross is called to provide emergency assistance to one adult. Churchville is called to fill in at Le Roy's Fire Hall.

UPDATE 4:12 p.m.: Inmates from the Wyoming Correctional Facility are being transported to the scene to help.

UPDATE 4:20 p.m.: Brothers James Lawrence Bearce and Kenneth Vincent Bearce lived in the house, along with a couple of dogs, which they saved. Along with brother Jack, they were traveling musicians years ago and had a recording studio in the structure. Ken said he's not sure how much of their inventory of recording tapes are salvageable, ditto for tools that were kept in the basement.