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As a young man in the late 1970s with a wife and two children, Leo Hunter decided he needed a career, not just a job, to help support his growing family.

At the military recruitment station, Hunter had about an hour wait before he would raise his right hand, swear an oath and become a United States Marine. He asked a captain if he could use a phone and call his wife.

He told her what he was about to do.

"Well, if that’s really what you want to do, we’ll just have to live with that," Hunter recalled his wife saying.

He then asked her if he had received any mail.

Yes, she said, something that looked like it was from the government and a couple of other items. He asked her to open up the letters.

One was from the FBI, offering Hunter a chance to advance in his application to become an agent and the other was from the State Police inviting him to take an agility test as the next step in his application process.

Hunter never became a Marine.

He chose the State Police over the FBI, reasoning that the FBI might move him anywhere in the U.S., but at least as a trooper, he would always be in New York.

On Friday, friends and family will gather to celebrate Hunter's 30-year career as a trooper and criminal investigator. He retired earlier this month.

"I don't think I would have gotten the kind of training I wanted if I had joined the Marines," Hunter said. "In the Marines, they just tell you what you will do, and who knows what that would have been. I'm sure I would have been in public service, but who knows how long I would have been in the military. I always had some idea of doing something as a career."

Hunter's life as a public servant hasn't been confined, though, to just wearing a badge. He also did something right for society by raising six children, from the time they were ages 7 to 13, as a single father.

All of his children are adults now and leading good lives.

Thameena lives in Batavia and is a nurse manager at ECMC. Shabaana works at Dent Sleep Study in Buffalo. Saad (Leo Hunter Jr.) is a staff sergeant in the Army, a combat engineer with the 101st, and will be deployed to Afghanistan next month. Saad has three children.

Yasmeen is a wife and mother living in Batavia with one son and another child on the way. Hunter's twins, Sumiyya and Safiyya, both received track scholarships (North Carolina and SUNY Buffalo). Sumiyya, who was a Division I Big South champion in the 800 meter, now works for the IRS. Safiyya just returned from a two-year Peace Corps mission to Mozambique.

Hunter said he raised his children with the idea that he was there to be a parent, not a friend.

"As teenagers, we were horrible," Thameena said. "In being a cop, he had to do what was right to raise us. Then we didn't like it, but now we understand it. We appreciate it. If he hadn't done it, we probably wouldn't be here."

It's been said that it takes a village to raise a child. To hear Leo tell it, in the case of the Hunter clan, it took all of Batavia.

There were parents, friends, neighbors and family members, along with other cops, who all looked out for the five girls and one boy Leo was trying to raise on his own while working a demanding job after he and his wife divorced.

"They were the other eyes I might need," Hunter said. "They shared the same concerns and my kids knew this. They benefited from that love and caring that we found in this community."

It must have been crazy around the Hunter household on Montclair Avenue. Leo was a soccer coach and Girl Scout leader in a home of children and their friends always coming and going.

Every day Hunter made sure he knew what his children were doing and where they were, Thameena said. As the oldest child, she helped around the house, especially with the younger children, and each night, Hunter made sure the chores were done, homework completed and the whole bunch in bed by bedtime.

As teens, of course, the kids would have social lives that would take them out of the house, but Hunter kept tabs on them.

"We would go out at night and when we came back, he would ask questions," Thameena said. "We always thought he was being nosy, but he was being a dad. He always knew what was going on."

Hunter had that detective's skill and knowledge in interrogations.

Thameena remembered one time when one of the children damaged an item in the house and Hunter wanted to know which one did it. She said they laugh about it now, but Leo placed each child in a different room of the house so they couldn't talk to each other and get some story straight, just like a good detective would do with multiple suspects. He then went from room to room and questioned each one individually.

Hunter figured out who did the deed, got a confession, and there was an appropriate punishment.

"To this day, he still knows what's going on with us," Thameena said. "He can tell when something is going on (in our lives). He doesn't have to ask. He knows it. That's something amazing about him. I'm like, 'wow.' "

Leo is a proud father, he said.

"I remember going through it," Hunter said. "I always wanted them to be happy. I always wanted to be there for them and now they have grown up and they're living successful lives, I look at that, I look back and I say, 'wow.' I wish I could take all the credit, but they had wonderful teachers and a wonderful family."

A Buffalo native, Hunter grew up on Northland Avenue in Buffalo, attended McKinley Vocational School and then Canisius College.

His first assignment as a trooper was with SP Boston, then Falconer. After awhile, Hunter was offered an assignment with Troop T, patrolling the Thruway, but that wasn't a route he wanted to take, so he got himself assigned to communications in Batavia. That gave him time to study for his sergeant's exam.  Over the next few years, his career included Franklinville, Olean, Wellsville, Boston, Clarence and back to Batavia as station commander.

After two more years running the Batavia station, he was offered a slot in the Criminal Bureau of Investigation. He worked as an investigator from 1994 until retirement.

"Being a backroom investigator is probably one of the bigger responsibilities as an investigator in the State Police because they're not just working on one thing," Hunter said. "They're working on a multitude of things."

At any one time, Hunter's caseload might include child sex crimes, burglaries, fraud and other financial crimes, assaults and even homicides.

The most stressful cases, however, according to Hunter, are the hostage situations, a threatened murder or suicide, where the negotiator must talk somebody out of doing something with permanent consequences.

"When someone is at that line of giving up hope and taking the life of themselves or somebody else, I still have to take a deep breath," Hunter said. "You're traveling to a situation and you just don't know how those things are going to turn out."

For the past 12 years, Andre Dunlap has been Hunter's partner in CBI, but more than that, Dunlap said, Hunter has been his mentor.

It was Hunter who pulled Trooper Dunlap aside at a crime scene once and told him he should apply for investigations. 

"I told him I wasn't ready," Dunlap said. "He told me, 'no, you're ready.' "

One of the things that has made Hunter a good investigator, Dunlap said, and something he tries to emulate, is to be sensitive.

"Whether it's a child abuse case, a homicide, a stolen credit card or a rape, handle every case like it was a family member involved," Dunlap said. "Talk to not only victims like they were family members, but suspects, too. Give them respect and they will respect you."

In retirement, Hunter, 55, is staying physically active, he said. He still plays racquet ball (a game Dunlap taught him), though he said injuries have slowed down his basketball game. He's also taken up archery, with the help of a 75-year-old neighbor.

Hunter is also planning on getting married again soon. His fiancé is Dawn Rindel, a clerk in Le Roy Town Court.

As for going back to work, there's usually jobs in insurance investigations and that might be an option, but for now, Hunter wants to keep his free time open for his family, especially his grandchildren.

He looks back on his career and he doesn't talk so much about the cases he handled, but the people he met. He said those are the memories that will stay with him.

"I always felt that even with 30 years on the job, you're always learning something from them, even the new people," Hunter said. "I always felt that if you can learn something from somebody, you learn about yourself."

He pauses and adds, "An older investigator told me once, 'When you have your family and your friends, you’re a wealthy man.' I'm not as wealthy as some, but I'm a wealthy man."

Photo below: Leo Hunter's children (photo submitted by Andre Dunlap).

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A proposal by the city clerk to raise the solicitor and vendor license fee from $25 to $200 failed to fly with city council members Monday night.

While some increase is appropriate, council members said, and other fee hikes met no opposition, the solicitor increase might discourage some street sellers.

"My first reaction was a very strong concern that local vendors are part of our community and probably something like this could present difficulties to some of those vendors," Councilman John Canale said.

Councilman Brooks Hawley called the increase excessive. He said he could support an increase to $100.

So did Councilman Pierluigi Cipollone.

"It's a huge jump," Cipollone said. "Driving in here tonight I was thinking about the hot dog vendor who was here this summer. He makes maybe 10 percent or 20 percent on a sale, so he would have to sell 250 hot dogs and a Coke to recoup (the fee)."

A fee half of that proposed might be more manageable for such a vendor, Cipollone said.

Under city ordinances, any solicitor or vendor who wants to hawk wares or food on the sidewalk or go door-to-door must apply and pay for a license.

Batavia has the lowest fee of any small city in Western New York, said City Clerk Heidi Parker (inset photo), at least among the dozen or so she surveyed. Typically, the fee is at least $300 and one municipality charges $500 while another charges $25 per day.

Raising the rate would help address some problems with door-to-door solicitors, Parker said.

"We're hoping that by increasing the fee, vendors will take their actions more seriously," Parker said. "At $25, if you lose your license it's not a big deal, but at $200, we hope vendors will be more respectful of the people they're visiting."

Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian said she is very concerned about the conduct of some solicitors, but is also concerned about the people who seem to go door-to-door posing as solicitors but might have more nefarious activities in mind.

She recalled calling the police on one suspicious character in her neighborhood over the summer, but when police arrived within minutes of her call, he couldn't be found.

Her request: That solicitors be required to wear and display a conspicuous ID badge.

"I want it pinned right on them," Christian said.

In the past year, Parker said, 27 vendors and solicitors paid for licenses and total revenue was $675. At $200, she said, only four would need to pay for a license for the city to maintain close to the same level of revenue on the licenses.

No decision was made at Monday's conference meeting. Parker will bring back a revised proposal at a future meeting.

The council expressed no opposition to raising the tax search fee -- for real estate transactions to find delinquent taxes and utility bills -- from $5 to $10, or the bounce check fee from $15 to $20.

On the tax search fee, Parker said, "It's not a charge to taxpayers. It's a fee for service."

The tax search fee hasn't been raised in 15 years and Batavia has, and will still have, the lowest rate among the municipalities Parker surveyed. Total revenue will rise about $1,500.

On bounced checks, the raise in revenue will be minimal since the city receives very few overdraft notices each year.

Local artist Brandi Bruggman was at Coffee Culture on Court Street this evening painting the windows of the coffeehouse with snowmen, snow-covered trees and wreathes for the holidays.

Submitted by Lisa M. Compton:

Most people in Le Roy have some opinion on what should be done with the Wiss Hotel. It sits in a dilapidated state on a highly visible corner of Main Street, and is one of the most prominent buildings people see as they are coming and going about their business. It is an embarrassment, an eyesore and a vivid reminder of the problems that have plagued Main Street over the years.

Like just about everyone I talked to, I want something to be done, but what should that something be? I always liked the building, and after hearing so much conflicting information about its condition, I really wondered how bad things really were and if the building was indeed a lost cause.

Inspired by a “Main Street” talk given at a village meeting by architect Rick Hauser, several of us gathered together a small group of like-minded curious people and hired Mr. Hauser’s firm, In.Site:Architecture, to do an assessment of the building as well as a feasibility study that would show whether any efforts to fix the building up were worth it from a financial perspective.

The study shows the building has high potential to be a viable business entity consisting of five apartments on the second and third floors, and several commercial establishments on the first floor. There is a detailed financial plan with ideas for securing funding.

One goal is to form a community Limited Liability Company (LLC) over the next few months to raise the $400,000 needed to get the project off the ground. We think that a LLC is a good way for local investors who may have either services or finances to invest, to participate in a project like the Wiss, and it also keeps profits within the community.

We will be holding a meeting on Thursday, November 29 at 7 p.m. in the Le Roy Village Hall where Mr. Hauser will be giving the talk “Main Street LLC, Community Entrepreneurism and the Case for Private Sector Rehab." It is open to everyone interested in finding out more about the Le Roy New York LLC and the Wiss project.

I am excited about the potential for transforming the Wiss into an attractive part of our community’s busiest intersection, and for doing it in a way that creates a return for local investors and maintains the character of our downtown.

As we pointed out Friday, local shop owners are standing by, ready to help you with the perfect holiday gift.

And as we said, when you shop local, more of your hard-earned dollars stay in our local community where they can do the most good.

Above, Jim and Tina Lambert, Lambert's Design Jewelers.

Ross Walker, RW Vapors.

Bill Hume, Foxprowl.

• Made entirely right here in Batavia, NY!!
• No other ash scoop can compare to the Ash Dragon!
• Precise, sturdy and attractive design.
• Simple, clean and efficient.
• One-hand operation.

Press release:

The Batavia Police, in partnership with Salvation Army, are collecting items to help those in need this holiday season.

Police officers as part of their normal duties meet families in unique situations and see firsthand the need for basic clothing needs such as socks, pajamas and other items. The Batavia Police Department is asking the citizens of Batavia to join us as we help supply these items for the Salvation Army to distribute.

There will be a collection container at the City of Batavia Police headquarters located at 10 W. Main St. We will be accepting new clothing items and of course new toys for those children of our community in need. Items will be collected through Dec. 14. Feel free to stop by and drop off.

Thank you, to the citizens of Batavia, for your support and have a safe and happy holiday season.

Photo: Officer Eric Dibble and Chief Shawn Heubusch, by Det. Rich Schauf.

A car accident is reported at East Main and Bank streets in Batavia. One person has chest pain as a result. Law enforcement is on scene and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 10:27 a.m.: Two cars were involved, and one of them traveled to Center Street afterward where medics took the patient to UMMC. City fire also responded and is now back in quarters. A flatbed tow is called for the disabled vehicle at the initial crash site.

A car is off the road in a one-car accident on Route 20 just east of Asbury Road, Pavilion.

Pavilion fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

UPDATE 9:06 a.m.: The patient has reportedly lost consciousness.

UPDATE 9:39 a.m.: Pavilion fire back in service.

Dashawn A. Butler, 33, of 101 Summit St., right, Batavia, is charged with unlawful dealing with a child, 1st, criminal nuisance, 2nd, and unreasonable noise. Batavia PD responded to 101 Summit at 11:43 p.m., Saturday, on a complaint of a loud party. The police department reports having received numerous prior complaints for noise and underage parties. Butler was previously charged on similar allegations Oct. 20. On Saturday, officers report finding several underage people in the residence and the odor of marijuana. Butler was charged with unreasonable noise and maintaining a premise where unlawful conduct occurs for allegedly allowing persons under age 21 to consume alcohol. Following arraignment in city court, Butler was jailed on $10,000 bail.

Kasean L. Shannon, 20, of 119 State St., #4, Batavia, is charged with menacing, 2nd, criminal obstruction of breathing and harassment, 2nd. Shannon is accused of choking and menacing a woman with a knife during an argument at 9:30 a.m., Sunday.

Willie Miles Jr., 48, of 45 Washington Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th, disorderly conduct and harassment, 2nd. Miles is accused of damaging two windows at a residence.

Curtis J. Doward, 18, of 26 Ganson Ave., Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, endangering the welfare of a child and unlawful possession of marijuana. Doward is accused of pushing another person and grabbing that person by the neck during a domestic incident. The alleged incident occurred in the presence of a young child. At the time of his arrest, Doward was allegedly found in possession of marijuana.

Joseph M. Dispenza Jr., 18, of 38 Church St., Le Roy, is charged with felony DWI, driving in violation of a conditional use permit, failure to keep right, moving from lane unsafely, inadequate headlights and refusal to take breath test. Dispenza was stopped at 2:40 a.m. Thursday on Pearl Street, Batavia, by Officer Darryle Streeter. Dispenza was jailed on $5,000 bail.

Bradley M. Crandall, 45, of 66 Lake St., Le Roy, is was arrested on a warrant out of drug court related to a DWI charge. Crandall was jailed on $100,000 bail.

Jason E. Carpenter, 34, of 33 S. Pearl St., Oakfield, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Carpenter was located on State Street and arrested on a warrant out of city court.

Kayla L. Rapone, no age or residence provided, was arrested on two bench warrants for alleged failure to appear in court.

Melissa L. Coufal, 42, of Bergen, is charged with possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Coufal was arrested by State Police in connection with an alleged incident from Nov. 19. Coufal was released on an appearance ticket. No further details were provided.

Dispatchers have received reports of accidents involving at least five cars on Route 19 on the Thruway overpass in Le Roy.

DOT crews have been dispatched to deal with possible slickness on the roadway.

So far, no reports of injuries.

UPDATE 6:52 p.m.: There are at least 10 cars involved. Le Roy fire and Le Roy ambulance dispatched. Possible minor injuries. Responders warned to use caution upon approach, roads are very slippery.

UPDATE 6:55 p.m.: A Le Roy responder asks dispatch to contact DPW. The Clay Street bridge is covered with ice, he says.

UPDATE 6:59 p.m.: Medic on scene reports the northbound lane of Route 19 is blocked.

UPDATE 7:16 p.m.: A second ambulance, a Mercy rig, requested to the scene.

UPDATE 8:33 p.m.: Road salted and Route 19 is reopened.

Press release:

Join in the holiday spirit at the second annual “Taste of the Holidays” on Friday, Dec. 7, and Saturday, Dec. 8, in the Holiday Tent in Jackson Street parking lot in festive Downtown Batavia.

New this year will be The Scavenger Hunt: The Twelve Days of Christmas. This should encourage more people to go into the stores, identify the day, and then look around for holiday gifts. Another reason for coming downtown will be to see all the festive window displays.

The B.I.D. Taste of the Holidays Committee has put a lot of effort into this event and wants you to join in the celebration.

Friday, Dec. 7 (5-9 p.m.):

• Lighting of the community Christmas tree and singing of carols. (Tree next to Bank of America on Main Street.)
• Holiday Tent: several area restaurants will provide samples from their menu. Admission: $1/person.
• Holiday Scavenger Hunt: Twelve Days of Christmas – in downtown stores with a grand prize of a $100 gift certificate.
• Horse and carriage rides (6-9 p.m. -- Center Street parking lot across from Adam Miller Toy & Bicycles) Rides: $1 -- proceeds donated to: Don Carroll “Toys For Kids."

Saturday, Dec. 8 (11 a.m. - 3 p.m.):

• Holiday Tent: Free children’s holiday activities (decorating ornaments, coloring, making Christmas cards and puppets, etc.)
• Holiday Scavenger Hunt: Twelve Days of Christmas – downtown stores.
• Entertainment: Bart Dentino & Kevin Huber (12-3 p.m.) and the McMahon Irish School of Dance.
• Horse & Wagon Rides (12-3 p.m. - Center Street): Rides $1 (for “Toys for Kids”)

Hosted by: Batavia Business Improvement District
For more information visit:  www.downtownbataviany.com

(Don't confuse this event with Christmas in the City, which is inside City Centre on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.)

An accident blocking both westbound lanes of the Thruway has been reported in the area of mile marker 390.2.

No word on injuries.

Town of Batavia Fire Department dispatched.

UPDATE 2:44 p.m.: The location is right by the toll booth overpass, just east of Route 98. Three cars are involved. It may be that only one lane is blocked.

UPDATE 2:50 p.m.: Mercy medics on scene report no injuries. Town of Batavia fire will help troopers with traffic control.

A three-car accident with minor to no injuries is reported on the Thruway near mile marker 396 and in the westbound lane.

East Pembroke fire dispatched. It's the second call in the district for East Pembroke.

Mercy EMS dispatched as a precaution.

UPDATE 1:58 p.m.: The "car that caused it all took off" reports a chief on scene. Two cars involved on scene. No injuries. Town of Batavia Fire Department requested to the Thruway to check the west bound lane. Dispatch is receiving reports of several accidents in the westbound lanes of the Thruway. An East Pembroke chief has been told of another three-car accident "back there" in the median. All available manpower requested to the Thruway.

UPDATED 2:02 p.m.: Confirmed two-car accident at mile marker 294.8.

UPDATE 2:04 p.m.: No injuries in the accident at 294.8. Town of Batavia fire is going back in service.

UPDATE 2:13 p.m.: East Pembroke assignment to the Thruway back in service.

A trailer reportedly came off a truck in the area of North Pembroke Road and Beckwith Road, Batavia, taking down a utility pole and transformer.

East Pembroke fire responding.

No injuries reported at this time.

National Grid has been notified. No ETA at this time.

UPDATE 1:32 p.m.: Road being shut down at Beckwith and Phelps.

UPDATE 1:37 p.m.: Chief asks dispatch to notify National Grid, "we can't get near that trailer." 

UPDATE 1:53 p.m.: National Grid has a 20-minute ETA.

UPDATE 1:56 p.m.: National Grid reports 60 customers without power.

UPDATE 2:08 p.m.: National Grid is on scene.

UPDATE 2:37 p.m.: East Pembroke back in service.

UPDATE: Photo submitted by a reader.

A bit of snow started mid-morning giving Batavia a little dusting over grass, on tree limbs and the hoods of cars. The light snow fall is expected to continue through the afternoon with an accumulation by 5:30 p.m. of about an inch. The forecast for tomorrow is partly cloudy with a high of 39 degrees.