The Genesee County Chapter of the American Red Cross needs your help!  

Sadly, our services have been utilized more than ever recently in 

responding to numerous fires, facilitating communication between military 

personnel and their families, and serving the community by teaching CPR,

first aid, emergency preparedness, babysitting, and learn-to-swim classes. 

We understand the challenges of these difficult economic times; we face 

them, too.  In order to keep up with our expenses, the Chapter is planning 

only one major fundraiser for the entire fiscal year:  the 14th Annual 19th 

Hole Golf Raffle on Saturday evening, May 30, 2009 at BWʼs Restaurant 

(Davisʼ Countryside Meadows) in Pavilion.  We are calling upon our good 

friends across Genesee County to support our efforts. 

This year we will recognize contributions of $200 or more to this event by businesses or individuals with a “Red Cross Ace” designation on all advertising for the Golf Raffle (unless, of course, you donʼt wish to be recognized in this way).  Donations can be monetary or in the form of gift cards/certificates/services, but they must be received no later than March 31st in order to be included in the Ace advertising. 

Of course, we are grateful for all gifts, regardless of the size or amount.  

Call the Red Cross office at 343-6098, and a member of the Golf Raffle 

Committee will come to you to pick up your contribution. 

Thank you in advance for your support.  Please know that you are making 

a difference in our community with your gift! 

Thanks to everyone who attended the Red Cross Open House!

Remember, the Genesee County American Red Cross now is located at 109 Main Street, Batavia. 

Please have a look....you could save a life. 
   
STROKE: Remember the first three letters... S.T.R.

A friend sent this to me and encouraged me to post it and spread the word.

RECOGNIZING THE SYMPTOMS:

During a party, a female guest stumbled and took a little fall.  She assured everyone that she was fine and just had tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.

Did you see it -- today at 3:00 PM?  The future rolled right through Batavia, right down Main Street.

You may have seen it and not recognized it for what it is.  Perhaps you thought it was an ordinary shed on a trailer being pulled by a red pick up truck.  In fact, it's part of a display from Homearama 2008 in Perinton that came through Batavia on its way home .

Look carefully and you'll see Dick Gammell reflected in the panes of glass in the door.  Dick is the owner of Canadice Construction Corp. in Springwater, and he's come up with a wind/solar generator that has limitless applications.  He developed the original unit to attach to a standard construction trailer to provide sufficient power to run hand tools and small pieces of equipment on site.  This somewhat portable, combination wind and solar generator replaces the gasoline and diesel varieties (up to 7,000 watts), resulting in the reduction of the use of at least 5 gallons of gas for every 8 hour work day -- per site.   One set of solar panels on half the roof (see photo) and one small wind turbine (stored in the shed for today's trip) does the trick.

In western New York, as in many geographic locations in the Northeast, we have an abundance of wind in the colder months and enough sunshine in the warmer months to power this kind of generator.  This unique "shed" provides all the portable power Dick needs to make his small construction company more cost effective, more independent, and more environmentally friendly.

But Dick didn't stop there!  He's applied his green thinking to golf greens.  This week-end, you can see his Green Cart at Dande Farms Country Club in Akron (see the ad in this week's Genesee Valley Pennysaver).  To test the most far-reaching application of his technology, he recently purchased a plug-in, electric vehicle and hopes to generate 10-14 kilowatts per day to power the car for 40-50 miles at once -- with no emissions!

Dick Gammell is an unassuming, straightforward businessman who saw a need and decided to do something about it.  He works every day at making his idea better.  The successful development of a highly  efficient wind/solar generator for use in generating up to 10-20 kilowatt hours per day of power for a family business may seem like a drop in the bucket, but imagine if we could engage MANY small businessmen in energy conservation and the use of alternative power sources!  It may be the only way to protect this nation's energy security.  I applaud Dick's efforts. 

You can read more at: http://www.canadiceconstruction.com/alternativeenergy.nxg