Le Roy

Press release:

On July 7, 2020, 35-year-old Timothy Barber, of Le Roy, collapsed at the end of his shift after working on the Genesee River Bridge Project in Geneseo. Treated for heat stress and heat exhaustion, he died from hyperthermia on his second day on the job.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Barber’s parents, Le Roy residents Jim and Kathy Barber, are recognizing his death today in order to raise awareness of occupational heat hazards and safeguards among employers, workers and the public in Genesee County and Western New York. They hope to prevent additional work-related heat illness and deaths.

​Recognizing the anniversary of Barber’s death, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration reminds Western New York employers and workers that when temperatures soar, so does the degree of danger associated with work in high temperatures. OSHA also urges all to take proper actions to work safely in hot weather.

An OSHA investigation into Barber’s death found he had been performing light-duty work -- sorting bolts in 90-plus degree temperatures. Working alone without shade, he was without water and not acclimated to the heat.

OSHA also determined that his employer, Pavilion Drainage Supply Company Inc., of Pavilion, failed to train him and implement other safeguards to protect him and other employees against extreme heat hazards.

“Timothy Barber should not have died," said OSHA Area Director Michael Scime in Buffalo. "We call attention to this worker’s death so that other workers do not suffer from or succumb to heat-related death and illnesses. They are preventable. Employers are responsible for providing workplaces free of known safety hazards. This includes protecting workers from extreme heat.”

“We hope something positive comes out of the tragic death of our son, Tim,” said James and Kathy Barber, his parents. “We join OSHA in wanting to bring awareness to the dangers of heat stroke to businesses for the safety of their employees. No family should have to suffer a loss that is completely preventable.”

Symptoms of excessive heat exposure include heat stroke, heat stress, cramps, headaches, dizziness, weakness, nausea, heavy sweating and confusion. Occupational factors that may contribute to heat illness include: high temperature and humidity; low fluid consumption; direct sun exposure; no shade; limited air movement; physical exertion; or use of bulky protective clothing and equipment.

Employers with workers exposed to high temperatures should establish and implement a heat-illness prevention program and communicate it to supervisors and workers. This includes:

• Providing workers with water, rest and shade;
• Allowing new or returning workers to gradually increase workloads and take more frequent breaks as they acclimatize to, or build a tolerance for, working in the heat;
• Planning for emergencies and training workers on heat hazards and appropriate first aid measures;
• Monitoring workers for signs of illness and taking prompt action if symptoms occur.

“Don’t wait until a worker is sickened to address heat stress – take action,” Scime said. “Employers in Western New York and other areas must take action to keep workers from becoming ill.

"Effective preparation and knowledge of the hazards of heat can save lives today, and in the future. Three simple words: water, rest, shade can make a huge difference when implemented in the workplace.”

OSHA’s Occupational Exposure to Heat page explains what employers can do to keep workers safe and what workers need to know, including factors for heat illness, adapting to working in indoor and outdoor heat, protecting workers, recognizing symptoms and first aid training. The page also includes resources for specific industries and OSHA workplace standards.

OSHA has numerous other heat safety tools and information available free for employers and workers including a heat safety app for Android and iPhone devices at www.osha.gov/heat.  

Learn more about OSHA.

Wade Jared Murphy, 48, of Francher Road, Clarendon, is charged with: second-degree strangulation; first-degree unlawful imprisonment; and third-degree assault. At 5:35 p.m. on July 12, Genesee County Sheriff's Deputies responded to Sunset Parkway in the Town of Oakfield for a reported physical altercation. After an investigation, Murphy was arrested. The parolee allegedly held a female against her will and strangled her. He was arraigned in Oakfield Town Court and put in GC Jail without bail. Murphy is due in GC Court at a later date, unspecified. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Erik Andre, assisted by Deputy Nicholas Chamoun.

Mathew W. Ianiro, 26, of Le Roy, is charged with: driving while intoxicated; felony aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle; reckless driving; speeding over 55 mph; operation in violation of conditional license; consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle; and consumption of cannabis in a motor vehicle. A traffic complaint led to Ianiro's arrest on July 9 in the Town of Warsaw. It is alleged he had been forcing other vehicles off the roadway. Wyoming County Sheriff's deputies responded to a report of an erratically driven vehicle that had just entered Route 19 in the Town of Covington. Deputies intercepted the vehicle on Saltvale Road at Burke Hill Road in Warsaw. Following a traffic stop, Ianiro  was found to be the operator and sole occupant. He was also allegedly found to have open bottles of liquor and concentrated cannabis inside his vehicle and it is alleged he exhibited signs of alcohol impairment. The driver was also found to have a NYS Conditional Driver's License from 2020 that was suspended for driving while ability impaired by alcohol. It is alleged he performed poorly on field sobriety tests and he was taken into custody when his vehicle was towed from the scene. He was transported to the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office for a chemical breath analysis. He was arraigned in Warsaw Town Court and his driver's license was suspended. Ianiro was released on his own recognizance in compliance with NYS Bail Reform. The defendant is due back in Warsaw court July 26.

Parker E. Payton, 22, of Pavilion, was arrested July 8 after a traffic stop on Wallace Road in the Town of Covington for having a revoked driver's license. Deputies familiar with Payton stopped him after observing him driving. He has two active revocations and two active suspensions, one of them a revocation due to a conviction for driving while ability impaired by drugs. Payton was arrested roadside and issued an appearance ticket for the charges of: aggravated unlicensed operation in the second degree; aggravated unlicensed operation in the third degree; and unlicensed operation. Payton is due in Town of Covington Court July 26.

Le Roy's Aaron Leone finished out his high school trap shooting career with his third appearance at the USA Clay Target National Championship in Mason, Mich.

On the first day of the competition, he shot 97/100. On the second day, 98/100 with a reverse run of 81 straight hits to finish 32nd of 1,684 competitors.

Information and photo submitted by Tim McArdle.

When I began this article, I wanted to write about my second retirement from teaching. I was going to share my beautiful memories of the 1,000 students I have taught.

I wanted to talk about the fantastic field trips, classroom drama productions, learning about local history, and using the Holland Land Office Museum as a textbook. I was about to begin to expound on those treasured memories when my train of thought took me to what it was like to be a teacher for over five decades. 

It was 1972; I was a lucky college graduate to have a teaching job. I was a young unmarried woman and my maiden name was Anne Marie Peca. It was a time of miniskirts, long hair, and the Viet Nam War. You just left your college and were entering your classroom with so many new things to learn.

You had to hand in a lesson plan in advance for the administration to review, learn how to set up your classroom, learn your students' names, spell them, and locate the faculty bathroom. In your first year of teaching, you learned right along with your students.  

Everything was new, and it was so exciting and overwhelming.

You had to know where to find films for your filmstrip projector and how to thread a 16 mm movie. If you needed copies for your students, you made and ran off a ditto on a ditto machine.

You never slept the night before the first day of school, no matter how many years you taught.

My first job was at Wolcott Street School in LeRoy (in 1972, inset photos above and below). I have so many treasured memories from my five years of being on their faculty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My next teaching adventure was being a nursery school teacher at the YWCA. This allowed me, now Mrs. Starowitz, to teach but also be home with our daughters.

In 1985, I was hired to be on the faculty of the Batavia City school system. I spent the next 34 years on their faculty as a teacher and then as a substitute teacher.

I ended my career this year as a teacher at St. Joseph Regional School, where I graduated from eighth grade in 1964.

Over the years, teachers were required to change with the times. Many innovations such as teaching strategies, behavioral plans, grade-level subject changes would be introduced, and as a teacher, you were mandated to add them to your curriculum. 

As far as technology, a teacher could now have a cassette tape player instead of a record player, and possibly one computer in the classroom using floppy discs.

Later on, there were groups of computers in a classroom, and today most children have a Chromebook as their personal computer.

There was a new classroom configuration called the multiage classroom, where you would have two classes in the same room. There was also looping where you take your class from one grade level to the next. 

The Education teacher needs has also changed over the years. There is so much a young teacher needs to do before they have a classroom.  

There were so many beautiful memories as a teacher, but there were also tragic memories. The saddest memory was losing a student and attending the funeral. There are never any words for those tragedies.

On Jan. 28, 1986 my fourth-grade class watched Christa McAuliffe, a teacher, go into space to die in an explosion on the NASA space shuttle "Challenger."

I taught through the Viet Nam War, Persian Gulf War, Iraq War, war in Afghanistan, and the 9/11 terrorism attacks. I taught children how to behave in a fire drill, evacuate a building, and practice a lockdown drill. This past year, I taught 18 students sitting 6 feet apart wearing a mask — socially distanced learning during the coronavirus pandemic -- so many changes.  

The one thing that is a constant is how many hats that a teacher wears. Yes, you have a curriculum of what to teach, but you have to earn your student's respect before you can teach.

They are so intuitive; they know if you care about them. At times you are a parent, a nurse, and a therapist. We wear these hats proudly, and today my hat is off to all the excellent teachers I have had the pleasure of working with over the years. They indeed are heroes. I love this saying, "If you can read, thank a teacher!"

I can't end this without mentioning all the beautiful children I have taught over the last five decades. Those 1,000 students have left an imprint on my heart. To those students, thank you for giving me a lifetime of cherished memories. It has been an incredible ride.

"The greatest sign of success for a teacher...is to be able to say, 'The children are now working as if I did not exist.' "

-- Maria Montessori

Two inset black and white images above are from O-At-Kan LeRoy Yearbook 1972.

Photo below, Mrs. Starowitz's last class -- from St. Joseph Regional School​ -- in a teaching career spanning more than five decades.

Concerned about setting a bad precedent, the Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday rejected a proposed public utility use variance for a solar project on farmland at 7120 Thwing Road, Le Roy.

County Planning Director Felipe Oltramari told Ty Baccile, project manager, solar development for Washington, D.C.-based CleanChoice Energy, that the company was going in the wrong direction requesting a public utility use variance.

"I think you skipped a step in not getting an interpretation from the (Le Roy) Zoning Board of Appeals," Oltramari said. "It falls under their jurisdiction to provide a definition for a public utility. If they determine you fall within that definition, then just apply for a special use permit."

CleanChoice Energy began working with Gary W. Clark and his family of farmers in 2019 on siting the project but since developing the initial proposal, the Town of Le Roy has passed new solar farm regulations. The regulations' new code means a project such as this must fall within the definition of a public utility.

Based on prior case law and state codes, Oltramari said the county planning board can't make that determination without setting a precedent that would affect solar project zoning codes in other towns.

However, if the Le Roy ZBA determined the project fit the public utility definition, then the decision remains confined to how Le Roy interprets its own codes.

The Clark family, three generations of farmers with more than 575 acres of cropland in Le Roy and Stafford, settled on a solar project as a way to supplement and diversify their company's revenue stream. The proposed project represents 5 percent of the farm acreage and is considered less suitable farmland.

CleanChoice Energy is proposing a 4.95-megawatt solar project on the property.

The project, under state law, is defined as a "Community Solar Project." Solar power from such projects is only distributed locally and cannot be carried to other regions via transmission lines.

There is a limited hosting capacity for these types of solar projects.

Substations and three-phase distribution feeds can only support a small number of these projects and facilities must be sited close to substations.

The projects are also limited by a shortage of land suitable for hosting them. Environmental, regulatory, and permitting constraints at potential host sites eliminate many properties from consideration. Prime farmland, wetlands, land hosting threatened and endangered species, and acreage that's just too expensive are not viable options. 

Among the selected parcel's advantages are: that it is relatively flat; will connect to existing National Grid power lines; will not interfere with farm operations; few trees will need to be removed; and existing trees and bushes create a visual barrier; it sits at the top of a hill --making it less visible to surrounding residents (nobody is looking down on it).

Motorists on Thwing Road won't be able to see the solar project as they drive by, said project manager Baccile.

Electricity generated by the project would be transferred to National Grid for distribution daily to customers enrolled in the CleanChoice's Community Solar Program. The project would generate enough energy to power 800 to 850 homes in the Town of Le Roy and surrounding towns.

According to a document from CleanChoice, "Based on National Grid Standard Service electric supply rate and a customer average monthly use, the project is expected to create an energy supply saving of approximately $60,000 annually. Energy bills are a combination of supply prices, which are based largely on market conditions, and delivery prices, which are set by regulation. Customers choosing to subscribe to the project benefit by the monthly savings regardless of usage, weather, or market price fluctuations."

Town of Le Roy residents would get the first shot at subscribing to the program.

Photo: Aerial photo from the project proposal application.

The first big concert weekend of 2021 at The Ridge NY kicked off Friday with Rochester's country singer/songwriter Claudia Hoyser. The night was also a celebration of her birthday and the release of her new album, "Red Lights Turning Green."

This afternoon gates open at 4 o'clock at The Ridge for a concert headlined by Travis Tritt. Also performing are opening acts Julian Eliza Music & Sunshine James, and the Shaun Abbott Band. VIP tickets, with special seating and pre-event party, are sold out. General admission (bring your own chair) seating is still available.

The Ridge is located at 8101 Conlon Road, Le Roy.

A Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy has received a "walk-up complaint" by a person regarding a golf cart full of teenagers operating somewhere on Asbury Road -- either in Town of Le Roy or Pavilion.

The deputy is responding.

A turtle was in the road on Church Street in the Village of Le Roy, says a caller to dispatch, and now it's on the sidewalk but there are children playing with it. A Le Roy police officer is responding.

UPDATE 12:04 p.m.: "The turtle has been removed; that job can now be cleared," an officer tells dispatch.

At about 1 a.m., a motorist was in need of some assistance at Main and Oak in Batavia and two Batavia police officers stopped to help change a tire -- Pete Flanagan and Jordan McGinnis.

Tom Wood, former chief for Le Roy, was driving past and couldn't stop for a picture but thought the officers deserved some recognition.

"With all the negativity around police officers, I thought I should share this," Wood said.

Above, Elon Spink and his granddaughter, Tammy Charbonneau.

Written by Thomas Spink.

LE ROY -- Le Roy Village Green resident Elon Spink is Genesee County's newest centenarian!

Elon was born 100 years ago on June 19, 1921 in Attica to Ida and Harry Spink. He was the fourth of five children.

At an early age, he was diagnosed with polio, but thankfully he recovered, and he was able to get back his mobility and live a remarkably long life. Having had polio prevented him from enlisting to fight for his country in World War II, which disappointed him as he wanted to help defend his country from the Germans.

During his lifetime, Elon held many jobs. He transported farm equipment, construction materials, worked as an accountant for his brother Tom’s business and then started driving bus. He finished up his career delivering beer and beverages, retiring in 1983 at the age 62.                                        

He moved to Rochester in the 1950s where he would meet and marry the love of his life -- Fern Elizabeth Sherman.  Fern had three children, Patrick, Lucinda and Susan, who have known Elon as Dad for the past 60+ years. Elon and Fern had one child together, Thomas.

Elon and Fern were married for  51 years. Fern passed away in 2006, and Elon continued living ON HIS OWN until December, 2020. At the age of 99 and a half, in the middle of COVID-19, he had a fall and he and his family realized it was time that he needed assistance, which is when he moved to Le Roy Village Green.  

Many of Elon’s most cherished memories are related to sports. Elon was a pretty good bowler. He won team championships in Rochester in the '50s and '60s. Elon is a diehard Rochester Redwings fan and through his son, Pat, (who worked in broadcasting for the Red Wings), he got to meet and befriend several players over the years.

In June of 2001, to celebrate his 80^th birthday, he traveled to New York to watch the Yankees play on a Saturday and then rode down to Philadelphia to watch the Batavia Muckdogs parent team take on the New York Mets that following Sunday.   

He is an avid Buffalo Bills fan, and one lifetime experience for Elon was going to the Buffalo Bills first Superbowl in Tampa in 1991. He had the opportunity to meet Bills' owner Ralph Wilson at a Bills game. Ralph asked him how old he was, and when Elon said he was 83, Ralph chuckled and said that he was 86. Later that year, Ralph signed a picture of the two of them saying, “You're still not as old as me.”

The Buffalo Bills are Elon’s favorite team by far. He jokingly comments all the time, “I don’t know if I will ever see them win the Big Game.” Well Elon, maybe Josh Allen will do what your favorite quarterback, Jim Kelly, tried so hard to do four times in a row – and you may get to see a Buffalo Bills’ Super Bowl victory this year as you work your way toward 101!

We all wish you the happiest 100th birthday!

Photos courtesy of Margaret Sheelar.

Below, Elon Spink and his son, Thomas Spink.

A third rekindle of hay bales at 9420 Warsaw Road prompts Le Roy Fire Department to respond. The location is between Perry and Cole roads.

UPDATE 1:20 p.m.: "It's going to be the sawdust that is burning," says command, not the hay bales.

Christopher C. Good, 19, of Cohocton Road, Pembroke, was arrested June 8 and charged with unlawful imprisonment in the second degree, a Class A misdemeanor, stemming from an incident that occurred earlier that day. He was arraigned virtually by Bergen Town Court and released on his own recognizance. A subsequent investigation led to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office executing a search warrant on his residence June 15. Good was allegedly found in possession of a firearm, in violation of a previously served order of protection, and in possession of a high capacity ammunition feeding device. Good was arrested and charged with second-degree criminal contempt, a Class A misdemeanor, and criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, a Class D felony. Good was arraigned virtually in Genesee County Court and remained in custody of the Sheriff's Office, jailed in lieu of $2,500 cash bail or $5,000 bond. The county DA's office assisted in the investigation.

Stephen J. Rucinski, 38, of West Main Street, Le Roy, is charged with three misdemeanors and a violation, respectively: criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th; obstructing governmental administration in the second degree; aggravated unlicensed operation in the second degree; and no or inadequate license plate lamps. At 12:59 a.m. on June 9, Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy David Moore attempted to conduct a traffic stop of a vehicle in the area of Selden Road and Route 19 in the Town of Le Roy. The operator, Rucinski, allegedly fled from the vehicle into a wooded area north of Selden Road. Deputy Nicholas Chamoun, Deputy Andrew Mullen and K-9 Frankie arrived on scene to assist locating the defendant. Following a successful track by K-9 Frankie, Rucinski was taken into custody without incident. It is alleged that he was in possession of a controlled substance at the time of his arrest and that he was driving with a suspended NYS driver's license. He was released with appearance tickets returnable to Le Roy Town Court July 6. Also assisting in this case were Sheriff's Sgt. Andrew Hale and members of the Le Roy Police Department.

Le Roy's brush truck is called to the scene of Monday's barn fire at 9420 Warsaw Road. They are asked to proceed in nonemergency mode.

UPDATE 2:37 p.m.: The hot spots are out and the crew is picking up and preparing to leave.

A house attached to a barn that caught fire at a quarter horse farm in Le Roy on Monday has been declared a total loss, according to Joshua Pfendler, first assistant chief for Le Roy Fire Department.

Pfendler said some personal items and a few photographers were saved from the front of the house.

He noted that at the time he spoke with local media on Monday, the house, which had a firewall between the barn and the living quarters, appeared to be in much better shape than it actually was.

Previously: Barn fire reported on Warsaw Road, Le Roy