This is one of a series of articles highlighting the winners of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce awards for 2012. The awards gala is Saturday evening at the Clarion Hotel.

Whether it's the salty, sweet perfection of Cashew Glaze, colorful Christmas Ribbon Candy or the unique regional favorite Sponge Candy, Oliver's offers treats that are handmade, high quality and tasty.

For 81 years now, the Batavia landmark has built a loyal following that, aided by a robust online presence, today includes customers everywhere from Irondequoit to Korea, France to Corfu. Oliver's Candies, LLC, is the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce 2012 Business of the Year.

Located at 211 W. Main St., the Swiss-chalet-style building is where founder Joe Oliver lived and operated his candy shop. It had add-ons built in the '50s, '70s and major upgrades a couple of years after John and Sheila Quincey bought it in 1998. Sheila's son, Jeremy Liles, came on board in 2001 and is general manager.

"It's exciting being named Business of the Year and we appreciate the recognition of other business people," Liles said.

He credits his parents and staff, past and present, with Oliver's continued success.

"I didn't build this business to where it is today," Liles said. "My parents took a business that was doing OK in the '90s -- it was surviving -- but they just made it boom. They put their own money into it. They said this is something that can really grow and do a lot."

In 2000, the candy-making facility was completely revamped. The size of the retail store was tripled -- now it's about 3,000-square-feet -- and the size of the kitchen was doubled. There are no ovens. All the candy is made using commercial-grade, air-induction stoves and giant copper kettles. In 2002, "a full-blown ice cream parlor" was cranking out cones of ice cream blended especially for Oliver's.

Making candy isn't like running a restaurant. Although goods are being made fresh all the time, the process is more like manufacturing and can be done in shifts. And there's a shelf life, unlike what comes to a cafe table hot on a dinner plate.

But as with restaurants, running a successful candy operation requires "a lot of devotion." And the toil and talent of a capable staff.

"Those guys in the kitchen make it happen," said Liles, who is 38 and the father of three. "They're the backbone of the business."

A number of employees have spent a good chunk of their lives working at Oliver's.

Bob Pacer, with about 34 years of service, and Bonnie Battaglia, with about 33, both retired earlier this year. Their knowledge of candy and customers and their skills are no doubt sorely missed.

Then there's retail manager Diana Cuttita, with 20-plus years, and Beth Diegelman, 33-plus years.

"Beth can hand-temper chocolate," said Liles, with a little awe in his voice. "I can't do that, a machine can. But her hands are just cold enough to be able to get just the right consistency by hand."

It takes years to learn that kind of stuff. In fact, it takes about 10 years to become a master candy maker and it's typically learned through apprenticeship.

Ron Drock, who worked at Oliver's for 51 years, learned from his predesessor and he taught current master candy maker and longtime employee Doug Pastecki. Adam Horton is the assistant candy maker learning all he can from Doug.

There are currently about 15 full-time staff people and 15 part-timers, including seasonal workers, high school and college students, and crews for nights, weekends and summer.

"Thank God for them," Liles says, noting that they get to hone some practical math skills like counting back change, converting ounces to pounds or the fact that there's three teaspoons in one tablespoon.

As for increasing sales, Liles says two factors are key (A) consistent store hours and (B) having a successful online shopping site.

"We're open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week, and we're only closed on Christmas Day and Easter Sunday. If you're not open, how can you sell?"

Their online sales have soared. Online is a great way to expand sales without going the brick-and-mortar route.

In addition, they are selling favorites like Merry Mints, French Creams, Sponge Candy and Cashew Glaze wholesale to national catalog order companies, something which has "become huge" for them.

In terms of challenges, besides small business depressors like high taxes and  minimum wage increases, commodity fluctuations can have an impact on them. Higher prices for sugar and cocoa, for instance, are somewhat offset by product-line diversity -- no-added sugar products, savory snack mixes, and candies that don't require chocolate.

"If something happens on the Ivory Coast because of politics, it can affect us because that's where our cocoa is coming from. Normally it's not a problem because the United States imports so much of it; we can get our hands on it. But we're not as big as Hershey's. They have their own plantations. We depend on small growers.

"So if our costs shoot up, we're not like the gas station across the street -- we can't raise and lower our prices all the time. We (small business candy makers) have set a standard -- we're the same price as anybody else in Western New York."

"Some people don't understand that and they go in Oliver's and say 'This is expensive. I can get this cheaper at Walmart.' But it's really a different ball game altogether. We're dealing with really high quality products, no preservatives, fresh made. There's a huge difference. I think people realize that and that is why our customer base is what it is and growing.

"I think people are acquiring the taste for finer chocolates, finer wines, whatever, and (the trend of) Shop Local."

And Oliver's does shop local whenever possible, whether it's buying dairy products from Oatka, kitchen wares from Batavia Restaurant Supply, or seasonal produce from Harrington's and farmer's markets.

Liles is encouraged by Batavia's potential and what lies on the horizon and says the future looks sweet. Things already are at Oliver's.

This is one of a series of articles highlighting the winners of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce awards for 2012. The awards gala is Saturday evening at the Clarion Hotel.

In Tim Call's mind, there's little separation between the success of Empire Tractor and the hard work and dedication of the company's employees.

Whether it's sales or customer service, the conversation with Call either starts or ends with praise for Empire's 112 employees at six Central and Western New York locations.

"We have some of the most friendly and knowledgeable people in the industry," Call said.

Eighteen years ago, Call acquired a company on East Main Street Road, Batavia, then known at Tri-State Tractor. Through growth and partnerships, Tri-State became Empire and is one of the most successful farm equipment companies in the region.

Customers of Empire range from people with just an acre of land to farmers with 10,000 acres of land, Call said. The company doesn't handle push mowers or weed eaters, but the guy with just an acre of lawn to mow can get a nice zero-turn rider while the largest grain farmer in the area can buy the biggest tractor you can imagine.

In May, 2011, Empire moved to a bigger facility on East Main Road that gave Empire more room and paved surfaces that makes the whole business look more attractive.

"Everything is clean and everything just displays so well," Call said. "It's given us a whole different image and it's helped us increase our sales."

The entire service operation is now under one roof, Call said, which helps improve efficiency.

Even with the better facility, it's the people at Empire who make the sales process work, Call said.

"We want a sales process that is easy and fun and not too hard," Call said. "People buy from people and we try to remember that. When a farmer comes in, however much money he's spending, that's a lot of money to him to spend and we want him to feel happy and comfortable and satisfied that he got a reasonable deal."

Some employees have been with the company for more than 30 years, and that's saying something, Call said, especially for those who deal with farmers who had a piece of equipment break down.

When a farmer has to come into the shop because of a broken tractor or broken combine, it means he or she is not out in the field plowing or harvesting or herding. It means work that must get done isn't getting done.

"It's the employees who take care of customers every day," Call said. "A farmer comes in because he's broke down and he's not happy. There's a lot of thankless chores and when you're dealing with a guy who's beating on you and you're trying to be happy and upbeat, well, our guys are pretty darn good at that."

Good employees and a pleasant experience are so key to success in the competitive farm equipment business, Call said.

"Most of our business is referral, and if a customer has a bad experience, he's not going to come back and he's going to tell his friends," Call said. "We've done everything we can to try and make it easy for people to do business with us."

The village office in Corfu will open tomorrow morning, but rather than being staffed by longtime Clerk Treasurer Sandra Thomas and assistant Denise Beal, Trustee Ken Lauer said he expects he will be answering phones and handling whatever business he can.

The trustees held a budget meeting Thursday night, but didn't address the clerk situation in public session.

After the meeting Lauer agreed to discuss the clerk issue and said the actual employment situation with Thomas and Beal has yet to be resolved.

He said he's hopeful they will return to work. He said he spoke with both of them Wednesday night and had "productive" conversations, but he all he knows is they are considering their options.

On Monday, Thomas and Beal filed a complaint through Lauer against Mayor Ralph Peterson, accusing Peterson of trying to pressure them into handing over their computer passwords.

On Wednesday, Peterson showed up at the village office and by the time he left, Thomas and Beal had packed up their belongings and turned in their keys.

Whether the two women were fired or walked out is a fact in dispute between Peterson and people who say they witnessed the exchange.

We initially tried to ask Peterson, after the meeting, about the clerk situation and he said he was done talking with The Batavian and silently packed up his briefcase.

Trustee Art Ianni said he had "no statement" on the matter.

The budget meeting was held entirely in closed session.

Prior to going into closed session, Peterson said the session was being held to discuss personnel matters, specifically to talk about salary considerations with the two highway department employees.

More than an hour later, the trustees emerged (some 10 minutes after the two employees had left the meeting) and reported to community members at the meeting what they had discussed.

Besides the two employees agreeing to a cut in pay, Peterson said the trustees also agreed to sell some surplus equipment, expecting to raise $26,000, and cut $3,000 from the equipment budget.

Resident Greg Lang objected to the non-personnel issues being discussed in closed session as a possible violation of the New York Open Meeting Law.

Ianni said, "You know how it is. You get into a discussion and it just starts to flow."

Lauer almost didn't make the meeting.

When the meeting was first called to order, Peterson said, "Where's Ken?"

After Peterson, Ianni and Keith Busch went into closed session, former trustee Al Graham called Lauer and when Graham came back in the room he said Lauer told him that Peterson had called him earlier to say the meeting was canceled.

Lauer confirmed later he did receive such a call from Peterson. He also said Peterson had tried calling him just prior to the meeting but didn't leave a message.

Once Lauer arrived, Lauer said that Peterson apologized, but didn't elaborate.

A public hearing has been set for COR Development's request to receive financial assistance to renovate the former Lowe's location in Batavia Towne Center.

UPDATE 7:40 p.m.: The hearing has been rescheduled. It is now at 4 p.m. April 23 at Batavia Town Hall. (It was previously set for April 22.)

COR is seeking nearly $1 million in tax incentives for the project.

Genesee Community College's second-highest ranking administrator, the interim VP for Academic Affairs, Michael Stoll, was reportedly arrested on Good Friday in Rochester for alleged public lewdness.

The 66-year-old resident of Warboys Road, Bergen, allegedly exposed himself to an undercover police officer at 11 a.m. while in a Rochester municipal park.

Our news partner WBTA learned of the arrest from the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.

The charge against Stoll is a Class B misdemeanor.

Stoll posted $250 bail the same day.

The senior administrator began his career at GCC 42 years ago when the college first opened.

GCC spokesman Richard Ensman told WBTA that the college was not aware of Stoll’s arrest. Ensman said GCC is investigating.

The 2013 Regional Mock Trial Tournament will be held Saturday, April 20, in the Genesee County Courthouse with four teams competing for the regional title.

The first trials are at 9 a.m., are free and open to the public.

Round one will pit Frewsburg vs. Clarence and Batavia vs. Pittsford Mendon. In the second round, Batavia will go against Clarence and Pittsford Mendon will square off with Frewsburg.

The top two teams will advance to the final round, which will start at 1 p.m.

Judges will be Eugene F. Pigott Jr., who sits on the NYS Court of Appeals (the highest court in the state), Genesee County Court Judge Robert C. Noonan and Family Court Judge Eric R. Adams.

Press release:

The American Legion Botts Fiorito Post is hosting a World War II remembrance on April 21st. The reception, open to all World War II Veterans and their families, will be held on Sunday April 21st beginning at 1 p.m. at the Post Home, 53 W. Main St. Le Roy.

Local dignitaries are expected to join with current Legionnaires in recognizing those veterans of World War II who will be in attendance.

The intent of the program is to provide an opportunity for these veterans to join together and renew old acquaintances, share experiences and memories from World War II Era. Transportation will be provided if needed. Contact Post Adjutant Don Vescovi 768-7017.

Pictured: John Graney -- 2nd Vice Commander; Tim Sheflin -- Past Commander; Don Schafer -- Commander; Don Vescovi -- Adjutant; Jerry Diskin -- Vice Commander; and Dave Moore -- of Sons of The Legion.

A down wire(s) requires the closure of Bethany Center at Batavia-Bethany Townline roads. The pole is across from 4986 Batavia-Bethany Townline Road.

UPDATE 3:16 p.m.: National Grid is notified. No ETA given.

UPDATE 3:19 p.m.: The Town of Batavia fire responded and removed a broken pole from the roadway. Their assignment is back in service.

Press release:

The City Yard Waste Station will open for the season on Friday, April 12. The station will be open from noon to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

City residents are requested to bring all yard waste material (grass, leaves and limbs) to the Law Street Yard Waste Station as there is no spring curbside pickup of these materials.

No building materials or other debris will be accepted. Please use Law Street to enter and exit the City Yard Waste Station.

Le Roy Fire Department is responding to a report of smoke filling an apartment on Lake Street. A firefighter on scene reports nothing showing outside, but confirms smoke is inside. Bergen is also called to provide mutual aid. A woman said she returned home to find her son's bedroom filled with smoke. The building is being evacuated. Pavilion is also called. The address is 33 Lake St., apt. A.

School and Bacon are the crossroads. Le Roy medics are also called to the scene.

UPDATE 2:54 p.m.: Fire in the room is confirmed. They are shutting down the Route 5 and 19 intersection. Fire police are called.

UPDATE 2:57 p.m.: Fire command reports it's not clear where the fire is coming from. An engine from Stafford is called in. Mill Street is shut down.

UPDATE 3:02 p.m.: Caledonia is asked to stand by in their fire hall. A check of an upstairs apartment found no fire. They are checking the basement.

UPDATE 3:06 p.m.: National Grid is contacted.

UPDATE 3:13 p.m.: The source of the fire has been found and they are extinguishing it.

UPDATE 3:21 p.m.: The fire is out. They are overhauling the scene. Caledonia is released. Stafford will stand by in Le Roy's fire hall.

UPDATE 4:04 p.m.: The Le Roy assignment is back in service.

A benefit for the family of the late Marie Fragnito will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, at the Travelodge in Batavia.

Marie ("My My") was a lifelong Batavia resident who worked most recently at the ARC. She is survived by her daughter, Vanessa Aquino, three granddaughters, her mother, Josie Fragnito, brother, Joe, and sister, Patty.

Tickets for admission to the event can be purchased pre-sale at the Enchanted Florist on East Main Street downtown and Salvania’s Restaurant, located at 41 Jackson St., for $20 or at the door for $25.

Some of the highlights of the benefit will be a Chinese auction with prizes that have been donated by the Buffalo Bills, Buffalo Sabres, Buffalo Bisons and Darien Lake, among other personal donations.

Food will be included with admission and a cash bar will be provided.

Jim Catino’s band will be performing and her family members, friends and coworkers will be in attendance.

For more information or to purchase your pre-sale tickets, please contact the event organizer, Alexis C. Banks, directly at 716-480-0905.

A person was struck by a vehicle in the parking lot of Walmart, sustained minor injuries and is now inside the store near the customer service area. Town of Batavia Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding to the store on Veterans Memorial Drive.

UPDATE 1:46 p.m.: The car is only described as "a small four-door" and it's near the main entrance. The victim reportedly knows the driver.

UPDATE 1:53 p.m.: Town of Batavia fire is told to stand down.

UPDATE 1:59 p.m.: The pedestrian is being transported to UMMC.

UPDATE 2:06 p.m.: The victim is a female who was struck in the back of the knee by a vehicle backing out of a parking spot.

UPDATE 4:06 p.m.: The "victim" was later arrested a charge of falsely reporting an incident, which is a Class A misdemeanor. She is identified in an arrest report as Brandi L. Gimlin, 19, of Jerome Place in the city. State Police Sgt. Ron Lobur said the arrest was made after a review of Walmart's video, which showed she was not in proximity of the sedan when it backed out of the parking space. He also said Gimlin subsequently admitted that she made up the story. Troopers, firefighters and medics responded to the initial call.

The Genesee County Emergency Dispatcher Center announced that the following roads in Alexander are closed or partially closed due to flooding:

• Dorman
• Creek
• Peaviner
• Old Creek Road

Hannah Marie Traub, 30, of West Kendall Road, Kendall, is charged with petit larceny. Traub is accused of stealing metal snow fence posts that are owned by the Oakfield Highway Department from a location on Lewiston Road, Oakfield.

Justin Terrance Lee Abbott, 23, of Denrose Drive, Amherst, and Michael T. Robb, 21, of Condon Avenue, Buffalo, are charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Abbott and Robb were in a vehicle stopped for an alleged traffic violation on Quaker Hill Road, Elba, at 1:11 a.m. Wednesday by Deputy James Diehl. Abbott was issued an appearance ticket and Robb was turned over to North Tonawanda PD on an arrest warrant.

Tresia DonMarie Brace, 19, of Crimson Heights Street, Albion, is charged with petit larceny. Brace is accused of shoplifting at Kmart. Brace allegedly fled from store security after being confronted and was later located at Subway.

Terryl Kiev Coombs, 21, and Donte Angel Meredith, 22, both of Oak Street, Batavia, are charged with petit larceny. Coombs and Meredith are accused of stealing $180 in DVDs from Walmart.

A freezing rain advisory remains in effect until 6 p.m. today and a flood watch is in effect through 5 p.m., Friday.

The Tonawanda Creek is already flowing near the top of its banks.

Photo: Branch on a tree on Jackson Street.

As some Corfu residents feared last night, the village office did not reopen this morning.

There's no word on when it might reopen.

Previously: Apparent blow up between Corfu mayor and employees has village administration in jeopardy

Police believe they've solved a burglary from 2008, arresting a man yesterday who was initially indicted in December as 'John Doe' based on a DNA profile.

Samuel G. Malone, 27, of 36 Walnut St., Batavia, is facing a new charge of burglary, 3rd.

Malone was arraigned in City Court after appearing in County Court on three burglary charges that investigators believe he committed because his DNA allegedly matches the DNA found at burglary more than four years ago.

The latest charge stems from a break-in at Clor's Meat Market when the business was located at 29 Brooklyn Ave., Batavia.

The perpetrator had broken into the building Aug. 20, 2008, and taken a cash register. The register was later located by maintenance workers broken and empty in Williams Park.

Buffalo News: Rosy ad reinforces status quo in New York

The big worry on the minds of a lot of people on Corfu tonight is, will their village office open in the morning?

An employment dispute between the mayor and the village clerk/treasurer and her assistant blew up this afternoon and depending on who you believe, the two employees were either fired or walked out.

Mayor Rosie Peterson would prefer to call the incident a misunderstanding, but people who say they were witnesses to whatever happened claim Peterson fired Sandra Thomas and Denise Beal.

What is certain by all accounts is that Thomas and Beal cleaned out their desks and turned in their keys this afternoon.

The event led Peterson to call an emergency meeting of the village board to try and figure out what to do.

Without a clerk and a treasurer, the village has no way to pay bills, issue paychecks, collect bill payments or deal with residents issues.

Three trustees and Peterson met at 7:30 p.m. and immediately went into closed session.

An hour later they emerged and Peterson said, "The result of our executive session is that we agree there was a misunderstanding today and as a board we reconciled the situation and we would like the office personnel to return to work."

Trustee Art Ianni said the board agreed that Thomas and Beal can come back to work, knowing that they will have jobs through the remainder of Peterson's term as mayor.

When asked if Thomas and Beal had agreed to stay on, Ianni said they had no choice under civil service law.

When a citizen pointed out that if they were fired, any such law wouldn't apply, Ianni said it was his understanding that they weren't fired and that it was just a "misunderstanding."

Trustee Ken Lauer said he attempted to contact Thomas and Beal during the closed session, but couldn't reach them.

So the board really doesn't know if Thomas and Beal will come back to work in the morning.

Former Trustee Al Graham said he witnesses the exchange between Peterson and the employees.

He said Peterson arrived at the village hall and asked both women to go into the conference room with him. When he attempted to close the door, Beal wouldn't let him, Graham said.

When Peterson asked why, Beal said, "I don't trust you."

Peterson then said, "Well, you might as well know, I am not going to reappoint you."

Under village law in New York, the mayor must reappoint certain key positions each year.

Beal asked, "are we being fired?" and according to Graham, Peterson said, "yes."

Thomas and Beal then began packing up their stuff and Peterson, he said, "started to back track," telling them they weren't fired and that they needed to say on the job.

About two dozen residents attended the emergency meeting and all of them seemed upset with Peterson.

Several citizens demanded that Peterson better explain his actions, but he said he had and that as he said, the whole affair was just a misunderstanding.

Peterson is only a few weeks into his new job as mayor after narrowly beating former mayor Todd Skeet in the last village election.

Lauer said his understanding of what happened was much like Graham explained, but he also knows that Peterson explained it as a misunderstanding.

"Rosie is definitely learning and moving along," Lauer said. "It's not an easy process and unfortunately, it plays havoc with people's lives.

"The thing is," he added, "we need to play together better. We have to learn to get along better and we're going to do that."

Late Wednesday night, a firefighter gave Dr. David Paul a tour of his home at 33 Ross St., Batavia, so he could survey the damage.

A fire that had started in the basement and wormed its way up to the top level of the house leading to extensive fire, smoke and water damage.

But the good news is that the structure largely remains intact.

"I'm glad I have good insurance," Paul said.

Paul purchased the stately home some 30 yeas ago, restored it and in the late 1980s, the house won a Landmark Society award.

"I was at my office in Buffalo and my daughter called me as said the house is on fire," Paul said. "I shot right back here. By the time I got here, the fire department and outlying departments were here and taking care of it. I didn't see any flames, but it was really smoking and they were actively working on it."

Along with City fire, departments from Elba, Alexander and the Town of Batavia rushed to the scene.

A quick response by all concerned helped save the house.

The fire appears to have started in the basement, though Chief Jim Maxwell said the fire is still under investigation and no cause has yet been determined.

The house was built in 1902 and used balloon construction, meaning the exterior walls are open from basement to ceiling, making it easy for flames to jump from floor to floor.

Typically, balloon construction homes become fully engulfed rather quickly, but firefighters were able to contain the fire and then work on isolating hot spots on the upper floors.

"I think they did an excellent job," Paul said. "They were here right away. They were considerate. It's a mess inside, but they seemed to control what they needed to do."

The fire was reported at 4:19 p.m. as smoke coming from the basement. By the time the first firefighters were on scene, flames were shooting out of two basement windows.

"We had a good interior attack by everyone involved here," Chief Maxwell said.

Genesee County Emergency Management and Darien fire also assisted at the scene.

Dr. Paul noted that usually he's the one donating to the Red Cross. Tonight he was grateful for a cup of coffee from the agency.

Maxwell said it will take some time to determine the cause of the fire because of the heavy damage to the basement. He noted there were reports of lightning strikes in the area prior to the fire being reported.

To purchase prints of these photos, click here.