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Sgt. Shaina Schmigel was remembered Wednesday with tears and tenderness and lauded for her honor, duty and service to her country.

Hundreds of people in Genesee County turned out to pay tribute to the 21-year-old Army paratrooper who died while serving her country.

Schmigel was from Batavia and attended high school in Medina and her life and news of her death touched people from throughout Western New York.

Her funeral was at Michael S. Tomaszewski Funeral & Cremation Chapel on West Main Street Road. Following the service, her flag-draped casket was loaded into a hearse by a military honor guard. The hearse was escorted to the cemetery in Corfu by the Patriot Guard Riders and Hogs for Heroes Foundation.

Along the route, residents, construction workers, firefighters and schoolchildren lined the roadway, waving flags, carrying signs and snapping salutes as a show of respect to Schmigel and her service to the nation.

A friend said family members were touched by the tribute.

Schmigel died on May 30 in a nighttime training accident at Fort Bragg, N.C.

“You are so brave, so courageous,” her brother Matthew Scroger, of Lackawanna, wrote in a letter read by Navy Chaplain Rev. David Glassmire during the service at Tomaszewski's. “Your beautiful spirit, love and energy will forever take care of us.”

“For some people it’s just a paycheck, but it was never a paycheck just to her,” said Staff Sgt. Scott Kuznia who worked in the same unit with Schmigel for two and a half years. Kuznia added, “She was outstanding. She loved being a paratrooper and a soldier.”

Schmigel loved NASCAR and country music. As part of the service, two country songs were played, Toby Keith's “American Soldier” and “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue.”

“Thank you for being so brave and serving our country,” her 16-year-old sister Sheniqua Samol, of Medina, shared in a letter read by the chaplain. “What will I do without you? I will survive, but I will never be the same.”

Portions of this story provided courtesy Tom Rivers, OrleansHub.

Top Photo, Shaina's mother, Karie Schmigel, with the flag that draped her daughter's coffin, following the service in Corfu.

A pickup truck and car crashed in the parking lot of Save-A-Lot, 45 Ellicott St. City of Batavia fire and Mercy medics are responding. Injuries are reported.

Eric Marc Chiddy, 36, of Maple Street, Batavia, is charged with assault, 3rd, criminal obstruction of breathing, unlawful possession of marijuana and obstructing governmental administration, 2nd. Chiddy was arrested following an investigation into an alleged domestic incident on Maple Street. He was jailed on $2,500.

Travis C. Bauer, 25, of Water Street, Oakfield, is charged with DWI and unlawful possession of marijuana. Batavia PD responded to a complaint at 11:43 p.m. Friday of a sick or intoxicated driver on West Main Street. After an investigation by officers Peter Flanagan and Chad Richards, Bauer was charged.

Timothy Blase Antinora, 23, of Swamp Road, Brockport, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, and unlawful possession of marijuana. Antinora was stopped for alleged traffic violations at 4:09 p.m. Monday on North Lake Road, Bergen, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

The annual "Fill the Boot" campaign comes to Batavia again Friday, June 20.

Off-duty City firefighters, members of IAFF Local 896, will position themselves on Ellicott, Court and Main and collect spare changes and donations from passing drivers.

This years cochairs for the event are Jeff Stevens, left, and Greg Ireland.

City firefighters have been participating in the fundraising event for MDA for 20 years.

Last year, they helped raised $8,500, which was a new record in donations locally.

Money collected benefits the children who are diagnosed with any of the more than 40 neuromuscular diseases that fall under the MDA umbrella, including ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Donations cover everything from wheelchairs to braces, physical therapy sessions to summer camps for those afflicted.

A two-car accident is reported at Oak Street and Park Road, Batavia.

An officer on scene reports only a minor leg injury.

City fire and Mercy EMS responding.

It took the City Council 20 minutes to debate whether the city should reimburse the Business Improvement District $1,900 for flowers.

In the end, the resolution passed 5-4, but not before some sharp words where shared in the council chambers.

Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian looked around the room during the debate and wondered why Don Burkel, BID director wasn't there, "so we could rip his ass."

The request for the reimbursement didn't quite come from Burkel, however, it came from Councilman John Canale, who invited Burkel to submit a request for reimbursement. Canale saw it as a symbolic gesture to show common cause between the City Council and the business community. 

Councilwoman Kathy Briggs said the city already does enough for Downtown. The sidewalks are clean, the medians are beautiful and city crews hang the flower baskets.

"The fact is, we just saw this for the last time in our last packet and I'm like, 'oh, what's this,' " Briggs said. "The fact that a few council people were talking about it beforehand, planning it, then why didn't we know about it in a committee report? Why weren't we told about it. I got it in my packet and I'm like, 'what's this?' They didn't come to us at budget time. If you want this done, come to us and let's talk about it, but for me to find it in my packet and then decide it, no."

Councilman John Deleo also opposed the idea.

“I promised voters I would be financially responsible with their money,” Deleo said, “but flowers don’t rise to that level.” 

“It’s not just about making Downtown pretty,” countered Councilwoman Patty Pacino, “it is about making Downtown attractive to new and existing businesses.”

The BID fronted about $3,900 for the hanging baskets.

"I supported Vibrant Batavia because I wanted to bring pride back to the city," said Councilman Pier Cipollone, who spoke at length about the need to restore pride in Batavia. "If more people have pride they'll have a better feeling about being Downtown."

Also Monday: 

The city spent a total of $10,700 during the last fiscal year defending itself against a lawsuit filed by the City Centre Mall Association.

The figure was obtained by resident John Roach through a Freedom of Information Request. Roach complained that the bills he obtained were not “itemized.”

City Manager Jason Molino countered that Roach only requested a total amount for mall litigation and if an itemized accounting was requested, it could be provided.

The legal services summarized in the 2012-2013 fiscal year were incurred before the city filed a countersuit against the Mall Association earlier this year.

A casket bearing the body of Sgt. Shaina Schmigel, the Batavia native and Medina High School graduate, was escorted through Orleans and Genesee counties today by State Police and the Patriot Guard motorcycle group.

At about 7:30 p.m., the procession reached Michael S. Tomaszewski Funeral & Cremation Chapel, on West Main Street Road, where it was greeted by a gathering of family friends and supporters.

In a solemn event, Schmiegel's casket was carried into the funeral home, where it will lie in state until Sgt. Schmigel's funeral at 11 a.m., Wednesday. There will then be a funeral procession to Corfu for burial at noon.

Calling hours for family and friends are tomorrow from 2 to 8 p.m.

Sgt. Schmigel's awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal (2), Army Good Conduct Medal (2), National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with one Campaign Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and the Parachutist Badge.

She will be buried with full military honors.

A paratrooper, Sgt. Schmigel died of an as yet undetermined cause during a training exercise at Fort Bragg, N.C.

UPDATE: Very nice coverage of the procession through Medina by Tom Rivers at OrleansHub.com.

Flags have been placed on both sides of West Main Street Road, Town of Batavia, adjacent the Michael S. Tomaszewski Funeral & Cremation Chapel, to honor Sgt. Shaina Schmigel, a paratrooper who died during training last week.

Schmigel is a decorated Iraq War veteran.

Born in Batavia, Schmigel went to high school in Medina.

The Patriot Guard escorted her casket into Genesee County and then to Medina. The procession is expected in Batavia around 7:15 p.m.

Rita Towner helped organize an effort to use flags from Redfield Parkway to line West Main Street. She's asking that any residents along the route today and Wednesday (when the funeral procession will travel from Batavia to Corfu) to put out any flags they have in the parkway or along the roadway.

Below is a video from Route 77 in Pembroke that was submitted by a reader.

UPDATE: Also participating in the flag placement: Kathy Owens, Dennis Altman, Spencer Towner, Laura Mullen, Quinton and Michelle Taylor, the Browns, Lynn Conroy and her cousins.

Pauline J. Hensel, 61, of Lewiston Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation, leaving the scene of an accident, and refusal to take a breath test. Police officers responded at 6:39 p.m. Saturday to Lewiston Road for the report of an erratic driver involved in a property damage accident. A vehicle was located at 8351 Lewiston Road and Hensel identified herself as the driver, according to Batavia PD. She was arraigned and jailed on $3,000 bail.

Marquis D. Flowers, 22, of Carter Street, Rochester, is charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, 3rd. Flowers was arrested by Rochester PD and turned over to Batavia PD on an arrest warrant. Flowers was wanted for alleged unauthorized use of a motor vehicle on May 8 in the City of Batavia. Flowers was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Shane Allen McMurray, 34, of Lancer Court, Depew, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. McMurray was arrested following a report at 8 a.m., Sunday, of a vehicle parked on a residential lawn on Alleghany Road, Alabama, with an apparently intoxicated driver. The complaint was investigated by Deputy Chris Parker. McMurray's BAC was allegedly three times the legal limit.

Justin David Cotter, 22, of Lehigh Avenue, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right, and consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle. Cotter was stopped at 7:50 a.m. Sunday on Dorman Road, Batavia, by Deputy Bradley Mazur.

Cindy Bush, 52, of Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Bush was arrested by State Police for an alleged incident reported at 10:29 a.m. June 4. She was jailed on cash bail. No further details released.

(Name Redacted Upon Request), 18, of Batavia, and a 17-year-old from Caledonia, are charged with petit larceny. Both are accused of stealing from a location in the Town of Batavia. They were arrested by State Police. No further details released.

Batavia officially became a city on January 1, 1915 after having been an incorporated village since 1823. The transition involved a progression through several steps during 1914. During 2014, I will be acknowledging each of these events 100 years after their occurrence.

On this date 100 years ago, June 9, 1914, Batavians went to the polls to vote in a referendum on the proposed charter that would make Batavia a city. Earlier in the year, there had been two different proposals before the State legislature with one providing for a city government run by a city manager and five nonpartisan councilmen elected at large. That proposal failed to gain sufficient support from assemblymen and senators. So, the proposal now before voters in Batavia was a second one which had passed the Assembly and Senate and had been signed by the Governor. This second proposal featured a mayor, six city wards, and a council person from each ward, all with party affiliations.

Earlier in the year, a straw vote had been taken among Batavians on this second proposal, but many questions had been raised about the voting procedure. While the second proposal seemed to have voter support at that time, there was enough doubt about the matter to warrant voting again. Consequently, when the second proposal was passed by the Assembly and Senate, it had been amended to require a referendum on June 9th. If voters failed to again support the proposal at that time, Batavia would not become a city despite approval by the State legislature.

And so, on June 9th, Batavians once more went to the polls. The turnout was not very high, resulting in only a little more than half of the ballots normally cast in village elections. It was not clear what that might signify and it made some supporters of the second proposal a little nervous.

As it turned out, no one needed to worry. One-thousand and seven ballots were cast, with 795 yeas and 212 nays. Thus, after several years of discussion and debate, Batavia was finally going to become a city. All that remained was to elect the new government in upcoming December elections. Who would be elected to serve? In six months, I will let you know.

Town of Batavia Fire Chief Paul Barrett submitted these photos of yesterday's truck fire on Batavia Elba Town Line Road.

A truck is on fire and it's near a building and fuel pump at 3884 Batavia Elba Town Line Road. Town of Batavia Fire Department is responding. Mutual aid is requested from Elba and Oakfield fire departments.

UPDATE 1:24 p.m.: Town of Batavia command says the cab is fully involved and there are also two waste stations nearby.

UPDATE 1:40 p.m.: Command reports the fire is knocked down.

UPDATE: More photos.

A one-vehicle rollover accident with possible entrapment is reported on the westbound Thruway at mile market 391. Town of Batavia Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding. Mercy Flight is available if needed.

UPDATE 12:16 p.m.: Two additional ambulances are called to the scene. Mercy Flight will not be needed.

UPDATE 12:29 p.m.: One patient is being transported to UMMC.

UPDATE 12:34 p.m.: A second patient is being taken to UMMC.

UPDATE 12:42 p.m.: The assignment is back in service.

The 63rd Annual St. Joe's Lawn Fete kicked off Friday.

Friday evening St. Joe's Alumni Bugal Corps started the evening by playing a show outside Crossroads House and then played on the carnival grounds.

After their performance, the band Inside Out got things rockin' in the beer tent.

The fun continues today from noon to 11 p.m., with the annual parade at 6:30 p.m. Tomorrow, the fete runs from noon to 6 p.m.

I'll be in Jamestown today to cover Notre Dame in the regional championship baseball game this afternoon. Julia Ferrini will cover the parade for us.  

To purchase prints, click here.

City Council President Brooks Hawley will be holding six City Hall meetings, one for each ward. The meetings will be entitled “Coffee with the City Council President” and will be held at City Hall in the Community Room.

These meetings will be used as a direct connection to the president to have a forum with residents to collect thoughts, concerns, ideas or interests from city residents. The meetings will be held from 10 a.m. – noon on the following days:.

Ward 1         Saturday, June 14^th

Ward 2         Saturday, June 21^st

Ward 3         Saturday, July 19^th

Ward 4         Saturday, Aug. 2^nd

Ward 5         Saturday, Aug. 9^th

Ward 6         Saturday, Aug. 23^rd

“I hope and encourage Batavia city residents to come meet with me personally at these times and dates. I look forward to the dialogue and opportunity to sit and talk with constituents about our community,” said Brooks Hawley, City Council president.

If there are any questions, please contact:

City of Batavia City

Council President

One Batavia City Centre Batavia, New York 14020

Phone: (585) 409-9895