Oakfield-Alabama beat Holley 72-37 on Monday to give Head Coach Ryan Stehlar his 100th career win.
Kaden Cusmano scored 24 points to lead the Hornets. Travis Wiedrich scored 16 points and Gaige Armbrewster scored nine.
Also in boys basketball
Photo by Kristin Smith.
Oakfield-Alabama beat Holley on Monday, 49-17.
Makena Reding scored 11 points for the Hornets. Kelsey Schlagenhauf scored nine.
O-A is now 5-3 on the year.
In other girls games:
Photos by Kristin Smith. For more photos, click here.
Taylor Augello scored 21 points against Byron-Bergen on Monday night to lead Elba to a 64-37 victory.
The Lady Lancers are now 10-0 on the season.
Brynn Walczak scored 14 points and had 12 rebounds. Laci Sewar scored nine points.
For the Bees, Ava Wagoner scored 15 points and Sasha Schramm scored 11. MacKenzie Senf had eight rebounds.
Although delayed, the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council reportedly will be receiving the full amount of its state funding that has been on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, giving Executive Director Gregory Hallock reason to believe the agency will be able to provide all of its services and programs in 2021.
“We just received word that we will be getting the full $127,000 (mostly from the New York State Council on the Arts), we just don’t know when the money is coming in,” said Hallock during an agency review Monday for the Genesee County Legislature’s Human Services Committee.
Hallock said that GO ART! had to “shut everything down” last March at the outset of the coronavirus outbreak, resulting in cancelled events, such as the July 4th Picnic in the Park (it was held virtually) and the halting of renovations at the 201 E. Main St. facility.
“It was a scary situation, but we are seeing the light,” he said, adding that the agency currently has about $70,000 on hand, twice as much as he expected.
With the assurances of its usual monetary support – and through the utilization of Payroll Protection Program grants, GO ART! is ready to transition its two employees back to full time later this month and is “planning to be fully open on September 1st,” Hallock said.
He said he is excited about the new features at the building, including a dance studio – “we even have a disco light,” he said – as well as a film studio, podcast studio with soundproofing windows, a hair studio, remodeled kitchen, and library with a grand piano.
GO ART! is looking to open Tavern 2.0.1 in September, Hallock said, disappointed that it was in operation for just two and a half months in 2020.
“We’re ready to make a ‘big bang’ when we get the go-ahead to start that back up,” he said.
The executive director’s report pointed out the value of a cultural component, noting there is a 7:1 return on dollars spent both directly and indirectly.
“Indications show that in our very region, arts/cultural tourists spend an average of 50 percent more than residents do per event, with an emphasis on indirect spending in the restaurant and hospitality sectors,” he stated.
He said GO ART! is able to support local organizations and individuals through the NYSCA Decentralized Re-Grant Program.
More than $43,000 in grants funded by the NYSCA, namely “Reach,” “Ripple” and “Spark” grants, were awarded in Genesee County in 2020, he said.
“Reach” grant award recipients included the Genesee Valley Wind Ensemble’s concert season, Genesee Symphony Orchestra, Arc of Genesee/Orleans, Holland Purchase Historical Society, Elba Betterment Committee, Woodward Memorial Library, Genesee Chorale, ACORNS music in the park, Gillam Grant Community Center and the Batavia Concert Band.
Individual artists receiving “Ripple” grants were David Burke, Bart Dentino, Mandy Humphrey and Eric Zwieg.
Hallock said GO ART! spent $20,000 toward facility construction prior to the shutdown, and is set to resume the exterior and interior renovations, which are estimated to cost $218,000. Work will be done on the main entrance awning, kitchen roof, gutter system, storm windows and chimney.
GO ART! has received six grants for this project, totaling $199,500, he said, and is seeking grants to install an elevator, update the central air system and create a cultural garden.
The agency also is working on a partnering grant with the arts councils in Wyoming, Livingston and Monroe counties to share a full-time marketing director, Hallock said. Currently, GO ART! shares a full-time folklorist with Wyoming and Livingston counties.
Hallock said plans including offering the building for long-term room rentals, artist nights and other programs. Despite the pandemic, he said the agency assisted other organizations by using the building as a distribution site for food and clothing, and distributed 16,000 art kits to youth in Genesee and Orleans counties.
In legislative action, the Human Services Committee recommended approval of a resolution to allocate $6,500 to GO ART! for 2021. This is the same amount of funding that was appropriated in 2018, 2019 and 2020.
via Batavia Athletics
Via Batavia Athletics
Additional doses of both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine have been coming into Genesee County this week -- a welcome sign of better days ahead, according to the Genesee/Orleans public health director.
“After our allocation had been flat for four weeks, the county Department of Health has received 885 doses of the vaccine – 300 of the Moderna and 585 of the Pfizer,” Paul Pettit said this afternoon via Zoom during the Genesee County Legislature’s Human Services Committee meeting at the Old County Courthouse.
Pettit also mentioned that several “community partners” have received vaccines, with United Memorial Medical Center getting 200 doses and Tops Market in Batavia, Tops Market in Le Roy and Oakfield Family Pharmacy receiving 100 doses each.
He reported that Genesee Community College will be the site of two local vaccination clinics this week – from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday for first dose only and from 9 to 11 a.m. Friday for second dose only.
This is not the mass vaccination clinic at GCC that leaders in Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming counties have been vigorously asking for, but good news may be around the corner, Pettit said.
“We’re still working on the details of a potential mass vaccination location,” he said. “We expect more details tomorrow and will send out a press release as soon as possible.”
He said 3,500 doses would be available if and when New York State officially approves the college as a regional vaccination clinic.
In related COVID-19 developments, Pettit said the state’s guidance on gatherings is expected to change on March 15, increasing the number to 150 people or 50 percent of capacity, and he said he anticipates the county receiving the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine in a couple weeks.
He also urged state officials to update their guidance concerning people who are fully vaccinated.
“They already recognize the exposure aspect of it (that they don’t have to quarantine), but now they need to do the same when it comes to travel,” Pettit said.
Legislatively, the Human Services Committee approved two resolutions submitted by Pettit that reflect funding connected to the county’s effort to test for the virus and vaccinate against it:
Press release:
Press release:
To honor #BlackHistoryMonth, students gather on Instagram Live to discuss the film “42” as well as tobacco use in movies and community health disparities.
A virtual movie event on “42,” The Jackie Robinson Story, spurred a lively Instagram Live discussion on multiple tobacco issues affecting our community and nation.
On Feb. 25, Reality Check youth from Genesee County joined 100+ youth and community members from across New York State to honor #BlackHistoryMonth, as well as discuss the baseball movie and how it hits a home run on tobacco-related topics including: Tobacco use in movies; Big Tobacco’s targeted advertising; health disparities: and smokeless tobacco use.
The youth had a three-day window, from Feb. 23-25, to watch the movie independently, or as part of a group watch party, to prepare for the live discussion. The goal was to share what they learned with peers and members of the community to help reduce tobacco product use in their regions and beyond.
Tobacco Use in Movies
“42” includes several smoking scenes, particularly cigar smoking. This gave Reality Check leaders guiding the discussion the opportunity to educate youth on important facts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that were also shared via social media channels the week preceding the event.
“The more kids see smoking on screen, the more likely they are to smoke,” said Brittany Bozzer, Reality Check coordinator at Tobacco-Free Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming counties (TF-GOW).
“There’s no excuse for having smoking in movies that are rated to be sold to kids; we suggest giving an R rating to movies that include tobacco use.”
According to Bozzer, giving an R rating to future movies with smoking would be expected to reduce the number of teen smokers by nearly 1 in 5, preventing up to 1 million deaths from smoking among children alive today.
Black History Month
Since “42” tells the story of the American legend Jackie Robinson, the first African American Major League Baseball player, the movie event and discussion included the issue of racial health disparities in our communities.
For more than 60 years, the tobacco industry has been a part of the problem by deliberately targeting the Black community with menthol cigarettes, which are more addictive, easier for kids to start using and harder for smokers to quit than other cigarettes.
To target Black demographics, the tobacco company Chesterfield used Jackie Robinson in cigarette ads in the 1950s. Athletes were desirable endorsers for cigarettes because they were perceived as healthier than the average citizen.
Teens also discussed how the tobacco industry profited while destroying Black lives and health. In the 1950s, less than 10 percent of Black smokers used menthol cigarettes. Today, 85 percent of Black smokers smoke menthol cigarettes.
Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death among Black Americans. It claims 45,000 Black lives each year, and Black Americans die at higher rates than other groups from tobacco-related diseases such as cancer, heart disease and stroke.
Baseball and Chewing Tobacco
A final discussion topic of “42” and the Instagram Live event was Through With Chew week, a national, weeklong event meant to educate people about the dangers of smokeless tobacco, also known as chew, which has been used by professional athletes for decades.
The week of awareness included the Great American Spit Out on Feb. 25 this year, the day tobacco users across America aim to quit.
ABOUT REALITY CHECK
It is a youth led movement in New York State that empowers youth to become leaders in their communities in exposing what they see as the manipulative and deceptive marketing tactics of the tobacco industry. The organization’s members create change in their communities through grassroots mobilization and education.
Reality Check groups work in their communities by trying to limit the exposure of tobacco marketing in stores, help make smoke/vape-free public, work, and housing spaces, and limiting the exposure to smoking/vaping in movies.
These initiatives are to help discourage young people from becoming new daily smokers and encourage current smokers to quit. Reality Check GOW is a program of Tobacco-Free GOW and Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center.
More information can be found at http://www.realitycheckofny.com and http://www.tobaccofreenys.com
From the county health department:
There are still several appointments available for anyone who needs a free rapid COVID-19 test. The clinic is scheduled for Tuesday, March 2nd from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Genesee County Emergency Management / Fire Training Center at 7690 State Street Road, Batavia.
There are no residency requirements for the testing clinic.
For more information and the registration link please use this following link.
Above, Ronald P. Mannella, director of Genesee and Orleans County Weights & Measures.
Submitted photo, images and press release:
The Genesee – Orleans County Department of Weights & Measures (GO Health W&M) is responsible for testing all commercial devices used to weigh and measures various commodities. We celebrate this marketplace protection annually on March 1st, the start of National Weights & Measure Week.
These inspections are done annually at more than 220 businesses which include grocery stores, delis, bakeries, produce stands, laundromats, farms, manufacturing plants, distribution centers, stone quarries, gas stations and noncommercial locations as requested.
The department is also responsible for testing the quality of fuel sold within the counties, a task that is 100-percent reimbursed by New York State (132 fuel samples were taken in 2020).
Prior to 2020, Genesee and Orleans counties operated separate W&M departments. This changed last January when Ronald P. Mannella was appointed Director for both – a move with estimated annual savings of more than $54,000.
2020 resulted in 1,138 total devices tested between the two counties, including a 4.11-percent increase in Genesee County devices compared to 2019.
“In our first year functioning as a shared department, we were able to serve both communities better than ever before,” Mannella said. “We pumped over 13 thousand gallons of fuel and used over 5 million pounds for testing.”
Tested and approved
These seals (see below) indicate a device was tested and approved for use by a Weights & Measures inspector. New for 2021, our seals will incorporate two public health messages acting as reminders for residents and visitors to the area.
“Our new seals for this year will address drunk driving and hand washing in an attempt to better the health outcomes of our residents,” Mannella said. “I believe we are the first in the state, potentially the nation, to use health and safety messaging on inspection seals -- which have gone relatively unchanged for decades. It’s a great opportunity and use of the space allotted to us.”
Protection at the pump
With support from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Genesee-Orleans and the surrounding counties are cracking down on credit card skimmers and those responsible. W&M inspectors perform random sweeps of fuel stations looking for these fraudulent devices. Arrests have been made and we want it known that New York will not tolerate these criminal acts.
If you have suspicious credit card activity, call your bank immediately.
For more information about Weights & Measures visit their website or call Genesee County at (585) 344-2580, ext. 5555.
From Sen. Ed Rath:, NY 61st Senate District:
Since being elected, I have heard from thousands of residents on numerous topics. It is critical to me to hear from those I represent on important issues. As budget discussions continue, many topics are being discussed.
From mandatory COVID-19 vaccines to legalizing marijuana, your opinion on issues facing New York and our communities is extremely important to me. That is why I have launched a 2021 Legislative Questionnaire.
Click here to complete the 2021 Constituent Survey.
I look forward to hearing from the community on these issues and I will be listening as the legislative session continues.
Thank you in advance for taking the time to fill out the questionnaire. I look forward to hearing your feedback.
Press release:
Genesee County Emergency Management Services has received a $3,800 fire prevention grant from FM Global, one of the world’s largest commercial property insurers.
FM Global representatives presented the award to the Genesee County Office of Emergency Management, located at 7690 State Street Road in Batavia. The award will be used to assist with fire investigations to help fire investigators more efficiently investigate and determine the cause of a fire.
Because fire continues to be the leading cause of property damage worldwide, during the past 40 years FM Global has contributed millions of dollars in fire prevention grants to fire service organizations around the globe. Locally, the company has awarded grants to a number of New York-based organizations.
“At FM Global, we strongly believe the majority of property damage is preventable, not inevitable,” said Michael Spaziani, assistant vice president – manager of the fire prevention grant program.
“Far too often, inadequate budgets prevent those organizations working to prevent fire from being as proactive as they would like to be. With additional financial support, grant recipients are actively helping to improve property risk in the communities they serve.”
Through its Fire Prevention Grant Program, FM Global awards grants to fire departments—as well as national, state, regional, local and community organizations worldwide — that best demonstrate a need for funding, where dollars can have the most demonstrable impact on preventing fire, or mitigating the damage it can quickly cause.
To learn more about FM Global’s Fire Prevention Grant Program and other resources for the fire service, please visit www.fmglobal.com/fireservice.
About FM Global
Established nearly 200 years ago, FM Global is a mutual insurance company whose capital, scientific research capability and engineering expertise are solely dedicated to property risk management and the resilience of its client-owners. These owners, who share the belief that the majority of property loss is preventable, represent many of the world’s largest organizations, including one of every three Fortune 500 companies.
They work with FM Global to better understand the hazards that can impact their business continuity in order to make cost-effective risk management decisions, combining property loss prevention with insurance protection.
Press release:
The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) Board of Directors will consider accepting an initial application for incentives for Plug Power’s proposed $232.7 million green energy technology facility at Western New York Science & Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park (STAMP) at its March 4 board meeting.
The facility would produce green hydrogen through an electrolysis process of water utilizing clean hydropower. The production facility would produce approximately 45 metric tons of liquid hydrogen on a daily basis and sold to customers to replace fossil fuels in the transportation sector.
Construction is anticipated to begin this summer.
Plug Power would initially create approximately 68 new jobs at an average starting salary of approximately $70,000 plus benefits, totaling over $102 million over 20 years.
The company is requesting $118.2 million in sales and property tax exemptions from the GCEDC. For every $1 of public benefit requested, more than $4.3 of investment is proposed by the company or $520 million over 20 years.
Additionally, under the terms of a proposed 20-year PILOT agreement, Plug Power would pay approximately $2.3 million annually to support local municipalities and infrastructure, including Genesee County, the Town of Alabama, and the Oakfield-Alabama Central School District.
Plug Power will also invest $55 million for the construction of a 345/115KV electric substation in partnership with the New York Power Authority and National Grid to support future expansion and growth opportunities at STAMP.
Plug Power and New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the proposed project on Feb. 25, which is also being supported by the New York Power Authority and Empire State Development.
A public hearing on proposed incentives will be scheduled if the Board accepts the project application.
Press release from AAA:
Today’s national average price for a gallon of gasoline is $2.72, up 8 cents from last week. One year ago, the price was $2.44. The New York State average is $2.78 – up 8 cents from last week. A year ago, the NYS average was $2.60.
AAA Western and Central New York (AAA WCNY) reports the following averages:
- Batavia -- $2.72 (up 9 cents since last week)
- Buffalo - $2.72 (up 7 cents since last week)
- Ithaca -- $2.77 (up 9 cents since last week)
- Rochester -- $2.76 (up 9 cents since last week)
- Rome -- $2.80 (up 8 cents since last week)
- Syracuse -- $2.75 (up 9 cents since last week)
- Watertown -- $2.80 (up 8 cents since last week)
The national average continues to increase as crude prices march higher. Gas prices have also increased from longer-than-expected refinery outages due to last week’s winter storm that impacted the Gulf Coast.
As refineries restart and resume normal operations, supply is expected to increase in impacted areas and should bring stability to pump prices. Until then, most drivers should expect pump prices to continue increasing.
From GasBuddy:
"Gas prices continued to surge last week following cold weather-related shutdowns in Texas, but going forward, the impact from the cold has likely run its course," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy.
"However, several other factors will rise in their influence on gas prices again, including the fact that gasoline demand continues up steam. According to Pay with GasBuddy data, last week's total gasoline demand soared to the highest level since the pandemic began as COVID-19 cases continue to drop and Americans are filling up more.
"On the supply side, the number of oil rigs active in the U.S. stands nearly 50-percent lower than a year ago, which is a large factor driving prices up. To put it simply, demand is recovering much much faster than oil production levels, which is why oil prices have soared.
"This week, OPEC will be meeting to hopefully increase oil production to temper the rise in prices, but will they increase oil production enough to match the growing appetite of a global economy that's seen oil demand jump? We'll have to wait and see."
Press release:
Most people with kidney disease don’t know they have it. March is National Kidney Month and the Kidney Foundation of Western New York is encouraging everyone to learn more about their kidney health.
The theme for National Kidney Month 2021 is “Managing Chronic Kidney Disease,” urging people to take charge of their health.
More than 37 million Americans have chronic kidney disease – that’s about one in seven adults. The disease is underdiagnosed since a person may lose up to 90 percent of their kidney function before symptoms develop.
The Kidney Foundation encourages people to know about the biggest risk factors for kidney disease, including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and family history of kidney failure. Early identification and treatment may help to slow kidney damage and prevent additional health problems.
“It’s important to talk with your medical provider about kidney health, especially if you’re at higher risk of kidney disease,” said Kidney Foundation Director Jeremy Morlock.
The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases has provided these healthy lifestyle tips to take charge of kidney health:
The Kidney Foundation of Western New York will be sharing kidney health information through online videos and activities this month. Information is available at kfwny.org and through social media.
About the Kidney Foundation of Western New York
It works to increase awareness of kidney disease, provide education on kidney health, and support patients and their families. The locally based nonprofit serves Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming counties.
For more information on National Kidney Month, click here.
Press release:
In honor of 2021 Problem Gambling Awareness Month (PGAM), which is the month March, the New York Council on Problem Gambling (NYCPG) is challenging everyone across New York State – individuals, agencies and communities alike – to come together to face problem gambling.
With gambling opportunities expanding at rapid rates in New York State and beyond, it’s imperative that all factions of the community, in all geographic areas of the state, join forces around the issue of problem gambling. We need to collaborate to raise awareness of problem gambling, prevent any additional problems related to gambling, and get those in need to adequate support services in their own community.
According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, 2 million U.S. adults (1 percent) are estimated to meet criteria for severe gambling problems in a given year. Another 4-6 million (2-3 percent) would be considered to have mild or moderate gambling problems; that is, they do not meet the full diagnostic criteria for gambling addiction but meet one of more of the criteria and are experiencing problems due to their gambling behavior.
The effects of problem gambling are not isolated to the individual. It’s been estimated that 8-10 additional people can be negatively affected by one person’s gambling behaviors (Petry 2005). These people include family members, friends, neighbors and even coworkers. If we account for individuals experiencing gambling problems and others who are affected, the estimate of those affected by problem gambling is between 64 and 80 million people.
“The increase and availability of gambling opportunities in NYS coupled with the effects of COVID-19 have made the 2021 Problem Gambling Awareness Month the most important event highlighting problem gambling awareness and resources this year," said NYCPG Executive Director Jim Maney.
"It is imperative that we partner together to raise the awareness of problem gambling and make certain New York residents can access the services and resources that they need during these challenging times.”
PGAM is a time for everyone to join together to show how much we care about individuals, families and communities struggling with gambling problems. That’s why this year, for PGAM, the New York Council on Problem Gambling is expanding its focus to engage all New Yorkers in problem gambling efforts.
The materials and resources developed for PGAM 2021 will help individuals explore their own struggles, support agencies who want to host Gambling Disorder Screening Day events and raise awareness of what’s being done across the state to face the issue of problem gambling.
√ If you are an individual concerned about your, or someone else’s, gambling activity, call your local problem gambling resource center to learn about supports and resources in your community.
√ If you are interested in learning more about problem gambling participate in one of our PGAM webinars.
√ If you’re a community-focused organization, add problem gambling information to your outreach and education materials.
√ If you are a recovery support facility, create gambling-free zones to ensure individuals feel safe from triggers. If you are a mental health or addiction professional, host an event or screen all of your clients on Gambling Disorder Screening Day (March 9).
√ If you are a New Yorker who cares about problem gambling, take the “PGAM Facebook Video Challenge” and tell the world why you care.
√ To access all the tools mentioned above, and to get involved in Problem Gambling Awareness Month 2021, visit: NYProblemGambling.org/PGAM.
Let’s join together to let New York know that we are here to work together to address problem gambling!
If you or someone you love is struggling, please visit: NYProblemGamblingHelp.org to connect with resources in your community.
The New York Council on Problem Gambling (NYCPG) is a not-for-profit independent corporation dedicated to increasing public awareness about problem and compulsive gambling and advocating for support services and treatment for persons adversely affected by problem gambling.
NYCPG maintains a neutral stance on gambling and is governed by a Board of Directors.
Your local WNY Problem Gambling Resource Center is: Western PGRC. Contact Jeffrey Wierzbicki WesternPGRC@nyproblemgambling.org for local PGAM events and news!
Batavian Tony Sprague came up a bit short in an attempt for his second United States Bowling Congress-certified perfect game last Sunday, rolling a 298 in the T.F. Brown's Adult-Child League at Mancuso Bowling Center.
Sprague, a lanky right-hander who will be celebrating his 19th birthday in a couple weeks, left a 7-10 split on the final delivery as the ball came in just a little light of the 1-3 pocket. He finished with a 652 series.
Last February, he registered a 300 game as a youth bowler at Mancuso's and in early January of this year, posted a 299 in the T.F. Brown's league.
Other top series around the Genesee Region last week:
For a list of other high scores, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of this page.
Oakfield-Alabama fell to Attica in a Saturday game 60-56.
For the Hornets, Gaige Armbrewster scored 15 points, Petyon Yasses scored 12, Kaden Cusmano 11, and Travis Wiedrich 10.
In other boys basketball:
In girls basketball:
Photos by Kristin Smith. For more, click here. For O-A JV, click here.
When folks get older and nostalgia sets in, one strong memory is of the pets they had when they were kids. Dogs and cats of course were the favorites, but rabbits, horses and even pigs were popular, too, especially in rural areas like Batavia.
People of a certain age (i.e.: elderly) might recall Richard Nixon's famous career-saving speech about his dog “Checkers.” Elvis Presley had an infamous monkey he called “Scatter” whose shenanigans were renowned among the singer's entourage. Later in the '90s the Clintons' cat “Socks” seemed to get as much media time as Bill and Hillary.
My family only had a few furry housemates as I was growing up.
My dad loved dogs and had a number of them when he was a young man, including a couple giant Saint Bernards. But my mom was reluctant. She had a traumatic memory of a family dog biting someone and being dispatched in a gruesome way so I think that limited our number.
But, I still recall our pets fondly and humorously for their companionship and animal antics.
Stupid is as Stupid Does
Before I turned 10 when we lived on Thomas Avenue we got a male cat. Because he was a dark gray color we named him “Smokey.” That moniker didn't last long though. My mother kept tripping over him as he plopped down wherever it suited him and you'd hear her exasperated cry of, “Move you stupid cat!” So, very quickly he became "Stupid."
Although he was mostly an outdoor cat, which normally doesn't bode well for the feline lifespan, Stupid stayed with us through two years on Ellicott Avenue and then moved to North Spruce Street, too.
He loved living at North Spruce because in the '50s and '60s our house was surrounded by woods. Woods that were full of mice, birds, moles, and were just generally akin to a giant cat grocery store. We would find carcasses of Stupid's dinners on our porches and patio.
As if he didn't have enough free grub at his literal disposal, for some reason my mother also fed him like a king. She'd send me to a grocery store (I think A&P) on the south side of Main Street between Liberty and Center streets to buy him fresh chicken kidneys, which she would then cook for him. Talk about spoiled.
Although mostly an outdoor cat, Stupid didn't care for cold weather and would grace us with his indoor presence in the winter. One time he was outside, but then we heard him crying at the basement door into the kitchen. When we opened the door, out he came.
“Hey, I thought the cat was outdoors,” my mom said. “How in the world did he get in the cellar?”
Upon investigation we found a broken basement window. Stupid had huge seven-toed front paws that looked like snowshoes and the only thing we could figure was that he batted on the window until it broke. We could never prove it, but the window wasn't broken before. How else could it happen?
Eventually, as sometimes happens with outdoor cats, Stupid disappeared. Whether something happened to him or he just took his aging self off to die in peace we never knew. I think at some point I considered making some kind of wooden marker in his memory, but etching R. I. P Stupid seemed... well... stupid.
Hare Today, Gone Tomorrow
When I was middle school to early high school age we briefly had a black and white rabbit. I do not recall where we got him or why.
His name was Herman and I'm unclear on why I called him that. Although I'm almost certain it wasn't for Hermann Göring, the head of the German Luftwaffe (Air Force) during World War II.
Herman's brief time with us was spent in a hutch outside the back door.
My job was to line his pen with straw, feed him, and clean out the bunny manure. His food was some kind of brown pellets, which to be honest looked about the same coming out as they did going in. We also gave him lettuce and other leafy vegetables. It was always a mystery to me how he could seemingly turn a pound of food into two pounds of poop.
Herman came to an inglorious end one winter night from unknown causes. I went to feed him in the morning and he was frozen stiff. I guess if we wrote an obituary, we could've said no bunny compared to him.
(Above, Skippy, Dave and Jim at Godfrey's Pond in the 1970s.)
Shaggy Dog Story
When I was in high school, one day my grandmother stopped by for a visit and she had a box with something covered up inside.
“I brought you a present,” she said with a big smile. When something moved in the box my mother had the opposite of a smile. “Uh oh,” she muttered.
"Skippy" the dog had arrived.
I don't remember specifics, but knowing my mother it must have taken a lot of begging and whining by my two younger brothers to get mom to say we could keep him. Being in high school I was (in my own mind) too cool to get excited about a dog. I had sports and girls to think about.
Skippy was a full-blown mutt. You really couldn't distinguish any breed that he was descended from and it would be fair to say that he wasn't going to be entered in any dog shows. To paraphrase an old saying, he was a dog that only his family could love.
Back in the '60s and '70s there were no leash laws. So Skippy (and just about every dog in Batavia) was free to roam around town. As he got older, and since he wasn't neutered, this resulted in some dicey situations.
As I have mentioned in some of my previous stories, I had two unmarried aunts who lived together in the longtime Reilly family home on Cedar Street. Sometimes when my brothers and I would walk there from North Spruce we'd take the dog along.
Well, I guess he enjoyed Aunt Kate's and Peg's company (or maybe they gave him treats) because we'd sometimes get a call saying he was lying on their porch.
That doesn't sound like a big deal until you realize he had to cross East Avenue, go through the Eastway Plaza parking lot, navigate East Main Street (routes 5 and 33) and go over the Erie Railroad tracks to get there.
My dad would go pick him up in the car and bring him home while we'd wonder how many close calls he had on his adventure.
Another of his favorite destinations was a farm somewhere to the east out off Clinton Street Road. We'd get a call from the irate farmer telling us that Skippy was out there, "…trying to get at his female dog.” Once again dad would have to go fetch him home, but also take scolding from the rightfully upset owner.
After a few of those incidents Skippy the randy canine had to be tied up for his own protection. We did wonder how many of his progeny were spread across Genesee County though.
Because for most of his life he was allowed to run free, Skippy often got into and ate things that weren't exactly approved by The American Kennel Club. This would result in trips to the veterinarian for intestinal disorders.
One time, perhaps to save us money on medication, the vet told mom to, “...give him a clove of garlic and that should clean him out.”
I don't recall if this treatment cured the dog but about two hours later we had to evacuate our house. If they had haz-mat teams back then I'm not sure even their sophisticated breathing apparatus would have been enough to handle the noxious fumes.
But, generally, Skippy was a good dog and after my brother Dan and I left for college and beyond he became dad's closest buddy. When the fateful day came and he had to be put down, my youngest brother Jim says that was one of the few times he ever saw dad cry.
At various times through adulthood I had a number of friendly cats and one beloved dog. But, it's still enjoyable from time to time to think back on those pets we had in our childhood.
Top photo: Dave Reilly in 2014 with his pal Deuce.
Below: James Reilly Sr. in 1939 -- a young man with his best friend.
Photos courtesy of Dave Reilly.
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