news

Wings Over Batavia Air Show organizers soared one last time for the season to serve up more than $11,000 to local service organizations for their volunteer efforts during the event’s two-day activities at Genesee County Airport this past Labor Day weekend.

Event co-chairs Pete and Doreen Zeliff distributed $11,032.86 in proceeds to the following agencies for providing volunteers to help with parking, crowd control and food concession stands during the holiday weekend:

• Genesee County ACORNS (Association for the Conservation of Recreational and Natural Spaces)
• Batavia Lions Club
• Batavia Ramparts
• Crossroads House
• Elba Class of 2024
• Friends of the Rink
• Genesee County Spartans
• GO-Art!
• Rotary Club of Batavia
• Boy Scouts
• YWCA of Genesee County

The Zeliffs hosted the agencies recently at Eli Fish in Batavia for some food and drink, and the monetary award distributions, and to thank them for their assistance during the newly resurrected, inaugural 2023 air show.

Photos by Howard Owens

Press Release:

The 38th Health and Humanitarian Award of Genesee County will be presented to Robert and Mary Ellen Zickl of Batavia on Friday, December 1, at an awards luncheon at noon at Terry Hills Restaurant. The award presented by The Jerome Foundation recognizes volunteer men and women of Genesee County who have helped promote emotional, physical and spiritual well-being of the area’s residents.

Nominations reflected “ordinary people who reach far beyond themselves to the lives of those in need, bringing hope, care, and friendship, and helping build a stronger, healthier community.” In naming Mr. and Mrs. Zickl for this year’s award, The Jerome Foundation will recognize them for their many humanitarian and volunteer efforts. 

The Zickls were nominated by Mrs. Karen Green, Principal of St. Joseph’s School. She notes, “Bob and Mary Ellen have opened their home to countless children over the years, whether it be a short stay or a long one. The loving, compassionate and safe home that they provide has lasting memories and effects on all those who are familiar with them. In two instances in particular, they opened their home to children who
were not their own, but who were treated as members of their family, with much love and support during particularly challenging times. I know they will forever consider the Zickl home to be their own.”

Both Bob and Mary Ellen have given countless hours of volunteer time to St. Joseph School and Notre Dame High School. Bob currently serves on the ND Board of Directors and St. Joseph School Board. He volunteers on the sidelines coaching ND football, as well as organizing and supervising athletes in the weight room, always promoting good fitness and healthy choices. 

Mary Ellen is Foundress of All Babies Cherished and currently is involved in the Rosary Society at Ascension Parish, chairing several committees. Both Bob and Mary Ellen are Ascension Church lectors.

Bob Zickl is an Assistant District Attorney for Genesee County. Mary Ellen is a retired Special Education Teacher. They have five children and reside in the City of Batavia.

The Health and Humanitarian Award luncheon is open to the public. Tickets are $30 and may be purchased by mailing a check to The Jerome Foundation, PO Box 249, Batavia, New York 14021. For information call Chris Fix at 356-3419 or by email to thejeromefoundation@gmail.com. Seating will be limited and reservations are encouraged by Nov. 24. 

Press Release:

Janet Green, a seasoned LPN instructor for the Adult Education Nursing Program at Genesee Valley (GV) BOCES, is a pillar of both knowledge and compassion in the medical field. With a decade of dedication to GV BOCES and an extensive background in nursing, Green's career is a testament to her unwavering commitment to healthcare.

Before transitioning to teaching, Green spent an impressive 35 years at UR Medicine Noyes Health in Dansville, where she worked in the maternity ward and the emergency department. The wealth of experience she gained there laid the foundation for her role as an instructor, where she imparts her wisdom to aspiring nurses.

For an astounding 33 years, Green has devoted her summers volunteering at the Genesee Valley Rotary Camp, which provides a free, week-long overnight camping experience for children aged 8 to 21 with special needs. What started as a friend's invitation to assist as a camp nurse in 1990 became a lifelong commitment for Green.

By 1995, she had assumed the role of health director for the camp, overseeing the well-being of the campers throughout the week. 

With a team of dedicated individuals, Green ensures that the campers, ranging from those in wheelchairs to those requiring tube feeding, experience a week filled with various activities every summer. From swimming and archery to music and adaptive physical education, the camp offers a range of opportunities for the children to explore
and enjoy. 

"We have a motto," Green said. "If you knew where and when a miracle was going to take place, wouldn't you want to be there? Every single year we see that.” 

Recognizing the importance of practical experience, she encourages her LPN students to volunteer at the summer camp. This camp holds a special place in Green's heart. For Green, the camp is not just a volunteer opportunity; it's a chance to make a difference in the lives of these children.

"My favorite part is the kids. I love the kids; they're my kids," she said with a warmth that reflects the genuine connection she forms with each camper. 

Green's dedication to the camp goes beyond her individual efforts; she transforms volunteering into a family affair. Her husband, son, daughter-in-law, and even her grandchildren, all join in the noble cause, contributing their time and skills to create a memorable experience for the campers.

Green continues to convey her nursing knowledge to future healthcare professionals during the academic year. She eagerly awaits the summers, knowing that amidst the trees and laughter of the Genesee Valley Rotary Camp. Green believes that miracles are bound to happen, and she wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

The Genesee Valley Rotary Camp, located in Portageville relies on fundraisers and donations to operate. The Rotary Clubs in Genesee Valley sponsor the children and support from other community organizations and members is welcomed. For more information contact info@gvrc.org.

Given the ample time and 80-plus page report he had to work from, consultant Rick Hauser wasn’t short on words in a study on Brisbane Mansion. However, three words seemed to capture it best.

“It’s a gem,” he said Monday during a presentation to City Council.  “I love the history of this building, it’s a 107-year-old building. So for starters, that's impressive. 

“It’s at a key location in your community,” he said. “One thing’s clear is that Brisbane Mansion is not being put to its best use.”

Hauser, a partner of Inside Architecture in Perry who has conducted a reuse analysis on the Main Street structure, otherwise known as the current city police station, reviewed the site from top to bottom. 

After reviewing and calculating existing floor plans, construction cost estimates, various options, forensic building timelines, potential grant and other financial incentives, a zoning map, photographs, a condition assessment, and design challenge considerations, Hauser and fellow designer Larissa Reynolds presented what they believed were the two most viable options.

One option is to carve out 11 market-rate apartments, with four two-bedroom and seven one-bedroom units on the first and second floors. All of them would be light-filled with an open kitchen, dining and living concept, comfortably-sized bedrooms and ample closet space, and they strive to maintain existing partitions, opening and architectural features as much as possible, he said. 

Preserving the historic integrity of the building is key, he said, as it is currently a contributing member of the historic district and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Maintaining historic integrity will be a principal selling point, he said.

The business plan includes utilizing grant funding which means renovation plans will be scrutinized as to whether they have an adverse impact not he remaining historic fabric and defining architectural features such as existing facades, structural elements, circulation paths, interior spatial layouts and finishes. 

The second option would be a 16-room boutique hotel containing seven micro units, three deluxe units and six deluxe suites to accommodate different needs and budgets while remaining unique and welcoming. 

“When we're thinking about what we're proposing for this building, we're really thinking about what the building wants to be. Because a lot of things are all set, the location of the building, centrally located to everything basically in Batavia, there is no other kind of lodging or hotels in the city core,” Reynolds said. “The history of it, the quirkiness of it, those are the key ingredients that really make a really nice boutique hotel. A boutique hotel that’s really well managed by someone that's gonna love and showcase the history and the elements of it.”

The most challenging task for these options was to work within multiple “levels within levels” by various additions and renovations done to the building at varying stages and time periods.

Who’s going to want to come in and develop an old mansion-turned-police station? Any number of people, apparently. It’s a tempting opportunity, Hauser said, because of its age: the property qualifies for historic preservation tax credits, which can be very attractive to developers and help provide key capital up front, especially if syndicated, he said. 

New York State is also rich in funding sources, including grants such as Restore NY and Downtown Revitalization Initiative funds, he said. 

What would this all cost a prospective developer? An estimated $3.5 million to $4 million, he said, with revenue for high-end apartments reaping $164,000 a year. 

Councilman John Canale asked if any developers have expressed interest in the site at this point, and City Manager Rachael Tabelski said yes, that Batavia Development Corp. Director Tammy Hathaway has taken a few prospective developers on tours of the property.

Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr., a retired city police lieutenant, knows the building well and looks forward to its next life, he said.

“I love that old historic building. The public should be aware that we're definitely trying to repurpose it,” he said. “And at no time, we haven't even begun to discuss anything other than keeping the building there and repurposing it into something that is hopefully gonna get on the tax roll.”

The process will most likely involve a request for proposals once the city is ready to move forward, Tabelski said, and the police department has its new home at Alva Place and Bank Street.

It was an old show that made for quirky and funny scenarios, but Night Court is a newly organized and costly theme being played out in Genesee County. 

District Attorney Kevin Finnell shared with cou

nty legislators Monday how his slate of assistant district attorneys will answer the call and provide due justice for the county, no matter the time of day or evening. 

“It’s a CAP Court arraignment, so, during the call, they'll do any arraignment for any jurisdiction. And then our system is set up so that they will fill out a memorandum and hand it to the responsible attorney the next day together with a copy from the file,” Finnell said, answering a question about how long CAP Court lasts. “It’s supposed to be from 7:30 to 9-9:30, but I'm told, I've talked to some of the judges that they are sometimes there well past that, including up to 11 o'clock. It depends on how arraignments are scheduled and depends on the judge because some are able to process faster than others, until the work is done.”

Judges used to handle arraignments in their own municipalities until New York State more recently put CAP — Centralized Arraignment Part — Court into play, which means that judges and attorneys rotate shifts during after-hours and meet at one primary court, in this case, often at the new Courts Facility in Batavia. 

Finnell’s staff is scheduled to provide the public with representation during arraignment even when it happens past the end of the typical work day. His staff will be on a rotating, on-call schedule to take those arraignments and represent the people for cases throughout the county, but at a centralized location, and also at the new arraignment room being built as part of the new county jail facility.

A legislator asked about charges that happened during Darien Lake concerts. 

“My understanding is a lot of the Darien Lake charges are a violation of local councils, which wouldn't even make it to CAP Court, but it would certainly, if there's arrests made anywhere in the county, including Darien Lake after business hours, they're going to be part of the CAP agreement,” Finnell said. “If they’re misdemeanors, they're likely going to be appearance tickets, if they're a nonviolent felony, same thing, appearance tickets.

“We’ve tried to do it remotely. We've encouraged law enforcement to call us during the night so we can convey our recommendations,” he said. “But they're not getting to the judges in the proper way, I’ll say, in the way we like them heard, and so I think this is going to help us tremendously.”

County Manager Matt Landers proposed a salary schedule amendment to create a stipend for six of the attorneys in the DA’s office for the purpose of “arriving, showing up and participating in nighttime CAP Court and going to the new arraignment room at the new county jail. 

The funds have been budgeted for the 2024 budget for this allocation, Landers said. 

“And this was something that was requested by local law enforcement. And something that I think is overdue,” he said. “And we worked through Kevin to make sure that it was a fair, compensation to be in line with what the assistant public defenders do by writing at the same court.”

Finnell’s staff is mostly from this area, with only two exceptions, one person lives in Livingston County and the other in Greece, so they may take longer to get to court during their on-call shifts. 

“That’s why I asked how long it’s going to take them, but he said only two lived out of town, and really, it’s about a half hour away, so that’s not too bad,” Legislator Marianne Clattenburg said. “But then if somebody gets arrested in the middle of the night, they’re arraigned in the morning at the City Court, under the CAP Court. So it’s a new kind of way that the courts are really working. And it’s a new dynamic of having public defenders at arraignments at all times, and we need that balance.”

“Everything has changed so much over the last, even five years,” she said.

CAP Court stemmed from the Hurrell-Harring Court of Appeals decision of 2010-11 that granted access to defense counsel at arraignment as a fundamental right. To fulfill this legal requirement, New York Executive Law 832(4)(a) required the New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services to “develop and implement a written plan to ensure that each criminal defendant who is eligible for publicly funded legal representation is represented by counsel in person at his or her arraignment.” The eventual plan was unveiled in 2017 and was to be first implemented by April 2023. 

On Monday, the Public Service Committee approved the county’s plan of additional compensation of $15,000 each annually for night appearances of the six assistant district attorneys at $576.92 per pay period effective Nov. 20, to be prorated at $11,180 for each of the six in 2023.

The committee also approved a 3 percent increase in prosecutorial services effective Jan. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2026, taking the rate from $68,917 in 2024 to $70,985 in 2025 and $73,115 in 2026.

Both measures will go to the county Legislature for a final vote. 

Press Release:

Please be advised that Rochester Pipeline, Inc. will be mobilizing equipment in preparation for construction on the Bank Street Water project within the City of Batavia. 

Construction on this project is scheduled to begin the week of Nov. 13 and will include the installation of 932 linear feet of new 8-inch water main and appurtenances to replace the existing 4-inch and 6-inch water mains along Bank Street (East Main Street to Washington Street).

Traffic delays are to be expected; however, no street closures are anticipated at this time.

We apologize for any inconvenience, and thank the public for their patience and cooperation as we work to improve our community.

Batavia resident Jason Smith provided these photos of geese on a pond along Ellicott Trail, taken during his Sunday morning walk.

Press Release:

Graham Corporation ("Graham” or the “Company”), a global leader in the design and manufacture of mission critical fluid, power, heat transfer and vacuum technologies for the defense, space, energy, and process industries, announced today that it has acquired P3 Technologies, LLC (“P3”), a custom turbomachinery engineering, product development and manufacturing business for the space, new energy and medical markets.

Based in Jupiter, Florida, P3 has established a strong reputation in the development of state-of-the-art rotating machinery including pumps, compressors, and turbines and are specialists in high-speed rotors and cryogenic pumps. With an experienced team of highly skilled gas-turbine engineers, P3’s development process results in innovative solutions to complex technical challenges.

Daniel J. Thoren, President and CEO, commented, “This is an excellent demonstration of the acquisition element of our growth strategy. P3 is an ideal bolt on business and brings highly complementary technology that enhances and expands our turbomachinery solutions. Our Barber Nichols’ team will provide the experience and know-how for addressing the anticipated rapid growth to support P3’s growing backlog and its funnel of opportunities. Importantly, P3 also is bringing unique intellectual property that we believe we can leverage to expand the market potential of the business. We are excited about our future opportunities and welcome P3 to the Graham team.”

High Value Add Technology

P3 has a strong intellectual property portfolio including the patented Multi-Channel Diffuser (“MCD”) and Self-Contained Actuating Magnetic Pump (“SCAMP”). These products provide a product family platform that can be leveraged across many applications and industries.

The MCD is revolutionary diffuser technology that improves the efficiency of pumps and compressors by increasing pressure recovery up to 20% and measurably increasing operating range. The MCD can be used in new designs or retrofit applications and can work with any pump or compressor that utilizes a centrifugal impeller.

SCAMP is a family of positive displacement pumps for low flow, high pressure cryogenic applications compatible with oxygen, hydrogen, methane and nitrogen.

P3 also has developed a family of turbopumps ranging in thrust from 5 thousand to 200 thousand pounds. The turbopumps are designed using state-of-the-art flow path design enabled by additive manufacturing to provide higher performance at competitive prices.

In addition, P3 has created robust turbomachinery development tools which enable efficient design iteration cycles reducing lead times to product launches for customers.

Solid Financial Performance; Transaction Terms 

P3’s annual revenue is expected to be approximately $6.0 million in fiscal 2023 with gross and adjusted EBITDA margins that are consistent with Graham’s fiscal 2027 goal of low- to mid-teen adjusted EBITDA margins. Backlog at October 31, 2023 was approximately $8 million. We believe P3 has a pipeline with significant upside potential.

A stock and cash transaction, P3 was acquired from its sole owner who, along with P3’s leadership team, will remain with the Company. The acquisition price has not been disclosed at this time. However, the stock element of the purchase price is valued at $2 million and the number of shares of Company’s common stock issued as part thereof was determined using a stock price of $15.92, which represents the average closing price for the Company’s common stock for the 10 trading days ending on November 3, 2023.

Accompanying Slides

Graham has posted slides that accompany this release on its investor relations website.

Press Release: 

We are pleased to announce that Holly Sharpe, a graduate of the LG Class of 2004, has been named Outstanding Alumnus 2023. Chris White ’06 and Jocelyn Sikorski ’07 nominated Holly sharing, “Holly has been a cheerleader and ambassador for Leadership Genesee in many capacities over the past 19 years and has volunteered for LG even before she was a member, helping with the group’s Outdoor Leadership Challenge.”

Holly shares, “As a lifelong community member, I thought I knew much of what happens in Genesee County and was surprised to see and hear there is much more than most people know or realize. I want to help others learn and experience this amazing program.” 

Holly served on LG’s Steering Committee for two terms, 2016-2022, serving as Co-Chair from 2020-2021. Leadership Genesee director, Peggy Marone LG ’02 shares, “Holly has been a close friend and advocate for all things community and Leadership Genesee. She has taught me a great deal about being an effective facilitator to find ways to help others grow in their abilities and confidence. That’s what leadership is all about and that is who Holly is.” She continues to facilitate LG’s Outdoor Leadership Challenge each year, one of the most impactful sessions in the year-long curriculum.

Holly has been a very active alumnus volunteering for LG, attending events and continued educational opportunities, as well as financially supporting the organization through alumni dues and donations. “I have not only learned and become more educated and aware of our community, but I have also made new connections and lifelong friendships,” said Holly.

Holly served on the CCE Board of Directors and the MHA Board of Directors, co-chairing their golf tournament. She served as a United Way Campaign Loan Executive and a City of Batavia School District volunteer. Professionally, Holly worked for the Genesee County YMCA as a fitness director and Associate Executive Director. During her tenure with the YMCA, she was recognized as a trainer of trainers for the YUSA.

Holly has her own training studio, Sharpe Training, LLC. She is a recognized and respected trainer traveling internationally for FitBodies, Inc. Group Exercise. 

When asked what Leadership Genesee means to her and what she’d say to someone interested in the program, her answer was simple, “Leadership Genesee means community, collaboration, connection, learning, and a valuable resource. Run, don’t walk, and apply, you will have zero regrets!” 

LG Director Marone is thrilled that she is being given the Outstanding Alumnus Award. “This award signifies someone who has worked not only to strengthen Leadership Genesee but who serves Genesee County generously as a true servant leader, a wonderful mentor for all of us.” 

Holly will be honored at the LG graduation on Thursday, Nov. 30 at Terry Hills. 

The Outstanding Alumnus Award is sponsored by Skip Helfrich of Human Energies.  Leadership Genesee is a program of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County, an employer and educator recognized for valuing AA/EEO, Protected Veterans, and Individuals with Disabilities and provides equal program and employment opportunities. For more information about Leadership Genesee, please visit our website at http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/leadership-genesee.

A 74-year-old Stafford resident was struck and killed by a 2010 GMS Sierra on Thursday on Route 5 in the Town of Stafford, according to State Police.

James R. Ehmann was getting his mail at the time he was struck, according to the report.

The Sierra was traveling westbound and entered the turn lane at Batavia Stafford Townline Road when it struck Ehmann.

Paramedics attempted life-saving measures and Ehmann was transported to United Memorial Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The 52-year-old driver, who was not identified by State Police, is suspected of impairment or distracted driving.

The NYSP Collision Reconstruction Unit and Bureau of Criminal Investigation assisted in this investigation.

For two longstanding, reputable businesses, even though they had been competitors, their futures were heading toward an intersection that both sides eventually knew was coming.

Business trends, staffing needs, customer spending habits and the pandemic all played a role in merging their paths.

“The big thing is that Gilmartin, and Marley's, and Eaton Watson have always had a stellar reputation in the communities that they serve. And we felt as if we did, too, or do, and from all parties’ standpoint, it seemed to make sense. The funeral business is not unlike any other industry. We're facing just immense staffing problems. And our staff are harder to come by because you have to be licensed. And that's not an easy process for folks.

And both of us recognized… that a staffing problem was imminent, and so that, coupled with the changing societal views of funeral services — people going more towards cremation and less towards casket burial — it just started to make sense that each side needed to do something in order to remain,” Steven Johnson said in an interview with The Batavian about H.E. Turner’s deal to buy Gilmartin Funeral Home & Cremation Company Inc. 

It wasn’t about a risk of going out of business, he said, “because that is certainly not the case.” But, rather, it was a desire of both Batavia-based businesses to “secure the legacies of all of our founders well into the future,” he said.

Turner, the oldest continuously operator-owned business in Genesee County, Johnson said, was founded in January 1910. Owners Johnson, Justin Calarco-Smith and Joshua Smith and Gilmartin owner T.J. Woodward completed the deal on Aug. 14, although perhaps no one’s the wiser because not much on the surface is changing, aside from some managerial details. 

Timothy “T.J.” Woodward, owner of Gilmartin at 329 West Main St., Batavia, said it was still a bit raw to talk about, as it was “a very, very difficult decision” to make. 

“It was a super emotional decision. My grandpa started the funeral home,” he said.

His grandfather, the late Darwin Gilmartin, founded the home in 1955. Timothy D. Woodward, T.J.’s dad, bought the business in 1986, and T.J., in turn, purchased it in 2011, which is when he also bought Eaton-Watson from his dad. The third-generation funeral director purchased Marley Funeral Home in Attica two years later. 

He began in the business at 19, and it has been the majority of his life. This decision seems about “10 to 15 years earlier than I had wanted,” he said.

“But I think it was inevitable one way or another, I think that they were either going to buy me out, or I was gonna buy them out at some point. So I think it was inevitable,” Woodward said. “I looked at the opportunity that I had in front of me and thought that it was best for myself and my family. And that's the direction I decided to go.”

Customers have been informed, and all of the prior licensed funeral directors will remain in place, including Turner’s other acquisitions of Marley Funeral Home and Eaton-Watson. That means that T.J. Woodward will still be at Gilmartin, Tom Bush will remain at Eaton-Watson and Zachary Curtis, a funeral director at Turner, will be managing the day-to-day operations of Marley and “taking that off T.J.’s plate,” Johnson said.

“We’re looking at this as a merger and sharing key staff. Each funeral home has to be managed by a different director. We have eight full-time licensed funeral directors. So I think what the public should know is that the service and the attention to detail that they have come to expect from each of the respective firms will not change. All of the people that they know and have come to trust and have friendships with throughout the years are still here,” Johnson said. “The only things that are changing are some sharing of staff. And some behind-the-scenes managerial things that no one would ever know about if we didn't say anything.

“So, we're not jacking prices, we're not playing any games, we're gonna continue to do things the way that we have always done them,” he said. “Both firms have enjoyed an extremely good reputation locally, in the Greater Western New York area, and in the state. We're active in the state and the national associations. T.J., Justin, Josh, Zach and I are not going anywhere.”   

Turner also employs three part-time licensed funeral directors and has one state-registered resident intern pursuing a license, plus unlicensed staff that assists with directing funerals, taking first calls, and performing housekeeping and maintenance duties.

Turner owns all of the eight properties, and the company, though a competitor with Gilmartin for decades, has always been on friendly terms, Johnson said. There just came a point about a year ago when both funeral home owners began to discuss options about Turner purchasing all three of Gilmartin’s funeral homes, Johnson and Woodward said.

Johnson stepped into the business in January 2011 and has been a part-owner since 2020, with an accumulated 20 years in the funeral business. One factor that really played a role in changing the industry was the pandemic shutdown and social distancing requirements, he said.

“I think there's always going to be people who want to bury, and I think there's always going to be people who want to cremate. But I don't ever see it going back closer to 50/50 like it was. We're closer to 65 percent cremation right now. And honestly, COVID very much exacerbated that. I mean, it dramatically increased after COVID. A huge part of that was that people couldn't have services,” Johnson said. “I do think that people still see a value in having a funeral or a celebration of life of some sort. I think that people still see value in viewing their loved ones. I do see the business changing or continuing to adapt or evolve.

'Funerals are not something that funeral directors invented as a way to make money. People want to have funerals. I mean, what we're looking for is for somebody to stand in the front of our family and friends and say something nice about the person that died. That's all we're looking for. And, you know, that's what we do. We facilitate that. And no matter what happens, the grief process doesn't end; it doesn't change. There's no way around it. The only way to get through grief is to go through it. And a funeral director’s job, truthfully, is to help facilitate healthy grief by having viewings and funerals, and ceremony of some sort.” 

He wants to assure those folks who have prepaid with any of the funeral homes that all of it remains safe and secure. “We are honoring any pre-arrangement,” he said. 

A little H.E. Turner history
This story, according to the company's website, begins in January of 1910, when Harry Ernest Turner, a native of Clarendon, and Harry D. Bartlett of Holley bought the Williamson Furniture and Undertaking Store. 

The furniture and funeral combination wasn’t unusual at the time. Historians believe early furniture stores carried coffins and other funeral accessories, which made them a natural link to the funeral business.

Turner, who worked ten years in a furniture store in Holley before purchasing the Batavia store, published a weekly newspaper, The Holley Standard, as a sideline. Bartlett served as Orleans County Clerk in the early 1900s, and the pair also had a joint interest in stores in Byron and Holley, which they sold a few years after they came to Batavia. 

H.E. Turner & Co. was operated at 111 Main St., the former Newberry Building, until 1921, when it was moved to the Cary Mansion at 211 East Main St. Fourteen years later, the firm moved to the Bean Mansion at 403 East Main St., where it remains today.

Harry Turner served as president until his death on January 30, 1949, when James B. McCulley and Harold J. Bishop took over. The furniture line was gone by the time Bishop assumed sole ownership of the business following McCulley’s death in 1953. 

Bishop continued the business with the help of new associates, Harold Kruger and Edward Canty, for a dozen years preceding his own death in 1965, at which time Canty became president of the funeral home. He and Kruger carried on the Turner tradition with the help of Amos Grefrath and George Patterson.

Mr. Canty retired in 1972, at which time Patterson took over as president. Kruger retired in 1975. Patterson died in December of 1976, and management became the responsibility of James F. Smith, Amos Grefrath and Ed Canty’s nephew, James Canty. 

Jim Smith worked at the former C.W. Bohm Mortuary before he came to Turner’s. He became president of the firm in 1977.

As the business grew, so did Smith’s desire to continue the Turner tradition of fine service to the community. He opened the funeral home in Bergen in July of 1988. 

Amos retired in 1986. Jim Canty retired in 1992, leaving Jim Smith the sole owner of the funeral home. 

In October 2012, Mr. Smith transferred ownership of the firm to his two sons, Justin D. Calarco-Smith, and Joshua J. Smith, along with his longtime trusted friend and employee, Randy W. McIntire. Jim Smith died on Aug. 9, 2023. 

In April of 2020, Randy W. McIntire transferred his interest in the firm to Steven L. Johnson, who has been with the firm since January 2011. Together the staff has more than 115 years of funeral service experience.

Marley Funeral Home was founded in 1921 by Ervin J. Marley as E.J. Marley Furniture & Undertaking. In 1949 Richard O. Merle and his wife, Alice, purchased the firm. David M. Sokol began working there in 1973 and together with his wife, Beth they purchased the firm in 1991. Dave sold to Gilmartin Funeral Home in 2012.

Eaton-Watson Funeral Home was founded on Lake Street in Perry by Stan Eaton prior to WW II. The firm was sold to Russ Watson in the 1950s, followed by Kathy Miller in the early to mid 1990s, who moved the firm to its North Main Street location in 1999. She sold the firm to Gilmartin Funeral Home in 2007. Tom Bush has been a funeral director at that funeral home since 2002 and the Managing Funeral Director since 2007.

Turner also owns Robinson and Hackemer Funeral Home in Warsaw, which it purchased three years ago.

Brian William Kennedy, 47, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny, possession of burglary tools, and conspiracy 6th. Kennedy is accused of entering Dick's Sporting Goods at 2:49 p.m. on Nov. 6 and removing the security tag from a coat. He then allegedly left the store without paying for the coat. He was located by deputies inside Walmart a short time later. In the initial report, there was a possible second subject involved in the case. No second arrest has been announced by the Sheriff's Office. The deputies handling the case are Chad Cummings, Jenna Ferrando, and Richard Schildwaster.

John J. Saddler, Jr., 36, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Saddler is accused of stealing a bag of commissary items from the Genesee County Jail on Nov. 6 at 5:49 p.m. during commissary distribution. Saddler was issued an appearance ticket.

Sylvan Parker Grayson, 34, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with obstructing governmental administration 2nd.  Grayson, an inmate at the Genesee County Jail, is accused of using shaving cream to obscure the view of a camera in the jail. He was arrested and returned to custody in the jail.

A Rochester resident has been accused of dealing drugs in Genesee County following a six-month-long investigation by the Local Drug Task Force into the possession, transportation, and sale of crack cocaine.

Alterique Day, 51, is charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, a Class B felony, and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, a Class B felony.

Day was taken into custody on Nov. 7 by deputies on a sealed grand jury indictment warrant issued by Genesee County Court. 

In late August, Day was accused of selling a quantity of fentanyl to an agent of the task force in the City of Batavia and taken into custody. He was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell and criminal possession of a weapon. He was initially held on bond but then released later in accordance with state bail laws.

On the new charges, he was arraigned in County Court and released on his own recognizance in accordance with state bail laws.

The task force was assisted by deputies, deputies from Livingston County, and the District Attorney's Office.

The Oakfield-Alabama Music Department presented its annual Cabaret night before a packed house in the school's auditorium.

The night's theme was 'Leave your troubles outside, with dozens of students performing solo or in ensembles.

Press Release:

The Zonta Club of Batavia-Genesee County has partnered with the Richmond Memorial Library to tackle Period Poverty in our community. On Wednesday, Nov. 1, members of the Zonta Club delivered $500 of menstruation products for the library's ‘Comfort Boxes’.

Richmond Memorial Library began providing these ‘Comfort Boxes’ in their restrooms to anyone in need of personal hygiene products. The Journal of Global Health Reports disclosed that two-thirds of the 16.9 million low-income women in the United States were unable to afford menstrual products in the past year, with half of this number having to choose between menstrual products or food. 

The Zonta Club of Batavia-Genesee County partnered last year with donations to the Community Closet and will donate further products to Community Action of Orleans and Genesee later this month.

Press Release:

The Jerome Foundation, a Batavia-based organization that receives, manages and distributes non-profit funds for health-related purposes, donated $150,000 to Rochester Regional Health’s United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC), and specifically its plans for a new, state-of-the-art Intensive Care Unit (ICU).  

The renovated ICU will triple in size and bring crucial medical care to patients who are often the sickest, most vulnerable, and most in need in Batavia and the surrounding communities. 

“Building a new, expanded and modern Intensive Care Unit is a priority project for United Memorial Medical Center, and another example of Rochester Regional Health’s unwavering commitment to the health and wellbeing of our rural residents.  It means in a time of crisis, our community can get lifesaving critical care right here at home, reducing the need for difficult trips to bigger cities,” said Dan Ireland, RRH President & Chief Operating Officer, Finger Lakes Rural Hospitals.  “We want to thank the Jerome Foundation for this generous donation, and for its continued support that allows us to provide world-class health care to our patients here in the Genesee County region.”

Over the years, the Jerome Foundation has supported several UMMC projects including the construction of a new Healthy Living Campus and new Radiology Department.

“The Jerome Foundation has a long history of supporting worthwhile organizations in our community and what can be more appropriate to our mission than continuing our financial assistance to United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC),” said Robert Balbick, The Jerome Foundation President.  “UMMC provides our community with invaluable professional medical services and its commitment to do so in the future in part depends upon contributions from our community. This $150,000 gift to UMMC is an investment in that future for every one of us in this community.”

The expanded ICU will triple in size from its current space and include:

• Ten private patient rooms with bathrooms
• One bed dedicated to pediatric patients
• Central nurses station, with workstations outside each room
• Cutting-edge technology in each room including integrated telemedicine and enhanced monitoring capabilities, and additional lift and transfer equipment in the rooms
• New ICU waiting room

UMMC is still completing all the future ICU’s design details and continues with its fundraising efforts. 

Press Release:

Join the Richmond Memorial Library on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 11 a.m. as Perry Ground shares “Re-Thinking Thanksgiving: A Native American Perspective on an American Holiday.” This program is free and open to all. Recommended for families with children in 4th grade or higher and all adults.

Much of what people ‘know’ about Thanksgiving is actually a blend of fiction, myth, and history that has become widely accepted as truth. But the events of what we call “the First Thanksgiving” are nothing like our traditions today.

The creation of this holiday has little to do with the feast that took place in 1621 between the Pilgrims and the Indians. Storyteller and Cultural Educator, Perry Ground will give an overview of this very misunderstood holiday.

The presentation will discuss the actual events of 1621, including the feast, and the relationship between English settlers at Plymouth and the Wampanoag, the Native people who inhabited the area. The concept of Thanksgiving held by many Native Americans will be emphasized through the presentation. Learn the true story and re-think Thanksgiving- a great educational opportunity for all ages.

Presenter Perry Ground is a Turtle Clan member of the Onondaga Nation of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy.  He has been telling stories for over 30 years as a means of educating people about the culture, beliefs, and history of the
Haudenosaunee. Perry learned many of the stories he shares from elders of Native American communities and feels that practicing and perpetuating the oral traditions of Native people is an important responsibility. 

Professionally, Perry has worked in several museums including The Children’s Museum of Houston, Sainte Marie among the Iroquois, and Ganondagan State Historic Site. He has shared stories at countless museums, libraries, classrooms, and festivals throughout the northeast and has guest lectured at numerous colleges. 

Perry is the former Project Director of the Native American Resource Center within the Rochester (NY) City School District and served as the Frederick H. Minett Professor at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for the 2021-22 academic year.

For more information about Perry Ground, visit https://talkingturtlestories.com/ Richmond Memorial Library is located at 19 Ross Street in the City of Batavia. For more about the library, visit batavialibrary.org.

A serious injury pedestrian and car accident is reported on Route 5 and Batavia Stafford Townline Road in Batavia.

Traffic is being shutdown at Prole Road and at Seven Springs Road.

Mercy Flight was on standby but has been canceled.

Town of Batavia Firee and Mercy EMS dispatched.

Looking at the short row of veterans seated at the front of the Frank Owens auditorium Thursday morning, one might come to a conclusion that Air Force veteran Lurando Mata had already realized: the pool is decreasing. 

Mata and the other servicemen attended the annual Veterans Day ceremony hosted by Batavia High School. With each passing year, especially for older veterans of World War II and others of decades ago, those who were in the military are no longer here to share their stories.

Mata has lost a couple of buddies to COVID, he said, and his circle of comrades is definitely “shrinking.” 

Yet he continues to attend the high school event, which this year included a talk by state Assemblyman Stephen Hawley, patriotic songs performed by the chorus, band and string groups, and recognition of veterans in the audience. 

For Mata, his reason was simple as to why he wanted to be there. 

“I’m involved in the community,” the 71-year-old said. “I volunteer for Crossroads and Care-a-van, we do events for people.”

As a Native American veteran — his tribe is based in Monterey, California — Mata has experienced hate and judgment, and he just keeps pressing on. He grew up in Washington State and was drafted while in college.

He served in the U.S. Army and in the Air Force Reserves during the Vietnam War, working first on helicopters and then on tanks in corrosion control. 

He was with about a half dozen others who were asked to stand when their signature song for the Armed Forces was played. 

High School Principal Jenni Wesp welcomed and introduced each segment of the program, seeming awestruck with emotion at one point.

“Wow, it’s giving you all the feels,” she said.

Rocco Pellegrino, who attends every year at the request of his two granddaughters and grandson, stood up during the Navy anthem.

“I come every year,” he said, putting his hand to his heart. “It hits right there. It’s very emotional.  It just brings you back, you know. When I was in the service, it takes me back to when my brother served in Vietnam, he was in the infantry, and it was very trying moments, you know. “

Pellegrino, who came to Batavia from Italy when he was 10, wasn’t certain whether today’s youth can fully appreciate what this day is all about.

“I don’t think the kids really understand what we went through,” he said. “A lot of us were drafted. Some of us volunteered. My brother came back from Vietnam, and he says, ‘Rocco, whatever you do, if you get drafted, join the Air Force or the Navy, and see if you could stay out of ‘Nam.”

He was drafted and joined the Navy. It was “the best thing I ever did,” he said, “like they say, it made a man out of you.”

He was based in San Diego and enrolled in dental technician school, where he had the threat of being sent to Vietnam hanging over his head if he flunked out. “They put the fear of God in you,” he said.

“So it was up to you to make it, and then I came here to the East Coast. I was aboard the ship the USS Puget Sound for a year and a half. That was a destroyer tender,” he said. 

It’s the stories of those like Pellegrino and Mata that are important, Hawley said. He encouraged audience members to thank family members who serve or have served and ask them about their experiences. 

“I’m sure many of you have grown up with family members, parents, grandparents, moms, dads, aunts, and uncles who served as well. I'd encourage you, when you go home later today, to take some time, to first thank them for their service and talk to them. And most importantly, in everyday life, but on Veterans Day especially, when you're talking to a veteran, listen to them, listen to what they have to say. Because, hopefully, they're speaking from their heart and from their minds,” Hawley said. “And we need to remember why we're able to assemble here today, free to exchange ideas and free to speak freedom of speech. So please thank a veteran for their service. Not only can their stories inspire us, but veterans also carry an incredible ability to work hard and to contribute to their community right here in Genesee County and right here in Batavia. 

“We have one of the largest populations of veterans in all of New York State. And we can see that hard-working, determined spirit out in our own backyards,” he said. “This is the thing that makes Veterans Day so special; it isn't just about remembering the past. It’s about recognizing the heroes that are around us today. And every day.”