Pavilion teen Carson Tyler has been a longtime animal lover. With three dogs at home and a penchant for trail-riding horses with her mom, when she came into a little money, her decision about what to do with it was an easy one.

She opted to donate a check of $1,000, which she won as Gatorade’s Best Player of the Year for her volleyball prowess, to Purple Pony Therapeutic Horsemanship in Le Roy.

Savanah Freeman, a Le Roy High School senior, needed to complete 15 hours of community service for graduation and contacted me as Le Roy Municipal Historian with an idea.  

Savannah had painted store windows in Batavia and thought that maybe she could paint some windows in Le Roy.  

I suggested that Savanah work on some ideas about the solar eclipse that could be put in the front windows of the Le Roy Town Hall.   

Savannah showed me some of her artwork and immediately I knew that Savannah had the talent to design some unique murals, but wondered whether there was enough time to get them completed in time.  

Savannah had never worked on anything that big, but she was excited about the prospect.  

We decided it would be best for Savannah to paint the murals on huge pieces of paper so she could work on them at home.  

In two weeks, Savannah completed two large murals. One was a brightly colored mural with the Le Roy Village Hall on one side, and the other was a black-and-white image of the solar eclipse barn on the Fort Hill Farm on Route 19.  

Savannah says these murals are the biggest pieces of art she has ever done, but she has enjoyed the challenge of working on something new. She only wished that she had had more time so she could have added more detail. 

Savannah worked on the designs and sketched them out on paper, and then she called for some help from her friend Ariana Dinehart to do some of the painting.  

Both girls said they learned a lot about Le Roy history, especially about the Village Hall which is a focal point of the large color mural.  

The girls are best friends and attended school in Rochester before moving to Le Roy in August.  They said that the move to Le Roy has been the best thing that has happened to them. 

“Everyone in Le Roy — the teachers and the other students — have been so wonderful,” Savannah said.

Savannah, who is related to the Lathan family, points out that her family has “been here forever.” 

Savannah says that her mother has had the biggest influence on her art.  

“She has done every form of art in some way or another, and she has shown me that I can make a career out of something I love to do,“ Savannah said.

On Thursday, Savannah’s two murals were put up in the Town Hall windows. Almost immediately, folks gathered outside to take a look at the unique murals. They will be on display until the end of April.

Then they might be included in the school’s art show. Savannah says, “I definitely would love them to go somewhere where they won’t collect dust.”

Will Savannah watch the eclipse? 

“I am really stoked to see the eclipse,” she said “I don’t plan on going anywhere just because of how many people are coming to see it, but I will definitely be hoping for no clouds so I can sit in my backyard and watch.” 

While working as manager of Stafford Country Club a year and a half ago, Lynn Garlock first heard that the Pennysaver in Le Roy was being sold, and she and husband Scott shared their interest as prospective proprietors.

Owned by David and Danette Grayson for over 40 years, the weekly publication and printing company LP Graphics appealed to the Garlock couple and their son Tommy. However, that idea didn’t go anywhere for the next several months until the topic came back around in December of 2023, Scott said.

“So we just kind of put it on the back burner, like, we'll see. And it went a solid year because it kind of got to where we kind of forgot about it until this past December. I found out by accident that they were going to be more than likely shutting down. So I called David and said, Hey, if you want to talk, we'll talk again ...

Former Genesee County attorney James M. Wujcik died Wednesday evening unexpectedly, according to Falcone Family Funeral & Cremation Service’s online tribute archive.

Wujcik was 48 and lived in Le Roy. He had served as the county attorney from 2022 through 2023. 

A complete obituary has not yet been posted.

Le Roy's Lynne Belluscio said these pink flamingos arrived in her yard this morning. She sent along this note:

The flamboyance arrived early this morning in LeRoy.  They were able to navigate through the trees and landed in Lynne Belluscio’s front yard. Their annual arrival on April 1 is always a pink letter day.  Lynne noticed that they were wearing solar eclipse glasses for next Monday.  Lynne is preparing some shrimp for them and has shown them the two chimneys on her house, which are possible nesting sites, although they will probably fly to Oatka Creek.  

Le Roy flamingos are identified by their habit of standing on one leg because the Oatka Creek is so cold. Lynne also shared with The Batavian that she understands that Placido Flamingo will join Genny the cow and the other barnyard animals featured in the book "Genny Sees the Eclipse" to ensure everyone wears protective glasses during the eclipse next week.   

Which reminds us of this poem by Kay Ryan (April, after all, besides being the cruelest month, is also National Poetry Month: Flamingo Watching
 

The Le Roy High School members of the Byron-Bergen/Le Roy Swimming and Diving Team were honored at Tuesday's Le Roy Central School District Board of Education meeting for their Section V Class C championship.

The team went 10-1 on the season. 

Coach Sara Stockwell said that accomplishment is all the more notable because the team didn't have its own pool for training this season. The Byron-Bergen pool is undergoing renovations.  The team practiced in Chili.

"Ten and one is a huge improvement over last year and the year before," Stockwell said. "They were 2-10, so it's a major improvement. We were the Genesee Regional League champions, and we won the Genesee Region League meet championship, so they won the meet and the league. 

She said, "Our kids swam phenomenally all season."

Genesee County was well represented in Rochester on Saturday for the 39th annual Ronald McDonald House Charity Basketball Games.

What the first responders from Le Roy Fire actually found: A metal fire ring with some wood smoldering it, surrounded by snow, about 75 feet from a structure.

Botts-Fiorito Post #576, American Legion will observe the National Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Day Ceremony on Friday, March 29. The ceremony will begin at 5 p.m. at the Post #576 Veteran’s Memorial Park (flagpole), 53 West Main Street, Le Roy.

As part of the ceremony, we will again remember the memory of three area servicemen who gave the ultimate sacrifice:

• Gary Scott
• Harry VanAlst
• George Fry

After a brief program, all are invited to the Post for coffee and refreshments.

About the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Day:

• On March 29, Americans will come together to commemorate the service and sacrifices made by the nearly 3 million service members who served in Vietnam.
• In 2012, President Barack Obama signed a presidential proclamation, designating March 29 as the annual observance of Vietnam War Veterans Day The signing of the proclamation marked the 50th anniversary of the departure of the last American troops from Vietnam - March 29, 1973. 
• Only U.S. embassy personnel and support staff remained in South Vietnam until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975 More than 58,000 Americans were killed and many thousands more were wounded and injured or determined to be missing.

Jordan Brodie faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison because of a prior child pornography conviction.

According to a statement by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi, Brodie was using a chat application along with others who traded child pornography in May 2023, and Brodie uploaded at least one image to a different social media platform.  That upload was reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The State Police conducted an investigation and determined that the alleged upload took place from Brodie's home in Le Roy. 

A warrant was issued, and investigators seized Brodie's phone and the contents of a social media site. Authorities say they discovered images of child pornography involving children less than 12 years old.

At the time, Broadie was under the supervision of the Genesee County Probation Department following a child pornography conviction in May 2021.

Brodie was arraigned today in U.S. District Court and ordered held in custody.

The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the New York State Police, Lyons, under the direction of Major Miklos Szoczei II, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia.