News for the week of
April 4, 2004

In Features:

Behind the scenes at Pearce's annual musical
It's 4:45 p.m. and there's no one in the fellowship hall in the basement of Pearce Memorial Church in North Chili. The lights burn brightly though, and a storage closet gapes open, revealing countless robes, headscarves, and sandals. It's quiet but expectation hangs in the air like pre-thunderstorm humidity. more

Brockport Stetson Club's contract approved amidst board dispute
After working for more than one year without one, the Brockport police now have a signed contract. By a four to one vote, the village board approved the four year contract with the Stetson Club, which represents the Brockport police. Mayor Josephine Matela cast the dissenting vote. more

OPD officer decides to take off the badge
One of Ogden's police officers retired March 30. Officer Ken Olson has been with the Ogden Police Department for 20 years and said he feels the time has come to take off his badge. "My wife recently started a job with BOCES as a social worker; something she's always wanted to do. I told her I was going to spend some time at home now." more

Some Spencerport village roads
are diagnosed 'red' in maintenance plan
Spencerport village officials recently completed a comprehensive analysis of the 12.3 miles of pavement and streets, reviewing the condition of every mile of pavement in the village, proposed maintenance and upgrade needs and projected costs over the next 30 years to maintain and improve the streets for the future. more

Spencerport village residents will see increase in taxes
For fiscal year June 1, 2004 - May 31, 2005, Spencerport Village residents may be paying more in property taxes. The actual amount, if the budget is approved, works out to $ .37 per $1,000 of assessed value. This means that for a property, whether commercial or residential, assessed at $100,000 the owner would pay $37 more per year in property taxes. Receipts from property taxes account for only 20 percent of the overall budget. more

Wexler removed as Brockport vice mayor
Citing fundamental philosophical differences of opinions on key issues, Brockport's Mayor Josephine Matela released Mort Wexler from his position as vice mayor. Matela had originally appointed Wexler in a spirit of bipartisanship, she said. more

In Briefly:

Applicants sought for Hamlin Recreation Commission vacancy
The Hamlin Recreation Commission is currently accepting applications to fill a vacancy on its board. The commission consists of five town residents who volunteer their time reviewing and setting policy and procedures for the Recreation Department. more

Easter Egg Hunt April 10 at Northampton Park
SUNY College at Brockport's radio station 89.1 The Point is holding its 11th Annual Easter Egg Hunt, Saturday, April 10, at Monroe County Northampton Park Ski Hill on Route 31 in Brockport. The Easter Egg Hunt is for children up to 10 years of age. Registration begins at 10 a.m. and the hunt starts at 11 a.m. more

EPA hosts Holley meeting for Diaz neighbors
For more than four hours March 24, officials from the Environmental Protection Agency listened to concerns from Holley residents over their former neighbor, Diaz Chemical. EPA officials also offered updates about the clean-up efforts that are underway at the site. more

Holley Board of Education petitions due by April 16
Any person interested in running for one of the vacancies on the Holley Board of Education must submit the proper petition on or before Friday, April 16 by 5 p.m. Petitions are available in the District Office or by calling 638-6316. more

Kendall Board of Education petitions due by April 19
Any person interested in running for the vacancy on the Kendall Central School District Board of Education must submit the proper petition on or before April 19. Petitions are available in the Kendall District Office or by calling 659-2741. more

Land use seminar April 8
The third program in the Cornell Land Use and Community Development Seminar series will be held on Thursday, April 8 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Distance Education Center at Cornell Cooperative Extension Monroe County. more

In Schools:

Area high school classes plan reunions
The Spencerport High School class of 1965 has formed a reunion committee comprised of Jean (Wegman) Totten, Ron Reisinger, Jim Kent and Bill Bishop. They are trying to locate classmates. more

Brockport students advance to state competition
Three students who won at the Regional PTA Reflections competition in January advance to the state level for further judging. The National PTA program, Reflections, gives students in grades K-5 opportunities to express their creative talents through their own original works. more

Caribbean theme highlights SUNY Brockport spring events
Spring brings warm Caribbean breezes to SUNY College at Brockport with music by Rochester's own Urban Steel, the Department of Theatre's production of "Once on this Island," performances by the Department of Dance's Sankofa African Dance and Drum Ensemble, and "Works on Paper," an art exchange with Kingston, Jamaica's Edna Manley School. more

Holley inspires young inventors
Can a pencil sharpener be improved? Holley second-grader Shannon Kelly thinks so. She and her classmates created a pencil sharpener that's both quiet and mess-free by putting a piece of sandpaper in a small box. That's just one of the inventions the students in Chris Langelotti's class created during a special unit on inventors they just completed. more

Holley jumpers raise over $8,000 for American Heart Association
The Annual Jump Rope for Heart has become a tradition at Holley Elementary School. In its 19th year, the event has raised over $170,000 for the American Heart Association's research and programs. This year, 163 jumpers raised $8,038 by gathering pledges, then jumping rope in teams. more

Kendall Elementary collecting donations
of eyeglasses, hearing aids and bike helmets
Kendall Elementary School is again collecting eyeglasses and hearing aids for the Lions Club to distribute to needy people around the world. more

Kendall student places eighth is spelling bee
Kendall eighth-grader Claire Lustumbo was one of 20 students in Western New York to compete in the Buffalo News Spelling Bee on March 21 where she placed eighth. She first qualified for the honor when she won the Kendall Spelling Bee by spelling her final word, "patriarch," correctly. more

McQuaid Jesuit students to square off in final round of mock trials
McQuaid Jesuit's mock trail team captured for the first time in the school's history the local round in the stateside mock trial competition on March 11. This win qualifies the team to participate in the regional tournament in April, and if successful, the team will advance to the statewide finals, with six teams meeting in Albany in May. more

Roberts Wesleyan SIFE Team wins
regional competition, heads to Kansas City
The Roberts Wesleyan College chapter of Students in Free Enterprise (RWC-SIFE) won a trip to nationals at the 2004 SIFE Regional Competition and Career Opportunity Fair. RWC-SIFE tested its educational outreach projects against 18 other SIFE teams, including Wilberforce, Cedarville, Rio Grande, Purdue, Glenville State and Sullivan universities. more

In Seniors:

Chili senior programs
Senior Center fundraiser - Chili Senior Center is selling the Passport to Savings book for the Spirit of Ontario fast ferry. The book, which includes numerous discounts for Rochester and Toronto, may be purchased for $25. more

In Sports:

Bright Raven Gymnasts compete, qualify for regionals
Tracy Apeland of Chili competed as a Level 9 gymnast in the Women's 9/10 State Championships held in Rochester March 12-14 where she earned an all around total of 34.125. Teammate Brittany Burr of Greece competed as a Level 10 gymnast and earned an all around score of 35.05. more

Holley's Andrew Grillo named state wrestling champ
Senior Andrew Grillo made the Holley School District proud when he was recently named state wrestling champion. In addition to being first in the state, Grillo went undefeated this season with a record of 42-0. This is the first time a wrestler has gone undefeated in Holley history. more

Junior Rhinos earn second in Elite Division
The Rochester Junior Rhino's Boy's U13 Elite team recently returned from the 24th annual Jefferson Cup played in Richmond, Virginia. The tournament is hosted by the Richmond Strikers Premier Soccer Club and is a nationally recognized Premier Elite Tournament. more

National Champions
The Brockport High School Varsity Cheerleaders participated in the National Cheerleading Championships in Williamsburg, Virginia on March 21. They took home the National Champions Title in the Large Co-Ed Varsity Division. On Sunday, February 29, the BHS Varsity competed in New York State Championships in Utica, New York. more

The Victors gymnasts compete in Oswego
The Victors Gymnastics of Greece competed in the Spring Fever Invitational, March 27-28 in Oswego. In the 6-8 Age Division, the Level 4 Team was led by Elizabeth Gangale of Ogden who placed third on the floor exercise and second in the all-around. Stephany House of Greece placed second on the balance beam. more