Archive | January, 2023

Woofs Indoor Dog Park is opening, and more mailbag news

19 Jan

Leading today’s mailbag is the exciting news that Woof’s Canine Club and Indoor Dog Park will be hosting its grand opening celebration this Saturday Jan. 21 from 1 to 6 p.m.

Woofs Canine Club is located at 187 West Main Street, at the corner of Barrett Dr., in the former World Gym. Like all good dog parks, it’s BIG (5,000 sq. ft), has separate areas for large and small dogs, and lots of agility equipment. But it has the added benefit of actually being INSIDE, on artificial turf, out of the rain, snow and cold typical of our Upstate New York winters.

But unlike your average dog park, Woofs will also offer a social component for owners, including a cafe, pool table and dart board, and even a small workout area. Visit this blog I wrote back in November to learn more.

According to the Woofs Facebook Page, the grand opening celebration will include food by roc city empanadas food truck and BC’s Chicken Coop, dog treats by Buster Browns Snick-Snackery, doggy cupcakes by BONES BAKERY, and custom balloon decor by Balloons by Kenz.

Pups and their people are welcome to visit anytime between 1 and 6 p.m. Leashes will be required for this one-time only open house walk-through, and canine vaccinations will be required to enter. Proof of vaccinations can be submitted to forms@woofscc.com. A full list of required vaccinations can be found at WoofsCC.com.

Regular hours of operation for off-leash playtime will begin Wednesday, January 25. Find out more at the Woofs Canine Club Facebook page and website.

Rochester Challenger Miracle Field hosts Valentine’s prom

Challenger Miracle Field‘s annual Valentine’s Day dance has been scheduled for Friday Feb. 10 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Webster Golf Club, 440 Salt Rd.

The Night to Shine Valentine’s Prom, open to Challenger participants, will include a DJ, dinner, dancing and a photo booth. Suggested donation at the door is $10. One chaperone per participant, please.

RSVP by Feb. 3 to secure a spot, and include the names of those who will be attending and any special diet requests. Email lindab@rochestermiraclefield.org.

Fall in Love With Webster returns

Do you remember last year’s Fall in Love With Webster event? The month-long community celebration, sponsored by the Webster Business Improvement District, featured daily discounts and special events at businesses all through the Village of Webster, all embracing the theme of love.

The goal was to promote a fun way to unify the village residents and business owners. But it was also all about helping community members get to know our village a little better, find out more about our many fine businesses, and encourage everyone to get more involved in all of the activities found here.

Basically, it encouraged people to … well, fall in love with Webster.

Last year’s Fall in Love with Webster event was so hugely popular, the BID will be doing it again, kicking off a month’s worth of special events and savings on Feb. 1. I’ll be posting weekly blogs here highlighting all of the fun things happening, but you can keep tabs on all the plans by “liking” the Fall in Love with Webster Facebook page, which will be regularly updated.

Stay tuned!

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(posted 1/19/2023)

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Town Highway Garage, up-close and personal

17 Jan

I found myself the other day in a spot I never would have expected: face-to face with a 15-ton snowplow.

Actually, to be more accurate, I was face-to-face with MANY snowplows, parked so close together that I had to do some fancy maneuvering to get through and around them. The occasion was my recent tour of the Town of Webster Highway Garage on Picture Parkway, which I took to learn more about the plans Webster has to expand the current facility, which has become outdated and too small.

My visit early last week was the first in a series of tours the town is offering to community residents interested in getting a close-up look at the current facility’s condition and first-hand information about the Highway Facility Modernization Project. My tour guide was Webster’s Superintendent of Highways Supervisor Patrick Stephens, who walked me (and two other town residents) through the facility’s current equipment and materials storage buildings, the administration offices and the salt barn. On the way, he pointed out several specific instances of the buildings’ poor condition, like crumbling support beams and outdated electrical equipment.

The physical condition of the property aside, it became very clear during the tour that there simply is no longer enough room for all of the town’s equipment to be safely stored. As the town grew, administrators tried to keep up with the addition of new and much bigger equipment by adding onto the existing buildings bit by bit, to the detriment of efficiency. So right now, the main truck fleet is parked in multiple buildings, and are angled in, double-stacked and cross-parked one in front of another just to fit them all. In the main storage building, the trucks are parked nose-to-nose, which requires complicated maneuvers around other trucks, and backing out of narrow doorways to get out. Space is at such a premium that a lot of equipment is stored outside, unprotected from the elements.

The drivers do what they need to do, and have become rather adept at playing what amounts to a shifting-squares puzzle. But, “We’d like to spend our time on other things rather than being good at jockeying things around,” Patrick said.

A third consideration for replacing the current building are the staff facilities. Originally designed to accommodate a staff of 18, the break room, kitchen, small restrooms and limited locker space now must serve a full-time staff of 40, plus seasonal staff. The new facility would include separate men’s and women’s locker rooms, larger bathrooms and a break room that would comfortably and safely accommodate 50 to 55 staff members.

As he conducted our tour, Patrick patiently answered all of the questions I had, no matter how ignorant I thought they sounded. But that was exactly what the tours are all about, Patrick said.

The purpose of the tours is to give as much information to the community as possible at the beginning of this process, in as many first-hand, face-to-face meetings as possible. …  Once we get into the budget process, a lot of people will have concerns. We want as many people as possible to understand why (we need a new building), that it’s not just for convenience.  

When we say ‘need,’ they understand what that need is.

In these images from the Town of Webster, you can see the size difference between the vintage plows and today’s

The final design plans are mostly complete, but some financial details still need to be hammered out. Town officials hope to be able to present a preliminary cost proposal to the Town Board in February. In the meantime, community members are encouraged to learn more about the project by signing up for one of the half-hour tours. They’re offered two or three times a week through March 3. They’re a half hour long, and are limited to ten participants, 18 and over. The Town Highway Garage is located at 1005 Picture Parkway, off of Hard Rd.

If you can’t attend one of the in-person tours, you can watch a virtual online tour here.

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(posted 1/17/2023)

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Library helps make donating easy

16 Jan

There are so many great causes and community agencies in our area that desperately need community support to continue doing the great things they do. For folks who really want to help out by making some kind of donation, sometimes it’s hard to sift through all the opportunities out there.

The Webster Public Library has found a way to help with that dilemma.

They’ve recently created what they’re calling a “Donation Station” right next to the circulation desk, with information about three local organizations, including a list of what they need, and a box for each where you can deposit your donations.

Currently, the Donation Station is collecting items for:

  • Bella’s Bumbas: packing material (bubble wrap, air pillows, packing paper) that Bella’s uses to ship their chairs to recipients around the world
  • Hope House: non-perishable foods, toiletry items, cleaning supplies, new underwear and socks for all ages, gently used clothing

The station is also collecting used cell phones, ink cartridges and eyeglasses.

If you’d like to ask the library to include your non-profit organization to be featured at their Donation Station, click here to fill out a form. Space will be considered on a case-by-case, first-come, first-served basis.

To learn more about the Webster Public Library’s new Donation Station, click here.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/16/2023)

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Webster Baptist Church: some history and a call for donations

15 Jan

If you know the Village of Webster even a little, then you’re probably familiar with the Webster Baptist Church. This beautiful cobblestone church on South Avenue, with its stately bell tower, has stood proudly in our village since the mid-1800s.

What you probably didn’t know is that the Webster Baptist Church is actually famous for precisely the reason it’s so beautiful: it’s the only cobblestone building in the country that’s still being used for its original purpose.

According to Webster Through the Years by Esther Dunn (1971), the church was originally established in 1832, in a frame meeting house built on the site of the current church. In 1855 the old frame building was moved to Corning Park and used as the Webster Academy until it was destroyed by fire in 1872.

The new cobblestone building was built on the same site and dedicated on Jan. 1, 1857. Most of the field stones were donated by citizens of the community, and the cobblestones were gathered by members of the congregation along the shores of Lake Ontario. Each was passed through a hole in a board to make sure it was of a certain shape and size.

In recognition of its rich history, the Webster Baptist Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. That designation alone illustrates how important this building, and its history, are to our village.

Now, it needs our help.

It’s been a long time since the Webster Baptist Church has seen any major renovations, and it’s really beginning to show its age. The stained glass windows all need repairing, to the tune of $8,000 to $10,000 each. In many places, the cobblestone facade needs some professional attention. And the church entrance has to be updated with a ramp or new sidewalk to accommodate handicapped parishioners. And all of these expenses are piled on top of the regular costs for upkeep and utilities.

To help raise money, the Webster Baptist Church is holding a year-long fundraiser. Community members are invited to purchase individual bricks to show their support for this historic church. Bricks cost $150 each (but larger donations are more than welcome) and they can be personally inscribed. The bricks for now will be placed near the front of the building in a small area currently filled with white stones. If enough bricks are purchased, the hope is to use them to build a new sidewalk leading to the front door. It’s estimated that would take about 1,500 bricks.

Church Moderator Diana Marchner hopes that the entire community — individuals as well as businesses — will pull together to help save the church by purchasing bricks, or just donating any amount they’d like. 

“(The church) is historical,” she said. “It should be important to the Town of Webster and the Village as well as just our church.”  “We need everyone’s commitment to make this possible.” 

Ultimately, Marchner added, the goal is to “get to a point where we don’t have to worry about the money, just worry about the people.”

“I don’t want to get people to church because we need their money. I want them to come to church because we love them.”

Click here for more information and a form to fill out to buy a brick or donate any amount to the Webster Baptist Church. You can also visit this GoFundMe page to donate online.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/15/2023)

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Third graders meet the Webster Public Library

13 Jan

In a program that brings the Webster community and the Webster Public Library (WPL) together, our school district’s third graders are getting a jump-start on their love for reading by getting a close-up look at the library and all the services it offers.

All of Webster’s third grade students will be taking field trips to the Webster Public Library (WPL) this school year as part of a get-to-know-the-library program that will run through June. The idea came from discussions WPL Outreach Coordinator Jason Poole and Schlegel Elementary School librarian Jamie Palmer were having last year about school visits. At the time, due to the pandemic, schools were not allowing visitors, but students could go on field trips. Classes were already visiting the downtown library; giving them the chance to see their local library as well seemed like a natural next step.

Earlier this year, Schlegel Rd. Elementary students were the first to make the trip, in a trial run of the new program. It “went pretty well but was a little chaotic,” Poole said. He added,

After discussion with the youth department, we changed our approach to the current system, adapting and combining elements of existing in-house programming (staff area tours, storytimes, crafts, etc.) to create four stations that offer students a little taste of all WPL has to offer them. A charcuterie board of library experiences, if you will.

It’s one of the few programs that touches all areas of the library.

In December, Plank North Elementary third graders visited and experienced the newly-tweaked program. During their tour, the students made a craft in the teen area, explored the Children’s Room, and sat for storytime. They even got a close-up, behind-the-scenes look at places usually hidden from the public, including the back offices and the receiving end of the outdoor book drop.

But teaching students how to use the library really wouldn’t mean much if they couldn’t actually check out books. So, working closely with the library’s circulation department, Palmer and Poole came up with an ambitious plan to also make sure every one of the visiting third graders could sign up for a library card, if they didn’t have one already. Allowing them to do so without a parent or guardian present meant adjusting the library’s standard policy, but it was definitely well worth the effort, Poole said. Using their brand new library cards, each student could actually check out a book before they left the library. For a child who’s never been able to do that before, it’s a pretty exciting experience.

“Third graders are pretty much at the perfect developmental stage to really begin to appreciate the value of having their own library card,” Poole said.  

As an added bonus, each student also received a coupon, redeemable on their next library visit for a goodie bag with lots of little gifts including a card holder, an activity booklet, a WPL pin, and several other fun items.

So far, Schlegel and Plank North are the only two schools to have made the WPL trip, but the rest of the schools will be visiting in the next several months. Still, the Webster Public Library has already touched the lives of 146 students. In the process, 90 new library cards were issued, 26 cards were replaced, and four account problems were resolved. A whopping 80% of these third graders did not have access to the library before the trip, and now they do.

It’s a proud feeling to be trusted with the responsibility of having a library card, and a thrill to be able to walk into the library and leave with your favorite book.

What an awesome way to reinforce the joy of reading, and start these young people on their journey to lifelong learning.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

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(posted 1/13/2023)

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Webster community mailbag

12 Jan

I’m going to lead this mailbag today with two great opportunities to give back to our community through volunteering.

Webster HOPE, located at 1450 Ridge Rd., is looking for volunteers to help stock their food pantry, work in the gardens, organize the clothing closet and work with their clients. They’ve also noted several items on their January wish list which they need to keep their food pantry stocked. Check out the flier below for more information.

The mission of Webster HOPE is to serve the needs of residents in the 14580 zip code area, by providing food, clothing, household goods, furniture and financial assistance to those in need.

Webster Comfort Care Home, at 700 Holt Rd., is also in need of volunteers and nurses to help them with their mission to provide compassionate end-of-life care for terminally ill patients. For more information, visit webstercomfortcare.org.

This from the school district:

Webster CSD Parents/Guardians Invited to Family Engagement Roundtable

The Webster Central School District invites parents and guardians to a Family Engagement Roundtable. The evening will feature discussion with Dr. Robert Chalwell, Webster CSD Executive Director of Family & Student Services & Inclusivity, Janine Sanger, Webster Health & Education Network Executive Director, a Webster CSD parent, and a Webster CSD student.

The roundtable will be held on Thursday Jan. 19 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Spry Middle School, 119 South Ave. Please RSVP and submit questions by clicking here. Questions may also be submitted via email or audio file to robert_chalwell@webstercsd.org or in-person to Lindsay Young at the district office, 119 South Ave., Webster.

If you can’t attend and would like to watch the roundtable online, you can do so at websterschools.org/familyengagement.

The annual Knights of Columbus Free Throw Championship has been scheduled for Saturday Jan. 21 at Webster Thomas High School, 800 Five Mile Line Rd. Registration begins at 3 p.m. and the contest begins at 3:30. It’s open to all boys and girls ages 9 to 14.

Webster Parks and Recreation will host Rich the Magic Man on Monday Jan. 16, when he brings his amazing show to the Webster Arboretum Lodge from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. There’ll be magic, bubble fun (including big enough bubbles to put a kid inside), and a mini dance party.

Cost is $10 per ticket. Sign up through the Webster Recreation Center online or call 585-872-7103.

And since we’re talking about Webster Parks and Recreation, believe it or not, they’ve opened registration for summer camp.

This year, the Rec will be offering camps for children from preschool through 5th grade. Check out the flier below and visit the Webster Recreation Center website for more information.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/12/2023)

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Planning begins for Wreaths Across America Day 2023

10 Jan

You would think that following the very successful Wreaths Across America Day at Webster Union Cemetery in December, the effort’s organizers would take a well-deserved break and recharge their batteries before jumping right into planning for Wreath Day 2023.

They did. For about … maybe two weeks.

If you follow the Wreaths Across America – Webster Union Cemetery Facebook page like I do, you’ve probably noticed an uptick in activity as plans are already ramping up for this year. The Webster community was so incredibly supportive of our town’s very first Wreaths Across America Day on Dec. 17 that organizers hope to add at least one additional cemetery this year. Which is why, 11 months before that happens, the call is already going out for community members and businesses to sponsor wreaths.

There’s actually a great incentive right now, too. Through Jan. 17, for every wreath sponsored through the Gold Star Mothers, Webster will get two wreaths for our fallen heroes. (Click here to sponsor.) This is an excellent opportunity for our community to get a huge head start on this year’s event. Sponsoring a wreath costs just $17.

The national Wreaths Across America organization has also recently announced the theme for 2023. This year, the focus will be on the storylines of veterans and military families who’ve found success through their own service, while also highlighting local volunteers across the country and the success that comes from serving their communities.

So stay tuned for more updates from Wreaths Across America in Webster, and let’s help make sure this incredible program continues to grow. Click here to see and follow the Facebook page, click here to sponsor a wreath (or several), and click here to see the blog I wrote following Wreaths Across America Day on Dec. 17 to see what a moving and inspirational event this is.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/10/2023)

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Check this out: the history of the Webster Public Library

9 Jan

I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine living in a town that does not have a public library. A public library is a vital part of any community, for all ages and for so many reasons. In particular, the services our Webster Public Library provides for our town can’t be overstated.

So it’s difficult to imagine a time when there wasn’t enough interest among the residents of our young town to support a public library. That fact alone led me to dig deeper into the history of our very own Webster Public Library for my January Webster History Bit. With significant assistance from Esther Dunn’s authoritative Webster Through the Years volume, this is what I found out:

The first Webster library was established in 1881 by a group called the Literary Society. Mary Jane Phillips kept the books in her home on Main St. in the village, just west of what is now the Cobblestone on Main restaurant. Society members, who paid $1.20 annual dues, were the only ones who could check out books.

The second town librarian was Mary Jane Andrews, who moved the books to her store on the south side of Main Street, just west of the four corners. In 1889, the library moved again, to 11 South Ave., in the building now occupied by B3 Beauty and Carl’s Pizza Kitchen. 

Soon afterwards, community support for a town library waned. In 1894, the library was disbanded, and the 1000 books were distributed among the board members. and for almost the next 30 years, Webster had no library at all

For almost the next 30 years the town of Webster had no library at all, until 1923, when the Monroe County Traveling Library was established. It traveled to 222 stops about every six weeks, mostly at schools but also crossroads or well-known shops. In Webster, the principal stations were at Dewitt and Bay roads, Vosburg and Lake roads, Forest Lawn, Nine Mile Point, Union Hill, Hard and Ridge roads, and West Webster.

Finally, in 1929 the first Webster public library was officially established at the new Webster High School (now Spry Middle School). It had 657 books, 265 borrowers and a circulation of 6,246. 

The library has moved several times since those early days, first to the Reitz Building on West Main (now Yesterday’s Muse Books), then to Webster Town Hall, to what is now the Town Court building at 1 Van Ingen Drive, and finally to its current location in Webster Plaza. It’s also grown – a lot. Today, the Webster Public Library has more than 260,000 items in its collection, 34,000 borrowers, and circulates about 334,000 items a year. 

So next time you have a chance — especially if you’ve never been there — stop by the Webster Public Library and show it some love. It’s come a long way.

The Webster Public Library is located at 980 Ridge Rd., in the back of Webster Plaza.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/9/2023)

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Webster is getting a dog park

6 Jan

As you can see from the headline, our canine friends are finally going to have an outdoor dog park of their own.

A few weeks ago, Monroe County Executive Adam Bello announced that the county will be constructing a new dog park in Webster Park, which should be completed before the end of the summer.

The 1.5-acre park will be located in the large grassy area just south of Lake Rd., at the corner of Park Rd., which leads into the campground. It will include separate areas for large and smaller dogs, agility equipment and drinking stations.

According to the county’s press release, the project is being funded by a $250,000 grant secured by Assemblymember Jennifer Lunsford, part of the Go Outside Monroe Initiative, dedicated to modernizing the county’s parks system. The funds will also be used to repair and replace existing equipment on the nearby playground.

Chris Bilow, Commissioner of Webster Parks and Recreation, already knows that the park will be popular with town residents. He wrote,

I am excited that the county is making this possible for the Webster community. The request for dog park space is something we hear from residents quite regularly. As we worked with county staff on a potential location and operation it became clear that partnering with the county on the project and having the county operate their current system for dog parks made all sorts of sense.

Thank you to all of the people and agencies who are making this project a reality. It’s something we’ve needed here in Webster for a long time.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/6/2023)

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The case of the mystery ornament

5 Jan

Yesterday, as I was dragging my Christmas tree to the curb for the Village to pick up, I was reminded of a nice story that happened seven years ago this week.

In the first week of January 2016, My husband and I had decided to take a winter hike at Helmer Nature Center in Irondequoit. It happens that Helmer is the location where the Town of Irondequoit collects Christmas trees every year for recycling. We noticed that someone had placed an ornament on top of a post near the pile of trees. Clearly, some family had left it on their tree, a kind person had noticed it and put it somewhere obvious in case the family came back looking for it.

At my husband’s suggestion, I snapped a photo of the ornament and posted it on my Facebook page. I was still writing a weekly column for the Democrat and Chronicle at the time, so the page had a lot of readership. Someone at Channel 13 saw the post and did a short piece on their newscast. That caught the attention of the Irondequoit family who had lost the ornament, the Rusters.

Turns out the photo is of (then) 22-year old Teigan Ruster, who was just a year old when it was taken. The family returned to Helmer Nature Center the next day and was thrilled to get the ornament back.  

The whole story was picked by by Channel 13 reporter Matt Molloy, who actually came to interview me at the Webster Thomas High School library where I was working at the time. Click here to see his report.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 1/5/2023)

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