Webster community mailbag

News from the Friends of Webster Trails

This coming weekend, you can help the Friends of Webster Trails make our natural areas more resilient by helping with the ReTree Webster effort.

ReTree Webster is a program which recognizes that Webster’s forests are under attack from insects and disease. As thousands of ash, hemlock, oak and beech die, they’re replaced by invasive and, usually, non-native trees.  The Friends of Webster Trails developed the ReTree program to fight back, by purchasing or growing new trees and planting them in our open spaces.

The Friends’ annual ReTree planting event is this Saturday, Oct. 19 from 9 to 11 a.m. They’ve got lots of trees that need planting and could use lots of help moving the seedlings from the nursery to the field. This would be a great family activity, a way to teach your kids about the importance of respecting nature.

Due to limited parking at the planting site, volunteers will meet at 9 a.m. the ReTree Nursery/First Responders’ playground on Chiyoda Dr. and carpool from there. Bring work gloves, shovels and tick repellent.

Hiking and a treat

Also from the Friends: the annual Hot Cocoa Hike has been scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 2, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Hike in the dark, with a sweet treat at the end. Bring your flashlight for a family-friendly hike through the woods of the Chiyoda trail. The loop is approximately 1.3 miles long, and includes a stop for socialization and hot cocoa.

The trail will start at the right-hand (west) side of the Parks and Rec building and be marked by lights along the way. This is not a guided event. You are responsible finding your way to the hot cocoa and back by following the marked path. So that everyone can enjoy this event, please leave your dog at home; you can bring them back to enjoy the trail another time.

This is a fun, free, and self-guided hike. Please leave the parking lot between 7 and 8 p.m., arriving at your hot cocoa stop by 8:30 p.m.

Note: Please bring a flashlight and your own travel mug. This is a carry-in carry out event. Please be sure to register so the Friends know how much hot cocoa to have on hand.

Presentation will discuss vision issues

Community members who are concerned with vision issues that might arise as we get older are invited to attend an informational talk at the Webster Public Library on Wednesday, Oct. 23, sponsored by The Visionaries, a support group for adults with low-to-no vision.

Dr. Robert Ryan from the University of Rochester’s Flaum Institute will talk about making vision a health priority. He’ll explain some of the issues people may face such as macular degeneration, dry eye, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, nerve damage, and the current treatment options available at Flaum.

The talk will begin at 2 p.m. in the Webster Public Library Community Room, and doors will open at 1:45. No registration is necessary. For more information on The Visionaries or this event, contact Ed Wilkonski at (585) 441-8264.

Get your tickets now for the Beer Walk and Bourbon Bash

Tickets are now available for two of the Village of Webster’s most popular events, the Beer Walk and Bourbon Bash.

The annual Beer Walk (which this year is the Wine and Beer Walk) returns to the streets of Webster on Saturday Oct. 19, from 4 to 7 p.m. Participants will wander through the village and pop into local businesses, which will be providing snacks and samples of craft beers, poured in your own personal mini pint glass.

You’ll pick up your glass, wristband and punch ticket at the Coach Sports Bar, 19 West Main. Take a photo of the map of participating vendors, and after sampling food and drinks at the Coach, continue your adventure to any of the remaining stops on the map. Bring your ID, because you won’t be allowed to start without it.

Tickets are $20 (plus an eventbrite service fee), and this event usually sells out, so click here and get your tickets today.

The Bourbon Bash has been scheduled for Saturday Nov. 2 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Harmony House, 58 East Main St.

This popular event lets you sample lots of bourbons, along with some tasty treats. Local distilleries like Black Button and Smokin’ Tails will be there, along with distributors such as Woodford Reserve, Buffalo Trace. Village of Webster restaurants including The Coach and BC’s Chicken Coop will have food samples to complement the bourbons. There will also be some raffles of bourbon products. ID is required for entrance.

Both of these great events are sponsored by the Webster Village Business Improvement District. And stay tuned for more information about another fun BID event, the Trick or Treat Trail on Saturday Oct. 26.

Two great ways to support the Friends of the Public Library

The Friends of the Webster Public Library are hosting two big fundraising events next month.

The first is the Library Hats for Sale fundraiser, from Nov. 5 through Nov. 23 (or while supplies last). Dozens of handcrafted hats will be on sale, created by the library’s very own Sit and Stitch group and Friends members. They’re priced to sell and are great for gifts or stocking stuffer for that special person you want to surprise with a one-of-a-kind gift.

Of course, it’s perfectly OK to buy one for yourself, or buy one and donate it to the library’s Hat and Mitten Tree which supports Webster Hope. 

The hats will be on sale during regular library hours.

The Friends will also host a Vintage and Collectible Book Sale on Saturday Nov. 16 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the library’s Community Room. A dozen different tables will be set up, each with a different theme, offering a total of 199 hardcover and paperback books priced between $8 and $125. Many are priced between $10 and $30, attractive for collectors or those who might like to resell them.  

The table themes are:

• Railroads
• Louis L’Amour westerns (hardcover, faux leather-bound editions)
• Scotland or Scottish themes
• War
• books about New York State and the upstate/Rochester area
• Older Fiction Books
• Juvenile Books
• Miscellaneous topics  (two tables)

Three tables will each have two separate topics on them:

• Art books and books about Music
• Bill O’Reilly’s “Killing” series of hardcover books (many first printings, some signed by O’Reilly); and hardcover novels by early-20th century novelist Louis Bromfield
• books about George Washington; and novels and stories illustrated by N. C. Wyeth

Make sure to get there early for the best selection. Proceeds from both sales will benefit Webster Public Library.

What’s happening at the Rec?

Lots of fun events for all ages coming up at the Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Dr.

• Spooky Luncheon for ages 55+, Thursday Oct. 31 at noon. Dress up in costume and enjoy snacks, lunch, sweet treats and fun. Register for activity #341802-A by Oct. 25. Cost is $8.

• Saturday Night Live-themed Halloween Fitness Class Sampler, Saturday Oct. 26 from 8 to 11:30 a.m. Try one of the Rec Center’s regularly scheduled Saturday morning classes. The instructors will be dressed as their favorite SNL characters, and you’re encouraged to do the same. There’s no charge.

• Concert Apparel and Coat Drive hosted by the Webster Central School District PTSA, Saturday Oct. 26 from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the Rec Center’s front patio. At the same time, you can also drop off your carved pumpkins for the Pumpkins on Parade event that evening.

• Pumpkins on Parade, Saturday Oct. 26 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. At this amazing family-friendly event, the Rec Center lines the Chiyoda Trail — which stretches for a mile around and behind the Rec Center — with brightly glowing Jack-o-lanterns. Visitors can walk along the trail and enjoy all the creativity and spookiness. Then afterwards, there’s free cider and donuts and family fun. Click here to read the blog I wrote about it.

• Coming up in November and December, watch for more details about the Family Scavenger Hunt on Saturday Nov. 2 along the Chiyoda Trail, and the Afternoon With Santa, Saturday Dec. 14 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

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(posted 10/13/2024)