Reconnecting with Play-a-Latte play café

30 Apr

One of the things I like best about attending the Webster Chamber of Commerce’s monthly Breakfast Buffet meeting is that I get to reconnect and check in with dozens of Webster-area business owners whom I have gotten to know through my blog.

At the April meeting, held last Friday April 24 at the Webster Golf Club, I had the pleasure to sit next Richelle Acker, co-owner of Play-a-Latte play café, located in the Towne Center Plaza on Ridge Rd. (Target plaza). Richelle and her sister Kristi Phillips opened the adorable little play space last September, and of course I wrote a blog about it. But I haven’t been back even once since then, to chat and see how things are going.

Apparently, I’ve missed out on a lot. Judging from what Richelle was telling me about the programs they’ve created and community connections they’re making with neighboring businesses, she and Kristi seem to have really settled into their business and found their groove.

If you’ve never been to Play-a-Latte yet, you really ought to pop in just to see what it’s all about. The bright, kid-friendly space features custom-built playhouses (retail and service shops), surrounding a “central park”-type area with picnic tables and ice cream cart, all encouraging imaginative play. There’s also a fenced-off area for very young children, a party room, and a separate sensory room: a quieter, calmer space with muted lighting, fidget toys and sensory tiles and boards. Plus, there’s plenty of comfortable seating for parents and grandparents, and a nice variety of refreshment options for both adults and children.

It’s basically a great place for parents to unwind with a beverage while their children are exploring, pretending, learning and making new friends.

And the free play time is just a start. Richelle and Kristi are always coming up with fun and creative new programs for young children and their caregivers. For example, in May there’s:

  • Baby & Me Yoga, Sunday May 3 from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m. A relaxing morning yoga session with Flow & Glow Yoga. (Geared towards babies between 6-12 months old.)
  • Love 2 Learn Sensory Class, Monday May 4 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Forty minutes of structured sensory activities, music and take-home craft followed by playtime. 
  • Live Puppet Show, Saturday May 16 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. A fun and educational live puppet show for ages three and up. Featuring the “Move & Groove” show by Grace & Grins Puppets, which includes music and dancing. Ticket also includes playtime after the show. Adults are free.

Click here to find out more and purchase tickets for any of these events. Play-a-Latte play café is located on the west side of Towne Center Plaza on Ridge Rd. (next to Cold Stone).

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(posted 4/30/2026)

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Welch’s Greenhouses: Still growing after 45 years

29 Apr

Now that the weather is finally becoming more spring-like, we’re all beginning to think about planting some flowers and vegetables. When you’re trying to decide where to find a nice selection, remember that Welch’s Greenhouses, on Webster Rd. just south of the village, has got you covered — and has for decades.

Welch’s owners, Bill and Laura Vendel, are celebrating a pretty big anniversary in 2026: 45 years of offering high quality plants and garden supplies to the greater Webster community.

The garden shop’s history actually goes back to 1959, when it first opened as a specialized nursery, growing tomato plants for local farmers to supply area canning factories. When those factories closed, the greenhouses transitioned into the retail garden center we know today, offering flowers and vegetable plants for home gardeners.

Bill and Laura Vendel purchased Welch’s in 1981, and since then have continued to expand its footprint and selection of home gardening plants and supplies. They’ve added two greenhouses and much more retail space inside — about 20,000 sq. feet, by Bill’s estimate, packed to the gills with vegetable plants, flowers and hanging baskets; plus bulk topsoil, gravel, mulch, grass seed, sand, and more. Just about anything a home gardener might need.

Bill and Laura have carved out their own niche in Webster’s crowded garden center scene, where their small, family-run business puts personalized service first.

“We try to make sure people feel comfortable,” Laura said, “and I treat everybody like they’re my friend…. People come back because they get that feeling. They see a familiar face and they get to say hello. When you go places, I don’t think you get to do that very often.”

Bill and Laura also take special pride in being a starting point — a first job — for local youth. Many former employees now stop by with their own children, completing a circle of community support. As Bill puts it, “We’re proud of the fact that we’ve been able to give back,” reflecting on the generations they’ve served.

Welch’s Greenhouses is located at 1271 Webster-Fairport Rd. (Rt. 250), less than a mile south of the village. Stop by, grab some spring flowers, and congratulate Bill and Laura on their anniversary.

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(posted 4/29/2026)

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Webster Thomas art students collaborate with local photographers for month-long exhibition

28 Apr

The greater Rochester community is invited to view the results of a unique collaborative effort between some very talented Webster Thomas High School art students and two local photographers, Quajay Donnell and Richard Colón.

The project began when Webster Thomas art teacher Todd Stahl assigned his Studio in Art students — mostly freshmen — a project based on photographs taken around Rochester by Donnell and Colón. The students carefully cropped their selected images to compose their pieces and then transformed the photographs into striking paintings. The resulting works of art are extraordinary, capturing a wealth of personality and intricate detail.

When Donnell and Colón visited the classroom and saw the impressive works in progress, they were so moved by the students’ talents that they pitched an exciting idea: hosting a professional gallery show to display the students’ work at a gallery they curate.

The resulting exhibition is called Their Eyes, Our Hands, and will be on display for the entire month of May at Behind the Glass Gallery in downtown Rochester.

Their Eyes, Our Hands will feature the paintings of the 20 students, proudly displayed alongside prints of the original reference photographs taken by Donnell and Colón. This unique layout will allow attendees to see the direct inspiration behind each student’s creative interpretation of Rochester’s sights. Student artists include Zoe Abiade, Hana Arap, Lina Barco-Dimaggio, Emma Conley, Noah Drojak, Sophia Eren, Gracie Frank, Mia Imperato, Molly Lowenguth, Penny Ricci, Amina Robinson, Karleigh Sackett, Jaylee Santana, Lucas Scerra, Allie Spitzer, Vivian Stoch, Leah Stronach, Adam Supinski, Andrew Torres, and Lianna Williams.

The Their Eyes, Our Hands art exhibition will kick off with an opening reception on Friday May 1 from 6 to 8 p.m. The event will take place at the Behind The Glass gallery, located on the second floor of Farmhouse Table at 90 South Clinton Avenue, Rochester. For those unable to attend the opening reception, the display will remain up and open to the public throughout the entire month of May during normal business hours: Monday and Tuesday, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

(The art on the poster was created by Grace Frank)

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(posted 4/28/2026)

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Thank you, Webster, from the Women’s Club

28 Apr

The Women’s Club of Webster held its annual Spring Fashion Show and Luncheon on Saturday April 25, and thanks to incredible support from the Webster community, it was a huge success.

The show, held at the Penfield Country Club, featured fashions by Chicos of Pittsford. More than 120 women attended. Many of them were Women’s Club members, but most of them were not, and had come with friends to enjoy the fashions, food and camaraderie. 

The event’s success can be attributed to the many individuals who worked so hard to organize it, and almost three dozen local business owners who donated door prizes or basket raffle items. 

Specifically, the Women’s Club would like to thank 

  • the volunteers who designed and printed the programs, came early to set up, sell tickets, take pictures and do whatever else needed to be done; 
  • the members who collected donations from vendors;
  • everyone who donated the beautiful raffle baskets and prizes (we had 68 of them) and door prizes;
  • Chico’s of Pittsford for the gorgeous fashions, and all of the club members who acted as models;
  • the Penfield Country Club for hosting; 
  • our sponsors – Franco Investment Group of RBC, MGM Associates and Susan Woodward.

The annual Fashion Show is one of three big fundraisers hosted by the Women’s Club, which also include the Card Party in November and Christmas Cookie Sale in December. 

Here are some more photos:

  • Welcoming smiles
  • More than 120 women attended
  • Margie DiPaolo from Chicos introduces model Carole Barnabas
  • Model Rochelle Moyer twirling for the audience
  • The amazing Penfield Country Club team
  • Raffle tickets, anyone?
  • More baskets!

The Women’s Club of Webster is a lively group of women of all ages and from many different backgrounds, all dedicated to supporting cultural and educational causes through volunteering. The club hosts luncheon meetings every month except July and August. For more information on joining, please call Carolyn Rittenhouse at (585) 265-1303.

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(posted 4/28/2026)

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This year’s volunteer fair at the library has a special surprise for the kids

27 Apr

The Webster Public Library will host their annual Volunteer Fair this Saturday, May 2 from 10 a.m. to noon, and you’ll want to bring the kids, because the West Fire Department will be there with one of their trucks.

The visit by the fire truck is just the latest addition to an already great event, a chance for community members to check out volunteer opportunities at more than two dozen local agencies — all in one place and at one time — and meet with the directors of these agencies one-on-one to ask all your questions.

I’ve seen first-hand what a giving community Webster is, filled with individuals and families who take great pleasure in helping others. That’s why an event like this is so beneficial, and why the library keeps bringing it back every year.

Here are the organizations that have signed up to be there so far:

  • Baywinde Senior Living Community
  • Best Buddies
  • Challenger Miracle Field of Greater Rochester
  • Color Webster Green
  • CP Rochester
  • Eastern Service Workers Association
  • Friends of the Webster Public Library
  • Friends of the Webster Trails
  • Greater Rochester Habitat for Humanity
  • Heritage Christian Stables
  • Lap Robes for Veteran
  • Lifespan
  • Literacy Rochester
  • Maplewood Nursing Home
  • Never Say Never Foundation
  • North East Joint Fire District – Webster Fire Department 
  • One Soldier at a Time
  • St. Ann’s Community
  • Trillium Health
  • URMC/Meals on Wheels
  • VFW Webster Post 943 & American Legion Webster Post 942
  • Webster Arboretum Association
  • Webster Comfort Care Home
  • Webster Community Chest
  • Webster Hope
  • Webster Museum

(And of course the fire truck will be there!)

Registration is recommended if you would like to be reminded about the fair but not required. Attendees can come any time during the fair, which runs from 10 a.m. to noon, to ask questions and get information. If you’re unable to attend, information about the attending organizations will be available at request. 

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

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(posted 4/27/2026)

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Webster’s a bit cleaner thanks to Color Webster Green

25 Apr

Thank you to the volunteers from Color Webster Green (CWG) who have been spending some of their free time recently cleaning up our town.

Last Tuesday evening, four dedicated volunteers pulled on their heavy gloves, grabbed some garbage bags and scoured the eastbound Bay Rd. 104 off-ramp for trash. They called the effort “Walking With a Purpose.” Becky Collins, one of the event’s organizers, wrote, “We picked up so much trash we could barely haul it back to our cars! Lots of people honked their horns and waved or shouted out thanks for cleaning up.”

Some of the trash found at the “Pick up the Parks” event

Last Saturday April 18, Color Webster Green also participated in the annual “Pick up the Parks” event organized annually by Monroe County. For three hours that morning at Webster Park, a dozen CWG volunteers (including four children) collected a total of six huge bags full of trash, including a broken chair, a 1970-era jump rope, acrylic nails, broken pieces of a plastic sled, many broken pieces of glass bottles, beer cans, single-use heating pads, doggy bags, and several pieces of fireworks containers. 

Color Webster Green is planning to meet every month — probably on Tuesday evenings — to pick up trash. If you’d like to join them, you can get updates on the schedule at the CWG website and Facebook page.

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(posted 4/25/2026)

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It’s time to update the Wegmans Game

24 Apr

As I was shopping at Wegmans recently, I came upon a friend and former work colleague whom I hadn’t seen in years. That happenstance in itself is not unusual, but I actually saw her two weeks in a row, after not having seen her in probably more than a decade. It got me thinking that, if I still had teenage children and we were playing the Wegmans Game, the happy meeting would give me a huge head start.

Did you ever play the Wegmans Game? The idea was simple; during your shopping trip, you and your companion each count how many people you know. Whoever sees the most people wins. It’s a fun and easy game, since if you hang around Wegmans long enough you’ll see just about everyone in the community walk through the doors.

Those teenagers of mine are now young adults, so I haven’t played the game in a long time. But that didn’t keep me from having a little fun coming up with some new rules for the new generation of Wegmans Game competitors.

The Wegmans Game (21st century rules)

  • Wegmans employees are only worth a half point each. They’re required to be there for long hours anyway, so seeing them is not terribly serendipitous.  And you’ll really appreciate this rule if you’re shopping with your high school-aged child, since he or she will know every one of the checkers.
  • Talkers and stalkers can earn bonus points. These are the people who always seem to shop when you do, and assume you want a half-hour description of their gall bladder surgery. One point for seeing them, a bonus point for successfully avoiding them. Five bonus points for being caught and having to listen to the surgery story.
  • One point for a teacher if you have that teacher this year. One additional point for every decade back you had that teacher. (For example, one extra point for the 10s, two points for the 00s, three for the 90s, and so on. So Mom or Dad, if you see your grade school teacher, it’s almost a guaranteed win.)
  • You must know the person’s name to earn a point. Otherwise you don’t really “know” the person, do you? (Whether you need to know both first and last names can be considered a house rule.)
  • If both players know the same person, point goes to the one who sees that person first.  It rewards acute observation skills.
  • If you skunk your opponent, you must spot said opponent three people at the beginning of the next game.

So I think we have a good start here. Anyone else have a suggestion?

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(posted 4/24/2026)

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A quick update on The Coach

23 Apr

If you’ve passed through the Village of Webster recently, you’ve likely noticed that renovations to the The Coach Sports Bar are still a work in progress. Both the inside and outside have a ways to go before the taps start flowing again at the popular local hangout.

It’s been more than a year since the devastating St. Patrick’s Day, 2025 fire that tore through The Coach. It started behind the bar, and while the building remained structurally sound, the heat, smoke and water damage meant that the whole place had to be gutted. Owner Fritz Sierk was originally hoping that he’d be able to reopen in time for the Super Bowl last February (which he fully expected the Bills to be playing in). Clearly, that date came and went as unexpected delays and construction hurdles kept pushing the reopening date down the road.

But things are finally nearing completion and Fritz says he hopes to open in a “couple of weeks.” And when he finally does, the wait will most definitely have been worth it.

Some of the highlights of the new space include a larger, more comfortable bar space with better lighting; a large overhang on the back deck to accommodate smokers, replacing the old “smoking hut” which had to be removed to enlarge the bathrooms; a small, fenced-in patio at the east end of the building, providing additional seating; a 140-inch LED wall replacing the four huge TVs on the west wall of the seating area; and there are two new “garage-door windows,” very much like the one at the Mary Wee Pub across the street.

But Fritz is especially proud of those new bathrooms. They’re much larger and completely updated, and feature individual rooms with doors, rather than stalls.

Fritz is really looking forward to showing off the “new” Coach to the community.

“I’m excited to finally open,” Fritz said. “It’s been long enough. The place is just amazing. It’s certainly not the old Coach but I think it’s got enough personality to be good. I like the openness, the ‘Mary Wee’ windows, the soffit around the bar … and the bathrooms are incredible.”

In the end it’s still going to be the same, familiar Coach that we all know and love. Just a little bit better.

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(posted 4/23/2026)

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2026 Helping Heroes Clean-up Day scheduled

22 Apr

The second annual Helping Heroes Clean-up Day has been scheduled for Saturday, May 9, beginning at 8:30 a.m.

The community-wide clean-up event is organized by the Webster Recreation Center in honor of a beloved long-time staff member, Tom Smock, who passed away in 2023. He worked at the Recreation Center as a part-time custodian for eight years. But more than that, he interacted daily with the 55+ folks, fitness members, and all the young people who came through the building. Recreation Supervisor Julie Schillaci remembers him as “a generous and humble guy. He would always lend a hand with whatever was needed at the Recreation Center and he is sorely missed around here.”

Giving back to the community with a clean-up day is a fitting way to honor Tom’s commitment to Webster.

The whole idea of Helping Heroes Clean-up Day is for households, especially the elderly, who need some extra help cleaning up yard debris, to sign up for assistance, AND – to honor Tom’s giving spirit — for community members to sign up to help. Volunteers are needed to assist with light spring cleanup (raking, weeding, spreading mulch, etc.) in yards around the area, as well as those who need assistance at their homes.

If you’d like to have some helpers come to your house to do some yard work, you can sign up here. If you’d like to volunteer to help out, click here or call the Webster Recreation Center at (585) 872-7103. You’ll be provided with more details as the event gets closer.

This is a great opportunity for the whole family, and a great way to show your kids how helping others is fun and makes you feel great.

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(posted 4/22/2026)

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One week left to answer the Mail Call Challenge

21 Apr

Time is running out to achieve the ambitious Mail Call: Letters From Home goal set at the beginning of this month to collect 1,000 letters and notes for our deployed service members.

During this month-long challenge — an initiative of Wreaths Across America Webster — community members have been encouraged to stop by one of a dozen businesses throughout Webster which are hosting mailboxes (like the one above at the Webster Recreation Center) and fill out a card with a simple message of thanks, or we’re thinking of you, or we’re proud of you. The messages will then be sent overseas this June inside care packages prepared by the Blue Star Mothers of Rochester. It’s a simple way to spread some joy to our local service members stationed abroad.

The community has already been very supportive (thank you!) and the mail boxes are beginning to fill up. But many more cards need to be written if we want to achieve that ambitious goal. Think about maybe doing some at home as a family project, or as a class project in school. Or maybe ask your church group to make cards. Let’s get everyone involved!

When you’re ready to drop them off, you’ll find mailboxes at these locations:

  • American Legion Cottreall-Warner Post 942: 818 Ridge Rd (back entrance).
  • Jersey Mike’s Subs: 975 Ridge Rd.
  • KeyBank: 1848 Empire Blvd.
  • KeyBank: 980 Ridge Rd.
  • Lowes Home Improvement: 900 Five Mile Line Rd.
  • M.O. Pasta: 5 E. Main St.
  • Lala of Webster: 38 E. Main St.
  • Village Quilt Shoppe: 21 E. Main St.
  • Webster Recreation Center: 1350 Chiyoda Dr.
  • Webster Town Hall: 1000 Ridge Rd.
  • Kittelberger Florist: 263 North Ave.
  • The North Bee: 27 North Ave.

And if you’ve asked yourself whether this project is worth the effort, consider this story: One service member said he kept a young student’s card in his backpack throughout deployment. “Whenever I was scared, and didn’t feel like I could go on,” he said, “I’d take out that crayoned card, and knew someone was thinking of me.” You can imagine the joy we can all spread with 1,000 cards and letters. THAT’s what the Mail Call challenge is all about.

Messages will be collected through the end of April, so please stop by a mailbox soon and spend a moment to brighten a service member’s day.

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(posted 4/21/2026)

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