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The holidays begin in Webster this weekend

29 Nov

A float from last year’s Parade of Lights

The holiday season in Webster officially kicks off this Saturday December 1 with White Christmas in the Village and the Holiday Parade of Lights, two of my favorite events of the entire year. It’s the first of three special event weekends in the village, leading right up to Christmas.

This Saturday the festivities begin at 3 pm with horse wagon rides, a bounce house for the kids, and cookie decorating sponsored by Hegedorn’s.  And of course Santa will be there; he arrives at Village Hall at 4 pm.

The whole schedule looks like this:

Horse wagon rides, 3:00 – 6:00
Bounce house, 3:00 – 6:00
Storytelling, 4:00
Webster Thomas String Quartets at Kittlebergers, 3:30 – 5:00
Hegedorn’s Cookie Decorating, 4:00 ’til
Rochester Rhapsody, 4:30
The Magic Guy, 4:30
Church of the Good Shepherd Chime Choir 5:00 – 6:00
Thomas High School Carolers 5:00 – 6:00

The evening’s festivities end in spectacular fashion with the Electric Parade down Main Street beginning at 6:30 pm.

And don’t forget to stop into some of the village shops while you’re there, to finish up your Christmas shopping. I know that Barry’s will have entertainment by Ken Snyder and Trace Wilkins, and guaranteed there”ll be plenty of action at Coach and Hatter’s as well.

P.S.  I can’t be there Saturday for the parade. If you take any photos, can you send some along for the blog?

* * *

If you’d like to do something a little bit different instead Saturday night, join the Friends of Webster Trails for a “Full Moon Hot Cocoa Hike” Saturday night at 7:00pm at the Whiting Road Nature Preserve.  It should be a beautiful night for a hike, and a great chance to make some new friends. Click here for complete details and to sign up for the event.

 

Webster’s wonderful Christmas

20 Nov

Driving through town last night, I noticed the snowflakes have been put up on the light poles. They reminded me how much I love Christmastime in Webster.  It’s a time when our cute little town becomes even more charming. The trees twinkle, the shopkeepers’ windows glow with holiday displays, the gazebo comes alive with colorful Christmas lights.  Add a gently falling snow and we’ve got our own little Bedford Falls.

The village offers several opportunities to envelop yourself in this holiday feeling. Aside from the great shopping, of course.  I’ll come back atcha with more details about these soon, but mark your calendars now for:

Saturday, December 1: White Christmas in the Village and the Parade of Lights, 3-7:30 pm, all along Main Street

Saturday December 8: The 2012 Webster Village Band Holiday Concert,  Schroeder High School

Saturday December 15: Lighting of the Lights, 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm, Hanks Ice Cream235 North Avenue & Taylor Rental, 205 North Avenue

You can check out the Village website for more information or just check back here in the coming days to find out more about these terrific events.

Thursday mailbag

15 Nov

Today’s mailbag features three very neat events happening today and tonight, so I hope you didn’t have many plans.

The Maplewood’s annual Holiday Bazaar takes place today and tomorrow from 10 am to 5 pm both days. This is always a very popular event which is open to the public and features crafts, a bake sale and a raffle. Vendors will set up their booths in The Maplewood’s Eastman Lounge.  There should be plenty of on-site parking thanks to The Maplewood’s new West Main Street entrance and parking area.

Funds raised during the bazaar will benefit two local charities, Webster Comfort Care Home and Webster Hope House.

A look at last year’s Holiday Bazaar at The Maplewood.

The Maplewood Nursing Home is located at 100 Daniel Drive in the village of Webster.

* * *

Fans of American Idol will like this very special event happening this afternoon at Henderson Ford, 810 Ridge Road.  It’s called the Go Further With Ford Night; customers who stop by Henderson Ford from 4:30 to 7:30 today will have a chance to test their judging skills with American Idol and get a chance to win a unique VIP experience during the show’s 12th season.

A computer with a webcam will be set up in the dealership to allow consumers to view a special message from Ryan Seacrest and test their judging skills on camera, in true American Idol style. Contest entries will be sent back to Ford’s program headquarters, where a team of experts will evaluate and select one winner to receive an all-expenses-paid trip for two to Hollywood and a unique VIP experience with American Idol.

For each person who attends Go Further with Ford Night today, Ford Motor Company will donate $10, up to $500, to Moose Charities, and Henderson Ford will match that offer.

Anyone 18 years and older who’s interested in participating in Go Further with Ford Night may preregister for the event at www.gofurtherwithfordnight.com and be entered for a chance to win tickets to a live taping of American Idol.

* * *

Finally, don’t miss the Third Annual GIRLS NIGHT OUT…HOLIDAY BAZAAR at Hatter’s Pub this evening from 7-9 pm.

It’s a special night for the ladies, featuring Lia Sophia Jewelry, Tastefully Simple, Pampered Chef, Dove Chocolates, Party Lite Gifts, uuthor Sharon Grace, Webster Gourmet and more. Plus,  Ellie’s Gluten-Free Bakery will be there will samples, and Budweiser will be offering samples of their new Gluten-Free beer.

This year for the first time, the event has partnered with the Webster Food Cupboard. Guests are asked to bring donations of non-perishable food items or $5 gift certificates from area grocery stores.

What a great event for a great cause. C’mon ladies … check it out!  Hatter’s Pub is located at 5 West Main Street in Webster.

 

 

Webster folks doing their part for literacy

8 Nov

Book Festival patrons can take a chance on winning this gorgeous quilt from Altrusa.

Book lovers from all over the state will gather this weekend at MCC for the Rochester Area Children’s Writers and Illustrators Annual Book Festival, and some Webster folks are going to be right in the middle of it.

Those folks are members of the Rochester branch of Altrusa International, a service organization dedicated to promote literacy worldwide.  Webster resident — and Altrusa member — Karen Marquardt has really taken that mission to heart.  Karen has befriended city school librarians and has learned how under-funded they are. To help, she scours public library used book sales, and using Altrusa funds, stocks up on books to donate to city schools. She recently donated more than 800 books to School 42, including 149 which she picked up at the Webster Public Library book sale for just $89.

Altrusa will be hosting a table at Saturday’s book festival, and accepting monetary and book donations to support their city school cause.  They’ll also be raffling off a beautiful quilt; anyone who donates a dollar or a book will receive a raffle ticket.

The Book Festival itself is a book-lover’s wonderland, a full day of author talks, workshops, presentations, activities and story-reading.  Plus there’s all sorts of information and vendor booths. Popular authors including Vivian Vande Velde and Linda Sue Park will be on hand to chat and sign your books.

The Festival runs Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm at Monroe Community College in Brighton. For more information, check out the Rochester Children’s Book Festival website here.

 

I’m gonna miss Election Day.

6 Nov

OK folks, it’s finally here. Election Day. We’ve been looking forward to this day more than Christmas. Our gifts after all this is done: Fewer phone calls. Fewer strangers knocking on our front doors. A LOT less mail.

Come to think about it, that sounds like a very lonely existence. Maybe we should do this again in a few months….

News from our Webster Trails Friends

2 Nov

I’m playing catch-up again today.

The photo below was taken at an event which I attended last Saturday at the invitation of the Friends of Webster Trails. It was the Friends’ annual Volunteer Recognition gathering and Open House, held at the Whiting Road Nature Preserve. Its purpose was to celebrate and thank all the volunteers and youth groups who contributed about 3000 hours of hard labor to build and maintain the trails this year.

The photo represents only a fraction of the dedicated volunteers who provide thousands of hours of hard labor every summer creating and maintaining the miles upon miles of beautiful trails that wind through our town.  We owe these folks and all the others not pictured a huge debt of thanks.

(L-R) Rich Morrill, Ron Happ, Buzz Weetman, Larry Yost, Craig Pratt, Dennis Kuhn, Sharon Galbraith, Hal Harris and Judy Harris

This year the Friends opened the second phase of the Green Trail in the northern section of Whiting Road Nature Preserve.  They also oversaw the opening of the Hojack Trail extension through the village. And thanks in large part to some invaluable assistance from the Scouts, the Friends also made tremendous strides in creating and extending the brand new trail system at Four Mile Creek Preserve at Phillips and Lake roads.  Not only that, within the next few weeks the Town Highway Department should be creating a new parking lot at Four Mile Creek, with help from several local contractors who will be donating their services.  The lot will allow access to the trail-head for a .8-mile loop trail and for fishing access to Four Mile Creek.

A special shout-out to these Scouts who contributed greatly to this summer’s efforts:

From Troop 262:

Graham Price built a 20′ bridge and did trail work at Four Mile Creek Preserve
Sam Lewis built three benches, two tables and did trail work at Four Mile Creek Preserve
Andrew Fulkerson built a bench and 24-foot boardwalk, and did trail work at Whiting Road Nature Preserve.
Christopher Peffley built a 40-foot boardwalk and did habitat and trail work at John Ungar Nature Trail
Michael Hohl built three benches and a 16-foot boardwalk, and did trail work at Gosnell Park Big Woods

From Troop 108:

Peter Armbruster, built an 8-foot split-rail fence and did trail work at Whiting Road Nature Preserve
Wes Britton built a kiosk at Gosnell Park Big Woods

From Troop 163: David Brunette built a bench and table and did some weed whacking at Four Mile Creek Preserve

From Troop 363: Will Cobb built a table and did some gravel work at Bird Sanctuary Trail

CHECK OUT THE TRAILS FOR YOURSELF

This weekend is the perfect opportunity for you to check out some of this fine trail work for yourself.

The Friends are hosting a Hike Around Webster Sunday from 10 am to 3 pm. And literally, that’s what’s going to happen. The hike will begin at 10 am at Vosburg Hollow Nature Trail parking lot and for the next 4-5 hours will meander through the Friends’ extensive interconnected trail system.

Wear comfortable foot gear and hiking clothes (layers are good). Bring water and a lunch, Homemade cookies will be provided mid-hike at the lunch break. For details about where the hike will go, and to RSVP, click here.

It looks like we might actually see some sun on Sunday, to celebrate with a great autumn  hike!

 

 

An anniversary party to remember

30 Oct

The Barry’s gang, all dressed up for the occasion.

The Village of Webster came together in a big way Saturday night to congratulate Danny and Jessica Barry on a very successful first year of business for Barry’s Old School Irish.

The little pub on the village’s four corners was standing-room only all evening as friends old and new came to lift a pint and help celebrate. Several special guests were also in the crowd, including Mayor Elder and his wife Pam, board member Jude Lancy and “Village Focus” writer Carol Klem.

The reason everyone wanted to be there was simple: Barry’s Old School Irish has done wonders to revitalize this village. Danny and Jessica Barry are not only two of the nicest people I’ve ever met, they have created a place where anyone who comes through the door feels like family. My friend Chris summed it up perfectly when he said, “Coming here has always felt like coming to somebody’s house; somebody’s living room, kitchen.”

Halfway through the evening, several patrons accepted the invitation to come up and tell the Danny and Jessica – and the assembled crowd – what Barry’s has meant to them. After that, the entire pub serenaded the young couple with a song written especially for them.

You can check out videos from both events by clicking on the images below.

Jess and Danny Barry listen as pub patrons tell them exactly what they think of their little pub. (Click on the photo for a video)

Barry’s Crossing performs “The Ballad of Barry’s.” (Click on the photo for a video)

Photos from Halloween in the Village

30 Oct

 

Click here to see a gallery of photos from Halloween in the Village

The worst of yesterday’s weather held off until the afternoon, allowing hundreds — perhaps thousands — of children and their parents to enjoy Webster’s annual Halloween in the Village event. When things got started around 11:30, there were so many people it was hard to even walk down the sidewalks.  Even the spitting rain which began around 1 pm didn’t keep kids from their candy rounds.

What’s so great about this event is not only that it’s a great thing for the kids, but it’s also a great reason for people to come into town, see what the village has to offer and meet some of the business owners.  It’s too bad the weather wasn’t better, but I was pleased to see that it was a success nonetheless.

I’ve posted a few photos here. Click on any one of them or the link above to redirect to a Facebook gallery of many more.

 

 

Barry’s Old School Irish celebrates a year of good food, good drink and great friends

27 Oct

My friends Tom and Jill were among the big Friday crowd at Barry’s last night.

This evening, Barry’s Old School Irish Pub and Bakery on Webster’s 4-corners will celebrate its one year anniversary. In anticipation of that happy event, I sat at my computer last night, poised to craft the perfect blog about what has become my very favorite Webster hangout.

Fingers at the ready, I started to think. What exactly IS it about Barry’s that makes the place so special? The beer?  The to-die-for Guinness chocolate cake?  The live music?  There are just so many things about Barry’s that make it a pleasant place to be. But what is it that makes Barry’s unique?

It took me a little while, but finally it dawned on me. I realized why I go back there every Friday night. And some Saturdays and Wednesdays. And the occasional Sunday afternoon. It’s Mary Jane and Mike. Tim, Jerry and Robyn. Debbie, Sarah, Chris and Julie. Ken and Kim, Mac and Maura, Brendan and Gordon. These are the people of Barry’s, and every single one of them has become part of my extended family.

Funny thing about these extended family members, though, is that I couldn’t tell your most of their last names. Plus, I didn’t know ANY of them a year ago. But thanks to Barry’s, I’m now closer to these people than to most of my “regular” extended family members.

You see, any Irish pub can serve a Guinness. Any restaurant/bakery can serve up great dinners and desserts. But there aren’t many places where you can walk in and immediately feel like family.

Danny and Jessica Barry on the weekend they opened.

But that’s the way it is at Barry’s. The feeling in this little place is just … different. It’s like everyone there is only a stranger because you haven’t met them yet — but by the end of the night you probably will.  I’ve heard people refer to it as a “family bar,” which is a really weird phrase, but sums up the atmosphere perfectly. Just like the pubs in ol’ Ireland, Barry’s Old school Irish has become a community gathering place, in the mornings for coffee, scones or breakfast buffet (bring the kids!), lunchtime for some incredible Shepherd’s Pie, and evening for a pint and some live music.

Which is why I’m going to be there tonight, and I’ll probably get there early for dinner and to get a good seat for the performance by Barry’s Crossing** (featuring my son on fiddle, just so you know).  There’s going to be some good food, good drink, and great friends, plus a few surprises Danny and Jessica don’t even know about yet.

Oh, yeah, totally forgot to mention the momma and papa of this extended family of mine. Danny and Jessica Barry own this little slice of Ireland in the middle of the village. If you ask me, when they moved in and transformed what used to be a very ugly and embarrassing “Living Waters” property, they transformed the village of Webster as well. I am blessed to be able to call them friends. Tonight I will not be toasting their success as much as thanking them for being a part of our lives.

**Sarah and Sean of Barry’s Crossing got their start in the pub, so when they officially formed their duo, they named it after Barry’s Old School Irish. It’s kind of an interesting story. You can read it on their website here.

 

Climbing wall fundraising update (Have you bought your bracelet yet?)

22 Oct

I know a lot of my readers have been closely following the story about Bay View YMCA’s efforts to raise funds to replace the climbing tower which was destroyed by arson at the beginning of the summer.  Today I’d like to share an update on those efforts.

The news is very good.  The original fund-raising goal was $100,000. Thanks in part to some very generous anonymous gifts — including two recent donations of $40,000 and $5,000 — Bay View is only $1,000 away from that goal.

Joey Gerrard with his bracelets at the Food Truck Rodeo in September.

The YMCA expects to hold an official press conference soon to announce the overall status of the campaign and present more details about the rebuilding plans.  But we already know that what will rise from the ashes will be more than just a climbing wall, but a much larger, handicap-accessible climbing complex, including a bouldering wall and dual zip line.  And most exciting of all, it will all be ready when the kids return to Camp Bay View next June.

And do you remember Joey Gerrard, the young man who has almost single-handedly raised thousands of dollars by selling bracelets? (See an earlier blog about Joey by clicking here.)  Joey has about 400 bracelets left and is committed to selling them all. Here’s how you can help him do that, and help chip away at that last $1,000.

This Saturday, Joey will have a table at the annual Courage Bowl, which begins at 2 pm at Webster Thomas Varsity football stadium. This is the final game for the YMCA’s All Star Flag Football program, designed for children with special needs. At the Courage Bowl, these kids get a chance to play in the spotlight on a real varsity football field in front of hundreds of fans.

So come by the game, pick up one of Joey’s bracelets for $5, and support both a great cause and some great kids.

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