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Community blood drive is back

29 May

One of my two favorite blood drives of the entire year is back — with a twist.

It’s Webster’s Community Blood Drive, and it’s held twice a year,  usually in June and October.  It’s always a two-day event, and for as long as I can remember (and I’ve been a blood donor for many years) it’s been held on a Wednesday  at St. Paul’s Church on Hard Road, and the following Thursday at the West Webster Fire House.

But I recently found out that the Community Blood Drive has outgrown the fire house, and so Thursday’s donation location will be the Webster Recreation Center on Chiyoda Drive.

This is actually a great problem to have — so many donors they overwhelm the space.

I’ve written about this particular two-day drive several times before, and I’m not at all kidding when I say it’s my favorite ever.  It’s sponsored by a long list of Webster businesses, which is why you see all those big white signs popping up all over town. Each of these businesses contributes a coupon, which are all collected into a packet and distributed to each presenting donor.  My favorites from past years have been the free ice cream cones from Bruster’s and Abbott’s and Hank’s.  But there are plenty of other coupons as well; previous ones have included free Empire Lanes bowling and a free flower from Kittelberger’s.

So if you’re a regular blood donor, I’ll probably see you there. If you’ve never donated blood before, I also hope to see you there. This is a great donation event to start with.  The Red Cross folks are always very pleasant and professional, and they’ll understand if you’re a bit nervous.  Just think about all the great coupons you’ll get, and the cookies and juice they force on you after your donation.

And of course, you’ll be saving lives, too.

Here are the details:

Webster Community Blood Drive

Wednesday June 5, noon – 7 pm
St. Paul’s Church, 783 Hard Road

Thursday June 6, noon – 7 pm
Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Drive (off of Phillips)

Call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to make an appointment, or just stop in.  It only takes about an hour.

 

The hammocks helped!

7 May

Some of you may remember a blog I posted last July about a small business that Webster Thomas grad Colin Johnson had just begun, called Hammocks that Help. The idea was simple: Colin would purchase hammocks from a craftsman in Nicaragua, sell them here in the states, and then return half of his profits to an organization called the 4 Walls Project, which builds homes for families in rural Nicaragua.

For every 100 hammocks sold, one complete new home can be built.  The first one was planned for a young couple, Felix and Margarita, and their one-year old daughter Seyling.

I got an email the other day from Colin, reporting some happy news. I am pleased to pass the message along:

To friends/family and customers,

Thank you all for supporting Hammocks That Help. Each of you has played a part in creating a new home for Felix, Margarita, and Seyling. Their house is finally finished and this family can now sleep a little easier tonight thanks to all of you. I hope all of you are enjoying your hammock and the satisfaction you get from helping out a family in need. Every one of you has really made a difference in Felix, Margarita, Seyling’s life and they could not be more grateful or happier about their new home.

Upon completion of the home Felix said, “You can see I could never build a house like this for my family. I have no money. Please tell the Americans who have helped us that this is such a great blessing to us and we thank them all and thanks be to god also.”

Scroll down to see some photos of the new home, the young family and some of the volunteers who helped build the home.

Colin has now set his sights on the next project, a second home for a family in need. If you’re interested in purchasing a hammock to help with the effort, or would just like to find out more about Hammocks That Help, log onto hammocksthathelp.com, email info@hammocksthathelp.com or call 585-831-0702.

 

At left, Felix and Margarita (holding Seyling) stand outside their new home with some of the volunteers.

Friday mailbag

3 May

Hey Webster, you’ve got a busy couple of weeks ahead.

Tomorrow — Saturday May 4 — the Webster Nursery School is hosting a garage sale fundraiser from 9 am to 3 pm.  This is a multi-family sale with “many great items all families can use,” including toys, books, games, children’s clothing and household items. From 2-3 pm you’ll find reduced prices on everything.  Baked goods will also be available for purchase.

The sale will take place in the parking lot behind the Webster Baptist Church, 59 South Ave.

 * * *

The Friends of the Webster Public Library will hold their annual spring used book sale, next Tuesday through Saturday.

Members of the Friends are invited to a sneak peek on Tuesday from 5-8:30 pm, a perfect chance to get the best bargains right off the bat. (If you want in on that action, you’ll be able to purchase a membership that evening.)

The rest of the book-loving public can shop on Wednesday and Thursday May 8 and 9 from 10-8:30, Thursday and Friday from 10-5, and Saturday May 11 from 10-1.

And before we leave the library, here’s a fun little invitation I saw on their newly revamped website (it’s next to the photo of a cat reading a book).

 Which type of pet reads the most? Send us a picture of your pet reading a book. Whichever pet type has the most pictures reading will win and be the best reader! Send pictures to Jenny Paxson and we’ll post them on the Webster Library Facebook page and they will also go on display at the library.

Sounds like fun. But my cats only read romance novels, and that would just be embarrassing.

* * *

Have a little history with your tea on Wednesday May 8, with the Webster Museum’s History and a Cup program. Bring a sandwich — the museum will provide the coffee or tea — and hear some stories about growing up in Webster.

History and a Cup begins at noon on Wednesday, at the Webster Museum, 18 Lapham Park in the village.

* * *

The Schroeder Varsity Girls Lacrosse team needs shoes!

No, not for themselves. They’re collecting black shoes (sizes 12 to 7-8) for students at Brown’s Hall Primary School (K-6) in Jamaica. Students are in need of black gently work or new shoes to wear to school (preferably closed-toed).

Donations are being accepted through May 10, and can be dropped off in the box near the front desk just inside Schroeder’s front door.

* * *

Dahlia season is upon us. Early spring is the best time to plant the tubers so they’ll bloom in late summer and early fall, when most of the other flowering plants are fading.

The members of the Rochester Dahlia Society and other gardening groups will be selling dahlia tubers and more mature plants at the Webster Arboretum, 1700 Schlegel Road, on Saturday, May 11 from 8-12.  Other sales will be held May 12 and 26 at the Rochester Public Market and May 25 at the Rochester Civic Garden Center.

* * *

My friends at Yesterday’s Muse book store recently sent this announcement about a local author:

Now available, the recently published memoir of a Rochester soldier who fought in World War II: A Long Way from Home: The Memoir of John Cipolla, 101st Airborne Division, 1942-1945, by Matt Fox.

The recent release of The Battle in Common, another locally-focused account of World War II, enjoyed a huge response. Fox’s work chronicles some of the same events, but from the perspective of one soldier. From the back cover:

“In 1942, shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, John Cipolla saw a recruiting poster for the airborne infantry outside of the recruiting office in his Rochester, NY neighborhood and signed up. After months of grueling training, he shipped out for Europe with the newly-formed 101st Airborne Division. The year he spent in Europe would be the most momentous year of his life. He took part in Operation Overlord, parachuting into Normandy the night before troops hit the beaches, and parachuted into Holland for Operation Market Garden. He was with the 101st at Bastogne, when they shivered in the snow and fought desperately to keep the Germans who surrounded them at bay. This book is John’s story, told from his perspective as a private in C Company of the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment.”

The book was written over a period of nearly seven years, during which time Fox interviewed Mr. Cipolla extensively, and performed exhaustive research to fill in gaps of chronology and verify facts. It was published last year by Mr. Fox through Amazon’s CreateSpace publishing service.

The book costs $10, and is available for purchase at Yesterday’s Muse Books, 32 W Main St in Webster, NY. Inquiries by phone or e-mail are welcome: 585-265-9295; yesterdays.muse@gmail.com.

Now you see it, now you don’t

1 May

This is what was left of the Mobil station at around 4 pm yesterday

If you drove down Ridge Road today, you might have noticed a big change at the corner of Ridge and Five Mile Line. That long-defunct Mobil gas station is being dismantled. Between 7 am when I went to work and 3:30 pm when I was coming home, it had been almost completely removed.

The construction doesn’t come as a surprise. We knew back in January that the corner has a new owner, who is planning to replace the station with an Express Mart, including at Tim Horton’s.

Thank you to my friend Sarah King for snapping the photo for me.

 

 

Two ways to help support the Webster Comfort Care Home

23 Apr

There was a very nice article on the front page of the local section of yesterday’s D&C about one of Webster’s finest community service organizations, the Webster Comfort Care Home. (See the article online by clicking here.)

The home, located at the corner of Holt and Klem roads, provides free hospice care to the terminally ill of our Webster community. This year they’re celebrating their tenth anniversary with a series of events beginning with a fund-raising concert this Saturday night, which was prominently featured in yesterday’s article.

The concert is called “An Evening With The International Guitar Duo and Petar Kodzas” and will feature a candlelit cabaret atmosphere and “world-class” musical artists playing classical, pop, jazz and country music. Bakery items and beverages will be available for purchase, including wine and beer. There’s no admission charge, but a a minimum $10 per person donation is suggested. Tables for 8 can be reserved for $80 by calling Craig Pratt at 585-347-4202.

It takes place Saturday night April 27, beginning at 7 pm, at the Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Drive. For more information go to www.webstercomfortcare.org. Or click here to see video clips of International Guitar Duo:  http://vimeo.com/51718023  and classical guitarist Petar Kodzaz: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGg3WSjAefA.

WCCH Fashion Show

Finally, don’t forget about the The Webster Comfort Care Home’s annual Spring Fling Fashion Show fundraiser on Saturday, May 18 at 11:30 am at the Penfield Country Club.  Fashions are being provided by Stein Mart and the event includes a delicious luncheon and silent auction. Cost is $27 per person.  Reservations are required and can be made by calling Mary Ann at 872-6568.

* * *

In the past ten years, the Webster Comfort Care Home has hosted more than 290 of our friends and neighbors, providing them with compassion and comfort as they ended their life journey. There is no charge to residents or their families for these hospice-like services, and they receive no government assistance to help defray their operating expenses, nearly $190 thousand annually. Instead, all of the agency’s funding comes by way of corporate, business and individual contributions, and fundraisers such as these.

Webster Presbyterian Mission Team helps our Southern Tier neighbors

22 Apr

This super-friendly looking group just returned from a service trip helping rebuild homes in the Southern Tier.

This is a nice story from the folks at the Webster Presbyterian Church, who recently returned from an Adult Mission Team Trip in the Southern Tier.

Sixteen church members participated in the week-long service trip, in which they helped three homeowners in the Endicott-Binghamton area make repairs to their homes, which were badly damaged in the awful flooding that took place there in September 2011.

Mission Committee member Laureen Anthony-Palmer reported that the group worked on drywall and did some painting for a house in Vestal, did “lots of painting” and hung a door on a house in Owego, and installed vinyl siding on a home in Barton. “All three homeowners were extremely grateful for our help and were very helpful to us the entire week,” Laureen added.

This is the second time a service group from the Webster Presbyterian Church has traveled to the Binghamton area. Last October a team spent a week rehabilitating two homes in Johnson City.  One of the homeowners was an 86-year old widow named Betty, who had spent the previous year living upstairs in three bedrooms and a bathroom.

Laureen was pleased to report that this month’s Mission Team members went back to visit Betty to see how things were going.  “It was not only great to visit with her again,” Laureen wrote, “but also to see that the renovations on her home are now almost complete and she is once again able to live on both floors of her home.”

The Webster Presbyterian Adult Mission Team’s visit was hosted by the First Presbyterian Church in Endicott, who reported that the work down there is far from done.  As of last fall, there were still about 1000 in the greater Binghamton area in need of repair, and they expected to be sponsoring work teams for at least the next two years.

I particularly love this story because I feel a very personal connection with it.  Owego is my hometown, and I was heartbroken when I saw the devastation caused by the floods.  On a recent visit I was glad to see that the beautiful little town has rebounded well, in part thanks to the efforts of fine folks like these.

So may I add my personal thank you for your kindness and generosity of time and talent.

 

AutismUp: New name, same commitment to caring

10 Apr

April is Autism Awareness Month.

Wait! Don’t stop reading there. Don’t be tempted to think, “That doesn’t affect me. On to the sports section!” Because chances are very good that autism DOES affect you.

Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S, affecting one in every 88 children. Think about that. That’s an amazingly high percentage. That means that in your daily life, you have most definitely come in contact with people affected by autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and probably even know some personally.

So this issue is not something our society can push under the rug, and the more people who understand that, the better.

So let me tell you about an incredible local organization dedicated to spreading the word, and about an event they’re holding later this month where you can help.

The organization is called AutismUp. You may already know it by its former name, UNYFEAT, which stood for Upstate New York Families for Effective Autism Treatment. The new name reflects the evolving and expanding role of the organization as the autism incidence rate continues to grow.

This local organization was founded in 2004 by a small group of parents of children with ASD, and has since grown to more than 1,000 members. Its mission is to support individuals with ASD and their families by expanding and enhancing opportunities to improve quality of life.

But to do that, they need funds. And here’s where you can help.

On Friday, April 26, AutismUp will host their seventh annual Seeds of Hope Growing and Giving Gala from 6:30 to 11 pm at the Memorial Art Gallery, 500 University  Avenue. They’re calling it the “gala at the gallery,” and it will feature, according to the press release,  “fabulous food from MAX Rochester, a variety of music and entertainment, a live and silent auction, and opportunities to learn more about AutismUp programs and services.”

Several Webster businesses are among those who have generously donated raffle prizes, including Prime Steakhouse, Hanks, Kid’s Hair Zone, Armstrong Adirondacks, Bella Vita, Flahertys, Bayview YMCA, Yolickity, Kittleberger, Hegedorns Bakery, Pontillos and Webster Interiors. Plus, Casciani Builders has donated a private helicopter experience for the live auction. Pretty cool.

Tickets are $100 in advance, or $125 at the door. Presale tickets can be ordered online by April 20 at www.AutismUp.org or by calling (585) 248-9011.

Can’t make the gala? Then show your support this Friday by wearing something blue. I know at least one school in the district is encouraging all their staff and students to wear blue, and I hope more get on board.

You can count me in. I’ve had the pleasure of working with some of these kids, and despite their communication and behavioral issues, they’ve all been cheerful and funny and pleasant. The way they take joy in life and take pride in new achievements just fills my heart with smiles.

This is definitely a cause you can believe in.

Village business news

9 Apr

I received the following photo from Mayor Cahill a few days ago, showing some work being done on a West Main Street building owned by Bob Lindsley, which houses Performance Hobbies and two other storefronts.

“We’re very excited to see the finished product,” Cahill said, and added, “Thanks to Bob.”

I also did some asking around the other day about what’s going to be going into the old Webster Gourmet storefront on the opposite side of West Main. They’ve been working hard on that place for a while now.  Word is that it’s gong to be an art gallery. Or a photo studio. Or something else. No one seemed to know for sure.

How ’bout it, folks…someone out there can fill us in. Who can tell us what’s going in there?

 

 

Never Say Never needs volunteers

6 Apr

If you love horses and you’re looking for a great local volunteer opportunity, Never Say Never Stables’ Horses Healing Hearts program wants you.

Never Say Never Stables, located on at 906 Maple Drive in West Webster, is a therapeutic horse riding organization which seeks to provide “life-enriching, horse related activities to children and teens living with cancer or other life challenges.” The operation is run entirely by volunteers and in recent years has experienced some huge growth. So they’ve sent out a call for help.

A few days ago I received the following email from the folks there:

The number of riders desiring equine-assisted activities is climbing. Children facing all sorts of challenges love to spend time with the horses in a loving, caring environment. It is such a joy to watch the kids grow as they spend time on the farm.  With growth comes the need for more staffing.

We need more volunteer horse handlers and side walkers (for the Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday programs). We also need ‘greeters’ on Saturdays to welcome families and check in riders. Since we operate on an alternating/every other week basis from May to November, there are only 15 weeks of programming.   We also have a once a month group for autistic children (Friday from 5-6 pm) and a summer camp program that runs Monday-Thursday for five weekly sessions during July and August.

Never Say Never has volunteer opportunities to fit every schedule. You can volunteer every day in the camp programs, bi-weekly in the equine-assisted therapy program, or once a month with the autism program. Volunteers have earned community service hours, created Webster Senior projects, and built Eagle Scout projects.

Volunteers can be high school students, business people, retirees, moms, dads or entire families.  Get more information at  http://www.nsnstables.org/Volunteering.html

Was Mary Todd Lincoln insane?

5 Mar

A fascinating program scheduled for this weekend in Webster will explore the question of whether Mary Todd Lincoln was deranged — or just depressed.

Photo of Mary Todd Lincoln by Matthew Brady from Wikimedia Commons.

Apparently it is common knowledge that the wife of Abraham Lincoln was considered a “lunatic,” to use the accepted term of the day.  But there are some who believe that Mary Todd Lincoln was suffering not from lunacy, but from depression.

One of those people is Patricia Nugent, an East Irondequoit native who has written about the subject in the online edition of Ms. Magazine. In her article, she writes,

Many of us know that the former First Lady was convicted of lunacy, instigated by her eldest son, Robert Todd Lincoln. She spent almost four months in an insane asylum until she was able to enlist support for a retrial, at which she was declared sane once more.

What we don’t know much about is what led to the behavior that was considered lunacy in the court of public opinion and a court of law…my assessment is that Mary Todd Lincoln suffered innumerable losses in her life and had few socially acceptable means of expressing her sorrow. Such bottled-up sadness resulted in acting out behavior that was interpreted as insanity.

Those losses included the death of her mother when she was just six years old, rejection by her stepmother, the loss of three of her four sons, and, of course, the assassination of her beloved husband. Her eldest (and only surviving) son, was no support at all.  He was “cold, judgmental and unaffectionate,” Nugent wrote.

I’d say that’s an understatement. For crying out loud, he had his mother convicted of lunacy.

Nugent will discuss her article at a presentation from 2-4 pm this Sunday March 10, at the Harmony House, 58 East Main Street, Webster. The public is invited to join the discussion and learn more about this tragic woman whom Abraham Lincoln loved so dearly, but whom historians call “one of the most detested women in American history.”

The event is being sponsored by Yesterday’s Muse Books, and there is no charge. Refreshments will be provided by Webster Gourmet.  For more information, call (585) 265-9295.

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