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Make lasagna. Share the love.

28 Jun

Now here’s a local nonprofit group that I’ve been meaning to highlight for quite a while now, because they’re doing great things for our community by doing something very simple: baking.

It’s called Lasagna Love, and its mission is simple: to feed families, spread kindness, and strengthen communities by providing food for neighbors in need. Their efforts not only address the incredible rise in food insecurity among families, but also provide a simple act of love and kindness.

Specifically, of course, the food is lasagna, which we can all agree is a meal that always warms the soul. The way it all works is this: a family signs up to receive a lasagna, sharing their name, contact information, total members of the family needing a meal, and any dietary restrictions. The family is then matched with a local lasagna chef, who prepares the lasagna and coordinates directly with the family to arrange delivery.

Local Coordinator Joanne Nania explained,

It was started by one mom in San Diego in March 2020. Right in the beginning of the pandemic, Rhiannon Menn started to see her neighbors begin freaking out about all the shutdowns and she wanted to help. She didn’t know how to do anything BIG but she knew she could make good lasagna. So she made 6 lasagnas and with her toddler in tow, went out and delivered to her neighbors.  Her girlfriends found out about it and wanted to help, too.  

By the spring, she had been written up in Women’s Day and soon after was featured on GMA.  By the end of the summer, she had 3000 chefs in place.  Today there are 56000 chefs in place over 3 countries (US, Canada and Australia).

Many Webster residents are already actively participating, and there are 90 chefs across our five-county area. Most sign up to cook either weekly or monthly. But more volunteer chefs are needed.

If you love to bake and have been looking for a way you and your family can volunteer in our community, this is the perfect answer. It’s easy to start. Just sign up on lasagnalove.org, and Joanne will get in touch with you to share some tips and give you any help you need. You’ll get matched with families that live near you, cook a lasagna (or two, or three!) and make a contactless drop-off to your family. Then celebrate that you’ve done a good thing!

If food is your love language, Lasagna Love is a wonderful, flexible way to support your neighbors.

To sign up, or just get more information about this great organization and the impact they’re making, visit the Lasagna Love website or Facebook page.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 6/28/2024)

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Tale of the traveling pink poncho

21 Jun

Here’s a somewhat sad — but inspirational — story about four good friends, all State Rd. Elementary School teachers, and the kindness and unwavering support they’ve shown each other through some of life’s darkest times.

Our story begins last August, just before school started, when Lisa Babineau, a psychologist at State Rd. Elementary School, was diagnosed with breast cancer. She began her 4-week course of radiation at the Pluta Cancer Center in September.

Now, they have something really neat at Pluta, called the “Poncho Project.” At the very beginning of their course of radiation, every breast cancer patient is given a bright pink fleece poncho instead of a standard-issue hospital gown. The poncho serves two purposes: to keep the patient warm and comfortable and reduce the embarrassment often caused by the ill-fitting and revealing hospital gowns.

Each poncho is made by a volunteer and comes with a tag which reads,

This poncho was designed by one of Dr. Marilyn Ling’s patients who felt the standard-issue hospital gown was a poor choice for women undergoing daily radiation treatments. We hope that you will use this poncho as a daily reminder that you have warmth and support enveloping you.

Lisa, of course, wore it every day while she was undergoing treatment.

“I think it’s really comfortable, and it feels like a hug,” she said. “They didn’t want women feel like they have to get in a gown every day of radiation, so you get to wear this poncho, and you feel the support and love of all the women who have come before you.”

As it so happened, some months earlier, State Rd. 5th grade teacher Sandy Pray was also diagnosed with cancer. Hers was so invasive, however, that her treatment began with surgery and chemotherapy. She was going to the Lipson Cancer Institute, which doesn’t hand out ponchos to its patients. No worries, however. By the time Sandy had completed the first steps of her treatment, Lisa was done with her radiation. She handed the warm and wonderful poncho over to her good friend Sandy, who used it through her seven weeks of radiation.

It would be great if our story ended there, but it did not. During Sandy’s course of treatment, Pat Sweetland, a regular and well-beloved State Rd. Elementary School substitute, was also diagnosed with breast cancer.

Sandy remembered that Pat had messaged her to tell her what was going on. “(Pat) said, ‘We’re in a club that nobody wants to be in.'”

By now, all of the State Rd. friends had been supporting each other for so long that Pat knew in the back of her mind that she’d be inheriting the poncho. She remembers the day Sandy brought it to Plank Rd. North, where she was substituting.

“(The secretary) brought it right down to me,” Pat remembered. “She said ‘Open it up, we want to see what’s in it.’ … I said, ‘What is this?’ And then I realized.” It came with a sweet note from Sandy, which read, “We’re passing on the love that we shared.”

Pat Sweetland began her 4-week course of radiation in January. When she was done, she returned the poncho to Lisa Babineau for safekeeping, hoping it would never again see the light of day.

If would be great if our story ended there, but it did not.

“I thought, wouldn’t it be great if I’m the end of the chain,” Pat said. “But I know this is going to somebody, and that’s kind of depressing. But wonderful.”

She was right. This past March — exactly one year from the day that Sandy Pray was diagnosed with a rare cancer — Patti Feeley, a retired 4th grade State Rd. Elementary teacher, was diagnosed with the exact same cancer.

“I went to visit Lisa one day,” Patti said. “She went into the closet and came out with a bag, and said, here’s your poncho.” Patti began her radiation treatments this week.

It’s hard to believe that four teachers who work in the same school could all be diagnosed with breast cancer within one year. But it’s been a real blessing that these friends have been able to support each other in such a meaningful way.

Patti said, “The teachers just circle the wagons … current teachers and lot of the retired teachers that we’ve known for years. Your mailbox is just overflowing with notes and cards, (saying) you’ve got this. There’s nothing like our camaraderie.”

“It’s a club nobody wants to belong to,” she continued. “But if you have to belong to it, it’s a good thing to have each other.”

“There’s nothing like teacher love.”

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 6/18/2024)

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Historic Forest Lawn neighborhood recognized

20 May

Every May, to recognize National Historic Preservation Month, the Webster Museum honors a historic property with a handsome plaque. This year, that honoree was not an individual property, but an entire neighborhood.

At the Webster Town Board meeting on Thursday May 17, Sharon Pratt from the museum’s Historic Properties Committee presented a plaque to the Forest Lawn neighborhood, represented by current Forest Lawn resident Mark Gunther.

Forest Lawn is a lakeside community neighborhood with its own mayor and a long history. Samuel Pierce, an early settler, bought and farmed 73 acres along the lake beginning in 1850. His son Horace and an attorney friend, George D. Forsyth, saw potential commercial opportunities in developing the land due to its proximity to the lake and proposed a railway line. In 1888, the Forest Lawn community began with the construction of a hotel. Shortly after, the land was divided into lots which were sold for summer cottages. In the years since, the cottages were all replaced with permanent homes. It is that date — 1888 — which is inscribed on the plaque.

The plaque program grew out of a survey of historic properties which a small group of museum volunteers tackled about more than 20 years ago. They especially were looking for homes that were built before 1902 which had enough of their historical integrity that their original owners would still recognize them.

The list they came up with was a long one. There were so many properties that it took a few years to compile their information, going to each house in turn, filling out a form and taking photos. In 2007 they decided to take all that information and propose a commemorative plaque program to the town. It would be a great way to recognize the town’s visual history, they argued, and a way for the town to say thank you to the homeowners who are putting in the time and effort to maintain the homes so they retain their original charm.

The town agreed. In 2008 the Historic Properties Committee presented its first 10 plaques, and have continued the program with the Town’s blessing every year since, handing out several plaques every May to commemorate Historic Preservation Month.

Most of the plaques that have been presented have gone to homes and business properties, but the committee has recently decided to start recognizing entire neighborhoods as well. Forest Lawn is the first historic neighborhood to receive that recognition.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 5/20/2024)

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DeWitt Rd. student wins Do the Right Thing Award

14 May

Asher Simpson, a second grader at DeWitt Road Elementary School, was honored on May 2 at the Do The Right Thing Awards ceremony. 

The Do The Right Thing Award is a program of the Rochester Police Department that seeks to foster positive relationships between local law enforcement and youth in the community. The award recognizes youth for their bravery, courage, and valor, such as volunteering, aiding law enforcement or other first responders, acts of heroism, leadership, and positive role model behavior. 

The award distinguishes school-aged children who strive to make good choices, do well in school, give back to their community, or demonstrate a “turn-around” or improvement in their behavior, and to publicly highlight these students and their stories in the news and social media to show that good kids are newsworthy.   

The Webster Police Department nominated Asher for the award due to his bravery during a police event that occurred while he was in a store where a theft was taking place.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 5/7/2024)

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Off-Monroe Players opens this weekend with a familiar face

10 May

There’s nothing quite like community theater. It’s usually an intimate experience, the actors sometimes just several feet away from you, weaving their story for your enjoyment. It’s even better when the acting is REALLY good and — especially — when the tickets are free.

It’s for all of those reasons that I’ve been attending Off-Monroe Players (OMP) productions for several years now. This little theater group, which calls the Downtown United Presbyterian Church home, has been around for more than 40 years, and has made a name for itself by producing Gilbert and Sullivan shows exclusively.

They stage three or four shows a year, each one humorous and family-friendly, as Gilbert and Sullivan always is, with great acting and fun costumes. They never charge for tickets, but audience members are welcome to drop a donation in the basket at the ticket table.

The Off-Monroe Players’ spring production, The Grand Duke, opens this weekend, and I encourage everyone in Webster to go see it, because you might just recognize someone you know.

My friend and neighbor Karen Seidel is a regular OMP cast member, and often one of the leads. In The Grand Duke, she plays the part of Julia Jellicoe, an English actress. She’s excellent in any role she portrays, and has a beautiful voice that fills the auditorium.

The show opens this Friday night May 10 at 7:30 p.m., with five additional shows over this weekend and next (click here to see show times). And while I said they don’t charge for tickets, it is important to reserve your seats in case they sell out (and keep reading for a special announcement about the opening night show). Parking is right across the street and also free.

Special Donuts with the Duke on opening night

So, if great theater at a great price sounds good to you, may I also suggest you attend opening night.

Every person who makes a reservation to join for opening night will receive a FREE donut at intermission. So you won’t have to ‘Duke it out’ to enjoy your treat, the Players are requiring reservations for this special event so they can place an accurate donut order.

Click here to read more about the Off-Monroe Players, and click here to reserve your seats.

All shows are presented at the Downtown United Presbyterian Church, 121 N. Fitzhugh St. in Rochester.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 5/9/2024)

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Blue Star Mothers honored military families with baby shower

6 May

For two hours on Sunday, seven expectant — or brand new — military mothers were showered with gifts, sweet treats, fruit, chips and sandwiches when the Blue Star Mothers Rochester Chapter NY8 (BSM NY8) held their Baby Shower for Military.

The annual event, held at the Cottreal-Warner American Legion Post, is designed to recognize and provide for young mothers and expectant mothers in local military families. The event was open to active duty, veterans and military spouses of active duty service members, who were expecting or have children up to six months old. For many of these mothers, this may be the only baby shower they get, since they’re usually stationed far away from their close relatives.

In the seven families that were showered, at least one parent is active duty or a veteran. A few of the others are still expecting, and some of the babies in attendance were as young as six days old and four weeks old.

This year’s theme was Mama-to-Bee, so the event was sprinkled with bumblebee balloons, centerpieces and cupcakes, adding to the fun.

The Blue Star Mothers work hard all year long, shopping for new baby clothes, diapers, high chairs, Pack and Plays, toys, books and many other gifts. The Chain Gang of Chili, a group of talented women, made and donated knitted and crocheted sweaters, hats, booties and blankets, and many other gifts were provided by generous community members. Each family left with their car filled to the brim with wonderful gifts.

A huge shout-out and thank you to the 209th Regiment of Cadets, under the leadership of Staff Sergeant Kathy Quinones. The cadets set up and tore down tables, moved mountains of baby gifts into guest’s cars, and did most of the muscle required to make this Military Baby Shower possible. 

Blue Star Mothers are mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, foster mothers and female legal guardians who have children serving in the military, guard or reserves, or children who are veterans. The Baby Shower for Military is one of the most important service projects of the Blue Star Mothers Rochester Chapter. It’s just one small way to say thank you and give back to those who have served our country, and given so much to us.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 5/6/2024)

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Local wildlife artist wins Ohio contest

4 May

One of the best things about writing this blog is getting to meet some really cool people who are doing some really cool things.

Today, I’m pleased to introduce you to one of those cool people, Ray Easton. Ray, a lifelong Webster resident and outstanding artist, recently won the 2024 Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp Competition held earlier this year.

The contest, hosted annually by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, is held to select the image that will appear on the following year’s Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp, a required purchase for anyone 18 years or older looking to hunt waterfowl in the Buckeye State.

Ray’s painting of a bufflehead duck (above) was chosen by a panel of five judges from 34 original pieces submitted for the competition. His painting will appear on the 2025 Wetlands Habitat Stamp. It was the first time that Ray had ever entered the contest.

Ray has been drawing and painting pretty much all his life. He discovered wildlife art when he was a junior at RL Thomas High School, where he studied art under Bill Stephens. He likes to work from photographs and spends a lot of time out in nature with his camera, every season of the year.

Birds, especially waterfowl, are just a few of Ray’s favorite subjects. More recently he’s also turned to painting landscapes. “I got more into those when COVID started,” he said, “when everybody was working from home.”

“I had a lot of time to start thinking about land,” he added. “I always wanted to do some more impressionistic stuff … loosen up a little bit. It was a nice little therapy and I grew a lot in my other work just by loosening up in the landscapes.”

And this is not the first competition he’s entered — or even won. He competes in the Federal Duck Stamp contest every year and regularly submits entries to other state programs. In 1997 he won the New York Waterfowl Duck Stamp competition with his painting of a hooded merganser. Last fall his painting of three northern pintails took first in the National Duck Stamp Collectors Society annual contest, and he most recently took third place in the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission 2024 Quail and Turkey Stamp competition.

If you’d like to see some of Ray’s work in person, he has a piece in display now at the Mill Art Center and Gallery in Honeoye Falls and will have one in an exhibit opening soon at the Oxford Gallery in Rochester. You can also see a lot more photos of Ray’s incredible work on his Facebook page and website.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 5/4/2024)

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Thank you for helping Nanny enjoy a gnome-filled birthday

28 Apr

A few days ago, I wrote about how one of our Webster neighbors, fondly known as “Nanny,” would be celebrating her 91st birthday. Nanny is especially fond of gnomes, those colorful little lawn sprites. So in honor of her birthday, her niece Rebecca came up with a fun idea: fill her lawn with gnomes so she can see them all every day as she sits in her front window and watches the world go by.

Rebecca originally posted the request for birthday gnomes on a Facebook group. She was hoping that by her birthday on Friday April 26, Nanny would have received 91 gnomes — one for each of her birthday years — and was happy to report that the goal was reached. By Sunday, about 80 gnomes, large and small, were sprinkled around her yard, and if you add in all of the hand-drawn ones on cards she got, they surpassed that goal.

What’s been really neat about this story is not how many gnomes have been collected (that’s cool, too), but where many of the gnomes have come from. For example,

A gnome lamp was shipped to Nanny from Florida. Another stuffed gnome, complete with a hand-drawn birthday card, was dropped off by someone in a red car (thank you!). And yet another wonderful lady who lives in Penn Yan saw my blog and mailed a box filled with hand-painted wooden gnomes, one for every holiday, along with a beautiful hand-crafted card.

Judging from the Nanny’s big smiles in all the photos, she certainly has enjoyed her special birthday surprise. A friend did ask her if she had a favorite gnome, to which she replied, “No, not really. All were adorable!” And what was the best part of her day? “Seeing and being surprised by everyone who came to see me.”

The gnomes are still out there, in front of Nanny’s house at 790 Webster Rd., so take a look next time you drive by. Nanny will probably be sitting in the front window admiring them as well, so give her a beep and a wave! And if you’d like to add to the gnome invasion, please do! The more the merrier.

Here are some more photos from the gnome gallery:

  • “Shower” of gnomes displayed by gnome helpers Melody and Samuel.
  • A solar gnome shipped from Florida
  • Gnome Elvis
  • A few of the wooden gnomes shipped from Penn Yan

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 4/28/2024)

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Got gnomes?

21 Apr

Who’s up for a gnome yard invasion to celebrate a neighbor’s 91st birthday?

I recently saw a fun announcement on one of our Webster Facebook pages which I wanted to share with everyone, because I think it’s exactly the kind of thing we love to do as a community.

It was an invitation from my friend Rebecca Orr, who asked that everyone help her aunt (whom everyone calls “Nanny”) celebrate her birthday in a special way.

Nanny, who turns 91 on April 26, was in the hospital on her 90th birthday, so she didn’t get to enjoy any birthday festivities then. So this year, Rebecca came up with a fun idea. Apparently Nanny enjoys sitting in the front window of her home at 790 Webster Rd., watching cars go by, people walking, deer crossing, and just enjoying the view. It would make Nanny giggle, Rebecca said, to see her yard fill up with gnomes.

“Nanny loves her gnomes and chillin’ with her ‘gnomies’,” Rebecca wrote. “As the memories fade, we are working on making new ones. Let’s make this birthday one of the best! Maybe we can get one gnome for each year?”

So, if you’d like to join the fun, drop a gnome into Nanny’s front yard anytime. She lives at 790 Webster Rd., across from Waterbrook Crossing — it’s a white house with a yellow front door (but please don’t knock on the door). And if you see her sitting in the window, feel free to give a wave, and feel great about helping make this 91st birthday a forever memory.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 4/21/2024)

Left to right bottom row

Kaiya, Arya, Nicole, and Teagan … Thomas on nannys lap and Kenzie standing beside her  ( Nanny has been “nanny” to sooooooooo many kiddos ) 

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Buy Girl Scout cookies, support our deployed troops

3 Apr

If you’re a big fan of Girl Scout cookies like I am, you know that the cookies have arrived and the troops are hard at work delivering them. But if you missed out on ordering this year, or you REALLY need more Thin Mints to toss in the freezer, have no fear. I know of at least one troop which will be selling them at local businesses in the coming weeks.

Webster Girl Scout Troop 60344 will have a table set up in these locations on these dates:

  • Sunday, April 7: Lowe’s Home Improvement, 900 Five Mile Line Rd., 1 to 4 p.m.
  • Friday, April 12: Edge Barber Shop, 205 North Ave., 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
  • Saturday, April 13: Edge Barber Shop, 205 North Ave., noon to 3 p.m.
  • Saturday, April 27: Walmart, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.  
  • Saturday, April 27: Walmart, 1 to 4 p.m.

They’ll not only be selling cookies to all of us, they’ll also be taking orders for cookies which will be included in care packages being put together by the Blue Star Mothers for our locally deployed troops, which will be mailed out in June.

Service members love Girl Scout cookies, as you can imagine. They’re a small taste of home. And even after they’ve been bounced around the world and even if they arrive in crumbs, they’re still treasured. So plan to stop by one of these tables this month, pick up some extra cookies for yourself, and help spread smiles around the world.

You can also purchase cookies online to be included in the care packages. Click here to get to the website, and make sure to indicate “Have Girl Scout Troop 60344 deliver the cookies” so you don’t pay for shipping. And please add the word “Care” before their name (like, Care Missy Rosenberry). This will let the troop know the cookies will be donated to our service members. (Best to stay away from chocolate cookies since they might melt in transit!)

Questions? Contact Cherie Wood at  WebsterWreaths@icloud.com.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Subscribe” link on the right side of this page (or all the way at the bottom of the page if you’re on your phone).

(posted 4/3/2024)

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