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St. Martin Lutheran Church will host a free Mardi Gras Pancake Supper on Shrove Tuesday, Feb. 13 from 5 to 7 p.m., to thank the community for supporting their missions over the year.

Dinner will include sausage and applesauce, with unlimited pancakes and syrup. Participants are invited to come dressed in Mardi Gras style. Beads will be provided, and you can make your own masks.

The event will be held at St. Martin Lutheran Church, 813 Bay Rd. Everyone is invited to this family-friendly event, so bring your friends. There’s no cost, but a free-will offering of a boxed or canned good for the church’s Little Free Pantry would be gratefully accepted.   

Catch this musical if you can!

This year’s spring musical season in our secondary schools continues with Webster Schroeder’s production of Catch Me if You Can, which will take the stage next Thursday through Saturday.

Based on the 2002 Dreamworks hit movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, the musical Catch Me if You Can introduces us to Frank Abagnale Jr. (Ryan Parody), a precocious individual seeking fame and fortune. He ran away from home in 1964 at the age of 16 with nothing but his boyish charm, big imagination, and millions of dollars in forged checks. From 1964 to 1969 Frank successfully posed as a substitute teacher, a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer, living the high life and winning the girl of his dreams. When Frank’s lies catch the attention of FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Jack Baker), Carl does whatever it takes to bring Frank down. It’s the true-life story of the world’s (now) most respected authority on forgery, embezzlement, cybercrimes and scams.

Shows are Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m.; and Saturday, Feb. 10 at 2 and 7 p.m. at Webster Schroeder High School, 875 Ridge Rd. Tickets are $14 and available now through WebsterSchroederMusicals.com.

Start your Super Bowl Sunday off right

If you’re planning to spend a lot of time on the couch on Super Bowl Sunday (like I am), you might want to consider starting off your day with a fun workout.

You can even earn raffle tickets for some great prizes. Check out the poster for details.

It all happens at the Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Dr., beginning at 9 a.m. There’s no cost, registration is not required and you don’t have to be a member of the Rec to join the fun.

Kindergarten registration opens

Kindergarten registration is now open for the class of 2037.

Families are asked to go online now to register their children who will be entering kindergarten this September. (Families who do not have access to a computer may call the Webster Central School District at 585-216-0029 to have a registration packet mailed to them.) 

Families are encouraged to register early as it takes a substantial amount of time and planning for the appropriate number of students to be enrolled in each of the seven elementary schools. In the event there’s not enough space for a child to enroll at their home elementary school, registrations will be processed in the order in which they are received. 

Parents/guardians can get more information and register online at www.websterschools.org/registration.

Investors sought for Shark Tank-style panel

This news also from the schools which will interest local business owners:

High school students in the Webster Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) will pitch their businesses in Shark Tank-style to a panel of investors this spring, and Webster YEA! is looking for local businesses and persons to be the next Kevin O’Leary, Daymond John, or Barbara Corcoran for these budding entrepreneurs.

YEA! transforms Webster Schroeder and Webster Thomas students into real, confident entrepreneurs. Through the year-long program, Webster YEA! students generate business ideas, conduct market research, write business plans, pitch to a panel of investors, and launch their very own companies. Investors pledge $700 toward student businesses and join the in-person Shark Tank-style presentation of student entrepreneur business proposals to be held on Thursday, March 21.

Interested in being an investor and on the panel? Contact program coordinator Jim McEntee at james_mcentee@webstercsd.org.

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(posted 2/2/2024)

One of the best things about volunteering for the Webster Museum is the über-informative “News You Can Use” newsletter sent out each month to volunteers. It has so many neat little history tidbits gleaned from the recesses of the Webster Museum, some of which you’ll be seeing some day in my History Bits feature.

So I’ll save those for future use, but here are some other newsy items of interest:

• The museum’s recent Kittelberger Florist fundraiser was reportedly a “huge success.” More than 180 tickets were sold, meaning $1800 was raised for the museum. Thank you to everyone who sold, and bought, the tickets. If you missed it, I have a feeling it’ll be back again next year, so watch for it.

• Now on display in the museum’s exhibit space at the Webster Public Library, “Quirky Cameras,” featuring cameras that look like anything but a traditional camera. The collection is courtesy Frank Calandra.

• A new exhibit on the Webster Grange is taking shape at the museum. Formerly known as the National Order of the Patrons of Husbandry, the Grange was a secret society founded in 1867 to protect and advance agricultural interests. In the early 1900s, the Webster Grange was the largest in the country. It brought Rural Free Delivery of mail to town, and was instrumental in establishing telephone service. The exhibit will be completed soon, so stop by the museum to check it out.

Finally, what you’ve all been waiting for: the results from the 2023 Festival of Trees.

This year’s contest included 15 beautifully decorated mini-trees, from these organizations:

• Webster Firemen’s Ladies Auxiliary
• Webster Citizens Action League
• Webster Republican Committee
• Jack’s Foundation
• Lala of Webster
• Webster American Legion Auxiliary
• Well Field Preservation
• Webster Arboretum
• Webster Community Chest
• Webster Quilt Guild
• Webster Garlic Fest (Wreaths Across America)
• Webster Comfort Care Home
• Country Gardeners
• Webster Grange
• Museum Volunteers.

More than 300 museum visitors took the time to vote, and I can tell you from personal experience, it was a difficult choice.

This year’s winners were Webster Comfort Care Home and the Webster Quilt Guild. Thank you to everyone who participated in any way to make this event a great success. And special thanks to The Saxophone Therapy Project and The Goodwin Family Performers who provided entertainment during the Webster’s Winter Wonderland festivities.

The Webster Museum is located at 18 Lapham Park in the Village of Webster. It’s open every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 2 to 4:30 p.m.

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(posted 1/4/2024)

My more discriminating readers may recognize this month’s History Bit as identical to the one I posted last December. But you’d be wrong. (I actually changed a few words.) But this beautiful creche deserves revisiting every year. So here you have it again!

Hand-crafted creche a Webster Museum holiday tradition

We can always count on the Webster Museum to be especially beautiful and sparkly this time of year, with holiday decorations and miniature Christmas trees sprinkled throughout the displays.  But for more than 40 years, the real star of the show has been the Burkardt Family Creche.  

This beautiful, hand-carved creche, on display near the museum’s entrance, has a fascinating history all its own. This creche was made in Germany by C. Jess, a church architect. He made one piece a year between 1918 and 1944, each year giving the newly carved piece to his sister Freda in Frankfurt, Germany. 

Freda and her husband Henrick kept the creche hidden during World War II so that it wouldn’t be destroyed in the frequent bombings. It would have been passed on to their only son, but he was killed during the war, so they sent it to Freda’s brother, Rudolph Burkardt Sr., who lived with his family on Salt Rd. in Webster. 

The Burkardts displayed the creche in their home for decades before donating it to the museum in the late 1970s, where it’s been a treasured centerpiece of the museum’s holiday decorations ever since. 

The scene has roughly two dozen pieces, all hand carved out of linden wood. In addition to Baby Jesus, Joseph and Mary and the Three Kings, it also includes a shepherd boy, angels, sheep, camels, oxen, and even an elephant.

The Burkardt Family Creche will be on display at the Webster Museum until January, when museum volunteers will painstakingly wipe each piece with oil and pack them away until next year. So come see it while you can, and while you’re there, make sure to vote for your favorite community-decorated Christmas tree during the museum’s Festival of Trees. Votes will be accepted through Dec. 31. You can also vote online at webstermuseum.org.  

The Webster Museum is located at 18 Lapham Park in the Village of Webster. It’s open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 2 to 4:30 p.m.  

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

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(posted 12/10/2023)

I had a terrific time last Saturday, accompanying Santa and one of his elves as they strolled through the Village of Webster, checking out the Small Business Saturday savings and handing out treats to the children. It was so much fun to see the children’s eyes light up when they saw Santa, and the smiles he brought to everyone’s faces.

We were out there for 90 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon. My husband caught some of the action on video, which we’ve put together in my first-ever “vlog.” Click the photo below to see that video.

Two local television stations, Channel 10 and Channel 13, sent cameras to capture some film as well. After all, Santa showing up in the Village of Webster? That is definitely news.

Click here to see Channel 13’s coverage.

I also took a lot of still photos, which I’ve put into a gallery here. (P.S. the elf is my daughter.)

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

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(posted 11/27/2023)

The Webster Community Chest invites community members to eat your dessert before dinner. To be more precise, how about enjoying a big ice cream sundae, prepared in a hand-crafted bowl created by our Webster CSD art students?

On Wednesday, Nov. 29, the Community Chest will partner with the Empty Bowls Project to raise funds to help feed our less fortunate neighbors. From 4 to 6 p.m. in the Schroeder High School cafeteria, you can choose one of a great variety of hand-crafted ceramic bowls, and have it filled with an ice cream sundae. Enjoy the sundae, then take the bowl home. Suggested donation is $20.

Webster Schroeder High School is located at 875 Ridge Rd.

Then, on Friday Dec. 1, follow up your dessert with a spaghetti dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Webster Masonic Temple, 30 Orchard Street. Dinner will include spaghetti with marinara or garlic sauce, meatballs, salad, bread … and more dessert (ice cream and a cookie)!

Cost is $12 for adults, $6 for children 12 and under.

Tickets for both the Empty Bowls Project and the spaghetti dinner can be purchased in advance here, or at the door. Takeout dinners will be available. All proceeds from both events will go to feeding the hungry in our Webster community.

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

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(posted 11/26/2023)

I definitely remember the first time I walked into BC’s Chicken Coop. Owners Christina Wasson and Brandie Rauber had recently opened their restaurant on South Avenue, and I stopped in to try their chicken and write a blog about them.

I especially remember two things: how nice Chris and Brandie are, and how delicious their chicken is. I mean REALLY delicious. They sent me home with a few pieces they’d just plucked out of the fryer, and they smelled so good, they didn’t even make it back to my house.

I wrote about them again in 2017 when they moved to 159 West Main Street. The much larger location is a lot more visible, and there’s more parking, more storage space and a bigger kitchen. But the best part about the new restaurant is the spacious and comfortable dining area, something they didn’t have on South Ave.

In the several years since, the Coop has continued to serve their unbelievably delicious chicken, award-winning wings, soups, salads, sandwiches, pork rib dinners and a nice variety of sides, including a lot of gluten-free options. Plus, they’ve greatly expanded their catering operation. But recently they announced some big news.

BC’s Chicken Coop now serves beer.

Like their menu offerings, there’s pretty much something for everyone on the beer list. It leans towards Genny products and local and regional breweries like K2 and Young Lion, and includes some seasonal offerings, ciders and White Claws. PLUS there’s a variety of Finger Lakes wines.

Right now the liquor license is just temporary, but that will change before too long. In the meantime, head on down, get a great meal in a quiet, comfortable atmosphere, and enjoy a beer along with it.

BC’s Chicken Coop is at 159 West Main St. in Webster. Check out their menu here, and remember that everything is cooked to order, so you might want to call ahead … or grab a beer while you wait.

By the way, that blog I wrote back in 2010 seems to have disappeared into the void. But if you’re REALLY interested in reading it, Chris and Brandie still have a framed copy hanging on their wall.

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

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(posted 11/23/2023)

The generosity displayed by Webster folks never ceases to amaze me. The latest example is a donation made recently by the residents at the Villas at Easthampton retirement community on Maryview Drive.

The community members there make a charitable donation every year to a different non-profit organization. Many of the residents had attended the recent Webster Garlic Fest, which benefited the Blue Star Mothers ROC NY8 (military families), Wreaths Across America Webster and Gold Star Mothers Rochester (who have lost an immediate family member in active duty). Following the festival, the community decided to have this year’s donation benefit the Blue Star Mothers and the care packages the mothers send to deployed servicemen and women.

In an effort organized by Jo Ann Timkey, about 30 Villas families got together and completely filled the Blue Star Mothers’ Care Package Wish List. Jo Ann reported this was the largest donation they’d ever received. Many veterans live in the community and were especially eager to donate. 

One of the reasons the community chose the Blue Star Mothers Care Package project is because the collected items will go all over the world, and are placed into the hands of our locally deployed service members.

The next care package shipment is scheduled for November. Supporting this program is an easy way for us to provide a bit of joy to our soldiers so far from home. The care packages also bring comfort to the families left behind, who can see how much their loved ones are appreciated. Thank you, Villas at Easthampton, for supporting this great effort. You’ve really made a difference.

If you’d like to donate some items to the Blue Star Mothers’ care package program, click this Amazon link to see the wish list. The more items we can purchase for the program, the more care packages can be sent!

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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 “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 10/24/2023)

Bonus blog today, because this is important information, especially if you’re REALLY into creating jack-o-lanterns.

The Webster Recreation Center’s annual Pumpkins on Parade is less than two weeks away, and they need jack-o-lanterns! This is a super fun family event where participants stroll along the mile-long Chiyoda Trail behind the Rec Center, which is lined with hundreds of creatively carved, humorous, scary and downright weird jack-o-lanterns. At the end of the path, there’s free cider and donuts and a bonfire, a family photo area, and for the kids, a hay maze and roller slide. And it’s ALL FREE. (Here’s the Facebook event page for more information.)

To make this event the great success it always is, the Rec Center needs a LOT of jack-o-lanterns, so get carving! You can drop off your finished creations on the trailer parked outside the Rec Center (1350 Chiyoda Dr.) on Friday Oct, 27 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Saturday Oct. 28 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Multiple pumpkins are both welcomed and encouraged. Each pumpkin gets a raffle ticket for the chance to win a Fall Themed Raffle Basket (be sure to stop inside the Rec Center after dropping off your pumpkin to fill out a ticket!)

If you have a large group interested in carving pumpkins and need some help doing so, email kkovar@websterny.gov. The Rec Center can provide SOME pumpkins but also the space to carve. This would be a great project for Scout troops or big families or school classes!

For more information about Pumpkins on Parade, visit the Facebook page here.

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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 “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 10/18/2023)