The Village is blooming!

28 May

In anticipation of some beautiful summer weather and an influx of downtown visitors, the Village of Webster’s Main Street is looking spiffy.

Up and down the street, flower beds have been planted with hundreds of annuals which already look nice, but will be spectacular once they’ve had a chance to grow.

Things are looking especially flower-ful in front of Village Hall, where Village Clerk Heather Halstead has been coordinating several planting projects, the results of which can be seen in these photos she’s provided. Before long, some luxuriant light-pole hanging baskets will be added to the display, so the entire village will be bursting with color.

I think the effect is charming.

That charm continues into the evening as well. I love that the trees up and down Main Street still sparkle after dark. This might be the first year the Village chose not to remove the white twinkly lights after winter (I can’t remember). In any case, I love them and they give our village a very welcoming, small-town feel.

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Memorial Day ceremony is on, and extra meaningful this year

27 May

There will be no Memorial Day Parade this year in the Village of Webster, but the annual Remembrance Ceremony at Webster Rural Cemetery will still take place.

It too, however, will be a little different, thanks to COVID. A recent post from Webster Online explained what the socially distant ceremony is going to look like:

According to the American Legion Cottreall-Warner Post #942 … there will be no crosses and placing of flags and flowers by the Scouts and youth. Attendees will be asked to spread out on the grassy area, as opposed to congregating by the fence (as they have in the past). Attendees will also be expected to wear masks and social distance.

Instead of refreshments at the Elks Club following the service, Legion family and other military participants are invited to the Post Home (818 Ridge Road, Webster) for hots and soft drinks.

There will be some very meaningful additions to this year’s ceremony, however.

Six stately, 18-foot flagpoles have recently been erected at the cemetery, thanks to the efforts of Eagle Scout candidate Brennan Gallatin and a dozen or so Scout and parent helpers. 

The new poles stand in a proud semi-circle several feet from the American flag which has long anchored the memorial on the cemetery’s front lawn. They fly flags representing the U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force.

When Brennan needed an idea for his Eagle Scout project, doing something at the cemetery seemed perfect. “We (Scouts) go there every Memorial Day,” he said. “That area hadn’t seen a lot of change in a while.”

Completing the project before the Remembrance Ceremony was important, he added, “So the community can see it and it makes (the cemetery) look nice for the ceremony.” He and his crew worked for several hours last Saturday to make sure that would happen.

“The project was great to do,” Brennan said. “Especially when it was done, it was pretty cool to see it.” 

  • Working together to erect the poles
  • Brennan (center) with some of his crew

Honoring Webster Thomas grad Rex Daniels

In addition to the new flagpoles, this year’s ceremony will be extra meaningful in another way.

On April 16, an American flag was flown over Capitol Hill in honor of Rex Daniels, a 1968 R.L. Thomas grad who was KIA in Vietnam on that day in 1971, exactly 50 years earlier. That flag has made its way to Webster and will be flown during the Memorial Day ceremony. 

Webster’s Memorial Day Remembrance Ceremony is scheduled for Monday May 31 at 10 a.m. at Webster Rural Cemetery, 1087 Ridge Rd., just west of Jackson Rd.

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Two great summer festivals are back!

25 May

You know life is beginning to get back to normal when you hear that some of our favorite Webster summer events are back on the calendar.

Specifically, the Town of Webster’s annual Summer Celebration is returning on Saturday June 12 to the Webster Recreation Center.

From 5 to 10 p.m., the whole family is invited to come out for dinner and snacks from some great food trucks (including Wraps on Wheels, Nancy’s Fried Dough, Effortlessly Healthy, Bay Vista Taqueria and Seabreeze Catering and Hot Sauce), while enjoying some great live music.

Festivities will conclude at 9:45 with a fireworks display. For more information, especially about parking for the fireworks, please visit the Webster Parks and Recreation webpage.

Then, on July 24 and 25, the Waterfront Art Festival returns to North Ponds Park. Details are still coming together, but in past years this terrific event has featured a dozens of local artists, live music, free parking, and a wine, beer and cider tasting tent, all for a reasonable admission fee.

Stay on top of the latest updates by visiting their website frequently, waterfrontartfestival.com.

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This “Little Free” location draws art lovers and book lovers alike

22 May
  • The Little Free Library on the left, and gallery on the right
  • A close-up look at the gallery

Certainly most everyone by now is familiar with the concept of Little Free Libraries, mini libraries installed outside homes and schools, packed with books and magazines free for the taking.

A few months ago I posted a blog about one family who turned their little library into a puzzle exchange. Recently I was delighted to discover another extremely creative twist on the Little Free Library idea: the Little Free Art Gallery. In this case, instead of books, visitors will find pocket-sized pieces of fine art neatly arranged on miniature easels inside the box. Anyone is welcome to leave a piece, take a piece or just enjoy the artwork that others have left.

Even better than learning about these whimisical, pint-sized art galleries is finding out there’s one only a few minutes east of Webster.

Julie and Jim Gocker live on Ontario Drive, about a half mile north of Lake Rd. in Ontario. About three years ago, Jim built and installed a Little Free Libray in front of their lake-side home. It was the perfect way for Julie, a retired school library teaching assistant, to share her love for books with her neighbors.

Last year, just as the pandemic started, Julie read somewhere about Little Free Art Galleries, and hatched the idea to build one of their own. Given her background and having raised a family of artists and teachers, the library expansion seemed like a natural next step.

“It’s such an important thing to appreciate, either having a book to read or a picture to look at,” Julie said. “Those are important to us, and because we live in a walking neighborhood we just thought it’d be kind of cool.”

“I have to say that the plus to the whole COVID thing is seeing kids on bikes, swimming in the lake, and walking with their parents instead of being off on the soccer field or lacrosse field,” Julie added. “They’re home doing family things and taking books. So we thought it’d be a perfect year to do our Little Free Art Gallery.”

Building the gallery kept Jim busy for a while in the depths of the pandemic. When it was done, they waited for the weather to turn, and installed it on May 1.

This was the very first piece of art submitted to the new gallery. By Emilee, future artist extraorindaire.

Julie and Jim stocked the new gallery with their own creations until other people started adding their own. Their first artist in residence was a young neighborhood girl named Emilee, who filled her canvas with a large pink, green and yellow flower.

Perhaps it’s because the gallery is fairly new, but Julie said they haven’t had a lot of submissions yet, even though they keep restocking the gallery with several blank canvases every week. “They all disappear, but nobody’s been bringing any more paintings back to us,” Julie said. “We think Emilee’s probably going to have an art show.”

Of course the Gockers would love to see more artists contribute to the gallery, but they also encourage visitors to help themselves to a pint-sized painting at any time. Most of them are only 3″ square, the perfect size for your desk at work or home. But if you just want to stop by and admire the artwork — just like you would in any art gallery — you’re perfectly welcome to do that as well.

You’ll find the Gockers’ Little Free Art Gallery at 697 Ontario Drive in Ontario. And while you’re there, how about showing some love to their Little Free Library, too? They’ve already got a good stock of adult books, but could really use some children’s books.

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Happy Bella’s Day!

21 May
Supervisor Tom Flaherty reads the proclamation as Marty Psrzynski and Rebecca Orr watch — and Bella poses.

You have seen me sing the praises of Bella’s Bumbas for several years now.

This amazing grass-roots organization was begun in March 2017 by Webster residents Rebecca Orr and Marty Parzynski. Its simple purpose: to build miniature wheelchairs for children with a wide variety of mobility issues. To date they’ve shipped almost 2000 chairs to children in at least 45 countries, charging the families only for shipping.

Last night, Bella’s Bumbas got some well-deserved recognition, when Marty and Rebecca were presented with a proclamation by the Webster Town Board recognizing their selflessness and the service they provide for children everywhere.

The Proclamation for Outstanding Community Service (which is pictured below) briefly describes (in proclamation-speak) the history of Bella’s Bumbas beginning with the first chair Marty built in 2017 for his niece Bella. You can read the whole story in this week’s Webster Town Newsletter.

But you may notice that the proclamation ends on a very high note, declaring today — Friday May 21 — “Bella’s Day” in the Town of Webster. I suggest everyone try to celebrate the day and honor this great organzation by taking a moment to read more about them, and perhaps then dropping some cash in their GoFundMe account.

  • Supervisor Flaherty chats with Bella before presenting the proclamation.
  • The Town Board, Bella, her friends and family members before the meeting.
  • Before the meeting, Marty introduces Supervisor Flaherty to a Bella’s Bumba.

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More live theater in store this weekend

20 May

The Schroeder Theater Company is gearing up to bring a live-streamed theatrical performance to the Webster community this Thursday and Friday night, May 21 and 22.

Here’s a run-down of what’s happening, taken directly from the press release I received:

The challenging year we have all endured has led to many innovative and creative solutions. From contactless delivery to holidays spent over FaceTime with loved ones, we have found ways to connect and celebrate.

As humans, that’s just what we do. Adapt. Overcome. Rise above.

Last May, we played into the novelty of Zoom and gave you an experience like you have never seen before with “Clue: On Zoom.”

This year we wanted to push the boundaries of theater, the performing arts, and storytelling even further. That is why we elected to take the cast off stage, off Zoom, and into the real world. That’s right. For the first time ever, The Schroeder Theater Company is proud to present “Our Place”: an entirely filmed, on-location production.

The show will be available via live stream on Friday, May 21 and Saturday, May 22 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 each. Click here to reserve yours.

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The Class of 2021 celebrated brilliantly

18 May

Pandemic shmandemic. The Webster Schroeder PTSA, Webster Thomas PTSA, and WTA are bound and determined to make this year’s senior class feel extra special. Saturday night they found a brilliant way to do that.

It was called the Senior Luminary Walk, held at the Webster Recreation Center. Seniors and their family members were invited to stroll along the one-mile long Chiyoda Trail behind the Rec Center, which volunteers had lined with white luminary bags, each one inscribed with a senior’s name and school. There were about 700 bags in total, one for each Schroeder, Thomas and GOAL senior, placed about six feet apart so they stretched the entire length of the trail.

The event began at 7:30 p.m., well before sunset, and the scene was prety impressive then. But after dark, the illuminated bags and twinky light strings lining the trail were especially spectacular.

For the entire 90-minute event, hundreds upon hundreds of students, parents, siblings, and grandparents streamed in, filling the Rec Center’s parking lot, even overflowing into the Xerox lot across the street. They strolled along the paved trail, pausing for photos when they came to their name. At the end, each senior was handed a lawn sign to display at their home — prompting even more proud-parent photos.

Almost 20 Schroeder and Thomas teachers were posted along the trail to act as guides and cheer for the seniors as they walked past.

I heard some very touching comments from parents and students alike as they walked along the trail. Moments like these have been few and far between in the last few years, so even something as simple as a paper bag with a little electric candle inside clearly meant a lot. There were lots of photos, lots of hugs, and lots of smiles.

It was a simple, yet meaningful way to celebrate each student in the class of 2021.

A thousand thanks to Schroeder PTSA chair Stacie Peters, Thomas PTSA chairs Denise Warren and Bridget Ziskind and their army of hard-working volunteers who filled all the bags and set them up in just a matter of three or four hours Saturday afternoon. Rest assured, your efforts were greatly appreciated by all.

Here’s a slideshow of some photos from the evening:

  • Thomas and Schroeder teachers acted as trail guides and cheered the graduates
  • Proud seniors Bella Ciardi, Nina Morrell and Olivia Cavalier with their lawn signs
  • Schroeder seniors Sam Bergo, John Vincent, Andrew Chalachan and Chloe Conner

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Webster community mailbag

16 May

The Webster Marching Band could REALLY use your returnables this year.

Due to the pandemic, the band hasn’t been able to do any of their usual fundraisers this year.  But they’re planning to at least hold their bottle and can drive, as a drop-off event.

So start saving up your bottles, then on Saturday June 5, swing by Willink Middle School on Publisher’s Parkway between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. to drop them off. There will be plenty of worker-bees there to help you, so you won’t even have to get out of the car.

If you’re not able to go to Willink that Saturday, they’ll come to you. Simply call the Bottle and Can Hotline, 24/7 at 234-8684 (option 1), leave a message and they’ll call you back for details. You can also drop off their returns at any time to area bottle return companies (Can Kings, Nickleback, Upstate Bottle Return) and just tell them to credit the Webster Marching Band for the return.

The Webster Aquatic Center will host its Webster Youth Triathlon on Sunday June 6.

The event, which includes a swim, bike and run, is for children from kindergarten through age 16, and is scaled according to age. Kindergartners, for example, will swim 25 yards, bike a mile and run a 1/4 mile. Older kids will swim 150 yards, bike 4 miles and run a mile. There’s also a team relay option.

The swim will take place at the Aquatic Center, 875 Ridge Rd., and the run and bike portions on the Webster Schroeder campus.

Cost is $15, and registration begins at 8 a.m. at the Webster Aquatic Center. The first 250 participants will receive a goody bag and t-shirt.

To register and for more details, call the Webster Aquatic Center at 585-670-1087. You can also email race director Missy Whipple with questions, at missyw26.2@gmail.com.

This is an interesting bit of history which I recently received from the Webster Museum, where the folks are anxiously awaiting society’s return to normal so they can share this kind of stuff with everyone in person again!

WEBSTER HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE BECOMES MAYOR OF ROCHESTER…

….. in 1895. That was just the beginning of a forty-year political career.

Born in Webster to farmers Chadwick and Rhonda Lewis, Merton Elmer Lewis (1861-1937) studied law with James B. Perkins. He fathered six children during his two marriages and some of his family remained in the Rochester area.

A staunch Republican, Merton would serve as Rochester mayor, delegate to the New York State Assembly and Senate, New York State Attorney General, United States Attorney and was considered by his party for nomination as a New York State gubernatorial candidate. He returned to private practice in 1919.

The Webster Museum and Historical Society thanks Frank Calandra, local political historian and collector, for introducing us to this Webster resident and to Mr. Lewis’ illustrious career.

When we can safely open, museum volunteers will return to welcome you all to stop in to “meet” other interesting Webster residents of yesteryear.

Finally, a few notes from the library, the first one well timed for this week’s beautiful weather when everyone wants to get out and start planting.

  • Small Space Gardening: A Zoom Program, Tuesday May 18, 7 p.m.

Gardening requires planning and preparation, especially if your garden is as big as a match box! This program will cover small space gardening techniques and tips to help maximize your garden’s productivity. Also covered will be site selection, vegetable varieties, soil preparation, and crop rotation to assure fresh and nutritious food for you. Presented by Jarmila Haseler, an Ag & Food Systems Educator from the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Monroe County.

Registration is required. Click here to do so. The Zoom invitation will be sent the day before the program.

  • Webster Public Library is now offering the streaming service called HOOPLA for all Webster library patrons. You can use Hoopla to access music, TV shows, movies, audiobooks, ebooks, and comics/graphic novels. Just download the materials straight onto your phone or tablet, or even stream them to your TV instantly!

Click here to learn more and get started.

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Willkommen and bienvenue to the (outdoor) Cabaret!

13 May

All around us we can see that life is finally returning to normal, albeit slowly. The latest — and greatest — indication of that is .. LIVE THEATER IS BACK!

The Webster Thomas Players will present their spring musical, Cabaret live and in person this year at the Penfield Amphitheater, 3100 Atlantic Ave., in three shows June 17 to 19.

The decision to hold the performance at the amphitheater was made several months ago, very early in the planning stages. It was a brilliant choice. Not only does the venue offer plenty of space for social distancing, but will make for a unique theater experience for cast members and audience members alike. In deference to Covid, the cast and orchestra will be smaller than in normal years. But thanks to the vaccine, the cast will be able to perform without masks.

You’re probably familiar with the story of Cabaret.

Set in 1929 to 1930 Berlin as the Nazis are gaining power, the musical focuses on the hedonistic nightlife at the seedy Kit Kat Klub, and revolves around a relationship between American writer Cliff Bradshaw (Cole Weisensel) and English cabaret performer Sally Bowles (Isabelle Nitsch). A sub-plot involves the doomed romance between German boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider (Brynn Smith) and her elderly suitor Herr Schultz (Jake Groff), a Jewish fruit vendor. Overseeing the action is the Kit Kat Klub’s Emcee (Tessa DeGrace), and the club itself serves as a metaphor for the ominous political developments in Germany at the time.

The production will be PG-13, but the subject matter is most appropriate for mature audiences, addressing issues around anti-Semitism and political fanaticism. Audiences will recognize many legendary musical numbers including “Willkommen,” “Don’t Tell Mama,” “Maybe this Time,” “Money,” and of course, “Cabaret.”

Cabaret will be presented in three shows:

● Thursday, June 17, 7:30 p.m.
● Friday, June 18, 7:30 p.m.
● Saturday, June 19, 7:30 p.m.

The rain date for all shows will be Sunday, June 20 at 7:30 p.m.

Reserved seating tickets are available for $12 in advance, and can be purchased online here (websterthomasplayers.com). On the day of the show, reserve tickets will be $15 (if available). General admission “bring your own” lawn chair ($10) or blanket ($25) options are also available. You can see more details about these options on the website.

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First-ever Home Run Derby a success

12 May

You could say that when Webster Parks and Recreation held their first-ever MLB Jr. Home Run Derby last Saturday, they really hit it out of the park.

The Major Leage Baseball-sanctioned event, co-hosted by the Webster Warthogs, gave youngsters a chance to showcase their hitting skills in an exciting, free contest. Almost 20 players from the 12U and 14U divisions came to play that sunny Saturday, and the competition was fierce.

  • Jackson Bernier
  • Christopher Masters

Webster Parks and Recreation Supervisor Julie Schillaci provided a great summary of the action:

Our first annual MLB Jr. Home Run Derby event ended in an exciting match between two ball players for each division.

In the 12U division, Colin DiCicco and Jackson Bernier were neck and neck and had to go four rounds. Each player had one home run in the first round, one in the second round and one in the third round. Finally, in the fourth round, Jackson Bernier hit a home run to advance to the regional competition.

In the 14U division, in the first round we had home runs from Parker Carley, Christopher Masters, Jimmy Cook, Andrew Rosa, and Trevor LeRoy. However, only two players advanced to the second round: Jimmy Cook with six home runs and Christopher Masters with three home runs. In the second round, Jimmy Cook had one home run while Christopher Masters hit two home runs to advance to the regional competition.

The Webster Recreation Department would like to give a special thank you to Dennis Carroll and the Warthogs organization for providing the equipment and all the volunteers to make this a successful event. We are all looking forward to hosting again next spring.

Congratulations to the following participants for their excellent performance and equally excellent sportsmanship:

In the 12U division, Colin DiCicco, Dalton Petzing, Emmett Tehan, Grant Powers, Jackson Bernier, James Niles, Max Seaver and Zachary Wojtas. In the 14U division, Andrew Rosa, Carson Janto, Christopher Masters, Dylan Dumont, Jacob DiCicco, Jimmy Cook, Parker Carley, Trevor LeRoy, Logan Smith and Liam Carroll.

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