Pledge not to use the “R-word”

2 Mar

rword

I missed an important day yesterday. March 1 was officially the day to pledge to Spread the Word, to End the Word.

The “word” is the “R-word,” offensive enough that we don’t even like to write it, let alone say it out loud.  And a few days ago I received an email inviting me to log onto the R-Word.org website  and sign a pledge to stop using the word.

As the website explains,

The R-word is the word ‘retard(ed)’. Why does it hurt? The R-word hurts because it is exclusive. It’s offensive. It’s derogatory.

Our campaign asks people to pledge to stop saying the R-word as a starting point toward creating more accepting attitudes and communities for all people. Language affects attitudes and attitudes affect actions. Pledge today to use respectful, people-first language.

I don’t use the word, and I can also say that I haven’t recently heard anyone else use that word. But I do remember hearing it at least once within the last year, and I recall saying something about it. But I also remember I didn’t do so with as much conviction as I should, because I don’t like personal confrontation.

But I’ve found myself this year working in a school with a large population of children with challenges, and I love them to pieces.  So if I ever hear someone use the R-word again, I will definitely speak up and defend their dignity.

Today more than ever, we need to  stand up for our differently-abled adults and children, and help work toward inclusion instead of division.

You can still sign the pledge here, and visit the website for more information. Plus, check out this great student-made video if you want to get inspired and perhaps even shed a tear.

Thank you to the Edison Best Buddies, Thomas LINK Crew and the YAC and Unified members and players for helping to spread the word.

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One year, 100 parks. Hear all about it at the ADK talk

1 Mar

park collage.pngRemember how I went out and explored 100 parks last year? I called it my 2016 Tour de Parks Challenge, and it pretty much consumed my life. I wrote about it several times in my East Extra column (the most recent one is here) and probably touched on it a few times here in my blog as well.

Well, you’re going to have to hear about it one more time.

Shortly after I began my quest last year, I realized exactly how much of a challenge I had shouldered. I actually considered letting it fade off unnoticed. But then I got an email from the Genesee Valley Chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club, inviting me to be the featured speaker at one of their meetings.

I was stuck.

That meeting has finally arrived, and I would like to invite all of my readers to attend, if you’re at all interested in hearing about my adventures.

The event takes place on Wednesday March 8, beginning at 7:30 p.m. in the Eisenhart Auditorium of the Rochester Museum and Science Center, 657 East Ave.

It should be interesting, I hope. I’m working up a fancy-pants display board with pins showing all the parks I visited, and a PowerPoint presentation highlighting some of the funny, surprising, beautiful and disappointing things I saw and learned. And yes, I’ll even tell everyone which one was my favorite. Sort of. The whole shebang should only be about 45 minutes.

Please join me. There’s no admission charge. Maybe you could grab dinner beforehand and make it a night out.

And if you’d like to read up on all the parks I visited, here’s a link to the 2016 Tour de Parks blog I maintained through it all.

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Sad news about Sweet Ben

28 Feb

ben

Last July I wrote an East Extra column about a very special young man, 12-year old Ben Matthews, who was battling cancer. Earlier in the year, doctors had given Ben only weeks to live. His family decided to make the best of the time he had left by renting an RV and taking a cross-country trip to visit family and see the sights.

I met Ben at a lemonade stand he had set up in front of his aunt’s house in Webster. His spirit moved me, and his mother’s positive attitude inspired me. It was a day I will not soon forget.

Sadly, I read today that Ben passed away peacefully Tuesday morning. His aunt Linda wrote on Facebook,

Dear Webster friends, especially those who remember our Sweet Ben and his lemonade stand this past summer, I am so saddened to share this post from my sister-in-law with you: This morning at 1:20 a.m. our Ben ended his time with us here on earth. He will continue to shine in our hearts until we are reunited in the future. Love you always my dear boy.

It is definitely a sad day, but we can take a small bit of comfort in knowing that Ben enjoyed a full life, one more than a year longer than even the doctors had predicted. He brought many smiles to family, friends and the many strangers who crossed his path.

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Town Board gets new digs

28 Feb

Somewhere in the back of my brain I knew that the Town offices were getting a face-lift, but I didn’t realize how much until yesterday. Basically, they’re benefiting from maintenance and upgrades that have been needed for a while, and they’re going to look AWESOME.

I learned the details from Supervisor Nesbitt’s most recent column, in which he announced that this Thursday’s Town Board meeting will be held in the brand new board room in the Van Ingen Building (old-timers like me will remember the Van Ingen building as the old library).

According to Nesbitt,

The space is larger to accommodate those times which require more resident participation may be needed. There is new video and audio technology that has been installed that will allow Cable Channel 12 to do more in the way of streaming live and not having residents walk up to the podium when needing to speak.

The Van Ingen building also has a new roof, two new air-conditioning and heating units, a new indoor paint job, and improvements to the Special Police space. Come spring, the Highway Department will be putting in a new sidewalk and curbing and redoing the surface of the parking lot.

You can check out the upgrades yourself by stopping in this Thursday, or watch the board meeting on TV, televised  by Channel 12 at 7:30 p.m.

The improvements are part of a two year town-wide project to update the Town of Webster’s government facilities.

Town Hall is next on the schedule for an upgrade. While work is being completed, all regular Town Hall business will be moved to the Van Ingen building for about 6 months. More details to come about that.

recycle

Towards the end of Supervisor Nesbitt’s column, he added a note about the blue recycle bins. Apparently people are calling him to complain about trash blowing out of the bins on windy days and littering their neighborhoods.

Really? This is something that you need to call the supervisor about?

It’s really not the supervisor’s job to remind everyone to weigh down their recyclables on windy mornings, or wait until early morning to put the bin by the curb. He’s got more important things to worry about, and so do we. If trash blows into your yard, pick it up. It’s really not that big a deal, and if that’s the only aggravation in your life these days, count your blessings.

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Go blue for Jack on Monday

24 Feb

 

jack

All of my school district colleagues are being encouraged to Go Blue for Jack on Monday February 27, and I wanted to pass along that challenge to everyone else as well.

Jack James Heiligman would have celebrated his 4th birthday this Sunday. I first learned that from my friends at Schlegel Road Elementary School, where Jack would have eventually attended school.

Jack passed last October in a tragic accident, but his irrepressible spirit lives on through the Jack Foundation, established in his memory.

In honor of Jack’s birthday, and to continue to spread the positive message championed by the Jack Foundation, all of us in the Webster Schools will be wearing blue on Monday. Please join us and help spread the word to your work colleagues to do so as well!

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Webster PTSA presents program on Internet safety

20 Feb

flyer

The Webster Central PTSA will be sponsoring a program in March that every parent should consider attending.

Jesse Weinberger, a nationally recognized speaker about Internet safety, will present a program called “Internet Safety for Parents” on Wednesday March 1 from 7 to 9 pm in the Willink Middle School cafetorium.

Jesse will share with Webster parents the ways in which kids are at risk on their personal devices, and concrete steps we can take to minimize those risks. Learn the affects of exposure to adult content on children, the facts on cyber-bullying and how to avoid it, the truth about sexting and how predators engage with children online. Participants will leave with action steps to keep kids safer.

This FREE presentation is appropriate for an adult-only audience, as the content will be direct and specific. Please make arrangements for child care. The presentation cannot be recorded, so make sure you can see it in person.

Click here for more information and if you have any questions, email CentralPTSA@websterptsa.org. 

Willink Middle School is located at 900 Publisher’s Parkway, Webster.

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Get your team together for the annual SEPTA bowling tournament

18 Feb

bowling

Dust off those bowling balls and shoes and save the date for an enjoyable afternoon of bowling, all for a great cause!

On Sunday, April 9, Webster’s Special Education Parent-Teacher Association (SEPTA) will hold its annual bowling fundraiser to raise scholarship funds for graduating Webster Schroeder and Webster Thomas High School seniors who are part of the district’s special education family.

Join Webster’s special education faculty and staff, students, parents, and Webster families from 3 to 5:30 p.m. at AMF Empire Lanes in Webster on Sunday, April 9. Your donation of $30 includes two hours of bowling, shoe and equipment rental, a t-shirt, pizza, soft drinks, and even free raffle tickets for prizes.

We are looking for teams to show off their hidden talents of striking and sparing! Dress in a theme to win awesome prizes (past themes have included: The 50’s, Ballerinas, Outer Space, Nerds and The Rainforest).

For more information and/or to reserve a spot for your team, contact Webster Thomas High School special education teacher Dina Malboeuf at Dina_Malboeuf@webstercsd.org.

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Vote for the Warrior Crew NOW!

16 Feb

warrior-crew

You may recall a few days ago when I posted a blog about Webster Schroeder’s Warrior Crew. That’s what the school’s uber-peppy student fan section calls itself. Last year the Crew took first place in the annual New York State Public High School Athletic Association “Battle of the Fans” competition, which recognizes top student cheering sections.

Well, the contest is on again and the Crew is once again a finalist, hoping to become the contest’s first-ever back-to-back winners.

Voting is now in progress and only runs through noon tomorrow (Friday). I’m told that it’s a pretty tight race right now, so every vote counts.

You vote by “liking” their entry on social media — Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Here are the links:

https://instagram.com/p/BQilxXyhJp1/

https://www.facebook.com/NYSPHSAA/posts/1001072033358041

https://twitter.com/nysphsaa/status/831911588198223872

So get online (wait, you already are.) So click through and make your vote right now!

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The Yellow Brick Road leads to Spry Middle School this spring

14 Feb

wizard-of-oz

The spring musical season continues in just a few weeks when Spry Middle School presents The Wizard of Oz on March 10 and 11.

Dorothy, Tin Man, Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion will all be there, searching for the Wizard and the glowing Emerald City. Adapted from the famous movie starring Judy Garland, the stage version incorporates all of your favorite songs, like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” “If I Only Had a Brain,” and “King of the Forest.” Plus, you’ll also enjoy a rarely-seen dance number, “The Jitterbug,” which was cut from the original movie.

The production is based on the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, with a book adapted by L. Frank Baum. The story is a familiar one: When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of Oz. They follow the Yellow Brick Road toward the Emerald City to meet the Wizard, and en route they meet a Scarecrow who needs a brain, a Tin Man missing a heart, and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage. The Wizard asks the group to bring him the broom of the Wicked Witch of the West to earn his help.

The Wizard of Oz will be presented in three shows, Friday March 10 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday March 11 at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m., in the Spry Middle School auditorium, 119 South Ave. Tickets are $7, and these shows often sell out, so it’s a good idea to get your tickets early. They’ll be available beginning Feb. 24 at  http://www.ShowTix4U.com. If any tickets remain, they will be sold at the door.

Bringing The Wizard of Oz to the Spry stage would not be possible without the hard work of Artistic Director Bill Ambler, Production Manager Tricia Mungo, Choreographer Jackie Collins, and Music Director Ron Strong.

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Boy Scout Troop 110 introduces newest Eagle Scout

13 Feb

20170124_170041

Boy Scout Troop 110, sponsored by St. Martin Lutheran Church in Webster, has announced that Ian Kuebler has earned the rank of Eagle Scout.

Ian’s project involved revamping the back entrance of Holy Trinity Church. During the summer of 2016, he put in new plants (trees and flowers) and replaced the old, outdated plants to make the church look more inviting. Also, the project entailed placing a stone bench for reflection, staining a AC unit fence and washing a retaining wall from mold and dirt. He completed his project last summer with help from 32 volunteers, putting in more than 290 hours.

Ian Kuebler is currently a high honor role senior at Aquinas Institute. He plays ice hockey, lacrosse and golf. In addition, he’s a member of the Principals Club at Aquinas and has earned the Hands of Christ Award.

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