Thank you, Webster, from the WCC and Webster Hope

1 Dec

The Webster Community Chest (WCC) and Webster Hope joined forces this Thanksgiving to support families who are struggling more than ever to keep food on the table. Their combined efforts brought food and other household items to our neighbors who needed it most.

But these agencies could not do what they do without strong support from the Webster community. Recently they sent out a public thank you, which I am pleased to reprint here.

Thank you for your support of our recent Thanksgiving Grocery Bag distribution event. This event served 227 families and families received everything they need for a full Thanksgiving dinner in addition to baking items, cleaning products and other extra items. We filled 500 bags (because everything didn’t fit in just one bag)! We also gave out 51 turkeys to larger families thanks to a grant from West Herr Cares.

These large collaborative events cannot happen without the support of the community. We would like to thank Wegmans for their large grant to support this event as well as a gift card so we could purchase the reusable Wegmans shopping bags for all families, West Herr Ford of Webster for supplying butter to all of our families (West Herr Butter is Better), Kuk Sool Won of Ontario for collecting cleaning products, Gathering Place Webster for collecting gravy, A Foley of the NYS Police Academy for collecting food and cleaning items, Thomas High School for dedicating two days of their Spirit Week to collecting for our Thanksgiving event, Village at Unity for collecting a truckload of cookie mix packets, Immanuel Lutheran Church for collecting enough macaroni and cheese to double up in every bag, McAlpin Industries for providing much of the coffee and DiPaolo Bakery for giving us a discount on freshly baked delicious dinner rolls with free delivery and including three trays of delicious treats for our hard-working volunteers.

Also a huge thank you to our individual donors who donated grocery items and/or made a cash donation to support the purchase of grocery items for this event.

The Holiday Meal Collaboration was a response to the increase of food insecurity in our community. Our collaboration has now held six events and we have given out food and other needed items to almost 900 families! Our plan is to have three events per year: Easter/Spring, Summer and Thanksgiving. Webster is truly a community that comes together in times of need and what a better reason to come together than to feed our neighbors.

Thank you for being a part of the solution and thank you for your support of our collaborative efforts.

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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 12/1/2025)

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Wreaths Across America Day is coming soon!

30 Nov

We’re less than two weeks away from Wreaths Across America Day on Saturday, Dec. 13, when the Webster community will come together to place wreaths on more than 2,100 veterans’ graves.

Wreaths Across America is a nonprofit organization which began 30 years ago, its mission to place a wreath on the grave of every veteran in the country. Last December, four million volunteers placed more than three million wreaths at 4,000 cemeteries across the U.S. and abroad.

Webster was a big part of that effort, joining Wreaths Across America for the third time. Last December, several hundred adults and children, including first responders, veterans and active service members, gathered at Webster Union Cemetery to lay hundreds of wreaths then spreading out to Webster Rural, Union Hill and Holy Trinity cemeteries. (Click here to read the blog about that incredible day.) It was a heartwarming outpouring of support from the Webster community.

Local organizers hope the community will show that commitment again as Webster joins Wreaths Across America for the fourth straight year, on Saturday Dec. 13. The plan is to meet at noon at Webster Union Cemetery (corner of Rt. 250 and Woodhull) for a brief Wreath Day ceremony. Following the ceremony, volunteers can stay there to lay wreaths or travel to Webster Rural, Holy Trinity and Union Hill to lay those cemeteries’ wreaths.

Adults and children of all ages are encouraged to take part in this very moving ceremony. Start a new holiday tradition for your family; it’s a great way to teach your children about how important it is to remember and recognize our nation’s veterans. Mark your calendar now and stay tuned for more details. You can also follow the Wreaths Across America Facebook page to keep up on all the latest news.  

Right now, you can help by sponsoring a wreath (or several). Each sponsorship costs $17, and $5 from each will be donated to local Gold Star Families, who have lost an immediate family member in active duty. Click here to go to Webster’s Wreaths Across America page and sign up.

And stay tuned for details about when the Webster Police Department escort the 18-wheeler through town as it transports our wreaths from Maine to Webster Union Cemetery. I’ll post updates on my Facebook page as I heard about them!

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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 11/30/2025)

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Webster Museum, Chorus of the Genesee, bring music and history to the Village’s Winter Wonderland

29 Nov

Y’all probably already know about — and are looking forward to — the Village of Webster’s Winter Wonderland festivities, scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 6.

For those of you not yet familiar with this annual celebration, this is an afternoon and evening packed with holiday fun, including carriage rides, crafts for the kids, cookie decorating, live music, story time, and a visit with Santa, culminating with the always spectacular Parade of Lights down Main Street. The Village’s Business Improvement District, who organize the festival, has some new things up their sleeves for this year, and I’ll be detailing them in another blog shortly.

But today I want to highlight two organizations who always participate in this event, but since they’re not located right in the middle of things, sometimes don’t get a lot of community traffic.

The first is the Webster Museum, which always does Winter Wonderland up big.

  • Beginning at 4 p.m., the museum will have live music and a sing-along featuring The Goodwin Family, followed by The Saxophone Therapy Project at 5 p.m.
  • The Festival of Trees officially opens that Saturday as well. Nineteen beautifully decorated miniature Christmas trees have been placed throughout the museum, and community members are encouraged to see them all and vote for your favorite. They’ll be on display through Dec. 31, but if you can’t make it to the museum before then, you can also vote online at the museum’s website. (That link will be posted soon!)
  • The spectacular Burkardt Family Crèche will be on display for the month of December.  Handcrafted in Germany between WWI and WWII, it was shipped to the Burkardt family in Webster at the end of the war. You can read more about it in this blog I wrote about it two years ago.   
  • The museum’s popular holiday raffle returns this year, featuring featuring gifts and vouchers from generous local businesses. Tickets will be available at the museum through Dec. 6. They’re 3 for $5 and winners do not need to be present
  • Finally, the museum is participating in Kittelberger Florist’s 12 Months of Flowers program this holiday season. Purchase a “12 Months of Flowers” card for $50, cash or check only, at the museum through Dec 6 and receive one bouquet of flowers, each month, for 12 consecutive months. Bouquets are valued at $15 and must be picked up at Kittelberger Florist, 263 North Ave, Webster.

The Webster Museum is located at 18 Lapham Park (just steps off of East Main St.). They’ll be open from 2 to 6 p.m. on Saturday Dec. 6.

The second featured organization today is the Chorus of the Genesee, who make their home at the Harmony House, 58 East Main St. in the village. During Winter Wonderland the Harmony House will be hosting a craft fair from 2 to 8 p.m. in the main room, just steps off of Main St. During the event, the Chorus will pop up occasionally to entertain the crowds with Christmas carols. Plus, watch for an ensemble of carolers from Webster’s own award-winning Rochester Rhapsody Chorus, who’ll be strolling through the village, popping in and out of businesses and stopping along the street from 4 to 5 p.m.

BY THE WAY,

If you’re a fan of signing Christmas carols and eating soup, the Chorus of the Genesee would like to invite you to their annual Soup and Caroling night on Tuesday Dec. 23 beginning at 7 p.m. The carolers will start at the Harmony House and walk through the village, caroling at select houses and businesses, then return to the Harmony House for a delicious variety of soups. There’ll be free hot chocolate and an open bar for those who want something a little stronger.

No registration is necessary. Just show up and bring your singing voice. Santa hats and sleigh bells are more than welcome.

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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 11/29/2025)

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Young local dancers join the Nutcracker ensemble next week

28 Nov

A holiday classic is returning to the Auditorium Theatre next Tuesday, and once again some of our very talented local kids will be taking part.

About 38 boys and girls ages 4 to 18 from Webster’s Dancing With Denise studio will be performing alongside the full international professional Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet troupe this year, filling the roles of little snowflakes, mice, party children, snow sprites, snow maidens, and variations. It’s a rare opportunity for these kids to audition, rehearse and perform with a professional, international touring ballet company.

The Nutcracker is truly a magical show, from the bright Christmas-Eve-celebration colors, costumes and staging in the first act, to the sparkling wintry scenes in Act II, all wrapped in the beautiful music we all know so well. The addition of adorable local children makes it even more enchanting.

The show takes place at the Auditorium Theatre, 885 East Main St., Rochester, on Tuesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $37. For more information about the show and to purchase tickets online, click here.

Preparing for the Nutcracker isn’t the only thing keeping these young dancers busy.

The Dancing with Denise Nutcracker families organized their second annual Making Spirits Soar Project this year, creating performance care packages for each of the professional dancers.

Thanks to tremendous support from all the DWD families, enough funds were raised to purchase, create, and decorate care packages for all 40 of the Nutcracker cast members. The idea is to provide the international dancers with food and treats to give them energy and protein while they’re on tour.

The Dancing With Denise students will present the care packages to the dancers during their stage rehearsal on the day of the show. Studio director Denise Baller says that the project is a way to teach “thoughtfulness and doing good deeds for others … part of the foundation of the Dancing With Denise studio.”

The Dancing With Denise studio is located at 1077 Gravel Rd. in West Webster.

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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 11/28/2025)

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Annual Evening With Santa returns to St. Martin Lutheran Church

27 Nov

In just a little more than a week, Friday night Dec. 5, Santa and Mrs. Claus will be visiting St. Martin Lutheran Church on Bay Rd. for the church’s annual holiday party.

They’ll be arriving by fire truck at around 6 p.m., then spend the next few hours visiting with children in the church’s community hall. Every child will have an opportunity to talk with Santa and tell him their secret wishes (you can skip the mall lines). It’s also a great opportunity for a beautiful family photo. Free photos will be taken, but feel free to bring your own camera.

After your kids visit with the jolly ol’ elf (and Mrs. Claus), make sure to hang around a bit and decorate your own Christmas cookies, enjoy some games and Christmas crafts, listen to Santa read The Night Before Christmas and Pastor Korey read the Real Christmas Story, and sing along with Santa. Free pizza and beverages will also be provided for all.

This is a community-wide celebration! Everyone is invited. Admission is free but please bring a canned good for the Little Free Pantry at the church, which provides food 24/7 for our neighbors in need.

St. Martin Lutheran Church is located at 813 Bay Rd. It all begins at 6 p.m. on Friday Dec. 5. Get there early so you can watch for the fire truck carrying Santa and Mrs. Claus.

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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 11/27/2025)

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WHEN asking for your support on ROC the Day

26 Nov

ROC the Day 2025 is right around the corner. This annual community-wide event, sponsored by the United Way, is a 24-hour opportunity for people in the Greater Rochester and Finger Lake region to support local nonprofits which are doing amazing work, through online donations. This year’s campaign will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 2.

On their website, the United Way maintains a catalog of more than 500 local nonprofits which provide a wide range of services, to which you can make a donation on ROC the Day. I suspect there are already some Webster organizations on that list. But for the first time this year, an organization near and dear to my heart, and for which I volunteer regularly, is jumping into the ring and is asking for your support: the Webster Health and Education Network (WHEN).

WHEN is a youth drug prevention coalition. For 30 years now, its mission has been to promote healthy, substance-free behaviors and lifestyles in the Webster community. Chances are very good you’ve seen WHEN volunteers in blue shirts around town, at drug take-back events at the Town Hall, Above the Influence programs at Webster middle schools, and at Family Game Nights at our elementary schools.

A true community coalition, WHEN is comprised of more than 150 members representing multiple sectors of our community including business owners, faith-based organizations, youth, civic/volunteer groups, media, law enforcement, health care providers, substance use prevention professionals, and more. Their work is truly making a difference here in Webster. According to Youth Risk Behavior surveys conducted between 2017 and 2023, youth use of alcohol and marijuana has decreased by more than 50% over that period.

This year, through United Way’s ROC the Day, WHEN is asking for community support to help raise funds to support the group’s mission and continue their efforts to help our kids grow up strong and substance-free. On Tuesday Dec. 2, go to this website (or click on the QR code below) and please consider making a donation.

WHEN takes a positive approach to sharing prevention facts and strengthening protective factors which empower Webster kids to grow up strong and substance-free. From hosting parent forums to posting signs promoting healthy behaviors, and offering a website full of local resources, WHEN champions the health and well-being of all Webster youth. I hope you’ll join the fight with your donation.

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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 11/26/2025)

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Work out hard, eat more turkey

26 Nov

A quick shout-out to the Webster Recreation Center and this group of crazy people who got me out of bed at 5 a.m. this morning for a rather intense workout.

It was called the “Hell’s Mile,” and in short, it involved doing laps of the gymnasium, performing different exercises with each lap, like lunges, skipping, bear crawls and the like. At each corner, you had to do a DIFFERENT element, like jumping jacks, push-ups and sit ups. (Perhaps you understand why it’s called “Hell’s Mile.”)

Apparently the group has been doing this pre-Thanksgiving workout for 15 years now, and they have the T-shirts to prove it. When fitness instructor Jim Wallis told us about it last week during one of our classes, one of my workout buddies and I kind of looked at each other and said, “I’ll do it if you do it.”

And yes, he was there, too.

We all went at our own pace and it took me more than an hour to complete the whole circuit, well behind most of the other participants. It wasn’t pretty, but I got it done, and now I feel like I can eat turkey with abandon tomorrow.

Maybe next year I’ll order a t-shirt.

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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 11/26/2025)

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Dedicated teens making our community better

25 Nov

Sometimes when I start working on a blog post, by the time I’ve dotted the last I and crossed the last T, the whole focus has shifted from where it began. This is one of those blogs.

It began when I heard that National Honor Society (NHS) students from Webster Thomas High School have been helping out at the community meals hosted by four local churches through the Churches Offering Meals for Everyone (COME) initiative. This effort — a collaboration among The Gathering Place at UCC, Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, St. Rita’s and Webster Methodist Church — provided free meals, served restaurant-style, to anyone who wants to attend. Each church serves a meal once a month, and no one is turned away. Especially now, when so many people are struggling more than ever, it’s a vital service for our community.

For two years now, Webster Thomas NHS students have been helping out at these dinners, sometimes with set-up and clean-up, other times serving, pretty much doing whatever needs to be done. I thought, this is a great little feature to remind everyone how our young people are helping to make this world a better place.

And that was going to pretty much be the end of the blog. But then I headed over to Thomas and met two of these young people, club president Ayleen Dehghani and vice president Kate Mitchell. It was then I realized there was much more to this story.

I learned that the students’ work with the church dinners is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how involved they are with their school and our community as a whole. Thomas NHS students are required to fulfill at least 15 hours of service every school year (20 hours if you’re a senior). The hours need to be distributed throughout the year, and split among at least three different organizations.

There are many chances within the school itself to fulfill at least some of those hours. Most recently, for example, the NHS students helped at a Red Cross blood drive held at Thomas, setting up, cleaning up, and donating blood themselves. Outside of school, the list of organizations the club has worked with is long. In Webster alone, it includes the Webster Comfort Care Home, Challenger Miracle Field, Baywinde, Maplewood Nursing Home, the Gathering Place, Bella’s Bumbas and the Webster Public Library. But it stretches well beyond Webster as well: TogetherNow, Cross Creek Church, the Margaret Home, Friends of Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester Refugee Resettlement, the Ronald McDonald House and many, many more.

  • Kate Mitchell, staff advisor Erika Stuff and Ayleen Dehghani

National Honor Society is just one of several service-oriented clubs at Webster Thomas, and it’s common for students to be involved in more than one. They include the CARE Club, Key Club, Rotary Interact and Titan Service Scholars — every one of them community-focused and committed to making our world a better place.

What particularly impressed me about the young ladies I met is how they sincerely believed that serving our community is an opportunity, not just something you do to complete service hours or because it will look good on your resume.

“It’s not a burden,” Kate said. “Connecting with people in our community is so important, especially being able to connect with people of different ages.” At the churches in particular, she added, the community members who attend are mostly older, “so the churches appreciate when we send the high schoolers. The older people get to connect with the younger generation.”

Ayleen noted that the service opportunities benefit students in several ways.

“It helps you in your future,” she said. “(People) get to know you and who you are as a person, which could help you later on. Also you feel way better about yourself knowing that you spent your time doing good deeds for other people.”  

Webster Thomas English teacher Erika Stuff, who advises the club, agreed.

If you put students in meaningful authentic needs-based service, it’s rare if ever that a student will leave saying that was a waste of my time. They always walk away knowing more about their community or the world around them and more about themselves. That’s why we always push to have diversity in service and have them think about what are the critical issues and needs that we’re meeting. And trying to get away from just fulfilling hours that aren’t as meaningful. 

A lot of them just put in the minimum time, but a lot of students go above and beyond.

And that’s just part of the story. Webster Schroeder High School and our middle schools are also home to thriving service clubs. These clubs bring together a core group of passionate Webster young people dedicated to improving our world. Our sincere thanks go out to them.

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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 11/25/2025)

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Art club members and seniors bring life stories to canvas

24 Nov

The Webster Art Club, based at the Webster Recreation Center, has spent the last month or so turning memories into masterpieces, and the beautiful results are now on display for everyone to see.

In a heartfelt collaboration which began in early October, Webster Art Club members met with seniors and listened to their stories of childhood adventures, family traditions, life-changing journeys, and the quiet moments that shaped a lifetime. Over the weeks following their conversations, the artists took those stories and turned them into beautiful works of art.

Eleven art club members and nine seniors participated in the project, called Senior Inspirations. Last Wednesday morning, the seniors got their first look at the finished artworks when they were unveiled at a reception held in the Recreation Center hallway where the works are now on display.

As she welcomed the artists, seniors and community members in attendance, Mary Coy, co-president of Webster Art Club, explained,

This project came about after I read that the top contributing factor for healthy aging is having strong social connections, more so than even diet and exercise. Always trying to think of new ideas, I thought it might be nice for our club to do a community project that encouraged social connections.

Two months, ago, we invited folks to come to the Rec Center for an hour to connect with artists in our club and talk about their life stories, their memories and anything else they felt comfortable sharing, The room was abuzz with conversation, which in turn provided us as artists with the sparkle of inspiration needed to create the drawings and paintings now hanging on the wall.

One by one, each artist stepped up to their work, inviting their senior subject to join them, and shared the meaning behind their piece. They told of being fascinated by the stories they heard — sometimes sad, other times humorous or adventurous — and how hard it was to decide which of those stories inspired them most, and would make it into the final composition.

Without exception, the seniors were delighted with the results. The finished pieces included acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil, pastels, pen and ink, collage, and even one created on an iPad. They brought to life a wide variety of memories, from stories about a favorite childhood bicycle and a long-ago bee sting to peaceful nature scenes and Paris cafe — every one an illustration of a life well lived. At the end of the reception, each senior received a print of the original artwork.

The artworks will remain on display through the end of December.

WHAM Channel 13 was there to cover the event for that evening’s Bright Spot segment. You can see that piece here.

If you’d like to see more beautiful work by the Webster Art Club, stop by the Webster Public Library from Dec. 6 through 27 for their annual art show, displayed in the lobby. You can even vote for your favorite piece.

Here are some more photos from the reception:

  • (L-R) Mary Joan Bodensteiner and artist Sara Walczak
  • (L-R) Artist Mary Coy and Rose Schifano
  • (L-R) Linda Fiske and artist Carol Osborne
  • Diana Holzwasser with the piece created for her by Jean Bileschi

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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 11/24/2025)

Geva’s A Christmas Carol cast will again feature two Webster students

23 Nov

If you attend Geva Theatre’s annual production of A Christmas Carol this holiday season, you might just recognize one of the young cast members.

Once again this year, two young Webster actors — Reid Antal, an 8th grade student at Willink Middle School, and Adriana Ruya Venable, a 6th grader at Spry Middle School — have been cast as young Tim Cratchit in Geva’s A Christmas Carol (since there are so many shows, all the children’s roles are double cast).

You know the story, described on Geva’s website:

Based on the classic by Charles Dickens, this adaptation begins with a wish made by young Tim Cratchit. Over the course of one night, notorious grump Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by four ghosts, but will their intervention prompt him to change his “humbug” ways? Filled with humor, heart, hope – and a little bit of horror – A Christmas Carol reminds us that it is never too late to have a change of heart.

Geva’s A Christmas Carol runs from Nov. 22 through Dec. 28 on the Wilson Stage, 75 Woodbury Blvd., Rochester. Tickets can be purchased online here, by calling 585-232-GEVA (4382), or by stopping by the box office in person.

Geva will also present a free performance of A Christmas Carol called “Home for the Holidays” on December 26 at 7 p.m. for Blue Star Families, who are active-duty service men and women, veterans, and their families.

Reid
Adriana

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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 11/23/2025)

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