The 2024 Wreaths Across America statistics are in, and we have a lot of be proud of here in Webster.
For the second year in a row, Webster proved that we have one amazing community. Last year, out of 174 participating towns in New York State, our little town ranked #2 for the number of veterans honored on National Wreaths Across America Day on Dec. 14. And out of 6,621 groups that participated nationwide, Webster ranked in the top 2%. What’s particularly impressive about those numbers is that we achieved these rankings with only four participating cemeteries, AND Webster only joined the effort three years ago.
These numbers can be attributed to the incredible support from Webster community members, business owners and service agencies. Several hundred volunteers, including countless veterans, active military and first responders, came out on Wreaths Across America Day on last December to place an amazing 2,100 wreaths on veteran graves at Webster Union, Webster Rural, Union Hill and Holy Trinity cemeteries. (Click here to read the blog I wrote about that day.)
Webster’s amazing commitment to our veterans has grown every year. In 2022, volunteers placed about 650 wreaths at Webster Union Cemetery. In 2023, Webster Rural and Union Hill joined the effort and 1,350 wreaths were placed. Last year, we added Holy Trinity Cemetery, and raised our wreath total to 2,100.
Wow.
So this is all great news. But the goal this year is once again 2,100 wreaths for Wreaths Across America Day on Saturday Dec. 13. That’s a lot of wreaths, but if past experience is any indication, Webster will come through again with flying colors.
Individual wreath sponsorships are just $17, and $5 from each will go directly to the Gold Star Mothers — who have lost an immediate family member in active duty — who care for veterans in need in our community.
Click here to sponsor a wreath, and thank you, Webster, for your support! And stay tuned as plans for Wreaths Across America Day 2025 on Saturday, Dec. 13 start to come together. Follow the Wreaths Across America – Webster Facebook page to keep up on the latest!
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The show tells the true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and it’s packed with huge hits including “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Oh What a Night,” “Sherry” and many more. It’s a fantastically entertaining show, but you’ll want to be in the audience for another reason as well: you just might recognize one of Webster’s own, Webster Schroeder 2011 grad Adam Marino, who’ll be playing the lead role of Frankie Valli.
OFC Creations’ production of Jersey Boys is kind of a homecoming for Adam. If you’re a regular attendee of Schroeder musicals and dramas, you might remember him from the shows he did his senior year, when he played in The 25th Annual Putman County Spelling Bee and The All Night Strut.
Even though Adam dipped his toe in theater while in high school, it took him a long time to really discover performing as a passion. In college he originally started studying psychology, but eventually found his way to musical theater, “on a whim.” He graduated in 2016 and hasn’t stopped performing since, doing various theatrical productions, theme parks, cruise ships, commercials, short films and concert shows.
But one of the coolest things he got to do, he said, was to tour the country with The Diamonds for four years.
The Diamonds have been around since 1954 and they have three gold records (Silhouettes, The Stroll, Little Darlin’). Little Darlin’ actually hit #2 in 1957 (right behind Elvis’ All Shook Up). Being able to be a part of a group with such a rich history was incredible. On top of performing in the group, I got to share the playbill, as a member of The Diamonds, with groups such as The Four Aces, The Crystals, The Lettermen, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra.
But lately, Adam has been touring the country as Frankie Valli, a role he dreamed about for a very long time.
It all began one evening in early 2012 when the show came to Rochester. His friend Paul Urriola told him about the show and convinced him to go.
I knew, quite literally, nothing about the show,” Adam remembered. “I sat down, and remember being like “oh my goodness, this show is about this short Italian guy who sings high.” I was immediately obsessed. I went out into my car after and tried to see if I could sing like that, and I couldn’t. I then went “I’m going to teach myself how to do that.“
If you ask anybody who talked to me for the next 10 years, it was at the forefront of my mind: “I’m going to play Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys.”
Adam finally achieved that dream in July, 2022, when he took the stage as Frankie in Jersey Boys for the first time at the Millbrook Playhouse in Mill Hall, PA. Since that inaugural performance, Adam has performed the role more than 230 times in 11 productions in Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia, California, Virginia, Vermont and Ohio.
He wrote,
What I love about the show is it’s gloves off, nothing held back approach to the true rise and fall of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The book is incredible, and the music is timeless. Plus, as a short Italian guy with a falsetto, it’s easy to see myself in the role. One of the coolest moments of doing the show is singing “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.” You watch all of these people hold the hands of their significant other and look into each other’s eyes. It was all of these people’s first dance songs at their wedding, the song they associate with their person, and there is something so beautiful about that.
Being able to be Frankie in the first Rochester produced production is nothing short of an honor, and one of the coolest things to ever happen in my life. It really is something that I don’t have the proper words for, but it’s euphoric. I actually have met, and worked with, a couple of people who I saw in that production in 2012 in my professional career. Bringing this all back to Rochester is tremendous. I couldn’t be more excited.
It’s one of those remarkable full circle moments that I feel only exists in the movies.
I speak from experience when I say how good this show is. Remember when Adam said the first time he played Frankie Valli was at the Millbrook Playhouse in Pennsylvania? Well, my daughter (who’s friends with Adam) and I made the three-hour drive and saw the show. We didn’t have any idea it was Adam’s first go-round as Frankie, and we were blown away. It was like the role was made for him. We’re both really looking forward to seeing it again, and seeing Adam Marino in the lead.
OFC Creations’ production of Jersey Boys will take place May 8 through 25 at the OFC Creations Theatre Center Main Stage, 3450 Winton Place. Click here for showtimes and ticket information.
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By the way, Adam isn’t the only face you’ll recognize onstage if you go see Jersey Boys at OFC Creations. Webster Schroeder graduate Paul Urriola ’12 joins Adam in the cast, playing loan shark Norm Waxman/Ensemble. You may remember when Paul played Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof his senior year at Schroeder.
Paul is as excited as Adam to be doing this show.
He wrote,
This production is so, so special to me. Adam and I saw the Jersey Boys national tour together a million years ago at the Auditorium Theatre. It was one of those experiences that started both of us down our current paths/careers. I’ve been so proud of him playing this role (and so many others!!) across the country and getting to now be in the show together after all these years just feels like a beautiful full circle moment.
This is the first time Adam and Paul have worked together professionally. The only other time they performed together was in 2011 when they acted in The All Night Strut in the Willink Cafetorium.
“Finally sharing a stage with Adam again,” Paul wrote, “doing Jersey Boys of all shows, under Eric Vaughn Johnson’s direction – in our home town, which helped shape us into the artists we are today – is quite literally a dream job.”
So there’s two good reasons, Webster, to catch this show. Aside from the fact it’s just an awesome show with great music. (Or did I already say that….?)
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We all know Seabreeze Amusement Park in Irondequoit. It’s been around for almost 150 years, making happy summer memories for generations. Fewer, however, will remember Willow Point Park, Webster’s very own amusement park. It was in business for only three decades, but to this day it evokes very fond memories.
Willow Point Park was located on Bay Road (where Willow Point Rd. is now), a little more than a half mile north of the Empire/Bay Rd. intersection. It was a small, rather quaint amusement park, quite different from the sprawling parks that today’s kids know today. But its more intimate atmosphere was one of Willow Point’s biggest draws, especially for young families. It was also popular because, despite its moderate size, it featured many unusual attractions which were – and are – hard to find at the bigger amusement parks.
Everett DeNeve opened the first incarnation of Willow Point Park in the early 1930s. It began as just a miniature golf course, but every year DeNeve expanded it with new attractions. By 1939, he sold Willow Point to Jack Garliner, who would direct its expansion well into the early 1960s.
In many respects, Willow Point seemed more like a summer camp than an amusement park. Throughout its almost 30-year history, its various attractions included an archery range, trampoline, batting cages, tennis, volleyball, badminton and small boats. But of course there were also plenty of traditional amusements and rides, including an arcade, a roller coaster, carousel, tilt-a-whirl, kiddie rides (which by today’s standards were especially quaint), and several other rides for young thrill-seekers.
As Garliner added and swapped out features through the years, Willow Point became a favorite gathering place for all ages. Teens and young adults would crowd into the roller rink/dance hall to see nationally-known bands, and a bingo hall added in the 1950s attracted older adults.
Garlinger even made sure that disadvantaged children could enjoy his park. In the 1950s, he started offering “free days” for blind children one day a year and provided free lunches. Those events were followed later by similar days for children with multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.
In 1964, a year before he died, Garliner offered to sell Willow Point Park to the Town of Webster, with no success. After Garliner’s death, Joseph Schuler bought Willow Point in 1966, and kept it open until Labor Day, 1968. The land sat vacant for years before it was redeveloped as the Waterview Townhouse Apartments complex.
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Here’s a very quick bit of happy news from our schools.
Late last week, the Spry Middle School Student Council students did a pretty great thing for our community. They presented a check for $2,440.35 to Webster Hope, a social ministry which provides emergency assistance to Webster residents who need food, clothing, household goods, furniture and financial support.
What’s especially impressive about that huge check is that the funds represent donations collected in justone week in March — Spry Middle School’s Spirit Week — which culminated with the annual Charity Basketball Game held on March 20.
Awesome job, Spry!!!
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The first, on Tuesday April 15 is all about Paranormal Investigations. Join the Monroe County paranormal investigations team to learn how they go about ghost hunting. They’ll share many Rochester-area paranormal experiences. The program begins at 6 p.m. There’s no charge, but registration is required. (Activity# 146940-P)
On Tuesday April 29, Dan Mason, General Manager of the Red Wings, will share the long history of the team which started in 1877, one of the oldest franchises in baseball. The program begins at 11:30 a.m. There’s no charge, but registration is required. (Activity# 146940-R)
Get rid of those expired drugs
The Webster Health and Education Network (WHEN), Town of Webster and Webster Police Dept. will host a DEA National Drug Take Back event on Saturday April 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Clear out your medicine cabinet and bring your old prescription drugs to the Webster Justice Court Building at 1002 Ridge Rd. (look for the blue roof). Volunteers will be out in front of the building to accept your drugs, so you don’t even need to get out of your car.
The following week, on Wednesday April 30, WHEN will be sponsoring the third and last program in their Navigating the Tween Years parent forums, held partnership with Webster Central School District.
The topic this time will be Empowering Your Family. It’s an evening of interactive discussion and exploration, and you’ll leave with concrete ideas about how to support your children and teens so they can thrive. This presentation will recap some of the topics covered in previous sessions and build on proactive measures parents can implement immediately to help keep kids safe and healthy.
The event will be held on April 30 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Spry Middle School, 119 South Ave. There’s no charge, but registration is requested.
It’s chicken barbecue time again!
St. Martin Lutheran Church will hold its Spring Drive-Thru Chicken BBQ on Saturday, May 3 at the church, 813 Bay Road, Webster. The event begins at 4:30 p.m. and will continue until all dinners are sold out.
Dinners will include a half chicken, salt potatoes, coleslaw, roll, butter and cookie, and will cost $15.
The event will be drive-through only and there will be no advance sales; first-come, first-served. Cars should enter the parking lot, follow the signs, and purchase dinners using exact payment of either cash or check. Cars will then pick up boxed dinners.
Proceeds from the BBQ will support both St. Martin’s Little Free Pantry and Christmas Stocking Project, which reaches more than 500 local youth in Monroe and Wayne counties.
Webster CSD early voter ballot applications available
Applications for absentee or early voter ballots for the Webster CSD Annual Budget Vote and School Board Election are available.
Absentee Ballot: Qualified voters of the district who will be unable to attend the polls on the day of the vote, for reasons outlined on the absentee ballot application, may wish to use an absentee ballot. Voters must apply for the ballot in advance. Absentee ballot applications are available on the district website, websterschools.org, or from District Clerk Heather Murphy, 119 South Avenue.
Early Voter: Qualified voters of the district may wish to use an early voter ballot. Voters must apply for the ballot in advance. Early voter ballot applications are available on the district website, websterschools.org, or from District Clerk Heather Murphy, 119 South Avenue, Webster.
There are limited office hours during break week of April 14, 2025. Please contact District Clerk Heather Murphy at (585) 216-0001 or heather_murphy@webstercsd.org if planning to pick up an application during that week. Ballots will not be available until on/or about April 25, 2025.
The Webster CSD Annual Budget Vote and Election of Board of Education Candidates takes place Tuesday, May 20, 6:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. in the Webster Schroeder High School gym, 875 Ridge Road, Webster.
Here are a few reminders from previous mailbags:
The Webster Arboretum will present a program on Thursday April 24 all about Orioles and Hummingbirds. It begins at 7 p.m. Click here to RSVP and to learn about future Arboretum programs.
Donors at the next American Red Cross blood drive, coming up on Saturday April 26 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Martin Lutheran Church, will enjoy homemade cookies provided by the Women’s Club of Webster. You can sign up in advance at redcrossblood.org or just drop in.
The Friends of the Webster Public Library’s Book Sale will be held April 30 through May 3. Members of the Friends are welcome to shop on Wednesday from 4 to 7 p.m., and the general public on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. More information here.
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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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The Webster Public Library will host its annual Special Needs Parent Resource Fair on Saturday April 19 from 10 a.m. to noon. This event is especially for parents and caregivers who are looking for community resources to support their loved ones who have special needs.
In previous years, almost 60 organizations from all over the Rochester area have participated, and most will likely be returning this year. Scroll down to see the list of last year’s participants.
Autism Up will be set up in the Community Room with a sensory space, in case you need a breather and want to learn more about what they have to offer.
Registration is recommended if you’d like a reminder. Caregivers can come any time during the fair, and if you’re unable to attend, information about the attending organizations will be available by request.
The Webster Public Library is located at 980 Ridge Rd. at the rear of Webster Plaza.
These organizations participated in Last year’s Special Needs Resource Fair:
Access VR Al Sigl Community of Agencies Arc of Monroe Autism Up and Golisano Autism Center Bella’s Bumbas Best Buddies International BOCES 2 Canalside Speech Camp Get a Way Catholic Charities Family & Community Services/ Preferred Communities (PC) Program at the Refugee Resettlement Dept. CDS Life Transitions Challenger Miracle Field of Greater Rochester Child Care Council Childhood Behavior Solutions CP Rochester CP Rochester Sportsnet Disability EmpowHer Network Dynamic Elite Athletics – Cheerabilities Dyslexia Allies of WNY, Education Success Foundation’s Student Success Project Early Childhood Family & Community Engagement Center Empowering People’s Independence Flower City Down Syndrome Network Future Care Planning and Trust Services Genesee Valley Audubon Society Gigi’s Playhouse Rochester Help With Feeding Heritage Christian Services Heritage Christian Stables The Hochstein School Kharma Care LLC Liberty POST STARS Mid-West RBERN MindFit Mental Health Counseling LLC Monroe County Early Intervention Monroe Plan for Medical Care Never Say Never Foundation NYS Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs OPWDD: Front Door Parenting Village Parents Helping Parents Coalition of Monroe County Parent to Parent NYS Partner in Community Development the BIPOC PEEEEEEK Project People Inc. Person Centered Services Prime Care Coordination Rochester Accessible Adventures Rochester Hearing and Speech Center Regional Center for Independent Living School Age Family & Community Engagement Center Schult Feeding & Speech, PLLC Starbridge Step by Step Pediatric Therapy Services Strike Back Martial Arts TIES – Together Including Every Student University of Rochester Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics
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Webster Schroeder High School’s next stage production, The Café Mocha Murders, will take place the first week of May. But before the rest of the community gets to see it, our community’s senior citizens are invited to a special sneak-peek at the play on Wednesday, April 30.
The performance will be held from 10 to 11:30 a.m., and light refreshments will be served. Any senior citizen living within the Webster Central School District is welcome to attend. A $5 donation is requested to help cover the cost of the performance. Registrations are being taken online; click here. The deadline to reserve tickets is this Friday, April 11.
About The Café Mocha Murders
Despite the raging storm outside, it seems like a perfectly normal night for an employee meeting at the local coffee shop, The Bean Shack. That is, until the lights go out, and someone winds up dead! In this over-the-top whodunit by Deanna Strasse, it’s all about latte art, caffeine content, and the imminent threat of death.
Sounds like fun.
The performance will be held at Webster Schroeder High School on Wednesday, April 30. Doors will open at 9:15 for check-in and refreshments, and the show begins at 10.
For the rest of the community, The Cafe Mocha Murders will take the stage on Thursday and Friday, May 1 and 2 at 7 p.m., and Saturday May 3 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Stay tuned for ticket information, which I’ll pass along as soon as I get it.
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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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Thank you to everyone who stopped by the Webster Public Library on Saturday to write cards and letters to our deployed troops as part of April’s Mail Call: Letters From Home Challenge.
Haven’t heard about this yet? In short, it’s a month-long challenge for Webster to write 1,000 cards and letters to our deployed troops, which will then be included in care packages sent overseas in June.
You may have already noticed one or more of the “Mail Call” mailboxes which have been placed in a dozen businesses and agencies throughout town. Community members are being encouraged to stop by one of these mailboxes, write a card (or several) and deposit them in the box. The library is hosting one of these mailboxes, and if you didn’t make it Saturday, you can still stop in anytime this week; there’ll be a table set up in the lobby with cards and materials.
BryleeLucy
But LOTS of people DID stop by on Saturday. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., tables in the library’s Community Room were filled with cards, markers, stickers, crayons … everything and anything needed to make a beautiful card, or just write a quick thank-you. And for most of that time, the tables were also filled with adults and children, coloring and stickering and creating. The kids especially loved the project.
Mail Call organizer Cherie Wood estimates that about 140 people came to write a card. By the end of the day, 126 personalized messages had been stuffed into the library’s mailbox to be “mailed” to our service members.
That’s a great start, but 1,000 cards and letters is a big challenge. So keep an eye out for the mailboxes throughout town, and get writing! You can do them at home, even make it a family project. Teachers can make it a class project, or ask your church group to make cards.
Peter and LeahWill MeyersMorgan and Julie StreeterTodd and Lucy EardmanVioleta and Oscar Garote
And by the way, the Blue Star Mothers would like to include a box of Girl Scout cookies in each care package, but don’t have quite enough yet. If you’d like to donate a few, click this link, then scroll down to where it says “Donate Cookies.”
Thank you, Webster!
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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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In June 2017, Brian Bohannon’s life turned upside down. Over a period of just four days, his wife Christine passed away from cancer, leaving him to raise their then 4-year old and 7-year old daughters by himself. Christine was just 39 years old.
As he worked through his grief and started to build his new life, Brian was saddened by the fact that his wife would not be around to guide their daughters through the ups and downs of life, would not be there to answer their questions, or give them a shoulder to cry on. Determined not to lose whatever chance he had to do that for them, he wrote Life Will Teach You: Lessons for Teens and Their Parents on Life, Death, Health, Love, and Loss.
“My initial goal,” Brian said, “was to pass this down to my daughters with everything their mother would have taught if she lived to tell them. I also wanted to give this to them before I die and lose the chance.” His original plan was for it to be a memoir and letter to his daughters. But as it developed, he realized it might be something that could benefit a lot of people.
Brian calls Life Will Teach You “a handbook for life. … There is a lot on grief and loss, life and death, but also lessons from my high school health class.”
This is a love story … a life or death story … a story of overcoming grief and loss, but ultimately, a be all you can be story. It’s a story for teens and their parents on how to pursue mental, physical, spiritual, and financial health. It is everything I think young people need to know about life, full of lessons from my 30 years of teaching high school health.
The book is a “Road Less Traveled” for teens, young adults, high school and college graduates, and their parents. Everything your parents should have taught you. Everything you didn’t have a chance to ask your parents. Everything you should have learned in school. Life, death, love, loss, health, and everything in between. My version of “everything, everywhere, all at once,” in one book.
He kinds of sums it in a second subtitle he’s attached to the book: “Confessions of a High School Health Teacher, Widower, and Girl Dad on Everything Young People Need to Know About Life.”
Life Will Teach You: Lessons for Teens and Their Parents on Life, Death, Health, Love, and Loss was published in November 2024, and is available on Amazon for Kindle, in paperback and hardcover, starting at $15.95.
Brian Bohannon grew up in Webster and graduated from Webster Thomas High School. He now lives in Williamson with his daughters.
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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).
Congratulations to two Spry Middle School vocal groups who achieved top honors at the recent NYSSMA Major Organization Evaluation Festival.
Spry Middle School’s two vocal powerhouses, SoundWave 6 and SoundWave 7/8, both received a Gold Rating at the festival, held in Honeoye on Tuesday April 1. The rating is awarded to ensembles that demonstrate an outstanding level of technical and artistic skill in their performance, an incredible accomplishment that reflects the high standards and hard work of these singing Warriors.
SoundWave 6 is directed by Katie Goodman, who also co-directs SoundWave 7/8 with Stephen Costanza.
“These students go above and beyond, giving up their lunch study periods to participate in SoundWave, showing true dedication to their craft and their ensemble,” Goodman said. “We are so proud of their commitment, teamwork, and musical excellence.”
This is the first time in 15 years that Spry Middle School has been awarded Gold at this prestigious event. Congratulations to all these talented students,and their directors, for making Webster proud.
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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).
I feature the people and places and events that make Webster the wonderful community it is — and throw in some totally-not-Webster-related personal ramblings every once in a while as well.
I love it when readers send me news about the great things happening in their schools or the community, so please email me anytime at missyblog@gmail.com
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