Tag Archives: Village of Webster

Tacos for juniors, legal assistance for seniors — the library has it all

26 Sep

A couple of great programs are coming up this Tuesday Sept. 28, sponsored by the Webster Public Library.

You might already know about the library’s Tuesday night outdoor storytimes at the Harmony Park amphitheater. But this week the program is even better. It’s TACO TUESDAY NIGHT.

Beginning at 5 p.m., the Bay Vista Taqueria food truck will be there for anyone who wants to get dinner. Plus, Webster Parks & Recreation will be setting up lots of lawn games for family fun. After dinner and games, you can settle in for storytime at 6 p.m.

The Harmony Park Amphitheater is located at 10 Foster Drive (off Phillips Road) in the Village of Webster. There’s no charge, and registration isn’t required but is requested so they know how many people to expect. So sign up here and bring the whole family!

Legal Assistance for Seniors

This great program for seniors is also happening on Tuesday Sept. 28, but earlier in the day.

From 1 to 3:30 p.m., seniors are invited to visit the library and check out the Center for Elder Law & Justice’s Mobile Legal Unit.

Following a brief presentation, participants can meet one-on-one with an attorney/paralegal team member from CELJ. It’s a free, but brief “done-in-a-day” legal consultation for seniors which may cover civil legal matters such as:

  • debt harassment and consumer billing concerns
  • obtaining and/or reviewing credit reports
  • health care proxies
  • tenant’s rights and foreclosure
  • reviewing medical bills and health insurance documents
  • financial exploitation and elder abuse

Registration is required, and participation is limited. Click here to register.

The Webster Public Library is located at 980 Ridge Rd., at the back of Webster Plaza.

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First mud, now pumpkins!

24 Sep

Did you get a chance to roll around in the mud with your kids at the Mud Run last weekend at the Rec Center?

I wasn’t able to be there, but judging from the photos I’m seeing on the Webster Recreation Center Facebook page (like those below), it was a huge success. Fitness Coordinator Jay Verna confirmed that when he wrote,

Saturday was AWESOME!  We had 243 total registered and kids and families loved it so much they went through it multiple times!  We have ideas on how to make it even better for 2022 but overall, we are really happy with how thing turned out. 

If you also want to see a short fun video from the day, click here.

Fresh from their success at the Mud Run, Rec Center staffers have turned their attention to this year’s Second Annual Pumpkins on Parade, scheduled for Saturday Oct. 23.

This is an amazing, family-friendly Halloween-time event, when the Chioya Trail is lined with creative, scary, and downright funny Jack-o-lanterns. Community members and businesses are invited — no, encouraged — to carve up some pumpkins, and then bring the family that evening after dark to look for them along the mile-long trail which winds around the Rec Center. Afterwards, everyone gets free donuts and cider.

Last year’s first-ever event drew a lot of Jack-o-lanterns from the community, but the Rec Center staff had to create a bunch of their own to make sure there were plenty for the trail. This year, I’m sure they’re hoping to get A LOT MORE community submissions.

Local businesses especially are encouraged to join the fun and carve a pumpkin — or two, or five. Rec Center staff members promise that your business’ name will be posted right next to them, which is a great way to get some free promotion. And if this year’s event is as popular as last year’s was (it drew about 1,500 people), that’s some pretty great free promotion.

I’ll be blogging about this again with more details as the date nears, but check out this poster for now, and start sketching some ideas. If you’d like to read more about last year’s parade, and see some of the creative submissions, click here for the follow-up blog I wrote.

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

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

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

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Porches, fairies and whimsy make our village special

23 Sep

You may remember a blog I wrote a few weeks ago about all the gardens I pass by on my regular walks through the village. The flowering bushes and shrubs in manicured rows and gardens brighten my every morning.

But the gardens are not the only charming thing I see on my walks. There are so many other things I come across that make my heart smile and given me that warm “Wow, this is a really neat village” feeling. On the top of that list: porches.

In the older neighborhoods on the east side of the village in particular, I walk by dozens of beautiful, large porches, most of which stretch along the entire front of the house. Many of them are framed by stately Greek columns, have detailed ornamentation and fretwork, or are accentuated with flowers. At night they often take on a special brilliance, tastefully lit with twinkly lights.

The porches are not only magnificent to look at, but are neighborhood gathering places. When I take my evening walks, I often see neighbors sharing comfortable chairs and conversation with their after-dinner drinks, greeting everyone who walks by. Because they know, even if you live two or three streets over, you’re still a neighbor.

It’s a very village experience, kind of a Tom Sawyer, Hannibal, MO vibe.

Here are just a few photos of some of those beautiful and happy porches. Most of them are from Park Ave., Elm Street and Dunning Ave.

And did you know there are fairies in our neigborhoods?

The photo on the left is of an entire fairy village set up on Park Ave., near the intersection with Lapham. And if you walk up Dunning, you’ll pass a house which actually has fairy doors by two or three of its trees. Earlier this summer, I didn’t see any fairies there, but there are now … so the invitation must have worked.

Two more things I’d like to share. The first is a stand of sunflowers along the sidewalk on Phillips Rd. When I first showed them to you in my gardens blog, they weren’t as spectacular. But these days, they’ve grown so magnificent that it’s like walking through a sunflower tunnel.

The second is a sign which stands in front of a house on Elm St. It makes me giggle.

Happy walking, my friends, and keep your eyes open for these — and other — village charms alonmg the way.

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The Music Store is closing, but music is not leaving the village

19 Sep

When The Music Store in the Village of Webster closes later this week, it doesn’t mean that music services will be leaving town … at least not for very long.  

John Bucci, owner of The Music Store, will be closing his doors for the last time this Thursday, Sept. 23. After 32 years running his East Main Street shop, working 10-hour days, six days a week, John has decided to move on to other challenges. (Click here to read more about John and his decision to close the shop.) 

But have no fear, music lovers, village music services will not be leaving entirely.  

Bob Storey, The Music Store’s longtime master repair technician, will be moving into the location, expanding from his 400-square-foot “office” in the building’s basement into the 3,000 square-foot storefront. Given all that extra space, he’s thinking about expanding his repair services beyond stringed instruments, and offer limited retail, including repair parts and accessories.

And even more exciting, very tentative plans are in the works to perhaps turn the front of the storefront into a coffee shop!

When Bob learned about John’s plans to close his business, it didn’t take him long to realize what he had to do.

“When John told us he was closing the store, it was a complete surprise,” he remembered. “But my brain went into overdrive. What are we going to do? Where are we going to get strings, where are we going to get picks? Where we gonna get straps?”

Then, he thought, “Wait a minute. Step up to the plate. Make it happen.” 

Like the hundreds of musicians young and old who have patronized The Music Store for decades, Bob knew how important it is to have a music store presence in the village. He knew that losing The Music Store would create a huge hole in the village music scene.

He said,

This town needs music. John can’t do it. He’s getting to a point where he’s got too much else in his life and it’s taking too much out of him…. So the cage door just opens up and he walks right out. I told him I want him to be able to pull the plug on the way out and I’ll plug it right back in after you leave. 

I want to keep music in this town. It’s too important. With all the weirdness and crap that goes on in our everyday lives, music is the one beautiful thing. We don’t even realize how important it is. It’s ubiquitous but we take it for granted. I want that to stay here.  

Bob hopes to have his new repair shop up and running by Oct. 1. If plans for the coffee shop can be worked out, he’d like to get that operating by the end of October.  

This is exciting news for the Village of Webster, but it’s still sad to see The Music Store closing. Long-time patrons are still having trouble coming to grips with the news. But I think we’re all happy to see that John is leaving on his own terms, not driven out by slow sales or the pandemic, and we wish him the best in his new endeavors.

I’m not a musician myself, so I’ve never done a whole lot of shopping there (except for gifts for my musician son). But I will especially miss seeing the beautiful decorations John put in his front window every Christmas: the shiny instruments and the model train chugging around the tracks, which reminded me of my childhood and certainly made many a memory for today’s children.

There’s still some time to catch some really good deals this week. Check out The Music Store Facebook page for details on the latest specials. And make sure to stop in this week to shake John’s hand and thank him for years of great service, great products, friendly atmosphere and support of all the musicians in our community.

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A visit with the “North Ave. Artist”

18 Sep

Brandon Schafer is not your typical artist.

Sure, like most artists, he’s passionate about his craft, and he’s quite talented. Plus, like any serious artist, he’d REALLY like to make some money from his artwork.

But what is unusual about Brandon is HOW he’s going about that “making money” part. 

Several afternoons a week, you’ll see Brandon sitting outside his North Ave. home, surrounded by a dozen or so of his original works of art. It’s his own personal art gallery, an invitation to passers-by to stop and browse, and perhaps make a purchase. 

Brandon, a 2016 Webster Schroeder grad, has been setting up his art gallery three or four days a week (weather permitting) for a year, usually by 5 p.m. to catch the after-work traffic. The idea came to him last summer, during one of his regular Saturday stints at the Public Market.

“I was originally going to the Market,” he said. “I figured, why not try in my hometown?”

His unusual marketing effort has been somewhat successful, especially in the first few weeks when it was unusual to see an art gallery set up along busy North Ave.

“I think people first started seeing it, I had, like, seven, eight, nine people stop by,” he said. Business has slowed since, but he still gets customers regularly pulling over or stopping by on their walks to check out his work. 

Brandon has been dabbling in art most of his life, but only really started painting seriously a few years ago. His chosen medium is spray paint. That might immediately make you picture the big, bold and colorful strokes of graffiti artists. But while Brandon’s art is certainly as bold and bright as graffiti, his work on much smaller canvases — anywhere from 11″ x 14″ to 36″ x 36″ — takes some special skills to perfect detail and nuance.

Those details, and the fantastical, out-of-this world subjects and landscapes that Brandon creates are what’s stopping people in their tracks.

“A lot of people ask me if I do drugs when they see my paintings,” he said. “I just have a creative imagination. I like to paint things that are different that you wouldn’t see anywhere else. Something that makes you say, ‘wow.’ … Paintings that aren’t just paintings. Something that speaks to you when you look at it.”

My art is a way to escape, per se. If I was having a bad day I would go make an art piece. It would be my way of getting my stress out. I like to also think of it as an outlet for my creativity to expand. I started with little pieces … I was originally scared to do (bigger pieces) but you have to dive into it. If you let fear get in the way that’s where you’ll fall short. 

If you’d like to learn more about Brandon Schafer and his art, or ask him about his custom work, check him out on Instagram at instagram.com/@b___soul/ or email him at elevatedarts8@gmail.com. He also sets up shop at the Public Market almost every Saturday.

And of course you can keep an eye out for him at his home, 86 North Ave. He expects to be out there at least through the end of October.

“I’ll sit there in a Carhartt jacket and sell if I have to,” he said. 

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

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Webster Museum excitement, and other mailbag news

17 Sep

The Village of Webster’s latest turn on the local television news stations leads today’s mailbag.

Spectrum News recently got wind that the Webster Museum has just reopened, and reporter Wendy Mills visited several days ago to find out more. She met with Museum president Tom Pellett, from whom she got a thorough tour of the facility and a great interview.

The piece aired earlier this week on Spectrum, but has also been posted to the website, You can click here to see it.

And since we’re talking about the Webster Museum, now’s a great time to remind everyone that the museum’s annual Barn Sale is taking place this weekend, Friday and Saturday Sept. 17 and 18, at 394 Phillips Rd.

This really cool sale features vintage farm goods and furniture, toys, books, holiday goods, household goods, jewelry, glassware and more. You’re sure to find something to love.

The sale will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days, and everything is half price on Saturday — or you can fill a bag for $5. This is the museum’s biggest operating expense fundraiser, so stop on by, find a treasure, and help them out.

A few notes from the Town of Webster:

  • The Town’s spray parks are now closed for the season. We can hope that summer is not quite over yet, but even if it hits 90 again, the kids can’t cool off at the spray parks until next year.
  • If you’re tired of putting up with abandoned homes in your area, the Town of Webster has given you some recourse to get them taken care of. If you suspect a home in your neighborhood has been abandoned, you can report it to the Town using a link found at this website. The site will also give you more information on what actually contitutes an abandoned home.
  • The section of Lake Rd. between Shipbuilder’s Creek and Stoney Creek Run is now open again after completion of a three-month construction project. You can check the status of upcoming construction projects and road closures on the Town of Webster website.

Looking ahead to October, Rochester Challenger Miracle Field will host an Art Exhibit on Oct. 1 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 2 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at CDS Life Transitions, 860 Hard Rd. in Webster. This will be a silent auction featuring artwork created by local artists with physical and developmental challenges.

The Pride of Webster, Webster Marching Band will hold its 35th annual Autumn Fanfare on Saturday Oct. 9 from 5 to 9 p.m. This is always a spectacular display of talent from several schools in the Greater Rochester area, and if you haven’t seen one of these shows before, you should attend this year. The theme is “Unbroken,” which should conjure up all sorts of special props and effects. More info to come as the date gets closer.

Also that same evening, the Village of Webster will host its third Family Game Night and Beer Garden on West Main St. More to come about this as well, but if you can’t make it to the Autumn Fanfare, put this on your calendars.

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

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Webster Jazz Festival returns this weekend

14 Sep

Get ready to dance in the streets this weekend, when the Webster Jazz Festival returns after a one-year break thanks to Covid.

The event will stretch over two days this Friday and Saturday, kicking off with “Jazz in the Pubs” Friday evening beginning at 6:30 p.m. Five different bands are scheduled to perform at five different village pubs and restaurants, with staggered start times, so you can visit visit several (or all) of the venues for a drink and a bite to eat, and enjoy as many bands as you like.

Here’s the schedule (click on the name to get more information about each band):

West Main Street will also be hopping that evening with the second Family Game Night and Beer Garden.

The first Family Games Night on July 30 was very well received, so this second one will feature all the same fun. From 6 to 9 p.m., West Main will be closed and filled with with activities including Dancing with Denise for the kids, sidewalk chalk, Giant Jenga, Giant Connect Four, Corn Hole, cookie decorating, food and drinks. So basically, you can pop into the pubs for some music, then out onto the street for some games. It should be a great evening for the whole family.

The music continues Saturday night when jazz takes to the street.

Beginning at 4 p.m., an outstanding lineup of musical entertainment will perform from the big West Main Street stage, featuring musicians from around Rochester and Upstate. There will be some tables and chairs set up, but they go pretty fast, so plan to bring your own, set them up in the middle of the street and enjoy music all evening long.

The schedule looks like this:

This is always a huge event, so you’ll really want to be a part of it.

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Webster Village 9/11 Memorial details

9 Sep

The Village of Webster’s 9/11 remembrance ceremony is going to look a little different this year.

This year’s ceremony, marking the 20th anniversary of the terrible events of 9/11/2001, will be held at — and in conjunction with — the dedication of the new NEQALS base, located at 1030 Jackson Rd.

NEQALS president Ahmed Mustafa wrote on the Facebook event page,

The Northeast Quadrant Advanced Life Support Emergency Medical Services Base is 33 years in the making. Our first responders having been serving the community in borrowed and rented facilities and will now have a place to call our own.

The completion of the base coincides with the 20th anniversary of 9/11, a day that demanded service from all available to save life during an attack on American civilians. In collaboration with the Village of Webster NEQALS is hosting the 9/11 Memorial Ceremony along with our building dedication.

The ceremony, which is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m., will include presentations by the Webster Village Band, the Chorus of the Genesee and the Webster Police Honor Guard.

Parking for handicapped guests wll be available at the Ukranian Club, 1040 Jackson Rd., and other guests may park in the Elks lot at 1066 Jackson Rd.

The event is open to the public.

P.S. Please note that there will be no ceremony at Gazebo Park this year.

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Webster community mailbag

8 Sep

So I took a few days off from the blog, which means I have several items backed up in my mailbox I have to let you know about. Let’s get right to it.

Vanetta and Monique at the Village Quilt Shoppe will be celebrating their little shop’s second aniversary this weekend, Friday Sept. 10 and Saturday Sept. 11.

Activities include:

• A trunk show by Ruthann Stillwell showcasing her and Susan Rooney’s patterns
• a demo calss featuring a curved table runner with no bindings
• Lots of specials, a raffle and refreshments

Attendees are asked to reserve a spot so Vanetta and Monique know how many people to expect. Just call them at 585-626-6916 or email them. Or better yet, stop in to reserve your spot.

The Village Quilt Shoppe is located at 21 East Main St., at the corner of Lapham Park.

Kiddie Academy of Webster, a daycare facility on Phillips Rd., will host a free STEM Adventures event for families and children on Saturday Sept. 11 from 10:30 to 12:30 p.m. Participants will explore the world of science, technology, engineering and math through age-appropriate and fun activities.

Registration is requested. Click here to do so and to learn more.

Kiddke Academy of Webster is located at 369 Phillips Rd.

Friday and Saturday Sept. 17 and 18 are going to be big days in the village.

We already know that the Webster Jazz Fest will be returning those days, with music in the pubs Friday night and music in the street Saturday. But I also just learned that there will also be GAMES in the street on Friday night, as the village hosts is second Family Game Night and Beer Garden that evening.

The first Family Games Night on July 30 was very well received, so this second one will feature all the same fun. From 6 to 9 p.m., West Main will be closed and filled with with activities including Dancing with Denise for the kids, sidewalk chalk, Giant Jenga, Giant Connect Four, Corn Hole, cookie decorating, food and drinks. So basically, you can pop int the pubs for some music, then out onto the street for some games. It should be a great evening for the whole family.

Stay tuned for more information about a THIRD Family Game Night scheduled for October 16, which will also feature music by Rochester’s Premier Oktoberfest Band The Krazy Firemen, who’ll be performing all evening.

For more information about all these events and more, visit the Webster BID website.

St. Martin Lutheran Chuch, 813 Bay Rd., will hold their Fall Chicken BBQ on Saturday, Sept. 25 from 4:30 until they’re sold out. Dinners will cost $10 and include a half chicken, salt potatoes, coleslaw, roll, and butter.

The event this year will be drive-thru only, and there will be no advance sales. The event will be first come, first served. Cars will enter the parking lot, follow the signs, and purchase dinners, using exact payment only, please. Cars will then proceed to the front entrance to pick up the boxed dinners.

Dinners will be assembled according to CDC recommendations. Due to current health restrictions, pie slices and other desserts will not be available.

Proceeds will support St. Martin’s annual Christmas Stocking Project, which reaches more than 500 young people in Monroe and Wayne counties.

ROC & Soul Fitness will be hosting an open house on Saturday Oct. 9 from 9 a.m. to noon.

This is a great opportunity to check out the studio, meet the owners, see some classes in action or even take an introductoy class. Visitors can get a tour of the studio and spa area, and try a free Introduction Barre Class at 11 a.m.

You can also take a chance to win a 5-class Fitness Bundle and a 5-pack for ROC & Soul’s Melt Saunas.

ROC & Soul Fitness is located at 44 E. Main Street, in the lower level shops behind Jojo Bistro.

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First Responders 5K welcomed back to the village

5 Sep

In-person racing came back to Webster on Friday night when the First Responders 5K returned to the village after a one-year, covid-induced hiatus.

More than 200 men, women and children of all ages wound their way through the 3.1-mile course that took runners from the Webster Firemen’s Field, through east-side village neighborhoods and back. And like anything else that happens in our village, it was another great example of the kind of caring, supportive community we have here.

It was a perfect late-summer night for a run; cool and sunny, much MUCH better than the humid days we’ve recently experienced. The race began at 6:30 p.m. on the south side of Firemen’s Field on Ebner Dr. There, under the Fleet Feet archway bearing the huge First Responders 5K banner, 227 runners and walkers of all shapes and sizes streamed across the start line when the order to “GOOOOOO!” was broadcast loudly through the speakers.

  • At the start line
  • Photo courtesy Mary White

I was one of those runners, huffing and puffing alongside my good friend Dave Nicchitta, who kindly agreed (after much needling) to run the race with me. I had a lot of fun running with my friend, but even more than that, I was so proud to show off my village.

From the very beginning of the race and all through the neighborhoods, families were sitting in their front yards or standing along the road, clapping and cheering the runners, yelling encouraging comments and ringing cowbells. My husband and some friends set up a water and beer refreshment stand in the driveway, which was a popular stop near the end of the race.

And the volunteers? There were so many of them, one stationed at every intersection to guide the runners — and there were a lot of intersections and turns in those neighborhoods. Not to mention the Special Police, who managed the traffic along busy South Ave. during the race.

As I passed by one runner on the route, we chatted briefly and she told me how impressed she was with the route, how well the race was organized, and especially, how many volunteer race marshals there were. I simply told her, “Well, this is Webster.”

Thank you to everyone who helped make this race happen. For many of us, it was the first in-person race we’ve run in more than a year and a half. Thank you also to all those who participated. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the FRST Agency, a local charity that provides support, awareness, assets, and services to first responders seeking assistance in dealing with the effects of PTSD.

Click here to see a gallery of photos from the race which my husband and I took, and visit the Fleet Feet Rochester Facebook page to see a much bigger gallery of much better photos taken by Mary White (of Turkey Trot photography fame).

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

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