Tag Archives: Webster NY

A little windstorm couldn’t stop the Wizard of Oz

14 Mar
ambler

Wizard of Oz Artistic Director Bill Ambler had to do some fancy footwork to make sure the show went on last weekend. (Provided photo)

We’ve been reading a lot of stories on Facebook and whatnot about how neighbors have been helping neighbors during this worst-ever stretch of March weather we’ve been having. Generators are being loaned out, hot meals made and warm beds turned down for those without power for days.

But I heard a story Monday which you won’t see on Facebook, but I think needs to be told.

Thanks to last Wednesday’s windstorm, it looked like Spry Middle School’s sold-out performances of The Wizard of Oz were going to have to be postponed. Wednesday night’s dress rehearsal had to be moved to Thursday night when all after-school activities were cancelled. Then, of course, there was no school Thursday so it couldn’t be held then, either. Nor could the whole event be moved to the following weekend, since so many of the cast members had conflicts.

When school was closed again on Friday, Artistic Director Bill Ambler had a real problem. So he turned to WCSD Superintendent Carmen Gumina for help.

Carm let Bill and his cast members into Spry early in the day on Friday, and the kids ran through their dress rehearsal. The curtain went up as scheduled Friday night, and for two shows on Saturday, playing to packed houses.

And I’m told it was amazing.

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Barry’s Old School Irish one of best places in U.S. to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Yelp says so.

9 Mar
Rory and Maley

Rory and Maley Barry are all ready to go for this coming week’s St. Patrick’s Week festivities at their mommy and daddy’s pub.

All of us here in Webster already know that Barry’s Old School Irish is one of the best Irish pubs in the country. And now the whole country knows, too.

According to a new survey just released by Yelp.com, Barry’s Old School Irish is one of the top 50 pubs in the United States for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, coming in at #45.

Granted, the “survey” was conducted by just ranking the rating and number of reviews each pub received. Still, the fact that SO MANY people have ranked Barry’s favorably is a pretty good indication of the quality of our little pub, our very own, authentic little corner of the ol’ sod. (Click here to see the whole list, which was re-posted on travelandleisure.com.)

And if you’ve seen the lineup of activities Barry’s has planned for what we Irish (and Irish-at-heart) call the “high holy week,” you’ll understand why the pub is so popular. Basically, at Barry’s St. Patrick’s Day becomes St. Patrick’s WEEK.

It starts this Saturday morning, the city’s Parade Day. The pub will be open for a pre-parade breakfast and Irish coffee at 8 a.m. The Foxhunters will be back — as they are every Parade Day — with live Irish music from 2:30 to 7 p.m. Irish Dancers from the Jameson Irish Dance School will pop in at 5 p.m., Everheart takes the stage (actually a corner at Barry’s) to play from 7 to 11 p.m., our favorite Webster bagpiper will stroll through at 9 p.m., and at 9:30 p.m. there’s a Tullamore Irish Whiskey toast on the house.

Plus, there will be Guinness give-aways all day

And that’s just SATURDAY. Click here to see the full lineup of events for the whole week, including a whiskey tasting on Sunday, the weekly Barry’s Run/Walk on Tuesday (when we’ll paint the town green), an extra-special trivia night (of course) on Wednesday, a food and beer pairing on Thursday, and then… well, Friday needs no introduction. But one of the most exciting things about Friday is that there will be a heated tent on the patio. (Which means that’s going to be one of those 70-degree days, no doubt.)

If you haven’t yet been back to the pub since Danny and Jess completed their renovations, this would be a good time to check it out. There’s actually more room now, so there’s less chance you’ll have to go outside to walk around to the bathroom.

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2016 Reflections Contest winners advance to state level

7 Mar

HERO-Reflections

The PTSA Reflections contest is in full swing in anticipation of this year’s Community Arts Day celebration on April 8 at Webster Schroeder High School. Hopefully  there are a lot of students out there working diligently to prepare their creative entries, based on this year’s theme, “Within Reach.”   (Learn more about Community Arts Day and the Reflections competition by clicking here.) Entries are being accepted through March 15.

But coincidentally (or perhaps not), I just receive notification about some of LAST year’s Reflections winners, 13 of whom who have advanced to the state level for judging.

The press release goes on to say,

The theme for the 2016-17 Reflections program was “What is Your Story?” WCSD students had their artwork recognized as the Best of Show in their categories and age divisions at the district level. Their artwork progressed to the Genesee Valley Region PTSA level of the competition and was judged against entries from other schools in the region. Before Christmas GVRPTSA held a ceremony to announce the winners, whose artwork now moves on to the New York State level for judging.

Representing WCSD are: Taisia Badulescu, Katherine Kovacs, Olivia Rye, Riley Dieter, Anthony Randazzo, Amanda Longhenry, Sydney DeZutter, Annabelle Sero, Rachael Dioguardi, Jane Bradstreet, Kaitlyn Dushuk, Sean Devlin, and Emily Hansen. Their entries range from literature to visual arts and photography to music composition and film production. The students themselves range from prekindergarten to high school.

The Reflections Committee expects to hear the results of this stage of the competition sometime in April.

Congratulations to these students, and good luck! You make Webster proud.

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Making art with Peeps. You know you want to.

5 Mar

OK, I’ll put this right out there. I don’t like Peeps.

birdhouseYou know, I’m talking about those yellow marshmallow chicks and every other iteration of Peepdom that has since been introduced. I kind of put them in the same category as those faux-orange circus peanuts.

That being said, I’m REALLY looking forward to the second annual Greater Rochester Peep Show scheduled for April 8 and 9 at the Webster Recreation Center. (Not coincidentally, the week before Easter.) It’s a fundraiser for the Webster Community Chest, and while I didn’t go to it last year, I have seen pictures from the event and it is the CUTEST THING EVER.

Basically, show participants create dioramas and other works of art, incorporating Marshmallow Peeps candies. The results were creative and quite impressive. You can see a few photos here, but also visit the website to see a whole gallery.

But — and this is important — the show cannot happen without the artists.

Organizers have put out a call to families, clubs, Scout groups and local businesses to draw up some plans and come up with some spectacular Peeps creations to enter into the show. There’s no charge to enter and artwork will be returned if desired.

up-up-an-awayDisplays can be large or small, and every one of them will be exhibited at the show for the whole community to see and vote on. Prizes and ribbons will be awarded for those chosen by the public as the most popular. Check out the website for more information and inspiration, or email peepshow@frontier.com with questions.

The 2nd annual Greater Rochester Peep Show will be held on April 8 and 9 at the Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Drive. It will be great family fun, perfect for kids of all ages, and admission is free. Last year an estimated 2,000 people attended, and organizers hope to double that this year. That means they need a LOT of entrants.

Proceeds from the event will benefit several local nonprofit agencies including the Catholic Family Center, Dream Factory of Rochester, Heritage Christian Stables, Webster Museum, and National Multiple Sclerosis Society Upstate New York Chapter.

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peeps-at-work

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Webster Community Mailbag

3 Mar

mailbagLots of great events and good news to share with everyone today!

If you’ve got nothing to do tonight, consider enjoying a basketball game, courtesy the Webster Willink and Spry Middle School Student Councils. Their annual benefit basketball game takes place TONIGHT, March 3.

The game pits Willink and Spry students and staff in several entertaining and occasionally competitive contests.

This year the Spry Student Council will be donating their proceeds to Autism Up, and the Willink Student Council will be donating their proceeds to the Veterans Outreach Center.

The games take place at the Webster Schroeder High School gym beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door for $5. Refreshments and other concessions will be available for purchase.

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Andrew Kennedy

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

Andrew’s Eagle project was in two parts: An Interfaith Youth Day of Service and an Interfaith Festival. As a part of his Eagle Project, he selected four possible work sites that youth volunteers could work at. These sites were the Islamic Center of Rochester (ICR), the Baber African Methodist Episcopal Church (Baber AME), Asbury First United Methodist Church, and Foodlink. He also recruited work site leaders to lead the four different work crews, because he clearly would not be able to be everywhere at all times.

For the Interfaith Festival, he recruited and selected eight faith-based musical groups to perform and 12 community service organizations to have information booths around the stage. On August 10, he split up 30 volunteers into three groups, dropping Foodlink as a work site, and completed the projects at Baber AME, Asbury First and the ICR. Respectively, he created and distributed back to school supply bags, sorted over 100 5-gallon bags of clothing for the Asbury First Storehouse, and did serious landscaping.

Wow.

In addition to now being an Eagle Scout, Andrew is an accomplished trombone player and soccer player.

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The Community Volunteer Fair returns to the Webster Public Library on Wednesday March 15 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Residents can connect with the following organizations that have volunteer opportunities available in the Webster community:

AutismUp, Challenger Miracle Field, Friends of the Webster Public Library, Friends of Webster Trails, Heritage Christian Services, Hill Haven Nursing and Rehab, Hope Ministry, Maplewood Nursing Home, Never Say Never Foundation, WASP Webster Association of Senior Program Supporters, Webster Arboretum, Webster Central PTSA, Webster Comfort Care Home, Webster Community Chest, Webster Museum and Historical Society.

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The Webster Lions Club’s semi-annual Texas Hold’em Tournament takes place Friday March 31 at 7 p.m. at the Webster Columbus Center, 70 Barrett Drive. Doors will open at 6:30, with the tournament starting promptly at 7. Buy-in is $40 ($45 at the door), and re-buy is $20. There will be a cash bar. All proceeds will be used to support Webster Lions Club charities.

First place winner will receive $500, $150 for second place and $50 for third. ‘

For more information, call 585-234-5480 or email websterlionsclub@gmail.com.

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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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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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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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