Tag Archives: Webster NY

Tuesday Webster Mailbag

5 Dec

I’d like to start off today’s mailbag with a few events happening at the Webster Public Library.

December 2016 (2)

All this month, the library is hosting a photography exhibit, Photographers in our Midst, in the main area of the library. The exhibit will run through December 28 and feature the talent of outstanding Webster photographers.

Stop in anytime the library is open to enjoy the images that have been captured by our own neighbors.

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Harry Potter fans, take note: The Webster Public Library is planning a Hogwarts Yule Ball right at the library.

Witches, wizards and muggles are all invited to the library on Friday December 29 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. for an evening of magical fun in the Great Hall. Enjoy tasty refreshments, music and dancing. Don’t forget to wear your formal wear or finest dress robes to attend the ball, and make sure to visit Hogwart’s classrooms for fun crafts and activities!

Some of the activities include: House Badges & Personalized Hogwarts Acceptance Letters; Potions making in Potions Class; Wand making in Defense Against the Dark Arts; Spell Books in History of Magic; Golden Snitch Ornaments in Charms; Music and Dancing; Quidditch Matches; Scavenger Hunts; Costume Contest, refreshments, a photo booth and more.

Tickets are $2 per person and will be available for purchase in-person ONLY (at the Webster Public Library) through December 15. Tickets are limited, so register early. Call 585-872-7075 if you have any questions.

Ticket price covers all activities, but there will be additional items for available for purchase.

American St. Nick to Visit the Webster Museum

On Saturday December 9 at 2 p.m., Richard Brookins will visit the Webster Museum during the museum’s open house, to share a story of kindness from WWII.

It was December 1944 in Wiltz, Luxembourg during WWII, Brookins was assigned to the small town of Wiltz for a brief respite. The town had recently been liberated by Allied forces after four long years of German occupation.

It didn’t take long before Corporal Harry Stutz discovered that the children of Wiltz had not been allowed to celebrate St. Nicholas Day during the occupation. Over the next few days the American soldiers organized a party, complete with a St. Nicklaus — Pittsford (and former Webster) resident Richard Brookins.

The story does not end there, despite the town being overrun only days later. You can hear the very happy ending at Brookins’ presentation on December 9 at 2 p.m. at the Webster Museum, 18 Lapham Park. Admission is free.

TheAmericanStNick with angels dec 5 1944

photo courtesy WWII Foundation

Santa and Pancakes

The First Baptist Church of Penfield’s next Flapjack Saturday Community Fundraiser is going to be so much fun that Santa will be joining you!

On Saturday December 16 from 8 to 10 a.m., enjoy pancakes, pure maple syrup, scrambled eggs, sausage — and a visit with Santa — all for just $5.00 per person.

December proceeds will go directly to help support Cameron Community Ministries.  Their mission is to provide hope to our community through emergency services, engagement, education and empowerment, offering after-school and summer programs, meals, an emergency pantry, and a clothing house.

The First Baptist Church of Penfield is located at 1862 Penfield Rd. 585-586-2876

Webster Central Schools to run early dismissal drill

On Friday December 22 — the last day before the holiday break — all WCSD students will be dismissed early as part of the district’s annual emergency preparedness early release drill.

The drill is a yearly requirement designed to test the district’s plan for the early dismissal of students.

Parents need to be prepared for their students to be dismissed early and arrive home by bus early on December 22. Please note the times listed below are the dismissal time (in parenthesis) and the bus departure time, and are effective for Friday, December 22 ONLY.

  • Webster Schroeder and Thomas high schools: (2:10) 2:20
  • Spry Middle School: (2:15) 2:25
  • Willink Middle School: (2:25) 2:35
  • Dewitt Road, State Road, Plank North, Schlegel Road and Klem South elementary schools:  (3:15) 3:25
  • Klem North and Plank South elementary schools: (3:05) 3:15

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Webster sparkled for White Christmas in the Village

3 Dec
electric parade

The Electric Parade, photo courtesy Sarah Rosenberry

For, like, the third year in a row, there wasn’t much “white” about Webster’s White Christmas in the Village celebration on Saturday.  Temperatures were unseasonably warm, so the village’s beautiful new streetlight decorations were the only snowflakes anyone saw that afternoon and evening.

However, things did look very Christmas-y. The shop windows were all decorated and sparkling, carolers strolled the streets singing holiday favorites, and hundreds of people took the opportunity to wear their Santa hats and reindeer antlers, and drape themselves in colored lights.

As usual for this event, things got off to slow start. But anyone who got there early got first crack at visiting with Santa at the Village Hall and taking a ride on the horse-drawn festival wagon. As dusk fell, though, Main Street started to fill with holiday cheer as thousands began to line Main Street in anticipation of the always popular Electric Parade.

There was plenty to do in the meantime. Kids enjoyed a bounce house, adults enjoyed sampling and voting in the chili cook-off (and later in the evening could get samples of Root Stock cider). The ladies of Rochester Rhapsody delighted everyone with original and classic Christmas carols. Barry’s Old School Irish was pouring free cups of hot cider and hot chocolate (and even though it was pretty warm out, they had a long line). There was cookie decorating, storytelling, and one of my favorites, the Good Shepherd Chime Bell Choir.

Basically, if you weren’t there, you missed a great time. Make sure to put it on your calendar NOW for next year.

The lighting was tough, but I tried my best to get a nice bunch of pictures. Click here to see the whole gallery.

And thank you to the members of the Webster Business Improvement District for sponsoring this delightful event.

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Webster Legion surprises veteran with “new” car

30 Nov
meeting

US Army veteran Brandi Christie with her new minivan. 

When US Army veteran Brandi Christie and her children were invited to a family-friendly veterans’ event Thursday night at Webster’s Cottreall-Warner American Legion Post #942, she thought she was just going to watch her favorite band perform.

The Sons of the American Legion had a different idea. By the end of the night, Brandi had been handed the keys to a newly refurbished 2008 Nissan Quest minivan.

The donation was the culmination of a partnership between the Sons and a terrific organization called Operation Build Up. Based in Conesus, Operation Build Up is dedicated to preventing veteran homelessness and suicides.

According to Justin Cogswell, the organization’s founder, “We want to help veterans in their darkest moments. When they trip and fall, we as a country should work to help them up.”

One of the main ways Operation Build Up accomplishes that is by purchasing (or receiving in donations) used cars, fixing them up, making them road-worthy, then giving them to veterans in need. They typically rebuild three to four vehicles a month, spending upwards of $800 — and hundreds of volunteer hours — on each one.

The Sons began working with Operation Build Up about a month ago, when member Bill VerHagen invited Cogswell to one of their meetings to talk about his organization.

Sons Commander Nate Burdick remembered the meeting.

“We wrote a $1,000 check right then, then everyone went home and donated more,” he said. Immediately after that meeting, the post’s Auxiliary Unit donated another $1,000 to help with future builds.

Working hand-in-hand with Operation Build Up fits perfectly with the Sons’ mission, Burdick said.

“The Sons of the American Legion are directly trying to touch any veteran in any way we can to support them. It’s veterans doing work for veterans, It was a perfect storm for what we are trying to do.”

Thursday night’s presentation was especially timely for Brandi. A 15-year veteran of the US Army, she still serves in the Army Reserve. But her family recently lost their vehicle, so she’s been missing the required drills.

In addition to the minivan, the Sons also handed Brandi a check for $500, so she didn’t even have to worry about paying for registration and insurance.

Brandi’s four young children weren’t forgotten, either.  As they scrambled into the back seats of their spacious new minivan, her daughter and three sons each discovered a stuffed dog and stuffed Christmas stocking awaiting them.

After finally accepting that she wasn’t dreaming, Brandi had but one question when she saw her the vehicle for the first time. True to the selfless nature of all veterans, she asked through happy tears, “Is there something we can do to pay you back?”

“No, you don’t need to do anything,” Cogswell answered. “This is America right here.”

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Learn more about Operation Build Up and find out how you can help this great organization support our veterans in need. Visit www.operationbuildup.com 

 

 

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

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Christmas comes to Webster Saturday

28 Nov

fire truck

The holiday season officially begins this Saturday in Webster, when the village celebrates White Christmas in the Village. This annual festival features horse-drawn wagon rides, a bounce house, cookie decorating, storytelling, carolers, Santa (of course), and the always very popular Electric Parade.

Activities will begin at 3 p.m. with activities for adults and children throughout the village. The official schedule looks like this:

  • 3 to 6 p.m. — Horse-drawn wagon rides through the villagesanta
  • 3 to 6 p.m. — Bounce House on Main Street
  • 3:30 to 5 p.m. — Santa Claus at the Village Hall
  • 4 p.m. — Storytelling at Yesterday’s Muse Book Store
  • 4 p.m. — Cookie decorating
  • 4:30 p.m. — Rochester Rhapsody Carolers
  • 5 p.m. — Church of the Good Shepherd Chime Bell Choir on Main Street

The Electric Parade will begin at 6:30 p.m. at Phillips Road and head west down Main Street. This spectacular parade features fire engines, floats and marching bands, all draped in thousands of twinkling Christmas lights. You’ll definitely want to bring the kids, but dress warm, and pack a thermos of hot chocolate, because this is a pretty long parade.

(Click here to see a gallery of photos from last year’s White Christmas celebration.)

CaptureBy the way, don’t forget to start out that morning with a hot breakfast, served up by the Chorus of the Genesee.

The Chorus will be hosting their second annual Breakfast with Santa, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Harmony House, 58 East Main Street in Webster. The menu will feature French toast sticks and sausage, coffee, juice, and milk. Cost is $5 per person, $20 maximum per family. For tickets call (585) 265-9540 or visit chorusofthegenesee.org.

This will be a good chance to visit with Santa before everyone else descends on him when he’s at Village Hall later in the day.

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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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Town Hall renovations are done!

26 Nov

town hall

I received some very good news from the folks at Town Hall a few days ago: the renovations are done and all Town Hall operations will be be moving back into the building on Monday, December 4.

In preparation for the move, the temporary Town Hall (in the Van Ingen building) will be closed on Thursday, November 30 and Friday, December 1.

The Town Hall building has been closed since April as much-needed renovations were completed. The renovations included enlarging the restrooms, enhancing security inside the building during working hours, adding a lunch room for employees, upgrading the facilities inside the police department, enlarging the building department, assessment and finance areas, upgrading the interior of the building, and taking out the asbestos left in the building.

The Webster Justice Courts and the Webster Police Department will remain open to the public during the moving process.

The newly renovated Town Hall will be open for business on Monday, December 4 for regular business hours.

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Webster Saturday Mailbag

25 Nov

mailbagThe Penfield Public Library is looking for a few enthusiastic people.

The library is looking for two new members for its Board of Trustees to replace outgoing trustees whose terms have expired.

The nine board members must be strong library advocates. Board members support the library by crafting a strategic plan and vision in conjunction with library personnel, by developing and reviewing policies, by reviewing and approving the budget and financial matters, and by communicating with the community and local legislators.

The Board of Trustees meets regularly at 7 pm on the third Tuesday of each month in the Ruth Braman Room of the Penfield Public Library. Meetings usually end by 9 pm and are open to the public.

Any resident of the Town of Penfield interested in applying for the Penfield Public Library Board of Trustees should submit a letter of interest and a resume to Chris Fluit,
Personnel Committee Chairman, Penfield Public Library, 1985 Baird Rd, Penfield, NY, 14526. Applications should be received by November 30, 2017. Interviews will be scheduled for early December and the new trustees should begin their term in January 2018.

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A group of 15 Webster Schroeder High School upperclassmen shared the fruits of their fundraising efforts with Rochester families in need through a unique partnership with Mt. Hope Family Center (MHFC).

Last Monday, several MHFC vehicles arrived at Webster Schroeder’s main office, 875 Ridge Road, to pick up boxes and bags with all the fixings for Thanksgiving meals that will be provided to at-risk children and families supported by MHFC. The groceries were purchased by Webster Schroeder students who began fundraising for these Thanksgiving meals last month.

This is the sixth year students have partnered with MHFC to raise funds to supply Thanksgiving meals for those served by the organization. What makes the students’ fundraising efforts so unique is that they personally reached out to other Webster Schroeder High School clubs, sports teams, organizations, faculty, staff, and Webster businesses to raise $3,500 for the Thanksgiving meals. Extra funds raised will provide holiday gifts for children from each of the 20 families that receive a basket.

Schroeder students with Thanksgiving donation - Photo 1

15 Webster Schroeder High School juniors and seniors collected $3500 to provide Thanksgiving meals to families served by the Mt. Hope Family Center.

The Country Gardeners of Webster, Klem Road Garden Club and the Webster Arboretum will hold their annual Garden Club Holiday Sale on Saturday December 2 from 9 am to noon at the Webster Recreation Center, 1350 Chiyoda Drive.

This huge sale features fresh wreaths, arrangements, poinsettias, centerpieces and gifts that are created by hand by the club members for this sale.

This is always a very popular event, so you want to get there early. I stopped by at about 11:30 last year and pretty much everything was sold out.

The sale is the Country Gardeners’ annual fundraiser, so think about decorating your own home, and purchasing gifts for family, friends and holiday hostesses.

Admission is free.

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Carol Klem Day declaration packed the house

23 Nov

crowd

It was standing room only in the Community Meeting Hall for Tuesday night’s Village Board meeting, and not a one of them had come to complain about some problem they were having in the village.

No, the Board had announced that Tuesday November 21 would forever be known as Carol Klem Day, and almost 100 of Carol’s friends, family members and business owners had come to witness the official proclamation.

Trying to get the large, chatty crowd organized so they could start the meeting on time was kind of like herding cats. But eventually everyone found a seat or a spot along the wall, and Mayor Darrell Byerts called the meeting to order.

The proclamation was the first order of business. Carol Carol with proclamationjoined the board members at the podium as Mayor Byerts read the official document. There were a lot of “whereas”es and at least one “let it be known,” but the gist of the document were these paragraphs, which related to Carol’s work with the Webster Herald:

Whereas her (Village Voice) articles helped to support local organizations and businesses old and new and to promote community events all year long,

and whereas her journalistic expertise has ultimately strengthened the village and everything it stands for as a close-knit, supportive and fun community by bringing people together.

Following the presentation of the official document, several others stepped up to the podium to express their gratitude.

Village Trustee Jude Lancy, who helped pull this event together, sent along this list of thank-yous for helping make the evening’s festivities successful:

Thank you to:

  • Mayor Darrell Byerts for coming up with the the idea of Carol Klem Day, and the beautiful plaque commemorating this event.
  • Carol’s daughter MaryKay, for gathering early information on Carol’s life and bringing the family to the presentation;
  • Robyn Whitaker for the plaque presented to Carol from the Business Improvement District, in appreciation of her support;
  • Bill Horeth and Kathy Mills, representing Kittelberger Florist for the presentation of long-stemmed red roses in thanks for Carol’s contribution to the village and businesses;
  • Sharon Pratt, representing the Museum, who gave thanks for all of Carol’s contributions to the welfare of the museum;
  • Jake Swingly and Steve Small for “starring” Carol Klem on the digital billboard in front of the South Avenue fire house;
  • Dorothea Ciccarelli for showing the Village Hall’s appreciation and her own appreciation for the support given to her daughter, Lacey;
  • Maegan Lessing for her efforts in preparing the proclamation, getting everyone’s signatures and finding a suitable frame;
  • and thanks to everyone in attendance for a standing-room only gathering for our one and only Carol Klem.

Erin and CarolLater in the meeting, after most of the well-wishers had left, another notable event happened.

Mayor Byerts announced that a new columnist had been found who will be taking the Village Focus reins from Carol. The new columnist will soon be starting up the weekly column again, plus a new blog to be posted on the village website.

Then he officially introduced — and the Board officially approved — my daughter, Erin Rosenberry.

Several details have yet to be worked out.  But as soon as Erin gets an email up and running, I hope the Village of Webster will support her — as you have supported me — as she shares all the good things our community has to offer.

Carol with Village Board

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Santa Claus is coming to town

21 Nov

santaSanta obviously knows there are a lot of good little boys and girls in Webster, because he’s making our town his first stop this holiday season.

Webster’s very own Santa Claus will be spreading Christmas joy (and collecting food for the Salvation Army) on December 1 between 6 and 8 pm. at St. Martin Lutheran Church, 813 Bay Road.

This is a great opportunity to get that coveted photo with Santa without standing long lines at the mall. Bring your own camera if you’d like, but St. Martin tells me they will have a professional photo shoot set-up, complete with “a large whimsical Santa Chair, an elegant Christmas photo backdrop, everything you need to help make your Christmas photos memorable.”

Plus Santa, of course.

The kids can also have some fun with cookie decorating and board games, and can write their very own “Letter to Santa” which can be handed directly to him or deposited in his North Pole mailbox. There will be refreshments, carol singing at the piano, and later in the afternoon, Santa will read a few Christmas stories to the children.

The event is free and open to everyone.

If you come, please bring some non-perishable food items for the Salvation Army. At this time of year stuffing, gravies, boxed mashed potatoes and canned vegetables are especially appreciated. 

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CaptureIf you can’t make it on December 1, here’s your next chance to catch Santa before he gets really busy.

The Webster Lions Club will host their annual FREE Pancake Breakfast with Santa on Sunday, December 3 at the Webster East Golf Club, 440 Salt Road.

Breakfast will be served from 8:00 am until noon, and Santa will definitely be there to visit with the children. There will also be raffles, holiday prizes, gift certificates, and free vision screening for children 8 and under.

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Village to honor Carol Klem

18 Nov

Carol_Klem-

(The blog below is an article I wrote for the Webster Herald about a great person and good friend who’s getting some well-deserved recognition at the Village Board meeting next Tuesday.)  

If you’ve lived in the Village of Webster for any length of time, chances are very good you know Carol Klem — or at least know about her.

It helps that for the last 12 years, as Village Focus columnist, Carol’s smiling face has appeared every two weeks on the village website and in the Webster Herald.

But even if you don’t regularly read her column, you’ve almost certainly seen Carol around town, chatting with fellow journalists at Barry’s Old School Irish or at Golden Boys, visiting with local business owners, or darting back and forth during parades, festivals and other special events, snapping photos for her column.

Basically, the name Carol Klem has become synonymous with all things good about the village of Webster. For years, she’s been the eyes and ears of Webster, like a town crier, using her column to cheer accomplishments both big and small. She has introduced us to new businesses and old businesses. She has written tender obituaries, announced births and anniversaries. She has told us about upcoming special events and charmed us with personal musings about small-town life. And every Christmas she has delighted us all with her epic holiday poem.

Next week, the village will recognize Carol’s devotion to Webster by proclaiming November 21 Carol Klem Day in the Village.

Carol was born in Rochester in 1938, the oldest of three children, and lived with her family in the Beechwood section of the city. While she was attending high school at Nazareth Academy, her parents decided to move to Webster, in a home they built on Basket Road.

At that time, Webster was very rural, and was really considered the “boondocks.” Moving from the city to farm country was a big adjustment, but it gave Carol lots of handy excuses for being late for school. One of them, her daughter Mary Kay remembers, was “the Schreiber cows were loose on Basket Road.”

Carol attended Nazareth College, where she studied English and music, and was hired at Holy Trinity School, where she taught first through third grades.

Carol was the school’s first lay teacher. “It was mom and all the nuns,” Mary Kay said. “It was really quite funny. I think she was very different from the nuns. I can’t imagine a bunch of nuns and my mom!”

It was while she was teaching at Holy Trinity that she met Gene, her husband of 57 years. They were introduced by then-pastor Fr. William Kalb in 1959, married the following year, and immediately started a family. Mary Kay was born in 1961, followed closely by Tom, Greg and Doug. Many years later, in 1978, little sister Meg joined the family.

Carol worked through her first pregnancy, then became a stay-at-home mom. It was only after all the kids had all grown and moved on that she re-entered the workforce, finding part-time work with the Webster Post, writing wedding announcements and obituaries.

At 47 years old, Carol Klem the journalist was born.

“I remember her starting with a portable typewriter,” Mary Kay said. “I couldn’t imagine she would ever be computer-literate, and Word proficient. Although she still has a knack for losing files.”

In 2005 Carol left the Post and was asked to join the Webster Herald as the Village Focus columnist. She had finally found her true calling: writing about the village she loves so dearly.

And she does love Webster dearly. In September 2015, in an interview she recorded for the non-profit Webster Together organization, Carol called the village “the heart of Webster.”

“I just love our town. I love the people in it, and I love the spirit,” she said. “I’d love to see the village definitely take off. I think that whatever happens, we have the right people to make the decisions.”

For years, Carol Klem has been Webster’s biggest cheerleader. Now the village wants to return the favor.

In recognition of everything Carol has done for our community, The Webster Village Board will officially designate Tuesday, November 21 as “Carol Klem Day” in the village of Webster.

Mayor Darrell Byerts will present the official proclamation at the regular Village Board meeting, Tuesday November 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Meeting Hall, 29 South Ave. (The meeting has been rescheduled from Thanksgiving Day). The entire Webster community is invited to attend.

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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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Bourbon lovers, unite!

15 Nov

L-BourbonTrail-20350555

Wine lovers have had their day — OK, lots of them — with the Webster Wine Walks. Now bourbon lovers are getting their turn.

The Webster Business Improvement District BID) and Webster Wine and Spirits will host a Bourbon Bash this coming Saturday November 18 from 6-9 p.m. at the Harmony House on East Main Street.

This is Webster’s very first Bourbon Bash for Webster, and it’s shaping up to be a really neat event.

Organizers have invited many local and well-known bourbon vendors to set up in the Harmony House for tastings. Several local restaurants will also be on hand to complement the bourbons, including Pub 235, The Coach, Gioia Mia Catering, Webster Hots, Smoking Hot Chicks, The Village Bakery and Brimont Bistro.

BBQ Blues Band will provide entertainment as attendees sample great bourbons from distilleries including Heaven Hill, Black Button, Elijah Craig, Iron Smoke Whiskey, Honeoye Falls Distillery, Jim Beam, and more.

Tickets are $20, available at the BID website and Hegedorn’s Market 964 Ridge Road.

Proceeds from the event will go to the Challenger Miracle Field to help finish the local field for challenged athletes.

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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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