Byron-Bergen Regional Champion High School Page Turners team on the competition stage. Photo by Laurie Penepent.
Press Release:
Byron-Bergen High School’s Page Turners team took the Regional Championship title on April 8, at Pavilion High School. This is the first time since 2018 that the school has earned a championship title, though they have been a finalist in the regional competition all but five times since 2007.
To qualify for regionals, each team’s combined scores from the fall and spring competitions are totaled. The first and second place teams in each of the three divisions then compete in regionals. This year Byron-Bergen placed first in both the fall and spring competitions for the north division.
“It's been great to participate in Page Turners. It's introduced me to many books which I love, and it's been nice participating with the other team members in the competition,” said Byron-Bergen Senior Eli Kupfer. “I've been in Page Turners since elementary school and hadn't won regionals. It was cool to have won before graduating.”
“I am so proud of this group of students,” said Byron-Bergen Secondary English Teacher and Page Turners Advisor Laurie Penepent. “They really work as a team with each member reading different books to ensure all are learned by at least two students. I’d also like to congratulate seniors Deborah Catalino, Lea Donofrio, Rachel Hanel, Eli Kupfer, Anna Mclaughlin, Adam Piper, and Rose Wilson who have all dedicated so much time and hard work to Page Turners throughout their high school careers.”
“Page Turners has introduced me to books I never would have looked at and I really ended up liking them, it forced me to expand my horizons,” said McLaughlin. “It's been fun to compete with my friends, especially once the competition is over and the stress has been relieved, knowing that we won. I’d like to thank Mrs. Penepent for being an amazing advisor and making Page Turners so fun for my high school career.”
Page Turners is a literary competition in which students read preselected books and answer questions on them. Students read five books for the fall and spring competitions with a knowledge of all 10 books for the regional competition.
Byron-Bergen Regional Champion High School Page Turners team. Photo by Kathryn Grattan.
If you attended last weekend’s BND hockey banquet, you had the opportunity to listen to several fantastic stories about team spirit, hard work, and incredible team achievement. Batavia's BND United hockey team thrives on unity, mutual respect, and camaraderie. The blend of humor and heartfelt moments during the banquet shows the deep bonds between teammates and coaches, making the celebration of their success even more meaningful.
Individuals who make this team extra special were also recognized and Sam Pies is a member who embodies the qualities that make not only a great athlete but also a remarkable person. It is because of his character, leadership, and positive influence on the team that he was awarded the WDF Award by the Wayne D. Foster Foundation Inc. on Sunday.
Sam exemplifies the values of wisdom, determination, and fortitude. Sam’s dedication to his team, to his education, and to his community truly make honoring Sam a cherished opportunity for the foundation. The Wayne D. Foster Foundation is proud to honor Sam in memory of Wayne and to support this incredible group of scholar-athletes.
The YWCA of Genesee County is proud to announce the 2025 Women of Inspiration Awards Luncheon, set to take place on Saturday, May 3, from 12 - 2:30 p.m. at Terry Hills Banquet Facility in Batavia. This year’s event will honor women in five categories, who have made remarkable contributions to their community in the areas of education, leadership, inspiration, and entrepreneurship.
The honorees include:
Education: Lucy Sackett
Lucy Sackett’s dedication to the Batavia community spans over 50 years, particularly in physical education and water safety. As a passionate swimming instructor, Lucy taught children essential water safety skills, empowering countless young individuals, especially young women. Despite personal hardship, Lucy has continued her community involvement, now supporting Crossroads House, a local comfort care facility. Her lifelong commitment to education and the empowerment of women makes her a deserving recipient of the Education Award.
Leadership: Karyn Winters
Karyn Winters, Director of the Genesee County Business Education Alliance, has long been recognized for her exceptional leadership and tireless efforts to bridge the gap between education and business. Through initiatives like GLOW with Your Hands and youth camps, Karyn has worked to provide students with valuable workforce skills and opportunities. She is a passionate advocate for women in the workforce and a leader who encourages others to reach their full potential. Karyn’s vision, organizational expertise, and dedication make her an ideal recipient of the Leadership Award.
Inspiration: Mary Kate Hoffman
As the Superintendent of Pavilion Central School District, Mary Kate Hoffman has broken barriers in education and inspired countless young women to pursue their dreams. Kate’s leadership has created opportunities for students, especially young women, to excel in fields typically dominated by men. Through initiatives such as a food processing program, Kate has empowered students with practical skills that contribute to both their personal success and the local economy. Her work in education reflects the YWCA’s commitment to equality, justice, and empowerment for all.
TEAM - Leadership Genesee Book Club
The Leadership Genesee Book Club, formed in 2012, brings together a group of women who are committed to fostering education, leadership, and community service. The ladies in this incredible group include, Stacey Anderson, Samantha Stryker, Sue Blanchard, Michelle Dills, Chris Fix, Diana Fox, Brenda Lee Heinemann, Laurie Mastin, Rebecca McGee, Donna Morrill, Lisa Ormsbee, Betty Powers, Barb Shine and Lynn VanDerBeck. As alumni of Leadership Genesee, these women serve on various local boards and organizations, working collaboratively to make a positive impact in Batavia and beyond. The collective work of this club serves as an inspiration for future generations of women leaders, making them deserving recipients of the TEAM Award.
Entrepreneur: Dr. Emily Fraser-Branche
Dr. Emily Fraser-Branche is a board-certified pediatrician and founder of Three Little Birds Pediatrics. Her leadership in healthcare and her entrepreneurial spirit have made her a vital force in her community. Her dedication to providing high-quality, culturally sensitive care has helped countless women and children. Additionally, her support of the YWCA has ensured the continuation of vital services for the community, cementing her as a powerful advocate for women and families.
The event will also feature Keynote Speaker Linda Dynel, a survivor whose story of resilience will inspire all in attendance. The luncheon will be emceed by MaryAlice Demler of Channel 2 News, promising an empowering and impactful afternoon.
Tickets are available now, and the 2025 Women of Inspiration Awards Luncheon is sure to be a memorable experience for all attendees, celebrating the strength, leadership, and contributions of these remarkable women.
For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.ywcagenesee.org or call us at 585-343-5808.
The Rochester Technology & Manufacturing Association (RTMA) today announced the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has approved the RTMA’s group sponsorship of the New York State Registered Apprenticeship Program as a New York State Approving Agency. This distinction allows the RTMA to provide VA benefits to apprentices who served in the United States Armed Forces.
Registered Apprentices, who are Veterans, are now eligible for GI Bill and other educational benefits for Veterans and qualified family members to assist with tuition and career counseling. These benefits are in addition to several benefits and incentives already available to Registered Apprentices: including SUNY Tuition Assistance, complimentary Tooling U-SME licenses and several incentives for signatory companies.
Veterans Affairs backdated the RTMA’s application to August 1, 2022, in order to assist Veterans previously enrolled in the NYS Registered Apprenticeship Program. The RTMA will collaborate with its signatory companies to provide the VA with the necessary documentation needed to receive VA benefits. In addition to receiving this distinction, RTMA Director of Workforce Development Rich Turner and Youth Apprenticeship Coordinator Keri Martin are now trained as School Certifying Officials with the VA.
The first full moon of April is called 'The Pink Moon.'
The April full moon is not actually pink. It's named after pink wildflowers, such as creeping phlox or moss phlox, that bloom in early spring. This full moon is the smallest of the year, appearing slightly smaller and less bright due to the moon's farthest point from Earth in its orbit.
Batavia resident Lois Gerace is the winner of two VIP tickets to Wings Over Batavia Air Show, scheduled for Aug. 30 and 31.
The prize is part of The Batavian’s participation in the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Home Show at the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena.
On Friday and Saturday, during the Home Show, visitors to The Batavian’s booth were asked to sign up for The Batavian’s email newsletter. The winner was selected randomly from among those entrants.
Thank you to Wings Over Batavia Air Show organizers for being part of this contest, and for the two courtesy tickets.
Good Friday at Northgate: Join us on Friday, April 18, at 7:00 PM for a special Good Friday service as we reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus and prepare our hearts for the hope of Easter. We'll remember the depth of His love and the power of the cross. Location: 8160 Bank Street Road, Batavia, NY 14020. https://northgatefmc.com
US Air Force F-35A Lightning II Demo Team Photo from Wings Over Batavia website
With more than 20 performers already lined up for the return of this year’s Wings Over Batavia Air Show, organizers are continuing to add to this year’s event, dropping in a periodic featured performer every now and again before it takes to the sky Aug. 30 and 31 at Genesee County Airport.
The latest performer spotlight is on the USAF F-35A Lightning II Demo Team, a fifth-generation fighter that combines “advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility,” organizers said.
Of the distinct variants of the F-35, the F-35A is flown by the U.S. Air Force.
Organizers sprinkled some additional details into an email about the F-35A, including that:
It is the first and only stealth, supersonic, multi-role fighter jet.
The F-35 is set to replace aging fighters, including the F-16s, A-10s, F/A-18s, and AV-8B Harriers.
The helmet-mounted display system contains all the intelligence and targeting information an F-35 pilot needs to complete a mission.
With the helmet, the pilots can see what is below the floor of the jet.
Nine countries are involved in the development of the F-35: the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Australia.
The U.S. Air Force F-35 Lightning II has One Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 turbofan engine, with a thrust of 43,000 pounds per engine. Its wingspan is 35 feet, length is 51 feet, and height is 14 feet. Its speed is Mach 1.6+, equivalent to approximately 1,200 miles per hour.
This aircraft has an internal fuel capacity of 18,498 pounds and a unit cost of $128 million. As of Oct. 20, 2015, there was an inventory of 81 in the Air Force, including four internationally.
Other announced performers so far include NextGen Eagles, Trucker’s Air Patrol, Rob Holland, GhostWriter Air Shows, Kevin Coleman, Luke Aikins, Redline Air Shows, Good Year FG-1D Corsair, P-51 Mustang “Crazy Horse 2,” B-25 Mitchell “Panchito,” Kyle Fowler-Long EZ, Airythmia, Fireworks - On Final FX, Great Lakes Drone Company, Wall of Fire - Tora Bomb Squad, Pyromusical, Jim “Cookie” Crum - Air Boss, Ric Peterson - announcer, with more to be coming.
Speaking of Wings Over Batavia, stop by The Batavian’s booth at the Home Show from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday or 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at the McCarthy Ice Arena, 22 Evans St., Batavia, and fill out our entry form for two VIP tickets to the Air Show, courtesy of Wings Over Batavia.
Genesee County Chamber of Commerce's 10th annual Home Show kicked off Friday evening at McCarthy Ice Arena in Batavia, and continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Photo by Howard Owens.
Chuck Flynn is poised and ready to ask visitors a question throughout this weekend.
What do you think your home is worth? Take a guess. What do you think?
“So when they give me their guess, let’s say they guess $220,000, and I type in their address and we get an immediate estimate for what it might be, and we find out how close they are, up or down or not. And then everybody who guesses, they get entered into a drawing for an awesome gift certificate at Max Pies Furniture in Batavia,” said Flynn, a licensed associate broker at Howard Hanna Real Estate Services.
He is representing one of 65 vendors at Genesee County Chamber of Commerce’s 10th annual Home Show. It began Friday evening and continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at McCarthy Ice Arena, 22 Evans St., Batavia.
Now, if you’re thinking that Flynn’s game is easy because most folks ought to know their property’s assessment, he has found that many homes are actually worth more than they think. One visitor was surprised to learn that his Southside home’s value ranged some $10,000 more than his overpriced guess.
Besides a source of entertainment, does having a booth at the home show serve a business purpose? Absolutely, Flynn said.
“I definitely have connected with new relationships and reconnected with old ones,” he said. “And we get business from it every year. It’s fantastic.”
It’s a seller's market, he said, because there are more buyers out there than there are properties, “so for every 10 buyers, there’s one seller.”
“So just by the metrics, we’re just getting more buyers. And part of that’s driven by demographics, generational, the millennials are the biggest generation, right? There’s more millennials and baby boomers, so baby boomers aren’t the biggest generation anymore,” he said. “As the newer generation is coming up, there’s just os many more buyers, and they’re entering their prime home buying years, which is a little later in life for those generations than it was for my generation or the baby boomers.”
On the opposite side of the arena was Ron Weiler, owner of Sterling Tents. He’s been part of the home show since the Jaycees operated it at Batavia Downs years ago, he said. His wife’s grandfather, Roie Sterling, founded the company in 1911 on Main Street in Batavia, and it has remained here, except for a location change to Pearl Street.
He enjoys the annual event for the exposure it brings to his company and what it can provide for people, Weiler said.
“You meet the people, bring awareness to them, so that they know that there’s options for like, they put up a beautiful deck and it's too hot, they can't use it. So then we can use covers for that. And what we are is, life's a series of events. There are the poor ones, but there are good ones, like a graduation or wedding. So with our tents and our equipment, we make it so great that when you have a bad day, you can think about the good time you had,” he said. “So we have protection, and it’s festive. You think of tents, you have festivities, and it's social interaction, and that's what we need. We need social interaction and to have fun; life should be fun.”
Are you actually conducting business when you’re here?
“We make contacts, and then you go back and forth. It's always rewarding, you know, and we've always gotten a lot of work from it,” he said. “But it’s not like next week or anything; it’s simmering, and they return. My office manager, Sandy, she’s the one that handles all of that. I’m on the jobs mostly.”
There are other vendors that participate for reasons other than to gain an immediate or impending sale, Adam Clark said, with the clever draw of his 3-year-old golden retriever Dazey nearby.
“Just being part of the community, seeing all the familiar faces, whether it’s the other vendors, your existing customers, or new customers. It’s just nice to get out and be in the public,” said Clark, co-owner of Cedar Street Sales and Rentals. “We might gain a few sales from it, but it’s more of just a PR kind of thing, getting out in the public.
Friday evenings have typically been fairly slow; however, there was a steady flow of visitors carrying the home show bag to store goodies from each vendor. There are pens, chip clips, magnets, wrapped candies, rulers, bumper stickers, keychains, radon kits, and mini fishing, golf, and pick-a-duck games for entertainment and with chances to win prizes.
Vendors cover a wide range of areas, from driveway sealing, municipal services, and plumbing to realtors, community theater, health and wellness, financial advising, local media, household and garage needs, heating and cooling, and equipment repair.
While many vendors are from Genesee County, some travel from other areas, including Neil Delves, owner of Never Wet Basement Waterproofing. This is his fourth or fifth year at this show, he said.
“It just generates new appointments for us because I'm in the basement waterproofing business, and therefore, we do not really get any repeat business. Once we fix someone's house, we don't have to go back and see them ever again. So it is a one-time fix, done right and permanently,” he said. “Always looking for new customers. So we come here every year, as I do all the other local home shows. This is one of my favorite home shows because it's not very big, but people know what they want here, and they come up to me and say, ‘Okay, I need you to come out and look at my house.’ And the leads we get are very fruitful.”
Perhaps that’s why a third of these booths are new vendors this year, which has provided a good variety, Chamber President Brian Cousins said.
“A lot of Chamber members as well, which is great for the chamber membership. It's great to support the members as a chamber organization, to highlight all the businesses that we have for our community," Cousins said. "We get a lot of people that over the course of time … they've had a lot of home projects or home things that they've needed to do and wanted to do, but either didn't have the wherewithal or thought that they were going to do it themselves, and then come now and they find a vendor to be able to really help them.
“The other thing that happens throughout these shows too is a lot of the vendors do vendor-to-vendor, business-to-business deals as well, so they can find out how to support each other," he said. "Some of them have like industries, and some of them have a little bit of a different of a context, or a complimentary business to be able to help each other grow and to work. I was just talking with a couple people on the other side over here that were doing just that, so it was kind of nice to see.”
Michael Battaglia, Chamber board member, talks with Genesee County Chamber of Commerce President Brian Cousins, right, at the 10th annual Home Show Friday evening at McCarthy Ice Arena in Batavia. This type of event is a financial lift for the county, Cousins said: "100% it helps the economy, because any time that we can support local it keeps our dollars inside of our local community, boosts up our local businesses. All these guys are our friends and our neighbors and they live in our community. And a lot of the times, they work so hard that it's kind of hard to take a deep breath and actually showcase what they have for our local residents. So it's kind of nice to see the local residents in the community come in to really support them." Photo by Howard Owens
Photo by Howard Owens.
Laiken Ricker, Grace Marzolf, and Allysa Pascoe talk wellness at the GO Health booth Friday evening. "The biggest thing we're trying to promote right now is our free radon test kits for residents of Genesee County, but we also have lots of information on our other programs and services," Marzolf said. "Another big thing is we have our Healthy Neighborhoods program, which lets us go into homes in the city or town of Batavia and just do a little bit of a safety inspection, where we look at fire and safety hazards in the home, and then we have free supplies available to people who need them." Photo by Joanne Beck
Photo by Howard Owens.
Chuck Flynn of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services talks to a visitor at the home show Friday evening. Photo by Howard Owens.
Photo by Howard Owens.
Photo by Howard Owens.
Photo by Howard Owens.
Photo by Howard Owens.
Adam Clark, Cedar Street Sales and Rentals, and Dazey. Photo by Howard Owens.
Visit The Batavian's booth at the Home Show today & enter to win 2 VIP Pilot's Lounge tickets to the Wings Over Batavia Air Show!
HOME SHOW Special: Sign Up for Early Access pass before the end of April and get the first month of membership for only $1 or $8 off an annual membership. Visit my.thebatavian.com to sign up and use the coupon code HOME25.
The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Home Show is open today from 10am-5pm & Sunday 10am-3pm.
JerryShearin, Joan Shearin, Howard Hetzel, Michaele White, Chris Humel, Lydia Zweirzynski, Steve Ernst. (Barbara Bennet cropped out by photographer error). Photo by Howard Owens.
Batavia resident Chris Humel completed teaching a six-week course on cartooning at the Senior Center on Bank Street on Thursday.
The students were instructed on drawing and telling stories through cartoon panels or hitting the punch line in a single panel.
"We go through corny jokes and illustrate them," Humel said. "I encourage them to think of funny stories in their everyday life, or, you know, everybody's got those stories in their life, in their family, where just something hilarious happens. So I try to get them to think about those stories and then look for things that make them smile throughout the week."
The class was funded through a $5,000 state grant administered through GO ART!
Humel is a musician, singer-songwriter, and visual artist who got started in cartooning in the 1990s while living in New Hampshire. He said a friend of his would send him illustrated letters that made him laugh, so he wrote back with "a little bit of artistic skill, not a lot really" with his own funny drawings. They combined on a small cartoon book that Humel put in a spinner rack at Ava Art Gallery in New Hampshire and that led to a chance to teach cartooning to a class of middle school students. Humel said he's taught cartooning several times over the years since.
"I like teaching. It's empowering for me to share my knowledge and skills, and I think (the students) benefit by just having fun," he said.
Photo by Howard Owens.
Joan Shearin. Her pannels are on the right. And Chris Humel. Photo by Howard Owens.
Corfu resident, businessman and Village Mayor Tom Sargent has added entrepreneur to his title with his and wife Jennifer Stevens' second enterprise, Thirty-Three East Market at 10 E. Main St., Corfu. Photo by Joanne Beck
Tom Sargent and his wife, Jennifer Stevens, had been humming along with Homeslice 33 Pizzeria in Corfu for about three and a half years when they kept getting more ideas for growth without the room to spare. There was, however, a vacant parcel right next door.
So instead of trying to cram more food items into the busy pizza shop on Main Street, they bought the adjacent 10 E. Main St. and, in just 10 weeks time, renovated the 800 square feet into a charming general store with a bit of a market, a candy store, bakery, assorted coffees and teas, homemade macaroni salads, a book nook, gift and novelty items and seating for at least 10.
Sargent credits his wife for coming up with a more succinct tagline.
“It’s all that and a cup of coffee,” he said at the site that opened in the last week. “As mayor, I hear we need to have a grocery store. We were gonna add some deli meats and salads over at the pizzeria, and then we were just kind of, slip in other things that we could possibly do to increase sales at the pizzeria, and we ran out of space with everything that we were coming up with, and wanting to be able to do — give fresh products to the locals, produce, bakery items, try to bring Yancey Fancy cheeses back, which we were able to do. So this property just happened to be available, so next door just made sense."
There’s method to the madness, so to speak, in that the fresh produce can serve twofold: either for customer needs or for products at the pizzeria, say, green peppers for pizzas, salads and subs, he said, and the Market is a conduit for several local vendors — 16 at this time and possibly more — to sell their goods.
Those goods include Yancey’s Fancy cheeses, Shelby M. Turner’s Ready Or Not sourdough-based baked goods, Oliver’s Candies, Upstate Milk products, a few maple syrup and honey companies, including Merle, Great Lakes coffees, Mac salad from Homeslice 33 Pizzeria, and other locally made baked goods, such as the purple-decorated lavender iced cookies, lemon blueberry mini muffins, and a line of gluten-free items.
Since opening on April 2, all vendor goods have been selling, he said. The hours are assertive: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
“We have coffee, so we want to get people in the mornings with coffee. And we're here because we do brew coffee, and we do grind fresh coffee for people,” Sargent said. “And then we want to get the people who come home a little later in the evening, and they need an onion for dinner or whatever it is, they need lunch meat for the next day. So, yeah, we're pretty steady right through till seven o'clock.”
Jordan Stevens has joined her parents to help out at the Market, and they have hired another employee as they gauge the beginning of business. Towards the back is a deli counter with Boarshead meats, hummus and cheeses, and freshly brewed coffee and tea that can be enjoyed at the cozy seating up front in a sunny window.
Salad, sandwiches and breakfast sandwiches, are on the horizon for a hopeful May debut, and Sargent is also hoping to get more locally sourced produce once warmer weather arrives. He’s also thinking ahead to those apple orchards in fall for some cider and apples, and other fresh treats when they become available.
“The alternative is to drive 15 minutes to Batavia or Alden to get that fresh produce or those deli meats, so now they can come here to the village and it’s more of a convenience for them,” he said.
Other items include freeze-dried candies, beeswax and soy-based candles, tea towels, chocolate-covered pretzels, Kindle bookmarks, olive wood cutting boards, bottle stoppers, mugs, dairy and non-dairy goods and cold drinks. One might say it's all that and a cup of freshly brewed coffee.
BID Executive Direcotor Shannon Maute looks on as WBTA owner Jim Ernst accepts the station's Business of the Year Award. Photo by Howard Owens.
WBTA, Batavia's hometown radio station, was honored on Thursday by the Business Improvement District as the BID's Business of the Year.
BID Director Shannon Maute praised station owner Jim Ernst for the innovations he's initiated that have helped keep Batavia residents engaged.
"They have really gone a long way with changing how things are done at this radio station," Maute said.
Ernst gave credit to his staff.
"I didn't do anything special except put a really great team together," Ernst said. He singled out staff member Marc Tillery as "the one who did all the work," especially with his efforts to get the station involved in the Box Car Derby, the Wine Walk, and the FeBREWary.
"I wouldn't have had this opportunity without Jim Ernst," Tillery said. "He's the one who brought me in nearly two years ago and I appreciate every chance he's given me."
Tillery was also recognized with the first-ever Supporter of the Year Award.
"Things have changed this year," Maute said before introducing Tillery. "New people are helping out and getting involved. And this person, I don't know if I could do as much as I have been doing without him. He's a huge supporter. He is always there to help. He helps promote. He comes up with all these new ideas."
Kelsey Dilcher, marketing and community coordinator at Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union, was named Volunteer of the Year.
“Kelsey is always the first to help with anything that the BID needs," Maute said. "You always see her with a smile on her face. So, I just want to say thank you for everything that you do. I greatly appreciate you. You are down for everything and so I want to present you with this amazing award."
The BID's annual meeting was held at Center Street Smokehouse.
Alexandra Ortiz, front left, Jim Ernst, Rachel Berardini Ernst; Nicole Johnson, Lorne Way, Mark Tillery and Mitchell Ernst Photo by Howard Owens
McNeil presents certificates to the 2025 award winners, (left to right) Gianna Graff, Andrew McNeil, Jade Wolff.
Press Release:
On March 15, for the third consecutive year, a Byron-Bergen student advanced to the state Poetry Out Loud (POL) competition. Under the leadership of Secondary English Teacher and POL coordinator Andrew McNeil, Byron-Bergen has established itself as a serious regional competitor. After placing first in the school, senior Jade Wolff advanced to Regionals in Buffalo and then States in Albany.
The competition, now in its 20th season, was initiated at Byron-Bergen by English Teacher John Tomidy in 2006, the program’s inaugural year. Since then, thousands of Byron-Bergen High School students have participated in the classroom-level recitation process, hundreds have entered the school-level contest, and dozens have competed in the regional competition.
Now retired, Tomidy stays connected to POL by serving as a judge for the school-level competition. In further recognition of the hard work and dedication of the POL participants, Tomidy founded monetary prizes for two competitors which were awarded on April 3.
The first award goes to the participant with the most outstanding performance at the school-level competition of 10 or more participants, as determined by the panel of judges. Additionally, the recitation must be exceptional as a stand-alone performance, not just within the context of the competition.
The second award goes to the student who, according to teacher observation, experiences the most enlightened growth resulting from the memorization/recitation process. The student will show an increased appreciation not only for the poetic form but also for the skills enhanced by memorization and recitation.
This year’s award recipients are Jade Wolff and Gianna Graff, respectively.
Tomidy stated, “Judging this year brought back fond memories. Poetry Out Loud was always near and dear to me, so it’s good to feel reconnected to it. My aim is to continue judging and providing the awards for the foreseeable future.”
Poetry Out Loud is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Poetry Foundation, and state and jurisdictional arts agencies. The goal of the program is to engage high school students in “a dynamic poetry recitation competition that is designed to improve their public speaking skills, help build confidence and teach them about literary history and contemporary life” (poetryoutloud.org).
Submitted photos.
Jade Wolff performs at the POL State competition.
Photo of Jade Wolff (right) with State POL contestants.
For the second year in a row, Nahiely Dones, a senior in the Health Dimensions program at the Batavia CTE Center, earned first place in the Personal Care event at the Spring Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) Leadership Conference. Her back-to-back victories are a testament to her skill, determination, and drive to succeed in the healthcare field.
“I was literally shaking when they were announcing the winners,” Nahiely said. “When they finally called my name for first place, I was just so happy and excited.”
Nahiely first competed in the event as a junior and won first place, giving her the confidence to return this year and aim even higher. She chose to participate again not just to defend her title, but also to prepare for her upcoming Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) exam.
“I knew the competition would help me get more comfortable with the CNA test,” she said. “The skills are really similar, and being around judges and people makes me nervous. I thought it would be good exposure so I could feel more prepared and confident.”
During the competition, Nahiely was assigned to perform the skill of making an unoccupied bed—but with an unexpected twist. The bed was king-sized, which added an extra challenge she hadn’t trained for. Still, she handled it with professionalism and poise.
“I wasn’t used to that size bed,” she said. “But we practiced so much in class. We went over the skills again and again—repeating them, reviewing them, and making sure we really understood every step. Since I competed last year, I had a strong base to build on.”
Her teacher was thrilled with the results. “I was so glad that Nahiely’s hard work had paid off. She’s done well because she’s put in the time and consistently pushes herself to improve.”
Throughout the year, Nahiely demonstrated incredible growth—not just in technical skills, but in personal confidence. She said overcoming anxiety and learning to handle high-pressure situations independently were some of the biggest challenges she faced.
“I used to hate speaking in front of people or being in crowded spaces,” she said. “And during the competition, I had to go in completely on my own. Just me and the judge—no one else. That was a big step for me.”
Nahiely credited her teachers for supporting her along the way. “They’ve been amazing,” she said. “I couldn’t have done this without them.”
Her teacher echoed that sentiment, noting Nahiely’s compassion, empathy, and determination as key strengths. “Nahiely is a very special person,” she said. “She’s demonstrated love and care for everyone around her. Despite facing significant personal challenges, she’s remained positive and proven that she’s capable of achieving anything she sets her mind to.”
Nahiely plans to take her CNA exam in May and is already exploring job opportunities in healthcare for the summer. Looking ahead, she hopes to become a nurse and specialize in trauma care.
Participating in HOSA helped shape her goals and boost her confidence. “Before HOSA, I didn’t think I could do a lot of things,” she said. “But now I know nothing is impossible. No matter how hard it is, you just have to keep going and never give up.”
If you're a musical act playing a show in Genesee County, or a Genesee County music venue, send your press releases about your shows to Logan Music at jlogan6505@gmail.com or use the "+ Add your event" button above.
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