A drum and bugle corp exhibition at Van Detta Stadium on Saturday night provided enthusiasts for the genre to see a variety of ensembles to perform, said Shannon Mellander, a music teacher and one of the organizers.
"There's not a lot of places to go and see some of this competitive drum corps up in New York, even though there used to be a long time ago," Mellander said. "So it's kind of nice to have something a little bit centrally located in Western New York where people can get a glimpse. They don't have to watch a video."
The event was also a fundraiser for Batavia High School's Winterguard.
Participating were:
St. Joseph's of Batavia Brass Ensemble
Brig Juice
The Hamburg Kingsman
The Mighty St. Joe's Drum and Bugle Corp of Le Roy (featured in the accompanying photos)
The White Sabres
The White Sabres is an all-ages summer program that competes regionally and includes several Batavia students.
It was their preview performance of their 2023 program, "Invasions," which is a homage to iconic science fiction films such as War of the Worlds, Signs, and Independence Day.
The group next takes the show on the road, with performances in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and downstate, culminating a finals competition in Rochester at the Rochester Community Sports Complex on Labor Day Weekend.
"(The exhibition) is really exciting for us to be able to have this in our hometown, in Batavia, because there are a lot of people from this area involved in all of these groups, alumni groups, in the White Sabres," Mellander said. "There are people from Rochester, there's kids that come from Binghamton and from Buffalo and Jamestown. I like that we're able to feature them, and everybody can come and see them since all of the competitions are out of town."
Batavia resident Guy Rapone on his motorbike on Jackson Street waves to the group on the Batavia Pedal Party bike on Friday evening. Photo by Howard Owens.
Sheri Sumeriski was preparing for her nuptials Saturday and had seen something that she thought would make a perfect pre-wedding activity.
“We just had to do it. We drove by it at the high school graduation,” she said during a stop at The Harvester Friday evening.
She was referring to the Batavia Pedal Party bike, which she ended up booking for a fun night out before the big day.
A novel business that has taken off in larger cities, including Buffalo, Rochester, Toronto and beyond, and is becoming popular for pub crawls, has been introduced locally by entrepreneur Kyler Preston of Batavia.
Armed with a bachelor’s degree in finance from University at Buffalo, Preston’s professional goals are clear, if not easy.
“I just like to figure out the best way to invest in the local economy and invest in myself,” he said earlier Friday before the launch of his first official group bike tour. “I think it takes a while to get a group together and then book an event. People are booking up into August and September. I kind of felt bad for Batavia, I felt there was a need for a nightlife we lost that with COVID. I want to promote business in Batavia and bring life back to the bars.”
The 22-year-old wants to do that responsibly, he said, by being the "DD" -- designated driver for a group of adults that wants to go out for a couple of hours and have some fun on city streets.
A two-hour tour allows you to bring your own cooler with two canned drinks per rider and food if you like, and a playlist of music is waiting to entertain your group while a licensed driver escorts you to two establishments of your choosing within the designated city limits.
Riders may pedal the vehicle, though it is also fully motorized, Preston said, and there is a bench on board for those not wishing to get that physical during the trip.
About an hour into the trip, Sumeriski’s group made a stop at The Harvester on the city’s southeast side. Bar owner Melissa Kibler was pleased to see them stroll in for a refreshment and hop off a large pedal bike to boot.
“It's great. I'm very excited. Like, I'm excited to get the crowd in. I think that's a new innovative thing that we could use,” Kibler said, adding that she wasn’t sure where the big group came from at first. “I was like, where did they come from? And I thought they were just bikers biking around. And then I came out, and I saw it. And I was like, wow, okay, that's a new thing. I might want to do that at some point. I think that's kind of interesting. You know, there's a lot of bars downtown. But if you're gonna do something like this, I mean … let's take a little ride.
“That's what I was so excited about, is that they decided to come in here because we're usually the one that gets passed because we're out this way. Versus, like, everybody goes to TF’s and all the ones over there because they can just walk there and do that,” she said. “So that's awesome about the biking thing because they can come down here.”
That’s exactly what Preston is hoping for. He has gauged rides to as far out as Batavia Downs and made a trip over to Dwyer Stadium so that folks could catch a Muckdogs game if they wanted to include that in a package. He said that he wants to help bring people — literally — to Batavia businesses, one group at a time.
Although he is booking into September, there are other dates available from now through the fall, and he said that cooler temps could make for a great event, especially if riders want to give those pedals a full workout. He can even envision a moving Bills tailgate party.
“There’s so much that could be done,” he said.
As with anything, there has been a challenge or two, he said, such as the online flak he has taken from folks concerned that the pedal party is unsafe. Preston feels confident, however, that this bike — built in the United States and not in China as are many others, he said — passes muster for safety regulations. It has a wider wheelbase, has turning signals, and being built in Texas means it’s “better built” and is “100 percent safe,” he said.
“People didn’t realize all the safety precautions I had taken,” he said. “People didn’t want open containers on the road. “We chose to stick with two alcoholic drinks per person to make sure people are being safe. As long as people on the bike are being respectful and keep the music at a tolerable level, they can choose the playlist and volume.”
The bike transports a group to two places of their choosing, where it waits for them to go inside for a while to have a drink and eat, and then go onto the next stop, and then everyone is returned to the starting point on East Main Street.
There’s the other element of safety, and that’s a licensed driver, just as with a chauffeured limousine. Preston wasn’t able to make Friday’s gig, so he gave Steve Ognibene a call.
Ognibene has driven a limo and a school bus; he’s driven for parties and other entertainment events and had the experience Preston, and his family was looking for. After all, this was a 15-person, open-air pedal bike with a whole new set of rules and regulations, Ognibene said.
“So with this, it's different because, basically, you're riding a bicycle. And I asked a lot of questions, a lot of safety questions. And they said, Well, everyone has to wear their seatbelt. And riding the limo, you're totally contained. In this is where, you know, you're on this little tiny seat. And you want to have yourself strapped in at all times," Ognibene said. "Pedaling is kind of optional, where you can pedal or you don't have to pedal. But as far as the comparison, it's kind of totally different. And I'm trying to be more aware because this is the first time I've ever driven something like this being on the road, and you're open, that no one doesn't, you know, try to unbuckle or anything like that, or act crazy or try to stand up.
"So, you know, safety is actually the first and foremost concern. We went over a lot of safety rules before we even left," he said. "And so everyone has to sign a waiver before we go, and that's pretty much it. Just call ahead, book a date."
What did Sumeriski and her wedding party think? They were having so much fun, they said, they booked another hour to prolong the evening.
Russ and Jo Ann Nephew hosted their second classic car and tractor show at their home, 323 State St., Batavia on Sunday afternoon.
About 55 people attended the event, which featured a memorial tribute to car enthusiasts Jeanne Freeman, who lived in Byron, and David Smith, who resided in Pavilion.
Numerous door prizes were awarded to attendees, who also were treated to lunch.
Photos by Howard Owens except where noted.
Taking part in a memorial for the late Jeanne Freeman and David Smith are, from left, Russ Nephew, Doreen D'Imperio (David's daughter), Susan Smith (David's wife), Bill Freeman (Jeanne's husband) and Camden Baris (Jeanne and Bill's grandson). Photo by Mike Pettinella.
When Brett Young began work on his latest album, “Weekends Look A Little Different These Days,” he faced a whole new challenge as a songwriter. He had strived to be authentic in his writing, delving into subject matter that allowed him to draw from his personal experiences.
But that approach wasn’t going to work on the “Weekends” album, especially if he was trying to write about where his life is now.
Married to his long-time girlfriend, which he literally says is the love of his life, and a father of two little girls, Young knew his happy life wouldn’t make for a compelling album.
“It would have been really tempting to just write basically a lullabies record, love songs about my wife and songs about my children,” Young said in a late-April phone interview. “So the challenge was that you can’t write just about what you’re going through in your life right now. That’s going to be boring.”
Fortunately for Young, he was working with some co-writers who have been around the block and knew how to put an authentic personal touch on a lyric and honestly convey a variety of emotions over the course of an album.
“It’s hard when you’re in the happiest place in your life, and you’ve got to still write a sad song, and we did,” Young said. “We did that, but we did it through a lot of conversations. I’d get in with a songwriter or a couple of songwriters, and I’d be like, ‘Tell me about your worst heartbreak. Explain that to me.’ We started having to go down that path, and that was a new stage of songwriting for me. Don’t just do what you’re feeling right now; here’s a topic, go back to a place where you did feel this way and write it. And we did that. I think it stretched me in a really good way as a songwriter.”
This new approach to songwriting is very evident on “Weekends Look A Little Different These Days,” and Young has essentially crafted an album that touches on the long and winding road he has traveled with his wife, Taylor.
Young, though, didn’t want to tell a linear story about his history with Taylor. Instead, the songs on “Weekends” feel like snapshots from various moments of their journey, which included three breakups before they decided they truly should be together.
“For us, our story wasn’t linear anyway,” Young said. “I met Taylor, this Thanksgiving, it will be 16 years ago. So we have a long, storied history.”
The album culminates with the song “This,” which describes how the life Young and Taylor have now has made the heartaches and good times from their dating years completely worth it.
“That one really fell out quick,” Young said of “This.” “It got me talking about my family (with Taylor), and it immediately made me realize it doesn’t matter, three breakups, 20 breakups, whatever, it was all part of our journey to get here, to this.”
Like his history with Taylor, Young’s musical life has been a journey that had its share of frustrations before things fell into place for the 42-year-old singer/songwriter.
He began by playing covers of other peoples’ songs, first at restaurants and other venues around his Orange County, California, home base and later in the big city of Los Angeles, while he independently released a pair of EPs and three albums, hoping to get a record deal.
But Young’s career remained stuck in neutral until he realized his songs actually were well suited to country music, and he moved to Nashville. There, Young quickly made contacts and, within nine months, signed with Big Machine Records.
In short order, he was in a studio making his self-titled debut album with noted producer Dann Huff. The album’s advance single, “Sleep Without You,” reached No. 2 on “Billboard” magazine’s Country Airplay chart. Then another single, “In Case You Didn’t Know,” topped the Country Airplay chart and went top 20 on “Billboard’s” all genre Hot 100 chart. The hits have kept coming since, with his second album, “Ticket To L.A.,” adding “Here Tonight” and “Catch” and “Weekends Look A Little Different These Days” adding “Lady” to his list of chart-topping singles.
For a while, Young worried that he might have to leave even some of his popular ballads out of his concerts to keep his shows from getting too sleepy for audiences. But as his current shows demonstrate, he’s found that his fans aren’t worried about the pace of his concerts.
“What we’ve found out is that people aren’t thinking about that at my shows. They bought a Brett Young ticket. They know the music,” Young said. “They came to hear the music that they know. So every time we try to kind of inauthentically ramp it up for the sake of ramping it up, they’ve felt like they missed out on a song or two they wanted to hear. So it’s been less about the setlist and more about paying attention to my fan base and what they’re actually coming to the show for.”
Brett Young performs at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on Saturday.
It's been a couple of weeks since I've drawn your attention to this, but The Batavian continues to publish more local news than any other source, and we more frequently beat the competition than we get beat on local stories.
By local, we mean Genesee County, which is all we cover.
We cover more events. We publish more local photos. Our calendar has more local events -- more events publicized in one place than you can even find on social media (send your calendar items to be included to news@thebatavian.com). This week, for the first time, we published a listing of local music at local venues, which makes us the only local publication to offer such a calendar. We publish more press releases, which also helps you stay better informed about what's going on in the local community (send press releases to news@thebatavian.com). I didn't include much sports in the list below, including the Muckdogs, because we don't have a sports staff, but we have beat the competition on sports stories, and we seem to have more coverage of the Muckdogs these days.
All of this adds up to The Batavian being a complete and comprehensive local news outlet like none other around here.
A report by Northwestern University says that local newspapers are dying at a rate of two per week. The future of local news is digital, which is why you should support online local news.
We work hard to bring you the news, sometimes too hard (I put in more than 100 hours this past week), which is why we started Early Access Pass. Local news isn't going to survive without reader support. It simply isn't sustainable without readers helping pay for it.
Many of these stories were available only to members of Early Access Pass during the first four hours of publication. Click here to join Early Access Pass.
Muckdog's manager Joey Martinez promised at the start of the season that the 2023 edition of the hometown team would feature strong pitching.
Ryan Kinney is the latest Batavia starter to prove him right.
Kinney took a no-hitter into the ninth inning against top division rival Elmira at Dwyer Stadium on Saturday night to help the red-hot, division-leading Muckdogs notch its fourth-straight win, 4-2.
The right-hander from Winter Haven, Fla, is now 3-0 on the year with a 0.42 ERA after going 8 1/2, giving up two hits and two runs. He struck out nine Pioneers.
Rijnaldo Euson came on to get the final out for this third save.
The Muckdogs are now 19-8 after winning 10 of their past 12 games and are three games up on Elmira (15-10) in the Western Divison of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League.
The win was also Batavia's 15th straight win at home.
Adam Agresti raised his season average to .409 by going 3-4 with two RBIs and two doubles.
Giuseppe Arcuri went 2-3 with a run scored. Trey Bacon was 1-3 with two RBIs.
Attendance was 1,599.
Batavia is home again on Tuesday against Geneva. Game time is 6:35 p.m.
Matt Gray, co-owner of Eli Fish Brewing Co., takes a splash in the dunk tank during Saturday's carnival in Jackson Square, Batavia. Photos by Howard Owens.
Eli Fish Brewing is hosting its second annual carnival in Jackson Square today (Saturday).
The carnival runs until 10 p.m.
Photos by Howard Owens.
Batavia High School Class of 2003 visited the carnival as part of his 20th Class Reunion festivities. Photo by Howard Owens.
Country music recording artist Craig Morgan, with hits such as "That's What I Love About Sunday," "Almost Home," "Redneck Yacht Club," "Little Bit of Life," and "International Harvester," brought his tour into Batavia on Friday with a stop at Batavia Downs.
Opening for Morgan was Drake White as part of the summer's Rockin' the Downs concert series.
This Friday, the show will get a little more rockus with Skid Row taking the stage.
Le Roy's 12-U Little League team is the district champ and next plays in the sectional championship, which will determine the teams to play in the state tournament.
On Friday, Le Roy defeated Allegany 8-0 with two pitchers combining to throw a shutout.
Matthew McCulley went five innings striking out 12 batters, and Michael Warner came in in the 6th to shut the door and claim the title. The two pitchers gave up only three hits on the night.
Le Roy scored three runs in the first, two in the second, and three in the fourth, and gathered 15 hits in the game.
Catcher Eddie Lathan threw out two Allegany baserunners on attempted steals.
Hits were recorded by Sammy Bogue (3), Drew Beachel (3), Dalton Luke (2), Eddie Lathan (2), Carter McClurg, Ethan Rose, Matthew McCulley, Michael Warner, and Ryker Vangalio. Runs scored were Sammy Bogue (3), Drew Beachel, Dalton Luke, Carter McClurg, Michael Warner, and Ryan Crissy.
Team members include Sammy Bogue #24, Drew Beachel #13, Matthew McCulley #42, Michael Warner #5, Ryker Vangalio #2, Eddie Lathan #6, Blake Biracree #0, Ethan Rose #28, Dalton Luke #11, Carter McClurg #99, Ryan Crissy #8, and Carson Wetsell #23 (missing from photo)
Le Roy went 6-0 on district play, giving up only seven runs while scoring 56 runs.
Mika, Emmet, and Hazel play in the spray park at Austin Park in Batavia on Saturday. Photo by Howard Owens
The temporary shutoff of water to Batavia's spray park in Austin Park Friday, with temperatures approaching 90, is over, and a steady stream of kids was hitting the park throughout Saturday morning and into the afternoon.
Mikayla Brown and James Malone went to the park on Saturday to cool off with no idea the park had just been through a temporary water shutoff.
Malone said the spray park is important on hot days.
"When it gets to be 90 degrees some days, with the humidity, yeah, yeah, it would be kind of sad (without water)," he said.
When told the water was temporarily shut off because of a water shortage, both Malone and Brown said they could understand why it would be shut off.
Le Roy's spray park had also been turned off, and there has been no word on whether it was up and running again for the weekend.
Nick Rada and chef at Burning Barrel BBQ in Corfu. Photo by Howard Owens.
After selling barbecue in front of his house to help locals endure the 2020 pandemic, Nick Rada decided it was time to translate his training and skills with smoked meat and open an authentic Southern BBQ restaurant in Corfu.
It's where his lifelong passion has led him.
“I’ve always had a passion for it. I always would hang out back by my grandfather’s pond. [I would] cook over live fire,” Rada said.
After years of cooking with fire, Rada found himself in Greenville, S.C., and he said a man nicknamed “Mr. T” showed him old-school southern barbecue. It was there that Rada’s passion for barbecue was solidified. Now, after barbecuing first as a hobbyist, then for those during the pandemic, Rada has opened his own restaurant.
The restaurant offers catering, limited dine-in services and takeout.
Diners can enjoy Southern classics like smoked barbecue chicken, pulled pork, chopped beef and more. Rada also takes great pride in not just perfecting his main dishes but his sides as well. Macaroni and cheese, collard greens and tangy cole slaw are fan favorites.
“It’s about as authentic and true you will get to real barbecue compared to anywhere down south. Even though I’m up in New York State, come on in, and you’ll have good barbecue. I take pride in it.”
He makes his own sauce, mixing his own sauce that he developed with a store-bought sauce. The baked beans and potato salad are made from scratch.
He said during the summer, most of his business is catering, and his weekends are frequently booked.
Burnin’ Barrel BBQ is located at 10 E. Main St in Corfu. Open from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays.
Le Roy Central School District families ended their week with some good news for student athletes Friday through a letter sent home by the Athletic Department, Superintendent Merritt Holly says.
The district has formed a new partnership with Genesee Valley BOCES to offer a certified strength and conditioning staff “that will be creating a strength and conditioning program for all our students in grades 7-12,” the letter from Assistant Principal/Athletic Director Mathew Davis stated.
It continued:
The program is specifically designed to build athletes into the strongest and fastest version of themselves. This targeted performance program concentrates on a scientifically specialized type of training that will increase an athlete's strength, speed, explosiveness, quickness, acceleration, and vertical jump. Training will be provided for both off-season and in-season sessions along with being implemented into sport specific practice times throughout the year.
The strength and conditioning staff will also be partnering with our long-time Certified Athletic Trainer, Amanda Sheflin. This newly established partnership will certainly bring a competitive advantage to our student athletes’ ability to gain strength, recover faster, minimize sport related injuries and improve overall health and wellness.
This summer programming will start on Monday, July 10th and run through Friday, August 25th. All training sessions will take place at the Le Roy Jr./Sr. High School fitness center. Our coaching staff encourages all Modified, JV, and Varsity athletes to take advantage of this excellent FREE opportunity to enhance their overall strength, fitness, and performance this summer!
The schedule will run from to 8 to 9 a.m. and 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, with Fridays being open.
Davis was not available for further comment Friday.
Anyone with questions may contact the Athletic Office at 585-768-8131.
As part of the History Heroes "Rockin' the '50s" theme in 2022, the class visited Adam Miller Toys and Bicycles. File photo by Howard Owens.
Press Release:
The Holland Land Office Museum's History Heroes Summer Program is back for 2023 from Tuesday, July 25 through Saturday, July 29. The program is for children ages 7-12.
This year's theme is "I Survived the Civil War" and features lessons about various groups and their lives during the Civil War. This includes not only soldiers but also women and children and even President Abraham Lincoln. Each day runs from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. and includes crafts, games, music, presenters, historic food, and more.
The price is $40 per day or $30 for museum members. Please contact the museum to sign up or for more information. Registration forms and information can also be found at the museum website, www.hollandlandoffice.com.
Town Court Clerk Below are two lists: one details the myriad responsibilities that fall within the purview of the court clerk; the other summarizes the knowledge and abilities that court clerks possess or acquire through training. These lists are provided so that a judge and municipality can intelligently discuss the benefits that a court clerk can provide. The items below can also form the basis for a list of job duties should a municipality need to fill a vacancy in a court clerk position. Primary Responsibilities A. Maintain confidentiality of records and information when required to do so B. Prepare court calendar C. Collect monies, reconcile daily receipts, deposit receipts, prepare reports for monthly disbursements, reconcile bank accounts, and prepare administrative reports D. Enter convictions on drivers' licenses and prepare conviction reports electronically transmitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles E. Enter criminal conviction on NCIC reports and electronically send same to Division of Criminal Justice Services F. Respond to inquiries-in person, by phone, by e-mail and by mail-and provide assistance to lawyers, litigants, media, and members of the public G. Prepare monthly reports that are electronically sent to the Office of the State Comptroller H. Prepare orders, summonses, warrants and other court forms i. Communicate with outside agencies in order to coordinate the Court's activities and provide services to litigants. Such agencies include: ii. Law enforcement agencies, such as local police departments, New York State Police, Sheriffs office, FBI and CIA, US Armed Forces, and the Office of the District Attorney; I. Other courts, including superior courts and other local town and village courts; and i. Miscellaneous county agencies, such as Community Service, Community Dispute Resolution Center, Pre-trial Release, Probation, Stop DWI program, Victim Impact Panel, and Youth Court. ii. State agencies that require periodic reporting, including the New York State Unified Court System, the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Office of the State Comptroller, the Division of Criminal Justice Services, and the Office of Court Record Retention. J. Examine court documents to ensure their accuracy and completeness K. Receive and file summonses, traffic tickets and other documents for court proceedings i. Assist the Justice at the bench during all Court proceedings Knowledge of: 1. The functions and organization of the Unified Court System ii. Basic legal terminology, codes and abbreviations iii. Court forms, practices and procedures, including those set forth in the Uniform Justice Court Act and the Uniform Civil Rules for the Justice Courts (22 NYCRR Part 214) 2. Ability to: i. Prepare judicial orders and decisions ii. Effectively communicate information orally and in writing iii. File and retrieve materials, extract data from various sources for entry onto court form iv. Research and interpret laws outlined in court documents and litigants' motions and other papers v. Perform mathematical tasks in order to compile court activity reports, total receipts, accept payments, and verify bills vi. Refer to appropriate documents, statutes, citations or other sources in order to respond to specific questions from attorneys, litigants and members of the general public vii. Interpret policies, statutes, rules and regulations and apply them in specific contexts viii. Establish work priorities ix. Constructively manage conflict with court users Qualifications: Highschool diploma recognized by the NYS Dept of Education or appropriate equivalent. Along with 4 years of college, specialization in criminal justice, law, business administration or related field. -OR- 2 years college with specialization in Business Administration or related field. Please email your resume to abrownell@townofbatavia.com no later than 12/16/2024. Pay is based on experience.
