My second Christmas video features the talented students of John Kennedy, Robert Morris, Alexander elementary and Pembroke Intermediate schools.

Some quick background on Pembroke Intermediate: For several years, chorus teacher Andy Clark has made a yearly tradition of reserving a spot in Pembroke Choralier Christmas concerts for "Christmas Sing-alongs," during which former choraliers are invited to come up and sing with the group. You will be able to see them up on the stage, behind all of the current choraliers, during the sing-along segments.

Stay tuned for part 3!

If you missed part 1, click here.

After extinguishing a car fire at 1364 Church St., Alabama, last night, volunteer firefighters made a sad discovery -- the body of the 60-year-old man who lived at that address was found in the car.

Sheriff's officials believe the car of Harry C. Kramer IV, became stuck in the snow as he was trying to pull out of his driveway. Kramer apparently suffered some sort of medical event that left him with his foot stuck on the accelerator. The engine then apparently overheated, starting the fire.

The car fire was called in at 9:55 p.m. and Alabama Fire was dispatched.

Kramer's body was found by firefighters in the driver's seat of the vehicle after the fire was put out.

The Monroe County Medical Examiner's Office is investigating Kramer's exact cause of death. Coroner Jack Taylor pronounced Kramer dead at the scene.

Here's a news release from the Friends of Robert Morris Elementary School.

Robert Morris Elementary School is in the top 20 going for a $50,000 Pepsi Refresh Grant for the month of December.

We need to be in the top 10 by Dec. 31 and could use your help. Please vote for us by texting to: 73774 and in the message box type 104607, and hit send. It's that easy.

You can also vote through Facebook and through the link: www.refresheverything/robertmorrisplayground.com

The grant money will be used for a new playground. It is truly going to benefit the entire community of Batavia, making it handicap accessible and friendlier for our younger children.

What a great and easy way to earn 50K without a cost to our taxpayers. Please help us support our children of this community. Vote today and everday (each person can vote 3x per day Facebook, text and refresh link).

Thank you for your continued support!

Your Friends of Robert Morris School

Most view posts for November

• Pedestrian killed in Pavilion, by Billie Owens
• Local Dem arrested after Republican legislator accuses him of harassing phone call
• Alexander couple accused of sex act in public view
• York Road fire victims victimized again by overnight thieves
• Apparently, Carl Paladino was in town
• DA's office moving forward with political harassment charge, but new judge needed first, by Billie Owens
• Chris Charvella Case: Putting a comment in context
• Fully involved house fire on York Road, Le Roy, by Billie Owens
• Owner who built log house loses home to fire in Le Roy
• Sex offenders dislocated by fire have registered new addresses

For November, The Batavian had 243,401 visits and 450,754 page views.

A two-car accident with minor facial injuries reported at the intersection of Buffalo Street Road and Bowen Road, Alexander.

Alexander Fire and Ambulance dispatched.

Batavia was hit with a good bit of snow from about 6 to 8 p.m. Above, St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church on Ellicott Street, Batavia, during the storm.

The lake effect storm warning remains in effect until 6 a.m., but the radar map shows the heaviest bands hovering to the west of Genesee County.

The hourly forecast for Thursday has partial clearing around noon, but then more snow in the mid-afternoon.

Just as he's been doing annually for the past several years, Santa (and Mrs. Claus) made a pre-Christmas stop at Jim DiSalvo's home on Fargo Road, Stafford.

More and more of Genesee County's kids are finding out, the place with all the lights is a good spot to find Santa about this time of year.

As usual, numerous Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts made the trip to Fargo Road, but DiSalvo's home on the night of Santa's visit is open to all the children who stop by.

Above, posing with Santa and Mrs. Claus are Grace Kibler, 10, Reagan Bifarella, 8, Jacquie Kibler, 8, and Libby Kibler, 5.

More pictures after the jump:

Jim DiSalvo and Annabella.

Instructor Jen Reardon shows of an example of a type of Christmas tree ornament members of a crafts class at Richmond Memorial Library were making Tuesday evening. It's part of an ongoing series at the library and was open to about a dozen people who signed up (first come, first served). The cost was $6 for materials.

Below, Bonnie Raduns and Erin Martin work on their ornaments.

Valene M. Blackwell, 27, of 27 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of property, 5th. Blackwell was accused following an investigation by Det. Pat Corona into reports of items stolen from parked cars in the city.

Natalie N. Pitt, 25, of 50 Water St., Attica, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and criminal contempt. Pitt was arrested following an investigation by Det. Rich Schauf in connection with an alleged incident on Dec. 3. No further details released.

Patrick R. McFadden, 26, of 12 Montclair Ave., Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. McFadden is accused of pushing another person several times. He was also arrested on a bench warrant related to an aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, charge. He was jailed on $500 bail.

Brennan S. Larnder, 19, of 5 Montclair Ave., Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Larnder is accused of pushing another family member under age 17 during a domestic incident.

Richard C. Greene, 28, of Wyoming, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and possession of a hypodermic instrument. Greene was arrested by State Police at 2:30 p.m., Monday, at 13 S. Main St., Batavia. Greene was held without bail. No further details released.

Some bands of lake effect snow could drop as much as 18 inches of snow on some parts of Western New York between now and 6 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

The primary areas for the warning are Orleans and Genesee counties.

Winds are expected to hit 15 to 25 mph. Gusts will be up to 35 mph.

Visibility will be reduced to less than a quarter of a mile at times in some places.

NWS warns of difficult travel conditions during the storm.

The Office of Emergency Services will test the reverse 9-1-1 system at 1 p.m. Wednesday.

If you receive a call, no response is necessary.

The test will be coordinated with the Sheriff's Office and the Emergency Dispatch Center.

The test will also include test alerts through the NY-Alert system. Anybody can sign up for alerts through nyalert.gov.

NY-Alert provides individuals with messages either via phone, text, RSS, fax, pager or e-mail of incident-specific emergency messages or impending road closures and weather issues.

The service is free.

If you have a question for Congressman Chris Lee, he will be available online to answer it for you at noon today, but to ask it, you'll need to have an account on the popular social networking service Twitter.

Lee announced that he is holding a "Twitter Town Hall" today, and through his Twitter account @chrislee_ny26 he has said questions have already started flowing in.

Lee has 2,086 followers on Twitter.

People with or without Twitter accounts can follow the conversation through the hash tag #askchris.

People who ask questions of Lee should direct them to @chrislee_ny26 and tag them with #askchris.

Twitter has gained wide popularity around the world for its ability to allow friends and associates to quickly share information even though messages are limited to 140 characters.

In a press release, Lee's staff says the congressman has held some 30 town hall meetings during his first term either in person or by telephone. This is his first Twitter Town Hall meeting.

Lee's office also maintains accounts on YouTube, Facebook and Picasa.

Once again on Monday evening, Batavia City Council members debated the future of the Falleti Ice Arena -- whether to sell it, or not; whether it makes money, or not; whether it's a vital service to the community, or not.

Councilman Tim Buckley indicated he's had enough.

The city is facing some big and tough budget decisions in the near future, and the council has a lot on its plate. Enough, he said, of debating Falleti Ice Arena.

“I don’t want to make this out as not an important issue, but I want to move away from this issue," Buckley said. "I want to get this thing done. I think as a council we have to realize we’ve got our hands full."

Buckley's suggestion: Have City Manager Jason Molino sit down with Firland, the management company currently running the ice arena, and see what kind of new lease terms can be arranged and bring that proposal back to the council.

After Buckley's opening statement, Councilman Bob Bialkowski said he's been doing the math, and he believes, all things considered, the city is losing thousands of dollars a year on the ice arena.

Bialkowski said he figures the city has expenses related to the ice arena in the range of $53,000, but only gets back in the neighborhood of $40,000. 

City Manager Jason Molino said there are other variables involved, and some of the expenses wouldn't go away if the arena is sold -- such as debt service.

Councilman Bill Cox said he doesn't believe there is any way the city benefits financially from ownership of the arena.

"What’s in it for the taxpayers?" Cox said. "I don’t think anybody on this council, at least not in my hearing, thinks that we’re against the ice arena that we want it to close. ... I don’t want it to close -- I think it’s a great asset to the city. But it should be privatized.

"We’re talking about privatizing it, not closing it. When you privatize it, guess what, you lose control. Do you have any control over the guy who buys your house, what color he paints it after you leave? Of course not."

Councilman Frank Ferrando said while he was once in favor of selling the arena, he's gotten so much feedback from constituents that the city should keep it, that's who he is going to listen to.

"The vast majority of people in this community like the ice rink the way it is, with the city owning it, leasing to Firland," Ferrando said. "I don’t even know what the advantage would be to the taxpayer in the long run if we sold it."

With Cox, Bialkowski, Rosemary Christian and Sam Barone voting no, the council referred the matter to City Manager Jason Molino to see what can be worked out with Firland.

Near the end of the discussion, Cox suggested that WBTA, The Batavian and the Batavia Daily News all run surveys to find out what local residents want done with the arena. After the meeting, we showed Cox the results of an Oct. 26 poll on The Batavian (a totally unscientific poll, we noted) that showed only 22 percent of the respondents supported selling the arena no matter what. Cox's response: "Wow."

City Council President Marianne Clattenberg got a little worked up at Monday night's council meeting during a discussion of a proposed local property-tax cap that some Albany politicians are pushing.

“Why do they need us?" Clattenberg said. "They’re going to tell us what we can charge for property tax and then they’re going to tell us what we have to pay. They don’t even need local governments. They want control of everything. Albany is crazy right now.

"This whole sham of a property-tax cap is just a political ploy by the governor’s office to act like they're for the people," Clattenberg added. "So they say one thing to the people and then go the other way to stab them in the back."

At issue was a proposed resolution to send a message to Albany politicians, "no tax cap without mandate relief." The resolution will state that the legislature shouldn't approve a property-tax cap without eliminating mandated expenses.

A vote to place the resolution on the next council business agenda passed 6-3, with Rosemary Christian, Bob Bialkowski and Bill Cox voting no.

Cox argued that the city should be ready to make any spending cuts necessary without tax increases.

"We have other things we can cut," Cox said. "We need to give our property owners and our citizens tax relief. We can’t do it to them unless we take a stand, draw a line in the sand say, 'no more taxes.'"

Councilman Frank Ferrando said he was concerned that if a tax cap is enacted without mandate relief, the city will be forced to cut vital city services and eliminate key city jobs.

Albany, Ferrando said, shouldn't be dictating to local governments how to raise and spend money.

"If we're forced into that situation that could create real problems for our community," Ferrando said. "If we're in a situation where we need to make those decisions, that’s different. We will be making those decisions. We will make those hard decisions, but they shouldn’t be making them for us."

City Manager Jason Molino said mandated expenses on employee pensions, health insurance and health costs continue to escalate. Next year, for example, the city is looking at a $361,000 increase in mandated retirement benefit costs, and under the property-tax cap proposal, taxes could only go up by $72,000, leaving a $289,000 shortfall.

Gregory A. Jones is indicted on a charge of predatory sexual assault against a child, a Class A-11 felony. Jones is accused of raping a child of less than 13 years of age while in an apartment at 34 Main St. in the Village of Le Roy.

Craig A. Tiberio-Shepherd is indicted on a charge of DWI as a felony. Tiberio-Shepherd is accused of driving drunk Aug. 14 in the Town of Pembroke.

Dominic J. Cordello Jr. is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Cordello is accused of driving drunk on Aug. 11 in the Town of Alexander.

Matthew A. Beccue is charged with a misdemeanor count of criminal possession of stolen property, 5th, and criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Beccue is accused of possessing two stolen Dell desktop computers. The Grand Jury did not find sufficient evidence to indict Beccue on felony charges, but did find sufficient evidence to sustain the misdemeanor charges, so the case is returned to the Pavilion Town Court.

Jason L. Pask is indicted on a charge of criminal mischief, 2nd. Pask is accused of damaging another person's car, a 2010 Camaro SS, causing damage in excess of $1,000 in value, on July 24.

Tacoya S. Johnson is indicted on charges of criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and grand larceny, 3rd. Johnson is accused using a forged instrument to steal more than $3,000 while at a local bank branch on Oct. 31, 2007.

Dannielle D. Sturgis-Ruise is indicted on charges of criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and grand larceny, 4th. Sturgis-Ruise is accused of using a forged instrument to steal more than $1,000 from a local bank branch on Oct. 27, 2007.

William A. Muoio III is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Muoio is accused of driving drunk Aug. 22 in the Town of Le Roy.

Jennifer L. Coombs is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Coombs is accused of driving drunk June 30 in the Town of Byron.

Cheryl A. Vagg is indicted on a charge of driving while ability impaired by drugs as a felony. Vagg is accused of driving while under the influence of drugs July 3 in the Town of Alabama.

The Grand Jury returned a "no bill" (finding insufficient evidence to support the charges) on Shawn C. Wetmore. Wetmore was charged in the City of Batavia of burglary, 3rd, criminal possession of stolen property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

Joanna M. Morgan, 37, of Wyoming, is charged with felony DWI, DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and driving with view obstructed. Morgan was stopped by Le Roy Police Officer Emily Clark on Sunday following a report of two people out of a vehicle and fighting along the roadside of I-490. Morgan, driving a vehicle that matched the description of the one spotted on I-490, was found in the Village of Le Roy. Following a traffic stop, Morgan was allegedly found to be intoxicated. A child under 16 years of age was reportedly in the car, leading to the felony DWI charge.

Darrel R. Scroger, 33, of Swan Street, Batavia, is charged with three counts of petit larceny and possession of burglar tools. Scroger was taken into custody at 2:56 p.m., Thursday, in the Target parking lot as a result of an investigation into stolen mobile phones. The phones were reported stolen over the previous week. Scroger was allegedly caught stealing from Target. He is also accused of shoplifting from Target on Dec. 6 and Dec. 8. Scroger was jailed on $500 bail. The investigation was conducted by Deputy Joseph Graff, Deputy Patrick Reeves, Deputy Brad Mazur and Sergeant Thomas Sanfratello.

Jerome Sanders Dennis, 24, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal trespass, 2nd. Dennis allegedly entered a residence on Drake Street, Oakfield, at 3:50 p.m., Dec. 8, without permission of the owner.

Aaron D. Bradley, 29, of 679 E. Main St., Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation. Bradley is accused of placing his hands around the throat of a victim during a domestic incident at an unknown time Sunday. He was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Elizabeth A. Wesley, 38, of 31 Trumbull Parkway, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and inadequate headlamps. Wesley was stopped on a street in Batavia at 12:31 a.m., Sunday, by Officer Matt Fleming. Wesley was jailed without bail.

Joshua A. Canfield, 21, of 190 Greeley Ave., Hornell, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and running a red light. Canfield was stopped at 3:28 a.m., Sunday, by Officer Eric Bolles, after allegedly running a red light at West Main and Ellicott streets.

Amber N. Wallace, 21, of 4 Highland Park, Batavia, and Nicole L. Cramer, 21, of 2 Highland Park, Batavia, are charged with disorderly conduct. Wallace and Cramer were allegedly observed by police officers fighting on Pringle Avenue at 2:38 a.m., Sunday. They were taken into custody by officers Eric Bolles and Frank Klimjack.

Justin M. Hoover, 30, of 22 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Hoover is accused of possessing items stolen from vehicles on the south side of the city the night of Nov. 24. He was taken into custody on Friday by Det. Pat Corona.

Amy A. Wagner, 41, of Angola, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Wagner was arrested by State Police for an alleged incident on Aug. 21. No further details released.

Aaron J. Huck, 27, of Brockport, is charged with DWI and aggravated DWI. Huck was stopped at 4:11 p.m., Friday, by State Police on Townline Road in Bergen. Huck was held without bail.

A pair of smoldering ovens mitts are the likely cause of a late morning fire in East Pembroke that has put an Angling Road couple out of their home.

The fire destroyed the back portion of the home at 2583 Angling Road, and it sustained heavy smoke and water damage throughout.

Daniel and Sarah Norway escaped the home safely with assistance from Deputy Brian Thompson. A dog was taken out of the house with Sarah and a cat was rescued by firefighters. Two other family cats perished in the fire.

The fire was reported at 12:10 p.m. Sarah reported smelling smoke, looked out the back door and saw flames. She woke up Daniel. He immediately went outside and found the back stairs gone and flames climbing up the walls.

Thompson arrived on scene to find Daniel trying to put out the fire and Sarah was still inside with the dog. Thompson got them out of the house. The deputy's report says "snow was thrown on the fire" while awaiting the arrival of firefighters, without saying who threw the snow on the fire.

According to Thompson's report, Sarah said she had thrown a pair of smoldering oven mitts out the back door around 11 a.m.

East Pembroke Fire responded to the scene and assisting at the scene or in fill-in roles were Town of Batavia, Pembroke, Corfu, Darien, Indian Falls and Oakfield along with Genesee County Emergency Services. An Animal Control officer also responded and took an orange tabby to the Batavia Animal Hospital.

The fire was first called in by neighbor Raymond Russell of Read Road.

The house is assessed at $71,300 and was insured.

(Initial Report)

A structure fire is reported at 2583 Angling Road. It's between Read Road and Church Street. There is black smoke billowing from the corner of the house.

A firefighter on scene says there is heavy smoke coming from the rear of the residence.

Another says "Occupants and dog are out. It is involved."

East Pembroke and Town of Batavia fire departments are responding. An engine from Corfu is also requested.

UPDATE 12:24 p.m.: This East Pembroke fire has gone to a second alarm. Mercy medics are on scene. Corfu has called for an engine from Darien to stand in at Corfu's hall. A tanker from Indian Falls is requested. "It's starting to go fast -- everybody be careful because of the ice." But a bit later "The floor is gone. All interior firefighters are ordered out of the structure."

UPDATE 12:29 p.m.: Town of Batavia calls for an engine from Corfu to fill in at its station. Some units on scene are working to try and protect the garage.

UPDATE 12:35 p.m.: Oakfield is called to fill in at Town of Batavia's fire hall. Despite the prior directive, and the collapse of the floor, firefighters are now on the second floor of the house working to put out the fire. National Grid is notified, no ETA given. A chief asks "Do we have a crew for the roof?"

UPDATE 12:50 p.m.: The chief says "The fire's out. We're just trying to clean up in here. There aren't any hot spots." Also, a badly injured cat was found at the scene (presumably it has suffered burns). It is not known whose cat it is, if anyone's. It has been placed inside the garage and people from the animal shelter are on their way to get it and treat it. According to Sheriff's Deputy Brian Thompson, the fire started outside in a stairwell from unknown causes. A man and woman were asleep in their bedroom when the woman awoke and smelled something burning. By then, the fire had starting climbing the walls of the residence.

UPDATE 1:13 p.m.: The rescued cat did not apparently suffer from burns. Rather it experienced severe smoke inhalation and was heavily doused with water. It is one of three of the family's cats and is being taken to Batavia Animal Hospital on West Main Street Road. The other two cats remain unaccounted for.

UPDATE 2:04 p.m. (by Howard): Red Cross requested to the scene. Also, photo above of the red tabby that was rescued from the house. It was covered in water that had frozen and probably suffered from smoke inhalation, but was crying loudly as it was being carried here. The firefighter is taking the cat to a garage where it might be warmer. An Animal Control officer picked up the cat a short time later and took it to Batavia Animal Hospital.

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