batavia

The Batavia Lions Club has purchased a device that helps people with severe eyesight problems see better -- well enough to read a  book or continue with favorite hobbies.

The first person to get to use the device is Tamara Augello of Elba. Augello lost sight in her right eye due to complications from diabetes. While she relies on her left eye to see, that eye has been losing its vision.

The Lions Club has loaned her a $3,300 machine called a Topaz CCTV. It magnifies items, such as books, so that people using the machine can see to read.

Augello also enjoys needlepoint and the machine will help her complete some projects she's been working on.

“Not only can I read any book I choose, but also, my little grandson can sit on my lap while I read him all the books he loves," Augello told the club in a letter.

Half the cost of the machine was covered by a grant from the New York State and Bermuda Lions Foundation MD-20 Grant Program, and the remaining funds for the purchase were raised by local club members.

In a statement, the club said:

We wish Tamara many years of enjoyment as she uses this equipment to again do what she loves. We also encourage local people with special vision needs to contact the Batavia Lions Club. It is our goal to work hard to provide assistance to the visually impaired in our area.

Down to Earth Approach, a rock band that landed the coveted record deal, released two CDs, toured all over the country, and won over more than a few fans, was formed in Batavia a decade ago.

The band hasn't played together since 2007, but for tonight they've booked a reunion show at (the former) Main Street Coffee.  Tickets are $15 at the door and 10 percent of the proceeds will be donated to the Salvation Army.

The video above is from a previous show at Main Street Coffee.  There's more videos of the band on YouTube, including the fun one at the bottom of this post.

Pete Metzler, an original member of the band, e-mailed us this history of the group:

I, along with the other 4 members of the band are Batavia natives. We formed  in 2000 and after about a year or so we decided to go for it, and all dropped  out of college. We then packed up and moved to Los Angeles. We lived out  there for a couple years playing shows and trying to make a name for  ourselves and in late 2003 we signed a record deal with Vagrant Records. In  August 2004, our first record 'Another Intervention' was released. At that  point we commenced what turned into almost 4 years of touring the US and  Canada regularly. Over this time we played about 350 or 400 shows all over  the country including the entire Vans Warped Tour 2006. In 2007 we released  our second record 'Come Back to You'. Unfortunately life started to catch up  with us and we decided to call it a day right after our 2nd record was  released.

Here's the band's MySpace page, and more about the band on their record label's site.

Besides Metzler, band members include: John McCampbell, Daniel Shepard, Ryan McClurg and Jonathan Lullo.

Also on the bill tonight, The Hoodies and Justin Reynolds.

As many as 250 people will receive a free Christmas dinner today at T.F. Brown's, courtesy of the Mancuso family, Joe Teresi and the Lions Club. The tables for the noon meal were already near full just before 12. There were plenty of children there, too, all eager, surely, for Santa's visit.

Pictured is Pat Mancuso, son of Rick Mancuso. Pat is a sophomore at Medaille College and home on break.

 I thought I would finish out the series with a bit of humor. Thank you again to everyone who stopped by The Batavian booth and said hi.

Last night's shots fired on Tracy Avenue was likely no random act of violence, according to Batavia Police Det. Richard Schauf.

"Our investigation right now is leading us toward a possible relationship as opposed to a road rage incident," Schauf said during a press conference this morning. "Based on early investigation and comments that were made, it's looking more pointed than random."

At 10:30 p.m., two 18-year-old men were driving on Tracy Avenue being followed by a truck, when they pulled into a driveway to try and evade the tail, somebody in the truck opened fire on the car. The car, a 1999 Mazda 626, managed to plow through a snow bank and escape the scene of the shooting.

Neither occupant was injured. One of the victims is a Town of Batavia resident and the other is from the Village of Albion.

Police are looking for a person of interest and have sent bulletins to law enforcement agencies throughout New York.

Schauf said that based on the number of shots fired at the car, the shooting was intended to actually cause harm instead of just intimidating the young men. The two people may still be in some degree of danger with the shooter still at large.

The police have the name of the person of interest, but are not releasing that information.

While the 18-year-olds are being cooperative, Schauf said, their first statements were the most useful in identifying the person of interest.

"Initially in the excitement of it, there were some statements made by the victims that led to a person who might be of interest," Schauff said. "As the investigation has gone on it hasn't been as clear as it was during the initial excitement."

To help identify the likely shooter and uncover a connection, police are interviewing the youths as well as their friends to try and retrace their steps yesterday.

There is no definitive description of the shooter's truck, if it was indeed a truck. Police are unsure if  there was one person or more than one person in the vehicle.

Police would like residents to report any unusual driving they saw last night in the area of Tracy and East avenues. 

Shauna L. McDonough, 39, 504 West Center St., Beech Haven, N.J. is charged with DWI, aggravated driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and unlicensed operation. Sheriff's deputies responded to a report of a single-car accident on Route 63 off Fargo Road. The car was reportedly well off the roadway. Sgt. Greg Walker investigated the accident and determined that McDonough was traveling at an unsafe speed and was allegedly driving drunk.

A 17-year-old girl from Batavia has been charged with petit larceny. She allegedly stole from her employer, Kmart.

Tammy J. Alexyn, 34, of 48 Longs Lane, Corfu, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and driving left of the pavement markings. Alexyn was stopped on Brown Road in the Town of Batavia by Deputy Jason Saile at 1:34 a.m. today.

Kristy L. Sherman, 23, of Bloomfield, has been charged by State Police with harassment. The alleged harassment took place in Le Roy Dec. 18 at 8:31 p.m. No further information available.

An Oak Street resident is accused of assaulting his girlfriend both in her car and later at the Batavia Police station, where she had gone to report the first alleged attack.

Michael P. Gattuso, 28, of 108 Oak St., upper, was jailed on $1,000 bail after being charged with assault in the 3rd degree and criminal mischief in the 4th degree.

Gattuso is accused of punching out the windshield of his girlfriend's car, hitting her in the head and then following her into the police station after she drove there to report the crime. Once inside the police station, while his girlfriend was on the phone with Genesee County dispatchers, Gattuso reportedly started punching her in the head again.

The alleged attack occurred at 5:50 p.m. yesterday.

Several police officers responded to the station and took Gattuso into custody.

Police responded to a report of shots fired in the City of Batavia at 10:30 last night and say that a car was struck by the bullets.

Investigators reportedly have identified a person of interest in the case.

There were no injuries reported.

Area law enforcement agencies have been notified to be on the look out for the person of interest and warned that the person may be armed.

UPDATE 8:54 a.m.: Police have released additional information about the case.

The car that was shot at was occupied by two 18-year-old men. They reported being followed by what appeared to be a pickup truck on Tracy Avenue.

In an attempt to get away from the pickup truck, the driver pulled into a driveway. It was then that a person in the truck fired at the car. The driver plowed through a snow bank to try and get away.

Neither occupant was struck, but the car was damaged. Police are examining the car in an attempt to recover any evidence.

Batavia Police are planning at press conference at 11 a.m. to answer media questions and release any new information, if available.

A 13-year-old boy apparently ran out in front of a car near the intersection of Washington and Tracy avenues in Batavia yesterday evening and was hit by the vehicle.

He was taken by Mercy Flight to Children's Hospital in Buffalo with a head injury.

The boy is identified as James N. Difalco, of 41 S. Main St., Batavia.

The accident was reported at 6:38 p.m.

No charges have been filed against the driver, but the investigation is continuing.

UPDATE: Relatives tell WBTA that James is in guarded condition.

A traffic stop by State Police on Bank Street near College Road about 7:30 this morning led to the detention of 12 individuals who may have entered the country illegally.

All 12 are from Mexico, according Mike Gilhooly, spokesman for Immigration Control Enforcement.

Ten of the individuals were turned over to the U.S. District Attorney for criminal prosecution, one suspect is already awaiting a court hearing on a previous charge of entering the country illegally and the 12th was a minor who was turned over to the Office of Refugee Resettlement for processing.

One of the group had previously been deported, Gilhooly said.

The names of the individuals were not immediately available.

The driver of the white van was not picked up by immigration, Gilhooly said. He referred us back to State Police for information on that person and we are awaiting an answer to our e-mail on that subject.

Thank you to a reader tip for bringing this item to our attention.

Use caution when traveling through the intersection of Jackson and Ellicott streets. A police officer reports both northbound green lights are out on Jackson.

Repair crews are being summoned.

Brandon C. Dodd, 23, of 128 1/2 State St., Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Dodd is accused of stealing two video games from his roommate and selling them for cash at a local video game store.

Edwin Morales, 52, of 11293 Ridge Road, Medina, is accused of DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and moving from lane unsafely. Morales was stopped on Route 63 in Alabama after Deputy C.J. Minuto observed Morales's vehicle allegedly cross the center double yellow line.

Kenneth W. Bater, 18, of 7795 Creamery Road, Bergen, is charged with DWI, consumption of alcohol in a vehicle and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Bater was arrested after Deputy Frank Bordonaro responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle at the side of the road on Creamery Road in Bergen. A passenger in the car, Kenneth E. Hale, 18, of 6101 North Lake Road, Bergen, was also charged with consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle.

UPDATE The following is additional information on an accident we reported previously, and we just received the information from the State Police:

Steven M. Smith, 21, of Batavia, is charged with DWI and aggravated DWI. Smith reportedly hit two parked cars in the area of the old 84 Lumber store on Ellicott Street at 12:58 p.m., Sunday.

Yesterday I stopped in Tenney Cleaners and spotted a print out of our story about T.F. Brown's annual community Christmas dinner on the bulletin board -- what a great way to help get the word out about this great event.

The whole community is invited, and Rick Mancuso wants to make sure that everybody knows, especially those members of the community who might otherwise spend Christmas alone or can't afford a full Christmas meal with all the trimmings.

Meal times are Noon and 1 p.m. and reservations are recommended. To make reservations call 343-2091 (ask for Joanne) by 11 a.m. on Dec. 24.

Parents and grand parents bringing children should make a special point to make a reservation. Children 16 and under will receive a Christmas present.

Everything is free and all are welcome.

Joseph P. Ryan, 52, a Batavia resident, admitted in an Albany court yesterday that he failed to file an income tax returns from 2004 through 2008.

The charge of failing to file is a misdemeanor.

Ryan is a vice president of Brighton Securities, which has an office in Batavia, but is headquartered in Brighton, a suburb of Rochester.

Before entering the plea, Ryan paid the state $57,749 in back taxes.

He was sentenced to one-year conditional release and a $5,000 fine.

(Source: Democrat and Chronicle).

Care-A-Van had gotten a call from Pastor Charlie Piscitello yesterday of a family that could really use some Christmas cheer and blessings from our Lord.  The husband had a stroke about a year ago and they could really use a blessing.

When we arrived, the husband was in the kitchen in his wheelchair. As we were visiting with them, there was a knock on the door. Dave Kendall and his son Kyle were standing there. He said his son wanted to know if he could see the bus. I pulled on my boots and headed out with them.

As little Kyle was touring the bus, he spotted the nativity scene. He said "there is baby Jesus"!  Kyle and his dad enjoyed the homemade treats and hot chocolate. Before leaving, the father told Kyle that he could go ahead and share his gift. Kyle handed me a gift that he wanted to give to another little boy that did not have anything.  With tears swellling in my eyes, I graciously accepted the gift on behalf of God.

How awesome it was to see that this little guy wanted to be a blessing to another little boy.  Pastor Charlie and his wife Judy came onto the bus after Christmas gifts and Christmas dinner were given to the other family. As Pastor Charlie sat there, his voice began to quiver and tears were in his eyes. He said " I just got the best Christmas gift,, we all got to bless others and share the love of Jesus with them."

It was great meeting Dave and Kyle. Thank  you Kyle for helping Care-A-Van and the Lord be a  blessing to others!

Tonight for pictures of Christmas Light houses, I thought I'd drive through the North Avenue/Narramore neighborhood.   I wound up with really only one photo worth posting.

Trey Filbert, a freshman at Batavia High, is battling brain cancer and is undergoing multiple treatments to help battle his illness.

Classmates have organized a concert tonight at the school's auditorium. The 7 p.m. show will feature the school's band.

Funds raised will help the family with medical costs. Donations are accepted at the door. The high school is located at 260 State St. in the City of Batavia.

A Batavia man accused of shaking a baby and hitting the infant's head on a hard surface, pled guilty this afternoon to one count of attempted assault in the 1st degree.

Dietrich Williams faces a sentence of three-and-a-half  to 15 years in prison, said District Attorney Lawrence Friedman, as part of a plea agreement.

Williams was charged with assault in the 1st degree and reckless endangerment of a child.

"Rather than take a chance on the more serious charge, we decided to get a plea on the Class C violent felony and give the judge the latitude to sentence him up to 15 years," Friedman said.

The higher class felony carried a maximum sentence of 25 years.

The baby is doing much better, according to the mother, who recently e-mailed The Batavian about the child's condition.