batavia

What a beautiful spring evening it was for Care-A-Van to be out! The newness and freshness of spring was in the air at our local college GCC as we pulled in. The basketball court was busy and in full swing with a game going on. Students were busy milling around enjoying the evening.

We got busy knocking on the doors- I believe 94 in total. The music was blaring and I swear the whole building was shaking as we knocked on the one door. A young man opened the door and stood there with a couple of his friends. They knew us and were happy to see us. We asked them how they were doing and if they needed prayer. He stated well we do have something going on that maybe you can help with. We are having an argument about something they said I did and that I was wrong about. We just can’t settle it. Can you help? Well, we knew that we could not settle it, but we knew with a little prayer that someone bigger than us could settle the dispute. We offered to pray with them.

Paul, Dave and I gathered around with the 6 students held hands and prayed. In the prayer Paul prayed that God would bring peace over the room and that the situation at hand would be settled. As the prayer ended, another student came out of the bathroom and said Amen! The young man said “well now what do we do”? Our reply was wait, don’t argue, and let God settle it. They seemed to be a bit stunned, but said ok.  You see there is someone who knows all and sees all. All of the arguments, all the dissention, the Lord knows exactly what is going on and who is at fault.  If we seek and pray, answers will be shown. 

Just like at another room, someone refused the brochure about the ministry, the cookies and the message booklet. One has to wonder in this type of situation, exactly what is going on inside of this person. Who or what is at fault that this person is hurting so much that they refuse any type of assistance? Now please understand, we know that there are folks including college students have their own beliefs and values. We respect that. However we also know behind those doors, are some very lost hurting souls.

One young gal was from Canada and her home is 30 hours from here. She was so thankful that we stopped by to give a little cheer. Another young gal, said “so you got those church cookies for us”? We like those cookies; we even crunch them up and put them in cakes. She even gave us a bag of donated clothing for the ministry. Here admist all of her trying times in college, she took time to give back to others. How awesome is that!

On May 9th, Care-A-Van will be holding their annual college cookout at GCC. The fun will begin at 4:00 PM. There will be hotdogs, hamburgs and all the fixings to go with them. There will also be music provided. It will be held in the parking lot of the dorms.

If you are interested in coming out and helping we would love to have you join us. This is the end of the year bash for them. Each month from September through May, Care-A-Van makes a monthly visit to the college dorms. We have built wonderful trusting friendships with the students. We go forth and let them know that we care, but most importantly that the Lord cares about them and their well being while they are students here in our local community.

Thank you to all of you who partner with us to take forth the light into the darkness of the college campus and all other areas of the city. As the bus headed back home down Main Street, we looked ahead and there right in front of us in the bluish, black sky was a huge orange cross! Our Lord is an awesome God!  Seeing that cross, gave this writer such an inner feeling of peace.  May you all have a very peace filled day!

We can be reached at 585-343-0328 if you are interested in volunteering or know of someone in need.

Funds earmarked for the GCEDC to develop an agri-park off Route 5 in the Town of Batavia has finally been released and construction could resume within weeks, according to Chad Zambito.

Immediately, GCEDC is getting $2 million from Empire State Development and another $1 million is expected to come from the DOT.  The phase 1-funding will be used for building infrastructure for the park -- roads, sewer, water, gas and electricity.

“To some extent it’s old news because it was announced, but it is a huge relief because we didn’t know where we stood with the state under its current situation," said Zambito.

The funds were originally committed to the project by former Governor Elliott Spitzer and in anticipation of securing the money, some construction work has already begun. Zambito said the GCEDC hopes to complete phase 1 by the end of the year.

A Canadian firm is hoping to open a $15 million processing plant, employing 100 people, Zambito, pending securing its own financing.

Last year, CCEDC staff told the Batavia City Council the Agri-Park, when fully built out, could be worth $1.5 billion in economic growth Genesee County. 

Phase 1 development covers about 200 acres, while the park could eventually cover 300 acres.

SOLD

On Tuesday, we offered a $25 gift certificate to the Batavia Downs Casino Grandstands Bar and Grille, and two people who expressed interest in the gift certificate have been unable to pick up and pay for the item.

So I'm taking this as an opportunity to try something different with Deal of the Day.  I'm using PayPal to allow the first person who wants to buy it for $12.50 to do so paying immediately online.  Once the item is purchased the next person will not be able to buy the certificate.

When you complete your purchase -- if you win -- let me know if you will be able to come by the office to pick up the gift certificate.

SOLD

Reports are coming in that a person suffered a serious leg injury in a car vs. motorcycle accident at Pearl and River in Batavia.

Ambulances are arriving now.

Today's Deal of the Day: A $25 gift certificate from Present Tense Books and Gifts in Batavia. The Batavian's Good Deal Price: $12.50 -- HALF off!

Present Tense is a popular local bookseller as well as a great place to find unique gifts. It's located at 101 Washington Avenue

The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.

Rules: E-mail me at howard (at) thebatavian dot com. First e-mail wins, but the winner must arrange to stop by my office on Main Street before 5:00 p.m. today to pay for the gift certificate. If the first e-mailer can't or doesn't make it in, the certificate goes to the second e-mailer.

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

DaQuan Reynolds, 18, of Rochester, a student of Genesee Community College, is accused of harassing another student. An order of protection has been issued barring him from contact with the student. He allegedly physically contacted the student. He is charged with harassment in the second degree.

Today’s economic hardships are leaving thousands of Americans in fear of losing their job, house, and lifestyle. For some losing their job could cost their life.

Eric Boland, age 24 of Batavia, was temporarily laid off from a HVAC company in Buffalo last month. Boland’s first thought of course was financies, but not those of rent, food, etc. it is for a disease that demands hundreds of dollars of month, Type 1 diabetes.   

“It costs about $785 a month just for my supplies that I need every day,” said Boland. “Plus my doctor visits once a month, and an insulin pump on average, is $6,000.” Boland said he was ecstatic when he found out he would be receiving his full medical coverage, which makes living with diabetes slightly easier.

Every day an insulin pump is resting in his jean pockets. In every pair of pants he owns, he has cut a small hole inside the bottom of the pocket, so that the thin clear cord from the insulin pump, which connects into the skin on his stomach, is unnoticeable.

Every two days, he has to change what is called an infusion set. The infusion set is a long needle that is used to insert the cord from the pump into his body.  Boland says today it is difficult sometimes to find a spot on his skin that does not have scar tissue. Boland has been doing this since he was eight years old. 

Anytime he eats or drinks he has to take the pump out of his pocket and give himself enough insulin for the total amount of carbohydrates he consumes. He has to check his blood sugar with a finger stick needle at least four times a day. 

The day Boland found out he was diabetic is a crystal clear memory, and the everyday needles is a constant reminder. 

“I was so scared because I didn’t know what diabetes was,” said Boland who was diagnosed at eight years old. “ That day my biggest fear was to take a pill, because I couldn’t swallow them,” said Boland.  He didn’t realize how serious it was until he heard his mother crying at the hospital while on the phone with his father. 

“I only cried when I heard my mother crying. I thought because she was crying, I was going to die,” said Boland. 

Less than one percent of Americans age 20 and younger have diabetes.

Life became more complicated while he tried to ignore the fact that he was diabetic. Two years later his younger brother, Shaun, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and the family’s lifestyle became a little more intricate.

“The most difficult thing was all the day to day stuff, birthday parties, treats at school, everyone else would get cake and candy while my boys would get a matchbox car”, said Patty Boland, Boland’s mother. “I would tell them that the car lasts longer than candy but, they didn't want to be different, especially Eric.”

At 8-years-old children drink Kool-Aid and look forward to Halloween, but for Boland that wasn’t the case.

Just a few days before the exciting Trick-or-Treating night, he was in his room for a little too long. His mother said that he walked out to the living room with the most somber face and a sandwich board type sign that was hanging on his little body, that read, “ Trick or Treat, I'm diabetic so don't give me candy because I can't eat it."

“It was quite heart wrenching,” said Patty Boland.

Being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes was such a big responsibility and too much for Boland. He says he decided that he would just ignore the disease and life would be much easier.

He tried ignoring it when he would be at a friend’s house when they would offer him Kool-Aid. He would drink it and not say anything. When he would come home his blood sugar would be extremely high and make him feel horrible, but that wasn’t enough to make him change.

“Most of the time I feel like I can control it (diabetes), but when I think about what it can do to me, I think it controls me, said Boland. “The fact is no matter how well it’s controlled it could still lead to problems later in life.”  

As I watched him test his blood sugar I could see all the tiny needle marks on his fingertips.

He was very particular about which fingers he pricked,” said his mother, “He wanted to make sure he could use some fingers to read brail.” Blindness is one of the complications of diabetes.

Today he says he doesn’t even feel the needle anymore.

Last year he was told that he is showing signs of Diabetic Retinopathy (damage to the blood vessels in the retina). This happens because of his blood sugar levels being so inconsistent, from high to low. The normal blood sugar level for a diabetic is between 80 and 180.

Boland says his blood sugar will reach 300, sometimes even 400, and at other times will drop down quickly in to the 50’s or 60’s. The high and low blood sugar level is what leads to health problems later in life.

Diabetic Retinopathy in its beginning stages has no treatment, except that you must keep your blood sugar levels in the normal range. If it worsens, laser surgery is available but doesn’t guarantee that there will be no loss of sight.

Boland said this made him realize whether he wants to admit it or not, he has diabetes, and if he does not take care of it, it will destroy him.

Last year Eric and I were married. As with every couple your world always changes, that is life, but my lifestyle and attitude changed drastically because it had too. I had to realize the seriousness of this disease.

Today Eric has taken charge of his disease and is back at work.

Author Lorna Bartlett was the guest of Present Tense for a book signing on Saturday, and she left an apparent fan of the charming shop on Washington Avenue.

She writes in her blog:

What a terrific store! Housed in a gorgeous old Victorian home, the shop (inside and out) is painted in wonderful colors. There are several rooms filled with books, a selection of coffee and teas, children's toys (and books!), candles, hand-sewn purses (I was really tempted by those), pretty teacups, a gallery of original photographs, magnetic poetry kits, and lots of other marvelous things. I admit, I did succumb to temptation and bought a package of Who Dunn-Its sticky notes.

If you missed the signing, Bartlett left some signed books at the store. 

Check her post for more details about her afternoon at Present Tense and some pictures she took of the store.

Stephen Earle says his 24 years in the Navy have been fun and rewarding, but he often misses his home town of Batavia and thinks he might settle in Western New York when he retires in a couple of years. He and his wife purchased a home in Orleans County while he served as a recruiter in Batavia for a little more than two years.

Earle, whose mother still lives in Batavia, is currently serving in sonar aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Afghanistan theater. He called The Batavian today for an exclusive interview, at the request of U.S. Navy public relations personnel, to talk about his career.

We recorded the interview and you can listen here.

Earle said his two-decades-plus in the Navy have been great, but not without hardship. It's tough being away from his wife and two children, he said. Fortunately, long deployments are not common.

He's seen the world, too, and spent many years stationed in San Diego and Long Beach.

"I used to say that I missed the snow," Earle said. "And then moving back there for two-and-half years, I would say 'do I really miss the snow?'  I do miss the small town atmosphere. I've been at bases around large cities and San Diego was a great place and everything, but it never rained enough and the size of the town, I just sort of missed the small town atmosphere."

Today's Deal of the Day: A $25 gift certificate for the Grandstands Bar & Grille at the Batavia Downs Casino. The Batavian Deal of the Day Price: $12.50.  That's HALF off.

The Grandstands features an affordable menu, so this is a pretty valuable offer.

The gift certificate must be used by June 30, 2009. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value and is non-transferable.

Rules: E-mail me at howard (at) thebatavian dot com. First e-mail wins, but the winner must arrange to stop by my office on Main Street before 5:30 p.m. today to pay for the gift certificate. If the first e-mailer can't or doesn't make it in, the certificate goes to the second e-mailer.

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

More jobs and a bigger tax base were the selling points in Batavia's council chamber last night as City Manager Jason Molino pitched a proposed redevelopment plan for the Masse Gateway Project.

To get the project going, the city, and property owner Mancuso Business Development Group, could use an immediate cash infusion of $2.5 million from a state program known as RestoreNY.

The application deadline for the program is fast approaching and by a unanimous vote, the council approved a resolution to hold a public hearing on the proposal on April 22 at 5 p.m.

“The Masse Gateway Project does meet the criteria of the program and the city is going to be in a fairly strong position to score well on the application," consultant Stuart I. Brown told the council.

To score well, Molino and Brown told the council, it is necessary to provide a 26 percent local match, or about $650,000 above the requested grant amount. A mere 10 percent, or even 17 or 18 percent, might not cut it because Batavia doesn't qualify, under RestoreNY guidelines, as a distressed urban area.

The entire project is expected to cost $3.15 million, with the matching funds coming from in-kind services ($50,000 in staff time for inspections and simliar services), $400,000 in prior work and in-kind matches from Mancuso, and $200,000 from the city's revolving loan fund for small-business start-ups.

The BDC loan funds were an area of some concern because Mancuso is not expected to pay any of that money back to the fund, but Molino explained that under terms of original grant that created the fund, using the money for a job-growth project such as Masse is acceptable.

He also explained that currently the BDC has $400,000 cash available and $200,000 in outstanding loans, so the BDC board felt confident that there would be enough money left in the loan program to fund future small business start-ups.

This is the second time Batavia has applied for RestoreNY funds. The first application was rejected, Molino speculated, because the city asked for only a 10 percent match and the plan submitted was not comprehensive enough.

Stu Brown added that the 10 percent match included in the plan was largely for planning work aready done and not new development work, which may have been a problem.

“In my experience and after looking over the RestoreNY guidelines, it is my strong recommendation that the city over match the requirements," Brown said.

Architect Ed Smart also explained a bit about the anticipated development, saying that the key to making the entire Central Corridor Project (PDF) viable was improving the edges. The edge work, he said, would make the entire 27-acre area more attractive to developers, investors and businesses looking for new locations.

“Each of the proposed uses would be more job-growth intensive than the previous uses, Smart said, later adding:  “When the business incubator first started, there were businesses looking for 20,000 or 30,000 square feet of space, but today’s businesses want much smaller spaces.”

Some council members asked about the immediate potential for residential uses in the project (which is part of the larger Central Corridor Project), and Smart said residential really wasn't part of the plan right now out of concern there simply wouldn't be demand during this phase of development.

"Building 16 is really versatile and could serve as business lofts or residential lofts," Smart said. "But there is a lot (as in other development) that would have to happen around the building to make it an attractive place for residents to want to live there."

Previously: City may seek $2.5 million state grant to help with Masse Gateway Project

After some discussion of whether the City of Batavia should apply to hire one or two new police officers through a Federal grant program, the City Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday night to seek funding for one position.

The new position, if the grant is approved, would create an entry-level police officer to participate in a community-oriented policing program, and it would replace a position eliminated in the 2008-2009 budget.

The funding comes from U.S. Governments COPS Hiring Recovery Program and covers the first three years of salary and benefits for a new hire.

According to City Manager Jason Molino, the grant cannot be used to replace a retiring officer or to hire a new detective. It can only be used to back fill a position previously eliminated.

Community-oriented policing is a program developed in New York City in 1990s, and used with some success in San Diego. It involves officers being more involved in the community, developing relationships with people in local neighborhoods to solve problems and prevent crimes.

Councilman Bob Bialkowski suggested the city apply for two such positions, and made a motion to amend the resolution, but most of the rest of the council disagreed and voted it down.

In arguing against the motion, Councilman Tim Buckley said, "Let's apply for this one and be happy we get it," stating a concern that applying for two when the city may only qualify for one could cause the entire application to be denied.

The subsequent motion supporting the original resolution for one position was approved unanimously.
 

Michael DiBacco is a 14-year- old who speaks with an honest heart. He knows it takes a lot of responsibility to manage his homework, sports, band, and still make time to play Star Wars Lego video games. 

His parents Mike and Mary Beth welcomed me with warm smiles and grateful hearts.

Mary Beth said they were very excited when they heard their son was selected as an excellent student. She said it is nice to be recognized when you are working very hard.

Michael is a student at Batavia Middle School who strives for good grades and feels angry if he isn’t successful. He loves Social Studies and is excited to learn about the Revolutionary War in class.  After school he is busy playing his saxophone in band, cross-country, track, and loves swimming and hanging out with the boys for the Norte Dame swim team.

Although he is nervous about the workload for his AP classes in eighth grade, he is excited for high school and being able to be involved in even more.

Michael has a difficult choice in choosing either Notre Dame or Batavia High, and is disappointed in the fact that Batavia High does not have a formal swim team. His father, who just bought a tripod to film his son’s swim meets, wishes there was an actual swim team at Batavia High.

Down the road from now we might see Michael as a forensic scientist or an architect.

For any Batavians who thought maybe Time-Warner Cable wouldn't test its new tiered broadband pricing plan in Genesee County, we have some bad news. We just received this message from Lara Pritchard, public affairs manager for Time Warner Cable, WNY Division:

Our trial for monitoring internet usage will rollout across our entire Rochester footprint. Batavia customers will also be enrolled to work with us and provide feedback on their usage /plans.

For those who haven't heard, TW is planning to switch Rochester-area customers from a flat-price service for broadband (cable modem, in this case) Internet service to one which offers different pricing plans, based on anticipated usage. Heavier users would be faced with potential monthly overage charges, or plan on spending up to $150 per month for unlimited usage.

WHAM 13 explains the tiered plan here:

The "trial" is expected to begin in August.

For it's part, this is what TW says about the need for the pricing scheme:

Time Warner Cable said that steady increase in use, along with massive bandwidth consumption by a small percentage of customers, is the reason it's testing the new pricing policy. The company said it needs to pay for infrastructure upgrades.

Commenting on the criticism of the plan, company spokesman Alex Dudley said, "Customer feedback is a critical part of the trial."

But not so fast. As others have noted, there isn't really a cost justification for TW's plan.

Ars Technica:

Britt's rationale for the change—infrastructure is expensive—is tough to understand. Cable's physical plant has been in the ground for years; even hybrid fiber-coax systems have been widely deployed for some time. Internet access simply runs across the existing network, and one of cable's big advantages over DSL is that speeds can be upgraded cheaply by swapping in new DOCSIS headend gear, with DOCSIS 3.0 the current standard. Compared to what Verizon is doing with fiber and AT&T with its quasi-fiber U-Verse, cable Internet is a bargain (well, for the operators).

But perhaps consumers are insatiable bandwidth hounds who are simply overloading TWC's system—or perhaps not. The BusinessWeek article notes that only 14 percent of users in TWC's trial city of Beaumont, Texas even exceeded their caps at all. My own recent conversations with other major ISPs suggest that the average broadband user only pulls down 2-6GB of data per month as it is.

A site called Stop the Cap dug through some of TW's communications for shareholders and found that TW is telling its investors its costs are actually decreasing. (via Fighting 29th)

High-speed data costs decreased for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2008 primarily due to a decrease in per-subscriber connectivity costs, partially offset by subscriber growth.

A Batavia teen has been charged with rape in the first degree, according to a report by Batavia Police.

Oliver Thomas, 17, is accused of forcibly raping a 15-year-old girl at his home on Feb. 16.

Thomas, who was taken into custody at 9:15 a.m. today,  was jailed without bail.

Sheriff's deputies are searching the area around Tops on West Main after a suspected shoplifter allegedly fled the area. The suspect was last scene scaling a fence near the store. 

The suspect is believed to be a thin, tall black male, possibly wearing a checkered jacket or vest. Police declined to provide any further description at this time.

Tanya L. Captain, 21, of Batavia, is accused of repeatedly hitting another woman in the face and breaking her nose.  Captain reportedly showed up at the other woman's home Sunday afternoon around 3 p.m. and assaulted the other woman. Captain is charged with assault in the third degree, a misdemeanor. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Carla L. Southwell-Wood, 52, of Batavia, was charged Sunday night with DWI and endangering the welfare of a child. Southell-Wood was stopped by deputies on Rose Road after the Sheriff's office received a report that Southwell-Wood was allegedly driving while intoxicated in a white mini-van. After a traffic stop was initiated, deputies also report they found a child under 17 in the vehicle.

Three people were charged Thursday with under-age alcohol violations following an undercover operation involving Sheriff's Office personnel, with the assistance of Genesee Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse. Arrested were Andrew J. Cutcliffe, 20, Pavilion, charged with unlawful possession of alcohol by a person under 21 with intent to consume; Carly H. Kelch, 23, of Linwood, charged with one count of sale of alcohol to a person under 21; and Timothy R. Andrews, 21, of Wyoming, charged with DWI, with a BAC of .08 or higher, failure to keep right and unlawful possession of marijuana.

God was so good today to Care-A-Van as we visited at Central Avenue. Even with the cool crisp spring air, the sun was shining bright. It was so nice to set up outside without having to battle that white cold stuff! It was wonderful to look around and see many flowers and buds on the trees starting to come out.

The street was busy with lots of activity. One young boy came to the bus. His mom had recently had surgery. As I walked back home with him, we were talking about this special week-end and how Jesus died on the cross and then how he rose from the dead on Easter Day.

Just as we learned how he rose, we also see the needs rising here in our City. Today was one of our busiest days at Central Avenue. The Lord fed 104 people today! We were so busy that we ran out of milk. The Lord also  provided clothing for many families today. A young girl came to the bus to see if she could find an outfit for her father to wear to church. Another young girl was trying to find something for her grandmother to wear.

The word continues to get out that Care-A-Van is here to help. We thank all of you for sharing the word. Many people had stopped at the Salvation Army this morning and the folks there shared about the ministry.  We talked with many people that did not have a church family or a support system. As we look into their eyes, hearts and souls we see and feel the pain. We have all gone through our own struggles and still do. But there is hope for all of us. In God’s word it says “For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you not harm you”.

In Luke 24:

46He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48You are witnesses of these things.

We thank all of you for helping us share with the city of the wonderful news and miracles that our Lord has done and continues to do so. It is an honor for all of us to serve our Lord.   As Paul prayed this morning before we headed out, Lord help us keep it simple.  Special personal invitations were given to all to join Care-A-Van for Easter Dinner. Paul and Bridget will be doing all the cooking. It is going to be held at the Assembly of God Church on North Spruce Street from 2:00-4:00 PM. We invite all of you to stop by, grab a bite to eat and share in awesome fellowship. I hear that the Chocolate fountain is going to be the best treat of all. Oops, let me take that back, the best treat of all is that Jesus died so we may all have life!

May you have a blessed Easter

Robin Walters, Public Relations Director

Care-A-Van Ministries