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Press release

The New York State Police in conjunction with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office and Village of Corfu Police Department will participate in a Traffic Safety Corridor to deter aggressive driving in Genesee County beginning this week.

The summer months bring an increase in traffic throughout the roadways of New York.  Congested roadways and increased hours spent driving often leads to aggressive driving. An aggressive driver is someone who operates a motor vehicle in a selfish, bold or pushy manner, without regard for the rights or safety of others.

Throughout the summer, the State Police and local law enforcement agencies will focus attention and dedicate patrols to state routes 66, 77 and 20 in Genesee County.

A high volume of traffic moves along these roadways everyday, increasing the chances of aggressive drivers and traffic accidents. Law enforcement officers will pay close attention to motorists who drive at high rate of speed, fail to signal when changing lanes, tailgate, fail to yield right-of-way and disregard traffic-control devices.

“With increased patrols and visibility along these roadways, we hope to remind motorists to follow safe driving practices,” said Major Christopher L. Cummings, Troop “A” Commander.  “Troopers will pay close attention to these designated roadways and enforce the vehicle and traffic laws in an effort to decrease accidents."

Not only can aggressive driving result in a ticket if found violating the law, this type of behavior puts the driver and others in danger. New York State statistics show that aggressive driving behaviors -- chronic speeding, frequent and unsafe lane changes, refusal to signal, tailgating, failure to yield the right-of-way and disregard for traffic -- are a contributing factor in 59% of all crashes and in 66% of fatal crashes, when a cause is attributed.

Aggressive drivers are not a new phenomenon, but the stressful pace of modern life and the ever-growing volume of traffic have combined to make their behaviors increasingly reckless and hazardous. The State Police hopes the Traffic Safety Corridor patrols will make roads a safer place to travel thereby avoiding fatalities.

Chestnut Hill Country Club is sponsoring an after-work get-together from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 21 to benefit Genesee County YWCA Domestic Violence Program. (The weather forecast that day is warm and sunny!)

There will be a 50/50 raffle, door prizes, hors d'oeuvres, refreshments and a cash bar.

Cost is $5 for members of Genesee County Chamber of Commerce and $10 for nonmembers.
 
Chestnut Hill Country Club is a family owned and operated semi-private golf course noted for its scenic rolling hills and country setting. The address is 1330 Broadway, Route 20, in Darien.

Please rsvp to chamber@geneseeny.com or call 585-343-7440.

Press release

More than 2,000 attendees witness GCC's 41st Commencement

Genesee Community College's 41st Commencement on May 17 was bittersweet for the audience of more than 2,000 proud parents, friends and family members and President Steiner, Board of Trustees and faculty.

The Commencement speaker was Ruth Andes, PhD, Genesee's professor of sociology and assistant dean of assessment and special projects, who recently announced her retirement after 39 years at GCC.

She compared the turbulent times during her college graduation in 1967, including the Vietnam War and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., to the difficulties of today with "less than positive economic times." But, Dr. Andes stated: "...Difficult times are also times of fabulous change. I hope that as you go forth, you will be part of that change. There is still a lot of work to be done. We still need peace. We still need civil rights - though we've come a long way. And we still need people committed to making the world a better place."

As she recounted the early stages of her career, she reflected on her initial reluctance to accept a teaching assistantship because she felt research was her strength. Nonetheless, she persevered and "by mid-October, I found I was enjoying it ...that was one of the greatest surprises of my life."

"When people tell you the odds aren't very good, don't listen to them. Tell them they are wrong. Go ahead and do it anyway...Listen to your heart. Trust in yourself."

After thanking President Steiner for encouraging her professional growth,  Andes also thanked her colleagues.

Then, she told the students: "I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you have taught me. Teaching is a two-way street and I have learned as much from you as I have tried to share with you. It mattered that you opened your eyes and expanded your horizons."

The Commencement Ceremony also included special recognition of the College's 20,000th graduate. Jennifer Bryant of Batavia received an award representing Genesee Community College's 20,000 graduates, and her many accomplishments as a Genesee student.

After four years in the military as an MP with two tours in Iraq, Jennifer's efforts at Genesee have been equally impressive. She served as president of Alpha Iota Upsilon chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society and was named to the President's list for three consecutive semesters. She actively promoted green alternatives in the community, and participated in the College's Honors Program and school newspaper.

Jennifer was nominated for the Coca-Cola and USA Today sponsored All-USA Academic Team and was named as a Gold Scholar. She was also named one of 10 students to make the All-New York State Academic 1st Team. She is a SUNY Chancellor's for Student Excellence honoree and she received the College's Board of Trustees Award. Jennifer was nominated to take part in the International Scholar Laureate Program on International Relations and Diplomacy. She now plans to attend SUNY Brockport majoring in International Relations with a minor in Environmental Studies and one day she hopes to attend Columbia Law School.

Press release

Master Gardener Column by Gail Culver, Consumer Horticulture Educator, Cornell Cooperative Extension

Consider a cutting garden

Everyone loves to give and receive flowers. For gardeners, the ultimate pleasure is to be able to cut flowers from their own garden to bring indoors and to give away to friends and family. Many also love to have homegrown blossoms, foliage and seed heads handy for fresh or dried floral crafts and cooking. However, the problem is that picking flowers from the garden reduces the floral show in the yard. It is a tough decision whether to cut flowers for indoors or leave them on display outdoors. The perfect solution to this problem is to establish a separate cultivated area specifically as a cutting garden. Then you can have your flowers and pick them too!
   
Fill your cutting garden with plants that produce the flowers and foliage you love. Use it as an area to experiment with new plants and colors. Place it where it is not on public display and indulge your fancy. Consider making it part of your vegetable garden. This is a production garden, created to be cut down, so do not worry about design correctness.

Create a cutting garden much the same way you initially establish a flower garden. Choose a site that receives generous sun and prepare the soil so that it drains well. Add humus in the form of compost, peat moss or chopped leaves to improve clay or sandy soil. Create one or more beds of whatever size and shape to accommodate the available space. They can be tucked into sunny spots along the back boundary, in a neglected corner or behind the garage. By their very nature, they are transient, so they can be easily changed or reconfigured next season if necessary.
   
While cutting gardens often look beautiful at the peak of the season, this is incidental. So, because they are not intended for display, a purely utilitarian layout makes the most sense. Once they are established, they are easier to maintain and require much less attention than ornamental beds. For this reason, cutting gardens usually resemble traditional vegetable gardens. They are typically planted in widely spaced rows that are easy to move through and between while planting, thinning, fertilizing, deadheading and of course, harvesting.
   
Be sure and mix into the soil a granular, slow‑acting fertilizer at the beginning of the season. This will provide consistent, balanced nutrition to the plants over many, many weeks. Periodic doses of diluted liquid fertilizer sprayed on plant foliage will boost the energy of certain heavy blooming plants during peak production.
   
Rather than interplant seeds or young transplants of many different kinds of flowers, group the species of plants for efficient use of space and easy harvest. To get maximum production, plant annuals in succession ‑‑ early season, mid‑season and late-season bloomers grouped together. Cluster plants with similar requirements for sun, water and drainage for easier maintenance. Plant tall types together, away from where they might shade smaller ones.
   
To minimize watering and weeding maintenance, spread a 2- or 3-inch layer of some organic mulch on the soil around the plants in the cutting garden as soon as they are a few inches tall. It does not have to be attractive, so use whatever is inexpensive and at hand, such as chopped leaves, shredded newspaper or straw. The mulch will discourage weeds, keep the soil moist longer and contribute nutrients to the soil as it decomposes in the summer heat. Add to the mulch layer if it breaks down to less than an inch. If you grow plants that are notorious self‑seeders, such as spider flower (cleome), removing the mulch at the end of the season will help to clear away most of the seeds as well.
   
To spur and maintain flower production of annuals, pick blossoms regularly. Deadhead those that remain and become faded. This prevents them from forming seeds, which slows flower production. Water about an inch per week if rainfall is unreliable.  Unmulched beds will need more frequent watering, especially in the summer. Keep a lookout for aphids on tender young growth or plants that are stressed and unhappy. Pinch infested tips off or wash the foliage with a strong stream of water from the hose. Insecticidal soap spray will take care of stubborn infestations.
   
As soon as the blossoms from a stand of flowers have been cut and/or the plants begin to weaken, pull them, cultivate the bed and plant new seedlings to provide cut flowers for the weeks to come. For instance, plant only pansies in an area for an early season supply of flowers. Then, when summer heat arrives, replace them in that area with American marigolds or zinnias.
   
Lots of different kinds of flowering plants are suitable for a cutting garden. Long‑stemmed annuals or perennials are most useful. Typically, colorful annual flowers dominate these gardens, because they are such enthusiastic bloomers. Cutting their blossoms only encourages them to produce more. All kinds of daisies are enormously popular and combine well with lots of other flowers.
   
Long-blooming perennials have a place in the cutting garden as well as in the more formal flower border. Plants such as coral bells and fringed bleeding heart will produce flowers all season, especially if they are regularly picked. Some, such as purple coneflowers and black‑eyed Susan’s produce bold, bristly seed heads that are ideal for floral crafts. Of course perennials can be depended upon to bloom next season so there is no need to replant that part of the cutting garden.
   
Don't forget foliage plants that contribute texture and color to both fresh and dried arrangements. Silver‑leafed Artemisia varieties, lamb's ears and herbs such as lavender contribute grayish‑silver foliage that is both handsome and aromatic. (The source of this information is Professor Raymond T. Fox, Department of Floriculture, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.)
   
For gardening tips and assistance, Master Gardeners are available Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m. until noon at the Cooperative Extension office, 420 East Main Street, Batavia. They may be reached by calling 343-3040, ext. 127, or by stopping in at our office, or by email  HYPERLINK "mailto:geneseemg@cornell.edu" geneseemg@cornell.edu.

Press release:

MASTER GARDENER COLUMN by Gail Culver, Consumer Horticulture Educator at Cornell Cooperative Extension

CONTAINER GARDENING

One of my favorite forms of gardening is container gardening. My container gardens are only limited by imagination and the plants available. Anything that can grow in a garden can also be grown in a container. Just provide those plants with a few basic needs: a suitable container, a growing medium, water, nutrients and light and they will grow. 

Of America’s 60 million gardeners, probably 90% of them grow plants in containers.   Some gardeners don’t have a yard. Also, container gardening is a smart alternative if you are restricted by too much shade, poor soil, too little time, limited mobility or a difficult climate. Best of all, growing in containers brings your garden right up close, creating a sense of intimacy that you just don’t get in an ordinary backyard garden.

Here are some simple tips to help you with your container gardening:

Containers for your plants must be big enough to support your plants when they are fully grown, hold soil, and have adequate drainage. Without proper drainage, the plants can suffer from inadequate root aeration and excessive moisture. They will literally rot.  Have drainage holes on the sides of pots rather than the bottom so excess water can drain away and roots won’t get waterlogged. Line the bottom of your pot with newspaper (a coffee filter works in smaller pots) to prevent soil loss. Also, line the hanging baskets with sphagnum moss for water retention.

Anything and everything that fulfills these basic requirements can be used. Use your imagination! For example, among the containers that can be used are clay pots, plastic pots, terra cotta pots, bushel baskets, hanging baskets, wooden crates (lined with plastic so that they will hold soil), barrels, heavy gauge wire baskets, glazed ceramic, hay racks (again lined with plastic), wooden planters, concrete containers, and even old boots or shoes. As you can see, you do not need to spend a lot of money on containers. Keep your eyes open for suitable containers at garage sales. Watch discarded household items put out for collection. If you want something fancier, try building your own planting box out of wood.

Scrub old pots with a 10% bleach solution before reuse. This will kill disease, pests, and accumulated fertilizer salts. Season new clay pots by submerging them in water for 15 minutes before you fill them with soil. This forces air out of pore spaces and will aid in keeping soil moist.

Most plants, especially annuals, require at least 5-7 hours of sun per day. Grow plants together that have the same light and moisture requirements. When planting large pots you may want to place the container on a caddy before you fill it.

Hawley Drive will be closed from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily from May 26 through May 28 for road repairs. The closure will be between Bank Street Rd and Genesee Community College.

There will be no access to GCC from the west during these time periods. GCC
will still be accessible from Batavia-Stafford Townline Road via Route 33 (Clinton Street).

Crews will be digging ditches and replacing culverts. The culvert replacements are in advance of repaving work to be done later this summer with Federal Stimulus Aid.

Kathryn Mucica, 17, is one of 36 students nationwide selected to attend this year's Seidenberg Summer Scholars Program in Manhatten. It is offered by Pace University, with all expenses paid except transporation to and from the city.

Kathryn is a junior at Byron-Bergen High School and she also takes four college courses at Genesee Community College.

She was selected for Seidenberg in part because of her academic profile. She scored 31 on the ACT college admission and placement exam. A score of 36 is the highest possible and the national averege of test-takers last year was 21.

The three dozen summer scholars will be put into teams and will do a project about renewable energy. They will visit Microsoft and IBM, Chinatown, Broadway, Central Park, and other places of interest.

The Batavia High School Class of 1989 is seeking alumni for its 20-year reunion scheduled for July 31-Aug. 1.
Below is a list of classmates that the reunion committee is searching for. If you know how to reach any of these individuals, please email  info@89shines.com <http://us.mc501.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=info@89shines.com>  or call Kelly Rapone at 343-7440 ext. 23. 
The reunion information is posted online at www.89shines.com <http://www.89shines.com>. Tickets can also be purchased on that site.  

• Richard Baker
• Thomas Balicki
• Annette Bogue
• Thomas Brenkus
• Dawn Burch
• Dawn Cipra
• Sue Ellen Comeau
• Tammy DiSalvo
• Christopher Earll
• Keith Emminger
• Judy Ford
• Leo Geitner
• Steven Green
• Ester Jackson
• Tim Jackson
• Meredith Kenney
• Diane Kortykowski
• John LaFanara
• Kimberly Lane
• Doug Lewis
• Linda Lyons
• Jamie Marciniak
• Tracy Marvin
• Angela Moats
• Chad Mureness
• Lisa Murphy
• Thomas Pillo
• David Pitz
• Kim Porter
• Paul Remsen
• Heather Ross
• Ann Royce
• Amy Rzeznik
• Shannon Sanders
• Ethel Sison
• Stacey Stiles
• Sheri Stumpf
• Charmagne Swanz
• Regina Toal
• Regina Townsend
• Scott Voorhees
• Jolene Wenzel
• Amy Wilson

The Genesee County Health Department has some solid advice on how to reduce the population of pesky mosquitos, the bane of summer outdoor fun.

Not only are they annoying, they can cause serious illness, including the deadly West Nile Virus. There are a whopping 70 species of mosquitos in New York. But only females bite, to draw food -- your blood, your dog's blood, etc. or plant juices -- in order to nourish their eggs.

The health departments recommends that you:

• Eliminate standing water from your property. After water sits for four days, it can become a breeding ground for mosquitoes.
• Be aware that weeds, tall grass and shrubs are habitats for adult mosquitos, so cut down weeds and properly maintain greenery.
• Screen windows and doors.
• Keep rain gutters clear.
• Cover trash cans.

From restoring prairie grass to analyzing the DNA of a red tail hawk, the students at Genesee Community College are digging into real-life scientific rsearch.

It's part of a new course, Field Experience in Environmental Studies.

According to Associate Professor of Biology Maureen Leupold, students participated in six different research projects, in cooperation with Finger Lakes Community College, SUNY College at Brockport, and the Rochester Institute of Technology.

The research is part of a National Science Foundation grant designed to help colleges integrate scientific research into college classes and labs.

Research projects included:

• Red Tail Hawk DNA Analysis. Students are learning DNA extraction and analysis skills, using blood collected from hawks at the Braddock Bay Raptor Research Project. Initially most of the DNA analysis is being completed at RIT, but Genesee labs will soon be equipped to handle much DNA work. (Conducted students by Joseph Gorny of Attica, Joseph Richardson of Darien Center and Nathan Svensen of Batavia.)
• Invasive Plant Species Studies. Using global position systems, students are tracking and documenting the invasive honeysuckle shrubs in Genesee County Park. (Conducted by Frank Pombert of Albion.)
• Oak Opening Restoration. Students are learning how to restore and maintain prairie grass species native to Western New York. Students are conducting the project on land at the Genesee Country Museum and Nature Center in Mumford. (Conducted by Adam Kramarsyck of Brockport)
• Raptor Research. Students are learning ornithological field study techniques, and documenting the occurrence of short-eared owls at the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. (Conducted by Kathryn Scarborough of Basom.)
• Medicinal Plant Study. Students are locating and documenting plants with medicinal properties at Genesee County Park. One of the goals of the research is to develop information about medicinal plants for park visitors. (Conducted by Sandy Colombo-Steele of Batavia.)
• Lake Watershed Runoff Analysis. Students are studying the flow of nutrients into Silver Lake, and compiling data about the impact of storms on Silver Lake and surrounding tributaries. (Conducted by Nicholas Eddy of Bliss.)
• One of the unique features of Genesee's research course is the participation of highly-experienced environmental researchers in each of the projects. Larry Buckley, PhD, professor of zoology at RIT and James Hewlett, PhD, professor of biotechnology at FLCC, for example, are spearheading the Red Tail Hawk DNA Analysis, GCC's Leupold said. Heidi Kennedy, a noted New York State Department of Environmental Conservation wildlife biologist, is leading the raptor research project.

"Our students are not only exposed to high-quality research projects, but they have the opportunity to become engaged with scientists who are conducting sophisticated research,"  Leupold told trustees at the GCC board meeting Monday.

Joseph Gorny, a Genesee student participating in the Red Tail Hawk DNA project, said that the research experience will help him launch his career.

"What I like most about the research project is that we're getting real-life experience in DNA analysis and lab techniques," Gorny told trustees.

This week in Albany, Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R, I, C - Batavia) and
members of the State Assembly jointly observed "Disabilities Awareness Day."
It honors individuals living with disabilities and helps inform legislators about related issues.
Hawley announced that one Genesee County resident earned the Excelsior Award for Excellence.
"This year's Excelsior Awards nominees are all outstanding individuals who, despite their
disabilities, have helped make their communities better places and I am very
proud to honor them," Hawley said.
The Excelsior Award for Excellence honors the extraordinary achievements and public service of those who have overcome physical disabilities and other personal challenges.  The nominees will be presented their awards at a ceremony hosted by Assemblyman Hawley in the district within the next few weeks.
The Genesee County honoree is Erik Goodrich, nominated by the Genesee County ARC.
Goodrich is a participant of "Prep for Life," a community-based college program which teaches life and vocational skills to adults with disabilities. The goal is to prepare them to live in a less-structured environment and to get meaningful employment.
With newfound confidence, Goodrich has taken on the challenge of public speaking, including engagements at the National Day of Caring and with special-education classrooms and developmental-disabilities programs.
He has been an active member of TEAM (Together Empowered Advocates Meet),
a youth-leadership project sponsored by Genesee ARC, through which he helped
beautify a local park for an Earth Day project.
Goodrich is also an active member of many community organizations, including the Kiwanis's Aktion Club, YMCA Challenger Sports Program, Genesee County Animal Shelter, the Richmond Memorial Library, the Genesee County Nursing Home and the Austin Park Concession Stand. He rings bells for the Salvation Army at Christmas time, too.