Le Roy

Attention treasure hunters, bargain seekers, supporters of worthy causes and lookie-loos, too -- the nonprofit Purple Pony Therapeutic Horsemanship Inc. will hold a big charity sale next weekend.

The Purple Pony Treasure Sale will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 8 and 9, at the home of Purple Pony, which is KD Ranch, located at 8321 Lake Street Road, Le Roy.

All proceeds will benefit Purple Pony. The Purple Pony horses will be around for visitors to see.

Practice social distancing; masks and sanitizer will be available for those who need them.

There will be on-site parking, food and beverages for purchase, and a chock-full 70’ by 120’ indoor arena filled with STUFF: 

• Household items;
• Collectibles;
• Jewelry;
• Sporting goods;
• Books;
• Infant care items;
• Kids' toys;
• Camping gear;
• Tools;
• Hardware;
• Lamps;
• Linens;
• Crafts;
• Holiday decor;
• Artwork;
• Furniture;
• Needful and needless things.

About Purple Pony

It provides equine opportunities to persons with disabilities and diverse needs. On March 7, Purple Pony received the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Special Service Recognition of the Year award for 2019.

Here's a previous story about Purple Pony:

'Purple Pony' proves therapeutic for children with a range of disabilities

Here's a video from May about Purple Pony's drive-thru parade to benefit Crossroads House.

From Timothy J. Hens, P.E., superintendent, Genesee County Highway Department:

More oil and stone work will be done next week on East Road (Route 63 to the county line), East Bethany-Le Roy Road, and Fargo Road (Route 5 to Route 63).

Please drive slowly to avoid kicking up stone. It's a temporary inconvenience, but it's a necessary evil for road maintenance. Biggest bang for the buck by far.

Signs are up in advance of these areas including sides roads.

If these were normal times, this weekend, some 600 or more people would be at the Jesse and Jolene Coots property in Le Roy burning rubber, admiring hot rods and generally having fun and being kind to each other.

But these are not normal times.

Jesse Coots made the tough decision earlier this month to cancel the event.

"I held out as long as I could and after a conversation with the local authorities, we have come to the conclusion that it would be best to cancel the Hardcore Happening 2020," Coots said in a Facebook post.

"Mind you this was encouraged but not enforced by the police, they have always been great to us and continue to be supportive. I spoke with the chief like I always do before the party and he was great.

"He explained the legal situation and literally went above and beyond to think of a way to have this without raising any flags or comprising anyone’s health however we came up short."

Coots encouraged event fans to use Aug. 1 as a day to make a new friend and love people.

The video is from last year's event, the first year The Batavian covered it. Hopefully, we'll be back there in 2021.

Kevin J. Jackson Jr., 30, of Batavia (no address provided), is charged with: driving while ability impaired by drugs; driving while ability impaired by drugs -- combination; uninspected motor vehicle; criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, criminal use of drug paraphernalia in the second degree; and criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree. At 2:21 a.m. on July 21, Wyoming County Sheriff's Deputy Bliss conducted a roadside stop for a traffic violation on Route 246 in the Town of Perry. A field sobriety test was conducted and Anzalone was arrested. He submitted to a Drug Influence Evaluation administered by a Drug Recognition Expert, who allegedly found the defendant impaired by multiple drug categories. Jackson was issued an appearance ticket and is due on Town of Perry Court at a later date.

Robert J. Anzalone, 34, of Le Roy (no address provided), is charged with: driving while ability impaired by drugs; driving while ability impaired by drugs -- combination; failure to keep right; and having inadequate plate lamps. At 12:17 a.m. July 19 on Silver Lake Road in the Town of Perry, Wyoming County Sheriff's Deputy Bliss conducted a roadside stop for a traffic violation. A field sobriety test was conducted and Anzalone was arrested. He submitted to a Drug Influence Evaluation administered by a Drug Recognition Expert, who allegedly found the defendant impaired by multiple drug categories. No further information provided about court.

Michael J. Hilton, 29, of Robbins Road, Le Roy, is charged with petit larceny. He was arrested after an investigation into an incident that occurred at 2:40 p.m. July 15 on Osterhout Avenue, Batavia. He allegedly stole a puppy from a resident. He was issued an appearance ticket and is due in Batavia City Court at 1 p.m. on Oct. 20. The case was investigated by Batavia Police Officer Samuel Freeman, assisted by Officer Christopher Lindsay.

Jamie L. Soto, 45, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with second-degree harassment. Soto was arrested at 6:50 p.m July 17 at an apartment on Liberty Street, Batavia. She is accused of pushing a family member. Soto was released with an appearance ticket for Oct. 21 in Batavia City Court. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Adam Tucker.

Anthony L. Rice, 27, of Hutchins Street, Batavia, is charged with failure to appear in Batavia City Court. A warrant was issued for his arrest for failing to appear on traffic tickets on Nov. 15. Following his arrest, he was released with an appearance ticket to be in city court on Aug. 25. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Alec Roberts, assisted by Officer Joshua Girvin.

Each region of Italy is known for their particular style of pasta sauce. Just as in Italy, Western New York has its own style of sauce and its popularity has led a local maker, Albanese’s Finest, to start producing sauce locally for everyone to enjoy.

The Albanese family is renowned for its sauce.

Sauce maker Darrin Albanese (in photos) learned how to cook mostly from his mother and father, David and Theresa, and also learned some cooking from aunts and uncles at his family's restaurant, Albanese’s in Albion.

So eight months ago Albanese parlayed his legacy into crafting a classic Marinara Sauce, Meat Sauce and Pizza Sauce. They are made the same as he made them in his own kitchen, with the finest ingredients (hence the name Albanese’s Finest). He uses fresh herbs, not dried, and no added sugar or salt.

The simple straightforward approach wins customers with its result -- fresh, homemade taste.

Albanese plans to add at least three more varieties before the end of 2021. 

He has his sauces made at Permac Enterprises, owned by Pauly Guglielmo. It's a specialty small-batch food production facility that operated for 15 years in a pizzeria. In May, Guglielmo closed the deal then moved operations to a new 5,000-square-foot facility on Appletree Avenue in Bergen.

Permac is one of only six USDA cannery manufacturing plants in New York State that specializes in taking recipes from individuals, restaurants or food production brands, and adjusting it for large production. Guglielmo has increased the staff by 30 percent this year and expects to grow more in near future.

Albanese has plans to grow, too, and hopes to sell his sauces nationally someday. For now, most of his sales are in Western New York and can be found in 60+ locations.  

The first store to take on his sauce was ANG Shur Save in Churchville and it is now also available around Genesee County at:

• Harrington's Produce and Market Cafe, Batavia
• Southside Deli, Batavia
• Save-A-Lot, Batavia and Le Roy
• Tops Friendly Markets, as a specialty item in a display case, Batavia and Le Roy
• The Divine Tree, Le Roy
• Sweet Life Country Store, Elba

Albanese says without the help and support of his daughter, Kaleigh, and the encouragement of his close friends and some family, his sauce still might only be served at his house. 

You can follow Albanese's Finest Sauce on Facebook

Photos by Jim Burns.

With no live gigs to play, Le Roy's Justin Williams has been using his time at home to write some instrumental tracks. Today he released "July Morning."

The song was mixed by Joe Lambert, of Batavia.

Williams said the song is inspired by the need to have a bright spot in our daily lives in these times.

"I've written several instrumentals during these strange times," Williams said. "It just felt natural during these divisive times to let the music do the talking. The video was fun to make as well. More on the way. Just gonna keep releasing as singles for now. May put out as an EP at the end of the year."

Williams is a singer/songwriter/lead guitarist and he has released music with Butterscotch, Exit 47, and a pair of solo EPs, as well as playing on other artists' albums (BC Psychos, JJ Lang Band, among others). Additionally, he has written music for advertising (Ryan Heating and Plumbing, The YNGodess Shop, among others). Typically, he can be found performing with Justin Williams & Forward Progress, The Shaking Bones, as a solo acoustic performer, and occasionally with The BC Psychos.

Since we are currently not in ordinary times, you can find Justin and Laura Williams performing on Tuesday evenings at 7 on the Justin Williams and Forward Progress Facebook page.

Above: Christina Brown, a student from Batavia City School District, created a design called "Covid-19" and placed third in The DIGIES Graphic Arts division -- Grades 7-9.

Submitted image and press release:

Despite cancellation due to COVID-19 of the annual media awards event called "The DIGIES" put on by the School Library System, there were more entries than ever this year and a total of 14 third-place winners from Genesee County.

The system's media conference, festival and awards is a program of the Genesee Valley Board of Cooperative Educational Services -- BOCES.

The mission of The DIGIES is to strengthen the digital media continuum between PreK-12 schools, higher education and professional institutions. The DIGIES recognizes student potential in an annual festival format and students compete from all throughout the region and the Upstate New York area.

The year’s festival awards event was scheduled to be held last month at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester. 

Emilee Hillman and Andrea Fetterly, Library Technologies’ specialists coordinate this conference. Fetterly said that school building closures due to COVID-19 did not dampen enthusiasm for this year’s festival, which drew a number of entries.

“We are excited to celebrate the amazing creativity and skill demonstrated by the participants in this year's DIGIES festival," Fetterly said. "Despite a shortened in-person school year and extraordinary circumstances, students continue to achieve great success."

Below is a listing of categories, grades, winners and school districts from Genesee County. (Other categories were Audio and Interactive Media, but there were no winners from Genesee County.)

Congratulations to these imaginative students!

GRAPHIC ARTS

Grades 7-9

1st:                   The Stranger by Zac Hakes -- Hilton CSD

2nd:                  Fatoma by Cornelia Adakah -- Pittsford CSD

3rd:                  Covid-19 by Christina Brown -- Batavia CSD

3rd:                   En Pointe by Cammi Eccleston -- Hilton CSD

VIDEO

Grades 7-9

1st:                   The Silk Road by Jonathan Popper -- Pittsford CSD (Submitted by Animatus Studio)

2nd:                  Land Rover Series III Pickup: Desert Joyride by Zachary Heiman -- Dansville CSD

3rd:                  Things to do in Quarantine by Matthew Covert -- Le Roy CSD

Grades 10-12

1st:                  Doors by Jacob French -- Geneseo CSD

2nd:                 Michi by Ashlyn Kreiss -- Pittsford CSD

3rd (tie):           A Quest to Learn Part I by Devon Deuel -- Dansville CSD

3rd (tie):          Quarantine Catch by Mikayla Hickey, Makenna Boyce, Kayla Yax, Adeline Kautz, Kelsey Kautz, Samantha Sawyer, Neva Saile, Emma Raines, Courtney Schum, Emily Balduf, Sydney Smith and Taylor Fletcher (Alexander Softball) -- Alexander CSD

(Editor's note: we asked, but entries from the Le Roy and Alexander winners were not available from GV BOCES' School Library System, which runs The DIGIES event.)

Le Roy resident Katie Orlando shared her photo with us of comet NEOWISE as it passed earth in the evening sky last night.

The comet is expected to be visible at night until July 26.

For more information about viewing from NASA, click here.

If you take a good, clear picture of the comet, email the photo to howard@thebatavian.com

A caller to dispatch reports that six kids are setting off smoke bombs in the first block of Wolcott Street in Le Roy. Le Roy police are responding.

A driver of a Waste Management truck that police believe was 13' 6" high, including its natural gas fuel tanks atop its waste bin, tried passing under a train bridge over Mill Street in Le Roy this afternoon.

The problem: the bridge is only 12' 6" high.

Two of the tanks atop the truck carrying compressed natural gas, to fuel the truck, exploded. The other two were damaged and leaked off their contents.

Nobody was injured in the blast.

A witness said the driver managed to get out of the truck and run from the explosions while a tank spun in the street "like a top."

One of the tanks landed in two pieces in the Oatka Creek, more than 150 yards away.

Mill Street reopened after the roadway was cleared of debris. The bridge was damaged, with a large crack visible in the concrete buttress. An engineer for Rochester and Southern Railroad, owners of the track and bridge, is driving from Massachusetts tonight to inspect the damage and determine whether the bride is safe for trains to cross. In the meantime, the bridge is closed to train traffic.

A collision between a truck with CNG natural gas tanks on top of it and a trash truck occurred in Le Roy on Mill Street.

A tank ruptured but there is no fire. Wires are down. Le Roy Fire Department is on scene along with law enforcement. A railroad representative is contacted to inspect the railroad tracks and bridge, which initially was believed to have been struck.

Two tanks are intact on the ground, one exploded, according to command. There may be a couple more tanks in the cargo.

A hazmat team is asked by command to stand by in case needed. The street will be closed.

UPDATE 3:01 p.m.: Pavilion Fire Department is requested to send a tanker to fill in at the Le Roy Fire Department.

UPDATE 3:11 p.m.: A tanker from Bergen is requested to stand by at the scene. National Grid is on scene.

UPDATE 3:14 p.m.: This did not involve two vehicles. It involves a single trash truck that is powered with natural gas tanks. They are working to contain the fuel leak from the ruptured tank now.

Submitted photo and press release:

Le Roy resident Karen Samis (far left in photo) participated in the American Lung Association's first-ever Virtual Fight For Air Climb Buffalo.

Samis completed more than 48 hours of physical activity all over New York State and raised nearly $1,000 for the Lung Association's mission.

That mission is to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through advocacy, education and research of lung diseases, including COVID-19.   

The 10th annual in-person event was originally scheduled for late March. It regularly attracts hundreds of people to walk or run up the 24 flights of stairs, or 470 steps, to the top of Main Place Tower in Buffalo.

This year, COVID-19 required the event to be moved online, and participants from all over Western New York joined in to stay active by choosing a challenge such as climbing, running, walking or cycling from home or near their own neighborhoods.

In total, the event raised more than $165,000.

To support Samis and contribute to her effort click here.

Pictured in Lake Placid, from left are: Karen Samis, Diane Yarosis (her cousin and lung cancer survivor), Pete Yarosis (her nephew), and Steve Samis (her husband).

An off-duty deputy in route to work has called in an accident on Route 5 just outside the Village of Le Roy that he said he witnessed.

He's requested an ambulance to the scene and said there is airbag deployment.

The Le Roy fire chief was also immediately on scene. The chief reports one person is trapped in a vehicle, alert and conscious.

UPDATE 8:27 a.m.: Le Roy fire is responding. Le Roy Ambulance is on scene.

On Saturday, we paid a visit to the Farmers Market in Le Roy in part to catch up with what's been going with the Woodward Memorial Library as well as check in on the market. The market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon in Trigon Park.

A resident in Le Roy told a Le Roy police officer that he spotted a bear in the area of Lent Avenue. The officer is going to check out the area now.

Jillian L. Hupp, 30, North Street, Le Roy, is charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and offering a false instrument for filing at 3 p.m. on Dec. 31. On July 9, after an investigation by the Genesee County Social Service investigator, Hupp was arrested on the charges. She was released with an appearance ticket returnable to Batavia Town Court on Aug. 6. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Jenna Ferrando.

Colby Le-Andrew Ellis, 31, of Albion, is charged with second-degree burglary, petit larceny, and first-degree criminal contempt. At 3:03 a.m. on July 8 in Alexander, Ellis was arrested on the charges after allegedly violating a full stay-away order of protection issued by City of Batavia Court. He was put in jail on $10,000 cash bail or $20,000 bond or $40,000 partially secured bond. He is due in Alexander Town Court on Aug. 18. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Austin Heberlein, assisted by Nicholas Chamoun.

Roy Alvin Watson Jr., 31, Shepard Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, and criminal use of drug paraphernalia. Watson was arrested on July 6 on the charges. Prior to that, on June 16, he was arrested on an outstanding warrant out of Orleans County. During the execution of the arrest warrant, Watson was allegedly found in possession of cocaine and drug paraphernalia. He is due in Batavia City Court Aug. 4. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Andrew Mullen. 

Kaleb James Bobzien, 22, of Lockport, is charged with second-degree criminal contempt. He allegedly made numerous phone calls to a protected party who lives on West Main Street in Batavia starting on Jan. 28. He was arrested July 6 and issued an appearance ticket to be in City of Batavia Court on July 14. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Investigator Joseph Loftus.

She was even on duty in the middle of winter on her 90th birthday.

Five days ago, Burrell, at the age of 92, passed away.

Burrell rarely missed a shift and said in 2017, "I don’t believe in missing time unless something is really wrong. I guess I'm too dedicated."

Her dedication made her a community icon and a treasure.  It was common for members of the community to volunteer to do spring cleanup in her yard for her, as they did in 2015.

Click here to read her full obituary.

Staff at the Le Roy Village Green prepared hot dog drive-thru meals for Le Roy residents on Thursday evening to thank them for the community's support of the senior residential health care facility during the pandemic.

Residents also made signs to display at the Green's entrance expressing their thanks. Residents were kept inside during the event because of the heat.

Above, Director Samantha Vagg delivers two meals to a Le Roy couple.

Sam Vagg, Sue Diflippo, Kate Flint, John Gagnon, and Kellie Kreiley.