Le Roy

On Thursday, the Jerome Foundation awarded the William F. Brown, Jr., scholarship to Parker Dowell, a senior at Le Roy High School, who will be attending the  University of Cincinnati, majoring in marketing

Brown was a local journalist and author who at one time owned WBTA and was a founder of the Jerome Foundation. 

Each year, the foundation awards a scholarship of $1,000 a year for four years to a Genesee County student who plans to study journalism, public relations, communications or marketing in college.

Photo: Ron Chrzanowski, chairman of the scholarship committee, Christine Dowell, Jim Dowell, Parker Dowell, and Justin Calarco-Smith, president of the Jerome Foundation

Submitted photo and information

Johnny Burton Koonce, Jr., 32, of Conlon Road, Le Roy, is charged with unlawful imprisonment 1st and harassment 2nd. Koonce is accused of refusing to let a person out of a moving vehicle and of shoving the person's head into the door of the vehicle during an incident reported at 11:23 p.m. on June 11 on Route 20 in Pavilion. Koonce was held pending arraignment.

Justin T. Calmes, 45, of Watson Street, Batavia, is charged with open burning.  Calmes is accused of violating the Batavia Municipal Code on May 26 by conducting an open burn at a residence on Watson Street. Calmes, according to police, had been previously advised of city code regarding open burns. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Ricky L. Miller, 41, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny and harassment. Miller was charged after allegedly stealing $400 from Tops Market on West Main Street on May 24. He allegedly shoved the store manager when confronted in an attempt to flee.  Miller was issued an appearance ticket.

Brinson M. Blocker, 29, of Barry Street, Brockport, is charged with DWI and running a red light. Blocker was stopped at 2:29 a.m. on May 21 at an undisclosed location in the City of Batavia. He was arraigned in Centralized Arraignment Court.  His release status is unknown.

Charles B. Lee, 47, of West Bergen Road, Bergen, is charged with operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs. Lee was stopped by Officer Kegvin Defelice on Sept 29 at an undisclosed location in the city of Batavia. He was arrested on May 26 following the completion of bloodwork in a crime lab.  He was issued traffic tickets and ordered to return to City Court on a later date.

Nathan W. Campbell, 42, no permanent address, is charged with trespass. Campbell is accused of returning to a business on East Main Street on May 31 a few hours after being banned from the location for reportedly causing a disturbance. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Matthew J. Wenzel, 36, of State Street,  Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Wenzel is accused of stealing medication from a family member. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Josia G.J. Culver, 18, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia, is charged with attempted burglary 3rd and criminal mischief 3rd.  Culver is accused of attempting to break into a business in City Centre on May 15.  It was Culver's third arrest in May for allegedly attempting to break into the same business. Following the arrest, he was ordered held in the Genesee County Jail.

Adam B. Thomas, 34, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief 3rd. Thomas is accused of damaging family property at his residence on May 28. He was arraigned in Centralized Arraignment Court. His release status is unknown.

Richard A. Demmer, Jr., 30, no known address, is charged with attempted robbery 3rd. Demmer is accused of attempting to rob the 7-Eleven on May 29. He was released on his own recognizance. 

Jaqulyn A. Dueppengiesser, 39, of Page Road, Perry, was arrested on two warrants for failing to appear. Dueppengiesser was reportedly located in a dumpster on May 25 by Officer Felicia Martinez after receiving a call of a suspicious condition at a local business. The first warrant stems from a criminal possession of a controlled substance 5th charge, a Class D felony, arrest on April 11. On that arrest, Dueppengiesser was arraigned in City Court and released under the supervision of Genesee Justice pending her next appearance.  The second warrant stems from a petit larceny arrest on May 9. She was issued an appearance ticket.  She is accused of failure to appear for both arrests. Dueppengiesser was arraigned in City Court and released on her own recognizance.  

Adam J. Montes, 39, no known address, was arrested on a bench warrant for failing to appear. Montes was taken into custody on May 31 by Officer Felicia Martinez. He was previously arrested on charges of grand larceny of a vehicle and conspiracy 5th. He was arrested on a failure to appear warrant on April 6 and released. He was arraigned in City Court on the May 31 arrest and ordered held without bail.

Rosemary R. Waters, 37, of East Main Street, Batavia, was arrested on two City Court bench warrants for failure to appear. Officer Josh Girvin arrested Waters on May 17. The first warrant stems from an incident on Aug. 17, 2021, where Waters was arrested on an unrelated warrant and allegedly found in possession of narcotics, a modified fully automatic 9mm pistol and a 40-round magazine. Waters was arrested prior to the completion of lab work, and subsequently, an arrest warrant was issued. She was arrested on that warrant on April 7. The second warrant stems from an incident reported on July 30. Waters was reportedly the passenger in a vehicle during a traffic stop on Mix Place in Batavia. Waters allegedly provided a false name and was released. Narcotics and a modified short-barrel shotgun were later located in the vehicle. An arrest warrant was issued.

Oraid W. Edwards, 39, of West Avenue, Rochester, was arrested on a warrant for failing to appear. Edwards was taken into custody on May 19 by Officer Kevin Defelice. Edwards was arrested on June 19 after allegedly being found sleeping on the couch of a residence where he was unknown. Edwards reportedly left prior to patrols arriving on scene. He was arrested on a trespassing charge on June 23 and issued an appearance ticket. A warrant was issued on Aug. 23. He was arraigned in City Court and released on his own recognizance.

Stephen D. Freeman, 52, of Mcmahon Road, Hinsdale, was arrested on an arrest warrant for petit larceny. Freeman was located by Troopers in Cattaraugus County and turned over to Batavia PD on May 28. Freeman is accused of stealing from an employer in City Centre on or around Sept. 19. He was arraigned in Centralized Arraignment Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Adam D. Altobelli, 42, of Mount Hope Boulevard, Rochester, was arrested on a bench warrant for failing to appear. Officer Richard Messmer arrested Altobelli on May 24. The warrant stems from an incident reported on East Main Street, Batavia, on Feb. 22, 2020. He was accused of stealing items and possessing a controlled substance. He was issued an appearance ticket. After allegedly failing to appear, he was arrested on a warrant on Dec. 4, 2020, and arraigned in City Court. He was released under supervision. He allegedly failed to appear for his next court appearance and was arrested on a warrant on May 6, 2021.  He was again arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on Aug. 30, 2021. On this arrested, he was arraigned in Centralized Arraignment Court. His release status is unknown.

Carlos E. Flores, of Dewey Avenue, Greece, was arrested on a bench warrant.  Officer Kevin DeFelice arrested Flores on May 25. The warrant stemmed from an incident on Aug. 11, 2019, at a location on Bank Street. Flores was accused of threatening another person. He was arrested on a harassment 2nd charge and issued an appearance ticket. He was arraigned in City Court on the latest arrest and released after entering a guilty plea.

Gregory Alan Palone, 60, of Tennesee, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and insufficient tail lamp. Palone was stopped at 1:27 a.m. on June 4 on Lewiston Road by Deputy Jeremiah Gechell. He was released on traffic tickets.

Kenneth Dwright Robinson, Jr., 49, of Seven Springs Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Robinson was stopped at 1:59 p.m. on June 4 by Deputy Jacob Kipler and allegedly found in possession of a glassine bag containing crack cocaine during a vehicle inventory. He was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released on an appearance ticket.

Emily Nichols, 33, of Batavia, is charged with welfare fraud 3rd. Nichols was arrested following an investigation by the Department of Social Services. She is accused of failing to report the wages of her husband and receiving $7,885 in SNAP benefits for which she was not entitled. She was arraigned in Batavia Town Court and released on her own recognizance.

David Alan Leach, 29, of Morganville Road, Stafford, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Leach is accused of possessing cocaine during a traffic stop by Deputy Nicholas Chamoun at 8:40 p.m. on Oct. 25.  Leach was arrested on June 11 and issued an appearance ticket.

Le Roy PD is requesting the assistance of Le Roy Fire for a tree blocking a door at 41 Lake St., Le Roy.

Press Release:

The Rotary Club of Batavia has awarded college scholarships of up to $6,000 to each of the three local students. This year's Rotary Scholarships were awarded to: Hannah Spencer, Genesee Valley Educational Partnership (GVEP), LeRoy; Courtney Daniel, Notre Dame High School and Lauren Reimer, of Batavia High School. 25 applications were received for 2023 rewards, according to Andrea Aldinger, co-chairperson of the Rotary Scholarship Committee.

“Narrowing the selection down to three was close to impossible,” Aldinger said, “after all the interviews, it still was unclear as these students were so incredibly talented.” She noted that many of the students had already achieved their Associate's Degree before graduating high school.

The Rotary Scholarship program began more than 40 years ago. Each year one student is selected from Notre Dame HS, Batavia HS, and the Genesee Valley Educational Partnership, formerly known as BOCES. Rotary awards each student $1,500 per year for four consecutive years as long as the student maintains a GPA of at least 3.0.

Committee Co-chair Mike Hodgins said at any one time, as many as 12 students are receiving annual awards totaling $18,000. The program is funded by various Rotary events throughout the year. The scholarships were awarded during a regular meeting of the Rotary Club of Batavia. The students and their parents were invited to attend. 

Hannah Spencer, who attends LeRoy HS, told Rotarians that she studied with the Justice Academy at GVEP. She plans to pursue a Nursing Degree at GCC and transfer to another school for a Bachelor’s degree.

Scholarship winner Lauren Reimer of Batavia High School said she plans to pursue a medical degree at the University of Albany. She earned an unweighted cumulative high school average of 99.65%. Lauren will graduate high school with honors and has already earned an Associate’s Degree from GCC.

Courtney Daniels, Notre Dame’s awardee, is set to study Political Science at Fordham University. She was a member of the National Honor Society and attended The NY Governor’s Youth Council as a representative for Wyoming County. Her ultimate goal is to become a New York State senator.

Two previous winners attended this year's ceremony to update the club on how they were able to use their Rotary Scholarships. Carissa Kesler used her scholarship to buy a laptop computer in 2019 when the COVID pandemic hit.  She said it was her pipeline for remote learning at GCC and later at SUNY Brockport. “With the help of Rotary, I graduated with no student debt,” Carissa said.

Taylor Sanders attended Niagara University and is now pursuing her medical degree at LECOM in Bradenton, Florida.

Photos submitted by Dan Fischer

As Genesee County officials issued the first of what undoubtedly will be a string of reminders to folks to conserve water consumption during the hot summer months, there are a couple of areas also getting their attention.

Spray parks, in both Batavia and more newly installed in Le Roy, are for water what SUVs are for gasoline.

“Spray parks do consume a large amount of water, and we are working with municipalities to consider restricting usage of spray parks in times of low water supply or high water demands,” County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens said in response to The Batavian’s questions about the recent voluntary water-saving measure and spray parks. “It is a sensitive subject as the splash parks do provide significant community benefits, and they do offset similar water usage at home with pool-filling, sprinklers, slip and slides, etc.

“Both the City of Batavia and the Village of Le Roy operate splash pads and both are on activated timers, so they don’t run non-stop,” Hens said. “Even still, they are a topic of discussion as we look to ways to save water during peak demand times.”

 This past week county officials asked residents, businesses and institutions in Genesee County to voluntarily participate in reducing water consumption in a number of ways, including limiting outdoor watering of lawns and gardens, especially during the hottest parts of the days and in full sunshine, to maximize water absorption; consider using commercial car wash facilities that recycle water to reduce overall consumption; limit nonessential water in swimming pools, decorative fountains and other aesthetically pleasing but unnecessary water-consuming items.

Other suggestions included being aware of water leaks and fixing them promptly, installing efficient fixtures and using water-efficient appliances, officials said.

Some states have cycled through severe droughts for years, causing such water limitations to help stretch out their supply. California was one, and even in the mid-1980s, warnings were issued to residents about not watering lawns or washing their own vehicles.

In August 2022, the state Department of Environmental Conservation issued a drought warning for 21 New York counties including Genesee, and the agency was monitoring water conditions to help address any short-term issues and longer-term impacts of climate change.

As for right here in Genesee County, where there has been a three-phase water project in progress to enhance and strengthen the current water system, “it is important to note that these water restrictions are voluntary at this stage,” county officials said.

“Mandatory water restrictions may be implemented if public health and safety are put at risk,” officials said.

“By following these suggestions, each individual contribution will add up significantly.”

To read the entire press release, go HERE. 

A new spray park that was supposed to open in LeRoy more than a year ago is approaching its likely opening, although, as of Friday, that date is still undetermined.

This is according to LeRoy Town Supervisor James Farnholz.

Farnholz said this week that construction is done. Members of the Monroe County Water Authority pressure-tested the spray park this week.

“We did the pressure test, and it passed. The chlorine test was done, and it passed,” Farnholz said Friday.

“Because we are seasonal, Monroe County Water takes the water meters in and out every season. They don’t leave them there. The water meters are going in today. If all the water park gods shine on us, we may be able to have a test run this afternoon.”

Farnholz said, however, that due to 90-degree temperatures, “the chances of getting it tested today are probably a little slim.”

One of the delays over the past year, Farnholz said, was based on figuring out what to do with the water once it's sprayed and drained.

“You have two options. You can either recycle it — which requires an extensive system of chlorination and inspection — or continually use fresh water,” Farnholz said.

“When we looked at the dollar figures, it was more cost-effective to continually use fresh water. It has a timer on it. It’s not unlike a hotel hot tub. You hit the timer, and you get 20 minutes, so it doesn’t run continuously. The kids can just hit the button again, and off you go.”

The spray park is a cooperative venture between the town and the village. The village owns the pool, and the town runs it. American Rescue Plan money funded it. Farnholz said the contractor is based out of Texas.

The pressure coming from the water main from Monroe County into the lines that go to the spray park must hold a certain amount of pressure to ensure no leaks occur underground.

As reported in 2021, the spray park will have 2,000 square feet of misting stations, aqua arches, showers, spills, and water weaves of intertwining spouts from the base outward. Activities are geared for kids of all ages and sizes. The park is handicap accessible. 

Because it is technically not even gray water, the health department allows LeRoy to run it into the wetlands on the other side of the tracks and in the woods.

Rylee Burns started her art journey for fun when she was younger, and she intends to keep it that way.  Being an artist is not her career ambition.

After her graduation from Le Roy High School on June 24, she will head to SUNY Geneseo to major in chemistry.

"I really, really enjoy science, and I want to be a forensic scientist after college," Rylee said. "So, in thinking about starting that journey, I decided to start with chemistry."

She still may take an art class or two in college, she said, because she enjoys art, too.

It's not unusual for students, even ones as talented as Rylee, to follow career paths outside of art, said Ieon Koukides, a teacher Rylee said has inspired her to stretch herself artistically.

"Their interests are absolutely different from what they might be doing in the class, from science to music, to sports, or whatever it might be," said Koukides, who himself has interests outside of art -- he's also Le Roy's head baseball coach.  "So it's kind of nice that I get to have kids of all different interest levels, and what they go on to do is awesome to me because what I get to do is give them an avenue to appreciate art and hopefully produce some pretty neat stuff while they're in high school."

Rylee was among several seniors who prepared a wall of their paintings and drawings for Le Roy's annual art show on Wednesday, which also featured the work of underclass members.

As an artist, Rylee tends to be detail-oriented, preferring fine brush strokes.  As a sophomore, she painted a church door because she liked the detail of it, and in her junior year, Koukides encouraged her to find another church architecture theme, so she concentrated on a stained glass window.  To complete the cycle this year, she painted a church door key.

"I'm really fine with my brushes," Rylee said. "I used really tiny brushes for all three of these. I like things to go the way I want them to, so I felt really nice with these because I wanted the detail."

Koukides said he typically picks a project a student did in their sophomore year and encourages them each year to find a new approach to the same or similar subject.

"I knew she could excel at it because she's super confident in what she's doing," Koukides said. "Whether it's painting or colored pencil,  it's pretty easy to gear her towards that project and see her excel."

He said Rylee's confidence has "allowed her to soar on any project after she has learned the techniques."

The art show was moved to the auditorium stage this year (instead of the library) and the stage was filled with adults and students appreciating the works on display.  

Koukides said he's proud to see the school's art students get the recognition of an appreciative audience.

"I always say people get to see what I see every day," Koukides said. "That's what makes coming to work great for me every day. I know what's here, and I see it every day. But until we put it up like this and have everybody else view it, I don't think everybody truly appreciates what happens here in this small little community, and how talented the kids are."

Photos by Howard Owens.

A lot of well-meaning adults around Evan Williams' life have a bit of advice in the form of a question:  "What's his backup plan?" 

"What is he going to do if it doesn’t work out?" they ask.

Musical theater is going to be what Evan Williams does, says his mother, Laura.  He might wait tables while building his career, but singing and acting, or perhaps some other career role in or around Broadway, is what he is going to do with his life.

She doesn't have any doubt about it.

“People ask all the time about his fallback plan, but I can’t see him doing anything else,” Laura said.

One of his inspirations and mentors, John Bolton, a Le Roy graduate who has made a career in musical theater, TV and movies, said he hates the term "backup plan." 

"Back-up plan means this is what you're going to settle for if things don't work out," Bolton said. "You should always have something else that interests you in life, but a backup plan always sounds second-rate. It's not going for your dreams."

Williams has his best chance yet to go after that dream.  He's one of 100 students from around the nation who has won a place in the Jimmy Awards in New York City.

He secured his spot last week by winning -- along with Hope Galloway (Brighton High School) -- the Rochester Broadway Theatre League's "Stars of Tomorrow" competition.

Judges from the league visited the musicals of dozens of high schools in the Finger Lakes region and selected 40 students to compete in "Stars of Tomorrow."  After a first round, those 40 competitors became 20, then 10, and then the final two.

Last year, Williams also made the final 10.  This year, he won.

"Evan was prepared and focused," said Bolton, who was an early round judge and then coach throughout the competition.  "He's got an amazing voice. He took our notes and worked at it, as did the entire Top 40.  He took very slight adjustments because he's well prepared. He owned the night, as did Hope Galloway.  Everybody was wonderful. If it had taken place on another night, maybe someone else would have won, but that night, Evan claimed it. He owned it."

It was an incredible experience, Williams said.

He said the weeks leading up to the competition were anxious days.

"I had a lot of pressure to take on," Williams said. "Everyone had been telling me that I was gonna be the one, but I wasn’t gonna take anyone’s word for it other than my own."

He had grown up watching the Jimmys, hoping for even a regional consideration.  

"I never had really thought of it as a reality until it became a reality," Williams said. "I knew it was possible, but I didn’t want to allow myself to think I didn’t have to work for it. I never want to do that for anything. Nothing should be handed to anyone. I had said to Nate Yauchzee on the way to the event that I remembered watching kids get picked to compete at NYC Bound and just being astounded, so even the fact that I was lucky enough to be part of the competition, not once but three times is crazy. On top of that, I think sixth-grade Evan would be incredibly proud of the fact that he is the first person from Le Roy to represent Rochester at the Jimmy Awards. I hope that there are some little Evans in the world who watch those videos and are inspired just the way I was."

Jacqueline McLean has directed the recent high school musicals at Le Roy and recognizes that Williams is a special talent.

"Evan has a heart of gold," McLean said. "Often, he's not thinking about himself. He's thinking for the better of the group, about a better musical, a better performance from the team. He's a team leader, and I'm a big believer that you're not going to get anywhere if you're not kind.  He shows that often."

She said Williams is magnetic, that he connects with audiences in a way that's unique, that she hasn't seen other students be able to do.

"I have no doubt that he's going to go to college, and he's going to make a career out of this," McLean said. "I always joke with him, 'Don't forget the little people, don't forget where you came from because we're going to be cheering for you for years to come.'"

She's proud of Williams, but she's also proud of the entire Le Roy Music Department.  Le Roy was represented in Rochester by not just one but five students, and three of them made the final 20.

Le Roy's musical this year was Les Miserables.  The production was honored in every category of the theatre league's awards for 2023. Recognized as leading cast members from Le Roy were Ashlyn Puccio, Aubry Puccio, Cooper Terry, Jackson Cain, Maureen Klaiber, and Nathan Yauchzee.  Among large schools, it was recognized for excellence in overall musical production, excellence in vocal ensemble, excellence in dance ensemble, excellence in production crew, and excellence in student orchestra.

"When you see kids over the years," she added, "you pick out the ones who have the 'it' factor.  We've had a lot of them in Le Roy.  We joke about it a lot -- that it must be something in the water.  There is so much talent in this town."

After graduation, Williams, in pursuit of his musical theater ambitions, will attend Point Park University in Pittsburgh.

Attending college for music theater puts him on a very different career path than Bolton, who also grew up in love with theater, who started out in regional theater and then took a chance and moved to New York City and happened to make the right connections to build a career.

It helped that he, too, is a nice guy, but he recognizes he might be the best guide for Evan's career.  Bolton's partner is a theatrical agent, so was able to offer Williams advice on universities to target.

Other than that, he's just a big believer that Williams should focus on what he loves.

"All signs are saying that Evan Williams can do this," Bolton said. "He's diving into a situation in New York in a few weeks with 100 other students from all over the country, and he will form friendships that will last a lifetime. He will form connections that will last a lifetime."

Bolton has known Evan's mother, Laura, since they were very young.  Bolton's mother and Laura's mother, Lynn Belluscio, the Le Roy historian, have been good friends. Social media helped Bolton and Laura reconnect, and so he's been able to watch Evan's passion for theater blossom.

Laura said the main advice Bolton has ever given her son, because Evan is taking just a different path in his career, is to embrace his passion.

“John is always in Evan’s corner but more along the lines of, ‘follow your dreams, sing the songs that make you happy, be true to yourself,’” Laura said.

She's extremely proud of her son.

"Not only does Evan work hard, but he’s also genuine," Laura said. "He lifts people up and celebrates everybody’s success.  In this career, he’s learned quickly that if he’s going to go places, he has to help other people. It’s far more than a kill-or-be-killed arena. That’s what I’ve noticed. Clearly, that’s a parent's answer, but that is what makes me proudest, and I know that makes Justin proud as well."

Williams has heard those well-meaning words about having a fallback plan, but he agrees with his mother. He can't see himself doing anything else.

He said he's listened to interviews with stars like John Meyer, who said he didn't necessarily get the best grades in school in mathematics. He was always a music guy. Williams said he's tried to do his best in school, even in mathematics, but those academic subjects, or even sports, have never been his focus.

"Some kids grind at science or they grind at mathematics. They go home and do their science homework or their math homework.  When I'm not in school, I spend my time with voice lessons, music lessons, rehearsals, or something like that.  That's my form of success," Williams said.

"This is something I want. If I keep pushing for it, I believe it can happen.  I’m a big if you can dream it, you can do it. I'm that kind of guy."

Residents and veterans in Le Roy honored fallen heroes today with a parade down Main Street and a ceremony in Trigon Park at the Soldiers Memorial.

Photos by Nicholas Serrata.

A car has struck a bridge on Vallance Road at the Thruway overpass in Le Roy.

Unknown injuries.

Le Roy Fire and Le Roy Ambulance dispatched.

UPDATE 10:51 a.m.: Minor injuries. No need for fire service. Fire department is back in service.

Variety, choice, quality ovens, a modern menu system, and health options are helping the Le Roy Central School District deliver nutritious and popular breakfasts and lunches to students, Melissa Saunders told the Board of Education at its regular meeting on Tuesday night.

Saunders is the district's school lunch manager.

During her presentation, she ticked off a number of accomplishments for the cafeteria staff during the current academic school year.

Among the accomplishments was a switch in online menu distribution from PDFs to a database-driven menu platform called Nutrislice.

"This has made my job a lot easier," Saunders said. "It's given me a lot more flexibility with the menu. It allows me to make real-time changes to the menu that everyone can see instantly."

The system allows her to store all the different food items that can go into making up a school day's breakfast and lunch menus as well as add products.  When compiling a menu, she can include nutritional information along with allergens.

"It's a really big project, adding all that information for every single product," Saunders said. "I mean, just tracking down nutrient analysis for some of these products is this challenging, but it's something we've been working on. It's something that we will continue to work on through the summer."

A board member asked if she makes a menu change is a notification sent to parents. She said there is no automatic notification, but if it's a significant change, she does send out a notification.

A new purchase this year is combi-ovens.

"They can add a precise amount of steam or a precise amount of browning to any food product," Saunders said. "My cooks love them. It has the capability of cooking with steam or cooking with heat, or cooking with a combination of steam and heat to get a precise moisture and browning on food products."

The ovens the district purchased, she said, were manufactured in Germany and are the #1 combi-ovens on the market.

Saunders has also been trying to serve students more fresh fruit, a program partially funded by the federal government.

"We've been really scaling back on the amount of canned fruit we use," Saunders said. "It still has a place within the menu. There's still some products that the kids really like, and we will continue to use, so it's not that I'm not going to use it or the goal is to never use it but to really ensure that the majority of what they're getting is fresh. The reason for that is that during the canning process, food loses its nutrients. We've been using for fresh fruit this year -- we've used strawberries, we've used cantaloupe, leeks, honeydew, melon, watermelon, kiwi, clementines, blueberries, pears, oranges, apples, bananas. We've been trying to give them a really good variety."

Saunders is also working on scaling back the number of food items that include whey protein as filler.

"It's in a huge amount of products to use across the board," Saunders said. "Personally, from my interest in nutrition, I feel like it would be an improvement to our program to use less of (whey protein filler). Again, just like with the canned products, we won't necessarily be able to completely get rid of it, but can use some cleaner products without whey protein fillers."

She said she is now buying products like chicken tenders, chicken nuggets, and popcorn chicken, that doesn't use whey protein fillers.  She's also found a nearby New York company that makes meatballs without whey protein filler. They're also allergen-free meatballs. 

"That's a focus for next year," She said. "We were awarded some money from a local food and school cooperative grant that's going to allow us to purchase some more New York foods. I can put it towards things like the meatballs."

For breakfast, the staff had been serving prepackaged meals, but during the recent National Breakfast Week, the staff went in a different direction.

"It didn't allow for a lot of choice," Saunder said. "So during National School Breakfast Week, we discontinued using those, and they now have a variety of different cereals, cereal bars, and little snack options that they can create their own breakfast bag."

The number of meals the district served increased when meals were free during the pandemic, Saunders noted, but the district is still serving more meals than it did before the pandemic. 

Districtwide participation in breakfast is up 45 percent over the 2018/19 school year, and participation is up seven percent for lunch.

The variety of choices for students, which always includes warm foods and things like yogurt and fresh fruit, is helping to drive meal participation, she said.

In April, The Batavian reported about issues the district was facing with unpaid meal bills for some families. Superintendent Merritt Holly told the school board that staff was trying to work with families to handle the topic in a sensitive manner.  The district at the time was owed $2,751.58 for meals that had not been paid for at the time they were served (the district has a policy of providing a meal to every student who wants one, requiring students who don't have any money with them to pay for it).

The Batavian's story promoted two people to come forward and offer to make donations toward paying the unpaid bills.  This evening after the school board's regular meeting, Holly said the district has yet to work out how best to accept those donations, and he isn't sure how much those people are planning to donate.  He doesn't know, he said, if the donations will cover all of the unpaid bills, which have likely gone up in the past month, he said.