Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) introduced the Red Light Act to withhold federal transportation funding from states that enact laws to provide driver's licenses or identification cards to illegal immigrants in the United States.
This bill directs the Department of Transportation to withhold a state's entire share of
Danielle Lovell, Aidan Walsh, and Scot Walsh, Submitted photo
When the Sunset Fire started to bear down on her Hollywood neighborhood on Wednesday evening, and the order to evacuate came, Danielle Lovell reminded herself to breathe.
She'd been through this before. In 2005, she and her family evacuated their home as Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans.
"I think the biggest takeaway (from Katrina) was -- and even last night -- just reminding myself to breathe and to stay calm," Lovell said to The Batavian on Thursday. "You do not want to panic because you are in such a hurry, but breathe and stay calm. Getting out is the most important thing. Everything else is replaceable, and it'll be okay. As long as you're alive, it'll be okay."
Batavia High School special education teacher's aide Leah Wroten gets and gives a hug to student Kassandra. Submitted Photo
At 21, Leah Wroten was diagnosed with cancer, and life as she knew it changed for the foreseeable future, special education teacher Natalie Keller says.
“She had life-changing surgery," Keller said to The Batavian about her fellow Batavia City Schools colleague. "She had not been working for six months.”
Wroten, a BHS 2020 graduate, had major surgery, chemotherapy and related treatments since her diagnosis in 2024. School staff members have had football square and Dress Down Day fundraisers, and one coming up in February is expected to be the biggest so far, Keller said. It will be a 26 Shirts for Leah.
The City of Batavia is working with the Batavia Development Corporation (BDC) to apply to New York State for a second Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) grant.
Governor Hochul and State Legislative leaders have ensured that New York Cities can continue to grow their tax base and business
Kendal Watson, a motor vehicle representative, demonstrates ringing the bell at the Genesee County DMV, which 16-year-olds are invited to do when they first pass the written test for their driver's licenses. Photo by Howard Owens.
After more than two years at the same job, Brittany Hausfelder still looks forward to it, from the camaraderie of her co-workers to the positive response of customers.
That’s not exactly what you might expect from a motor vehicles rep, given the atmospheres and reputations of those departments with long lines and staff with short tempers.
Owners of H.E. Turner & Co., Inc. Funeral Home already knew they were committed to the business and taking care of customers, and being named as a Selected independent Funeral Homes member has solidified their belief that “we don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk,” co-owner Steven Johnson says.
While the honor may seem to place a narrow focus on the world of morticians and their industry, this is something that lets all prospective customers know who they can trust, Johnson said.
“I think why it's important to them is that our invitation to join Selected and Independent, and it truly is by invitation only sort of association, our membership can give the community that we serve, the families that we serve, the confidence that we are truly a cut above your average everyday run-of-the-mill funeral home,” Johnson said during an interview with The Batavian Friday.
Organizer Frank Strock talks about establishing a comfort care home to attendees during a Genesee Valley Regional Community Cares meeting Monday night at Stone Church in Bergen. Photo by Howard Owens
As a nurse in long-term and outpatient family care, Joy Hammond has seen the need for more options when it comes to caring for terminally ill people, she says.
“I would say in general, the staff in hospitals and staff in long-term care do the best that they can. But the reality is, there's just not enough of them. It just simply is the fact of the matter. And you can have the biggest heart to the patient who, or the resident in that case, who is dying, but you cannot be at their bedside 24/7, which is not possible. And so to be able to have that option to have a comfort care situation where you can have a volunteer or paid staff be there and be focused on that patient, be focused on their family, that is a wonderful, wonderful thing,” Hammond said during a meeting Monday night at Stone Church in Bergen.
