The annual July 4 Kiwanis 5K was held this morning, starting and finishing at Centennial Park.
Today is PIcnic in the Park and tonight the Muckdog's play Brooklyn at Dwyer Stadium, game time 7:05, followed by fireworks.
Join us at Centennial Park at 9 a.m. this Monday, July 4, for the Kiwanis Independence Day 5K. To register, click here.
Batavia High School's top academic seniors were honored today by the Batavia Kiwanis Club, and they were also congratulated by an unexpected guest at the meeting, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who was in town for an event at Genesee Community College and stopped by the Kiwanis meeting after that event.
Hochul told the students that they've been fortunate to grow up in a community that has nurtured them and, unlike the era of her youth in WNY, provides more career opportunities at home. She encouraged them to get their college educations and then return home where they can not only better themselves and their families but their communities as well.
The top 10 students are Alexis Vasciannie, Ross Chua, Louis Leone, Sarah Wezel, Skylar Laesser, Noah Dobbertin, Andrea Gilebarto, Dharina Rathod, Samantha Cecere and Quinn Schrader.
Awards were also given out for vocal and instrumental achievement and citizenship.
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia today honored a dozen students from Notre Dame High School today for academic and artistic achievement.
Receiving awards were: Ethan Osborne, Vocal Performance; James Farmer, Instrumental Performance; and Bryan Moscicki, who received the Citizenship Award.
The top academics in the senior class are Luca Charles Zambito, John William Sutherland, Emily J. Sherman, Jessica Lynn Bukowski, Nichol Marie Salvador, Emily Elizabeth Fischer, Joseph Thomas Bergman, Stephanie Lynn Pingrey, Cindy Sophia Skalny and Bryan Alexander Moscicki.
Several parents of the students also attended today's lunch.
Students from Batavia High School will be honored next Thursday.
Sheriff Gary Maha was honored for his 49 years in local law enforcement at the annual Criminal Justice Awards dinners sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia and held at Batavia Country Club.
For details on the awards, click here.
Batavia Police Officer James M. DeFreze, nominated by the YWCA (Director Jeanne Walton, who is also this year's president of the Kiwanis, in the background) for his work with victims of domestic violence.
State Police investigators Ronald Wilson and Michael Sims were honored for their work on a four-county burglary investigation. Also pictured, in the middle, Lt. Martin McKee, who presented the award.
Chaplain Allen A. Werk, was honored for his countless hours of volunteer service to local law enforcement and the families he is sometimes called on to serve through the Sheriff's Office.
Sarah Palermo received an Exceptional Service Award from GCASA for her volunteer work on the DWI Victims' Impact Panel.
David Saleh was honored for his years of volunteer coaching with mock trial teams.
The keynote speech was delivered by Thomas A. Belein, chairman of the NYS Commission of Corrections.
Attorney Ben Bonarigo, president of the Genesee County Bar Association, was emcee.
The Pembroke Mock Trial Team, which won this year's competition.
Press release:
Kiwanis Club President Jeanne Walton and Genesee County Bar Association Benjamin Bonarigo, Sr. announced the awards during an annual dinner held at Batavia Country Club on Thursday, April 28, 2016. The speaker at the dinner was Hon. Thomas A. Belein, Chairman of the New York State Commission of Correction.
Kiwanis Criminal Justice Award
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia Criminal Justice Award is presented to a member or members of the community, law enforcement, or a criminal justice agency serving the citizens of Genesee County whose exceptional career achievements and conscientiousness to citizenship have demonstrated a spirit of selfless public service or demonstrated an act of exceptional valor or heroism.
Police Officer James M. DeFreze, City of Batavia Police Department
Police Officer James M. DeFreze has been a member of the City of Batavia Police Department since 2010. He serves as a Field Training Officer and Crisis negotiator while remaining very active with all of the department’s community events. This past December, Officer DeFreze spearheaded and helped organize the department’s first ever Shop-with-a-Cop Event in conjunction with Wal-Mart of Batavia. The event was a huge success and reached every school district in the county. Officer DeFreze has gone above and beyond routine assistance to
not only respond to victims of domestic violence but to make them comfortable and secure with the way in which he treats them. Officer DeFreze has demonstrated a depth of knowledge and understanding of the very dynamics of domestic violence. This has enabled him to appropriately respond to each victim’s fragile emotions with amazing sensitivity, tact and patience. His concern for domestic violence victims is unsurpassed. Police Officer DeFreze was nominated for this award by Justina Garner, YWCA Program Manager for Domestic Violence, and Holly Baxter, YWCA Program Manager – Care & Crisis Helpline.
Investigators Ronald W. Wilson and Michael D. Sims, New York State Police
In August of 2015, the State Police BCI (Bureau of Criminal Investigations) adopted a burglary investigation in the Town of Darien. Throughout the following weeks, additional burglaries were reported to the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office as well as the New York State Police. Investigators Wilson and Sims worked diligently on all of the complaints in an effort to connect them and identify the perpetrators through evidence, interviews, and the sharing of intelligence with their counterparts at the Sheriff’s Office. Similar daytime residential burglaries were occurring in Erie and Niagara Counties. Wilson and Sims met with representatives of the agencies involved and together they formulated a plan to monitor and eventually arrest the suspects. In October, four suspects were arrested and charged with more than 30 residential burglaries spanning four counties in Western New York. Two of the defendants were additionally charged for their confession to an armed robbery that occurred earlier in the year. Investigators Ronald W. Wilson and Michael D. Sims were nominated for this award by Major Steven A. Nigrelli, Troop Commander, Troop A.
Charles L. Mancuso Mock Trial Award
The “Charles L. Mancuso Award” was presented to the members of the Pembroke High School Mock Trial Team as winners of the 2016 GLOW (Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming Counties) District Competition in the New York State Bar Association High School Mock Trial Tournament. The award reads “Dedicated to the Memory of an Outstanding Attorney-Citizen”, Mr. Mancuso, a Batavia lawyer, served as coordinator of the local competition until his untimely death nine years ago. The Pembroke High School team members honored at the dinner include: Alison Reiner, Kilian Lewis, Matthew Reeb, Sophia Zwolinski, Samuel Lang, Kassandra Sanner, Seth Librock, Tyler Wood, Johnathon Doud, Bethany Zwolinski, Eli Fox and Coach Paul L. Schuler, Jr. Coordinator of the local Mock Trial Program, Kristie DeFreze, and Genesee County Bar Association President Benjamin Bonarigo, Sr. presented the award.
Genesee County Bar Association SPECIAL PRESENTATION
David Saleh
Attorney Mary Ann Wiater made a special presentation to David Saleh on behalf of the Genesee County Bar Association. Mr. Saleh has been a mock trial coach at Pembroke since the high school first started to compete. The success of a high school team many times is determined by attorney coaches who dedicate valuable time, spending innumerable evening hours and countless weekends to assist the team of students. The students of Pembroke high school are very fortunate to have had the dedication from David who is one of the finest advocates in the legal profession. He coached his children when they attended high school, and even though his children have long since graduated, David continues to coach. David believes in the Mock Trial program and in the value it provides to the students of Pembroke. Because of David, Pembroke has never been without an attorney coach, and under his tutelage, Pembroke has made it to the regional competition twice.
Genesee/Orleans Council on Substance Abuse (GCASA) Award
Sheila Harding, Prevention Educator/VIP Coordinator for GCASA, presented the Exceptional Service Award to Sarah Palermo. Sarah attends almost every monthly DWI/Victim Impact Panel as a member where she shares her experiences and personal story of her daughter being a victim of a drunk driving crash. Sarah not only speaks on the Genesee County Panel but on other surrounding county panels. She demonstrates respect and genuine kindness towards GCASA staff and the offenders who attend the panel. Sarah is always willing to volunteer her time to speak for the panel, and speakers like her are the true reason why our DWI/Victim Impact Panel makes an impact in our community.
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia hosts its annual spaghetti dinner from noon to 3 p.m., Sunday, at the YWCA, 301 North St., Batavia.
The event benefits local children's projects.
The cost is $7 per person and includes spaghetti and meatballs, salad, Italian bread, lemonade, coffee or tea and dessert.
Pictured, Matt Landers, Shanon Ford, Frank Ciaccia, Jeanne Walter and Peter Guppenberger.
This morning at 9 o'clock sharp a couple hundred children set off to find 4,000 Easter eggs in Batavia's Centennial Park.
The Easter Bunny took time out from his busiest time of year to attend.
Mixed in with the thousands of eggs where three special Golden Prize eggs for each age group. Those get the winner a chocolate bunny from Oliver's Candies.
Submitted photo. Information from Matt Landers.
These K-Kids -- little Kiwanis -- recently helped stuff more than 4,000 plastic eggs for the big Easter Egg Hunt sponsored by the Batavia Kiwanis Club.
It will be held this Saturday, March 26, at Centennial Park in the City of Batavia and starts at 9 a.m. sharp.
There will be three age groups -- 0-3, 4-7, and 8-10 -- with three Golden Prize eggs in each age group. The Golden Prize eggs get the winner a chocolate bunny from Oliver's Candies.
Standing in the back row, from left, is Mrs. Case, the St. Joe's teacher who is the K-Kids coordinator, Matt Landers and Jeanne Walton. That fuzzy critter with the big whiskers and floppy ears is none other than the Easter Bunny, who was very enthusiastic about the preparation project.
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia, with the support of the Salvation Army, along with supporting volunteers handed out nearly 100 gift baskets to local families at the YWCA on Wednesday evening.
This is the first year local Kiwanians organized the holiday gift program for families identified through schools and social service agencies.
The holiday totes contained food, candy, toys, games and vouchers for a free turkey along with all the other fixings that go with a traditional Christmas Day dinner. The families also received a ready-made piecrust and the fillings for baking a pie. Children received winter gloves and a book donated by the Richmond Memorial Library.
Santa visited and children could share their wishes for Christmas and the family will receive a free 8x10 print of the children with Santa.
Financial support game from numerous local businesses.
Pictured are some of the people who helped with the project. From left, front row, Jeanne Walton, Jacob Lewis, Pete Guppenberger, Patti Pacino, Mark Lewis; Middle row, Patricia Kurtz, Katie Landers, Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, Kristi Tretter, Jim Pacino, Mike Rimmer; Back row: Matt Landers, Cindy Baldwin, Jonathan Tretter.
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia will host its annual free Thanksgiving Day skate at the Falleti Ice Arena starting at 9 a.m.
The event ends at 11 a.m.
Free skate rentals while supplies last, and free hot chocolate.
On Saturday, the Batavia Kiwanis Club hosts one of its most popular events, Pancake Days, this time for the 58th consecutive year.
Pancake Days are from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the ARC Community Center on Woodrow Road, Batavia. The price is $6 for adults, $4 for children 10 and under, and $4 for senior citizens.
Pictured are committee members Theresa Asmus-Roth, Susan Maha, Lawrence Friedman and Jeanne Walton.
Press release:
Kevin Carlson from the Warsaw Kiwanis Club presents a $1,000 check to Jeanne Walton, president of the Kiwanis Club of Batavia. The check is a donation the Warsaw club is making to the JFCAC (Justice for Children Advocacy Center) Glow Foundation as part of the 5th Annual Bidding on a Brighter Future Auction and Gala which was hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia on Sept. 19th.
The event was part of a long-term effort by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia to raise the funds necessary to acquire a permanent home for the Justice for Children Advocacy Center in Batavia. The Kiwanis Club of Batavia would like to thank the Warsaw Kiwanis Club as well as everyone else who donated money and volunteered their time for another successful gala.
Jeanne Walton, center, was installed Thursday night as the new president of the Kiwanis Club of Batavia. Walton is executive director of the YWCA. Theresa Asmus-Roth, left, is now the immediate past president. The installation of officers was conducted during the club's President's Night dinner at Larry's Steakhouse by District Lt. Governor Anne Kelly.
The Kiwanis Club of Pembroke/Corfu/Darien hosted its annual classic car show at Pembroke Town Park today.
The Kiwanis Club of Batavia hosted its fifth annual Bidding on a Brighter Future Gala last night at the Genesee Community College Forum, with David Bellavia (top photo) serving as emcee.
Information is not yet available on how much was raised and whether that amount helped the club achieve its five-year goal of raising $150,000 for the Child Advocacy Center/Justice for Children.
The organizing committee, Jocelyn Sikorski, Anne Bezon, Jeanne Walton, Susan Maha, Gary Maha and Shannon Ford. Not pictured, Lawrence Friedman.
Batavia resident, decorated Iraq War veteran, author and former congressional candidate David Bellavia (center) will be the emcee for the annual Bidding on a Brighter Future Gala at Genesee Community College on Sept. 19.
The annual event is a fundraiser organized by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia to benefit the Child Advocacy Center and Justice for Children. In its fifth year, organizers expect to cap the initial goal of raising $150,000 for a new CAC center. The CAC is now in quarters on East Main Street and the money may be used for rehabilitation of that facility.
The event is in the Forum starting at 5:30 p.m. and includes live, silent and basket auctions, entertainment and food. Tickets are $50 per person or $400 for a table of 10.
To make a donation, become a sponsor or purchase tickets, visit GLOWGala.org.
With Bellavia in the photo, District Attorney Lawrence Friedman and CAC supervisor Anne Bezon.
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