Steve Johnson, Justin Calarco-Smith, and Josh Smith at H.E. Turner in Batavia. Photo by Howard Owens
NOTE: This is the seventh of seven stories The Batavian will publish today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) about this year's Chamber of Commerce award winners. The awards will be presented on Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. Tickets are still available for the event.
Steve Johnson clearly remembered the time he was working with a family whose loved one had died when his professional role as a funeral director became very personal.
His own father died during that time. He continued to carry out that family’s requests. There were two days of calling hours, and another director walked in carrying a card. Johnson wondered why he didn’t just put it into the box with the others, but instead, the card was handed to Johnson.
“He said, ‘you should read it now.’ It was a sympathy card from the other family,” a teary-eyed Johnson said during an interview at H.E. Turner in Batavia. “Every time I see her, I get a huge hug. We really do start to become friends. It’s kind of nice to have a personal relationship with them. I think fundamentally, losing Dad made me a better funeral director.”
It’s stories like that — likely hundreds of them over the years — stories of how something like a funeral business can forge bonds, deeper understandings, insight, and friendships well past when the casket has closed.
Those relationships and related service are what have earned H.E. Turner, the oldest continuously operator-owned business in Genesee County, the Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award, to be presented Saturday evening at Batavia Downs.
Turner was founded 115 years ago and continues today with owners Johnson, Justin Calarco-Smith and Joshua Smith.
While family clients will always see the directors impeccably dressed and ready to serve the varied requests — which have included wearing a particular jeans-and-shirt outfit and putting certain candy atop the casket —these guys might be hustling around in their socks with no shoes on vacuuming and prepping the West Main Street site for the next set of calling hours.
They don’t want anything to be askew or troubling for the family, even when that might mean nervously waiting for an urn to arrive when it wasn’t delivered as promised or having a company switch the top and bottom of a casket with another on-site so that they match perfectly for the order.
“It has to be perfect, 100% of the time,” Johnson said. “We have high expectations; we cannot overstate our expectations.”
Unlike his two colleagues, Johnson is a first-generation funeral director who has known he wanted to get involved in this industry since he was a teen. He watched how a director handled the death of his grandpa — in a way that was “dignified and healing” — and that clinched the deal.
“I knew this is what I was going to do with my life,” said Johnson, who has been at this for 18 years full-time. “It’s strange to say this career path is rewarding given what we’re doing here, but it is rewarding because our most fundamental job is to facilitate grief. It used to be the reverend or the reverend clergy who facilitated the grief, and now, with the emergence of people falling away from church, we are the keepers of the rituals. So, our most fundamental task when a family comes to us is to facilitate grief.
“The family who, believe it or not, only spent three days with you, maybe they don’t remember any of it,” Johnson said. “But the next time they have a need, they don’t just pick up the phone and call Turner’s; they pick up the phone and call Steve, and that is very rewarding.”
Former owner Jim Smith died in August 2023 and transferred ownership to his two sons, Justin and Josh, along with trusted friend and employee Randy McIntire, who has since transferred his interest to Johnson.
Similar to Johnson’s personal experience with the death of a loved one, Justin said that it altered his perspective of the process.
“I have a better understanding now when they’re sitting over there, across the desk, on the other side of the table, in dealing with other families and going forward,” he said.
When Justin graduated from high school and went to Geneseo State College, he had no intentions to return to the area or get involved in his father’s business. Then, a guy named Bob Bailey asked what his dad did for a living, and he told him.
“He said, ‘Didn't you ever consider doing this?’ I said no. He said, ‘I think you'd be good at it.’ I called my dad from college. I said, ‘I’m thinking about wanting to enter the business. What do you think about that?” he said. “And this was in my spring semester, my freshman year. And so I came home over college break during Christmas, and I worked my first funeral; the rest is kind of history. I worked the winter break of 1991, came home after my freshman year and worked here for him part-time. And then I also worked at Darien Lake that summer. And then, from that point forward, this is the only job I've ever had.”
He didn’t want to get too cliche but he really does feel as though it was a calling — a profession and passion meant for him now for more than 28 years.
“I think this job was chosen for me,” he said. “I generally love what I do. I enjoy getting up and coming to work most mornings … Every day has been unique and different around here. Because the basic principle of what we do is that we help people at their absolute lowest, darkest, worst times and we’re able to kind of allow them to take steps forward in their grief journey.”
Back to the rewards — it’s about allowing families to move through that process and then be able to just breathe and talk after all of those funeral arrangements are done, Josh said. Yes, it’s about forming a connection with a little something extra.
“Whether you see this family member six months or six years after the service, they remember something. They come give you a hug. They come give you a handshake. I like the conversations with families after calling hours or a funeral ends when you can just talk. They talk about the day, they talk about the week,” he said. “You kind of get them away from the business side of it, where we're sitting across making arrangements, and just get to know them, get to know a little bit more about their family. They ask you about yours. It's the relationships that you develop with these people that's very, very rewarding. I keep on saying that it is the handshake or the hugs you get at the end of the day that make it worth it.”
The H.E. Turner story began in January of 1910, when Harry Ernest Turner, a native of Clarendon, and Harry D. Bartlett of Holley bought the Williamson Furniture and Undertaking Store.
The furniture and funeral combination wasn’t unusual at the time. Historians believe early furniture stores carried coffins and other funeral accessories, which made them a natural link to the funeral business.
Turner, who worked 10 years in a furniture store in Holley before purchasing the Batavia store, published a weekly newspaper, The Holley Standard, as a sideline. Bartlett served as Orleans County Clerk in the early 1900s, and the pair also had a joint interest in stores in Byron and Holley, which they sold a few years after they came to Batavia.
H.E. Turner & Co. was operated at 111 Main St., the former Newberry Building, until 1921, when it was moved to the Cary Mansion at 211 East Main St. Fourteen years later, the firm moved to the Bean Mansion at 403 East Main St., where it remains today.
In August 2023, Turner’s owners completed a deal with T.J. Woodward to take on Gilmartin Funeral Home & Cremation Company, Inc., leaving Woodward in place as funeral director at Gilmartin and others to retain their roles at Eaton-Watson and Marley funeral homes as part of the deal. Turner also owns Robinson and Hackemer Funeral Home in Warsaw.
Owners of H.E. Turner & Co., Inc. Funeral Home was named as a Selected Independent Funeral Homes member in October 2024, an honor that “lets all prospective customers know who they can trust,” Johnson had said at the time.
It would seem as though the Chamber’s selection committee agrees.
NOTE: This is the fourth of seven stories The Batavian will publish today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) about this year's Chamber of Commerce award winners. The awards will be presented on Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. Tickets are still available for the event.
A talk with Peggy Marone, longtime director of Leadership Genesee, first meant a history lesson of her parents’ impressive local civic and professional lives: dad was chief pharmacist, the only one, at the former Genesee Memorial Hospital, and mom was a teacher of grades four and six at St. Anthony’s and became the hospital’s medical librarian.
Her mom, the late Esther Marone, was instrumental in the founding of Literacy Volunteers in Genesee County — by now, one may wonder what any of that has to do with Peggy’s recent accolade from the county’s Chamber of Commerce. While these people certainly served as role models and inspiration for her, they also delayed the inevitable for the modest leader, preferring to give credit to others than to herself.
"I knew that a very important value for me was fair and equitable. I put those two words together because it's really something that, it's been a touchstone of mine for a long, long time,” she said during an interview with The Batavian, sharing that’s in part how her folks influenced her. “When people aren't treated fairly or equitably, it really rubs me wrong. So I knew I wanted to do something along those lines.”
There will be no evading the limelight during the Wolcott “Jay” Humphrey III Excellence in Community Leadership Award presentation on Saturday during this year’s 53rd annual Chamber Awards Ceremony at Batavia Downs.
Named after Humphrey, who was president of the former Wyoming County Bank, this award exemplifies how he was extremely involved in the community as a volunteer who encouraged his employees to develop a commitment to volunteerism and community. He was a visionary who could see the big picture and made real improvements to his passionate beliefs, chamber staff said.
Marone remembers when she met him, albeit for how briefly they knew each other.
“He was pretty instrumental in getting Leadership Genesee going,” she said. “The next day, he died. I served on the Humphrey Symposium Committee for one or two years.”
After high school, Marone went on to St. Bonaventure for psychology (if for no better reason than because a guy she was dating was a psych major, she said), and it would seem as though all of those courses paid off in how she relates to people.
She got into Human Resources “by accident” and discovered how, in lieu of being the big boss talking to a group from the front of the room, she wanted to “draw out of people” their personalities, thoughts, and gifts.
“I learned how to get the best out of people,” she said.
Marone had a string of jobs, opening up hotels, finessing her organization skills, working in Human Resources for Chapin and at Marriott in Amherst.
“Whatever I was doing, I was learning. It was as if the stars aligned,” she said of the offer to take on Leadership Genesee. “I tell people all the time I've looked at everything I've done, I may not have gone after a job specifically because I thought, Oh, that's it. That's the one I want. Except this one. This was the one that I knew was what my life had been preparing me for.”
Was there a learning curve, or did you take the ball and run with it? “That's a good question because when I started, my marching orders were to run it like my own business. There was really no template. What I started off doing was spending time with the other leadership programs, leadership Buffalo, Rochester, Niagara, and I would go and spend a day with them on their day session and watch what they did. What did their agenda look like, how did they interface with their participants? How do you keep your alumni involved? I just went and asked tons of questions of everybody,” she said. “And then when the first class graduated, I interviewed every single one of them, and I asked them how the year went for them. What were the hits, what were the misses? How did it affect you personally, and where do you think we should go with this?
"So I knew I had to develop an organization. So I had committees from the first class and design teams, and we would write learning outcomes and goals and action plans," she said. "And so we kept ourselves really on track to create things for the next year. So we recruited a class. You know, we just did one thing after another, left, right, left, right is what we did.”
She tried to glean the best advice from leadership directors in those neighboring counties, while staying true to what Genesee County needed. Those groups had memberships of up to 90, which Marone deemed too large to be valuable for each participant, so class size was kept to 30.
As she likes to say: “left, right, left, right.” Just put one foot in front of the other and keep going.
Talk about trial by fire — Marone began the day before 9/11. Not only was that a frightening and confusing time for folks, but also a difficult period to begin a fundraising program and rally people’s motivation.
“I had to double my efforts and ask people not to give up on us,” she said at her second-floor office. “I was always recruiting. I've recruited out this window, because we had some guys working out here. One of them had been an alum. His brother was out here with him. I opened the window. I said, 'Who is this?' That's my brother Pork. Pork, when are you gonna do Leadership Genesee, your brother went through Leadership Genesee, when are you? And he did.”
Those dreadful Covid days were the most rough and tumble of them all, she said, but they continued on — left, right, left, right — having Zoom sessions with “wear a funny hat” day and other silly things to keep morale up and for a laugh, she said.
Primary goals are to encourage their leader within and recognize their own value system, she said. Attendance dipped during the pandemic, and it’s already back up to steady numbers of 25 to 30 per class.
What has been key to the success of the program? “All the alumni,” she said. “So we pretty much get new alumni that join committees or stay on or participate. It’s a core group that enjoys what they’re doing.”
As for her values, those terms “fair and equitable” have been a touchstone to guide her path. That’s what instantly drew her to become a “Star Trek” fan in college, watching episodes in the skeller with a beer after dinner.
“Because of the diversity and inclusiveness,” she said, her back to her computer’s Trekkie screen saver. “They were so brave to do that in (the 1970s). It was awesome. I really like people. I really do, and I care very much about them. I care very much about, you know, how people view themselves. I always want them to feel good about themselves.”
Leadership is a year-long class that provides people with opportunities to network, volunteer, and learn about the county and its offerings while encouraging each individual’s leader within.
“And the biggest thing is … what is your value system and how do you live the values that you have?” she said. “I don't think people think about their value system either, but that's my organizational development kind of mind and HR mind that I encourage people to do that.”
There are 627 graduates so far, and each class is framed and hung on Marone’s office wall, and hand-decorated beads, strung together and sitting in a bowl on her desk, represent each of those class members that represent a success story.
What do you get out of this? “Oh my gosh. A real sense of accomplishment. I mean, if I can affect one person's outlook on themselves to be more positive, to help them, you know, help connect dots for them, I mean, that's awesome. It’s really about them,” she said. “And for the community, I want to see Genesee County be in a better place as much as possible, so it keeps going for the generations to come.”
She lives with her daughter Nikole Marone in Batavia and also works part-time as a business manager at St. Joseph’s Regional School.
NOTE: This is the third of seven stories The Batavian will publish today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) about this year's Chamber of Commerce award winners. The awards will be presented on Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. Tickets are still available for the event.
The secret to success isn't complicated, the way Jeff Heubusch explains it: Offer people a good product at a fair price with a friendly smile, and they will keep coming back.
That's what he and his crew at Southside Deli have done for more than 35 years.
His assistant manager, Denny Schultz, who has worked at Southside for 24 years, explained it best.
"He's consistent," Schultz said. "He's here all the time. He lives at the store. If anyone comes in from the community, they know how hard he works. He's compassionate for his customers. He's instilled it in me, as well. You want every customer to feel welcome and special. You learn their names. You get a good rapport with returning customers."
It's that commitment and that success that led to Southside Deli being named Genesee County's Small Business of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce.
Heubusch said the award is a big honor that recognizes the reputation Southside has gained in the community.
"This side of town has always had a bad rap kind of reputation in the community, and I don't see that. I see compassion. I see humble people who just need to be accepted," Heubusch said. "It's definitely changed over the years, but for the better."
The store, as any regular knows, represents Batavia's diversity. Every segment of Batavia's community visits the store daily, either for a sub, snacks, drinks, or some essential grocery item.
That wasn't an aspect of the business Heubusch necessarily anticipated when he bought the location more than three decades ago but it's a big part of what he enjoys about the business.
"I think over the years, it has become a passion. It's something you have to grow into," Heubusch said. "When I came into this business, I didn't know much. Everything was trial and error. You listen to your customers and get their needs, get them in here, and give them a fair price. It's and they come back. People don't want just a deli; it's a place you can go to, and everybody's happy. It's just a great atmosphere. And we developed that over the years, and I got great help here. They're compassionate, they care."
As a young man, Heubusch spent 12 years working in a salt mine. He only quit when a mining accident nearly took his life.
His year-long recuperation gave him time to reflect and reassess what he wanted to do with his life.
Heubusch, the son of a miner, purchased Southside Deli two years before the accident. He kept his mining job even as he tried to build the deli business. Digging out the salt of the earth so motorists could drive on de-iced asphalt offered Heubusch a sense of security not available to entrepreneurs. He didn't want to give up that steady paycheck and good benefits while trying to build his own business.
While convalescing, Heubusch said to himself, "Am I going to lay on this couch the rest of my life and live on comp or Social Security disability?"
"Once I was able to get around and be productive, that's when I said, really, 'it's all or nothing.' "
Born in Wyoming County, Heubusch graduated from Warsaw High School in 1977. He was 17 and couldn't get a job, so he went to work in his mother's upholstery business.
When he turned 18, he got his first job in a salt mine.
He was laid off, rehired, laid off and rehired again a couple of times over the next few years. During that time, he also worked for U.S. Gypsum and Le Roy Machine.
He bought a house in Batavia, and when he started working in the mine again, his daily commute took him down Ellicott Street.
Every day, he would drive past Southside Deli (Heubusch kept the name from the previous owner; In the 19th Century, it was Ebling Meat Market and the location has always been some sort of market).
On the second floor of the building is a balcony. As he drove by each day, Heubusch would see a for sale sign hanging from the balcony rail.
That got his mind working.
"I'd see it and think to myself, 'Man, I'd love to work for myself.' I kept seeing that, fueling my idea of what I would do if I owned that."
There's a reason working in a salt mine is a metaphor in our culture's lexicon for arduous work. It's hard labor.
In flush times, Heubusch worked 10 to 12-hour days, seven days a week.
"There were days I never saw daylight."
One day, finally, he called a realtor and got the ball rolling.
Escrow closed Aug. 10, 1989. Heubusch opened Southside Deli for the first time under his ownership four days later.
Besides figuring out the deli business and making a great meal, Heubusch learned how to hire the right help, people who naturally walk in with good attitudes and friendly smiles.
"I've got my hardcore of people, but people graduate from high school, they go to college, they move out of the area, they get married, but for the most part, I've got a very good core of employees that actually help the newbies," Heubusch said. "All my employees who have ever left said this was like their favorite job. They were young, and they would learn. They would become more social. They would learn the aspects of how business works and be able to talk to people, and it was a very, very great learning experience for them, and they moved on. I've got people who worked here who are now doctors and lawyers."
Schultz said he and the rest of the Southside crew are proud to see the deli get recognition from the Chamber.
"It's huge, especially for him, you know, but for us too, especially a lot of us long-standing people," Schultz said. "It's almost like validation of just how hard he's worked, and we've worked to be a successful business. We're Team Deli."
Tom, Tracy, Spencer, and Michael Gadd. Photo by Howard Owens.
NOTE: This is the second of seven stories The Batavian will publish today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) about this year's Chamber of Commerce award winners. The awards will be presented on Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. There are tickets still available to the event.
In every sense of the term, Alexander Equipment, 3266 Buffalo St., Alexander, is a family business.
"The only problem with our industry is that it's gotten where all these big companies have gotten bigger, and people are just numbers," said Tom Gadd, second-generation co-owner. "They've lost their touch. I mean, it's really just like texting. I don't get into texting. I'd rather talk to somebody. You know, it's just because it's my age, but people like to deal with people, and people don't realize it anymore. Everybody's not just a number. I mean, I know some of these bigger companies employees that are there, they're like, 'We're just numbers there. We're a spot to fill it.’ I mean, it's just they lose that closeness, I guess. So, maybe you've seen it in your business, I don't know, but it's just nice when it's smaller and people know everybody a little bit better."
Gadd's parents, with the support of their parents, purchased Alexander Garage in 1972. Gadd and his brothers grew up in the business. Today, the business is run by Tom, his wife Tracy, and sons Spencer and Michael (Tom and Tracy also have two adult daughters, Taylor and Emily).
Spencer and Michael also grew up in the business and came back to it after graduating from college. Michael has a degree in engineering, and Spencer has an MBA.
“The boys are coming in. They've got different ideas and are much better with technology," Tracy said. "Their whole generation is good with advertising on Instagram and all of those things, and they're much better with new ideas of how to do things. But I feel like we have a pretty good mix as far as hanging on to our core values and what grandma and grandpa instilled in mom and dad and instilled in their boys, and still being able to move forward."
That attention to core values and changing with the times is among the reasons Alexander Equipment will be honored by the Chamber of Commerce on Saturday as the Agricultural Business of the Year.
Coming out of high school, Tom Gadd wasn't focused on joining the family business. He became a paramedic, a career path he enjoyed (and continued as a volunteer with the Alexander Fire Department), but 10 years into his career, his mother was diagnosed with cancer. That drew both Tom and Tracy into the business as Tom's parents stepped back.
That was in 1995. They've been running the business since.
"This wasn't the route that I was anticipating, but when mom got sick and they needed somebody, we would kind of come in and help out," Tracy said. "I did it after hours for a while, and then she decided that she probably wasn't going to come back, so I started working full time."
Tracy said Tom's grandparents always had a farm in Pembroke, and his mom grew up on the farm.
"I think they wanted to try something business-wise, a little different than farming," Tracy said. "Grandma and Grandpa, I don't think, were real involved in the day-to-day stuff. They were kind of like a silent partner. I would say Mom and Dad kind of took it and flew with it."
In the early days, Alexander Equipment was a Chalmers dealer with a focus on agriculture. Parts and repairs have always been part of the business, as well. While farmers still remain an important customer base, the residential side of the business has grown over the years, especially with Alexander Equipment carrying Kubota products.
At Alexander Equipment, employees are also part of the family.
There's Kenny, for example, in the parts department. "He's been here forever, so he's like a brother," Tom said. "A couple of his kids are Goddaughters."
For years, Alexander Equipment has had a good relationship with the high school, and some students have come to work for the shop, including one kid, now 16, who has been working there for two years.
"He's a really good kid," Tracy said.
"We have another woman who, as a young lady, helped here. She's my age, but she was in our wedding," Tracy said. "She worked here when we got married then left for a while, was raising her family, and has since come back. She works just part-time, but she knows everyone. She knows the business. She does real estate on the side. Two of their girls are our Godchildren. So it really is very family-oriented."
Tracy noted that the family feeling creates a better atmosphere for customers.
"We've got a lot of customers who have been here for a long time, and that's what we try to get when people come in. We want them to feel like they're walking into some place they know and can be comfortable at. And obviously, that's family."
The Chamber Award caught the Gadds by surprise, Tracy said.
"It was completely unexpected. We didn't know that we'd been nominated or anything else," Tracy said. "It's heartwarming. It's a little bit humbling just to know that people think of us that way and think that we're an example, I would say, or that we're good people -- it's hard to put in words. It's overwhelming, a little bit, you know. It makes you feel like you have a responsibility to do better."
NOTE: This is the first of seven stories The Batavian will publish today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) about this year's Chamber of Commerce award winners. The awards will be presented on Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. There are tickets still available to the event.
In just a handful of years, Kate Willson has established herself as a beauty entrepreneur to be reckoned with.
She has taken one business and added another a half mile down Main Street, creating hair, spa, and shopping experiences for her customers and employment for a dozen talented people in downtown Batavia.
Then again, Willson has been no stranger to the concept of putting in the effort for the rewards.
“Growing up in a blue-collar family, hard work was always modeled to me. From the moment I got my working papers, I was on a mission to work hard and earn my own money. I was always the friend that missed events or arrived late because I valued work,” she said. “To this day, I'm grateful that I was shown what it was like to work hard. From my mom to past employers, I saw women creating income and having fun doing it. I'm grateful to say my entrepreneurial spirit has always been second nature, and my businesses are a labor of love. I love getting to serve this community with amazing beauty services.”
And serve she has, with Meraki Beauty, and her more recent venture that opened in July 2024, The Beauty Lounge by Meraki. Both endeavors have earned her an impressive nod with the Chamber of Commerce’s Entrepreneurial Business of the Year Award. The chamber awards dinner is on Saturday at Batavia Downs.
According to her website, "Meraki" means “to put love, creativity and soul into everything you do.” That has been Willson’s objective with her hair salon and then the spa and boutique, which she wanted to complement the next-door neighbor of Charles Men’s Shop.
In addition to offering luxury spa services, the space has been opened up in front for a reception area and half of it is a boutique for clothing, with another portion dedicated to an assortment of pampering products such as candles, body whips and butters, delicate chains with charms and jewelry with essential oil sprays from local vendors, plus a jewelry station.
Her current philosophy is to “follow your heart and do what feels right,” she said.
“I follow that in life and in business; I believe we are all different, and we have to pivot when we feel called,” she said. “That is how all my businesses and my life have been created — following the little ideas and keeping my mind open.”
She had an open mind when first opening The Beauty Lounge, as she opted to accommodate many disgruntled customers left holding gift cards purchased from the former business that abruptly closed after the holidays. She offered a 50% value for the gift cards that were not purchased from her business. As one nomination form stated, “She is open, honest, she is loyal to her customers and will go out of her way to make you feel special and she has taught the other employees at her salon to be the same way.”
She chose the beauty industry because of her love for “building up other women.”
“Whether that’s my team or those that come to experience Meraki Beauty and The Beauty Lounge. Through my businesses in the beauty industry, I’m able to bring the community a place where women can go to feel welcome and leave feeling fully recharged and beautiful from the inside out,” she said. “That’s my favorite part of it; the amazing relationships that I have with my team and with our clients.”
Not that running your own business doesn’t have its challenges, she said. That have been many when it came to growing the first and second versions of Meraki. Launching the spa and boutique proved to be very demanding of her time, and Willson has been learning “the art of delegation” more each day, she said.
“It can be hard at first, and there have been so many skills I’ve had to learn that don’t come naturally to me. However, once you take the time as a leader to learn that each person on your team has unique strengths, knowing which tasks to pass on to others eventually becomes second nature,” she said. “Asking for help from people wiser than myself has been incredibly helpful in growing the businesses. My mom and many of my past employers have shaped me into who I am today. I am also incredibly blessed to have amazing women who sit in my chair each day, and I’m honored to draw so much wisdom from them.
“As a leader, my hope is that I'm able to help all of my employees create beautiful lives, a great work-life balance, and build a solid group of women who support each other,” she said. “Very recently, my family had a traumatic loss of a loved one, and it's never been more apparent to me how solid my team is, how much they care for each other and for me so well. This award was truly earned by every team member within our walls. They inspire me each day to keep putting in the work.”
Because it does take that hard work and doesn’t just happen by accident, she said, her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is to “know what you’re getting into before you jump in.” Do the research, talk to others who achieved the goals you’re after, start small, grow your confidence and skills and pivot as opportunities present themselves.
From the way she talks about her staff and husband, Willson also seems to have a strong support system, and she credits them all for part of her success. As she has been embraced as a positive role model for young women in her salon and for being an astute businesswoman, Willson recognizes the strength of her “amazing” workmates and life partner — her husband, who is “always down for my next idea.”
“My husband and I love bringing these elevated experiences to our local area, so I definitely could see more in time, but right now, my joke to him is that the next business is his idea and his baby because this girl is busy,” she said.
2023 Chamber of Commerce Awards recipients, back row left to right, Holland Land Office Museum and Offhaus Farms. Front row left to right, Volunteers for Animals, Michelle Gillard (center) and Alabama Hotel. Photo by Steve Ognibene
People’s lives that changed the course of either a business, farm, nonprofit, museum or volunteer efforts all experienced the common and perhaps obvious but poignant theme of having a beginning early on in their journeys, Chamber of Commerce President Brian Cousins says.
He noted that during Saturday’s Chamber Awards ceremony. Each of the award recipients, no matter their passion and involvement or cause, were connected by the phrase “it started when,” Cousins said.
Alabama Hotel’s 15 minutes of national fame in December 2022 started when owner Bonnie Woodward and manager Joe Bradt opened their doors and hearts to 120 strangers during a blizzard that stranded out-of-town motorists and only further bolstered a decades-long track record of steadfast hard work, employee contributions and good business sense.
Offhaus Farms’ growth and sustainability started when family members joined the effort, and one by one, it strengthened the business as it mushroomed from 45 cows in 1959 to 1,400 cows and 27 dedicated workers today.
The journey of Volunteers For Animals started 40 years ago when people who were determined to care for the needs of those who couldn’t speak up for themselves gained strength in numbers and purpose to become true to their namesake by working tirelessly for four-legged friends.
Holland Land Office Museum stepped into the spotlight, not as a relic of ho-hum antiquity but as an exciting new chapter in Genesee County’s history, which started when Executive Director Ryan Duffy and Curator Tyler Angora viewed it through fresh eyes and perspectives with new exhibits, programs and speakers.
Michelle Gillard’s ability to effect real change in this community started when she herself saw the need was great and that she had the ability to help and to rally others into action as well, rather than depend on someone else to get the job done.
In other words, while for each of these award recipients, there's a success story to be told, it all started with a need to be filled, and they filled it.
“Supporting them and highlighting their journeys is what the Chamber of Commerce is all about,” Cousins said during the 52nd ceremony at Batavia Downs. “I’d like to challenge each of us to soak in each honoree’s story. Each is truly humbling; it’s what makes the backbone of our county.”
The recipients each offer a drive, passion and determination that has not only made their own endeavors successful but also created another stellar lineup of award honorees, he said.
For anyone who hasn’t attended an awards ceremony, the pride and support of the audience were palpable. A packed room of more than 300 attendees participated in an evening of videos illustrating what each recipient has accomplished and how they all interact with the community, and watched humility unfold as recipients accepted their award.
History flowed throughout the evening about the origins of each business and organization, with the oldest one cited as the Holland Land Office property, established by Joseph Ellicott in 1815.
While many folks may enjoy the glitz and glam of the Oscars and Emmys, this event is a local Academy Award for people doing good in their own community’s backyard. The story of each one is listed below. All recipients thanked family, friends, community members, and/or those who nominated them, and there were challenges made as well.
In her closing remarks, Gillard quoted Mahatma Gandhi, who used nonviolent resistance to lead a successful campaign for India’s independence from British rule and asked each of the attendees to consider her appeal.
“Gandhi once said ‘the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.’ Prior to volunteering, I often felt something was missing from my life without really knowing what it was. Acts of service, kindness to others, it will fill your life and your soul in a way that you never imagined,” she said. “I challenge each of you to find a cause or an organization that speaks to you and dedicate your time there. While we're all busy giving, our time is one of the greatest gifts that we can offer. I assure you, it is also a gift you are giving to yourself. Imagine the positive impact we could create in our community if each person in this room spent an hour or two volunteering each month and encouraging others to do the same.”
Bonnie Woodward, owner of the Alabama Hotel, and Joe Bradt, general manager. Photo by Howard Owens.
NOTE: This week, The Batavian is highlighting the annual Chamber of Commerce Award winners with a story daily through Friday. The awards dinner is Saturday evening at Batavia Downs. This is the final story in the series.
Bonnie Woodward has owned the Alabama Hotel for a relatively short time, but big news events have twice already taken center stage in the restaurant's business operations.
She bought the restaurant and bar from another Woodward, Danny, in 2019, and a few months later, COVID-19 forced her to close the tavern in the town of Alabama.
Then Winter Storm Elliott on Christmas Eve 2022 brought unexpected challenges that she and manager Joe Bradt met with such cheerful charity they made national news.
"(The attention) definitely shocked me," Bradt said. "In the days afterward, all the media attention and the phone calls and the messages from people shocked me."
The attention, Woodward said, warmed her heart.
"It really does," she said. "So many people were thankful for such a simple thing that anybody should have done, you know, just open up your home to people and take care of them while they're in trouble."
What Bradt did, with Woodward's blessing and support, was let stranded travelers stay in the restaurant, providing shelter, warmth and food while the blizzard made travel conditions potentially deadly. For those 48 hours, he was the sole member of the Alabama Hotel staff on-site to take care of more than 100 stranded travelers. He prepared meals (with guests and a local resident and neighboring business owner helping) and kept guests comfortable while the storm raged around them.
The Alabama Hotel -- along with hundreds of first responders, other generous residents in Genesee County, and countless other government workers and residents -- are the reason nobody died during the storm.
That dramatic role the restaurant played during the storm, along with its long history of providing charitable support to the community, is why the Alabama Hotel is the 2023 Business of the Year for Genesee County.
Winter Storm Elliott Events started on Dec. 24 as Elliott rolled into Western New York and the Thruway Authority, with no apparent plan to ensure traveler safety, closed the I-90, forcing travelers unfamiliar with the area onto snow-covered, wind-swept two-lane roads during whiteout conditions. When travelers realized they wouldn't get far, they looked for shelter, and Google told them about the Alabama Hotel at the crossroads of Route 77 and Route 63. A hotel would be a good place to go, right?
The restaurant didn't open on Christmas Eve as planned to keep employees at home and safe during the storm. Bradt spent the morning getting things in order since the restaurant wouldn't reopen until Jan. 4.
When he was done, "I loaded up the Jeep with my Christmas dinner and Bonnie's Christmas dinner, which I was going to drop off at her house, and left here about 12:30. I didn't get a quarter mile up the road, and there was no visibility. The roads were completely covered, and there was already an accident right here," Bradt told The Batavian the day after the storm ended.
"I immediately turned around and said the safest place I can be is here for now. You know, I'll just wait it out here. No sooner did I put the key in the back door and unlock the back door than people were knocking on the front door. That didn't stop for two days."
The weather outside was vicious. Heavy, lake-effect snow blown around by 35 mph winds with 70 mph gusts. The roads were nowhere for anybody in any vehicle, let alone people unfamiliar with the area in sedans, minivans and luxury SUVs.
People came looking for a hotel. They found a friendly place with no proper guest rooms, not entirely prepared for this level of hospitality, but willing to provide shelter from the storm.
Once first responders learned the Alabama Hotel provided a warming shelter, they started shuttling stranded motorists there.
As many as 140 people passed through the restaurant over two days, with 120 staying the night on Christmas Eve.
Was it stressful?
"I don't know if stressful is the word for it," Bradt said. "I think, at times, it was overwhelming. You know, I spent some time at the bottom of the basement stairs, whether on the phone with Bonnie or with my wife or chef Swimline, getting advice from him and just crying it out, you know. I'm gonna take a few minutes for myself to figure it out. Where are we at? what's our next step? What are we doing now? You know? It wasn't just a blizzard, right? It was a blizzard in the middle of Christmas."
History The Alabama Hotel was once a key stagecoach stop between Buffalo and Rochester. It was built in 1844, and at one time, the second floor was an actual hotel. It was always a place that served meals and libations, but Woodward doesn't know when the hotel ceased being a hotel.
It has always been a community hub in the town of Alabama. At one time, it was the main meeting hall and the courthouse, as well as a venue for weddings. It's still a place where locals gather for drinks and camaraderie, even while the restaurant attracts patrons from throughout WNY.
"It's like Cheers," Woodward said. "They're really friendly, and when strangers come, they'll bring them into their fold, and they'll talk to them, and they feel comfortable. People like that."
Earl Woodward purchased the Alabama Hotel in 1956. His wife was Agness, known to friends and family as Bunny.
Earl had cancer and wanted to make sure he left behind something that could provide for and shelter his family. After he passed, Bunny, her children, and her mother, Nannie, lived upstairs in the former hotel and Bunny and Nannie ran the business.
Earl and Bunny's son Mike -- Bonnie's husband, who passed away in July -- ran the business next. Patrick Woodward ran the business from 1990 until he passed away in 2000. Danny, his son and Bonnie's nephew, ran the hotel for the next 29 years.
Bonnie bought the restaurant in 2019 to keep it in the Woodward family, though her experience didn't extend much past washing dishes in the kitchen as a youngster.
"Most of the employees are employees I inherited with the restaurant," Woodward said. "They took me under their wing and taught me the business."
Shortly after she took over, Josh Swimline approached her about a job. He already had a successful food truck but was looking for a chef's job as well.
"He's done a marvelous job in the kitchen," Woodward said.
The other thing that happened shortly after she took over the business, besides the storm, was COVID-19. Without the community's support and people buying take-out meals, the restaurant might not have survived the shutdown.
Then she hired Bradt as her general manager, just months before Winter Storm Elliott. They had known each other for years because both have been frequent volunteers in the community -- youth sports, the Lion's Club, and just about any volunteer effort in the community, they would both be there helping out.
"We both had the same goal all the time," Bradt said. "Who can we help? How can we help? So deciding to come here and work with Bonnie was easy."
To the uninitiated, the location of the Alabama Hotel might seem rather isolated for a restaurant to be as popular and as successful as it has been for all these years. Bradt said it comes down to the food.
"I'm surprised by the amount of people, with the amount of good food in Buffalo, who come this way," Bradt said. "I'm surprised at the number of people that come this way versus going that way."
Woodward said the restaurant's fame has mostly spread by word of mouth.
"People say, 'We've always heard about this place, and I wanted to just stop and see what it was like,'" Woodward said. "During the summer, a lot of people would walk the refuge (the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge) and birdwatch and all that other stuff, and then they would stop here for lunch or dinner."
Good Food and Friendly Ambiance The restaurant is also a popular destination for bikers in the summer and snowmobilers (when there is snow) in the winter.
The Alabama Hotel has always been known for its fish fries, chicken and biscuits, and it's also taken on a reputation far and wide for its salad bar, Wednesday night pizza night, prime rib on Thursdays, and the swamp burger, which is a hamburger with cajun seasoning, mushrooms, onions, and American cheese.
The fish fry, Bradt said, remains something special and also illustrates the care they put into meal preparation.
"We've have half a dozen suppliers, Bradt said. "We will stop at no end to find the best quality fish and the rest of the ingredients. We've tried different things, and we go with quality. Quality might cost us a little bit more, but quality is our number one goal."
The publicity from Winter Storm Elliott has helped business, too. Woodward said business is up more than 60 percent since the storm. Bradt said he gets stopped by customers in the restaurant regularly to let him know they heard about what he and the restaurant did to help out travelers.
And on Saturday comes one of the county's most prestigious honors, Business of the Year from the Chamber of Commerce, and Woodward and Bradt are both a little surprised by it. They're also honored because, to them, it doesn't just represent that single 48-hour event. It represents what the Alabama Hotel has meant to the community for so many decades and that through turmoil and change, it's still a popular place for food and friendship.
Because of the awards ceremony at Batavia Downs, the restaurant will be closed on Saturday. Bonnie Woodward booked six tables so 48 people could attend, including nearly all of the employees and "diehard" customers, as well as members of the Woodward family.
"It's really important to us to make sure that the employees feel included in this," Bradt said. "It's more than just the blizzard, you know. Without our employees and our staff and the people who continue to come through those doors every day, whether it's to grab a quick burger or have a drink, the doors wouldn't be open."
Batavia resident Michelle Gillard, recipient of this year's Geneseean of the Year Award, and many of her cherished keepsakes from mission trips are below. Photo by Howard Owens
NOTE: This week, The Batavian is highlighting the annual Chamber of Commerce Award winners with a story each day through Friday. The awards dinner is Saturday evening at Batavia Downs.
It took traveling thousands of miles from home to realize how much need there was right in her own backyard, Michelle Gillard says.
And from that point on, she’s been on a nonstop mission to help out locally.
“When I was growing up on South Jackson, we didn’t have a lot; my parents weren’t wealthy; we lived paycheck to paycheck, but we never wanted for anything. I never had to worry about where my next meal was coming from, I had a roof over my head, we were taken care of as kids, my parents were hard workers,” Gillard said during an interview with The Batavian. “I was honestly pretty oblivious to the need and unfortunate lifestyles other people had to endure. I didn’t know there was homelessness, I didn’t know there were people that didn’t have meals; I was very naive to all of that. It all kind of turned for me when I went on a mission trip in 2018 to Africa with the Young Living Foundation.”
She and her group washed people’s feet full of jiggers, which are parasitic sand fleas, hung mosquito nets in remote villages, and observed “the real-life tragedy of human trafficking” before their very eyes, she said.
“So when I came home from that trip, I think I had PTSD, I was a little shell-shocked,” she said. “It really opened my eyes, too. There’s a whole lot of need in this world that I didn’t realize was there. And I started digging in more around our community.”
After that first mission trip, she went on a couple more, including to Puerto Rico, still devastated by a hurricane two years earlier. That’s what prompted her own local missions that just “kind of morphed,” she said.
Her dad, Louie, that kind of guy who would stop and help you out if stuck on the side of the road, gets some of the credit. If you ever needed something in the neighborhood, “he just went and helped you,” she said. She watched her father as he became a true role model and mentor for giving back. He didn’t want any money; it was “just something he did.”
So naturally, Gillard gravitated to groups that did likewise, such as the Batavia Business & Professional Women’s Club, which has raised money to hand out scholarships to students or donate to Genesee Cancer Assistance and Crossroads House to help them continue their missions.
Gillard admits to straddling the line of extremes after returning home from Africa. She wanted to clear her entire home of all material possessions, similar to how people lived so meagerly there. They had one room and few items, and yet seemed happy, she said. They appreciated the simple things in life and found them more meaningful.
“I said, ‘We’re doing everything wrong.’ How wasteful we are,” she said.
That experience shifted her perspective to the point where Gillard became a regular volunteer, first for Habitat for Humanity and then the Salvation Army, theBatavia Business & Professional Women’s Club and Batavia Girls Fastpitch Softball.
It is for her community service over the years and involvement with these organizations that Gillard has been named the recipient of this year’s Geneseean of the Year Award from the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce.
When asked why she thinks it took a trip to Africa to expose her to the need here, Gillard paused only a few seconds.
“I was really blind and naive to all of it,” she said. “ I’ve always been in a two-income family; money was never something we had to worry about. It opened my eyes. Until I started looking, I can help the world for as many people as I possibly can.”
She’s a collector — not of figurines and knick-knacks — but, rather, diapers and soaps and shampoos on sale. Then, she gathers the items and donates them to people or places that can use them.
“I like to collect things. It's funny, I don't keep that stuff, but I collect food for people, or I collect diapers for people, or I collect whatever it is. I run this kind of almost drives. I collect whatever it is in as big of a quantity as we can, and then we get it where it needs to go. It's just, to me, it’s, I don't know, I just enjoy doing it,” she said, naming one of her favorite programs. “The Salvation Army Christmas program. Those really hit, so people come in, and we take their application, and we get their needs, and a few wants for the children. But a lot of those scenarios are a grandmother got her three grandkids two weeks before Christmas or a month before Christmas because dad's in jail and OD’d on drugs, or you know a woman left a domestic violence situation and is now living in a hotel with her three kids. I get very attached to it because I try to put myself in that situation, and it's heartbreaking.
“I delivered presents and a Christmas meal to a lady at the Red Roof, and I can't imagine being in a hotel with my kids on Christmas like that. There are so many families, and so many donations are needed. I put a post out, and we got hundreds of donations. The universe or God provides,” she said. “Volunteers are such great people. Whenever you hear somebody complain about Batavia, it angers me -- just do something small for somebody; it fills your soul. Neighbors help neighbors. We need it so badly, whether it’s holding the door for somebody or paying for someone’s coffee.”
Bobbi Norton was one of the people who nominated Gillard for this award, and she said that as she thought about the letter she'd write, "Unlimited thoughts enhance all the fine qualities that Michelle possesses, filling my heart and mind with nothing but good words and thoughts."
"I had the opportunity to meet Michelle through the Batavia Business and Professional Women's Club several years ago. Not only did she welcome me with a warm, friendly smile, she was there to support me and provide any answers to my questions. We have now become good friends and work collaboratively on the BBPW Board of Directors," Norton said. "There are unlimited activities within the Batavia community and the Genesee Region that Michelle has supported over the years. She is currently extremely active with the Salvation Army, dedicating countless hours to ensure that families and individuals receive a little gift and/or food at Christmastime and all year long. She's a bell-ringer, planner, organizer, gift wrapper, you name it -- she does it, all while wearing a smile in even the most stressful, overwhelming times.
Michelle also has professional connections with Genesee County Youth programs, A Day of Caring, serving as a judge for Mr. Batavia, Project Stork, as a former finance director for Batavia Middle School Parent Boosters, and is treasurer for the Batavia Business and Professional Women's Club, Norton said. The list goes on and on, she said.
Furthermore, Michelle just coordinated a gift-raising effort to supply local veterans with baskets of essential items to get them through the holidays. She volunteers her time at the animal shelter, Crossroads House, Food Pantry, and photos with Steve Ognibene, all while working and running a household.
"As a businesswoman, Michelle works full-time, is a small business operator (Young Living Essential Oils), a dedicated, loving wife to her husband, Scott, and mom to their daughter, Olivia," Norton said. "From what I see, her family and friends are held close to her heart, always including them and looking out for them. She is constantly sensitive and caring to the needs of others."
Beyond the organization and cause, there’s a primary reason why she devotes so much time to them.
“People are the main reason why I do what I do. I’ve formed so many friendships,” she said, describing how she responded to being named for this award. “I couldn’t talk, and if you know me, I’m Italian and I have no shortage of words. I really was just so honored and blown away, being honored by the Chamber. It’s really a little surreal.”
Her family includes mom and dad Louie and Linda Scafetta, husband Scott, 12-year-old daughter Olivia, and "bonus kids" Tori and Brendan.
Members of Volunteers For Animals gather at Genesee County Animal Shelter in Batavia. Photo by Howard Owens
There they were: a dozen frightened, skinny, matted, shaking dogs — mostly poodles or poodle mixes — desperate for food, medical care, flea treatment, and, most of all, a loving and safe home.
Lucky for them, they were rescued by Genesee County dog control officers and delivered into the caring arms of Volunteers For Animals. From that moment on, those little guys and gals received much-needed baths and grooming, veterinary attention, dental work, and one by one — or in some cases, two by two — they were adopted to forever homes.
It would be nice, perhaps, to think that this was an isolated case of animal neglect or abuse; however, there are many more stories. And for each one that volunteers share, they also share a smile when it ends in adoption.
“It’s the happiest thing ever to see one walk out the door, and when the right family comes along, we say ‘yay, they got adopted,” VFA member Marcy Colantonio says.
Colantonio feels so strongly about the nonprofit that, in addition to being a member for the last seven years, she nominated the group for the Chamber of Commerce Special Anniversary Recognition of the Year Award.
“I think we do so much for the community and for the cats and the dogs. You know, this isn't home. And they need people to speak for them to help them find the right homes and the perfect homes for them. They don't need to be sitting in a kennel or in a cage, and I just like to promote this,” she said. “All we do, we take care of them, make sure they have a good life here, but it's not the best life. Ideally, they all need homes. So that's why I'm here, to help them find the perfect place for them.”
In 1984, there was an eager and active group of caring individuals who wanted to help four-legged creatures, and so it formed a nonprofit that, as the name implied, was truly about Volunteers For Animals.
Those volunteers began at the modest — and often described as sad — shelter on Mill Street on the south side of Batavia until a new one was built in 2001. Ever since that first day, they have been cleaning cages, doing laundry, washing dishes, feeding cats and dogs, ensuring they get proper medical treatment and tests, and taking the pups out for regular walks, greeting and screening prospective adopters and — the most gratifying job of all: watching temporary shelter guests go home with their new families.
In more recent years, VFA has focused on fundraising for a strong spay and neuter program so that animals don’t reproduce and potentially create more unwanted innocent offspring. But all of this seems so clinical compared to what actually goes on at the shelter on Route 5 in the town of Batavia.
Amidst the feedings and tests and medical treatments — all valid in their own right — are the dozens, or hundreds, of stories, the tears, the smiles, the laughter, the compassion of people, pulling for an animal’s victory from abuse, abandonment, neglect, and putting in tireless effort, whether it’s to provide hands-on care, map out successful fundraisers or promote the nonprofit and shelter occupants.
Colantonio joined for a reason familiar to most others: because she had a heart for the work.
“I wanted to do something for the animals, I knew someone who always shared good things about Volunteers For Animals and she said give it a try,” Colantonio said inside the adoption visit room at the shelter. “I fell in love with it.”
She has adopted a beagle and cat from the site, and as she and fellow volunteers Angie Knisley and Wendy Castleman began to think of rescue stories, the names just rolled off their tongues.
There was Gigi, a white pitbull mix who had been at the shelter for 300 days and went through the Pathways to Home program, Ricky the cat, who was very sweet and landed a wonderful home eventually, Brad Pit, who was involved in an unfortunate long-term court case who had to remain at the shelter until the case was resolved, and was adopted once it was over.
And Ruffles, a pretty tiger cat, who came in as a stray with a bad uterine infection.
“Within days, you could tell she was feeling much better,” Castleman said. “She would’ve died on the street. She simply needed to be spayed.”
Colantonio and Knisley waved and smiled as Ruffles and her new pet parent said goodbye and left the shelter.
Castleman, who has been a member for two decades, said that VFA used to be mostly focused on the shelter itself and has expanded outward into the community, with a satellite location for cats at PetCo, a low-cost spay and neuter program, and the Path to Homes program, which began in 2018, with selected dogs being placed with inmates at Albion Correctional Facility and volunteer trainer and VFA member Tom Ryan working with them to prepare the dogs for adoption.
Way before then, however, when Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005, VFA answered the call for those residents who not only worried about their own lives but the lives of their beloved pets left behind in the massive flooding.
“Things seemed to change with Katrina. There was a huge shift, and there was a more of a recognition that there were places that had large volumes of animals that needed to be adopted and were adaptable,” Castleman said. “And for me, personally, it was a huge game changer. And I think those core volunteers are still very active. And to include the community and make it a more positive experience for both the public and the animals.”
Those rescues became a big source of news and more happy local adoption stories as volunteers drove dogs back to Batavia to a safer harbor. They have continued to snatch dogs from the jaws ofhigh-kill shelters in other states for quick turnaround adoption times, as folks here always seemed eager to help out and welcome a four-legged into their own homes.
There’s a core of about 30 volunteers — some committing once a week and others more or less often — with 40 foster families tending to kittens to free up space for adult cats in the shelter but willing to bring the young ones in for visits when needed.
“We have a really good adoption rate because of the public; people think about adopting,” Knisley said. “I think, too, the gratitude that we feel towards the volunteers themselves because our volunteers come in and cover every day of the year. Somebody is here helping, and it's such an important integral part of us is having people here, and besides the wonderful donations that we get with the money to do what we do, it's the people.”
They are proud to say that 95 percent of every dollar donated goes directly to help the animals in Genesee County and the surrounding area, and there are no salaried employees in the organization. The breakdown for 2023 includes 76 percent for veterinary care, which was $170,827; 17% for medications, vaccine and food supplies, or $37,856; 5% for fundraising, $11,047; and 2% for rescue dog fees, or $4,560.
It is rewarding, emotional and sometimes difficult being an animal welfare volunteer, Colantonio said.
“We see the best of humanity and the worst of humanity,” she said. “From being saved from an abusive situation, rescued from a hoarder home to simply taking in a pet that is no longer loved or wanted, the well-being of the dog or cat is always our first priority.”
One of those situations involved a barely recognizable pooch that came to the shelter with so much puss from infections that he had to stay in a bathtub for a while, Castleman said.
“His ears and mouth were pouring with puss,” she said.“We took him to a vet clinic, and the vet said ‘we can clean it up, he needs antibiotics, vet care and he had dental work.”
While the prognosis was iffy, and the amount of grotesque puss was “heartbreaking,” that dog turned out to be a “gorgeous Pomeranian.” His name was Nook, and he was most definitely a cutie. He proved positive that miraculous transformations can take place for what might seem like a hopeless cause.
It was the same for those dozen poodles, rescued from a hoarding situation. Most of them recovered and were adopted, including two little girls who went on to live for nine years with a local reporter. They had major dental work, anxiety, social issues, inability to take stairs, walk on a leash or hold down their meals many times or remain housebroken, but were loving, comfortable and loved.
“They just rebound,” Castleman said.
After all, that’s what Volunteers For Animals, celebrating its 40th year, is all about: hope for hopeless animals.
Holland Land Office Museum Executive Director Ryan Duffy, left, and Curator Tyler Angora. Photo by Howard Owens
NOTE: This week, The Batavian is highlighting the annual Chamber of Commerce Award winners with a story daily through Friday. The awards dinner is Saturday evening at Batavia Downs.
Perhaps an 11-year-old Ryan Duffy could have predicted that he’d be championing the preservation of valuable artifacts and would be involved somehow in the back stories of how historical exhibits and programs came to be presented to the public.
“I always leaned toward that, and then we went to Gettysburg that cemented it. I saw the park rangers giving tours. The seed was there that made it a reality; it wasn’t just about learning the facts; it was something you could actually do. I’ve been directing myself toward that from then on,” Duffy said.
Chosen in 2017 as executive director of Holland Land Office Museum, Duffy has now been named on behalf of the museum for the Chamber of Commerce Special Recognition of the Year Award. He shared the credit with Curator Tyler Angora, who has zealously bitten off the entire museum collection to sort through and organize for a multitude of exhibits now and into the future.
Duffy’s folks are well aware of his own enthusiasm for the job, and they have visited the site at 131 West Main St., Batavia “many times,” he said. They are the ones that got the ball rolling by taking him on that family trip to Pennsylvania to the famous Gettysburg National Battlefield and National Military Park, with a museum and visitor center, Civil War artifacts and a memorial to mark the site of Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 address.
It was only 21 years later when the Holland Office Museum was established; it celebrates a 130-year birthday this year. Back when Duffy was hired, the museum had come to a standstill, which meant handing him the keys to drive it wherever he could imagine.
“It was kind of a blank slate. We were starting from scratch, putting new energy and new programs into it,” he said. “It was waiting for a new perspective. One of the first things I tried differently was a regular guest speaker series and trivia nights. It took a little time to build an audience up.”
Other programs were Java Joe, concerts, Murder Mystery Dinner Theater, and taking the show on the road, so to speak, as Duffy and some board members have visited groups upon request to share what’s happening at the museum and talk about local history.
Did everything take off immediately? It did take a while to “get our name out there,” he said, and build up a customer base. But then that base began to spread out to Rochester, Buffalo, and even farther out to Syracuse.
“It was about growing that. People have responded … our audience more than doubled, our overall visitor ship attendance and programming,” he said. “We added about 100 members as well. All of that has kept progressing in the right direction.”
An award nomination stated that the museum’s importance goes well beyond being “just a museum,” and in recent years, it has grown into a full-fledged community center, given all of the activities taking place there.
“This year, Director Ryan Duffy and Curator Tyler Angora have been busy updating the exhibits to breathe even more life into the displays inside the museum. Tyler has brought his youthful energy to bring to life the lives of our predecessors, particularly in the ways they dressed,” volunteer Richard Beatty said, adding that Duffy has extended the museum’s reach by writing columns, producing videos and going into the community with his and volunteers’ presentations.
Duffy did also attempt to reel the antique show back into the fold, holding it at Batavia Downs, however, that darned COVID struck again, ruining yet another event, and “it fizzled out.” Duffy picked his battles and let that one go. “A lot is trial and error,” he said.
Meanwhile, though, he said he feels that the reputation of the museum “has come a long way” as an asset to the community since he took the lead.
“And how people perceive us. Many more people notice us and take notice of us,” he said. “As a director, I’ve taken ownership … I’ve been the frontman; it’s my responsibility to make that happen. I’m very proud to make that happen and where we’re going to go. I’m hoping to continue a lot of progress of … the collection area, grow our outreach and membership. And grow into a wider area and become more of an attraction. Our base is here in Genesee County, but the Holland Land Purchase is all of Western New York.”
That means he’s eyeing from Rochester to Buffalo and down to the southern tier.
“We're definitely seeing an uptick from people coming from areas outside Genesee County, and just our engagement, even if they're not visitors, but looking for research or wanting us to come and talk to them,” Duffy said. “And we get those kinds of calls from as far away as Syracuse, so we are getting our name out there. And that's what we want: the more people who know about us, the more people that will make the trip.”
Angora is planning to complete his master’s degree in history at Brockport State College in spring 2025, and has been full steam ahead since taking on the role of curator in 2023. The museum’s collection hadn’t been a priority up to that point, he said, so he “really took the reins” by organizing the upstairs area and unearthing buried treasures that had been there all along.
“There’s a clothing collection, Emory Upton items that were donated by his nieces, it keeps growing every day. We added 1,000 objects,” he said. “For the eclipse exhibit, 98 Years Since the Sun Went Out, people are seeing new parts they’ve never seen before.”
A grant has made it possible to digitize the entire 20,000-piece collection so that anyone will be able to view it online. That’s exciting, Angora said, because “it will allow accessibility” to any person with an interest or a research project to go to the museum’s website and view those artifacts for the first time. That should be a reality by the end of summer.
Also, later this year, Angora is hoping to do his long-awaited tours of the entire collection upstairs — a “behind the scenes” sort of take — that he’s been grooming ever since he began.
“It’s been exciting. It's been challenging. It's been everything encompassed in one kind of jar,” Angora said. “But overall, it's been an amazing experience to work with a collection that has so much history and a city and a county that has so much history tied to it that a lot of people don't know about. So being a part of getting people to know that history has been something quite fantastic.”
The work will never end, he said, but that’s a good thing. There are programs to come for the next several months.
Along with those coming months is an eventual expansion of the building on the west end toward the parking lot. A museum study made several suggestions to improve and preserve the old site, one being to add some much-needed space for a gift shop and to extend an exhibit room, Duffy said.
In a nutshell, it’s about “looking good and being sound,” he said.
“Our expansion is looking at accessibility, breathing room, able to show off what we’ve got here for a better visitor experience,” Duffy said. “The county is dedicating funds to deal with the building, and we’re excited and very appreciative of that.
“Well, we're very honored to be recognized by the chamber. It is always a good feeling when people take notice of what you're doing. And especially see it as a positive aspect in the community. We always felt like we were a hidden gem, and it's nice to know that we're not quite as hidden anymore. And that the community appreciates what we do, because it's our first goal is to tell the history of our community,” Duffy said. “Tyler's got a long list planned out for the next few years too, I think, that will be very exciting for everyone. We're growing our partnerships and, with that, trying to create new programming or expand the programming that we currently have.
“And just to be more exciting,” he said. “We’re really working towards making this place, creating a more vibrant atmosphere, a more welcoming atmosphere, that people will want to be here and be a part of what we're doing because we feel that we're on the way to some really big and important things.”
The 52nd annual Genesee County Chamber Awards ceremony will be at 5 p.m. March 2 at Batavia Downs Gaming, 8315 Park Road, Batavia.
Travis Offhaus and Levi Offhaus. Photo by Howard Owens.
NOTE: This week, The Batavian is highlighting the annual Chamber of Commerce Award winners with a story each day through Friday. The awards dinner is Saturday evening at Batavia Downs.
Carrying on and expanding the farm operation started by their grandfather a half-century ago, Travis and Levi Offhaus are proud of the team they have put together at Offhaus Farms, Inc., 7892 Oak Orchard Rd., in the Town of Batavia.
“It has been a team effort, not just the owners or managers,” said Levi, during a sit-down interview with The Batavian in light of the 2,000-acre dairy/crop farm being selected as Agricultural Business of the Year by the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce. “It’s an honor (to get this award). We all try to do our best day in and day out in every aspect.”
Offhaus Farms will be honored on March 2 at the chamber’s 52nd Annual Awards Ceremony at Batavia Downs Gaming on Park Road.
Other honorees are Alabama Hotel, LLC, Business of the Year: Volunteers for Animals, Special Anniversary Recognition of the Year; Holland Land Office Museum, Special Recognition of the Year; and Michelle Gillard, Geneseean of the Year.
Brothers Travis and Levi, along with their uncle, Scott, are partners in the business, which currently milks 1,400 cows per day – producing 110,000 pounds of milk each day – and farms 1,200 acres of corn and about 800 acres of hay.
The operation has come a long way since its beginning in the early 1970s by their grandpa, the late Gordon Offhaus, who was respected for his contributions to various causes throughout Genesee County. Gordon passed away in June 2022 at the age of 86.
“My grandpa was my hero from as long as I can remember,” said Travis, 34. “I was always trying to be like him. Later on, I realized the way he treated people. He gave everybody the time of day.”
Graduates of Royalton-Hartland Central School, Travis and Levi joined the family business in 2010 and 2012, respectively.
“Growing up in farming, I always enjoyed the ag business,” said Levi, 30, noting that Offhaus Farms has 25 full-time and five part-time employees in areas such as calf feeding, milking, herdsmen, nighttime managers and field crew.
Office Manager Annie Selapack is in her 20th year with the company.
While maintaining a large farm means “wearing many hats,” Travis primarily is in charge of overseeing the dairy portion, Levi coordinates the crop growing and harvesting and their sister, Liz, manages the calves and the milk culturing lab.
Travis said that the farm is affiliated with the Dairy Farmers of America and ships its milk to HP Hood and to a plant in Pennsylvania.
Nominated by Chamber’s Ag Committee The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce’s Agricultural Committee, in nominating Offhaus Farms, recounted the farm’s history and credited its current success to the “dedicated people who come to work every day on the farm.”
“Throughout the years, Offhaus Farms has also developed strong relationships in the community and with area businesses that have been invaluable to the sustainability of the operation.”
It all started back in 1959 when Gordon Offhaus took out a loan for $1,800 and bought 18 cows, and rented a farm on West Blood Road in Erie County. By 1972, he had grown the farm to 45 cows, but he was still in the rented facility.
With a desire for a place of his own, Gordon and his brother, Bruce, started a joint venture and a new location. They found a good farm on Route 98 in Batavia and decided to buy it. Bruce and Gordon entered into a partnership with Ken Hall, whose father was the previous owner of the farm.
Together, Bruce and Gordon milked about 120 cows at the new locations. Things stayed that way until 1980, when Bruce decided to strike out on his own. This opened the door for Gordon’s youngest son, Scott, to join the farm in 1984. Working together, they increased the herd size to 800 cows by 1994.
In 2000, Gordon and Scott bought out Ken Hall’s estate, taking ownership on their own.
As indicated previously, Travis, Levi and Liz joined the operation and continue to chart its course today, along with their uncle, Scott.
The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce is celebrating its 52nd Annual Awards Ceremony, which will be held on Saturday, March 2 at Batavia Downs Gaming, 8315 Park Road, Batavia. This is the County’s premier event that honors businesses and individuals for their achievements in business, community service and volunteerism. Tickets are $60.00 per person, or a table of 8 for $440.00.
The evening begins at 5 p.m. with Hors Oeuvres, Entrée Tables & Cash Bar (no formal sit-down dinner is to be served). The Award Program starts at 7 p.m. where dessert and coffee will be served.
This year’s honorees are:
Business of the Year: Alabama Hotel, LLC
Agricultural Business of the Year: Offhaus Farm, Inc.
Special Anniversary Recognition of the Year: Volunteers for Animals
Special Recognition of the Year: Holland Land Office Museum
Norm Argulsky accepting the Chamber of Commerce Geneseean of the Year during the chamber's annual awards ceremony at Batavia Downs in March. Photo by Howard Owens.received
Press Release:
The Chamber’s Annual Awards Committee has announced the “2023” Annual Award Ceremony will be held on Saturday, March 2, 2024, at Batavia Downs Gaming, Park Road, Batavia. This is the County’s premier event that honors businesses and individuals for their achievements in business, community service, and volunteerism.
Please note that a brief write-up will qualify your nominee for consideration. Nominations are now being accepted for Business of the Year, Entrepreneurial Business of the Year, Agricultural Business of the Year, Innovative Enterprise of the Year, Special Service Recognition & Geneseeans of the Year. Business Nominees must be a Chamber Member (If unsure of your nominee, call the Chamber to verify).
Nomination forms are available at the Chamber of Commerce office, 8276 Park Road, Batavia, and can also be downloaded from the Chamber Website at www.geneseeny.com. Nominations MUST BE RECEIVED BY December 29, to be eligible for consideration.
If you would like more information, feel free to call or email Kelly J. Bermingham, Director of Member Relations & Special Events at the Chamber office, 343-7440, ext. 1026, kbermingham@geneseeny.com.
For the 51st time on Saturday, the Chamber of Commerce presented awards to the people and places that make Genesee County a great place to live, work, and play.
The awards ceremony was held at Batavia Downs.
Super volunteer Norm Argulsky was named, for the second time (he received the award in the 1990s), Geneseean of the Year.
A believer of community service, faith, gratitude and, for sure, in doing the heavy lifting.
That’s Norm Argulsky, a lifelong Batavian, retired school teacher, and volunteer about town.
Argulsky, on the cusp of turning 85, was surprised to learn he’d been selected as a recipient of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Geneseean of the Year. Certainly, there were others more worthy, he said. Well, apparently, the committee thought he was not only equally worthy but most deserving.
“I do what I do because I love doing it,” he said during an interview with The Batavian. “I’ve been very, very happy here, I love Batavia. It’s a wonderful community to live in. I just decided Batavia was my home, all the people that I know are here, so I might just as well stay.”
Stay, perhaps, but stay put? Hardly. He’s too busy for that. Argulsky was a teacher for fifth and sixth graders at Jackson school for 40 years and has been active with Batavia Players since 1995 when the late Wanda Frank recruited him to perform. He also moved into the role of keeper of the costumes, which comes across quite clearly when he spoke about the new theater space that’s in progress.
“I’ll be spending lots of time there in May and June when moving my temporary place into my new place, the costume room,” he said. “Everything will be done on computer. I will be able to keep track of my costumes. If you want something, I’m the only one who knows where it is.”
According to one of the nomination forms, Argulsky keeps rather immaculate care of the costumes, which …
When they began to loan them out to high schools in Genesee and Monroe counties for their shows, the precious commodities didn’t always make it back. With some reluctance, a decision was made to charge a $2 rental fee per costume, and there hasn’t been a problem since. It all had to do with “giving something for free” that doesn’t work as well, he said.
Argulsky has also become the familiar voice to introduce shows and promise audience members that they’re going to love it, he said tongue in cheek, and he’s been on the Players board since 1996.
A man of faith, Argulsky attends daily mass and had a prior calling to become a priest.
“I believed in and enjoyed my Catholic faith. It got me through many things,” he said.
It was either that or become a teacher, and he unregrettably chose the latter. His classroom style was to not ever shout or send a child to the principal. Or put any of them on the spot.
“I was going to be a happy teacher … I was never going to confront a child in front of the class,” he said. “I’m as busy now as I was when teaching.”
Argulsky is co-chairman of the Super Mammoth Sale, a role he has owned for the last four years. He works with longtime Mammoth volunteer John Bowen, and they raised $30,000 last year for St. Joseph’s School. Is he satisfied with that?
“This year, we’re hoping for a little bit more,” Argulsky said.
He puts in 25 hours a week throughout the year, carrying, moving, lifting, cleaning, pricing, cleaning, sorting and organizing items alongside Bowen and other volunteers that pitch in to help.
“I find that physically I’m very, very good,” Argulsky said, contrasting that with a less glowing report on the cognitive side, which is “expected with aging.” That was certainly hard to verify, given his spot-on recollections.
Ready for more from this octogenarian? He has helped with the bereavement program at Resurrection Parish since 2003, serving meals for loved ones of the deceased after a funeral, and counts the church money on Mondays. For six years before the Mammoth began on Saturdays this year, he volunteered at Genesee County Park’s Interpretive Center, welcoming people, giving tours and guiding them to their destination on a map.
We’re not done. For the past four years, Argulsky has served as cashier for Crossroads House summer sale and has driven close friends to medical appointments, writing down the doctor’s words and prescriptions to read back to the friend later.
When does he sleep? “I only have to have six hours of sleep a night, and I am fine,” he said.
Any of his extra time is devoted to reading — four books, mostly fiction, at any given time — plus walking and running.
“I am extremely thankful, God has provided me with a very, very happy life,” he said. “Everything seems so negative now, I try to compliment people and be happy all the time … count your blessings. I have values, and I live by my values, I don’t compromise that. I know my life is different than other people's. I go to mass every day; it’s to thank God for everything.”
Has there been anything left on the proverbial bucket list at this point? Listen up, Pat Burk.
“I’d like to play Morrie (in ‘Tuesdays With Morrie’) one more time with Batavia Players on their brand new stage,” Argulsky said.
He was nominated for this award based on his 36 years of investment into young people as a teacher at Jackson School, and his dedicated community service as a volunteer for many organizations throughout Genesee County, least of not including lead roles as King Lear and Uncle Vanya for Batavia Players’ productions, his input and guidance have been significant in the development of the new theater in Batavia City Centre, lending costumes to community residents to dress them in authentic period clothing for local special events, such as the City's Centennial Celebration a few years ago. "We all benefit from his knowledge and expertise," a nomination states.
The Richmond Memorial Library has been a focus for Argulsky, according to nomination forms, as he is currently serving in his ninth year on the Board of Trustees. He has served as vice president and then for four years as president of the board. "Norm continues to shape the future of young people by serving as president on the Board of Directors at St. Joseph's Regional School. His hands-on leadership style includes co-chairing the Mammoth Sale, as a leading volunteer for the annual sales event that benefits Crossroads House, a member of the Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council (GO-Art!) and other similar organizations," it states.
He has contributed to St. Joseph Regional School in many ways. He has served on the school board since 2018, acting as president for the last five years. He has been instrumental in assisting and overseeing the yearly budget; establishing tuition rates; overseeing expenses and income; and working to assist school leaders in making a smooth transition from a parish school to a regional school. "His educational advice has always been appreciated and valued as we prepare documents to submit to the NYS Education Department to validate our excellent educational programming and the services we provide to our students on a daily basis.
"Norm Argulsky is a fine man, professional and caring. He truly cares for our organization as one of many that he is involved in. He also loves the Genesee County community and continues to volunteer and give to this day. His activities at the Richmond Memorial Library and St. Joseph's School are parallel to none. He has a constant presence at both organizations, and I am certain that, like Batavia Players, they would not be the same or as successful without his active involvement. He is truly a treasure in our community," yet another nomination form stated.
The 51st annual Chamber Awards event is on Saturday at Batavia Downs Gaming.
Norm Argulsky in some rare moments at home when not out volunteering in the community. Photos by Howard Owens.
Squirrels, a dead-end street across from an elementary school, and the four seasons.
Those have been some of the challenges being situated in a fairly remote — and animal-friendly — section of the city in Western New York for Phil and Steve Pies over the years, Steve says.
Yet despite that and the typical ups and downs of retail business, Max Pies Furniture has endured 118 years since its settling into that comfy spot at the end of Jackson Street in 1905. Founder Max Pies and family built not only a small business but also their home, and the place was handed down to now Steve, the fourth generation of the Pies family.
No wonder they have earned the Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award. And there’s no other place they would have continued the tradition that began for furniture and flooring sales.
“As far as this structure and this business from this location, it’s the same location. Obviously, they added on to the store since 1905. But the original location and their house were in the parking lot you pulled into,” Steve Pies said. “They went all over the board from Rochester to Buffalo, and I think even close to Syracuse at one point in the 80s. Rochester Linoleum bought out all of the flooring aspects. But the furniture, even though we do flooring here as well, the original furniture store Max Pies name started right here.”
And they both must have just naturally fallen right in line with the business, yes?
"Well, not really,” Phil said. “I went to college, then I was in the Air Force. And then my uncle was here at the time, and my dad.”
Phil was married with two children, Steve and Natalie, and living in Sacramento, Calif. at the time. After his Uncle Jake died, he ended up returning to Batavia and worked alongside his dad, Sam. Business must have been good for longevity: his grandfather worked until he died at 93, and the same for his father until he was 83. Phil has been the friendly face of Max Pies for the last 53 years.
It was a similar crooked path for Steve, who didn’t immediately return from college to join the family business. He went off to pursue a business degree at Plattsburgh State College, and something drew his attention to working on a cruise ship — he had visions of “Love Boat” — and went aboard to work as a Blackjack dealer and then worked around Nevada in casinos building a career as a card dealer.
He eventually returned and decided to help his dad, who turns 80 in May. They thought back to what has changed over the years, and certainly, costs have been a big one.
“Freight rates have changed, insurance, overhead,” Phil said. “And styles, we sold a lot of colonial, and now we sell a lot more modern styles.”
Steve added that retro comes and goes, but a shift that has added time, labor and unexpected expenses has been how furniture arrives now versus years ago.
“It used to be all assembled,” Steve said. “Now it’s called KD, for knockdown. It's, take them off the truck, unpack them out of the box, set them up with screws and a drill and dispose of the garbage. It's a lot more tedious.”
While costs have shot up on their end, the waste management business is booming. The Pies have a 40-yard roll-off Dumpster that costs $800, and sometimes it gets filled three times a month with styrofoam and boxes, Steve said. For the most part, they depend on sales reps for advice and guidance on what’s trending, what’s hot, and what to buy throughout the year, Steve said.
“My dad has a good relationship with a lot of our reps. The reps know what’s out there,” he said. “But we try to have a variety as well because, you know, you’ve got 20-year-old couples, and you’ve got 70-year-old people and you’ve got in between, and there's such a different dynamic.”
A walk through the downstairs showroom features a painter’s pallet of gray hues — from charcoal and slate to lighter silvers. Grays are definitely in right now, the father-son team agreed, and other hot items include power recliners, sleeper sofas and sectionals. They will cater to people’s tastes, but with a focus on this locale, Steve said.
For example, unlike more eclectic geographical areas such as New York City, this region has a mixed appetite that includes a lot of rural country.
“We have hunters, they want the classic. They want a camouflage recliner, they want a rocking chair, and a certain bedroom set that looks like a plank cabin look,” Steve said, adding that there was a camouflage recliner in stock that day just waiting for an avid hunter.
For the approximately $2.5 million of sales volume they accomplish, the staff is small, Steve said: seven people, including Jimmy, Peggy, Eddie, Reggie and Hunter, plus subcontractors. Hours have been reduced over the years, especially when COVID hit, from a crazy 9 to 9 schedule to 9 to 7 and then 9 to 5 work day, Steve said.
“The biggest challenge for a store like ours in a town like this in a state like this is we deliver furniture winter, spring, summer and fall. We've gone through roofs, we've gone through windows, we take off doors, we go up and down. We unload trucks in blizzards. And we have a building that has, you know, leaky roofs. We have squirrels … so I would say, having an old building and four seasons,” he said. “And I would also say that if you look at our location, you could arguably say this is the worst location on planet Earth for a retail furniture store, dead-end residential neighborhood across from an elementary school. That's my long-winded answer to the challenges.
“ (Turning to his dad) But you’ve been here 53 years. So yeah, there was a time where my dad said, the accountants used to say, ‘you made too much money this year, you got to do something with it.’ And there's been other times where we can't pay our bills,” Steve said. “So it's a very cyclical business in the notion of, you just gotta keep grinding and keep going. It is what it is. So there still are heydays, and there still are lows, and there still are in between.”
Given it is a “cyclical business” that definitely still experiences those good times of Batavia’s yesteryear, what’s the secret? Max Pies motto, Steve said, giving a nod to his dad.
“Where customers send their friends,” he said.
The nomination committee selected Max Pies, partly due to Steve’s “tremendous” contributions for bringing the business “into the 2000s” via online ordering and a website, excellent customer service and marketing the business in many unique ways.
Photo of Steve and Phil Pies at Max Pies Furniture store at 400 S. Jackson St., Batavia. Photo by Howard Owens.
Sitting in the Batavia GO ART! building next to a white baby grand piano with walls of artwork and embracing a definite quiet, creative vibe, Gregory Hallock shares his journey since arriving seven years ago.
It really couldn’t have gotten much worse.
“Yes, we were in a 'save the organization mode.' We were doing really bad. We were in the red. So we were trying to get ourselves out of it. And I made the decision, with the support of my board, to spend money that we didn't have so that we could be seen in the community and start to do stuff so people would know what we do because people don't like to support a bleeding organization. We needed to show that we were doing more than just bleeding,” said Hallock, who was promoted to executive director two years later. “So we started doing classes and activities and a whole bunch of stuff so that people would start talking about us. And I started applying for a ton of grants. And we received a lot, but not a ton. Like 20 percent of the grants.”
Some of the new initiatives were children’s creative arts camp weekends, a Ramble Explore Art tent, regularly opening the kitchen and bar, and obtaining a liquor license at Tavern 2.0.1, which has worked handily for drawing more customers in and selling more art — nearly two dozen pieces for a record at a recent exhibit, Hallock said.
The nonprofit has also substantially increased grants it disperses to the community — going from $47,000 to $210,000 for artistic endeavors.
“I tell people that honestly, if you go to something artistic in Genesee or Orleans County, there's a really strong chance that we sponsored it, that we gave it funding to happen. We've been really working at letting people know they think of GO ART! as go ART!, as a cheer. And trying to show the GO stands for Genesee Orleans,” he said. “So we don't just do stuff in support. We now create stuff ourselves. Every single one of my employees is an artist, as well. We all have that background and want to be able to enjoy what we do at the same time. You know, we're good at the admin stuff. But we also love art. So we bring that in.”
GO ART!, the oft-used acronym for Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council, captures the two-county organization. However, Batavia has a bustling site with galleries, exhibits and receptions, a kitchen, bar, comedy shows, kids’ activities, bartender competition fundraisers, music, and other special events on a regular basis.
In the earlier days, upon Hallock’s arrival, there was one gallery and office space, he said. Now, in addition to those offerings above, there are seven galleries, a film studio, a podcast studio, library, stage, makeup studio, a culinary program, classes and demonstrations, and there’s no point in stopping now.
“We’re whole-heartedly looking at adding additional space here in Batavia and in Medina. We're currently working on these two spaces so that we can expand and offer a lot more programming. Because we're also looking into mental health. Where the community, the world, is in a big space for needing mental health stuff. So we're talking like we'd love to have music therapists, art therapists, and are trying to get it, so we have a lot more available,” Hallock said. “A bigger gallery, like on the level of competing with major galleries in Rochester and Buffalo, you know? We're trying to do a bigger coffee shop, artists and shop, little boutique clothing place. I mean, there are so many things that we want to add to it so that it's an immersive experience. And then if you're coming for one thing specific, hopefully, you'll see that there's so many other things happening. We really want to be arts -- we want to be a community arts and cultural center, not just an arts and cultural center. So that's where we're going.”
Except he wouldn’t disclose exactly where they’d be going.
“Everybody keeps saying, ‘well, we're halfway between Rochester and Buffalo.’ So I want this to be the reason that people come from Rochester and Buffalo to Batavia because we do amazing arts and cultural activities,” he said.
GO ART! supports the arts, cultural and wide-ranging diversity programs, he said, such as religious, LGBTQ, Black Lives, Just Kings, and various support group organizations.
“We will work with anybody,” he said. “What we do is for anyone, as long as they will work with anyone.”
He referred to a mural on the building’s backside, dotted with faces representing various ethnicities and cultures. Yet to be completed, he said, it is something he wanted as a way to let the public know “all are welcomed here.”
The organization more recently produced a printed calendar of GO ART! events and is mulling the idea of including additional arts organization events as well for a quarterly edition. The site has gaining speed through word of mouth, Hallock said, as he’s been getting phone calls and emails from folks who have heard about GO ART! and want to visit. The list of members has grown from about 150 to 200, as just the beginning.
“We’re hoping to get a marketing director in March,” he said, adding that one doesn’t need to be a member to participate in events, but it provides discounts on the myriad of year-round activities. New happenings have included a Peruvian dinner fundraiser, an RIT animation program, a murder mystery event with a charcuterie board and desserts.
Established in 1962 and quite active in the last few decades, Hallock finds it difficult to hear people say they’ve never heard of GO ART! Thankfully, many other organizations have stepped up to help out with cleaning the 7,000-square-foot site, including Arc GLOW, BOCES, and the Senior Center’s RSVP program.
“I had a lady just call today asking, ‘how can I help, what can I do?’” he said. “When I started, it was just me and a volunteer at 30 hours a week. We didn’t have funding to pay anyone else. Now we have four full-time staff and two part-time staff, and a full-time marketing director to be hired, and a GLOW folklorist.”
The nomination committee selected GO ART! for the dramatic change in perception and recognition of the organization in the past six years, a nomination form states.
“It has become an active, vital member of the community. For years it was a marginal part of the community, city. The acquisition of the old Batavia Club was a drain on the resources of the council,” it states. “The building has been transformed from an occasional glance by people to a place that is well known. With the organization's dream and vision, the building has grown from only using 30 percent of the space to now utilizing the entire building. While keeping the integrity of the historic structure, each room is now a space for the arts - visual, performing, media and culinary. Every time one visits, there is something new that excites. GO ART! is deserving of recognition for the tireless and "out of the box" vision of the arts and culture in our community.”
Top Photo: GO ART! Executive Director Gregory Hallock takes a seat in the foyer of the nonprofit at 201 East Main St., Batavia, and the talented staff gathers for a pose from left, Angie Dickson, Gregory Hallock, Jodi Fisher and Mary Jo Whitman. Photos by Howard Owens.
Sinus steamers, muscle mousse and scrubby bars may not seem to be your typical hemp and cannabis company products, but they’re exactly a reason why Empire Hemp Co. has become so popular in its field.
“We create a lot of unique products you wouldn’t find in other stores,” Chief Operating Officer Shelly Wolanske said. “In order to keep current, we’re constantly coming up with new ideas for products.”
The company, based on the first floor of 34 Swan St. and expanding into 23,000 square feet that includes the second floor for production and storage, with a retail store at 204 East Main St. in downtown Batavia, has been selected for the Chamber of Commerce Innovative Enterprise of the Year Award. While Chief Executive Officer Chris Van Dusen and Wolanske were surprised, they agree the type of business is all about being innovative.
“We’re the first cannabis business in Genesee County,” he said. “As far as what we’ve come from and where we’ve gone to, we ordered a lot of equipment and brought on a lot of investors to fund that expansion. We are so we have our whole line of adult-use cannabis products or THC products, and those include pre-rolled ‘cones,’ gummies and vape cartridges and flour. We needed the new equipment to do those products and locked down the gummy recipe. We just took our first orders for gummies to dispensaries in New York.
“As we’ve grown the business, we’ve had to learn each aspect of the business, start off with CBD, and we have to learn not only the regulations and the state compliances, but we also have to learn how does the machinery work? What's the most efficient way for them to work, train employees, and, there's all these different nuances around it, that's part of growing a business,” Van Dusen said.
There has been no blueprint to follow, Shelly added, no trailblazer ahead of them to follow. They’ve been the trailblazers, forging their way through the state regulations, certifications, inspections and protocols to ensure they’re doing things the right way.
“It’s been trial and error; we’ve figured this out; regulations and testing’s been a challenge,” Van Dusen said.
They’ve had to find out through trial and error how to do things as efficiently as possible, when it was time to recruit and hire more staff, and what products were hot or not. Making gummies, for example, might seem like an easy task, and yet it took one and a half years to perfect the recipe, Wolanske said. They worked with different preservatives and flavorings, and it came out either too mushy or too stiff and took a lot of adjustments to get it to the chewy, gummy consistency they wanted.
There have been other challenges, including a lawsuit right now in New York State that’s holding up deliveries from dispensaries.
“That’s a whole other challenge we’re working on,” Van Dusen said. “We’re constantly solving problems. It’s exciting but challenging at the same time.”
They raised “a substantial” amount of money to buy equipment for their production needs and hired five people in the last three months to work at the store. One goal is to educate people about their products while the field has dwindled in certain arenas, Wolanske said.
“It takes a certain attitude. There’s an ebb and flow,” she said. “There’s very few of us left from the CBD days.”
Despite all of the hurdles, Van Dusen sees that “the opportunity in front of us is really incredible.”
“We’re really excited about where we are going with the expansion. We're quadrupling our footprint. That's our next phase of focus, how we're going to build that out. And then we have to get it okayed by the state, and then we have to get it Good Manufacturing Practices certified before we can start production out there,” Van Dusen said. “So we have to clean it, we have to paint it. And we have to then have a consultant come in and make sure we have everything ready for our audits for both the state and from the third party auditor to make sure that we're in compliance.”
The plan is to fill up that upstairs space with an indoor growth facility and keep rolling together as a cohesive group.
“Any little step is a huge step for us,” Wolanske said. “Everybody we’ve hired so far is part of the team. They’re in.”
And so, too — obviously — have Van Dusen and Wolanske been in since the beginning, which began long before they founded Empire Hemp and planted their first site on Swan Street in 2019 and then opened the store in April 2020 downtown.
Their award nominations included articles about the early days of Wolanske, whose path to the hemp industry brought her by way of being a policy-maker in the alcohol and substance abuse and prevention field, and Van Dusen as an entrepreneur, furniture maker, contractor, bicycle mechanic, tour guide, and father of three, whose history with cannabis dated back to the nineties during his battle with cancer. It was the intense effects of chemotherapy, in particular, that pushed him to explore alternative methods of recovery from the side effects of Hodgkin's Lymphoma treatment.
"During that time, California had just legalized medical marijuana for cancer and AIDS patients, and I was having a tough time with chemotherapy," he said. "It relieved nausea and the terrible feeling I had from the chemicals being pushed through my veins and allowed me to have a level of normalcy in my life. It was like night and day, and I could go back to work. I knew at that point there was something about this plant that had some serious healing. It was life-changing."
Fast forward to 2020, when COVID hit, and the couple learned another form of survival during pandemic shutdowns. Nomination forms included yet other articles about the tenacity of Van Dusen and Wolanske to operate a walk-up window, followed by the opening of their store, which was a success. While some places have merely posted a sign, it’s not as easy — or legal — as that, Van Dusen has said, wanting to clarify and educate the truth for consumers to know in further articles, all used as part of the nomination process.
Top Photo: Chris Van Dusen, founder and Co-founder Shelly Wolanske at their Empire Hemp shop on East Main Street, Batavia, and several of their self-created products. Photos by Howard Owens.
When Paul and Gail Fenton met in Pembroke High School and were fellow 1981 graduates, she had a grand vision for her future: to be a news reporter, live in the big city and drive a red Corvette.
Marrying a lifelong farmer meant erasing a few of those high school girl daydreams, Gail says.
“I now live in the country, I farm and drive a red pickup. So it went complete opposite of what I was thinking,” she said. "So, in fact, I had a couple of jobs right after we got married. And I got pregnant with our oldest in ’87. And it was shortly after it was that summer that Paul was like, ‘You know what, I think we could make a run of the farm, you and I both working on the farm. And now that I live on a farm, I was like, You know what, I don't know if I would have enjoyed living in the city. I know it was nice with this occupation because I wasn't technically labeled a stay-at-home mom, but I had all the perks of a stay-at-home mom, I got to do all the field trips with the kids … not many families nowadays eat three meals a day together, but we were able to do that.”
What she and Paul got, instead of a life in the city, was a life of pursuing the family tradition, living off the land, meeting Mother Nature’s unexpected challenges, changing with the times, learning new technologies and methods, and making a real go of Fenton’s Produce.
The Batavia-based company, which operates three sites of 60 acres along Pratt Road, is the recipient of this year’s Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Agricultural Business of the Year Award. When Gail took the phone call, she heard a man say he was a lawyer, and she thought ‘what have we done?’ It was tense few moments until he mentioned that she and Paul had won an award, she admitted.
They were surprised, but recognize that small certainly doesn’t mean bland or cookie-cutter.
“We’re just a tiny farm,” Gail said. “We grow all kinds of stuff. “Anything new coming out, we’ll try it.”
“We like being our own bosses. This type of farming, every day is different, by 8 a.m. you’re headed in a different direction. We never do the same thing all day,” Paul said. “It’s provided us with a decent income, our health, it’s a physical job that keeps us in shape, you get to see things that most people don’t get to see … a critter, the sunset, a sunrise. I’m carrying on my grandfather’s and uncles’ hard work.”
They sat in their home, circa 1830s and situated in the middle of the main farm. It is the original homestead of his uncles, surname Kiefer, who ran the establishment before selling it to Paul and Gail. They wanted to follow in the family's footsteps with a variety of cash crops, as Uncles Fred and Louis, and his grandparent’s blueberries on Route 5.
Look for the Fenton’s farmstand on Pratt Road during the warmer months, and produce also fills shelves at Tops in Batavia, Le Roy and East Aurora, and seasonally at the East Aurora Farmers Market. The couple is not afraid to try new produce — asparagus, five varieties of potatoes, peppers, brussels sprouts, broccolini, kale, beets, and new this season, hanging strawberry baskets and other vegetation.
“We start in the spring with transplants, and have slowly added other stuff,” Gail said. “We’ve had to adjust. We’re headed more towards broccolini and root crops and away from winter squash. People love whatever’s easy to make.”
Along with following trends and current demand, the Fentons have turned to the mechanics of farming to help reduce the need for labor, since finding it can be difficult, and they cannot do everything — or lift hefty weights — themselves.
“It wasn’t a big deal to get a group of teenagers out on the field, now … it’s a juggling act with our labor. We are seasonal, there’s just not that much work,” he said. “We’re surrounded by multiple-acre farms. We are the small family farm. We’ve had to adjust what we can do, and get mechanical help.”
“I used to have a T-shirt -- it said, 'farming is not just a job; it's a lifestyle.' And that's true. Yeah, we live this job 24/7. If you look at our place, our house sits in the center of our farm. We don't get away from the farm. You don't walk in the house, you don't close the door, and you're done for the day. There's something that could come up at two o'clock in the morning that you're going to have to go turn to,” Paul said.
“Paul always jokes that he has Bontrager on speed dial,” Gail said.
Another saying that Gail joked about sheds some light on the sentimental aspect of the business that's near and dear to their hearts: We’ll expire before we retire.
Paul and Gail were nominated for bringing “a sharp business focus to their cropping approach, seeking out and adopting efficiency-improving equipment. They have an eye for innovation and understanding emerging trends.”
“Take, for instance, their early adoption of food safety practices and GAPS certification. Fentons also position themselves ahead of the curve when it comes to new production techniques - they are a key part of developing them! For decades they have been a generous host farm for Cornell research trials. In 2022 alone, they cared for two variety trials, tested a laser scarecrow, and hosted the regional sweet corn pest monitoring traps.”
Paul and Gail are extremely observant and thoughtful crop managers, Fenton's Produce has a reputation for fabulous product, whether that be flowers, blueberries, or vegetables, and they foster a fun, informative, laid-back, and personalized experience for their retail customers, the nomination states.
“Paul and Gail are extremely community oriented. They truly want to see everyone be successful as growers and open their farm up to share their knowledge with others. They've hosted many field days over the years. Paul often adds on his own after-meeting tour, often to check out his favorite cultivating equipment,” it states. “They are also frequent hosts for tours of their farm from Leadership Genesee to Decision Makers. Their passion for agriculture is evident when speaking to the public about their business.”
Paul and Gail Fenton at their homestead farm on Pratt Road in Batavia, working in their greenhouse, and one of the five varieties of potatoes that they grow. Photos by Howard Owens.
