byron

There is a report of smoke in the residence at 7617 Mechanic St., South Byron.

A chief on scene reports smelling smoke and seeing faint smoke, but can't locate the source yet.

Byron and South Byron originally dispatched, but the South Byron engine has been told to respond non-emergency and Byron can stand down.

UPDATE 9:14 a.m.: Faulty hot water heater. All units back in service.

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A woman is complaining of chest pains following a car vs. deer accident which just occurred at the intersection of Byron Holley and Cochran roads. Byron and South Byron fire companies are responding.

UPDATE 6:50 p.m.: The scene of the accident is determined to be a half-mile north of Cochran Road on Route 237.

UPDATE 7:17 p.m.: The victim was transported by Mercy medics to Lakeside Memorial Hospital in Brockport. The road is clear and the responders are back in service.

CORRECTION: Byron's ambulance responded to the scene and transported the patient to Lakeside.

Nicholas Adam Antonucci, 25, of Broadway Road, Alexander, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Antonucci allegedly went to his estranged girlfriend's house and had contact with her in violation of a city court order of protection. Following arraignment in Pembroke Town Court, Antonucci posted $1,500 bail at the jail and was released. Antonucci is currently out of jail on a $50,000 bond posted in Wyoming County on burglary and grand larceny charges.

Daniel C. DiLaura, 38, of 32 Brooklyn Ave., Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. DiLaura was allegedly observed by employees at Tops Market placing two small items in his pockets. He then allegedly grabbed a case of beer and left the store without paying for the items.

Michael B. Rech, 41, of 28 Forest Meadows, Rochester, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd. Rech is accused of pushing and knocking down another person while Rech was holding a 3-year-old child.

Kathryn Francis Rose Long, 17, of Mechanic Street, Byron, is charged with harassment. Long is accused of grabbing a youth worker after the youth worker took away Long's mobile phone. Long allegedly grabbed the worker's purse and attempted to take it from her. Long was jailed on $500 bail.

Jason Robert Sando, 45, of Walkers Corners Road, Byron, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Sando is accused of violating an order of protection during a domestic incident at his home.

Jason Carl Nanni, 36, of Highland Park, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd, and aggravated harassment, 2nd. Upon release from the Willard Drug Treatment Campus, Nanni was taken into custody on three counts of criminal contempt, 2nd, and three counts of aggravated harassment, 2nd.

Joshua L. Baltz, 36, of 29 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Baltz is accused of shoplifting from the Kwik Fill on Jackson Street.

Photos and story submitted by Erica Lynn Hickey:

A group of Byron-Bergen High School juniors and seniors hosted the Grow-In-Kids Fall Festival on Saturday. The Fall Festival included a haunted house, snacks, and crafts for kids of all ages. 

There will be an extension to the Fall Festival on Halloween night. Grow-In-Kids is located at 42 Rochester St., in the Village of Bergen. On Wednesday night (Halloween) from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m., there will be cider, doughnuts, coffee and hot chocolate for trick-or-treaters, as well as crafts and the haunted house.

There is no entrance fee, however donations to March of Dimes will be accepted. March of Dimes assists new mothers and their babies in times of need.

Volunteers are still needed for Halloween night. If interested, contact Fall Festival coordinator Paul Stamp at paulstamp101@gmail.com

Top photo: Paul Stamp, Dan Smith, Colton Young, Andrew Magin, Andrew McKenrick and Blake Snyder.

Jack Walker makes a candy bucket in the shape of Frankenstein.

A two-car accident is reported at the intersection of Tower Hill and Byron roads. There's one minor injury and it is blocking traffic. Byron and South Byron fire departments and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 5:07 p.m.: A responder on scene says "We've got extensive damage and a helluva debris field." One person will need to be extricated.

UPDATE 5:13 p.m.: The location is actually Byron Road, south of Tower Hill Road.

UPDATE 6:01 p.m.: The roadway is reopened.

UPDATE 6:05 p.m.: South Byron is back in service.

The issue of merging the South Byron and Byron fire departments was probably first raised in 1968, according Paul Boylan, the town's attorney.

It's never happened, and after a town budget meeting Wednesday night, it's apparently not going to happen any time soon.

Trustee Scott Wooten has apparently been pushing the issue and had convinced the other trustess to produce a budget this year with a single line item for two fire departments at the same funding as last year, but with a plan to reduce their funding each year by $10,000 a year until there is only one department.

"I don't understand why we pay $1.41 (fire district tax) and the average in Genesee County is .81," Wooten said. "What are we doing differently. Why do we need two of everything?"

Members from both departments were in the audience and argued that the expense of the departments are not as simple it seemed.

All of the current equipment is paid for, and two tankers are needed to comply with insurance adjuster standards, especially with the lack of public water in much of the town, and two engines in case of multiple calls or if one breaks down.

If the departments merge, the fire hall of South Byron would need to be expanded to accommodate Byron's equipment, reducing any cost savings.

Wooten tried to compare what Byron residents pay for fire service with other communities, such as Bethany and Elba. 

But there can't be a direct comparison several volunteers said. In Bethany, the town owns the fire hall and in Elba, the village owns the department.

What seemed like a unilateral move by the board to force a merger didn't sit well with the members of the department.

"It's really not pleasant to be bullied like this," said Peter Yasses.

Wooten said he was just trying to do what he thought best for the town residents, and that a fire department tax of $1.41 per thousand seems excessive.

"Unfortunately, you think we're making too much money but somehow we're barely surviving in order to help our neighbors at three o'clock in the morning," said Dan Stevens.

Yasses asked, "who's complaining? I never hear any complaints."

Well, the farmers for one.

"But let them throw a match on one of their piles of paper," interjected Jim McKenzie, "and their whole field catches on fire and we're the ones who have to respond to it."

Chris Hilbert said even the $74,000 allocated now for each department isn't enough to run them. They each must conduct their own fundraisers in order to balance their budgets.

Some members wondered how the town would save any money with one department when current expenditures don't cover the full cost of the service.

There was much talk about hiring consultants to look at consolidation. One firm has already offered a $25,000 estimate for such a study, so the discussion turned to how to pay for it.

An actual study would determine what cost savings, if any, could be achieved; what a consolidated department would look like, and how to go about it in a way that wouldn't increase insurance premiums for town residents.

Wooten wanted to know why a consultant needed to be hired for such a study -- couldn't the fire chiefs do it themselves?. Several said they weren't qualified.

Byron Chief John Durand said he was probably qualified to do the study, but he has a conflict of interest.

"I've been a member of the department for 27 years," Durand said. "This is my seventh year as a chief. Whether I have an actual prejudice or not, everybody is going to think I do because of all that time with the department."

Durand seemed to like the idea of a study, but said if the departments were going to go to all the trouble of an expensive study, they should contact the Bergen and Elba departments and discuss the possibility of a regional department.

Hilbert suggested that each department kick in $7,000 and the town pay $7,000 toward the study, but under the current budget proposal, the town can add only $5,900 in more spending and still remain under the state's property tax cap.

It was at that point that Wooten decided to drop his merger proposal.

"If you're telling me this is the best for Byron, then I'll stay with you," Wooten said. "I'm confident that you're never going to come together. I'm convinced of that. This gentleman over here tells me we must have two of everything, so then we might as well have two departments.

"I just want to see why we're at $1.41 and the average is .81," Wooten added. "If you're telling me that's the way it has to be, then I'm willing to accept that."

Bath put together two long drives in the first and second quarter, grinding out yards down after down, three and four yards at a time with runs up the gut, chewing up the clock.

On the first drive, a fumble on the two-yard line put the ball into the hands of the Elba/Byron-Bergen offense, but the Lancers were forced to punt four downs later.

On the second drive, the Rams punched through the right side of the Lancers line, and those six points stood the test of the remaining time.

In the second quarter, the Lancers' defense turned back Bath possession after possession, forcing multiple three-and-outs and claiming a couple of turn overs.

But tit-for-tat, the Rams' defense remained just as stout, bottling up the Lancers' big back, Zack DuBois, whose only long run from scrimmage was canceled by a penalty.

"They did a nice job of taking away cutback lanes and that’s where Zack has his success, cut back or get to the outside," said Lancers Head Coach Michael Cintorino.

This was a game fought in the trenches.

"We knew we had to come out and play physical football and I think they did," Cintorino said. "It was a little bit of an awakening in the first half. In the second half, I think we came out and did exactly what we needed to do."

As the clock wore down in the fourth quarter, QB Zac Gillard was forced to look for open receivers down field and with less than three minutes to go he thought he found Kyle Dougherty. But Dougherty lost his footing when he tried to cut on the soggy turf. That left Bath's Matt Nevius alone to play centerfield and haul in Gillard's pass with a basket catch.

Another interception on the Lancers' next possession pretty much sealed Elba/BB's fate and sent the Rams to the next round of sectional play. Next Saturday, they play Le Roy.

"This is a team that can definitely make a run, but at the same time I’m proud of our boys, who came out and had an opportunity to win the football game on multiple occasions," Cintorino said.

Bath had lost this year to Batavia and Le Roy, but coming into sectionals, the Rams have two starters returning from injuries, including one, Cintorino said, who otherwise missed the entire season.

"We knew coming in they were a good team," Cintorino said. "We’re the third-seeded team and we’re playing a team that probably should have been somewhere in the top four. If you could squeeze five teams into the top four, Bath definitely belongs there."

Most of this year's Lancers have been playing together since eighth grade and they've come a long way as a team, as players and as men, Cintorino said.

"I am extremely proud of them," Cintorino said. "I wish we could have gotten a couple of more weeks of play together, but I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished in the time we’ve had."

If you're unable to view the slide show below, click here. To purchase prints of these photos, click here.

Suzanne Dizak is indicted on counts of criminal possession of stolen property, 4th, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Dizak is accused of possessing jewelry stolen from Target on April 1 when she allegedly knew the property was stolen. The total value of the jewelry was reportedly $1,171.58. On that same date, Dizak is accused of possessing heroin.

Brian P. Griffen is indicted on counts of burglary, 3rd, and grand larceny, 4th. Griffen is accused of breaking into a building on Fisher Road, Oakfield, sometime between June 12 and June 26 and stealing a dune buggy, Yamaha Kodiak 4-wheeler and a Honda dirt bike.

Luis Ramos Perez is indicted on felony counts of aggravated DWI and aggravated driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Perez is accused of driving drunk May 6 on Route 262, Byron, with a child under age 15 in the car.

#7 Batavia Blue Devils (3-4) vs. #2 East Rochester/Gananda Bombers (6-1)
7 p.m., Friday

Batavia enters their Class B first round matchup against East Rochester/Gananda riding a three-game losing streak, and has lost three out of the last four.

Despite the recent lack of success and a few injuries this week, first year Head Coach Brennan Briggs is still optimistic about his team’s chances of pulling off the upset.

“We are due to play 48 minutes of football because we haven’t in the last three weeks,” Briggs said. “If we execute and know our assignments, we can win this football game.”

To key to the Blue Devils’ success will be the playmaking ability of wide receiver Justin Washington. The senior is capable of making big plans in the return game, running and catching the ball.

“We have been working on a few different ways to get him the ball, whether it’s running or passing,” Briggs said. “We think [Washington] is the best athlete on the field on any given night.”

If Washington can break loose, and the Blue Devils overcome their injuries, they have a chance to beat the Bombers on Friday night.

#7 Holley Hawks (4-3) vs. #2 Le Roy Oatkan Knights (6-1)
7 p.m., Friday

Second-seeded Le Roy will host the seventh seed Holley in the first round of the Section V Class C Football Playoffs on Friday night in a matchup of Livingston County and Genesee Region League teams.

Le Roy is coming off an emotional come-from-behind win against rival Cal-Mum last week, as they scored 10 points in the final four minutes of the game to squeak out a victory.

The Knights’ only loss on the season came against Perry in Week 6, but leading rusher Peter Privitera did not play in the game, nor did he last week due to injury. Privitera has rushed for 834 yards and 10 touchdowns in five games this season, while Marcus Mistersaro has 362 yards, 3 touchdowns and 9.8 yards per carry.

Mistersaro stepped in for the injured Privitera last week and ran for 90 yards, including 63 on the game-winning drive against Cal-Mum.

Le Roy averages 282 rushing yards per game, so Holley will have to slow down the running attack in order to have an opportunity to win.

While the Hawks enter the game with more wins than losses, they have a 1-3 record against teams with a winning record for the season.

#6 Bath Rams (4-3) vs. #2 Elba/Byron-Bergen Lancers (6-1)
1:30 p.m., Saturday

Elba/Byron-Bergen will host Bath in a Class C first round matchup on Saturday afternoon and the player to watch is undoubtedly Lancers running back Zack DuBois.

The senior led the Genesee Region League in rushing with 1,572 yards and 16 touchdowns. DuBois also ran for 200 yards in 5 of 7 games he played this year, and never rushed for less than 113. His average of 224.6 yards per game and 10.3 yards per carry were also tops in the league.

If Elba can get DuBois rolling early, it will open up the passing game for quarterback Zac Gillard, who has 881 yards, 12 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions on the season.

Defensively, they are led by four-time Section V Class C Defensive Player of the Week Andy Underhill.

The junior linebacker led the Lancers with 132 tackles, averaging almost 19 per game. While Bath comes in with a 1-3 record against teams with winning records, they did defeat a strong Livonia squad, so the Rams will be a tough first round matchup for Elba/Byron-Bergen.

#4 Dundee Scotsmen (3-4) vs. #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-1)
1:30 p.m., Saturday

While Notre Dame is coming off an emotional high last week after defeating Attica to force a three-way tie for the Genesee Region League Championship, the 76 to 14 drubbing that Dundee gave the Irish in the 2009 Class D Championship game is still fresh in the mind of Head Coach Rick Mancuso.

Notre Dame will look to avenge that loss and the attack will begin with do-it-all quarterback Tim McCulley. The junior led the G-R League in passing yards and his 16 touchdown passes were also tops in the league.

McCulley is also extremely effective running the ball if the pocket breaks down, as he did last week 11 times for 79 yards. The McCulley-to-Jared Thornton connection has been hot as of late, with the two hooking up 10 times for 240 yards and 3 touchdowns in the victory against Attica.

If Dundee wants to upset the number-one seed in Class D, they will have to do so by shutting down Irish passing attack.

Notre Dame fell in the Class D Finals a year ago, and has not won a championship since 2006.

Press release:

The Genesee/Wyoming Music Educators announce that 38 local students will be performing at three music festivals in November and December.

Miranda Graham (chorus-alto) from Le Roy has been accepted to Conference All State that will be held in early December. This is the highest choral honor for vocalists in New York. Miranda was chosen from a large field of students due to her high score at State Solo Festival last spring. Dillon Hirsch (saxophone) from Elba was chosen as an alternate.

Thirty-six other students were chosen to represent their schools at Area All State, which is a group of select singers from nine surrounding counties. All students had to audition at a state solo festival held late last spring.

These festivals will take place for seventh- through ninth-graders (jr. high
orchestra/chorus/band) Nov.  2-3, and for 10th-12th-graders (sr. high orchestra/chorus/band) Nov. 16-17.

The entire Genesee County list is below:

CONFERENCE ALL STATE:
Miranda Graham (chorus-alto) -- Le Roy
Alternate: Dillon Hirsch (sax) -- Elba

AREA ALL STATE
Alexander:
Jr. High Chorus -- Hunter Doran, Alynn Franclemont, Matthew Genaway, Mary Guarino, Marissa Scharlau

Sr. High Chorus -- Mitchell Boughton, Aaron Guarino, Nick Guarino

Batavia:
Jr. High Chorus -- Madison Hoerbelt, Tessa Lynn
Jr. High Band -- Ross Chua, Celia Flynn, Andrea Gilbarto

Byron-Bergen:
Sr. High Chorus -- Sarah Donovan, Andrew Magin, Kelsey Swinter
Sr. High Band -- Lucas DeValder

Elba:
Sr. High Band -- Dillon Hirsch

Le Roy:
Jr. High Chorus -- Katherine Funderburk, Sophia Matla,
Jr. High Orchestra -- Thomas Dunn, Sophie Farnholz,
Jr. High Band -- Joshua Laurie, Kieran O'Halloran, Jennifer Stotz
Sr. High Chorus -- Rachel Glucksman, Miranda Graham,

Pembroke:
Jr. High Chorus -- Ryan Curtis, Grace Fingerglow, Samantha Quaranto, Maisy Ross, Sindel Wille
Jr. High Band -- Katie Brown
Sr. High Band -- Matt Kowalski

Oakfield:
Jr. High Chorus -- Sara Anzalone
Sr. High Chorus -- Eliza Pionessa

St. Joseph's
Jr. High Chorus -- Fiona Beck, Kyra Stella

In the Byron-Bergen School District, students aren't just learning how to read, write and solve math problems. They're also being taught the basic skills of leadership.

"We want them to be confident individuals," said Brian Meister, the elementary school principal. "We want them to be self-sufficient individuals. We want them to be able to make good choices consistently."

The leadership course is based on Stephen R. Covey's acclaimed "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." Covey's company has developed "The Leader in Me," a program to teach students the seven habits in a format they can grasp.

In Byron-Bergen, the curriculum is part of a strategy to educate children in a well-rounded fashion. Yes, they learn academics, but they're also exposed to the arts and good citizenship.

At the Thursday evening board meeting (unusually packed with parents), a group of third-graders sang songs, recited their leadership pledge and showed off their leadership pictures.

"It's so important not to just teach them academics, but to teach them to be good citizens," Superintendent Casey Kosiorek said. "We can all agree that if one of these find young individuals moves next door to us, we want them to be good people and we also want them to be intelligent."

The seven habits:

• Habit 1: Be Proactive • You’re in Charge
• Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind • Have a Plan
• Habit 3: Put First Things First • Work First, Then Play
• Habit 4: Think Win-Win • Everyone Can Win
• Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood • Listen Before You Talk
• Habit 6: Synergize • Together Is Better
• Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw • Balance Feels Best

Meister said faculty and staff are really proud at how well students are responding to the course. He said it's rewarding to hear students talk about solving conflicts with a "win-win" attitude.

It's not easy, he said, for a child in elementary school to "seek first to understand," and put themselves in the shoes of the other person before trying to meet their own needs. But he said in fact, they're seeing child trying to learn to take exactly that approach.

During the school board meeting, Kosiorek noted a recent study that showed the vast majority of new patents are filed in the United States, not China. The iPad, he noted, was invented in this country, not overseas. He said the next generation of entrepreneurs will come out of today's schools, and it's Byron-Bergen's job to prepare the next generation of business leaders.

Meister agreed and said that as students move on from elementary school, into high school and then into college or careers they will be the self-confident individuals who are followed by their peers.

"We really believe here at Byron-Bergen that it’s not only our job to teach kids the academics, but also to make sure sure we provide the leaders of tomorrow," Meister said.

According to online interviews Rochester resident Sean Madden has conducted over the past two years, he is as accomplished at working with troubled children as he is as an artist.

A surrealist whose work is sure to offend mainstream sensibilities, his pen-and-ink creations have been featured in books, on screen, in galleries and sought after by collectors.

It's also his artwork that may have cost him his job with the Byron-Bergen Central School District where he was employed as a counselor.

Contacted today, Superintendent Casey Kosiorek said he couldn't discuss a "confidential matter."

Madden also said he is not very interested in talking about the situation at this stage. He said it's very early in the process and he hasn't decided yet what, if any, message he wants to share with the media.

He confirmed he has spoken with attorneys from his teacher's union and the ACLU and agreed that the case is an interesting First Amendment matter.

All of the paintings and his promotion of his art were done away from the school and not during work hours, Madden confirmed.

Beyond that, he didn't want to say more until conferring further with lawyers.

In interviews with publications in Rochester and Buffalo, Madden has said he's a husband and father who was born in Buffalo, raised there in the 1970s, attended SUNY Brockport, and eventually obtained a master's degree in counselor education.

"I worked my way up the ladder in society," Madden told Rochester at Home, "from mopping floors, to serving in restaurants, to becoming a respected counselor. I’ve spent years working with the most violent, disturbed families and kids in the system.

"I’ve been in high demand throughout my career, as I’ve worked with the toughest cases. For many years, my specialty was working with emotionally disturbed kids in institutions. I’ve worked in classrooms that many people were too afraid to work in — the kids were too aggressive."

Without cooperation of the school district, it's unclear how long Madden was employed by Byron-Bergen, but according to See Through New York, his tenure goes back to at least 2008 and in 2011 he earned $59,000.

It's unknown to what degree the school district was aware of Madden's work prior to hiring him. The district has been through at least one change in superintendents since he started working there.

Unless the district issues a statement, we also don't know if there other issues, from the district's perspective, involved in the apparent dismissal of Madden.

Madden's personal Web site contains samples of his artwork, which features iconic subjects in surreal circumstances and in themes some may find distasteful.

The fact that not everybody will find his art appealing seems to be fine by Madden. He told Buffalo Rising that he isn't after the same kind of success as a guy who paints puppies.

"For a guy like me -- who does blasphemous, sexually explicit, psycho-representational work -- it's a much bigger deal," Madden said. "I'm not worried about the general public liking my work.

"After all, they haven't voted for a female president yet, so who cares what they think? The general public is stupid. However, the folks who understand my work -- weirdo intelligentsia -- them I care about."