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Sen. Rob Ortt, who is also a candidate for congression in the NY-27, spent much of his day in Genesee County on Wednesday, first attending the veterans town hall in Corfu about the new national cemetary, then paying a visit to The Firing Pin in Bergen, and then holding a meet-and-greet at Ken's Charcoal Pits & Bar-B-Q.

The Batavian caught up with Ortt at The Firing Pin.

Occasionally, a Batavia High School student completes their graduation requirements out of cycle with the rest of their class and receives their diploma at a Board of Education meeting. That was the case Tuesday night for Hezekia N. Burch.

The Blue Devils soccer team has historically faired poorly on artificial turf but Monday, they got a chance to start a new tradition -- one that is now necessary -- by winning their first home game in the new Van Detta Stadium.

Batavia beat Dansville 3-2 behind three goals by Garrick Havens. Two were on penalty kicks and the third was assisted by Andres Mateos.

Batavia took 16 shots on net and Dansville, 14.

Unique to the current roster are three pairs of brothers, all starters.

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Andrew Englerth rushed for 206 yards and four touchdowns to help lead Le Roy to a 58-13 win over Mynderse/South Seneca on Friday night.

Kyler LaCarte filled in at QB for Jake Hill, who is missing a couple of games due to an injury, and was 5-9 passing for 52 yards. LaCarte scored a touchdown while gaining 25 yards rushing on five carries.

Nate Andrews scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one on an 82-yard punt return. Andrews also converted six point-after attempts.

Kaiel Robinson also scored a touchdown.

Cole Rauscher had 10 tackles and an interception.

Hemp could be big business in Western New York, the way Sen. Chuck Schumer sees it, but right now bank regulators are standing in the way.

As part of the most recent Farm Bill, Schumer teamed up with Sen. Mitch McConnell to take hemp off the list of Schedule I drugs and make growing it for cultivation legal. Farmers can even qualify for crop insurance when they grow it.

But banks have been unwilling to extend credit to farmers who want to start or expand hemp operations.

Today, Schumer was at Mills Family Farm on Ham Road in Basom to announce a new push by his office to get bank regulators to hurry up and write guidelines for banks seeking to do business with hemp growers.

"Hemp is harmless and in fact it's useful," Schumer said. "It's a very versatile and vital crop and it has much, much less THC, which is the active ingredient in marijuana, than marijuana."

He said besides producing CDB oil, it's used in cosmetics, construction materials, side doors of cars, and several other uses, he said.

"You know, everyone thought hemp was just for ropes but it is for much more," Schumer said.

Banks want to lend to hemp farmers, he said, but they're worried about getting in trouble with banking regulators, because of the association with marijuana, without specific, written guidelines.

"They know it's profitable loaning lending for them but they need this clearance from the regulators and today I am starting a major push to get the regulators to put out their guidelines about lending to hemp farms," Schumer said.

Brad Mills started growing hemp this year but he said without access to credit, it will be hard to expand hemp acreage next year, and hemp, in the current market, has attractive profit margins.

"On a small family farm, we had the equipment, we obviously had the land -- some of the best land in the state, and I would argue the nation for growing hemp at our disposal  -- but as we began to move along we saw obstacles," Mills said. "We really do need financing for things and that includes sophisticated equipment for the growing of hemp that a corn or dairy farmer just doesn't have along with that, the costs of buying clones, buying seeds, buying sprouting equipment to get those seeds going.

"None of that your average small dairy farmer or crop farmer would have. And that's very necessary equipment for moving forward in this industry. Our profits from this year's crop likely won't be enough to both establish that equipment and then move forward with a larger planting from next year. So we really need financing in place for that.

"And beyond that, you know moving forward, there's a real shortage of drying and processing facilities in the state as well. As we advance this farm ideally in the future, we would like to get into our own drying and processing. But you know these are all obstacles to overcome. We need financing."

The Firing Pin hosted a “22 to None Fun Run” in support Mission 22, an organization dedicated to assisting veterans in getting treatment when they need it most.

The event included a 2.2K fun run, raffles, food and beer.

“I have personally lost seven friends that I was deployed with to veteran suicide,” said Patrick Kimball, TFP Advanced Training director and combat veteran. “Together, we can help our veterans get the help they deserve before it’s too late.”

Reader Brandan Smith submitted this video of hail falling in Bergen.

Batavia also got hit with some thunder and lightning and hail though there was no prior alert from the National Weather Service of a heavy storm passing through the area.

Tuesday, at the fairgrounds, more than 800 students from schools throughout Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties had a chance to try out several skilled trades first hand in the region's first-ever "GLOW With Your Hands" event.

Pembroke Intermediate School in Corfu is promoting community and wellness this week with a program called “Start with Hello."

On Tuesday morning students were greeted by police and firemen saying hello and handing out apples. The event today is part of a weeklong effort to promote emotional wellness at the school.

Three people were hurt today in a head-on collision on Route 19 in Le Roy but none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening, according to the deputy investigating the case.

One person was transported by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital as a precaution.

According to Deputy Chris Erion, it appears a blue Toyota crossed the centerline and struck a green Kia. The vehicles clipped each other's front driver-side fenders.

The names of the people involved have not yet been released.

(Initial Report)

Nearly a year ago, the former P.W. Minor factory on Treadeasy Avenue in Batavia quietly started producing high-end men's shoes again with a small work crew.

The new company, Artisan Boot & Shoe, is owned by Nicole Porter, the granddaughter of local businessman Pete Zeliff, who helped rescue P.W. Minor in 2014 from closure and operated the company for more than three years before selling the company and the factory to a group of investors.

That company couldn't make a go of it and Zeliff foreclosed on the property, the equipment, and inventory and after 150 years of business in Batavia, P.W. Minor ceased to exist.

Later that month, in October of 2018, Porter approached her father with a business plan to start a new shoe business. She acquired from him the equipment for Goodyear welted boots (which describes how the sole is welted and sewn to the top of the shoe) and hired 10 former P.W. Minor employees and took over the contracts with about a half-dozen shoe companies to continue making top-quality men's boots for them.

Porter said the company is growing, doing well financially, and she hopes the day will come when they can expand production, start making women's boots again, and perhaps launch their own boot or shoe brand.

The company leases space from Custom Vehicle Outfitters, which recently acquired the property from Zeliff in order to expand operations from its current location on Ganson Avenue. The company is currently remodeling the front of the building while Artisan Boot & Shoe operates in the factory space at the rear of the building.

During Saturday's Night of Champions at Batavia Downs, Western OTB President/CEO Henry Wojtaszek talked about the speed humps installed the day before on Park Road outside of the casino.

Records fell and more than 3,500 race fans enjoyed a perfect evening for racing at Batavia Downs on Saturday for the Sire Stakes Night of Champions, the most important harness racing event in New York for 2019.

Local and state race officials said Batavia Downs became the perfect host for this event, the first time its been held in Western New York, because of all the upgrades to the facility, including the addition of a hotel, over the past couple of years.

During last night's Sire Stakes at Batavia Downs, Western OTB President and CEO Henry Wojtaszek said another company is under contract to purchase the former Kmart location on Lewiston Road, which sits across Park Road from the southern end of the race track.

Western OTB had been interested in acquiring the property to convert into a multi-use facility -- concerts, sporting events, convention center.

Wojtaszek said WOTB doesn't know the name of the potential purchasers, which is conducting due diligence on the acquisition now, but if the deal does not go through, he said, Batavia Downs has been assured it can bid again.

If the deal does go through, Wojtaszek said the purchaser is a company Batavia Downs can work with.