EAGLE Sports
75 cents
Observer 20 weeks home delivery for $10
Schools
J-E’s legal fees topped Jesse Garn signs with Binghamton ... Page 8 $111,000 last year ... Page 6 Volume 181, No. 8 Feb. 23 to Mar. 1, 2011
Community
call: (315) 434-8889 x342 email:subscriptions@cnylink.com new subscribers only
75
$
Off
07834
Camillus JordanElbridge Marcellus
Home of Mike Brown eagle-observer.com
Lenses 104 Kasson Road Camillus 315-487-0327 Visit STERLINGOPTICAL.COM With purchase of a complete pair of eyeglasses (frame and lenses). Min.purchase $200. Other restrictions may apply. See store for details. Limited time offer.
Church roofs collapse
Charges dropped in under mounds of snow MaxMan court case
CNY SPCA returns 26 reptiles to Jordan woman By Ned Campbell
Prom dresses made ‘Just for You’ Short on cash? $10 is all you need to rent a prom or ball dress from the Dump Boutique in Marcellus. ...See page 3
A&E
‘Be Our Guest!’ West Genesee students staged three stellar performances of “Beauty and the Beast.” ...See page 7
CALENDAR ...................2 CLASSIFIEDS .............. 16 EDITORIAL ....................4 OBITUARIES............... 14 PUBLIC NOTICES ........ 15 RELIGION .....................5 SCHOOL NEWS .............6 SPORTS ..........8, 11, 16
UNDER REPAIR: Pictured above is the First Baptist Church of Memphis. At bottom left is the parish hall of St. Luke’s Ukrainian Church in Warners. Both suffered roof damages last week. NED CAMPBELL
By Ned Campbell editor@eagle-observer.com Two churches within a five-mile radius had a part of their roof collapse this past week – both due to snow that had piled too high for too long. In both cases, damage came to the more modern building (both were built around
1980), while the traditional sanctuaries went unharmed. No one was injured in either incident. Most recently, at around 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday Feb. 16, the First Baptist Church of Memphis, 6425 Bennetts Corners Road, had its worship building roof cave in. About 40 people were at worship service under the roof when it started to go, said Jon Lippert, a longtime member of the church. The full collapse didn’t occur until about 20 minutes after everyone had vacated the building. Lippert helped build the church in 1981. He said seeing the roof fall was an emotional experience. “We spent a lot of hours down here in that building,” he said. “In fact, my daughter’s [Penny Voegele] was the first wedding in the new church and [my son] Russ’s was the second.” See Church roofs, page 5
Fifty-nine charges of animal neglect brought against Diana Sleiertin have been dropped in a plea agreement, says Sleiertin, owner of MaxMan Reptile Rescue in Jordan. The Central New York SPCA took 45 animals from Sleiertin’s home in October following allegations of deplorable conditions by three former MaxMan volunteers. Sleiertin, with about 10 other volunteers, went to the SPCA Wednesday afternoon to retrieve the reptiles that had been released back to her in the agreement. See MaxMan, page 10
West Genesee closes in on wage freeze By Ned Campbell Administrators, teachers, teaching assistants and teaching aides at West Genesee voted last Thursday to accept a wage freeze for the 2011-12 school year to help close a budget gap of $5.63 million Superintendent Chris Brown said the district would not go ahead with a wage freeze, which would save the district $900,000, unless all employees agreed to freeze their pay. See Wage freeze, page 3
Marcellus volleyball wins first Class B title in three years By Phil Blackwell
Devon Landers goes up for a spike during the Mustangs’ firstround sectional win over Lowville. Also pictured are Jena Annable, foreground, Veronica Raymond and Sara Ryan. ERIC MORRIS
Three years has passed since the Marcellus girls volleyball team has held the Section III Class B crown - far too long, by its own high standards. But that dry spell came to an end last Saturday night at Jamesville-DeWitt, where the Mustangs completed its 15th run to a sectional title by knocking off undefeated top seed South Jefferson in four games. “It’s an awesome way to go out,” said setter Jena Annable, one of just three seniors (along with Veronica Raymond and Allie Vanderwerf) on the roster. And it was particularly special for Annable because she had
Getting Married? Call to receive your free copy of the new Wedding Planner Book. (315) 434-8889 ext. 307
missed the better part of two seasons with injuries before returning this winter to lead the Mustangs back to glory. Head coach Hy Bryant, who has been at the helm through most of the Mustangs’ championship runs, said the feeling of finishing on top never gets gold. “Every one of these championships is just as important,” he said. “To do it all over again is just as magical as the first time.” This title sticks out because Marcellus wasn’t favored when the season began and, according to Bryant, had a difficult time finding its top form, especially on the defensive side. See Mustangs, page 3
EAGLE
NEWSPAPERS