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C e l e b r a t e o n F e b r u a r y 1 4 , 2 0 2 2

Can you descramble these Valentine’s Day realted words? Solve the riddle and make sure to show the people you care about the most some serious love!

Previously there was a Roman festival called Lupercalia which was in the middle of February. During this festival, the boys would select a girls name out of a box. They would stay with whoever they picked during the festival. Sometimes they would even get married.Later on, it was decided by the church that they wanted to change this festival into a Christian celebration. This was the start of Valentines Day.

Finding in A   e Right Places LoveB Y A M A N D A D U D E K

It was the summer of 2018, more than an entire year before the word “pandemic,” became a part of our daily vocabulary. One woman, yours truly, was about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime, changing careers to pursue the dream of writing full-time. I expected it to be exciting. I expected it to be challenging, full of new experiences and opportunities. It has been all that and more. What I never expected, however, is how much writing the Genesee Valley Penny Saver’s weekly Hometown Stories would teach me about love. • Take Helen Sera ne, for example. Helen is the owner of the Angry Rooster Café in Caledonia, a business from which she continuously serves the community around her. Last year alone, she hosted a anksgiving dinner for area friends in need. She also created the Little Food Pantry in the alley next to her café where people can come at any time to select or drop o food items. Still, Helen saw more needs to meet.

A gi tree, o ered by Helen during the holidays, presented neighbors with the opportunity to play Santa Claus to others during the recent holiday season. Helen has also established (and continues to support) a “coat tree” as well as a container of winter wear such as hats, scarves, and gloves in front of her restaurant. As her sister, Mary Sera ne put it, “If someone needs something, she is there. ey don’t have to ask; she just does it.” Serving those in need: that is love. • Further west in Batavia, meet Senior Wishes. is organization serves a vulnerable and too o en forgotten segment of our population: our elderly friends, family, and neighbors. According to Wendy Miller Backman, Senior Wishes Executive Director, “Senior Wishes was created to recognize that our aging seniors still have things they want to do, places they want to go, or people they want to see. We transform those dreams into a reality.”

Senior Wishes has granted many hundreds of requests. For Leonard, an 81-year old Army Veteran who hasn’t been on a boat in 20 years, a Senior Wish meant one more time holding a shing pole in his hand and feeling the lake breezes on his face. For Charles, a WWII Army Veteran who had wanted to see his cousin in Oakland, CA for some time, a Senior Wish meant a very special reunion a er 10 years apart. Finally, for 89-year-old WWII Veteran Marco, who has been a fan of the L.A. Dodgers for as long as he can remember, a Senior Wish meant a trip to Cleveland to watch his beloved Dodgers play the Indians. Caring for our elderly: that is love.

• In Brockport, the Community Hygiene Bank (CHB), which has served the area since March 2017, became even more essential with the advent of Covid-19. e CHB provides personal hygiene and household cleanliness items to struggling families and individuals while o ering prayer for all those who ask. Even when cleaning items became scarce, CHB continued to o er them at their events. In its new home at Jubilee Christian Church in Brockport, CHB has grown from serving 11 families to now serving approximately 150 families. Providing for one’s neighbors: that is love. • Further south, Tina Markle, founder of Your Centers Dansville, goes above and beyond for those around her. Your Centers Day Respite Program specializes in helping individuals requiring managed long-term care. However, the doors are open to everyone and serve breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Tina is a support for local elderly, disabled, and shut-in individuals, particularly during Covid-19. She personally delivered groceries to many people who could not come out and shop for themselves, o en responding to calls from morning until evening.

Recently, Tina opened a clothing “store” to help struggling families. She also organized a collection of goods for ooded communities last fall. Giving freely of yourself to those around you: that is love. • Sometimes, love is so powerful, it creates a miracle. e shutdown across all New York schools due to the Covid-19 pandemic had prevented St. Agnes School of Avon from holding three of its major fundraisers as the 2019-2020 school year was coming to a close. On April 27th in the face of a budget de cit, it seemed likely the recommendation going forward on May 8th would be for the school’s closure.

“ e next day, we formed a task force, and on April 29th, we put up a GoFundMe,” Principal Jensen explained. “Within three days, we had raised $100,000 thanks to community members, alumni, current and former parents of students, teachers, and even students, which was so sweet.” On May 6th, just ten short days a er the St. Agnes School stood on the brink of closure, Father Michael presented the Bishop with a letter recommending that Avon’s St. Agnes School remain open.

“ e community rallied around our school,” Jensen said. “Our drive encouraged others to be ‘a light in the darkness…’ they lit up our sky!” Preserving local treasures like St. Agnes School: that is love. ese represent only a handful of the stories that have poured out from across our region and into our pages over the past three years. Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to recognize that our communities are lled to over owing with generous people and organizations. Love may not always make the news, but it makes our towns incredible places to be.

Enjoy this article? Check out this week’s other great stories online at www.gvpennysaver.com: • On Love

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