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Marilynne Lipshutz is happy with her second act. After years working as a psychotherapist, she decided to start working with stained glass and glass fusing. She is the founder of the Studio 34 Creative Arts Center in Rochester. Page. 22
28 Anniversary
18 Benefits
Divorce and Social Security: 5 things you need to know
20 Investing
Nest egg: Think hard before you raise your risk
22 Second Act
Psychotherapist happy she pursued the art of glass fusing
25 Music
Twenty-seven singing groups are members of the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium
Former Irondequoit town supervisor David Schantz has been a big part of the Irondequoit Concert Band’s first 50 years
30 Playing
Just Us: A bunch of local guys making music
34 Cover Story: Wintertime
• 10 things to do this winter
• Fun indoor places to take the grandkids
• Shake off the post-holiday doldrums by getting out and getting fit
• Plan to think spring: Growing seeds indoors ahead of planting time can result in earlier produce and posies
42 Radio
DJ Mike Murray: Still shakin’ after all these years
44 Retirement
High-powered men drive school buses in Skaneateles. One is the creator and former owner of EarQ, the other, a former executive with Welch Allyn
48 Housing
• More boomers seeking independent living
• Here are some pros and cons of a senior community
52 Writing
Members of PIM (Partners in Medicine) writers’ group gather once a month to eat, chat and discuss their writings
55 Hospitality
Henrietta family plays host to students from all over the world
58 Dream
The Kunze family: Love of the land and freedom from country to country
10 Savvy Senior
What happens to your debt when you die?
12 Financial Health
New year, new you: Organizingy your financial records
14 Dining Out
Dining at Rella, the pintsized restaurant that packs a punch
61 Visits
‘My visit to Greece. Writer from Auburn explores the ancient cities of Greece
64 Addyman’s Corner
‘I’m just a simple guy’
66 Last Page
Markus Essien, 55:
The new program coordinator of the Flower City Arts Center’s photography program talks about his job, the path he took to it
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savvy senior
By Jim Miller
What Happens to Your Debt When You Die?
In most cases when a person with debt dies, it’s their estate, not their kids or dependents, that is legally responsible. Here’s what you should know.
• Debt After Death — When you die, your estate — which consists of the stuff you own while you’re alive (property, investments and cash) — will be responsible for paying your debts. If you don’t have enough cash to pay your debts, your kids will have to sell your assets and pay off your creditors with the proceeds.
Whatever is left over is passed along to your heirs as dictated by the terms of your will, if you have one. If you don’t have a will, the intestacy laws of the state will determine how your estate will be distributed.
If, however, you die broke, or there isn’t enough money left over to pay your “unsecured debts” — credit cards, medical bills, personal loans — then your estate is declared insolvent, and your creditors will have to eat the loss.
“Secured debts” — loans attached to an asset such as a house or a car — are a different story. If you have a mortgage or car loan when you die, those monthly payments will need to be made by your estate or heirs, or the lender can seize the property.
There are, however, a couple of exceptions that would make the dependents legally responsible for your debt after you pass away. One is if your son or daughter is a joint holder on a credit card account that you owe on. And the other is if either one of them co-signed a loan with you.
• Spouses Beware — If you’re married, these same debt inheritance rules apply to surviving spouses too, unless you live in a community property state, which includes Arizona,
California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. In these states, any debts that one spouse acquires after the start of a marriage belongs to the other spouse too. Therefore, spouses in community property states are usually responsible for their deceased spouses’ debts.
• Protected Assets — If you have any IRAs, 401(k)s, brokerage accounts, life insurance policies or employer-based pension plans, these are assets that creditors usually cannot get access to. That’s because these accounts typically have designated beneficiaries, and the money goes directly to those people without passing through the estate.
• Settling the Estate — You should also make the dependents aware that if you die with debt, and you have no assets, settling your estate will be fairly simple. Your executor will need to send out letters to your creditors explaining the situation, including a copy of your death certificate, and that will probably take care of it. But your kids may still have to deal with aggressive debt collectors who try to guilt them into paying.
If you have some assets, but not enough to pay all your debts, your state’s probate court has a distinct list of what bills get priority. The details vary by state, but generally estate administrating fees, funeral expenses, taxes and last illness medical bills get paid first, followed by secured debts and lastly, credit card debts.
• Need Legal Help? — If you or your kids have questions or need legal assistance, contact a consumer law attorney or probate attorney. If you can’t afford a lawyer, go to LawHelp. org to search for free legal help in your area.
Editor and Publisher Wagner Dotto
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Writers & Contributors
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55 PLUS – A Magazine for Active Adults in Rochester is published six times a year by Local News, Inc. at PO Box 525, Victor, NY 14564, which also publishes In Good Health — Rochester's Healthcare Newspaper.
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• Monthly rent of $1,148 includes utilities, cable and internet
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• Meal delivery and grab-and-go options available
• Weekly physician visits and lab services provided by U of R Geriatrics Group
and
financial health
By Laurie Haelen
New Year, New You: Organizing Your Financial Records
‘An easy way to prevent documents from piling up is to remember the phrase "out with the old, in with the new." For example, if you still receive paper copies of financial records, discard your old records as soon as you receive the new ones.’
The New Year is an excellent time to reflect on the many events of the year that has gone by, as well as to consider what changes may improve your daily life.
For me, this usually means some type of reorganization: donating clothing and household items, clearing old files from my computer and one of my favorites, reviewing personal finances.
An integral part of managing your personal finances involves properly maintaining your financial records. This is especially important in the event of a crisis or emergency so that you can quickly locate something if needed. That's why you should make a point of dusting off the cobwebs that have built up in your home office from time to time and clean out and organize your financial records.
If you — like most of us! — keep paperwork because you "might need it someday," your home office and file cabinets are likely overflowing and cluttered with nonessential documents. One key to organizing your financial records is to keep only what you absolutely need for as long
as you need it.
One of the most common “file hogs” are tax records. Keep all personal tax records for at least three years after filing your return or two years after the taxes were paid, whichever is later. (Different rules apply to business taxes.) If you underreported gross income by more than 25% (not a wise decision), keep the records for six years, and for seven years if you claimed a deduction for worthless securities or bad debt. It might be helpful to keep your actual tax returns, W-2 forms, and other income statements until you begin receiving Social Security benefits.
Financial statements may also be taking up a lot of space. You generally have 60 days to dispute charges with banks and credit cards, so you could discard statements after two months. If you receive an annual statement, get rid of monthly statements once you receive the annual statement. If your statements include tax information (e.g., you use credit card statements to track deductions), follow the guidelines for tax records. I tend to print an annual statement for all investment accounts and keep
it indefinitely, as I like to have it for proof in case of any online issues that hopefully will never occur.
You could also follow the same strategy for retirement account statements. Keep quarterly statements until you receive your annual statement; keep annual statements until you close the account. Keep records of nondeductible IRA contributions indefinitely to prove you paid taxes on the funds.
Real estate and investment records should be kept at least until you sell the asset. If the sale is reported on your tax return, follow the rules for tax records. Utility bills can be discarded once the next bill is received showing the previous paid bill, unless you deduct utilities, such as for a home office.
For loan documents: keep documents and proof of payment until the loan is paid off. After that, keep proof of final payment.
For insurance policies: Keep policy and payment documents as long as the policy is in force.
For auto records: Keep registration and title information until the car is sold. If you deduct auto expenses, keep mileage logs and receipts with your tax
records. You might keep maintenance records for reference and to document services for a new buyer.
For medical records: Keep records indefinitely for surgeries, major illnesses, lab tests and vaccinations. Keep payment records until you have proof of a zero balance. If you deduct medical expenses, keep receipts with your tax records.
These are general guidelines, and your personal circumstances may warrant keeping these documents for shorter or longer periods of time.
You can choose to keep hard copies of your financial records or store them digitally. You usually do not need to keep hard copies of documents and records that can be found online or duplicated elsewhere. Important documents such as birth certificates and other proof of identity should be stored in a safe place, such as a fire-resistant file cabinet or safedeposit box. You can save or scan other documents on your computer, or store them on a portable drive, or use a cloud storage service that encrypts your uploaded information and stores it remotely.
An easy way to prevent documents from piling up is to remember the phrase "out with the old, in with the new." For example, if you still receive paper copies of financial records, discard your old records as soon as you receive the new ones (using the above guidelines). Make sure to dispose of them properly by shredding documents that contain sensitive personal information, Social Security numbers, or financial account numbers. Finally, review your records regularly to make sure that your filing system remains organized. As a person who has cleaned out many homes over the past several years, I can assure you that this process will help you both now and in the future when your loved ones must handle your estate.
Here’s wishing you a wonderfuland organized New Year!
Laurie Haelen, AIF (accredited investment fiduciary), is senior vice president, manager of investment and financial planning solutions, CNB Wealth Management, Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Company. She can be reached at 585-419-0670, ext. 41970 or by email at lhaelen@cnbank.com.
Dining Out RESTAURANT GUIDE
DINING AT RELLA, THE PINT-SIZED RESTAURANT THAT PACKS A PUNCH
By Jacob Pucci
On a busy thoroughfare on the outskirts of Rochester sits Rella, a tiny wedge of a restaurant with no tables aside from 15 seats at the bar, overlooking the open kitchen.
With its low, metal ceiling, nautical décor and wall of windows overlooking Monroe Avenue, Rella feels a bit like a fish tank, which is appropriate, as Rella serves some of the most innovative seafood dishes anywhere in Rochester.
Opened in 2019, Rella is the sister restaurant to Rocco, whose elevated but approachable takes on Italian classics — like the charred bread with house-made ricotta — have made it a favorite since it opened in 2008.
The approach to food at Rella is similar, though the vibe is even more intimate. The menu is built around a dozen or so small plates, almost all seafood, which with a few exceptions is everchanging. The plates are built to share and at around $18 for most items, an approachable price point for top-quality seafood. We shared three items between two people, plus dessert and still had enough left over for lunch the next day.
Have you ever decided what to order by eyeing a dish as it makes its way to another diner? That’s dialed up to 11 at Rella, where the combination of the small, communal space and one server-bartender waiting on every guest means that there’s a good chance you’ll know most of the orders coming out of the kitchen.
And if not, just point at something that looks really good on its way to another diner and say you want that. That’s how we ordered the Italian tuna
LEFT: A special of the evening, the Italian tuna salad included greens topped with premium tuna, farro, olives, peppers and other vegetables in a vinaigrette dressing.
RIGHT: Steamed clams with broth of yellow curry, cilantro, cauliflower and apple.
salad ($18). Being no resemblance to its creamy lunchtime cousin, this salad started with a bed of greens, tossed in a bright vinaigrette and piled high with premium oil-packed tuna and farro, which contributed both a light chew and toasted nutty flavor. Cucumber, marinated peppers and olives gave the salad a bit of crunch and a salty, briny bite that paired nicely with the fish.
I should’ve figured that the mushroom vinaigrette listed with tortellini with crab ($24) would mean that this too would be a cold salad.
Indeed we were served a small mountain of pasta, chopped radicchio, a giardiniera-like mix of marinated carrots, celery and other vegetables and a hefty portion of shredded crab, garnished with fresh parsley.
The tortellini were refrigerated and served chilled, which led to the pasta being too firm and the filling lacking a texture or flavor of its own, perhaps also because the tortellini appeared to be a commercial product not made in house. All the other elements, including a similar vinaigrette that dressed the salad in our first course, harmonized together, but I would have loved to see a freshly made, more tender filled pasta instead.
Clams and mussels are menu fixtures, though the preparation changes with the season. We were torn between the mussels steamed with
cider, apples, leeks and cream and the littleneck clams, steamed in a broth of yellow curry, cilantro, cauliflower and apple (both $18). Ultimately, the clams won out. The vibrant yellow-orange broth was boosted by familiar Thai flavors like coconut, lemongrass and turmeric, with the addition of finely chopped apple adding both sweetness and a well-appreciated touch of fall.
After the shells are empty, there’s only one thing left — the broth — and it’s too good to go to waste. That’s why no matter what you order at Rella, make sure you include an order of their house rolls ($5 for two). They’re large, slightly sweet, impossibly tender with a flavor reminiscent of a wonderfully buttery soft pretzel. They’re also the basis for Rella’s shrimp salad sliders ($20 for two), one of the few fixtures on the menu.
Served warm and covered in butter and fresh herbs, they’re a must to soak up broths and sauces or just to eat as they are.
There’s only one dessert option, which, you guessed it, changes frequently. That night it was butterscotch budino ($8), one of the signature desserts at sister restaurant Rocco. A sea of toasted almonds in a
salty-sweet butterscotch sauce topped the eggy custard, which itself was rich and not overly sweet.
There’s a certain punk nature to Rella. Maybe it’s the name “Rella” written in black tape on the wall above the kitchen, a space smaller than some home kitchens where the only oven appears to be a countertop model that doubles as a warmer for the melted butter that slathers those delectable rolls. Maybe it’s the mural of chef Anthony Bourdain that greets diners by the front door, whose belief that great food doesn’t require a white tablecloth influenced generations of chefs and eaters.
Yes, you’ll see dirty dishes loaded into the dishwasher that’s next to the ice machine that also doubles as a shelf for plate storage because Rella utilizes every bit of space. That doesn’t make the innovative dishes any less delicious.
The long, communal bar and limited space does make Rella a tough squeeze for large parties and that high-top seating, along with a step leading into the restaurant’s front door, could pose a challenge for those with mobility issues. Walk-ins are accepted, but you’ll want to make a reservation, especially on the weekends, because those 15 seats fill up fast. But once you’re in, it’s like being part of a dinner club, where you’ll quickly find yourself chatting with your neighbor about their recommendations and bond over the fact that you were lucky enough to nab a seat at this tiny gem of a restaurant.
181 Monroe Ave. Rochester, NY, 14607 Ridge Road, Rochester.
Open for dinner Tuesday to Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 5 to 10 p.m. Breakfast and lunch served Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. 585-454-3510
Reservations: Yes, encouraged. Available by phone or Instagram DM. www.instagram.com/rella181
With its nautical decor, low ceiling and wall of windows, dining at Rella feels like dining under the sea.
A chilled salad of tortellini pasta, tossed with crab, radicchio and other vegetables in a bright vinaigrette dressing.
The house rolls at Rella, served warm and fished with melted butter and herbs.
Q.: I will rely on Medicare when I retire. Can you explain the different parts of Medicare?
A.: The different parts of Medicare cover your specific needs. There are 4 parts, all of which work in tandem to deliver healthcare services:
• Part A (hospital insurance): This helps pay for inpatient care in a hospital or skilled nursing facility (following a hospital stay), some home health care, and hospice care.
• Part B (medical insurance): This helps pay for doctors’ and other health care providers services, outpatient care, home health care, durable medical equipment, and many preventative services (such as screenings, shots or vaccines, and yearly wellness visits).
• Part C (Medicare Advantage plans): If you have Medicare Parts A and B, you can join a Medicare Advantage plan. Private companies offer Medicare Advantage plans, which are approved by Medicare. These plans generally help you pay the medical costs not covered by Medicare Part A and B.
• Part D (prescription drug coverage): This helps pay for prescription drugs (including many recommended shots and vaccines).
Q.: I worked for the last 10 years, and I now have my 40 credits. Does this mean that I can get the maximum Social Security retirement benefit?
A.: The 40 credits are the minimum number you need to be eligible for retirement benefits. However, we do not base your benefit amount on those credits, but on your earnings over a lifetime of work. To learn more about how you earn Social Security credits and how they work, read, or listen to our publication How You Earn Credits, available at www.ssa. gov/pubs/EN-05-10072.pdf.
Parents of Estranged Adult Children
*Churchville Location: 42 S. Main St. Suite F Churchville, NY 14428
*Spencerport Location: 129 South Union St. Suite D Spenceport, NY 14559
complex
no-nonsense
benefits
Divorce
and Social
Security: 5 Things to Know
You may qualify for benefits equal to half those of your higher-earning ex-spouse, without needing to tell them about it or seek their permission
By M.P. Dunleavey
If you're divorced and looking toward retirement, you may want to know about an alternate strategy for claiming Social Security benefits.
Sometimes called "ex-spouse benefits" or "Social Security divorce benefits," this route could help some divorced spouses get a higher payout, if they're able to file for Social Security based on their ex's lifetime earnings history.
The thing is — as with everything pertaining to Social Security — there are many different factors you have to consider.
Luckily, we have them all neatly unpacked for you, right here.
First, the Basics
Here's how Social Security divorce
benefits work:
If you're at least 62 and divorced, and you were married for 10 years or more, you may be eligible to receive Social Security benefits based on your ex-spouse's earnings history, assuming they qualify for benefits themselves.
However, this strategy isn't an option for everyone who's divorced. Here are three key factors to weigh before you read further:
• Are you remarried? If you are, you can't claim based on your ex's record — unless that subsequent marriage has also ended (owing to death, divorce or annulment).
• As you may know, Social Security benefits are based on each person's lifetime earnings history. If your ex consistently earned more than you did, this strategy might work. But if you are or were the higher earner, it won't.
• Similar to spousal benefits, you can only receive up to 50% of your ex-spouse's benefit amount. So the question comes down to: Is half of your ex-spouse's benefit likely to be higher than the full amount you would get on your own?
How Much Is Your Ex's Benefit?
Speaking hypothetically: If your benefit amount (based on your own earnings record) is $1,100 per month, and your ex's is $1,800, the maximum divorce benefit you could get would be $900, which is 50% of $1,800.
Since $900 is lower than your own benefit of $1,100, you wouldn't qualify for the divorce benefit, and Social Security would automatically pay the higher amount.
However, let's say your Social
Security benefit is only $700 per month in this example. By filing for divorce benefits, you could get $900 per month rather than $700 — a real boon.
If you're on good terms with your ex, you can ask them what they're getting each month from Social Security, then do the math.
If you're not on good terms, you may have to file with Social Security as a divorced spouse in order to learn whether you'll receive a payout based on your earnings record or your ex's. You won't get both amounts, but Social Security would pay the higher benefit.
A Short Commercial Break
Since that's a lot to ponder, and you may need to call a friend before we continue (I would), let me take this interval to tell you some great news.
Filing on your ex's earnings record is a “you” thing, not a “them” thing — so your ex isn't involved or affected. If you file as a divorced spouse and end up getting a bigger Social Security check, it's not like your ex gets less. Nothing happens! They get the same amount!
I know. Somewhere in the Social Security Administration back in the 1930s when spousal benefits were established, there was a sane person making the rules.
Back to Our Regular Program
OK, you've got the fundamentals. Now we have to dig into some details so you can gauge whether this strategy is plausible for you, given your unique situation. First, be sure you understand some of the basic principles about when to file for benefits.
• Your age matters. To get the maximum divorce benefit, you must be of the full retirement age when you file. Full retirement age (or FRA) is age 66 if you’re born between 1943 and 1954. It increases gradually to age 67 for those born between 1955 and 1960. For anyone born after 1960, full retirement age remains 67 for now.
That means, if you file before you've reached full retirement age, you'll get a permanently reduced amount. The same principle applies when you file for regular Social Security benefits: waiting longer will result in higher monthly benefits.
However, with divorce benefits, the amount you can receive maxes out
once you reach your full retirement age. You don't get a bigger payout if you wait until age 70, as you would with regular benefits.
• Your ex doesn’t matter as much as you’d think. What’s interesting about Social Security divorce benefits is how and when your ex does, and doesn’t, come into the picture.
For example: You can file for Social Security as a divorced spouse even if:
– Your ex is remarried.
– Your ex is remarried, retired and collecting Social Security.
– Your ex is deceased (you may still qualify for divorced widow or widower benefits).
– Your ex is not retired or getting Social Security themselves.
In that last case, though, your ex does have to qualify for Social Security or disability — and you have to be divorced for at least two years before you file on their record.
Unfortunately, that Was the Easy Part
Let's say you've ticked all the boxes so far. You have run the numbers, and you are going to go for it. You believe you are going to get a bigger Social Security payout thanks to your ex, and lawyers don't even have to get involved.
While the results will be worth it, you do have to invest some time and effort. You need to answer some questions. You need to find some documents (your marriage certificate and your divorce decree). You may need originals of some of those documents.
Read this list of instructions on the Social Security website —www. ssa.gov/forms/ssa-2.html — after you have poured a calming beverage for yourself.
Boiling It All Down
The bottom line is that if you're at least age 62, were married for 10 years or more before you divorced, and you file for Social Security on your ex's record, you may be eligible for up to half of their benefit amount — assuming that's greater than your own. Either way, when you file, you'll automatically get the higher amount, and either way your ex doesn't have to get involved.
Just be sure to do your due diligence; consult a professional if you need to. While certified financial planners are helpful in many areas, they may not know the finer details of Social Security. For that, you might want to consider a registered Social Security analyst. Some points are not covered here — about working while receiving benefits, for example, or what happens if you have a pension from your employer — that may apply to you.
M.P. Dunleavey writes about life and money, as she has for many years, in countless publications (and a book). She lives in New York City with her family and two cats.
This article was previously published at www.nextavenue.org. Reprint with permission.
investing
Nest Egg: Think Hard Before You Raise Your Risk
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
If you feel like your retirement fund could use a boost, carefully consider whether taking on greater risk is a good idea.
When clients ask about raising risk, Ken Burke, president and CEO of High Falls Advisors in Rochester asks the reason for raising risk.
“Maybe they want to grow their capital more,” he said. “Or maybe they think they need to make up for lost time. The first thing we’d help them determine is if they need to do that. everything needs to be tied to an objective or goal. Why take on unnecessary risk? If they need to make up for lost time, they shouldn’t take on more risk.”
The reason of course is that if the riskier investment sours, you’re that much further behind in retirement savings.
Deciding whether or not to take on more risk involves evaluating the capacity for suffering loss and the ability to recover.
A disappointing investment and subsequent loss could mean delaying retirement and possibly curtailing post-retirement plans such as traveling, purchasing a new home and helping out your adult children or grandchildren.
It could mean taking on a second
job for a few years and lowering your quality of life.
“Your capacity for risk is lower if you don’t have a lot of financial assets and you’re not working,” Burke said. These factors vary from client to client.
When clients ask about risk, Jeff Feldman, Ph.D. and certified financial planner at Rochester Financial Services in Pittsford, advises that taking on more risk doesn’t necessarily mean higher returns.
“Very often, risky investments can lose substantial amount of value,” he said. “They want to take risks to get greater gains, but risky investments can lose 40 to 50% very quickly. All investors need to have a perspective of what their overall risk tolerance is.”
Younger people can absorb more losses as they have more time to recoup them by cutting expenses, working more and taking full advantage of any company-matched investment plans.
Instead of riskier investments, Feldman said that stocks have done well historically over the long run.
Further, he does not view riskier investment strategies as a “quick fix” to a scanty nest egg.
“There’s no free lunch,” Feldman said. “More risk won’t ‘turbo charge’ your returns. The bottom line is to
know your risk tolerance and your appropriate allocation risk. If you have been too conservative, taking on more appropriate asset risk but a too aggressive position might not translate to higher returns.”
Everyone investing to grow their retirement fund should meet with a financial adviser who can offer a plan tailored to their specific goals, timeline, risk tolerance and overall financial situation.
Lower Risk Investment
According to Forbes.com, the least risky investment types include:
1.U.S. Treasury Bills, Notes and Bonds
2. Series I Savings Bonds
3.Treasury InflationProtected Securities (TIPS)
4. Fixed Annuities 5.High-Yield Savings Accounts
6.Certificates of Deposit (CDs)
7.Money Market Mutual Funds
second act
Marilynne Lipshutz is the founder and executive director of the Studio 34 Creative Arts Center in Rochester.
SHE TOOK HER OWN ADVICE
Psychotherapist happy she pursued the art of glass fusing
By Mike Costanza
During 35 years as a psychotherapist, Marilynne Lipshutz often advised her clients to find a way to deal with stress.
“I was telling people ‘Why don’t you get a hobby, something to help you relax a little bit?’” the 76-year-old retired psychiatric nurse said.
Taking her own advice, Lipshutz learned how to shape glass into colorful, vibrant works of art.
As the founder and executive director of the Studio 34 Creative Arts Center, she has taught those skills to thousands of students and helped other instructors transmit their knowledge as well.
Lipshutz spent most of her career in private practice treating patients who chronically engaged in theft or had similar mental health problems.
“I specialized in people who stole
things, shoplifted, embezzled and started my own practice around that,” Lipshutz said.
She particularly enjoyed helping her patients, who were generally reluctant to talk about their problems, open up in group therapy.
“You could sit back and watch the magic, because they would talk to each other and realize that they’re not the only person ashamed about their behavior,” Lipshutz said.
After deciding to follow her own advice, Lipshutz repeatedly visited Portland, Oregon, to take classes in the creation of glass art. In 1999, she set up a tiny studio in The Hungerford, a tall brick building on Rochester’s East Main Street. While continuing to work full-time as a therapist, she enjoyed using heat to turn glass into works of art.
“It’s a partnership between the
media and the person,” Lipshutz said. “There’s never boredom when you’re working with glass.
Lipshutz left The Hungerford in 2000 for 34 Elton St., where she joined other artists who were renting workspaces in a 1,650 square foot studio. In 2001, she turned that studio into the Studio 34 Creative Arts Center. By then, Lipshutz had retired from providing mental health care and was free to concentrate upon running Studio 34 and creating her own distinctive works of art.
Walk into Studio 34 and you’re surrounded by different types of glass, the torches, hand tools, kilns and other devices that are used to shape them and the objects that have been made of them. Shelves brimming with thin rods of colorful Italian glass stand on one side of a large steel work table in a large, brightly lit room. Thicker, less
10 years.
colorful rods of Pyrex sit on shelves on the other side of the table waiting for an artist’s hand.
The separation is intentional. Italian glass melts at about 1,400 degrees. Pyrex, which is also used in common cookware, melts at 3,000 to 4,000 degrees. The temperature difference makes it impossible to combine the two.
“They don’t play well together,” Lipshutz said. “They’ll break apart.”
Sheets of glass are stored elsewhere. Some of them wait to be fused in one of the studio’s 12 kilns into colorful plates, dishes or other works and others are destined to become parts of stained glass works.
Though artists can arrange to make use of Studio 34’s work areas, the studio is primarily intended as an educational facility.
It offers about 20 classes a month on glass casting, fusing glass, flameworking, the creation of works of stained glass and other subjects. Flamework involves the use of a propane torch to melt and shape glass and fusing occurs when different
sheets of glass are heated until they soften enough to bond. While most of Studio 34’s instructors work primarily with glass, the studio also offers classes in digital photography and basic metalsmithing for jewelry design. It currently has 12 part-time instructors on its staff.
Michele Ramsey took her first class in making stained glass artworks about 36 years ago. After working on her pieces at home for a number of years, the Palmyra resident discovered Studio 34. She then took every class Lipshutz offered and currently works in stained glass, fused glass and mosaics.
“You break things up and create new pictures out of broken pieces,” Ramsey said. “I just finished making two angels…out of broken glass.”
Ramsey has taught at Studio 34 for about 10 years.
One recent afternoon, she took a break from teaching four students how to use soldering flux to join pieces of stained glass together to talk about what it’s like to work with Lipshutz, whom she considers a friend.
“She’s open to new suggestions and new projects,” Ramsey said. “She’s a wonder to work with.”
Michelle Arena creates artistic stained glass artworks and mosaics and has taught at Studio 34 for about 12 years. The Pittsford resident said she values Lipshutz’s ability to work with students.
“She is very sweet, accommodating, willing to help anyone with getting into any kind of glass art that they want to do,” Arena said. “She is the most patient person I’ve ever met.”
Health issues have forced Lipshutz to slow down a bit though she’s cut back her time on-site, the married grandmother still manages Studio 34, creates her own works of art and teaches students how to turn glass into beautiful objects. For her, the best part of instruction is when the students pick up their finished works.
“The satisfaction on their faces, it really is a pleasure,” she said.
For more information on Studio 34, go to: https://studio34artists.com
Michele Ramsey (seated) working with some of her students at studio 34. She took her first class in making stained glass artworks about 36 years ago. Ramsey has taught at Studio 34 for about
All About Harmony, Connections, Community
Twenty-seven singing groups, about 800 singers are members of the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium
By John Addyman
Maybe you remember this. From a quiet hallway, you enter a room that’s bustling with talk and laughter and smiles and looks of recognition. You know many of the people in here. Some you don’t, but they smile at you anyway. You’re connected.
Putting down your jacket and stuff, you turn off your phone. The place where you belong is across the room, with several people you know pretty well: you see them regularly.
You take your spot and turn to the front of the room, where one person stands alone.
She raises her hand.
You take a breath. In your head, all
the waves and spheres of a very hectic day stop turning and vibrating. Her hand comes down.
You breathe again. Softly. Purposefully.
Her hand comes up again and now she’s pointing out at you, smiling and encouraging.
The hand comes down again, directed at you.
And you open your mouth and sing.
Where 60 seconds before there was noise and laughter and small talk, there is now one beautiful sound. Something you and all the other people in the room have made together.
Chances are, you do remember this. No?
Walk into any Wegmans and one out of every six people shopping there has sung in some kind of organized choral ensemble in their lives.
They’ve sung in church.
They’ve sung in school.
They’ve sung in a family. They’ve sung in college. And maybe they’re singing now. Rochester is blessed with many choirs and choruses and chorales. So many, in fact, that in 1996 the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium was formed by six vocal groups.
“It came together because of scheduling issues,” said Bob Slon, who has been the president of the GRCC for 12 years. “They were scheduling concerts on the same days and times,
Sue Melvin is the director of Rochester Rhapsody, a 40-voice all-woman acapella chorus.
so we said, ‘We’ve got to stop this.’”
With necessity came invention and with invention, expansion.
“Now we have 27 groups,” Slon said. “And 800 singers. We have big groups, like the Rochester Oratorio Society, with 140 members and we have groups of 10 to 12 singers.”
In September, the GRCC cosponsored (with WXXI-FM) a special film, “Choral Singing in America — Nurturing the Country’s Soul.” The film laid out its message of the connections between singing and life in neighborhoods and communities, deciding “if we sang every day, it would be a more beautiful world.” You could hear the sniffles in the audience. When someone says they love to sing, know that they love to sing.
Sue Melvin, who sits on the board of the GRCC and directs the allwomen 40-voice Rochester Rhapsody chorus, said she was surprised at all the different kinds of choirs in the film: “The Alzheimer’s Choir, the Threshold Choir [a very small group that sings in hospices]…they don’t just sing different kinds of music, they have different missions, different purposes, and all the joy that brings; The Music Medics are part of the Barbershop Harmony Society, they send groups of singers, in scrubs, to children in hospitals, children with
cancer and other serious diseases. They brighten kids’ days by singing fun songs and inserting the children’s name in the songs.”
The GRCC indeed has its own diverse groups — members include the Rochester Jewish Chorale, the Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus, the Taiwanese Choral Society, the Mount Hope World Singers, Akoma (Gospel music), the Bach Children’s Chorus, the Eastman-Rochester Chorus, Grace Choir, Madrigalia, Musica Spei, the Robert Dean Chorale and the Victor Community Chorus.
The complete list is on the www. choral-rochester.org website.
GRCC
What does the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium do?
Slon explained that the organization helps choir directors do their jobs with more success and satisfaction for everyone involved. GRCC meets three times a year and tries to cover significant ground each time. A lot of the meetings involve problem-solving.
“We talk about different issues
choirs were having,” Melvin said. “We have opportunity for open discussion — what are their problems? What my choir’s problem is, Bob’s chorus might have been successful at solving that. We share a lot of best practices.”
“The other thing is the networking and collaborating,” Slon added. “Choirs get together; instead of carrying a full concert load they share some air time with one another. We have guest appearances. One time we had a children’s choir join us, which was kind of self-serving, because they brought their parents and we had a better audience.”
Melvin said the group has recently been focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion in choral singing.
“We’ve provided some training sessions within the consortium, recognizing that we’re not really that diverse in the Rochester choral community. We’re working on it. We have a large diversity of music, male and female groups. It’s about
Rochester Rhapsody members sing in rehearsal.
becoming more sensitive to try to reflect the community we serve.”
“And helping choruses make their own decisions that are best for their particular group,” added Slon. “For example, some choirs might be perfectly fine doing religious music. Other choirs may have agnostics or atheists in their group who don’t feel comfortable with it. We try to help leaders of choirs understand all the different aspects so they can make educated decisions for their choirs.
“I was at a couple of concerts recently where the directors provided some audience education about what was to be sung. So, if you’re going to do a piece that’s got some touchy material in it, set it up for people.”
“A perfect example is that we do a mass sing piece at our prism concert,” Melvin said, “where we close the concert with everyone in the hall singing the same song, including the audience (they put the sheet music in the program). What we selected the last time is what’s known as the ‘Black National Anthem.’ It’s called, ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing.’ We made sure that in the program we had a little background and all the verses so that it was being sung in context. You set the song up so that you’re not culturally appropriating anything.”
The prism concert, “A Taste of Song,” is scheduled for Feb. 16, 2025, at the Eastman Theater. In that 75-minute concert, 15 of the GRCC’s groups will sing.
Getting started
Have you left your choral experience behind? Are there moments when you think you’d like to start again? Remember when the conductor coaxed those first beautiful sounds out of you and everyone around you was doing the same thing?
Melvin has some serious reasons for you to step into the shower and tune up.
“There are hundreds of health and mental health benefits to singing,” she said. “The endorphins produced and the full airing of your lungs; singers are less likely to get pneumonia and bronchial things.
“If you’re a senior citizen looking for something joyous and healthy and fun with great camaraderie, Bob and I can’t think of anything better to do than sing. Go to the GRCC website,
where there’s a list of our member choirs and there’s a link to each choir’s own website. Read the description. See which ones click with you — the style of music, whether it’s an auditioned or non-auditioned choir. Distance is a factor. Maybe you don’t want to go to Brockport.”
Slon noted that size of a choir might be important if you’re still getting your voice tuned up: “You can bury a lot in a 120-voice choir.”
“The Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus and the Rochester Women’s Choir are examples of non-auditioned groups,” Melvin said. “Mount Hope World Singers, they sing music from all over the world and I don’t think they’re an auditioned choir. Sometimes people want to start with something like that. Just go to a rehearsal. Mostly that’s true of our choirs; one or two might say on their website, ‘Contact Us First.’
“If the choir’s website says the rehearsal date and time and place, then you can just show up. Otherwise they wouldn’t put that on their site.”
“Then you introduce yourself to the director and introduce yourself to the other singers,” said Slon. “That will start it off for you. They will probably have you buy some music or give you some music to sing from.”
Membership procedures will be explained. Some groups have dues.
“In Rochester Rhapsody we have a very organized six-week program for prospective members where we assist them in practicing their audition song,” said Melvin. “I can’t say that every group does that but they all have some kind of assistance for new, prospective singers.”
At the Rhapsody’s first rehearsal in September, one woman new to the chorus was collected by a couple of experienced singers. She began singing on her own, then was joined in harmony with the others. The beauty of the joined voices blossomed.
“Some groups will put out practice recordings with your part featured on an MP3 or something like that and you can sing along and learn your part,” said Slon.
Melvin said some groups do not require that you read music.
“That’s another thing that’s very off-putting to people,” she said. “Not all of our groups require that you can read music.”
“I was surprised to find out how many people in our Rochester Oratorio
Bob Slon is the president of the Greater Rochester Choral Consortium. “[GRCC] came together because of scheduling issues,” he says. “They were scheduling concerts on the same days and times, so we said, ‘We’ve got to stop this.’”
Society don’t read music,” admitted Slon.
“They actually read better than they think because they can follow the ups and the downs of the notes, but they don’t know what the notes are called,” added Melvin.
Expect most chorus rehearsals to last from an hour and a half to two hours, once a week.
“If you’re interested in singing in your own community choir and it’s not a GRCC member, check it out,” said Melvin. “They don’t turn anybody down in a church choir and they always need singers, especially male singers. Male singers are in high demand.
“We don’t want to give the impression that only the upper echelon of singers can be part of the GRCC. We have a wide span of skill levels. Anything with the title of ‘community choir’ is your best bet.”
Slon and Melvin agreed: Wherever you sing, it’s joyful.
If we sang every day, it would be a more beautiful world.
Irondequoit’s Own ‘Music Man’ and the Band that Keeps Playing On
Former Irondequoit town supervisor David Schantz has been a big part of the Irondequoit Concert Band’s first 50 years
By Linda Quinlan
From music man to town supervisor and back again. You might say that’s David Schantz of Irondequoit in a nutshell.
What is today known as the roughly 65-member Irondequoit Concert Band was started in spring 1974, with help getting organized by the late local attorney and judge Franklin D’Aurizio. The Eastridge Kiwanis club sponsored the band and later built a gazebo on the Irondequoit Town Hall grounds so it would have a place to play.
Schantz, who had started as a music teacher in the West Irondequoit School District in 1963, played in the band’s first rehearsal, in the trumpet section. The band’s first conductor was another West Irondequoit music teacher, Al Piato. Schantz took over a year later.
Schantz continued teaching school and leading the band until he was elected Irondequoit Town Supervisor in 1995. He led the town from Jan. 1, 1996 to 2004. Good friend Russ Thomas, who started teaching music in the East Irondequoit School District the same year as Schantz across town, led the band during the years Schantz was supervisor.
Both were heavily involved in the community, but Thomas always had a vision to create an Irondequoit Community Orchestra as well, Schantz recalled. He went back to the trumpet section of the band for a time after his stint as Irondequoit supervisor, then Thomas decided to focus on the orchestra idea and Schantz took over as conductor again. He has led the band since then.
“It was just a seamless transition;
it worked out perfectly for everybody,” Schantz, now 83, said.
This year wrapped up the Irondequoit Concert Band’s 50th anniversary.
Rich DeRose said the band has always been almost like its own family. He’s been a member of the band for 41 of its 50 years and has served on its board of directors for 39 years. He started out on clarinet, but transitioned to percussion about 15 years ago.
Schantz said his goal has always been to create an environment where the musicians can achieve the most.
Music has always been a big part of his life. “I’ll never forget my start at [East Irondequoit’s] DurandEastman School,” Schantz said. “They had a wonderful music program. I chose the trumpet in third grade and the wonderful teachers there had a
Irondequoit Concert Band led by David Schantz
positive effect on my life.”
When Schantz was in sixth grade, his mother started taking him to the Eastman School of Music to study trumpet every Wednesday. He never thought about being a musician or teacher. However, an uncle in Michigan and other family members encouraged him to follow that path.
After high school, where he was just a year behind favorite Rochester jazz great Chuck Mangione, who became a friend, Schantz entered the University of Rochester, but soon realized the Eastman School of Music was where he really wanted to be. He also learned he knew how to teach and work with kids.
Schantz taught music in every school in West Irondequoit at one time or another and at one time had 150 students involved in the music program.
Recalling that he drove an Alfa Romeo or MGB sports car in those early years, he said he realized he had to be a kind of salesman as he built the district’s music program. In addition, he had about 20 private students, after school, to add to his income.
He had already retired from his teaching career before becoming supervisor.
“I had always been involved in the community,” Schantz recalled. “I was on the school board in East Irondequoit and with (the late) Paul Failing, started the Coalition of Irondequoit Neighborhoods and the Irondequoit Land Use Coalition.”
“I was always interested in politics and community affairs,” Schantz added. “But I never thought of running for supervisor until I was encouraged by Stephanie Aldersley.”
Aldersley was a well-known local Democrat and former county legislator and town board member.
A former town leader of the Conservative party in Irondequoit, Schantz actually ended up running for supervisor, but as a Republican.
“It just worked out,” Schantz recalled. “I didn’t realize that everything I’d done in my life had prepared me for this (supervisor) … I found out as things developed that I knew how to do it.”
He does recall a high school social studies teacher who “beat into us that each person had a responsibility to serve their community and people, to pay back the country for all of
the opportunities it gives people to succeed.”
DeRose has a similar history. A Navy veteran, he devoted his time to youth baseball in the community for 12 years before attending a joint concert of the Eastridge (high school) wind ensemble and the Irondequoit Concert Band in 1983. That’s when he joined what was then the Irondequoit Community Concert Band, then the Lakeside Concert Band, now the Irondequoit Concert Band.
The band is made up of a diverse group of people with many different jobs, interests and ages, DeRose said, “but our common theme is that we all love music and love to play.”
He still plays softball with the Irondequoit Recreation league. But music is a big part of his life.
“And being in the band has given me more than I’ve put in,” DeRose said.
While the Irondequoit Concert Band performs regularly in Irondequoit, most notably a holiday concert and on the Fourth of July, it has also traveled, locally from Victor to
Pultneyville and Sodus and beyond to Boston and Washington, D.C.
The band usually takes August off, but otherwise plays year-round. They rehearse every Tuesday night at West Irondequoit’s Dake Junior High School.
The band’s board meets once a month and while the conductor has the last say on music they will play, a committee of the board helps Schantz make music selections.
“I try to choose music that will challenge the band and that they will enjoy playing,” Schantz said. “But you have to consider the audience too. I try to pick a varied program that will appeal to a wide range of people and ages, too. I try to balance the standard literature as well as incorporating newer, contemporary things.”
For the last 10 years, the band has also been under the auspices of the West Irondequoit School District’s Continuing Education program, which means they are part of the program’s advertising materials and have a cooperative agreement for facilities use. Band members pay a small fee to be involved in a band “course.”
Schantz continues to especially love the music of the big band era and show tunes, and admits to having a big collection of classic jazz and big band music on vinyl. He also enjoys marches and everything from Chicago to the Beatles, classical and music from Broadway shows.
Over the years, the band has had members playing into their mid-90s, but he’d guess their current range is 14 to mid-80s.
Yes, he thinks music has had a hand in keeping him young.
“Research being done finds that there’s a very complex use of the brain involved in performing and conducting,” Schantz said. “Plus, being involved in music can be very helpful mentally. All-around, music is extremely positive for keeping fit.”
Ultimately, a big part of planning for the band continues to be how to make the group appealing for people of all ages, Schantz said.
“Whether you’re a listener or a performer, you get something from music that you can’t get anyplace else,” he added.
“It gets beyond the notes on the page,” DeRose agreed.
Musician and former Irondequoit town supervisor David Schantz stands during one of his shows.
Just Us —A Bunch of Local Guys Making Music
By John Addyman
John Arnold was 4 when he started.
Jose Santell was 13. Al Webber…16.
And Terry Tiller…17.
Which means that the members of the Just Us band, who have been playing more or less together for more than a decade, have a combined 236 years of musical experience among them.
On a very hot July afternoon at the Ashley Lynn Winery in Waterloo, the boys in the Just Us band — Arnold, 69, Santell, 79, Tiller 69 and Webber, 69 — cranked up middle-of-the-road country tunes, back-beat through some ‘50s and ‘60s rock ‘n roll and rockabilly and even softened for a Spanish love song.
They hit each song tightly, played smoothly and to the delight of a small crowd, had a ball. Audience members left their refreshing slushies dripping on the open-air pavilion tables and got up to boogie. It was hot enough to cook
eggs on the parking lot pavement, but folks were dancing.
Band members were pleased, but not surprised.
“We’re not in this for the money, although that would be nice,” said Webber, who is from Lyons. “It’s such a pleasure watching people out there having fun: we’re making people feel good and happy.”
As the drummer and one of its four vocalists, Webber started a music hobby with drums, then taught himself to play guitar. When he was 19, Webber, Cliff Mayo and Danny Salter had sort of a band and they were approached to play at a wedding. They hadn’t done that before, so, why not?
Webber explained: “The woman needed the band for her daughter’s wedding reception. She told us, ‘You’re the Last Straw.’”
Guess what the name of that band quickly became?
The Last Straw played together for a few years and even cut what is now a
very rare 45, “Chattanooga Shoe-Shine Boy.” They played four or five nights a week in clubs, private parties and Sodus-area inns. Webber’s day jobs varied from farm work to machine maintenance to shift supervision, then contract work and assembling mobile homes and he spent years as an over-the-road truck driver. He has settled into a post-retirement career as a skilled handyman.
Along the way, Webber played for another band, 31 South. He joined Tiller to form Just Us in 2010.
When the band needed a bass player, Webber and Tiller thought of Santell. “I’ve probably known Jose for 45 years,” Webber said.
“I started playing guitar with a friend of mine when I was 13 years old in Puerto Rico,” Santell said. “My father was a pretty good musician. He taught me how to play the guitar.”
Santell came to America and Newark when he was 17. “We were poor, so poor,” he said. His dad didn’t
Terry Tiller, lead guitar.
want young Jose to stay in a camp in Marion, so he moved in with an uncle, where he was gifted with a nickname.
“Every time my other uncle came over to visit, I’d ask him for a nickel. “You always ask me for that nickel, Neco” and it stuck.
“We came here to get a better life,” he said. “I started working at a canning factory in Newark. I was cooking beets. My first check in America was $4; in Puerto Rico, it was a third of that.” He soon landed at Mobil Oil in Macedon, where he became a shipping clerk and did that for 25 years until bypass surgery in 1993, when he retired.
In Newark he had been through a number of bands and was a fixture in accompanying choirs at St. Michael’s Churches in Newark and Lyons.
He also developed a reputation as someone who could fill in at a moment’s notice. “When someone from Rochester called and they needed someone to cover for their bass player, I did.”
After medical retirement, he was restless with little to do. He settled into a small landscaping business and with a list of clients, staying as busy as he wanted to be.
Santell’s musical career went through a series of salsa/meringue bands — Liberta, Conjunto Tropical, Do20, Diamontes, Jose Ruiz Authentico Band…and then, Just Us, rejoining Webber.
“I love to play music,” Santell said. “It’s my life. I love salsa and meringue, I love country and rock ‘n roll. To me, if
I had to play Chinese music, I’d learn it and play it.”
Tiller was raised in Phelps and was a varsity athlete in high school, graduating to begin a career in the machine shop trade for his entire working life.
“My best friend in high school, Jerry Irwin, was a musician,” Tiller reminisced. “He picked up the guitar and was a singer. I kinda followed suit. I got a guitar and he showed me some chords and I took it from there.
“Jerry would call, ‘Come on over my house Saturday morning, we’re playing Saturday night.’ I got over there and we started playing a song and I was playing rhythm and he said, ‘OK, I’ll be playing rhythm and you’ll be playing base.’ That’s when I started playing bass guitar. He showed me where to put my fingers on the guitar and we played music that night.”
Tiller played with the Country Legends Band with Jimmy Fowler and Walt Bennett, entertaining in bars in Waterloo. Next came a gig with Jerry and the Inmates, with Jerry Mincer and Johnny Thompson.
And Tiller was busy, but not with the same band. “Bands come apart for different reasons,” he said. “Someone moved or relocated. Sometimes there were no jobs available. Somebody will ask you if you want to play with them or you want to start something up. And you usually do. There are so many musicians out there now that are playing in more than one band just to keep going.”
Next for Tiller was the Al White band known as Country Smoke, which Tiller said “was a legend in the area.”
“Jose played bass with us and Al White joined. Jimmy Fowler played lead for a while. Gary King and brother, Bruce, were in the lineup. There were so many people over the years I can’t remember them all,” Tiller said.
Arnold came to the Just Us band a couple of years ago.
“His dad, Ralph, was very supportive of John’s playing,” Tiller said. “We used to go down and jam at John’s father’s house. His father was one of those guys who said, ‘Come on down and jam with me.’ He was always getting the younger generation going. Way back when I first started playing bass guitar, Ralph would have us play at Newark State School and the Willard Psychiatric Center, playing for people who couldn’t get out, giving something back to them. We did a lot of benefits, too.”
“Playing music gives me a chance to give something back to people,” Arnold said. Music has been good in my life, it’s an opportunity. The benefits we do, for people whose houses burned down, for people with illnesses. We’ll do a show to raise money for people. It’s not always about getting paid. It’s about giving something back to people and our band is noted for that. We like getting paid, don’t get me wrong. Equipment isn’t cheap.”
As lead guitar, Tiller has some
The Just Us Band, from left, Jose Santell, Terry Tiller, Al Webber and John Arnold. All are retired, all began playing their instrument at a young age with the help of a friend or relative, and altogether, they have 236 year of music experience.
perspective on the state of local music, which seems very healthy.
COVID-19 closed music venues and kept people in their homes. Some of those venues never recovered.
“It’s picking back up now,” Tiller said, “but there were times when we played two-three times a week. Recently, the economy hasn’t been good. People only have so much money and they can attend only so many functions. It used to be, back in the day, there’d be a crowd and they’d have friends and small places like The West End in Manchester, they had a dance hall in there. We’d set up and every table would be packed.
“We play a lot of clubs now, not so much the bars. We play in American Legions, VFWs, Moose, Elks, private parties, pig roasts and the musical festival in Farmington.”
The tide may have turned a little. For a while deejays dominated the local club music scene and live bands were pushed aside. The Just Us guys think they’re seeing a reversal.
Arnold, from Seneca Falls, picked
up on Tiller’s comments about his dad, Ralph.
“My dad taught me to play the guitar…with great patience,” Arnold said. “I started learning when I was 4 years old in Seneca Falls. I was driving my mother nuts, playing, strumming on an old flat-top. She said, ‘Wait till your father gets home. He’ll teach you.’ Well, he did. I took the guitar to school and played it for Show-and-Tell in kindergarten. I was playing lead guitar at age 7, in Newark.”
Arnold landed in his first band, the Department of Public Energy, in ninth grade, with other kids from Seneca Falls. They played on a float in the Aqua Parade and won the Governor’s Trophy. He then joined Triphammer for a couple of years, graduated high school and went to work at the Newark State Developmental Center and in community homes, working in direct care and staying there until 2010, when he retired.
He played guitar with his dad for three years in the Rhythm Rockers, then was with the Christopher band,
Top Shelf, Reaction and back with his dad in nursing homes.
“They loved us,” he said. “You know it was definitely not about the money.”
The advice he got from his dad was, “Play your best. Know your song and what you’ve got to do.” Arnold plays in Just Us and also with Raw Deal (Tiller is in that band, too) and Jim & Friends. He’s a happy member of Just Us.
“All four of us are singing in Just Us,” he said. “We take turns. That breaks it up a bit.” After a successful gig where he’s done well, he’s very happy…and a little annoyed.
“Definitely happy,” he said. “We congratulate one another. Then you go home and usually the last song you played is staying in your head. I’ve stayed awake for hours trying to get that song out of my head.
“I’ll keep playing until I die or until I become disabled and can’t do it anymore,” Arnold said. His band mates also agreed: “As long as I can play, I’m going to do it.”
LEFT: Al Webber, drummer.
RIGHT: Jose Santell, bass guitar
White Haven Memorial Park
We Are Here For You
Our Pittsford location is Audubon Certified and a Level II Arboretum. Our park-like setting will provide peace & comfort while you visit.
Our Canandaigua Lakeview Cemetery sits on quiet hillside on the east side of the lake. It offers the most serene and intimate location for you to reflect on your loved one.
We have a wide variety of settings and a full range of options for both full casket and cremation burials. Throughout all of our Park you will find large mature trees, colorful gardens and many places to sit, reflect and connect with your loved ones.
The Basin Pond is our newest addition to The Nature Trail. These cremation sites are in a peaceful & natural setting. The centerpiece is a man-made pond with a tranquil fountain in the middle. This area is nearing completion. Call to schedule your tour today.
We have several mausoleum buildings to choose from and they each have their own unique features and styles. You can choose a crypt, niche or even a combination crypt. We have many inside or outside locations available.
10 THINGS TO DO THIS WINTER
By Mike Costanza
Tinker Nature Park/ Hanson Nature
Center
Located south of Rochester in Henrietta, the Tinker Nature Park offers 68 wooded acres, a 1.2-mile walking and exercise trail and a halfmile nature trail. After you’re through getting the blood pumping, you can step into the Hansen Nature Center to warm up, check out the wildlife displays and have hot chocolate. When there’s enough snow, the facility offers snowshoes and cross-country skis for rent. The park is ADA compliant. If local histories are more to your liking, you can schedule a tour of the Tinker Homestead and Farm Museum. Completed in 1830, the cobblestone house was home to the Tinker family for six generations.
Tinker Nature Park is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to dusk and the Hansen Nature Center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission to both is free. To schedule a tour of the Tinker Homestead and Farm Museum, call 585-359-7044.
1525 Calkins Road, Pittsford www.henrietta.org/community/page/ tinker-nature-park
MuCCC Theater
Ready for a good show? The MuCCC Theater has offered audiences a wide range of theatrical performances since it opened in 2009, including comedies, dramas, Shakespeare’s plays and works by Irish and AfricanAmerican playwrights. Located in a converted church in Rochester’s Neighborhood of the Arts, the 80-seat theater has an intimate feel that’s just right for avoiding the winter’s chill for an entertaining evening.
142 Atlantic Ave., Rochester www.muccc.org
Monroe County Parks
Layer up, don your boots and head to one of Monroe County’s 21 parks for the day. The parks offer miles of well-marked trails for hiking,
skiing and snowshoeing and are full of wildlife. While the 82-acre Tryon Park is close enough to Rochester that you can hear highway traffic, a walk through the 2,500-acre Mendon Ponds Park can take you far from the stresses of urban living. In addition to ponds, woodlands and wetlands, the park also features pickleball courts, sledding in designated areas and the Wild Wings, Inc. Bird of Prey Facility and Nature Center. Wild Wings houses permanently injured raptors who can’t live in the wild and partners with them to teach about environmental stewardship. The center is open yearround every day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., except Wednesdays and Thursdays. Visitors can view the birds all year round for free, but donations are welcome. Just the sight of the center’s eagle is worth the trip.
www.monroecounty.gov/parks
Comedy @ The Carlson
Need a good laugh? Head to Comedy @ The Carlson. Located in the
Visit
historic Stromberg-Carlson building, the club has hosted top local acts and A-list comedians. Sky Sands, the Brighton resident who has performed all over the country, recently put in an appearance there. The club boasts a 325-seat showroom and an atrium bar and offers burgers, pizza, wraps and stuff to nosh on. Laughter boosts your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart and lungs, soothes tension and gives you a good, relaxed feeling. Just the thing to dispel the gloom of a Rochester winter.
50 Carlson Road www.carlsoncomedy.com 585-426-6339
5
The Little Theatre
Since The Little Theatre opened its doors 95 years ago, it has grown to become one of Rochester’s cultural gems. Step through its doors and you can enjoy high-quality, entertaining and thought-provoking American, independent and foreign films in five
theaters. In celebration of its 95th anniversary, the theater launched 95 Years of the Little, a yearlong series that presents one top film from each decade of its existence per month. Music lovers can stop in The Little’s café to enjoy a drink or a meal and listen to live jazz, blues, folk tunes and even jug band music.
240 East Ave., Rochester https://thelittle.org
have danced with multiple partners. Dress comfortably and wear soft-soled, low-heeled shoes. The admission fee is on a sliding scale and all events are alcohol and smoke-free.
Contra and English Country Dances
6
Each week, Country Dancers of Rochester, Inc. (CDR) sponsors social dancing in the contra and English country styles to live music at sites in Rochester. All dances are taught by callers who instruct the dancers in the steps to use and newcomers are welcome. Experienced dancers are on hand to help and lessons in the different dance steps are available for beginners who arrive 20 minutes early. You don’t have to bring a partner, but by the time the music stops, you will
Contra dances are held on Thursdays at 7 p.m. at the Rose Room, 295 Gregory St., Rochester. English country dances take place on Sundays at 6:30 p.m. during daylight saving time and 2:30 p.m. during Eastern Standard Time at the First Baptist Church of Rochester, 175 Allens Creek Road, Brighton. CDR’s website shows examples of both styles of dancing.
https://cdrochester.org
7
Lamberton Conservatory
When temperatures drop, you can head to the Lamberton Conservatory to warm up and enjoy the sight, smell and ambience of growing things while the rest of the area shivers. The Highland Park facility boasts orchids
Catch a show at Comedy @ The Carlson.
Enjoy one or more of the 26 parks in Monroe County.
and other exotics, plants that are at home in the tropics or the desert, house plants, a seasonal display and a koi pond. Bring the family, and let the kids frolic in the park before coming in to warm up. The conservatory is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day of the year but Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Kids 5 years old and younger can visit for free and everyone else pays no more than $3 to get in.
180 Reservoir Ave., Rochester www.monroecounty.gov/parksconservatory
8
A Day at the Museum(s)
The Strong National Museum of Play offers such features as the National Toy Hall of Fame, the International Center for the History of Electronic Games and the Ralph Wilson Skyline Climb just a stone’s throw from downtown.
You can observe the exhibits, physically interact with them or join the colorful inhabitants of the Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden.
A short distance up East Avenue, the Rochester Museum and Science Center (RMSC) waits to engage your curiosity. The facility’s newest permanent exhibition, “Hodinöšyö:nih Continuity, Innovation, and Resilience,” will allow visitors to immerse themselves in the rich culture and history of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. You can also learn about the heavens at the Strasenberg Planetarium or the outdoors at the Cummings Nature Center, which is south of Rochester in Naples. Right now, admission to all parts of the RMSC is free from noon to 5 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month.
Farther up East Avenue, the George Eastman Museum honors the life and work of George Eastman, the legendary pioneer of photography. Visitors can explore Eastman’s beautiful home, view motion picture and still cameras, photographs and other parts of its vast collection and watch films in the 500seat Dryden Theatre.
www.museumofplay.org https://rmsc.org www.eastman.org.
9
Warm Up or Chill Out
The Rochester area offers libations for every temperature. You can warm up with hard liquor, cool down with wine and let a lager’s bubbles tickle your nose. For a comprehensive list of the area’s distilleries, wineries and breweries, visit this website: www.visitrochester.com/blog/post/50things-to-do-this-winter
10
When the Team Spirit Moves You
When the winter wind howls, head out to cheer your favorite sports team. The Rochester Americans hockey team and the Rochester Knighthawks lacrosse team have games scheduled through the winter. Local college’s sports teams are also competing for points and audiences. For information on the two main teams, go to: www.amerks.com
https://rochesterknighthawks.com
Clubhouse Fun Center has all sorts of activities for kids. It has two locations in the area, in Greece and Henrietta.
FUN INDOOR PLACES TO TAKE THE GRANDKIDS
When it’s cold outside, have fun inside: Rochester has wide variety of options
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
If the cold has you down, round up the grandkids for an adventure indoors. Rochester offers plenty of hotspots for fun for children through teens.
• Central Rock Gym boasts 20,000 square feet of climbing terrain, including a 45-foot lead wall, 80 boulder problems, and 70 top rope and lead stations. The gym offers a guided session for youth aged 4-plus through age 99 for people who are
interested in climbing but have never tried and want some help. Day passes start at $15.
https://centralrockgym.com
• Strong National Museum of Play bills itself as the “ultimate play destination” and for good reason. The massive number of items exhibited and available for play help it live up to that title. Kids and kids-at-heart can explore hands-on exhibits related to toys, board games, video games and more. Maybe you can find your
childhood favorites. Tickets start at $25.
www.museumofplay.org
• Horizon Fun FX is a blast for children through young teens. The facility offers skating and blading, Jungle Jim’s Playland, laser tag, arcade, bouncing pillow and a café. Check the website for coupons. $15.53 for skating and blading, with other attractions a la carte.
www.horizonfunfx.com
• Ontario Play and Café features 14,000 square feet of space for younger children with climbing and playground equipment, water table (with raincoats to borrow), sand and stone table and a snack bar. Wear out the little ones with a day of play. Admission starts at $10.
www.ontarioplay.com
• Clubhouse Fun Center in Greece and Henrietta provides a mini golf course, batting cages and go-kart course for summertime; however, their arcades are open all winter, plus a snack bar — just right for a few hours out. Admission is free; you pay as you play.
www.clubhousefuncenter.com
• Altitude Trampoline Park in Henrietta offers hours of fun for daredevil bouncers. The facility operates a main bouncing course, basketball court and dodgeball area, plus arcade, massage chairs, obstacle course, parkour area, slick slide, inflatables, and soft play area. Watch the kids or join in the fun. A one-hour pass is $19.99.
www.altitudetrampolinepark.com
• Rochester Museum & Science Center and Strasenburgh Planetarium displays exhibits and offers programming exploring science, history, space, and nature. Check the website for special seasonal events such as craft projects to
enjoy together. Admission starts at $20. https://rmsc.org
• George Eastman Museum chronicles the development of photography and filmography. Take your little cinema buffs to see how movie magic evolved, catch a screening and view film artifacts. Film screenings are listed on the website. Tickets start at $9. www.eastman.org
• Eastview Mall in Victor brings back the nostalgia of strolling through a shopping mall and for the kids, the retro experience of not shopping online. Spring for a few rides on the carousel and be sure to eat at the food court for the full ‘80s mall experience. www.eastviewmall.com
Check out the offerings at your local library branch. Many provide story time for young children, craft events, and more. Or just get lost among the stacks. Most libraries offer free discard bins which can help children build their personal library. When taking the grandkids to any of these venues, check the website for any discounts or coupons available. Many points of interest offer senior and veteran discounts or allow infants free admission. Some allow free admission for adults with paid children’s admission.
Take your little cinema buffs to see how movie magic evolved, catch a screening and view film artifacts at George Eastman Museum.
Frosty Fitness
Shake off the post-holiday doldrums by getting out and getting fit
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Feel invigorated with a nip of frigid air and the sparkle of sun on snow at a variety of sites in the area that are perfect for skating, skiing and snowshoeing.
Enjoy ice skating outdoors at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park (www.cityofrochester.gov/ locations/dr-martin-luther-king-jrice-rink), which offers a kidney-shaped skating surface, and warming shelter with a heated floor and fireplace. Admission is $5. If you want to bring along the grandkids, youth are $2 and college students with ID $3. Skate rental is $5, and skate sharpening is $5. If you plan to skate often, a season pass is $60.
Numerous venues in the area offer cross-country skiing and snowshoeing opportunities. These include:
• Black Creek Park, Union Street, in Chili and Riga
• Durand Eastman Park, Lake Shore Blvd., Irondequoit
• Genesee Country Village Nature Center (during Nature Sundays), Flint
Hill Road, Mumford
• Genesee Valley Park, South of East River Road, Rochester
• Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area, Canadice Hill Road, Honeoye
• Mendon Ponds Park, between Clover Street and Pittsford-Mendon Center Road,
• Mendon/Honeoye Falls
• Northhampton Park, Colby Street, Brockport
• Perinton Recreation Center, 1350 Turk Hill Rd., Fairport
• Chimney Bluffs State Park, 7700 Garner Rd., Wolcott
• Darien Lakes State Park, 10475 Harlow Rd., Darien Center
• Genesee Valley Greenway State Park, 1 Letchworth State Park, Castile
• Hamlin Beach State Park, 1 Hamlin Bch, Hamlin
• Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area, 6775 Canadice Hill Rd, Springwater
• Lakeside Beach State Park, 13691 Roosevelt Hwy, Waterport
Check the New York State Parks
website at https://parks.ny.gov/ parks and search for “Snowshoeing/XCountry Skiing” under “Amenity” to find more places.
If downhill skiing is more your style, you don’t have to go to the Rockies or Adirondacks to get your fix. Bristol Mountain (5662 Route 64, Canandaigua; www.bristolmountain. com ) is close enough for a skiing or snowboarding daytrip. The resort boasts 39 slopes, 1,200 feet of vertical drops, two high-speed quads, and modern snowmaking equipment. If you want to try night skiing, 97% of the ski trails have lighting. Lessons, rentals, snowshoeing and crosscountry skiing are also available. If you decide to make it a weekend getaway, Bristol partners with nearby places of lodging, including the adjacent North Star Village. Downhill skiing starts at $60, plus equipment rentals, which start at $40. Cross-country rates start at $16, plus rentals ($18 for skis and poles or snowshoes). Bring the grandkids along, as those aged 6 and younger are free, plus rentals.
Plan to Think Spring
Growing seeds indoors ahead of planting time can result in earlier produce and posies
By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Flex your green thumb early if you want to get a jump on planting this spring. Starting seeds indoors can begin before you may think. But don’t start stirring the potting soil too soon.
“The inclination is to start too early,” said Marci Muller, horticulture team leader with Monroe County Cooperative Extension. “Especially if you’re growing not in a greenhouse setting and maybe not with a lot of extra light, they will get ‘leggy.’”
This means that plants will grow long stems but may not leaf out and bear as much flowers or produce as they should. At cooperative extension’s test plots, Muller and her associates start numerous seeds early, as the Northeast’s growing season is so short.
The very earliest are cold-tolerant plants by early February, such as parsley, leeks and onions (although Muller has concluded that onions grown for sets result in a better product.
Toward the end of February or beginning of March, she plants things like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, collard greens. Later in the same month, it’s time to start eggplants and peppers. By early April, start warm weather loving plants such as tomatoes and basil.
“One thing people may not be
aware of with seeds initially is they don’t need to be in a particularly warm setting,” Muller said. “If you can give them some bottom heat, the room can be on the cool site. They make mats you can set your flats on to get them to germinate. Once you have growth on the top, they can be in a warm room with lots of light.”
Usually, south-facing windows offer the most sunlight.
As to how deep to plant seeds, follow the directions on the seed packets. Muller said that as a general rule, the larger the seed, the deeper it must go into the soil. Using a seed starter mix means that the seeds will have readily available nutrients. Muller doesn’t fertilize plants until they’re a few inches tall, and then only light fertilization if needed.
“Avoid a high nitrogen fertilizer,” she said. “Nitrogen pushes growth and you don’t want to push it while it’s growing inside.”
She said that most people growing use a seedling tray and sow plenty of seeds since most of the time, growers don’t receive 100% germination.
“You want seeds moist, but not sitting in water,” she added. “Keep soil damp by misting daily rather than pouring water in. Once the plants come up, especially if you transplant them
into a larger container, water them once to twice a week.”
Rotating the containers can help the plants grow straighter and with sturdier stems. Muller also said that using a fan on low can help prevent fungal growth and strengthen the stems.
After plants are established, they can be transplanted into a larger pot. Determining this relies on evaluating if the root structure is large enough to hold the plant upright and if the top is large enough to support growth.
Samantha Dattilo, a business partner at Stem in Rochester, advised starting seeds indoors soon enough so that they will reach maturity outdoors before frost, but not so soon they cannot be easily transplanted when ready—a determination she calls “seed math.”
“When you’re going to transplant outside, acclimate them first,” she said.
This involves taking plants outdoors for a few hours daily and gradually increasing their time outside. The soil temperature matters. Check out your soil temperature at National Weather Service’s site www.weather.gov/ncrfc/LMI_ SoilTemperatureDepthMaps.
independently, enjoying the company of their friends and neighbors, while we provide the convenience of restaurantstyle dining, transportation services and much more.
Schedule a tour today! (585) 218-9570
Independent Living at Solstice is just that – residents live independently, enjoying the company of their friends and neighbors, while we provide the convenience of restaurantstyle dining, transportation services and much more.
55 Ayrault Road, Fairport, NY 14450 • SolsticeSeniorLivingFairport.com
Schedule a tour today! (585) 218-9570
Still Shakin’ After All These Years
By Mike Costanza
Veteran radio DJ Mike Murray remembers how he felt 40 years ago, when he sent his voice out over the airwaves for the first time.
“Whoa, this is really cool, but it’s kind of nerve-wracking at the same time, because it’s the first time,” the 64-year-old said.
After that first volunteer gig as a co-host at WITR, the Rochester Institute of Technology’s college station, Murray went on to co-host or host music shows or work as an engineer at several radio stations around the Rochester area and beyond.
As the longtime DJ of “Whole Lotta Shakin’,” he treats audiences to an eclectic mix of music from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, along the works of a smattering of contemporary artists, every Saturday.
Tune in to the two-hour show and you might hear rock hits by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and The Troggs, rockabilly pieces by Jerry Lee Lewis or Carl Perkins, surf music by groups like the Beach Boys, the raw energy of garage rock and blues rock by groups like the Blues Magoos.
“Then, I’ll play artists that imitate those particular styles, like the Chesterfield Kings,” Murray said.
The Chesterfield Kings are a local rock band. Though he puts his playlists together at home, Murray always does his show live.
“I prefer to be live because there’s that connection with my listeners,” he said.
Almost all of Murray’s gigs have been as a volunteer.
Murray developed an in interest in music while listening to his older
cousins play Top-40 tunes on their radios and watching “Where the Action Is," the late Dick Clark’s nationwide television rock show, at his family’s home in Greece. When he received a transistor radio on his sixth birthday, he gained easy access to the music he’d begun to love.
“I’ve been hooked on the radio ever since,” Murray said. “I constantly flipped the dial between local stations like WBBF, WSAY, WAXC and WHFM, as well as WKBW and WGR in Buffalo, WHEN in Syracuse.”
He enjoyed listening to the DJs as much as the music they played.
“That’s sort of, like, where the magic was,” Murray said. “‘Here’s the latest from so-and-so,’ or you hear something that just blows you away.”
At that time, almost all music was recorded for sale on long-playing
Perched before the mike at WXXI, Mike Murray looks ready to treat his listeners to another episode of Whole Lotta Shakin'.
record albums (LPs) or smaller records that bore only one song on a side, called “45s.” As Murray grew older, he headed off to local stores like the Record Archive or the House of Guitars to look for discs by the artists and groups he’d discovered, and talk his finds over with the sales staff.
“You build the relationship with people in the record stores, and it’s all good,” the Webster resident said.
Pop music eventually lost some of the spontaneity that Murray valued, and his interest waned. Then the music of the 50s enjoyed a revival. He began hearing great songs he’d never heard before, and developed a keen interest in music from the 50s and 60s.
“I began buying Chuck Berry 45s, and not long after I bought the Beatles Red Album, and that sent me into hyperdrive,” Murray said. “I began to collect and listen to 50s and 60s LP’s, 45s every chance I got.”
At the same time, he headed out to local clubs where bands like the Ramones, New Math and the Chesterfield Kings were playing with the style and energy of early rockand-roll.
“The Chesterfield Kings looked like they popped out of ‘The Time Tunnel’ [a 1960s science fiction television show] from 1966,” Murray said.
He was at Scorgies, a now-defunct Rochester club, when he met Mick Alber, who was too young to drink at the club, and had sneaked in only to listen to the band playing that night. Alber shared Murray’s passion for the music of the ‘60s, and was volunteering at WITR as the DJ of the radio show “Friday Night Filet.”
Despite their age difference— Alber is seven years younger than Murray—the two hit it off and Alber invited Murray to co-host “Friday Night Filet.” Since it was 1984, the 20th anniversary of the Beatles arrival in the US, they decided to do a show that focused entirely on the music of the British invasion. It was a hit.
“A gentleman called and said, ‘I was in Vietnam. I missed all this. Listening to you guys brings back a lot of memories, and some things I missed,’” Alber said.
The show did so well that WITR decided to give the pair a one-hour weekly spot on Sunday afternoons. They decided to call it “Psychedelic Sundae,” though it wasn’t all that
psychedelic.
“We mostly played raunchier British acts like the Stones, Pretty Things, Troggs, etc., and what was known as 60s punk,’ along with local acts,” Murray said.
Alber and Murray continued cohosting at WITR and became good friends while their show morphed into “Whole Lotta Shakin’.” The name is from a rock hit from the 1950s.
“I like to think that Mike’s, like, my older brother. He turned me on to stuff I’d never heard of, like ‘The Pretty Things.’” Alber said. “We complemented each other when we did the show.”
After 13 years of doing a radio show with Murray, Alber stepped away from the microphone to attend to his job and family matters. He and his former co-host have remained good friends.
“I kind of think of the two of us as Sonny and Cher,” the 58-year-old Brighton resident said. “I’m Sonny, went so far and just said ‘I’m done.’ Cher is still popular after all these years.”
Murray hosted “Whole Lotta Shakin’” by himself at WITR until 2010, when he was invited to take the show to WRUR, the University of Rochester’s college radio station. The station partners with WXXI, the local NPR station, to broadcast across the Rochester area over the FM dial. The show can also be heard in Ithaca over radio station WITH.
Recording and broadcasting have changed dramatically since Murray became a DJ. He can draw from the thousands of records, cassette tapes and CDs he’s gathered down through the years when programming for his show, but no longer has to cart them to a station to do his show. Instead, he digitally records his selections on a thumb drive and plugs it in at the studio, which doesn’t even have a turntable. Though the electronic device represents a vast change in technology from his first days before a microphone, Murray still DJs in his personal style.
“I have not had to compromise at all,” he said. “Frankly, that’s the only way I can do it.”
That’s not to say that Murray’s passion for broadcasting has not required a few sacrifices. Though he has a Bachelor of Science degree in communications from the SUNY
Brockport, but for a few brief periods in commercial radio he was not paid for his time in broadcasting until recently. WRUR began paying him for doing “Whole Lotta Shakin’” three years ago. Instead, the married father of three worked other types of full-time jobs down through the years to support his family. Murray recently retired from the accounting department of the American Packaging Corporation, but still works for the company as a contractor. He credits his wife for supporting him as he’s given his time and energy to creating a radio show week- after-week.
“I’m thankful that my wife Linda appreciates the fact that this is a huge part of who I am, and is very supportive of the radio show,” Murray said.
In addition to broadcasting the works of local musicians, Murray supports them out in the community. On Oct. 12, he and Alber joined Greg Prevost, who was doing a book and album release at the House of Guitars, an Irondequoit fixture that sells guitars, CDs, DVDs and other items. Prevost, one of the founding members of the Chesterfield Kings, has known Murray since 1980, and considers him a friend and a pioneer of radio.
“There’s all these people now copying him for what he did now, coming out on the Internet with their shows, and Mike’s been doing it for 40 years,” Prevost said. “He’s just a good guy.”
Prevost left the Chesterfield Kings in 2011, and began performing solo. A large crowd gathered at the House of Guitars to talk to the well-known musician, and buy signed copies of his new book and album. The book, "On the Street I Met a Dog," is an autobiography, and the album, "After the Wars," brings blues, folk and country music together to present a theme.
“It’s about, basically ‘war is something that nobody wins,’” Prevost said.
Asked what he plans to do during the coming years, Murray said he intends to continue treating his audiences to the music he loves.
“I really love the music, but I really enjoy the connection with bringing it out and showing other people,” he said. “If I know you’re having fun listening to it, I like that.”
retirement
Enjoying their retirement years: from left, Duane Wiedor, 66, former head of research and development at Welch Allyn (currently Baxter) and Ed Keller, 56, creator and former owner of EarQ, a national hearing aid supply and service company, drive school buses at Skaneateles Central School District.
HIGH-POWERED MEN DRIVE SCHOOL BUSES IN SKANEATELES
Creator and former owner of EarQ and the former head of research and development at Welch Allyn get behind the wheels of school buses in Skaneateles every week
By David Figura
Two former high-powered Central New York businessmen who took early retirements are driven to have a lasting impact on their community and beyond.
Duane Wiedor, 66, former head of research and development at Welch Allyn (currently Baxter) and Ed Keller, 56, creator and former owner of EarQ, a national hearing aid supply and service company, have been enjoying their retirement years by driving school buses.
In addition, the two, both car enthusiasts, have created Skaneateles Cares Car Club, a social-oriented LLC that gets others with similar interests together for monthly events. The club has the long-term goal of raising $1 million to donate to Golisano Children’s Hospital in Syracuse. The money would be used to build a playground that could be used for therapeutic purposes.
Both men live in Skaneateles.
At the end of his full-time work career Wiedor oversaw more than 800 employees and an annual $75 million budget. He said he retired at 62, a couple of months before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. He added his father died of cancer at age 56.
“I was born with birth defects in my heart. When I was 62, I had the opportunity to take an early retirement and enjoy the next phase of life,” he said.
Back then, he said, he didn’t have a game plan of what to do in retirement — only a list of hobbies.
“A plan is a well thought-out
sequence that leads to an outcome. If that’s the case, I wasn’t that person. I restore vintage cars for a hobby. I love to golf. I’m a boater. We live on the lake and use it quite a bit,” he said. “We’re really family-oriented. We have four children and 11 grandchildren.”
His children and their spouses, many in the field of education, encouraged him to try teaching. Instead, Wiedor stopped by the Skaneateles Central School District bus garage and asked if they needed any help.
Several months later, Wiedor was trained and driving a school bus for First Student, the private company that supplies the school bus fleet and drivers for the district.
It turns out there’s a nationwide shortage of school bus drivers, he said.
“It’s not for everyone,” he said. “As a retiree, I can split two and a half hours in the morning and two and a half hours in the afternoon. I’m not doing it for the income, health insurance, whatever. I just thought I’d help out in the community.”
Wiedor said he fell in love with the kids who rode his bus.
“I have a responsibility to these kids. I can set them up [for school each day] and help them get home, mentally. I get them to open up and they talk to me — snippets about what’s going in their lives,” he said.
He said he makes a point every morning of speaking to each kid as they board his bus with a cheery “Good morning.”
“I’m teaching them it’s OK to
Duane Wiedor and Ed Keller are passionate about vintage cars and own several of them. In 2021 they created Skaneateles Cares Car Club, a social-oriented LLC that gets others with similar interests together for monthly events. The club has the long-term goal of raising $1 million to donate to Golisano Children’s Hospital in Syracuse.
look an adult in the face and say good morning,” he said. “Sometimes a kid will get on the bus and have a down face on. I say, ‘Hey, what’s happening? Did you spill your cereal on yourself?’
Or if I don’t get a response, I’ll quietly follow up with an ‘I’m sorry, howzitgoin’ this morning?’”
At times when the younger kids are waiting to be unloaded in front of the school, Wiedor said he’ll grab his microphone and loudspeaker on the bus and do a little teaching.
“During my work career I was fortunate enough to learn greetings and salutations in more than a dozen different languages,” he said. “I’ll ask the kids, ‘How would you like to greet your teacher today? In Hebrew? German? Hungarian? Italian?’”
Wiedor added, “And here’s the joke. I’m the only school bus driver who’s legally allowed to kiss a kid every morning on the bus.”
“How is that possible? I get to pick up my granddaughter every morning on my route,” he explained. “She’s the first on and the last off each day. And next year, her little sister is starting
kindergarten. I’ll get to see [two] of my grandchildren every day. What a treat!”
Wiedor noted training to be a school bus driver “is educational and the hours are great — especially for retirees.”
“And between the morning and afternoon rides, if the weather is good, I can still get nine or 18 holes of golf in if no one is in front of me on the course,” he said.
Keller began his work career in sales and eventually started his own business, EarQ, which expanded across the country and eventually included a partnership with the NFL Players Association. In 2019, he sold the business to a long-time friend.
He retired at the age of 50. But what was next? He said he tried “a lot of different things” including the Big Brother program and joining the volunteer fire department. “Some things worked out, others didn’t,” he said.
“I liked driving stuff. I like cars. I liked to drive something cool. I liked to be important but invisible and I didn’t
want to worry if it was going to pay my bills,” he said. “I wanted to drive a school bus.”
He applied for a job with First Student to drive for the Skaneateles School District and was hired. What followed was more than four years of driving for the district.
However, this fall, he decided to take a break from the job to travel more with his wife and family and to visit his mother. He’s currently considering returning to school bus driving in 2025, possibly as a substitute driver.
While driving for Skaneateles, Keller said he tried to have a positive impact on his riders and, like Wiedor, enjoyed making connections with his riders.
“You hear about their successes, their failures, their concerns, how they did on tests, in the Little League game the past weekend, where they’re considering going to college,” he said. “And sometimes, they’ll ask your advice and you get to share with them 10 seconds of wisdom.”
He added that he tried to “create an experience” for his riders. Among
his efforts was his decision to become the “Crazy Shirt Guy.”
He started off by Googling “crazy shirts.” He purchased a few, wore them while driving his bus and started taking suggestions from the kids of things they’d like to see on his shirts. He ended up buying 60 shirts that he wore on a rotating basis.
“I told the kids they could call me Ed, Bus Driver or Crazy Shirt Guy. I didn’t care,” he said.
The latter name stuck.
His collection of crazy shirts included one for every holiday, dancing bananas, cats and pizza, a cowboy kitten and a pirate sloth riding through space and spitting out a rainbow.
The car club
The idea for a car club originated with Keller and was developed as the two men were getting trained as school bus drivers.
“One day Duane drove one of his cars [to work] while we were both in training and I shared with him that I
Ed Keller has become known to his riders as the “Crazy Shirt Guy.” He said he wanted to “create an experience” for the kids. He ended up buying 60 shirts that he wore on a rotating basis.
was a car nut, too. We soon became best friends,” Keller said. “I told him I’d like to do something with cars, but I’d like it to be something for charity.”
Wiedor has restored and owns more than a half dozen cars including a ’31 Ford Model A Tudor; a 1932 Ford Model B hotrod; a 1941 DeSoto Custom; a 1954 Chrysler Windsor Deluxe, a 1960 Corvette Convertible; a 1964 Ford Mustang Convertible and a 1973 Ford Mustang Convertible.
Keller’s holdings include a 1970 Mustang, a 2005 Chrysler Crossfire, a 2010 Ferrari 458, a 2021 Porsche 718 Boxster — and a 1927 Whippet school bus converted into a hotrod that he occasionally drives in local parades.
Wiedor said he took Keller’s idea, “gave him my twists and turns and we went with it.”
“Duane and I decided to set up a nonprofit and ended up calling it Skaneateles Cares Car Club,” Keller said.
“We wanted to create something to give people a reason to get their cars out and drive them,” he said. “We plan out really nice driving routes to unique
destinations all over CNY.
“Our driving events typically have around 30 cars with two people in each car,” Keller said. “One time we all went to the Million Air Syracuse hanger at Hancock International Airport. We had all these beautiful cars from all different eras parked inside the hanger with all these private jets and we enjoyed a gourmet meal.”
Other destinations have included day trips to historic Fort Ontario in Oswego, wineries, noteworthy restaurants and various “cute stops” along the way. “Once we had mimosas behind the roller coaster at Sylvan Beach,” Keller said.
Wiedor said the final destination of a club outing often involves a meal, at times catered, with each member covering their costs.
Members of the club, which has been in existence since 2021, donate $1,000 annually, with all the money going to the club’s Golisano Hospital fund.
To date, more than $100,000 has been raised, Wiedor said.
Duane Wiedor sits behind the wheels at his school bus. “I’m the only school bus driver who’s legally allowed to kiss a kid every morning on the bus,” he said as he referred to his granddaughter, who is a passenger on his bus.
housing
More Boomers Seeking Independent Living
They tend to choose one floor-plan homes with help in maintaining the grounds
By Maggie Fitzgibbon
People are living longer. Why?
In the United States, some of the reasons can be attributed to better healthcare, improved nutrition and more active people.
In 2025, the first of the baby boomer generation — those born from 1946 to
1964 — will turn 80.
The US Census Bureau reports that the U.S. population aged 65 and older grew from 2010 to 2020. This growth is the fastest rate from 1880 to 1890 and reached 55.8 million, a 38.6% increase in just 10 years.
With this growth comes a demand for housing.
In September 2024, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the completion of a new $48 million, 40unit affordable housing development for seniors in Rochester. The building is the first phase of a three-phase project to replace the aging Cobbs Hill Village, a Mitchell-Lama development originally built in 1957. This is just one example of new Rochester and Monroe County development.
But the question is why this need and why are people moving into this type of independent housing?
Joyce and Tom Plucknette Sr. live in Hickory Hollow, a senior housing complex in Spencerport.
This complex is the first senior housing to be built in Spencerport. Before the Plucknettes made this move more than 20 years ago, they attended many meetings with the town, village and builder to learn the details of the building process and homeowner obligations.
“We did our research because this type of housing was new to the area,” Tom explained. They learned their home costs, plan choices, homeowners' association fees (and what the HOA fees included), taxes, utility provider and what the complex would look like. They moved into their 1,100-square-foot home in 2001 and were some of the first residents of this complex.
They made this move for many reasons.
“We lived in a large, old home in the village of Spencerport. It had four floors and many steps at its entrances. The home was becoming a lot for us to maintain. We knew it was time to downsize,” Joyce explained.
While leaving their village home was a difficult decision to make, this active couple is very happy with their home of almost 24 years. It’s a twobedroom, two full baths home, living room, dining room and kitchen with an open floor plan. The home has a full basement and a three-season room. The only drawback to the size of the home is that the Plucknettes are not able to entertain all of their family at once.
“Between our kids, their spouses, grandkids, their spouses and greatgrandkids, we are a family of 60,” Joyce exclaimed.
The Plucknettes own their
Tom Plucknette Sr. and Joyce Plucknette in the dining room of their home in the Hickory Hollow senior housing complex in Spencerport.
home and the property so they are responsible for the taxes and utilities including the upkeep of the interior of the home. Their HOA maintains their lawn and exterior of the home but they are allowed to plant flowers as well as a small garden.
The Hickory Hollow resident community has many social groups to belong to — a book club, a bridge group, a poker club, knitting and stitching group are just a few of the many groups.
“We love living here,” Joyce said. “During the COVID pandemic we had driveway parties and bonfires,” Tom added.
The Plucknettes have deep roots in Spencerport. Tom, 89, was born and raised in Spencerport and Joyce, 88, moved when she was 16. They raised their family in Spencerport.
“It was important to us to stay in the area and live in Spencerport. Most of our family still lives here,” Joyce said.
The Plucknettes enjoy the independence living in Hickory
Hollow provides.
“We don’t have to worry about our home when we travel because the exterior is maintained,” Joyce said.
“Ogden Police officers make regular patrols around the neighborhood,” Tom added.
Friends, activities
Arlene Miller moved to a villa at The Addison at Park Crescent, a senior living community in Greece, three years ago. She and her late husband moved for health reasons.
“We lived in our home for 61 years so it was a difficult decision to make but our home was a split level with many stairs that were difficult for my husband to climb. We needed to move to a place that was a one-floor home,” Miller explained.
The Addison at Park Crescent offers a host of amenities, served meals in a dining room, a library, a hair salon, family meeting spaces, community rooms, an exercise room that are all housed in the main building. A
monthly calendar includes a host of social activities, even indoor and outdoor concerts. Senior apartments are also located in the main building. The villas are behind the main building with three villas per section.
Miller’s one-floor two-bedroom, two-bath home has a living room, dining room, kitchen and two-car garage as well as storage space. A small patio and lawn have space for gardening. Miller pays a monthly rental for her villa which does not include utilities. Because her villa is a rental she is subject to rent increases which, unfortunately, can be challenging due to many seniors having a fixed income.
This spry 80-something lady enjoys living at Addison at Park Crescent for many reasons. She’s made many friends and enjoys the activities. Her family lives close by and it’s convenient for shopping but most of all for one of her favorite activities.
“Weather permitting, I swim in Lake Ontario daily,” she exclaimed with a smile.
Both the Plucknettes and Miller advise anyone considering a move to senior housing to look at the many different types of housing.
The Monroe County and Finger Lakes area offers a plethora of senior housing choices. Each type has different services, some will offer transitional care based on the needs of the individual. Some of the factors to consider are:
● Type of housing: independent both rental and homeowner
● Affordability: does the type of housing costs fit your budget?
● Location: is it important to live close to family and friends?
● What amenities are offered or included: utilities, lawn care, trash and snow removal
● Transitional care: can a person move into a higher level of care?
● Are there social opportunities?
● Is medical care available?
● Close to shopping?
Three websites — A Place for Mom (aplaceformom.com), Senior Advisor (senioradvisor.com) and Caring (caring.com) are websites that can assist in a search for senior housing.
Lifespan is a regional nonprofit that is a resource for information and guidance for seniors. Visit lifespanroch.org to learn about the many services that Lifespan offers.
Arlene Miller moved to a villa at The Addison at Park Crescent, a senior living community in Greece, three years ago. "We needed to move to a place that was a one-floor home,” Miller says.
housing
Considering a ‘Senior’ Community? What’s In It For You?
Here are some pros and cons of a senior community
By Debroah Jeanne Sergeant
The websites and brochures for senior communities show gray-haired people with a jaunty expression and loads of vitality living their best life.
But is it in your best financial interest and will it provide you with the best quality of life to downsize and move into a senior community?
Jeff Feldman, Ph.D., certified financial planner at Rochester Financial Services in Pittsford, said that many people who lack longterm care insurance think of senior communities as another alternative to long-term care.
“They think they can go into one of these communities as a backdoor way of obtaining that care but it’s not true,” Feldman said. “The owners of these communities are aware that a large percentage of people going into these communities expect to be taken care of. They won’t allow those with adverse health situations into these communities because they don’t want to take on their healthcare.”
Some facilities offer transitional levels of care, from independent living to assisted living and then full-time care in an on-campus nursing home.
But communities that offer independent living are the least expensive and offer the least amount of support. Landscaping, snow removal, and general building maintenance is usually all that’s offered for independent living.
Despite this, “it can be very expensive for people who want to go into these communities. They won’t get anything for free,” Feldman said. “You’re paying quite a bit to get that insurance component of communities that take you on when you don’t need assistance and progress on to more care as your situation requires it.”
When purchased as a young adult, long-term care policies are easier to afford; however, few companies offer them. And once someone’s over 55, the price is “prohibitive,” Feldman said. “You risk a situation where you can exhaust your assets paying for
this care.”
He noted that New York protects retirement assets for people who need care.
“People requiring long-term care can sign up for Medicaid while the assets in their retirement fund can remain intact,” he said. “As far as how to protect yourself against the need for long-term assistance, there are no alternatives.
“The best advice I give to people is to try to look out for your own health.” Keep up with doctors’ visits and follow their orders for medication and other protocols. Eat a balanced diet, exercise for 150 minutes weekly, socialize regularly, avoid tobacco and abusing drugs and alcohol. Sleep and de-stress sufficiently. Stay mentally active, learning new information often. All of these steps can help you stay vibrant longer.
The alternatives aren’t great.
Feldman said that in Rochester, the
cost for a good quality nursing home is approaching $225,000 annually. That’s about $18,750 a month.
“People are trying to figure out how to get that care without paying for it,” he added. “Someone has to pay for it: either you or the government. Some are afflicted with illnesses or have accidents but those who have the opportunity to take care of their health, that to me is probably the best step to take in order to avoid a financial catastrophe.”
As for quality of life, he doesn’t often see many advantages to downsizing from a 2,500-sq. foot home to a senior community townhouse of 1,700-square feet. He has seen clients who actually pay more for the smaller place because they don’t want to perform maintenance like moving and snow removal, both tasks that they could hire someone else to do. Most older adults lack nearby family members who are willing to perform work like this.
Some older adults feel pressured to move into a senior community because of transportation needs since they no longer drive. Many senior communities are located near public transportation or have frequently used services nearby; however, Feldman sees ride share services like Uber or Lyft as one means of filling that need.
Sites such as GoGoGrandparent can help fill that need for people who eschew apps. Once signed up, the older adult can call from any phone—even a landline—and a live, 24/7 operator will connect them with services such as a ride and grocery and restaurant delivery for a fee, along with notifying a designated family member that the older adult is going somewhere. Speed
or yours? Up and down it goes. If hearing the TV has become challenging, we can help. Schedules and registration for free programs are
dial services that do not require a live operator are also available.
“I’m not a big fan of senior living communities unless the attractive feature is the entertainment, pool area and activities,” Feldman said.
Most senior communities provide a common space for socializing like a “community room” for birthday parties and an outdoor space for enjoying nature and meeting neighbors.
For some people, kicking off their downsizing early can help them make more decisions about what happens to their stuff and who in their family gets what. They can also pass along things they no longer need to people who could really use it, such as giving a spare bedroom set to a grandchild who is just starting out.
Jeff Feldman, Ph.D. is a certified financial planner at Rochester Financial Services in Pittsford: “I’m not a big fan of senior living communities unless the attractive feature is the entertainment, pool area and activities,” he says.
Writing is a Dish Best Served With Friends
Members of PIM (Partners in Medicine) Writers’ Group gather once a month to eat, chat and discuss their writings
By John Addyman
Bea DeBuono had saved her surprise for the end of the meeting.
Nobody quite enjoys the meetings like she does.
She’s 99 and make no mistake — she comes dressed to the nines and sits there while things are going on, a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye.
“I have something to read,” she told everyone, taking out a little clipping from a magazine. She proceeded:
“Oh my God! I’m rich. “I have silver in my hair, “Gold in my teeth, “Crystals in the kidney, “Sugar in the blood, “Lead in the butt, “Iron in the arteries, “And an inexhaustible supply of natural gas.”
The laughter was thunderous in the small meeting room at Bill Gray’s Restaurant in Penfield.
DeBuono is a member of the PIM (Partners in Medicine) Writers’ Group, the brainchild of Paul Luciano, a consultant who was researching “embedded care navigation — all the things that come with not knowing what to do as you get older and not having anyone to turn to,” he explained.
The study was looking for ways to reduce the number of unnecessary trips seniors make to the emergency room. That meant he and others interacted with study participants to find solutions that ultimately were tied to quality of life.
“One common theme the study found was a lack of social connection. In my opinion, a big part of the success of the program was the time that was afforded to the patient and the feeling
of connectedness with their doctor’s office in a different way. Patients were more confident to meet challenges because of an increased positive perception of the role of their primary care provider.
“The people I was meeting were creative, socially isolated people, people who were yearning for a sense of community and camaraderie. Maybe they didn’t literally bring it up but they were looking for a creative support group.”
That “creative support group” wasn’t part of his charge in conducting the study, so Luciano took it upon himself to start one.
“I met a gentleman, a writer, who had been writing all his life. He said, ‘I want to get involved in something.’ That was the catalyst that started it.”
The PIM Writers' Group was born.
On a bright morning last September in Penfield, the writers filed into a
meeting room at Bill Gray’s restaurant.
There was a lot of white and silver hair.
And some dazzling outfits. One wonderful black hat for emphasis and mystery.
Siggy LaSalle, 95, from Irondequoit, brought two of her grown granddaughters from California and Seattle — they were so enthused to see what was going on after hearing their grandmom, who had written a book, talk about the writers’ group in such glowing terms.
The group meets monthly except for July.
And it’s a welcoming bunch.
“My grandfather had some good advice for me,” Luciano shared. “He’d say, ‘You can’t just be good to people, you have to be good for people.’ I've taken that to heart and believe a sense of belonging, of community, is an imperative for all people, especially older adults who many times find themselves alone at a time of life when they need others the most.”
The members of the group — the youngest being 67 and the oldest 101 — haven’t lost their creative instincts.
They have an itch Luciano helped them scratch, enjoying the process with their peers.
Each meeting starts with a meal. Then the writers share what they’ve come up with since the last meeting. Luciano primes the pump with some suggestions he mails out before the meeting. This time he suggested writing about summer’s end, a fun summer highlight, a strength that defined their lives or a “potluck” subject of their choosing.
Suzanne “Zsa-Zsa” Bello, 89, is from Hungary, and is a former ballerina. She began by saying that some of her friends “have gone on to live in the heavens” since the last meeting. She wrote that “flowers are God’s creation for the delight of mankind.” Her grandfather was a landscaper in Hungary, caring for the three-mile walk to the railroad depot. Her grandmother had so many flowers; people would stop and ask her for seeds.
“We are very, very lucky to be blessed with God’s grace so we can take our minds off all the wars and the hatred that is going around the
world,” she wrote. “This begins inside the human heart. We will pray that soon, very soon, humans can forgive each other for all these difficulties. Then, with peace, we will all love one another with hope for the future. God bless you all.”
Lorraine Fusare, 85, wrote “a kind of a poem” entitled “The Rock and The Cup.” She described a summer camping vacation trip where a mother pours a steaming cup of coffee and walks to creekside, balancing the cup on a large rock. And she wrote:
“Coffee cup teeters on the expanse of rock. Water rivulets play slapping at the side. The gurgling of the stream sings a song, too.
“A raised hand blocks out the blinding sun’s rays. Some rays escape and dance on the water, like fireflies flitting in the night.
“Children’s happy voices sound in the distance. A new generation living on nature’s bounty. Will they ever know about the rock?
“Then the mother catches her reflection in the water. Today it is her rock. Her story. Her time to just be.
“She reflects on the fireside stories
Rosalie Mancini, 86
Dolly Acquilano, 67
Ellen DeBuono
Suzane Zsa-Zsa Bello, 89
Lorraine Fusare, 85
remembered in the swirling of flames and the cracking, popping and hissing. The only sound to be heard in the night. The fire tells a story of reflection of those surrounding this masterpiece of art. “
The sounds of the campground finally move her off the rock. Time to get breakfast ready. She finishes the poem…
“Summer rushed away, just like the creek. Falling leaves bid all goodbye. The rock is strong. It waits in silence, holding its secrets until she comes back…if she does.”
Rosalie Mancini, 86, said a lot in few words.
“The youngest of four siblings in the family is nothing to be thankful for. I was at a loss at 10 years of age but I was luckier than the others, because they were doing most of the work of adapting without a mother. What does a 10-year-old girl know about anything? Looking back at the years past, it’s tempting to say, ‘Live and Learn.’
“I can now justify so much more in life and reflect back on so many things and times involving my friends, family and loved ones to show me, teach me and exhibit how life, friends and family had the most wonderful part of living and growing up and reflecting so much. Where would this world be without friends and family?”
Siggy LaSalle, 95, wrote about the change of seasons coming up.
“Where has the summer gone? We all love our summers, especially here in the north where our winters last up to six months. Our summer brings new life back into nature and body and soul. It renews our spirits and our
activities. It makes life great again. We hate to see it come to an end. And we dread the dark days of winter with all the inactivity…especially at our advanced age.
“Of course, summer does not come to an abrupt end. It slowly brings us into the fall season, which has its own splendor. It slowly changes nature into another wonderful season. I love fall, the colors and changes in the leaves, and the cooler nights are fantastic.
“Summer’s end is just an adjustment of the mind. Enjoy life every day.”
Dolly Acquilano, 67, had all kinds of things to look forward to…
“I absolutely love the beauty of fall. All the gorgeous colors, such fresh air and I know Thanksgiving is coming, my favorite holiday. I love all my family coming to my house and watching football and eating. But I also look back at how the summer flew by.
“Now we are getting out all the fall decorations — Halloween is around the corner; I look forward to carving the pumpkin with my granddaughter and seeing all the kids in their costumes. The leaves will be falling to the ground and I can hear my husband telling me how many bags of leaves he raked up.”
Ellen DeBuono, 101, wrote some thoughts about her seashell collection.
“When examining and fingering the various shells you notice the shapes, colors, texture and size of some of the shells. Some are different and have their own uniqueness. Some are perfect, others are worn and broken.
“This is an analogy that relates to the peoples of the world. Siblings as well as relatives can be very similar in
terms of characteristics, yet each has a different personality, talent, capability and interest in life. Like a shell, each person is special in his or her own right, in spite of many similarities. Even twins, who are identical, are different, each with their own special traits.
“Also, as when you examine shells, look for the beauty in each one, even though some may be worn from the passing of time, broken and chipped by the churning and stormy lashes of the sea. At the same time, enjoy and relish these, the wonders of nature.”
Bea DeBuono, 99, wrote about the Writers’ Group.
“This program has been a blessing for us. My sister, Ellen, is 101 and I’m 99. Here we have the opportunity to interact with a diversified group to keep our minds stimulated. Paul has also provided good tips and shown us how to acquire a positive attitude.”
“These people have taught me the power of community,” Luciano said. “I always believed that, but to see if firsthand, just to hear the narrative and how important it is to have this group for people. It’s really hard for people to know what it’s like to be alone, day after day, at a time of life when you’re starting to depend on people more and more. It’s kind of a reverse slope. As we get older, that’s the time of life we need other people around the most. It can be extremely challenging. To have that positive sense of camaraderie is important.”
About Paul Luciano
He has a master’s degree in public health from Emory University. He has held positions at the Centers for Disease Control Foundation and the AOMA Graduate School of Integrative Medicine. He has consulted with communities on disaster resilience and mitigation. He is working on a few novels and started a classic car video production company this summer. He also belongs to the Lake Ontario Surf Club (LOSERS).
To learn more about the PIM Writers Group or to ask how you might organize your own group, contact Paul Luciano at ophconsultingservices@ gmail.com
Paul Luciano, a consultant who created the PIM (Partners in Medicine) Writers’ Group with members of the organization, Bea DeBuono and Ellen DeBuono.
Sue Ormandy (center) with her Brazilian “mother,” Ivoneide (left), and Ivoneide’s sister, Marivonne, during Ormandy’s last visit to Brazil. Ivoneide is now 95 years old and Ormandy said she wanted to have one more chance to visit with her.
Paying it Forward: A Cultural Exchange
Sue Ormandy and her husband Jeff of Henrietta have welcomed seven exchange students from four different countries into their home
By Grace Scism
Sue Ormandy knew little about the student exchange program at her Leroy high school when she agreed to accompany her friend to an informational meeting in the late 1970s.
When Ormandy got home, she was excited to tell her parents all about it. But with eight children, they couldn’t afford to send her to a foreign country. She pursued the opportunity anyway and ended up earning a scholarship that would make a year studying in Brazil possible.
Ormandy arrived in Brazil for the second semester of her junior year knowing some Spanish. The official
language there is Portuguese, similar to Spanish, so she caught on quickly.
“I went there as probably a very introverted person, but I had to talk to people and learn the language and insert myself to make friends,” remembered Ormandy. “I had to come out of my comfort zone every day.”
After spending the second semester of her junior year in a Dutch cooperative in the middle of Brazil with a family that had seven children, Ormandy went to a Brazilian family for the first semester of her senior year. It was there that she was able to truly immerse herself in Brazilian culture.
To this day, Ormandy is still in
touch with that family and they have visited each other over the past 40 years, most recently in February when Sue and her husband, Jeff, traveled to Brazil.
“I still love making Brazilian food, especially brigadeiro, a confection made with sweetened condensed milk, Nestle’s Quick and butter,” said Ormandy, who learned the recipe from her Brazilian “mother,” Ivoneide.
With all that Ormandy gained from her experience learning abroad, she has paid it forward many times over.
The program — AFS Exchange Programs — is an exchange, so the
and
expectation is that families who send a child abroad will also host a student from abroad. A few years later, her mother hosted a student from Argentina and a few years after that, a girl from Brazil, Astrid, who arrived with another girl, Paloma, who would be living with a family in Rochester.
The girls stayed in touch and Ormandy, now married and with a baby, learned that Paloma was very unhappy with her host family in Rochester. Ormandy was living in Rochester and petitioned to have Paloma stay with her and Jeff and continue attending Wilson Magnet High School.
“So that was our first hosting experience,” said Ormandy.
Over the next nine months, the Ormandys would take Paloma to Niagara Falls, Michigan to visit Sue’s sister, baseball and hockey games and teach her how to make chocolate chip cookies. They visited her and her family in Brazil twice and even brought the ingredients to make chocolate chip
cookies when they visited in 2019.
An ad in the Pennysaver a couple of years after Paloma left prompted Sue to pursue hosting again.
“I just called to inquire, then out of the blue, I received a call from Fabio, who lived in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Well, after talking to him, we couldn’t say no. So he came and it was a great experience,” she said.
“We had two kids by then and Fabio was pretty amazing because he came from a family where he was an only child — a pretty affluent family that had a maid and all that,” said Jeff. “And here we had two little kids plus a daycare in our home. He’s helping do the dishes and holding little kids and all this stuff I don’t think he had a lot of experience with.”
Years later, Fabio asked Sue and Jeff to stand up for him at his wedding and their son, Ben, was the ring bearer.
The connections from Sue’s original trip to Brazil continued when her Brazilian “cousin,” Dalia asked if she could visit.
“The second night she was here, I came down with bronchitis. Dalia wanted to go out, so Jeff invited his very nerdy, kind of introverted friend, Jim, to come along,” remembered Sue. “Well, they ended up talking all night and have now been married for 35 years, are living right here in Webster and have two children and two grandchildren!”
Over the years, the Ormandys would host more students, some for just a summer and others for an entire school year — some through their Brazilian connections and some through AFS.
The program shut down during COVID-19, but when students were allowed to travel again, the Ormandys decided to open their home once again.
“We were asked if we would host a Muslim student — that we would just have to be aware of that practice. And the main thing is that we don’t serve pork. Easy. OK,” said Sue.
Hossam arrived from Gaza in 2021, long before the war broke out.
Jeff Ormandy, from left, Hossam, and Sue Ormandy in their Chili home. Hossam is now a sophomore at Roberts Wesleyan University.
Rafsan (center), one of the Ormandy’s several exchange students, volunteering at Rotary Sunshine Camp.
Jeff Ormandy
Xavi, an exchange student who spent the summer of 2016 with the Ormandys, at a Red Wings baseball game.
He was an exchange student through AFS, but also participated through the U.S. Department of State’s KennedyLugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program.
YES gives high school students from countries with significant Muslim populations the opportunity to live and study for an academic year in the United States. YES students serve as “youth ambassadors” helping educate Americans about their home country and culture. The YES program was established by Congress in October 2002 in response to the events of September 11, 2001.
In addition to attending high school, the students are required to participate in community service and group activities organized by YES, such as trips to Gettysburg and Ganondagan to learn about American history. The students then visit fifth grade classes in the Rochester City School District to talk about their experiences.
Hossam attended Rush-Henrietta High School where he excelled, even earning six college credits before returning to Gaza.
“Hossam got to experience so many things during that school year, so many different places,” said Jeff. He visited the Ormandy’s now
grown children — Elizabeth and Matt in California and Ben in New Jersey, visited their family in Florida and Michigan and toured New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
While Hossam was learning about the United States, the Ormandys and their family were learning about Gaza.
“The stereotypes that we have of their people and the stereotypes that they have of people living in the United States — they dissolve,” said Sue. “You find out you have a lot more in common with people than differences.”
Hossam returned to Gaza after his senior year to complete one more year of high school. His hope was to return to the United States to attend college and was accepted at several. He finally decided on Roberts Wesleyan University where he received the best scholarship.
The Ormandys, now retired from their careers as social workers, welcomed Hossam back into their home where he now lives and attends classes as he pursues a degree in biomedicine. The arrangement saves Hossam the cost of room and board.
“I would like to become a doctor,” said Hossam, whose mother encouraged him to apply for the
exchange program that opened the doors of opportunity. His mother and two of his three sisters and brother still live in war-torn Gaza.
“The situation at home hasn’t changed. It’s only gotten worse over time. No one should be allowed to live in circumstances like that,” said Hossam.
His sisters have spent several months completing paperwork to attend college in another country, but the process is long.
“I’ve actually thought about going to be with them, but my mother says no. She is so happy that I was able to get out,” said Hossam. “She is the one who set my mind straight about the future. I’m the person who is going to help them get out eventually. That is my whole point right now.”
In the meantime, Sue has worked as a coordinator, checking in on exchange students periodically to make sure everything was going well. One student, Rafsan from Bangladesh, was not having a good experience with his host family, so the Ormandys became a host family again so he could continue his year at Rush-Henrietta Senior High School.
Since then, the Ormandys have opened their home to several of Hossam’s friends, most of whom are Muslim, so they don’t have to pay to stay on campus during college breaks. They celebrate birthdays and holidays together; cutting down and decorating a Christmas tree, enjoying turkey with all the trimmings and gathering in the backyard with noisemakers and hats on New Year’s Eve.
“They are all such polite, caring, nice kids,” said Sue.
Having these students as part of their family has opened the Ormandys’ eyes to places they previously couldn’t even point to on a map.
“We see on the news what the media tells us is happening in other parts of the world and we feel bad, but having these kids come and live amongst families, not as tourists, really gives us a different perspective,” said Sue. “Hate is being promoted so unnecessarily. And these programs, they’re trying to mitigate that.”
To learn more about the KennedyLugar Youth Exchange and Study program and apply to host a student, visit yesprograms.org. To learn more about AFS Exchange Programs and apply to host a student, visit AFS.org.
Sue Ormandy (right) and Claudia, who she refers to as her Brazilian sister. Ormandy was an exchange student staying with Claudia’s family from 1979 to 1980.
The Kunze Family Love of the land and freedom from country to
country
By Lynette M. Loomis
The land has been important to the Kunze family for generations and across continents. It has provided food, shelter, security and a love of nature.
“I remember vividly the stories my parents told me of their escape from Communist Russian-occupied Germany to free West Germany and ultimately to the United States,” said Hans Kunze, 64. His mother Adele, 93, and his father, Rudolf, had grown up in East Prussia and Pomerania, respectively, which then were part of a massive Germany.
In January 1945, World War II was winding down and it was not looking good for the German army; Russian
soldiers were occupying more and more of Germany, seizing property, burning buildings, killing people, raping women. German refugees from even further eastern Germany were heading west going from farm to farm in search of a place to stay.
At Adele’s family farm, called Compehner Farm, which had been in the family for many generations, the dairy cattle were moved outside of barns into the cold to make room for refugees. It was a very chaotic time and the roads heading west toward free West Germany were very congested.
“In January of 1945 my mother was only 13 when she and her three younger siblings were told to pack one suitcase each with the possessions that
meant the most to them. They left their farm forever, but the men had to stay behind to protect their homes. When it was imminent that the men needed to leave, my grandfather had to put down his favorite horses to spare them from being mistreated by the soldiers. They lost everything. It was a very sad time.” said Hans. Because the roads were so congested, the family had an opportunity to board a hospital ship that was transporting refugees a little further to the west, avoiding much of the road congestion. Getting on that ship was dangerous since the Baltic Sea had been planted with numerous mines.
Despite that, the family took the
Adele Kunze, 93, inspired a love of nature into her son Hans after taking him to an Audubon Center when he was a young child.
risk and did arrive safely. (That ship ultimately did hit a mine and sank.)
As all young men were required to do, Hans’ father, Rudolf, was conscripted into the German army at 19. On the eastern front, he was captured and forced to march with his fellow prisoners, likely to a train station. As they approached a bridge, Rudolf had a sense that if he went across that bridge, he would never make it back alive.
The land saved him as he made a daring escape to the woods. Using a compass, over a week-long walk by night, he eventually made it back home to Pomerania where only his mother still lived. For several months (May through December 1945) he literally lived in a camouflaged hole in the ground on the edge of a forest, foraging for food or eating whatever his mother could provide to him. During this time, he needed to be especially careful not to get caught by patrolling Russians. He did have several close calls while he was visiting his mother.
Though Adele and Rudolf had not yet met, each of them and their families still had the difficult task of eventually crossing the Iron Curtain into free West Germany. Being caught at the border by the Russians would have been devastating for all of them especially Rudolf, as an escaped military prisoner. Upon completing their escape late in 1945, they were so relieved. In the late ‘40s Adele and Rudolf met as they were working on neighboring farms in northwestern West Germany.
Adele said, “I can’t begin to explain the great feeling of making it across the border to freedom, immigrating to the USA and then becoming American citizens. Rudolf and I were so proud to become Americans. We thank God for guiding us safely through the war, letting us meet and ultimately living our dream in a country known as a land of opportunity and freedom!”
Adele and Rudolf became engaged and found American sponsors who wanted household and farm help. Rudolf arrived in Leroy in 1950 and Adele in 1952 and they married in 1953. They worked hard, saved their money and bought some cows. After 10 years they were able to buy their own farm in Wyoming County. As Hans recalled, “All three of us kids worked on the farm, helping to take care of the dairy herd and crops. On
Rudolf and Adele Kunze in the 1950s shortly after arriving from Germany.
Hans and Adele Kunze share a love of birds and visit many areas in Upstate NY to appreciate the beauty and sounds of native birds.
Hans and his mother Adele standing in front of wheat ready for harvest on New Compehner Farm in Wyoming N.Y. named that in memory of Compehner Farm in East Prussia (Germany).
a farm there is no such thing as ‘I’ll do it later.’ Cows have to be milked and fed and cared for whether you’re tired or not. But we loved it; it was a great childhood. Mom and Dad were excellent farmers and to this day we are very proud of their success!”
As a youngster Hans loved nature, especially the birds on the farm. One day Adele took him to an Audubon nature center where he became even more infatuated with birds. He would frequently walk three miles to school so he could see and listen to the birds. He became known as “the bird guy.” On the farm, his dad focused on the crops and did the mechanical chores and his mother was extremely dedicated to the dairy herd and the young livestock. In her spare time, she loved gardening.
Rudolf and Adele’s three children went on to college; Ursula became a foreign language teacher, and Monika became a registered nurse. Hans went to Cornell, studied finance and agriculture and became a farm and commercial loan officer and banker. At Cornell, Hans was in an agricultural fraternity called Alpha Gamma Rho and part of their community relations mandate was charitable giving. Hans was put in charge of this, coming up with the idea of selling bird feed, a program that continued for another 17 years. The funds were raised for a local charity in Ithaca that provided free transportation for people with handicaps or who were elderly.
After four years as a banker in the Finger Lakes, Hans was able to transfer closer to his family home when his parents needed more help on the 170acre farm in Wyoming. As a hobby and side business, his interest in selling bird feed came full circle.
“I started the bird feed business in 1990 and in 2010 entered the greenhouse business,” he said.
Hans' Birdfeeder & Greenhouse is located on the family farm in Wyoming, where he grows and sells a variety of plants; primarily annuals and perennials and year-round several types of bird feed. He remains a very active nature enthusiast — as an avid birder, gardener, landscaper and part-time farmer, selling grass hay in small bales. Hans’ love of nature has been shared with others over the decades. Hans leads bird, nature and garden walks for many groups at their home and other locations. He
continues to write his bird and nature column for several Western New York newspapers, submitting articles every two weeks for almost 35 years.
Hans is thankful for friends having helped him meet his wife, Leslie, when he was about 30. Hans and Leslie have three children. Has their love of nature been passed on to the next generation?
Leslie, a retired special education reading teacher, laughs when she gives a resounding “Yes!”
Their son, Karl, has a Ph.D. from Cornell University in plant genetics. Daughter Mary has a degree in expeditionary studies, including the great wilderness. Daughter Grace has a degree in conservation biology and has spent the past four summers on contract with the US Forest Service doing conservation work in the mountains of California.
The German heritage of the Kunze family has never been forgotten. Hans is bilingual and has traveled to Germany 13 times. The family celebrates the German traditions and stays in contact with their relatives in
Germany. His sisters “go crazy with flowers” and his mother still lives on the farm. Hans and Leslie are deeply involved in their community including church, Rotary, chamber of commerce, Wyoming County Community Hospital, Cornell Alumni, Cornell Cooperative Extension, garden clubs, several bird and nature associations. Leslie’s care and compassion is exemplified by her lifelong constant care of family members and her volunteer work at Suzanne’s Comfort Care home in Perry.
Hans never takes his family’s journey to America for granted.
“My parents were so pleased to be free and thrilled to have become citizens of the United States. They were living their dream and always made us realize how fortunate we all were/are to have our freedom and to live here in Western New York and to be alive. We are so proud of our parents and thank them for their courage in escaping from communism and coming to the USA. We are also grateful to God for our many blessings.”
MY VISIT TO GREECE
By Joe Sarnicola
My journey to Greece started when I left Syracuse airport just before 11 on the morning of Oct. 14. After a three-hour layover at JFK airport in New York City and a nine-and-a-halfhour flight to Athens, my companion, Jan, and I arrived at about 8 the next morning. But that was Athens time. My body, still being on New York time, thought it was 1 in the morning and I am a person who has trouble adjusting to “spring ahead, fall back.”
In spite of the time difference, a short nap in the hotel refreshed me enough to be able to start exploring Athens.
Backing up for a moment, I would
like to describe one event on the flight over. On the backs of the seats in front of us is a small screen for watching movies, but it has another feature of showing where the plane is in real time. When I checked where we were, I saw we were flying over Italy, just as the sun was coming up. Seeing the lights from the cities below and the changing colors of the sky around us while flying over Italy was one of the most beautiful sights of the trip.
The hotness of summer was past. But the weather remained pleasantly in the 70s all week.
The first place we wanted to see was a section of the city called Monastiraki Square, a collection of
shops, outdoor vendors and sidewalk cafes, which was literally across the street from our first hotel. We had lunch at the Veranda Café. I ordered moussaka, which reminded me of lasagna, but the ingredients were tomatoes, potatoes and eggplant in a creamy bechamel sauce. I ordered vegetarian, but it can also come with beef or lamb. It was delicious!
Around us people were enjoying the food, the atmosphere and each other’s company. I highly recommend visiting here, just don’t get lost like we did. In the States, most of our streets are either parallel or perpendicular to each other. In Greece, the layout is more freeform. So it is very easy
A side street in Aegina adorned with umbrellas
to get disoriented.
The next day, we were scheduled to leave early in the morning for a twoday tour with a group to Delphi and Meteora (pronounced me-TAY-o-ra, accent on tay.) Whether it was due to jet lag, I can’t say, but I set the alarm for 6:30. When it went off, I got up and got dressed while Jan started a pot of coffee. I checked to see if my phone had charged overnight and discovered it was 4:30, not 6:30! So we tried to steal a couple more hours’ sleep. Sigh.
Once we left Athens, the landscape was mostly barren, dusty and dry for many miles. Another thing about the landscape in rural Greece: in the States houses come in many different colors, shapes and materials. In Greece, there seems to be a choice of square and white concrete with a brown roof.
When we reached Delphi, we were able to see the ruins, some which still show hand carved lettering. Delphi is where the ancient Greeks went to visit
the oracle for guidance. It is hard not to be humbled when you view sites that are thousands of years old.
As we continued on toward Meteora (which means ‘suspended in air’), the landscape started to turn to rich, brown soil with olive trees, cotton fields and freshly harvested pastures. Many of the farms are terraced because Greece is very mountainous. Meteora is a region where several monasteries are built on top of very high cliffs and the monasteries are open to the public on a limited basis.
The night before we visited the monasteries, we stayed at a hotel in a village called Kalambaka, at the foot of the mountains. I expected a small town with little activity, due to its remoteness, but it was filled with shops, restaurants and entertainment. When the sun went down, the cliffs were lit up, offering a magnificent view.
The monasteries are still run by
monks and nuns (separately). The chapels were decorated from floor to ceiling with brightly colored Byzantine style paintings of saints and Biblical scenes.
Stepping out onto the balconies and viewing spots, the valleys and mountainous terrain can be seen for many miles in every direction.
After our tour of the monasteries, we rode the bus back to Athens. The following day we were scheduled for a half-day tour of the city, after which we were free to wander on our own.
Athens is a busy, beautiful city, but it is not like a city in the states. The sidewalks are made of cobblestones, limestone, and marble, materials that can be slippery even when dry. Plus, there are breaks and holes in the sidewalk and the cobblestones that can be uneven, making for some unsure footing. Please wear sturdy, comfortable shoes and be mindful as you walk.
Joe Sarnicola at Delphi.
Wife Jan and I taking a carriage ride in Aegina.
And the traffic? Yikes! Sometimes it was hard to tell if we were walking on the road or the sidewalk and there could be cars or motorcycles wondering the same thing. There are very few large vehicles in Athens. I even saw a scaled-down garbage truck. In addition, motorcycles weave in and around traffic and pedestrians. Parking is just as fierce, with cars facing each other on the same side of the street, often with motorcycles between them. Really.
From the balcony of our hotel room, we could see the Parthenon, which had been the political center of ancient Greece, on a hill called the Acropolis and it, too, was lit up at night. The site itself is a major tourist attraction, so expect crowds. We were told they had recently limited the number of visitors to 20,000 a week.
After visiting the Parthenon, we wanted some quieter time in a greener area and we were fortunate that near the hotel was the Athens
National Garden, a scenic park with many walking trails, koi and turtle ponds, a wide variety of plants and remnants of ruins.
On the last day of our trip, we rode a ferry to the nearby island of Aegina. Like Monastiraki, the port area of this island was a cluster of shops and cafes. I wish there had been a tourist information booth there, because it was difficult to find out how to get to any historic sites or other places of interest. A fellow traveler gave us some good advice, so we rode a bus to the temple of Aphaia, a ruin on a high point of the island with a view of the ocean.
We took a wonderful horse-drawn carriage ride and sampled a liquor made from pistachios, a major crop of Aegina. I expected it to be syrupy and oversweet, but it was light, flavorful and refreshing. I wish I had bought more to bring home.
And before we knew it, we were back home in New York state.
5 Things to Know Before Going to Greece
1. Plan, book ahead. Decide what you want to see and do by checking travel guides and websites. Once we made our choices, we contacted Fantasy Travel, an agency based in Athens. They met us at the airport (and brought us back), gave us an itinerary for each day, pre-purchased all necessary tickets and made all hotel and transportation arrangements.
2. Buy Euros in advance. They can be purchased at area banks, AAA and other places. Euros are the preferred method in Greece at most shops, vendor booths and restaurants, although cards are acceptable at most hotels and certain merchants, although with surcharges.
3. Buy an adaptor for any electronic devices. They are inexpensive and available at large department stores. You cannot plug American-based devices into European outlets.
4. Think twice about renting a car. Signage is only in Greek and traffic in certain areas is treacherous. Being part of a tour is much safer and you can relax and enjoy the trip.
5. Greece is more than the islands and the beaches. There is history and beauty on the main island across the entire country. Think about this when you plan your trip.
The Parthenon: The former temple on the Athenian Acropolis, that was dedicated to the goddess Athena.
addyman’s corner
By John Addyman Email: john.addyman@yahoo.com
I’m a simple guy. Ask anybody.
“That John guy,” you could ask. “What’s he like?” “Simple,” would come the answer. “Really simple.”
It’s true.
And this fact highlights my adventure with the car dealer.
The time had come to put my little red sports car in the garage for the winter. To prepare for this event, I go through a process I’ve followed for many, many years.
First, I get the car detailed. My friend, Clint, and his people at Tradition Chevrolet do a superb job. He makes sure the oil and filter are changed. I always equate this with putting a new diaper on a baby after a bath.
I fill the tank with gas, put dryer sheets on the tires and the engine compartment (to keep mice away) and get ready to put the special cover on the car.
Pretty much the last thing I do before buttoning everything up is to put Sta-Bil in the gas tank to keep the
fuel fresh all winter.
This is a simple procedure: I open the door to the gas tank, put a funnel into the gas filler and pour in the StaBil (which I have carefully measured to be the right amount). Done! Voila!
Then I run the car for 10 minutes to get the Sta-Bil mixed in with the gas.
Then I turn off the car, put the cover over it lovingly and last, I bend over and kiss my little red sports car good-night for the winter.
Simple.
But this September, I had bought a new little red sports car and when it came time to put him away for the winter, things suddenly got unsimple.
I measured the Sta-Bil and poured it into the gas filler pipe.
The Sta-Bil bubbled back at me.
“Whaaaat?” I gasped, realizing that the Sta-Bil wasn’t going into the car. It was going through the car onto the ground and back out the filler pipe toward me. I now had a hazmat spill on my driveway.
I stuck my finger into the opening of the gas fill pipe. I pulled my finger
out and it was all red — the color of the Sta-Bil.
“Aaaaah!!!” I screamed.
What was happening? I was following the same process I’d used for more than 10 years and the Sta-Bil had always gone happily into the gas tank.
But wait. My little red sports car was the newest version of the model. It’s a Corvette. And it had a little door on the filler tube that pushed in when you put gas (or Sta-Bil) into the car. I poked my finger through that little door again as far as I could and pulled it out: still getting red from the Sta-Bil.
“Something’s wrong,” I said to myself. When you’re simple you can figure out stuff like that real quick.
I decided that the funnel I was using was too short. I consulted Mr. Google and found an auto parts store close by that had long-neck funnels and more Sta-Bil.
But before I departed, I figured I’d better check my assumption, so I called the car dealer. The service adviser didn’t know what was happening, but said he’d investigate.
THE
TIME AND PLACE FOR A
Welcome Change
Sure enough, he called me back half an hour later and asked me if I had the “accessory package” that came with the car.
“What accessory package?”
He described it for me. I had not seen it and I’d cleaned the whole car myself the weekend before.
“There’s an extension pipe in the package,” he said. “You use that to put Sta-Bil in your gas tank. We have them in our parts department. They’re about $15.”
I couldn’t figure why the Sta-Bil was going through the door of the filler pipe then straight to the ground, but getting an extension pipe seemed like the same solution I’d already figured
out, but I didn’t know why it would work.
Off to the car dealer I drove. I saw the service adviser and ended up talking to three nice ladies in the parts department and a mechanic.
In 15 seconds, the mechanic explained the drawing that was on the outside of the little extension pipe they brought out for me — there were TWO doors to the gas tank and this little pipe — about nine inches long — was long enough to open the deeper, second door. What I poured into the pipe should in fact get to the gas tank.
Joy.
On the way home, looking at my little black $15 extension tube that should have been in the accessory package for my car, I decided that I wasn’t going to tempt fate. The little extension tube looked like too easy a solution and pouring anything into it would probably require another funnel.
So I stopped at an auto parts store, bought some Sta-Bil (most of my first bottle was on the driveway by now) and a very long, stiletto-like funnel, spending another $15.
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I got home, put the extension tube in the filler pipe and it fit perfectly, but as I feared, the end closest to me was flush with the car. Getting Sta-Bil on the paint on my car seemed a certainty.
Next I tried the stiletto funnel. That went in deeper. It had a broad, easy-pour tip, and the Sta-Bil happily disappeared into the gas tank, not on my driveway.
The car started with its characteristic delightful roar. I ran it for 10 minutes, let everything cool, then started to cover the car. When I got to the front, I plugged in the battery tender so the Vette’s electrical system had something to slurp on during hibernation.
I was ready to close the front trunk and finish covering up the car when something flashy caught my eye deep in the trunk. It was a plastic bag and I thought it might be something left over from grocery shopping. I reached way down to pull it out.
And there in my hand was a wrapped-in-plastic, black, nine-inch extension tube.
Like I said. I’m a simple guy.
By Mike Costanza
Markus Essien, 55
The new program coordinator of the Flower City Arts Center’s photography program talks about his job, the path he took to it
Q. Can you give us a brief description of your duties as program coordinator?
A. I’m coordinator for a middle school photography program and a high school photography program. The middle is called “Studio 678” and then the high school is just called “High School Photo Club.” The middle school is an analogue program, so they shoot on film and develop it in the darkroom. The high school program is digital. They do still photography, but they also do a little bit of videography.
Q. You’ve spoken of the possibility of expanding those programs. How might the Flower City Arts Center expand them?
A. Right now, we offer one middle school group and one high school group. There was a time when we had a larger group for middle school that we may split into two different days. There’s opportunities also in film
making, as there are yearly teen film festivals that are sponsored by WXXI (Rochester’s PBS station). I was just talking yesterday with a teacher about how we might…help support students who want to enter that festival. Sort of like an incubator. My concern would be, in some of those things, that adults get too involved in the process and they’re not really created by the students. We were just talking through what it might look like to create an environment where students could use adults as resources but not have adults do the work. There’s a teen film festival through WXXI that’s screened at the Little (the Little Theatre in Rochester).
Q. Before moving to Rochester, you spent 23 years as a school teacher and administrator, most of them with private schools. How did your career take you to the Flower City Arts Center?
A. Arts have always been a part
of my life, certainly as a musician, poet, writer, filmmaker, and so when I moved here with my wife, it was actually her who helped me know that this type of job was available. It just sort of felt like a perfect marriage for me. I’d already done 15 years in administration. It was nice to get back closer to the teaching, but also have arts be the prominent piece.
Q. You edited one feature film and were the assistant director of another in the early 2000’s. More recently, you produced and directed an episode about the late Black Panther Party member and disability rights activist Brad Lomax for the “American Masters” television series “Renegades.” The episode was recently shown at the Little Theatre. Yet, you now express your visual creativity through 35 millimeter still photography. How did that transition come about?
A. A lot of people start as photographers and become filmmakers. I’m sort of doing the backwards path. I was starting as a filmmaker, and becoming very fascinated and inspired to do film photography. Specifically film, not doing digital, so getting in the darkroom and developing. I’m actually beginning that journey. I am using film, black and white film. I think my boss describes me as a documentary photographer. I really like to capture things untouched, not setting things up or not someone that’s posed.
Q. You also write poetry. Have any of your works been published?
A. I have some things that were published online through The Brooklyn Poets, but I’m actually currently working on a first book. That would be images and words, so photography and poetry.
Q. It appears that your work at the Flower City Arts Center allows you to combine many parts of your professional and artistic lives. Is that correct?
A. Absolutely right. I feel like this job has been…a dream job where I can use the both the eye of the educator, the eye of the artist, and create programs for the students, but also create an environment for the teachers and be a part of the community. It seems like it checks a lot of the boxes, for sure.
