Royalton man dies in Memorial Day motorcycle accident

On Monday, a man died in a motorycle accident that occurred on Royalton Center Road in Gasport. Today, the Buffalo News has released the name of the young man. It was Jason Clark, 36, of Royalton. My heart goes out to the entire Clark family -- who are wonderful people -- in this time of sorrow.

The Buffalo News report: http://buffalonews.com/2017/05/29/fatal-accident-gasport/

FriendFest 2017

Man pleads guilty in beating death of baby

In February of 2016, young William Hossbach of Gasport -- who was only 6 months old -- was killed, beaten by his father. Last week, Dillon Hossbach admitted his guilt in court. The US&Jreport...

http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/royalton-man-admits-to-killing-son/article_7e635bc9-1d25-537c-b41c-c2ea280ebc6a.html

Lift bridge to close during summer

Press release from the desk of Royalton Town Supervisor Jennifer Bieber.....

I would like to let all the residents know that I was contacted by the New York State Canal Corporation today. I was informed that they will be closing the Gasport lift bridge for a period of up to four weeks.

The repairs will be on hydraulic cylinders. They have to be removed and sent to be rebuilt and then returned to the bridge.

The bridge will remain in the UP position, so canal traffic will continue. Please be aware that you will not see a lot of work going on because work is being done off site.

The dates that the bridge will be closed will be from August 7th until September 1st.

Fort Hyde carnival

Fort Hyde Kennels, 8513 Ridge Road, will host its annual carnival from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. The Lockport US&J reports...   

http://www.lockportjournal.com/community/dogs-welcome-at-sunday-carnival/article_49d51bcf-8a44-5e34-bc22-a2a15dbbeba6.html

Roy-Hart vote outcome

Here are the results from Tuesday's school vote:

Budget: Passed

Spending of capital reserve funds: Passed

Winners of school board elections: Blumrick, Brigham, Waters

UK scientist wants to investigate Gasport's gas

Everyone who hails from Gasport knows how the community got it's name -- from the gas that percolated in local streams.

A few years back I wrote a column about this and posted some videos:

http://www.eastniagarapost.com/2014/08/exploring-niagara-frontier-why-its.html

After reading that article, Scott Ensminger, a local author of a few books about waterfalls and other geological formations, toured our farm to see the gas in person.

He'll be back in June with a research scientist from the University of East Anglia in the UK who has been working with a special department at that school to study the life and compounds created by natural gas seeps.

While in town, they'd like to explore other similar sites and take samples. If you are a property owner in Gasport who has some gas that appears in a stream or on ground, please email Scott to set up a visit. His address is Falzguy@verizon.net.

Royalton stops taking ag tires

Farmers, gardeners and others now have no way to dispose of large tires. Royalton is dropping that service for now. They will still accept standard automotive tires.

The US&J report:

http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/royalton-s-large-tire-drop-off-halted/article_989d0dda-7719-5fb2-8d75-629b61e899f3.html

Roy-Hart vote Tuesday

The Roy-Hart vote is tomorrow. This article from the US&J looks at the 5 board candidates and the spending proposition:

http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/on-the-ballot-for-roy-hart-school-board/article_40f0066c-3269-5b70-aee3-98e4828feb57.html

Gerry Perkins honored

In ceremonies on Saturday evening Gerry Perkins, a 1996 Roy-Hart graduate, was honored as the fourth member of the Proud To Be A Ram Wall that started last year. He is shown here with his family and the Roy-Hart players and coaches. Perkins holds many records for the Roy-Hart baseball program including batting average, most home runs and most RBIs. He was drafted by the Florida Marlins in 1996 in the 71st Round of the MLB Amateur Draft. The ceremonies included the retiring of Perkins’ No. 11 which will never be worn by another R-H baseball player. Coach Jeff Ziemecki, Coach Tom Brigham and Perkins’ long time Coach Don Baker spoke and inducted Gerry into the Proud to Be A Ram Wall.

Royalton makes an appearance in Brockport Stylus

I wrote for SUNY Brockport's student newspaper -- the Stylus -- years back and I still read the paper to keep up on how the school is doing and how well today's journalism students are reporting and writing.

I was amused by this article that recently appeared in the Stylus -- it looks at how a 1962 essay about the town of Royalton, available on the library's network, is suddenly popular again. It's a mystery that the document about the town's history now has 800 downloads.

Well, it's no mystery here -- I've seen the link to the 1962 essay "Reminiscing in Royalton" shared quite a few times by visitors to Jesse Bieber's Memories of Royalton, Gasport, and Middleport Facebook group.

Check out the article:

http://www.brockportstylus.org/news/article/current/2017/04/25/100345/brockport-students-1962-essay-gathers-an-audience-55-years-later

School board business

At their most recent meeting, the school board discussed substitutes, IT instruction and a nice donation from Kathy Sillick:

http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/subs-appointed-at-roy-hart/article_b121e90e-36c0-11e7-93e0-a3027888fe75.html

Mother's Day at TC

Terry's Corners 59th Annual Mother's Day chicken BBQ is this Sunday, May 14th. Sales start at 11am and last until sold out. $10 sit-down or drive-thru; $5 for kids aged 5 - 12; free for kids under 5. You will their famous bbq chicken (not Chivettas), baked beans, salt potatoes, coleslaw, a roll, and dessert. There is also a cash raffle that day.

Salt and Light Festival

FMC donates pulse ox units to Middleport Fire

FMC’s Agricultural Solutions plant in Middleport has donated eight pulse oximeters to the Middleport Fire Department for use in helping to quickly determine the health and wellness of individuals in emergency situations. Pulse oximeters, administered at the fingertip, are medical devices used to measure a victim’s pulse rate and blood oxygen saturation levels – vital indicators when firefighters and EMTs encounter an emergency situation.

In the photo above, FMC Middleport Plant Manager Greg Sullivan (second from left) presents to Middleport Fire Department Chief Fred Srock one of eight pulse oximeters donated by FMC for the Department’s use in responding to medical emergencies. They are joined by Jim Volkosh (far left), first assistant department chief, and Roberta Kloda (far right), Environmental, Health and Safety manager for the FMC Middleport Plant.

New starting blocks coming to Roy-Hart pool

The Roy-Hart School Board approved plans to purchase new starting blocks for the high school's pool at a cost of about $21,000. Here's the US&J's report:

http://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/all-s-above-water-at-roy-hart/article_4c0ad864-2f49-5221-b928-3fe7fcf60022.html

Book sale