Allegany County Community Source 05-05-2023

Wellsville celebrates Arbor Day with dedication to Penny Canfield

allegany county

12th season of ‘CRCS Outdoors’ now airing, upcoming trips planned

CUBA — The hunting and fishing adventures of local students and teachers are back on the air.

The latest season of “CRCS Outdoors,” featuring Cuba-Rushford Central School students, staff, and the public airs at 6 o’clock Friday nights on the Pursuit Channel. New episodes are shown on Dish Channel 393 and DirecTV Channel 604, and older episodes are available on the CRCS Outdoors YouTube channel.

Outdoors instructor

Scott Jordan, who teaches the Fisheries and Wildlife Technology classes at Cuba-Rushford, said it’s tough to count exactly how many students participated over the past year because they do so many different trips across the country and around the globe. Many students have been part of the group’s outings for multiple years.

“And some of them are really good on TV, so we love having them,”

Jordan added.

Youth turkey hunt season, usually held in April, kicks off the months of filming for the show, as it did in 2022 and this year. In addition to the local turkey hunts, Jordan said they also took a trip to Nebraska for turkeys.

“It starts from there and then we film all the way until December, and then we start editing,” he explained.

Following turkey season, the group traveled to Lake Ontario for lake trout and salmon fishing. Students also ventured abroad to Cabo for marlin fishing and to New Zealand for hunting at Leithen Valley. In the fall, they were back in New York, in Pennsylvania and back out to Nebraska for deer hunts.

This season’s highlight was the two-week trip to Kimberley, South Africa in August 2022 when students had the opportunity to work with and dart white rhinoceroses at the Rockwood Rhino Conservation as well as hunt plains game afterward.

“The Africa trip was a first. We’ve been part of a darting program before, but we darted 24 rhinos on this trip,” Jordan said. “And this was all for conservation, to microchip them, and all to help prevent those animals from being poached.”

The students who go

on these trips aren’t only in front of the camera talking about the animals but behind the scenes as well, helping to film and edit the finished episodes.

Over the years, Jordan said many students have pursued careers in either biology/conservation with multiple students working in the field today in 13 states. After working with the rhinos on the Africa trip, two students are studying to be wildlife biologists, one at SUNY Cobleskill and the other at Houghton University.

Although traveling for specific outings was difficult during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent trips were closer to normal. Jordan said they still had difficulty getting into New Zealand in 2022.

“We didn’t know until close to the last minute if we’d even be able to go,” he said.

“The kids that went on that trip weren’t able to hunt red deer for the two years prior, but on this trip, they shot some monsters.”

Thankfully for the younger students, they will have plenty of opportunities. Jordan said they’re already planning

trips back to Nebraska, Cabo, New Zealand, Alaska and South Africa this year in addition to a lot of the local deer and turkey hunts.

After more than a decade of filming and producing episodes, Jordan said they’re all very proud of the show. He added the show is

sponsored nationally by Olean’s KA-BAR Knives, Inc.

If anyone is interested in participating in these trips, especially as CRCS still has openings for students and adults to travel to South Africa in August 2023, contact Jordan at (585) 808-3768 or email sjordan@mycrcs.org.

Planning underway for Andover bicentennial celebration

ANDOVER — Planning has begun for a celebration in 2024 to commemorate the bicentennial of the town of Andover.

A committee was formally put in place in January and has been meeting monthly to develop plans for a celebration to be held

around the Fourth of July weekend next year. The Andover Bicentennial Committee, with input from other community organizations — including the Andover Chamber of Commerce, Allegany County Historical Society, Andover Fourth

of July Committee, Andover Haunted House Committee, and Andover Lions Club — is holding preliminary discussions on the celebration. Specific details have not yet emerged, but the event promises to offer a host of activities, many family-friendly, to mark

Andover’s 200th year.

The public is invited to attend any meeting of the committee, which welcomes volunteers to serve on various subcommittees organizing fundraisers, discussing and planning events Bicentennial continued on PAGE 5

Re-loaded BolivarRichburg aims to continue sectional run

Cuba-Rushford Central School students and teachers traveled to Cabo for marlin fishing as part of its latest season of “CRCS Outdoors,” including student Brooke Dzara (center).

Wellsville celebrates Arbor Day with dedication to Penny Canfield

BY KATHRYN ROSS

WELLSVILLE —

With rain drops falling on their heads more than 80 fifth-grade students and dozens of adults gathered on the lawn of the library Friday to celebrate Arbor Day.

The celebration, usually organized by the village of Wellsville Tree Board, branched out this

year with the dedication of a flowering dogwood planted in honor of the late Penny Canfield.

The memorial features a small stone next to the young tree, which recognizes Canfield’s love of the library and her many years in education. She was also a member of the Friends of the Library and a trustee.

The stone and tree

were sponsored by the Comstock, Colligan, Lynch and Reuning families. Canfield’s family attending the ceremony included Ken Canfield, her husband; Karen (her daughter) and David Maskens; her son David Canfield and grandson Jack Maskens, who gathered around

Photo by Kathryn Ross Penny Canfield’s family attending the Arbor Day ceremony in her honor were (from left) David Maskens, husband Ken Canfield, daughter Karen Maskens son David Canfield and grandson Jack Maskens.

Angelica Main Street Gallery

health & Wellness

Area health systems receive grants amid workforce, aid shortfalls

Area rural health networks are receiving grants to help with programming as state aid falls and concerns over the area’s health care workforce.

The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York announced Monday that $450,000 would be distributed to six rural health networks across the regions, with $75,000 to each Ardent Solutions and Southern Tier Community Health System.

“Health disparities are rampant in every community we serve,” said Cheryl Smith Fisher, chair of the Health Foundation, noting rural areas have fewer primary care providers, as well as more residents who are uninsured and living in poverty.

“We are extremely excited the Health Foun-

dation has given us these funds to expand our program,” said Donna Kahm, head of STCHS. Workforce development has been a problem in the healthcare field, she said, and funds from the grant will go toward the system’s Step Into Healthcare initiative. The program aims to increase

recruitment for healthcare providers from individuals who are not related to others already in the field.

“A lot of people are generationally in health care, and we want to expand that,” she said, noting the large number of current workers whose parents, for example,

dining & Entertainment

have had similar careers.

“We did strategic planning on workforce development,” she said, which identified areas of improvement. “We had this great plan, but no funding to implement it.

for the celebration, and marketing and promoting the celebration. The next meeting is Wednesday, May 10, at 7 p.m. at the Allegany County Historical Center, East Greenwood Street.

The committee plans several fundraisers in support of the celebration. A 50-50 raffle has been held and a Duck Race and Chicken Barbecue will be held Memorial Day Weekend.

The Duck Race, in which participants buy tickets with a number corresponding to a small

plastic duck, will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 27. Ducks will be dropped in Dyke Creek at the East Greenwood Street bridge near the intersection with Route 417 and will float west toward the village. The first three ducks to pass under the bridge on South Main Street will determine cash prize winners.

The Stearns Chicken Barbecue will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, May 28. Preorders are available and meals will be picked up at Kent Beer Company,

➡Arbor Day continued from PAGE 2

the tree. Following the dedication, the students presented an Arbor Day program.

The flowering dogwood is native to Western New York.

In 1885 Arbor Day became a legal holiday in Nebraska after Jay sterling Morton proposed the first tree planting holiday on April 10th, 1872. On the first Arbor Day in Nebraska more than 1,000,000 trees were planted.

Arbor Day has been

officially recognized in Wellsville for the last 32 years since Wellsville was recognized as a Tree City USA. Each year the fifth-grade classes celebrate the event with poetry readings and songs. This year there was also a poster contest.

First place was awarded to Kinley Root whose framed work will hang in the village office.

Susan Christman Duke, president of the Tree Board, introduced program and thanked

➡Grants continued from PAGE 4

It’s really going to let us start working with the schools.”

Carrie Whitwood, executive director of Ardent Solutions, was pleased to accept the aid in order “to meet the needs of the community.” Whitwood said that she did not have any particular program in mind for the assistance, but noted a widespread need for matching funds and administrative overhead for other grant programs.

“I think this funding

will help with many of those things,” she said. “We are great at leveraging funding.”

STHCS is headquartered in Olean. Ardent, formerly Allegany/Western Steuben Rural Health Network, is headquartered in Wellsville.

Other agencies receiving $75,000 each include Cayuga Community Health Network, Seven Valleys Health Coalition, Madison County Rural Health Council, and

1699 Jones Road, Andover. Tickets are $12 for a full meal (chicken half, macaroni salad and baked beans, roll and cookie) or $7 for a chicken half only.

Tickets for the Duck Race and Chicken Barbecue are available from committee members Aimee and Mark Whitehouse, Emily McGinnis, Jennifer Joyce, Jonny Lehman, Maureen Holt, Mandy Joyce-Phelps, Maria McCormick, and Mel Thorp.

The committee has begun gathering

the village board, fifthgrade teachers and students and fellow members of the board for their participation in this annual event.

The students participating in the celebration were Zia Muska. Konnor Cyphfert and Sofia Cowan, who recited ”The Heart of the Tree.” “Children of the Fragile Earth” was narrated by Chelsie Martin and Addie Brubaker. “Advice From a Tree” was given by Esmae Harris, Natalie

Healthy Community Alliance. No restrictions are being placed on the funds. The funding comes from a gift by philanthropist MacKenzie Scott in 2022. Scott is part owner of online retail giant Amazon, and has donated more than $14 billion to hundreds of charities.

“We know that these challenges cannot be solved through philanthropy alone,” Fisher said, hoping the awards

recipes from community members which will be included in a Bicentennial commemorative cookbook, similar to that which was produced for Andover’s Sesquicentennial celebration in 1974.

Anyone wishing to have a recipe included can email it to andoverbicentennial@ gmail.com

The public is invited to like and follow a Facebook page set up to provide updates on meetings, fundraisers, and event planning.

Aftuck, Addie Brubaker, and Mason Richardson and an “Arbor Day Acrostic Poem” was performed by Chelsie Martin, Esmae Harris, Sophia Cowan, Natalie Aftuck and Mason Richardson.

J. Sterling Morton said, “Each generation takes the earth as trustees. We ought to bequeath to posterity as many forests and orchards as we have exhausted and consumed.”

serve as a way to shine a spotlight on the needs of rural health providers. The remaining $50,000 of the Scott donation will be used for a report on rural health and a public awareness campaign that aims to tell the story of the personal impact of rural health disparities.

ALFRED:

WELLSVILLE: Grace United Church Marjorie Smith (585) 593-6985

FRIDAY 5/5 Ham & Broccoli Frittata over Brown Rice, California Blend, WG Roll, Pears

MONDAY 5/8

Sloppy Joes w/ WG Bun, Broccoli Cheese Soup, Oven Browns, Mixed Fruit

TUESDAY 5/9

Pickled Beets, Cajun Baked Fish, Brown Rice Pilaf, Louisiana Red Beans, Warmed WG Roll, Fresh Orange

WEDNESDAY 5/10

Swedish Meatballs over Egg Noodles, Lima Beans, Corn, WG Roll, Apple Slices

THURSDAY 5/11

Mother’s Day Special & Fillmore Party Pineapple & Raisins, Seasoned Roast Pork over Stuffing w/gravy, Sour Cream & Chive Mashed Potatoes, Peas & Onions, WG Roll, Chocolate Cake w/ Frosting

Re-loaded Bolivar-Richburg aims to continue sectional run

BY SAM WILSON

For the past four seasons, the Bolivar-Richburg baseball team has ended the spring with at least a plaque and some patches from Section 5.

The Wolverines earned sectional titles in each of the last four contested spring seasons (not counting the canceled one in 2020): 2018, 2019, 2021 and most recently, a Section 5 Class C3 championship against Northstar Christian in 2022. Success, then, is the standard under coach Dustin Allen, who last season eclipsed the career 300-win mark in his 17th year in the dugout.

B-R returned six starters from that team that went 22-2, but among the three starting graduates was Big 30 Pitcher of the Year Landon Danaher and fellow Big 30 AllStar Wyatt Karnuth.

“We lost some very good talent (from) last year but the guys coming back have been pretty driven to get back to the same place we’ve been

in the past,” Allen said. “They’ve been working hard, whether it be travel ball, in the weight room, preseason we did a lot of workouts. They were there so they were committed and that’s coming off a strong soccer season, football season, basketball, wrestling ... these kids still found time to put in the work with baseball.”

AFTER STARTING the season 2-3, including two losses to Kentucky schools on a spring break trip to Myrtle Beach, B-R has won its last six through the Wolverines’ tournament on Saturday.

“I think that trip down south was huge, not only as a team-building function for our guys but also the competition we saw down there,” Allen said. “It made kids come back and work harder. They knew, ‘hey, there’s people out there better and teams out there better, we’ve got to get better.’ And they’ve really taken to that since we’ve been back and really worked hard. Just

working and going back to the little things.”

For Allen, improving the team’s pitching depth was key considering the amount of innings Danaher ate up as a senior last year. Junior Trey Buchholz was a Big 30 All-Star a year ago.

“We’ve really had guys step up,” he said. “Trey Buchholz, Caden Allen, Landon Barkley coming up from JVs to varsity, and then we got a lot of guys that are eating up innings where we need ‘em with Reiss Gaines and James Margeson and a few others. But they’ve really come along, where Landon (Danaher) would pitch a lot of complete games, we’ve got a lot of guys that can come in and give us solid innings when we need.”

B-R (9-3 overall) SITS atop the Allegany County standings at 6-0 with six more league games ahead, including a rematch with second-place Fillmore, who the Wolverines beat 6-3 on April 21.

Over the remainder of the regular season, aiming for another sectional title, Allen still wants to see better at-bats throughout his lineup and fewer strikeouts in particular.

“We talk about it, but

hitting is an area where I’d like to see (batters) one through nine putting the ball in play,” he said.

“We’re still, at times, striking out a little more than I want to see, but if we can clean that up and start putting the ball in play and see what happens, that’s going to be huge for us to get that up and down the order. Pitchers have got to keep doing their thing, throwing strikes and the defense for the most part has been playing pretty solid behind them.”

ANOTHER defending sectional champion (Class D), Fillmore started in strong form at 9-1 through a walk-off win over Arkport/Canaseraga on Saturday.

The Eagles won their first sectional title since 2000 and the first under coach Bill Nolan in his 14th year last spring, finishing 16-4.

“Most of the team is back,” Nolan said of the 2022 squad. “I’m missing (2022 seniors) Alex Ellsworth and Graham Cahill, but the rest of the team is back. It’s a good group of kids. They’ve got some good speed, they make good contact. They’re a fun group of kids to work with and I enjoy working with them. They’ve got some talent, so who knows? Could we be fighting our

way through sectionals again? I don’t know, we’ll see what happens.

“We’re kind of limited with Section 5 for who’s out there and what we see. I know that we’ve done well in our league and in our area, so that’s a good start and we’ll see if we can grow from there.”

But one thing these Eagles have in common with the sectional champions from a year ago? Their belief.

“It’s a lot like last year’s, they don’t give up,” Nolan said. “They are swinging the bat, they’re giving it everything they’ve got right to the last out, so that’s a real redeeming quality. There are teams you see that may just get down by a few and you see the heads down and the fire’s out of them. This team doesn’t seem to go through that. They keep fighting, they keep scrapping. It’s a lot of different personalities but they’re all kids that have that trait. They seem to love to play.”

After a 10-12 season, Cuba-Rushford is off to a 6-5 start in its third year under coach Pat Wight. The Rebels won five straight before a 5-3 loss to Fillmore on Tuesday and dropping both games in the B-R tournament on Saturday.

File photo

Bolivar-Richburg baseball coach Dustin Allen (left) fist-bumps Aydin Sisson (1) at third base during the B-R Tournament championship game against Addison on Saturday in Bolivar.

home improvement

Key to keeping cool is AC maintenance

Few things beat summer heat better than walking into a comfortably chilled air conditioned home. Air conditioning is often taken for granted, but sorely missed when it is not working. The key to

keeping cool all summer long is to ensure that air conditioning systems are functioning properly.

Maintaining an AC unit can save money and protect homeowners’ investments. Without regular attention, an AC

unit will lose its efficiency, needlessly wasting both energy and money as a result. Poor maintenance also can lead to system failure just when it is needed most.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the average lifespan of an air conditioning unit is about 15 to 20 years.

Home Advisor says homeowners can pay between $500 and $4,000 for central air conditioning, with the final cost depending on the unit, additional installation items, such as ductwork, and installation charges. With regular maintenance, homeowners can keep their units humming properly and avoid premature replacement costs.

So what can homeowners expect as it pertains to air conditioner maintenance?

The following are some oft-needed checks and fixes.

• Keep it clean. Vacuum

the fins and coils of the AC unit on the external compressor/ condenser fan with a soft-bristled brush, advise the experts at Family Handyman. This may require unscrewing the metal box surrounding the unit to access the fins. Remove any accumulated debris that may be impeding air flow. Afterward, go inside and change the filter that is installed with the evaporator that’s located in a central duct near the furnace. Inspect the filter periodically to see if it is soiled and needs replacement. Timing can vary depending various factors, such as the time of year, the accumulation of dust and whether or not pets live in the home.

• Straighten coil fins. The fins on the condenser are easily bent and that can affect the flow of air through the coils. If you cannot easily straighten

them, then consult with an HVAC professional to do so.

• Check the thermostat. Ensure that the thermostat is still working properly. You also may want to upgrade an old thermostat to a programmable or smart thermostat that enables you to remotely set and adjust the temperature.

• Consider an in-line duct booster. HVAC professionals can guide you through the advantages of an in-line duct booster for forced-air cooling. This can increase the flow of cool air into a room that always seems hotter than the rest. Another option is a vent or register

booster fan that sits on top or replaces a traditional floor or wall register.

• Deal with condensation. Condensation from air conditioning coils can puddle around the furnace if the condensate drain tube is clogged. Clearing it out will help prevent puddling and the formation of bacteria-laden water in the system.