TOWN OF HAMBURG YEAR IN REVIEW First Quarter 2017 Youth, … · 2019. 4. 9. · Page 3 TOWN OF HAMBURG 2016 YEAR IN REVIEW First Quarter 2017 Rec Expo & Senior Services Open House

Special edition, Year 2016 in Review

Town lowers age for most

Seniors programs to 55

Following a trend in Western New York, the Town of Hamburg lowered the age requirement for many of its Senior Services programs from 60 to 55 years old. The new policy allows more people to register for all exercise and wellness programs, painting and computer classes and a new chess club.

The lower age will also make those 55 and over eligible for membership at the Senior Fitness Center housed within the Senior Community Center, for use of the Therapeutic Pool at 4150 Sowles Road and the Senior Van Transportation Program. While the Stay Fit Dining Program provides a nutritious lunch for those 60 and older for a suggested donation of $3 per day, those from 55 to 59 may also participate for a fee of $5 per day.

This newsletter is a publication of the Town of Hamburg Dept. of Youth, Recreation and Senior Services.

Phone: 646-5145 Email:recreation@ townofhamburg.com

INDEX

Vol. 5, No. 1

2016 in review

March-June

2 & 3

July-September 4

&

5

October &

November

6

7

December 8

Staff Listings & Program information

9

Thank you to

our sponsors

TOWN OF HAMBURG 2016 YEAR IN REVIEW First Quarter 2017

PAGE 1

Youth, Recreation & Senior Services Quarterly

PAGE

JANUARY

SMART START BEGINS

Start Smart Programs begin, in-

cluding Soccer and Baseball, (for ages 3-

5) Golf & Lacrosse (for ages 5-7)!!!

Check out our website for more infor-

mation on dates and times as programs run

at this time each year.

FEBRUARY

Parks & Rec Master Plan Update on tap for 2016

As a new year begins, Hamburg is winding up an intensive effort to gather public input on current and pro-jected recreation needs to update its parks and recreation master plan. The updated document will cover a five-year period to allow recreation staff and town officials to regularly review the plan’s recommendations and prioritize them.

“Funding sources could deter-mine the priority where less expensive projects or grant accessibility could de-termine whether to proceed,” said Mar-tin C. Denecke, director of YRSS. The plan will be reviewed each year.

Foundation fund-raising efforts will be guided by the master plan, striv-ing to enhance recreational facilities and programs the public wants without tap-ping the general fund, he said.

Page 2


Maple sugaring event enthralls Taylor Road visitors

Service to Youth Awards honor citizens devoted to youth, YES volunteers APRIL

Michael J. Dundon Award—Top pho-

to—Youth Consultant Mary Eisenhauer,

left, presents the Michael J. Dundon Ser-

vice to Youth Award to Dr. Cherie Santa-

siero and Dr. Ronald Santasiero.

Donny Thiry Human Spirit Award–

Middle photo—Claire Otis, recipient of the

Donny Thiry Human Spirit Award, center,

poses with Martin C. Denecke, director

of the Town of Hamburg Department of

Youth, Recreation and Senior Services.

They are flanked by Claire’s parents Julie

and Carl Otis.

YES Honorees—Bottom photo, from left:

Nicolas Gelyon, Lauren Antonik, Sandra

Nelson, Trevor Lates, Elizabeth Wheeler,

Brandon Tomasik and Katrina Drewiega

with Beverly Preischel, YES Coordinator,

right.

Mary T. Blakeslee Service to Youth

Awards & Character Coaches, pho-

tos, right: Amy Kane, Michael McGarry,

Dorene Bruce and Fritz Stich. (No photo

of Thomas Nelson).

MARCH

Awards for Service to Youth

(STY) 2015-2016

Michael J. Dundon STY Award

Dr. Cherie Santasiero

Dr. Ronald Santasiero

Mary T. Blakeslee STY Award

Amy Kane

Thomas Nelson

Character Coach of the Year

Award

Michael McGarry

Dorene Bruce

William “Fritz” Sticht

Donny Thiry Human Spirit

Award

Claire Otis

The Taylor Road Park was the site of a program on March 19 with Earth Spirit, an educational organization that often partners with the town . They shared the methods of sap collection and maple sugaring preparation as prac-ticed by Native Americans, early settlers and modern day producers. A delicious pancake brunch featuring locally produced maple syrup was served in the Cabin following the program. Founded in 1980, Earth Spirit Educational Services shares its passion for nature with others. Programs work with schools, community groups and the general public instilling in others a sense of connection to the gifts and lessons of nature. Many independent teachers and naturalists work with Earth Spirit staff bringing assistance and expertise in numerous environmental specialties. For more information, visit www.earthspiritedu.org.

http://www.earthspiritedu.org

Page 3


Rec Expo & Senior Services Open House

The dedication of the John H. Farrell Library was a highlight of

the Rec Expo and Senior Services Open House held May 14.

Shown with a plaque honoring the late director of Senior Services are

members of the extended Farrell family, including wife Sue, daugh-

ters Sarah Ely and Jennifer O’Connor and son Josh.

MAY

Playground Crew ready to roll! JUNE

YRSS marked 60 years of Recrea-

tion & 30 years of Senior Services

at an open house May 14.

Bonnie and Don Thiry joined rec-

reation officials to dedicate the gym

in honor of their late son as the

Donny Thiry Gymnasium at the

HSCC. Donny worked for the Rec

Department and loved sports.

Page 4


Organizers of Hamburg’s 26th Annual Dash-n-Splash Family Fun Run in honor of Mary T. Blakeslee held July 30 report participation was close to last year’s numbers of total runners and walkers despite rainy conditions at the start. Proceeds ben-efited the Town of Hamburg Recrea-tion Foundation.

“The rain put a damper on the race, but we had really good pre-registration numbers and everyone had a good time,” said Recreation Supervisor Luke Sullivan.

Topping the list of winners were Overall Male, Seth Yernye, 12:39, and Overall Female, Amanda Janosky, 15:45. Dash-n-Splash results by age category, place and time, are: Age 8 & Under: Males: 1st Kyle Wilcox, 26:34; 2nd Will Hart-way, 27:01, and 3rd Brayden Zent, 27:31. Females: 1st Savannah Wil-cox, 24:35; 2nd Payton Fisher, 25:37, and 3rd Jocelyn Smackniak, 26:23. Age 9-13: Males: Joey Muldowney,

16:11; 2nd Ryan Steiner, 16:35; and 3rd, Jordan Wittmeyer, 17:48. Fe-males: 1st Kelly Rein-hard, 17:07; 2nd Chloe Fisher, 19:54; and 3rd Gwyneth Goldowski,

20:20. Age 14 to 19: Males: 1st Jack Lacina, 12:54; 2nd Dima Blundell, 13:09; and 3rd Kaleb Fisher, 14:03. Females: 1st Hannah Kennedy, 16:18; 2nd Molly Kabza, 16:35; and 3rd Abbygail Clouden, 16:44. Age 20 to 29: Males: 1st Justin Weldon, 13:55; 2nd Joe Losel, 16:51; and 3rd Brian Losel, 16:51. Females: 1st Sa-rah Skelton, 17:05; 2nd Madeleyn

Pecyne, 18:19; and 3rd Mary Bostwick, 19:49. Age 30 to 39: Males: 1st Dan Smaczniak, 13:44; 2nd Jarrett Szymanski, 16:48; and 3rd Ryan Szymanski, 24:42. Females: 1st Sherry Czechowski, 18:16; 2nd ; Jil-lian O’Neill, 18:37; and 3rd Colleen Carrol, 18:39. Age 40-49: Males: 1st Kevin Walsh, 16:31; 2nd Brian Losel Sr., 17:33; and 3rd Dave Pok-igo, 19:42. Females: 1st Sharon For-tuna, 19:12; 2nd Tricia Applegate, 19:43; and 3rd Susa Fallis, 19:53. Age 50-59: Males: 1st Paul Polinski, 16:33; 2nd Herman Van Leeuwen, 16:42; and 3rd Tom LePago, 17:34. Females: 1st Ann Marie Bannon, 18:31; 2nd Linda Kohnen, 19:21; and 3rd Lena Solina, 21:04. Age 60-69: Males: 1st Alan Fielitz, 17:51; 2nd Fred Luongo, 17:57; and 3rd Tom Meka, 19:24. Females: 1st Sandra Hebeler, 23:16; 2nd Stacey Curry, 26:49. There was no third place win-ner in that category. Age 70 and

Over: Males: Ed Russell, 22:37. Fe-males: Edye Radice, 30:59.

Dash-n-Splash, Blast on the Beach bring summer sizzle JULY

Blast Beach Volleyball Champions 2016 -Maybe Next Time, left,

won Division A. Duggans Diggers, right, won Division B.

Seth Yernye & Amanda Janosky

Top runners

Blast Beach Volley Ball Winners

Division A, left & Division B Champs, right

Bouncing is a

blast

Page 5


Performing Arts wraps up with recital, kids & seniors stay fit

Aging Mastery Program teaches how to

make meaningful changes, improve life

The fall session of the Aging Mastery Pro-

gram, AMP, was very well-received in Sen-

ior Services. It is designed for persons 55

and over who wish to take steps to improve

their well-being, add stability to their lives

and strengthen their ties to communities.

AMP combines goal-setting, daily practices

and peer support to help participants make

meaningful changes in their lives. The popu-

lar program will return for 10 sessions after

the new year.

SEPTEMBER Theatre ‘campers’ take a bow, b-ballers hoop it up, line dancers are light on their feet, AMP debuts

Children top left, participate in

the Performing Arts summer the-

atre and right, in basketball. At

left, Country Line Dancing lessons

were a hot ticket for those 55 & old-

er at the HSCC, along with AMP,

below.

AUGUST

Page 6


The Hamburg Ice Arena

was inhabited by ghosts,

goblins and witchy skaters

at its annual Halloween

Public Skate on Sunday,

Oct. 30. Skaters decorated

trick or treat bags and vis-

ited trick or treat stations

to receive candy. The

Town of Hamburg Youth

Engaged in Service (YES)

provided free face paint-

ing. Sponsors were Just

Fun Family Entertainment

Center and Edie’s Pizza &

Subs. SCARY SKATERS

YRSS was a sponsor Town Hall meeting at Hilbert College in Hamburg that focused on the

prevention and consequences of underage drinking. The town was supported in the effort

through a $500 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, SAMHSA, grant. The grant was

available to all drug free coalitions in the United States to host a Town Hall meeting focused on underage drinking

issues. Billed as “It takes a Community” to prevent Underage Drinking, Hamburg’s forum was held Oct. 19 at

Hilbert College. Presentations included Erie County Legislator Lynne Dixon, speaking about the Social Host law;

Hamburg Town Justice Carl Morgan who provided information on the Zero Tolerance Law; and Dr. Ronald San-

tasiero, who spoke about substance abuse treatment for youth. Dennis George “The Quiz Master” kept the meeting

exciting with parent and youth audience participation in a program regarding alcohol use. Pictured above, Martin

C. Denecke, director of YRSS joins Dennis George, on stage.

Hamburg participates in Teen drinking prevention program at Hilbert College

OCTOBER

Page 7


Town of Hamburg YRSS hosts Opiate Resource Fair

It Had to be You—Adult Day Ser-

vice participants enjoy musical en-

tertainment several times a week.

The Rotary Club of Hamburg was among cosponsors of the Erie County Opiate Resource Fair held at the Town of

Hamburg Senior Community Center on Nov. 15. The town Department of Youth, Recreation and Senior Services

hosted the event. Members of Rotary helping out are pictured with Acting District Attorney Michael Flaherty,

fourth from right and Barbara Burns, public affairs officer with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District, third

from right. Erie County Legislator Lynne Dixon is shown, second from right. From left are Rotarians: Jack Flint,

Jerold Bastedo, Lisa Avery, Chi Chi Hoeslcher (spouse), Earl Knauss, Liz Angelbeck, Rotary President Barb Stan-

ley, Dale Stanley and Tim Hoelscher.

NOVEMBER

Start Smart “grads” with families.

Page 8


DECEMBER

ENTERTAINING Music, good cheer and even a visit from Santa and his elf (YRSS staffers Shannon Z. and Tim Jerome) brightened the holidays at events, Pianist Judy Striebich led the singing for a group of enthusiastic singers on Dec. 15 at a party at the HSCC.

Recreation launches popular

new Developmental

Volleyball Clinic

Hamburg Recreation institutes a new Developmental

Volleyball Clinic conducted by the town with the Buf-

falo Volleyball Academy for children in grades 5-8. A

trial run in the fall proves to be very much in demand,

leading to additional sessions.

The two-hour classes at the HSCC run in two ses-

sions for eight weeks each, at 7:15 p.m. from Dec. 12—

Feb. 6 and Feb. 27— May 1 (no clinic April 3, 4 or 10).

The goal of the program is to develop the fundamen-

tal skill sets of volleyball for participants. Basic skill

sets, such as fundamental techniques, skill specific

drills and the general format of the game will be intro-

duced and practiced.

The cost for either session is $40 per person. For

more information, call Recreation at 646-5145.

A Month of Caroling, visits from Santa & making happy memories

A Bear moves to Woodlawn Beach

A carved wooden stat-ue of a black bear was donated to the Town of Hamburg and found a home at Woodlawn Beach State Park. Do-nated by Lori and Don Leone, former owners of JP Bullfeathers Res-taurant in Buffalo, the bear was created by Carvings for a Cause from trees destroyed in the October Storm of 2006 and was relocat-ed from in front of the Buffalo restaurant in the Elmwood Village to the Lodge at Wood-lawn.

TOWN BOARD Steven J. Walters Sr.—Supervisor

Thomas Best Jr.—Council Member

Michael Quinn Jr. —Council Member

TOWN OF HAMBURG YOUTH, RECREATION & SR. SERVICES DEPT. STAFF Martin C. Denecke—Director

Joseph P. Wenzel—Deputy Director

Recreation Staff

Curt S. Herrmann—Sr. Rec Supervisor

Luke T. Sullivan—Rec Supervisor

Timothy M. Jerome—Rec Supervisor

Amy Brown—Recreation Attendant

Senior Services Staff

Joseph S. Pietras—Sr. Rec Supervisor

Marc C. Collins—Rec Supervisor

Adult Day Care Staff

Shirley Spaulding—Sr. Program

Coordinator

Rosanne Witryk—Program Coordinator

Youth Staff

Mary Eisenhauer—Youth Consultant

Beverly Preischel—YES Coordinator

Nicole Dayka –YO Program Coordinator

SPECIAL THANKS TO The following organizations for their sup-

port. Their help and generosity allows us

to continually provide quality services.

Special Donations

Dani Fit

Evenhouse Printing

The Donny Thiry Foundation

The Jeremy Krencik Family

The Rotary Club of Hamburg

The Town of Hamburg Lions Club

Grant Funds

Buffalo Bills Youth Foundation

Federal Transit Administration

Golf Builders Association of America

Hook a Kid on Golf Foundation

Nat’l. Recreation & Parks Assn.

United States Tennis Association

Major Sponsors

Dick’s Sporting Goods

J.P. Fitzgerald’s Restaurant

Hamburg Lions Club

Pizza Hut

Tops Friendly Markets

Wendy’s

Facility Use

Braymiller’s Lanes

Buffalo Bills

Frontier Central Schools

Hamburg Central Schools

Hilbert College

Kissing Bridge

St. Francis High School

The Hub

Newsletter designed and written by Eileen A. Hotho—Editor

Page 9


THERAPEUTIC POOL—Rental options for the town’s

therapeutic pool are available to established, independent,

wellness professionals (physical therapists, chiropractors,

fitness trainers, etc.) as a site for low impact therapy and

training options. For information, please call 598-0880.

646-5145 (www.hamburg-youth-rec-seniors.com) [email protected]

Documents

TOWN OF HAMBURG YEAR IN REVIEW First Quarter 2017 Youth, … · 2019. 4. 9. · Page 3 TOWN OF HAMBURG 2016 YEAR IN REVIEW First Quarter 2017 Rec Expo & Senior Services Open House