Archive: Around Town

He is big for his age, with orange hair, a white face, striped shirt and very big feet.  He is seven years old, but he rides a motorcycle and oh boy can he juggle!  As precise as juggling is, he is a klutz, smacking into doors, fumbling with chairs.  His name is Crossroad, and he is a clown.  

"I'm just silly.  I'm a silly buffoon," says Frank Towner, the man behind the clown.  "It's juggling, face painting, balloons, physical comedy and buffoonery.  Now I'm a little older so I'm diving and rolling and tumbling less.  But I always run into doors, trip over things.  And the big horn has become my trademark."

New York Fashion Week kicks off in New York City just two days before Valentine's Day. Here in Ithaca, St. John's Church is hosting its own Fashion Week event with an aim to make 300 bright, beautiful cotton dresses for needy girls of all ages.

St. John's is hosting a Dress-A-Thon at 210 N. Cayuga Street, Ithaca, NY next February 14, 2015.  A broad group of volunteers of all ages has already reserved a spot at St. John's for the Dress-A-Thon.  Participants come from a variety of community groups and good-willed Ithacans.  Volunteers will help by cutting fabric, threading elastic, ironing and sewing.

Groton Elementary School’s 4th grade homeroom teacher Dick Brecht, recently was awarded a cash prize for school supplies from the fivefacets.com and Chicken of the Sea.

Brecht was nominated by Molly DeMatteo, who wrote that "He is a very energetic and creative teacher who goes out of his way to plan exciting and interesting lessons for the kids" she also wrote that Brecht 'spends money out of his own pocket to make sure everyone has what they need.'

Photo by Jay PotterRhoda Maurer from Geneva, NY has been named Director of Horticulture at Cornell Plantations beginning today. Prior to joining Plantations, she managed the grounds and greenhouses of Cornell University's NY State Agriculture Experiment Station in Geneva, NY.

Before her tenure at Cornell, she was the Assistant Curator at the Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, and has held other positions at The Elisabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden in Washington, and the Royal Horticulture Society's Wisley Garden in the United Kingdom. Maurer holds degrees in Anthropology and Horticulture from the University of Washington, and will be completing her Masters in Science in a Changing World this May from the University of Massachusetts at Boston.

The Saltonstall Foundation and Arts Colony, in partnership with the Fine Arts Booster Group (FABG), an affiliate of IPEI, is offering a five-day, four-night retreat for Ithaca City School District (ICSD) teachers February 14-18, 2015.

This residency is designed to provide a residency-type retreat for local ICSD teachers in the following disciplines: creative writing, photography/film/video, and painting/sculpture/visual art.  The program is totally free to attend. Five ICSD teachers were selected through a lottery system. Abigail Bokaer, Fall Creek Elementary School teacher; Benjamin Eckley, Northeast Elementary School librarian; Michele Lesko, Lehman Alternative Community School (LACS) teacher; Beth Taplitz, school psychologist at LACS and pre-K classes; and Kari Krakow, ESL teacher at Northeast Elementary School.   Teachers will focus on creative writing and visual arts.

Aurora, New York—This week at Wells College, a brand-new student-run café and coffee shop called "The Grind" opened its doors. A small café integrated into the recently-renovated Zabriskie Hall, home of the Sullivan Center for Business and Entrepreneurship, The Grind presents a unique employment opportunity and internship for students interested in the business program.

"Employers these days are looking for future employees to have as many skills and as much experience as possible," says Kevin Miles, Director of the Sullivan Center for Business and Entrepreneurship, "[Wells] provides students with opportunities to manifest business skills applicable to potential work environments."

Former ICSD Board of Education member Henry Kramer's opinion editorial deriding New Roots Charter School has sparked an outpouring of evidence of the school's success from parents, students, staff, and alumni.

"New Roots wins the numbers game," stakeholders claim, citing examples of life-changing impacts on students.  "Each teenager is more than just counted, they matter.  Their presence, their contributions matter," says Katie Quinn-Jacobs, mother of a current 10th grade student.

by Ashley Fleming

Are you looking for an already trained, gentle, and loving new best friend? If so, choose me! I'm Harriett, a thirteen year young hound mix who had to come to the shelter after my person had to move into an apartment. It has been a challenging adjustment since I only knew what it was like to live with her, but I've made so many friends here at the shelter, so I know I'm in good hands! Even though I'm a little more slow and stiff than I was in my younger days, I'll still happily go for slow meandering walks and follow you around the house. I've lived with cats and dogs, and would be fine with calm school-aged children too if they know to be gentle with me. I can't wait to live out my golden years with my new person - could that lucky person be you? Come say hello today!

Visit the SPCA Web Page

v11i5

The Ithaca Y held a press conference Tuesday to announce a major renovation to its weight room.  A major donation from Borg Warner Morse TEC has made possible a 1400 square foot gymnasium addition that will feature 'Functional Training Equipment'.  The Borg Warner Functional Training Center will feature new equipment will facilitate groups of 6 to 12 people of diverse ages and abilities training at a time with an instructor.

"Youth, seniors and women can participate in a weight room setting without the stigma that goes along with it," said Ithaca Y CEO Frank Towner.  "We can train larger groups of people at a time. That will lend a more welcoming atmosphere to our overall facility.  Combining the gym, this room and we're going to have a divider in the gym soon that will allow us to offer more programming in a diverse way."

364 days a year the Lansing Fire Department, all volunteers, stands ready to protect Lansing and help protect our surrounding communities.  The department responded to 933 alarms in 2014, 485 of them fire calls and 488 EMS Calls.  Volunteers participated in 2,312.5 hours of training.  On the 365th day the surrounding departments cover the town while Lansing's emergency responders celebrate their achievements at an annual banquet.  Saturday evening they filled the Lakewatch Inn to swear in the officers for 2015 and recognize top achievers in 2014.


"I want to congratulate the officers and the members for their efforts in behalf of the community," said Tompkins County Department of Emergency Response Director Lee Shurtleff.  "And also for the work that you will do in the year ahead."

Oftentimes I ask myself what would be my food of choice in the direst survival scenario. What could we grow and use to nourish life by relying only on Nature’s wisdom?  Sprouts would be my first pick! Here is some well researched information, insights, and possible inspiration to find an affordable and mega nourishing source of well-being in the pure potency of germination.

Every living organism on this planet owns a starting kit of genetic information in a simple or more complex form. Seeds, grains, and beans are treasured depository for the majority of the plant kingdom. From ancient civilizations to modern times they have been valued, used, and oftentimes misused when serving humanity. Ecosystems have been seriously altered by them as they traveled from continent to continent to fight hunger, cure disease, develop blooming agricultures, support scientific advancements, or to simply satisfy the vanity of decadent gardeners. All because of their capacity to unfold life.

Saturday morning was race day at Raymond C. Buckley Elementary School as 38 cub scouts, ages 6 to 11 (1st grade to 5th grade), raced cars they made themselves.  It was the annual Pack 48 Pinewood Derby, which challenges young scouts to be creative by turning a block of wood into a primo racing car.

"Mostly it's the fun of making the cars with their families and knowing that you start with a block of wood and come out with an amazing car at the end of it," says Pack 48 Cub Master Lynn Green.  "Some of them are so beautiful to look at.  They're astounding.  The creativity is phenomenal."