Archive: Around Town

On Monday, January 27, 2014, the State University of New York’s Board of Trustees Committee on Charter Schools voted unanimously to renew New Roots Charter School’s charter for three years.

With this vote, the SUNY trustees accepted the recommendation of Charter Schools Institute staff as detailed in the renewal recommendation report, which states, “New Roots is becoming an academic success...the school is developing a strong leadership structure and is implementing an instructional program that is likely to support college and career readiness.”

Lansing High School’s National Honor Society club volunteered at the Lansing Food Pantry on Sunday, January 26, organizing tables of food and helping prepare for the food distribution the next day.  Members unloaded freezers, stacked cans of vegetables and fruit, sorted boxes of nonperishable food, and loaded grocery carts and bags for families.

Lansing Pack 48 Cub Scouts held their annual Pinewood Derby at the RC Buckley elementary school cafeteria on Saturday January 25th.  Thirty seven excited boys arrived with the cars they had made from a kit containing a wood block, four wheels and four nails (for axles); the kit they received at a Pack 48 meeting back in the middle of December.  The boys designed, shaped and decorated their cars at home or during ‘pit day’ in a ‘one-stop shop’ held at the Middle School wood shop on January 18th.

At 10 am on Derby day, the Cubs started to arrive with their cars to have them weighed, checked for appropriate dimensions and lubricated.  They were eager to race their cars and show off their artistic merit.  Racing started at 10.30 with the youngest members of the Pack, the Tiger Cubs (first graders).  Each car raced in each of the five lanes of the track, so the boys enjoyed the many heats, each of which lasts for around three and half seconds!

The United Way of Tompkins County awarded $5,750 in grants in December 2013 and January 2014.

On December 10, 2013, the Executive Committee of the United Way of Tompkins County approved $4,500 in emergency grants to eight local food pantries and one community meal site. These dollars helped food providers purchase supplies through the end of the year.

The Ramada Inn in the Village of Lansing may have been the safest place in Tompkins County last Saturday when it hosted the annual Lansing Volunteer Fire Department Banquet.  The banquet is the one night in the year when local emergency responders  get to take an evening off to celebrate their accomplishments.

"The good thing is the dedication of the volunteers that are out there serving our communities day in and day out" Tompkins County Director of Emergency Response Lee Shurtleff told Lansing fire fighters and EMTs before swearing in the department's 2014 officers.  "These are the people that are out when it's zero degrees.  these are the people taking scores of hours of training. these are the people responding to calls way beyond anything we could have imagined even ten years ago.  For that your community and our county owes you a debt of gratitude.  We thank you for the service the Lansing Fire Department provides and we thank the leaders of the department for all the extra efforts you will be making in the year ahead."

New York State Senator Mike Nozzolio announced Tuesday that individuals filing their 2013 New York State income taxes will now be able to to make a voluntary contribution to support veterans cemeteries in New York State. This fund is an important first step in the process to designate specific areas in New York State for a State Veterans cemetery. This voluntary contribution can be made as a deduction from an individual’s tax refund or as an additional monetary donation on New York State tax returns. Contributions are 100% voluntary.

“Just as our veterans recognized their duty to honor and serve our Nation, we too must recognize our duty as Americans to honor the profound sacrifices they made so that we can live our lives in freedom. New York State taxpayers can now help to honor our veterans by supporting the New York State Veterans Remembrance and Cemetery Maintenance Operation Fund through a check off box on their 2013 New York State Income Tax form. No contribution is too small and I am hopeful that individuals will consider supporting this important effort,” said Nozzolio.

KyuJung WhangKyuJung Whang, Cornell University’s vice president for facilities, has recently been named chairperson of the TCAT Board of Directors for 2014.

Whang, in presiding over the board’s first 2014 meeting on Jan. 23, said his priorities while at the TCAT helm will be to look for solutions to the transit agency’s persistent budget shortfalls, particularly for capital needs. He said he also plans to continue TCAT’s long‑term strategic planning process originating from a day‑long retreat attended by TCAT staff, board members and other stakeholders last year.

Thousands of men and women have participated or volunteered in Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) programs, making it America's premier youth leadership development program.  Joseph Koch, a sophomore at Lansing High School, is this year’s HOBY winner.

Started in 1958 by legendary actor Hugh O'Brian, the HOBY program nationally reaches out to every public and private high school, and internationally there are HOBY-style programs in Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, China, England, Korea, Mexico, and Taiwan.

Junior Scott Williamson won the 2014 Shakespeare Competition offered recently at Lansing High School. Scott was one of four students who competed at the local level of the ‘National Shakespeare Competition’ sponsored by the English Speaking Union of the United States.  Scott next offers his recitation of a sonnet and twenty lines of a passage from a Shakespearean play at the Regional Competition on Saturday, March 1st at Syracuse’s Archibald Theatre of Syracuse Stage.

Jerry is a super-friendly coonhound, about 4 years old, who came to us as a stray. He loves to do anything that involves moving around and being with you - running, jogging, hiking, playing - this dog would just LOVE some exercise! Jerry should be on a leash at all times when outside with you, since, like a typical goofy coonhound, he will follow his nose and find himself picked up as a stray again. Jerry is a great boy and deserves a shot at a good home! Will your home be the one?

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Vitamin L will perform a concert of uplifting, positive songs for R.C. Buckley Elementary students in Lansing on Friday Jan. 31.  The concert will include several performers who are alumni of Buckley.

VITAMIN L, based in Ithaca, consists of songwriter Jan Nigro and a diverse group of talented area singers ages 11 - 21. They will be singing songs from the five nationally released, award winning VITAMIN L recordings including their latest release, “Sing for Dr. King! - Vitamin L Songs for a Beloved Community.”  All of the Vitamin L songs support the goals of the Dignity for All Students Act. Song topics include empathy, gratitude, appreciating diversity, endurance, human rights, friendship and more.

If you have business at the Village of Lansing the address is the same, but the building is new.  Village employees moved into the completed $1,079,644 Village Hall this week.  The 2,662 square foot office building includes offices for the Village Clerk, Code Enforcement, and DPW, a public meeting room and an office for the Mayor and Planning Board Chairman.

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