Video clip provided by Susan Smith
Sunday, June 30, 2013
"I define a miracle as a shift in perception which removes the blocks to our awareness of love's presence."
Carol Howe
"Miracles are natural. When they do not occur something has gone wrong."
A Course In Miracles, Miracle principle # 6
"Miracles are everyone's right, but purification is necessary first"
A Course In Miracles, Miracle principle #7
What's all this miracle stuff, Dave, I read on The Brockporter?
As Carol said, miracles are shifts in perception which remove the blocks to our awareness of Love's presence. Miracles are brought about most often by forgiveness. We do not condone unloving actions, but we rise above them and we see them for what they are, misguided attempts to achieve happiness.
Life on the ego plane is fraught with unhappiness. We are never upset for the reason we think. Whatever misguided explanation we conjure up for the projected reason of our unhappiness it always boils down to fear. The course teaches that fear is the opposite of Love and whether we are aware of it or not Love is what we are, the extension of God's Love in the world which we have separated ourselves from because we think, in our egotistical rationalizations, that we know best when all we have done is spun illusions that dissipate sooner or later and always upon our death.
A Course In Miracles sums this up nicely in its introduction where it reads:
Nothing real can be threatened.
Nothing unreal exists.
Herein lies the peace of God.
Turn off the TV and set the digital media aside for a day, a half day, maybe just an hour and consider the Love in your life and the peace you could achieve if you would forgive those against whom you hold resentments and grievances. As they say in Alcoholic Anonymous, "take your own inventory not everyone else's." Ask the Holy Spirit, Jesus, your Higher Power, Mother Nature, Yahweh, the Great Spirit or Love to come into your heart and bless you and all your brothers and sisters and all things.
Miracles, the shift in perception, is everyone's natural right, but first purification is necessary and that purification comes with forgiveness.
Jesus said as they were torturing Him and killing Him, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do."
I aspire to have that presence of mind, that cosmic consciousness, that kind of Love in my heart. We look back after 2,000 years and say, "He was absolutely right. How did he know and forgive how stupid they were being to kill the Son Of God?" And yet we continue to do it day after day to attack and kill God's sons and daughters. Would that more miracles occur in Brockport and around the world. I hope for it. I wish for it. I work for it. And so that is why I mention A Course In Miracles here on The Brockporter.
Carol Howe
"Miracles are natural. When they do not occur something has gone wrong."
A Course In Miracles, Miracle principle # 6
"Miracles are everyone's right, but purification is necessary first"
A Course In Miracles, Miracle principle #7
As Carol said, miracles are shifts in perception which remove the blocks to our awareness of Love's presence. Miracles are brought about most often by forgiveness. We do not condone unloving actions, but we rise above them and we see them for what they are, misguided attempts to achieve happiness.
Life on the ego plane is fraught with unhappiness. We are never upset for the reason we think. Whatever misguided explanation we conjure up for the projected reason of our unhappiness it always boils down to fear. The course teaches that fear is the opposite of Love and whether we are aware of it or not Love is what we are, the extension of God's Love in the world which we have separated ourselves from because we think, in our egotistical rationalizations, that we know best when all we have done is spun illusions that dissipate sooner or later and always upon our death.
A Course In Miracles sums this up nicely in its introduction where it reads:
Nothing real can be threatened.
Nothing unreal exists.
Herein lies the peace of God.
Turn off the TV and set the digital media aside for a day, a half day, maybe just an hour and consider the Love in your life and the peace you could achieve if you would forgive those against whom you hold resentments and grievances. As they say in Alcoholic Anonymous, "take your own inventory not everyone else's." Ask the Holy Spirit, Jesus, your Higher Power, Mother Nature, Yahweh, the Great Spirit or Love to come into your heart and bless you and all your brothers and sisters and all things.
Miracles, the shift in perception, is everyone's natural right, but first purification is necessary and that purification comes with forgiveness.
Jesus said as they were torturing Him and killing Him, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do."
I aspire to have that presence of mind, that cosmic consciousness, that kind of Love in my heart. We look back after 2,000 years and say, "He was absolutely right. How did he know and forgive how stupid they were being to kill the Son Of God?" And yet we continue to do it day after day to attack and kill God's sons and daughters. Would that more miracles occur in Brockport and around the world. I hope for it. I wish for it. I work for it. And so that is why I mention A Course In Miracles here on The Brockporter.
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Editor's note: For decades I have noted the phenomenon that Rita Pierson talks about in this short video about the importance of relationship in education. As a Social worker and psychotherapist a major emphasis on the training of professional Social Workers and psychotherapists is how to develop and maintain "helping relationships" with clients. It has amazed me how little specific emphasis is placed on "helping relationships" in teacher training, especially training on how to develop and maintain relationships with "difficult" students.
In our contemporary society a great deal of emphasis is being placed on evaluating teacher performance and too much of this emphasis is placed on the ability of students to pass standardized tests. Teaching has become an exercise in what James Paul Gee calls in his book "The Anti-Education Era" "skill-and-drill"*.
What is forgotten is that we all are teaching all the time in the way we relate and treat people. If we see people as objects to be manipulated, coerced, persuaded, and brow beat we are teaching something that is unloving and antithetical to healthy human growth and development. If we relate and engage them in a respectful, empathic, and compassionate way we empower them to become their better selves.
In our efforts to raise academic standards and performance with governmental and bureaucratic "No Child Left Behind" kind of policies we have overlooked the pivotal role that positive "helping relationships" play in human learning. We don't want to learn from people we don't like and whom we think don't like us, understand us, and have our best interests at heart. Rita Pierson's talk is very important and enhances understanding of how education should and can work.
* "We live in an era of anti-education. We focus on skill-and-drill, tests and accountability, and higher education as a marker of status (elite colleges) or mere job training (lesser colleges). We have forgotten education as a force for equality in the sense of making everyone count and enabling everyone to fully participate in our society. We have forgotten education as a force for drawing out of each of us our best selves in the service of an intellectually and morally good life and good society." p. xiv, James Paul Gee, The Anti-Education Era, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013
From the 06/11/13 Village of Brockport board meeting minues:
→ Trustee Blackman moved, Trustee Blair seconded, carried 5/0 to appoint Sarah Cedeno and Sue Savard as members of the Emily L. Knapp Museum & Library of Local History Committee.
Trustee Andrews commented that Sue Savard is devoted with a passion that is unprecedented and the Museum is very fortunate to have her involved.
EMILY L. KNAPP MUSEUM & LIBRARY OF LOCAL HISTORY
49 State Street Brockport (2nd & 3rd floors of Village Hall)
Effective 5/16/12 - 9/29/12 will usually be open: Wednesdays, 2 PM - 4 PM & 7 PM - 9 PM & Saturdays Noon - 4 PM
Also available by appointment – call Doug at 314-9299
→ Trustee Blackman moved, Trustee Blair seconded, carried 5/0 to appoint Sarah Cedeno and Sue Savard as members of the Emily L. Knapp Museum & Library of Local History Committee.
Trustee Andrews commented that Sue Savard is devoted with a passion that is unprecedented and the Museum is very fortunate to have her involved.
49 State Street Brockport (2nd & 3rd floors of Village Hall)
Effective 5/16/12 - 9/29/12 will usually be open: Wednesdays, 2 PM - 4 PM & 7 PM - 9 PM & Saturdays Noon - 4 PM
Also available by appointment – call Doug at 314-9299
Friday, June 28, 2013
by Cody Steffen
Austin Grossman has been part of the development of several iconic video games dating back to the early nineties. His new book YOU is the story of a 28 year old man named Russell who's returning to his hometown to work for a game development company, started by his closest high school friends, after spending most of his twenties trying to distance himself from the hobbies and friends of his youth in pursuit of a normal adult life. YOU is an effective condemnation of that idea and a wonderful exploration of the importance of the friendship, art, and video games.
Russell is quickly promoted into a prominent position after the tumultuous exit of the studio's president along with his favorite employees. Russell and the rest of the remaining team must design the next game in a series that they started in high school. A bug is found in the code programmed by now-deceased obsessive genius Simon. Russell must play through each of the previous games in the series to find and eradicate it, all while helping to build the next game in the time allotted by corporate masters.
In doing so, Russell must confront the life he missed out on. Reality and fantasy bleed together as he traverses the fantasy and science fiction worlds created by friends he left behind.
YOU is frequently funny and contains plenty of insight into the world of video game creation. Despite talk of programming and code and other things foreign to anyone outside of the world of video games, YOU is never alienating or gets held back by technical details. Rather, these are necessary touchstones that must be included to make the story feel authentic so we can be immersed in a fictional world that never stops moving.
Grossman, in describing the Black Arts games, has also created their worlds and lore, but the strength of YOU isn't in how detailed these worlds are, it's in how seamlessly these interconnected virtual worlds interconnect with that of the people who made them.
What starts as a story about a guy reaching out for meaning, for some direction to pull himself out of depression; turns into a journey through his past choices and relationships, as he struggles with the idea that maybe these fantasy worlds have some honest adult value. Whatever that means.
Editor's note: Cody Steffen is a book seller at Lift Bridge Book Shop, 45 Main Street, Brockport, NY. You is available at Lift Bridge.
The Brockporter Book Of The Week is a regular feature of the Brockporter Online News Magazine which appears most Fridays. If you have a book review you would like to share with Brockporter readers, please send it to davidgmarkham@gmail.com.
"God is not the center of religious inquiry, death is. Without death there would be no religion at all. It is death that makes man seek and search for the beyond, the deathless."
Osho, The Art Of Living and Dying
My father died in my home at 348 Main Street, Brockport, NY on August 31, 1983 at the age of 65. My mother died in my home at 46 King Street, Brockport, NY on July 10, 2010 at the age of 91. My two children, Brigid and Ryan died on route 31 in Ogden on March 10, 1993 at the ages of 5 and 8 and where will I die?
"Death cannot be denied by repeating that death does not exist. Death will have to be known, it will have to be encountered, it will have to be lived. You will have to become acquainted with it."
Osho, The Art Of Living and Dying
Death is the great leveler. It comes for the rich as it does for the poor, for the religious and the non-religious, for those who have lived good lives as well as those who have lived not so good lives. It comes to Brockport as readily as it comes anywhere else in the world.
It comes to those who are aware as well as to those who are comatose and for those who are aware they know what an illusion all the folderol of life is. In facing death squarely we re-prioritize what we value. Life becomes more authentic, sincere, genuine. What, in this world, if anything, would you die for?
If you are satisfied with your life, you will die in peace knowing that you have nothing more to live for and death deprives you of nothing you want. If you are unsatisfied with your life, you may die bitter, regretfully, or kicking and screaming that your ego is being cheated out of something that you think you want.
For a peaceful death, practice gratitude and then non-attachment.
What did the monk say to the hot dog vendor?
"Make me one with everything."
What a way to go..................
Osho, The Art Of Living and Dying
My father died in my home at 348 Main Street, Brockport, NY on August 31, 1983 at the age of 65. My mother died in my home at 46 King Street, Brockport, NY on July 10, 2010 at the age of 91. My two children, Brigid and Ryan died on route 31 in Ogden on March 10, 1993 at the ages of 5 and 8 and where will I die?
"Death cannot be denied by repeating that death does not exist. Death will have to be known, it will have to be encountered, it will have to be lived. You will have to become acquainted with it."
Osho, The Art Of Living and Dying
Death is the great leveler. It comes for the rich as it does for the poor, for the religious and the non-religious, for those who have lived good lives as well as those who have lived not so good lives. It comes to Brockport as readily as it comes anywhere else in the world.
It comes to those who are aware as well as to those who are comatose and for those who are aware they know what an illusion all the folderol of life is. In facing death squarely we re-prioritize what we value. Life becomes more authentic, sincere, genuine. What, in this world, if anything, would you die for?
If you are satisfied with your life, you will die in peace knowing that you have nothing more to live for and death deprives you of nothing you want. If you are unsatisfied with your life, you may die bitter, regretfully, or kicking and screaming that your ego is being cheated out of something that you think you want.
For a peaceful death, practice gratitude and then non-attachment.
What did the monk say to the hot dog vendor?
"Make me one with everything."
What a way to go..................
Thursday, June 27, 2013
"It's like Dorothy trying to get home in The Wizard Of Oz. People think of home as the place where they're comfortable and everything's okay. She goes through this whole journey, finds the wizard, and discovers that home is back in Kansas."
Bernie Glassman, The Dude and The Zen Master
Where is home for you? Is it a physical place or a place in your imagination over the rainbow? Perhaps it is an interior sense of oneness with the universe, the place you were before you were born and the place you are going home to when you die, resting always in the mind of God.
For me, home has always been Brockport. For me it is a sacred space. It is the place where God put me and where, for me, the power of God dwells. Dorothy went through her whole fantastical journey to find out that home was back in Kansas. In my life, I have always known that home is in Brockport.
For others Brockport is simply a temporary way station to get an education or to grow up or to do business. But for some of us, Brockport is hallowed ground, a sacred, special place where the word has become flesh as it says in the bible, and the spirit has been incarnated in the illusions we call life, where people suffer and celebrate, experience joy and pain, and hopefully come to realize that the Spirit that abides here, abides forever.
Bernie Glassman, The Dude and The Zen Master
Where is home for you? Is it a physical place or a place in your imagination over the rainbow? Perhaps it is an interior sense of oneness with the universe, the place you were before you were born and the place you are going home to when you die, resting always in the mind of God.
For me, home has always been Brockport. For me it is a sacred space. It is the place where God put me and where, for me, the power of God dwells. Dorothy went through her whole fantastical journey to find out that home was back in Kansas. In my life, I have always known that home is in Brockport.
For others Brockport is simply a temporary way station to get an education or to grow up or to do business. But for some of us, Brockport is hallowed ground, a sacred, special place where the word has become flesh as it says in the bible, and the spirit has been incarnated in the illusions we call life, where people suffer and celebrate, experience joy and pain, and hopefully come to realize that the Spirit that abides here, abides forever.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
From A Course In Miracles, Lesson 109:
"This is the day of peace. You rest in God, and while the world is torn by winds of hate your rest remains completely undisturbed. Yours is the rest of truth. Appearances cannot intrude on you. You call to all to join you in your rest, and they will hear and come to you because you rest in God."
Editor's note: We are in the last days of the Castaneda administration when the dissolutionists walk the streets of the Village of Brockport wishing that she be put to death so they could continue to exploit the commons of Brockport with impunity for their personal profit.
The voices of wisdom of the greater good have taken a position so that the voices of dissolution could no longer stand. They now reach out in forgiveness and take their rest. Having found ourselves in times of trouble we can now let it be. All the broken hearted people who have been threatened and perturbed can now let it be. The night has been cloudy but there has been a light that has shined on us, grace, from the kind hearted people who work to revitalize our community life eschewing the appearance of fear mongering for the dysfunctional manipulation that it was.
And we can rest in the Love of the Beloved Community where nothing real can be threatened and nothing unreal exists and it is in the realization of this that we find the Peace of God. Rest in this awareness with one another. Let it be.
"This is the day of peace. You rest in God, and while the world is torn by winds of hate your rest remains completely undisturbed. Yours is the rest of truth. Appearances cannot intrude on you. You call to all to join you in your rest, and they will hear and come to you because you rest in God."
Editor's note: We are in the last days of the Castaneda administration when the dissolutionists walk the streets of the Village of Brockport wishing that she be put to death so they could continue to exploit the commons of Brockport with impunity for their personal profit.
The voices of wisdom of the greater good have taken a position so that the voices of dissolution could no longer stand. They now reach out in forgiveness and take their rest. Having found ourselves in times of trouble we can now let it be. All the broken hearted people who have been threatened and perturbed can now let it be. The night has been cloudy but there has been a light that has shined on us, grace, from the kind hearted people who work to revitalize our community life eschewing the appearance of fear mongering for the dysfunctional manipulation that it was.
And we can rest in the Love of the Beloved Community where nothing real can be threatened and nothing unreal exists and it is in the realization of this that we find the Peace of God. Rest in this awareness with one another. Let it be.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Lesson 108 in A Course In Miracles - "To give and receive are one in truth."
You get what you give. You receive what you provide.
Where is the Love?
It's in your own heart. You will experience it to the extent that you you give it away.
The Love is in each of our hearts right here in Brockport. Give some away today and be aware of what happens next not in the response you receive but in your own heart.
You get what you give. You receive what you provide.
Where is the Love?
It's in your own heart. You will experience it to the extent that you you give it away.
The Love is in each of our hearts right here in Brockport. Give some away today and be aware of what happens next not in the response you receive but in your own heart.
Monday, June 24, 2013
We freeze up because we expect a certain result or because we want things to be perfect. We can get so fixated that we can't do anything. Goals are fine; what I don't like is getting caught up in expectations or attachments to a final outcome. So the question is, how do you play freely?
Bernie Glassman in The Dude and The Zen Master
Bernie Glassman in The Dude and The Zen Master
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Brockport Mayor Connie Castaneda's constant response to the charges of official misconduct, and falsifying business records for over 15 months pending in Judge David Murante's court in Ogden before he dismissed them was that they were politically motivated. Never once has she addressed the actions that led to the charges themselves. While Murante stated that in his judgment justice demanded that the charges be dropped, the truth has not been served by Judge Murante or Mayor Connie Castaneda.
What is the truth of the matter? There are affidavits from the renters that they were asked by Ms. Castaneda to behave in a surreptitious manner so as to forestall the discovery of the illegal rental situation they were involved in.
Brockport voters have spoken on June 18th, 2013 and Mayor Castaneda has been relieved of her duties not because of legal charges, for voters are notoriously forgiving, but for her lying and failure to come clean, and instead, blaming her predicament on the political agenda of her nemesis, Brockport Police Chief, Daniel Varrenti. This false narrative leaves a lot to be desired because Varrenti alone could not have brought these charges. There was evidence and testimony by Code Enforcement Officer, Scott Zarnsdorf, and the Monroe County District Attorney's office decided there was enough evidence to prosecute. Varrenti was careful to vet the charges with others in the law enforcement system before the arrest was made.
Brockport is a small community comprised of good people. The issue for the voters is not whether Castaneda illegally rented her apartment or not, but the fact that she appears to be lying about it and continues to repeat a false narrative. What Brockport voters want more than anything is someone they can trust and who will tell them the truth. Castaneda failed this important litmus test and lost the opportunity to continue as Brockport's mayor. If she had only listened to and learned from Sweden Supervisor, Patricia Connors.
As we have a new day to move forward to creating the Beloved Community I am reminded of a verse in A Course In Miracles which reads, "When you have become willing to hide nothing, you will not only be willing to enter into communion but will understand peace and joy." Peace and joy awaits us when we are willing to forgive ourselves and others our mistakes and trespasses. When fear rules our lives we create obstacles and barriers to our awareness of Love's presence. Would that we put our grievances aside, forgive us our trespasses, and stand in the light of truth.
This past Father's day my daughter, son-in- law, and three grand kids came to visit from Virginia. The topic of conversation turned to the Mayor's race. The conversation was not about politics as much as it was a morality tale about how we should live together in truth, peace, and joy and how this does and doesn't get played out in our community life in Brockport. My daughter and son-in-law get it and practice daily to set their fears aside, practice the miracle of forgiveness, and what a wonderful world they are creating for their children based on the power of Love. The Kingdom is here under our feet in Brockport. Do you sense it? The Truth will set you free for communion, peace, and joy.
Check out Tom Rivers beautiful photos of the lit dome of the Orleans County Court House in Albion, NY on the Orleans Hub.
by Monica Beck
On Monday June, 17thon the East lawn of the Capital building, which Governor Cuomo’s office looks out upon, Debbie Rodriguez, Louise Wu and I, joined with over 2000 other people from all over the state to send a message to the governor. We want to be an example for the rest of the country, by banning hydrofracking in the Empire State, and directing our focus toward more alternative, sustainable energy sources. The rally was both peaceful and a bit joyous under the clear skies, as demonstrators encircled the capital building. Enthusiastic speakers filled the podium such as actress Debra Winger, and local activist Susan Steingraber who was jailed for her activism (see Frack Free Genesee.org). Natalie Merchant, the singer, entertained the crowd and led us in singing “This Land is Our Land”, changing the lyrics to reflect New York.
At first, our trip to Albany was uneventful, with good traffic and weather. During our ride over to the rally, our army veteran, card-carrying NRA shuttle bus driver engaged us in spirited conversation sharing his experiences as an MP at the University of Mississippi in 1961 when it was forced to desegregate. As the rally concluded, gray clouds moved in, the winds were high, and a micro-burst hit the area. Seeking refuge in the Mall, we found that cell phone service was down due to the violent weather. We finally got cab, and made it back to our hotel, but found that it was-without power. The sun had returned though, and things improved quickly. Overall, it was an inspiring experience-being a part of democracy in action.
For more information click here.
Press Releases
For Immediate ReleaseJune 20, 2013
For more information, contact
John Follaco
(585) 395-5159
jfollaco@brockport.edu
Brockport Supports Start-Up NY
A statement from Brockport President John R. Halstead, PhD
"Start-Up NY is a bold initiative that will allow SUNY campuses to drive business investment and economic development throughout New York. I applaud Governor Cuomo and the Legislature for making the passing of this legislation a top priority. The College at Brockport is eager to pursue opportunities aligned with our academic mission that will benefit our local community."John R. Halstead, PhD
President
The College at Brockport, State University of New York
Editor's note: Rhetorical statements ephemerally floating from SUNY Brockport Administration Building released by SUNY Brockport PR man, John Follaco, but details are non-existent. If anyone knows anything more, please leave the information in the comments or send to davidgmarkham@gmail.com. Perhaps the new mayor, a retired SUNY Brockport professor, Margay Blackman, can provide more information as it becomes available.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Friday, June 21, 2013
June 21-23, 2013
$5 Admission, 12& Under FreeNorthampton Park, Ogden, NY
Hubbell Road, Ski Lodge Area
Off NY Rt 31 between Spencerport and Brockport
$5 Admission, 12& Under FreeNorthampton Park, Ogden, NY
Hubbell Road, Ski Lodge Area
Off NY Rt 31 between Spencerport and Brockport
Festival Hours:
5-10pm Friday June 21
11am-10pm on Saturday June 22
12pm-5pm on Sunday July 23
11am-10pm on Saturday June 22
12pm-5pm on Sunday July 23
Enjoy FREE PARKING at Brockport Rotary’s BBQ & Music Fest on June 21-13 at Northampton Park. (The County decided to give the festival a break hoping to introduce more people to the park.)
For more information click here.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Dear Pam,
I can’t begin to put into words how grateful I, and all the members of the Brockport Police Department, am with all you and Pro Brockport have done and continue to do for us. As such, I’ve been totally remiss in not thanking you, and all those responsible, for providing us with the huge gift basket presented to the department last month. As you can imagine police officers are rarely able to be in a position of receiving a thank you. Nobody that’s been involved in an accident, the victim or suspect of a crime, the recipient of a death notify or traffic ticket thanks us for the job we are sworn to do. Many times police officers question why they chose such a “thankless” profession. Then along comes a group of people, such as Pro Brockport, that not only says thank you but they show it in such extreme, sincere and generous ways that it makes it difficult to put into words what it means to us.
As if this weren’t enough, your group then puts ads in the paper to support and defend us. I guess I could sit here all day and try to put into words what all this means to us, but in the end I know it won’t do justice or effectively articulate our gratitude. I believe the best way to show our gratitude to you, Pro Brockport and all the citizens of Brockport is to continue to do our jobs to the best of our ability and to continue serving this community in nothing less that a professional, fair, pleasant and committed demeanor.
In closing, on behalf of all the members of the Brockport Police Department, I’d like to sincerely thank you and the entire community for allowing us to serve you. We are committed to continuing to do so for many years to come and stand ready to everything we can, for who ever calls on us, 24 X 7 X 365.
If you could forward this to all the people of Pro Brockport and anyone else you feel appropriate I would be grateful.
Sincerely,
Daniel P. Varrenti
Chief of Police
Brockport Police Department
1 Clinton Street
Brockport, New York 14420
Office: 585-637-1020 ext. 13
Fax 585-637-1016
FBI National Academy Class 183Wednesday, June 19, 2013
The final vote is a two to one victory with about 970 people voting. According to the Democrat and Chronicle this compares to 880 who voted in the last mayoral election in 2009.
While incumbent Mayor, Connie Castaneda, received 355 votes, one of her running mates who withdrew from the campaign several weeks ago, Daniel Blackburn, still received 120 votes for trustee which leaves one to speculate about the awareness of political operations of the voters for Castaneda's Taxpayers First ticket.
For the first time in a decade the Brockport Village Board will be comprised of people who have the Village's operation at heart and not have a hidden agenda to destroy and dissolve the Village. This brings a new phase in Village life and development which bodes very well for Brockport's future. With leaders who share a common vision of a positive future for Brockport's future the citizens will be much better served and much better days for the people of Brockport in the Town of Sweden are on the immediate horizon.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Monday, June 17, 2013
The vote will be for Mayor: Margay Blackman or Connie Castaneda.
Also the vote will be for two trustees: Carol Hannon, Val Ciciotti, or Rick Ross. There also is a write-in candidate campaigning with Castaneda for Trustee Kristina Telles.
Having carefully vetted the candidates, the Brockporter enthusiastically endorses Margay Blackman for mayor and Hannon and Ciciotti for Trustees.
For more information read the article in the Democrat and Chronicle on June 16, 2013 by Meaghan McDermott entitled "Brockport Voters Have Decision To Make" by clicking here.
McDermott points out that Blackman, Hannan, Cicotti have been running as a team on the "Revitalize Brockport" ticket while Castaneda, Ross, and Telles have been running on the "Taxpayers First" ticket.
The choice is clear: vote for people who have a vision of a vibrant, thriving Village with a high quality of life or those who would dissolve the village and allow it to further deteriorate and turn it over to Brockport's slumlords who have exploited its housing stock, would eradicate its police department, further weaken its code enforcement, and allow the highly dense Village core to deteriorate into disorder and crime by increasing a highly transient renter class with no ties to the community.
Over the last few decades the once quaint Victorian Village of Brockport on the banks of the Erie Canal and home to SUNY Brockport has been turned increasingly into a student ghetto with many of its neighborhoods now having more student houses than the previously family owned and occupied houses making up family friendly neighborhoods. Many of Brockport streets have been turned into Holleywood sets for Animal House with drunken revelry and disorder a regular weekend happening.
This descent into alcohol fueled adolescent anarchy to enrich a few local landlord families has driven middle class families from the Village, not taxes as the Taxpayer First party maintains led by the lover and partner of Brockport's largest slumlord Norman Giancursio. Giancursio's partner, current Mayor Connie Castaneda, is still under charges of code violations for illegally renting her house to college students and has announced her intention to sue the taxpayers not serve them as she claims in her campaign literature.
The red herring of saving taxpayers money has led the Village to the brink of bankruptcy in 2010 while the current Mayor, Castaneda, was trustee and then Mayor. Luckily, the dissolution effort led by her partner, Giancursio, failed in 2010 and the new trustees elected, Blackman and Hannan working with trustees Kent Blair and Scott Hunsinger, were able to block Castaneda's further attempts to sabotage and undermine the Village's operations.
With the efforts of the Revitalize Brockport team, Blackman and Hannan, along with current trustees Kent Blair and William Andrews, Brockport has regained its financial solvency and many new projects and programs have invigorated the quality of life in the Village such as a Holiday lights parade to bring people to the downtown district at the Christmas season, the "high water, low bridge" festival to celebrate the opening of the canal in May, the introduction of a sewer fee so that these costs were no longer unfairly being paid for from the real estate levy, the continuation of historic preservation projects in Brockport's commercial district, the annual reforestation projects of the Urban Forest winning Small Town America awards from the Arbor Day Foundation, the research for a Village court, the collection of unpaid parking tickets going back several years bringing new revenue into the Village, the hiring of a grant writer to search and apply for funds for Village projects in lieu of further taxes, the update and management of PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) with various non-profit and governmental organizations which have been tax exempt, a closer collaboration with SUNY Brockport, and the list goes on and on. Most of the time Castaneda has been on the opposing side of these efforts and so as McDermott writes in her article, for anyone knowledgeable about Village operations the last few years, the choice is very clear, very clear indeed.
Blackman and Hannan need to be supported and allowed to continue the excellent work they have begun. Ciciotti, as a volunteer, has helped Blackman and Hannan in their efforts in many ways and now needs to be officially added to the team of Trustees.
Tomorrow vote to keep the revitalization of Brockport going. Vote Blackman, Hannan, Ciciotti.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
For more on the parking ticket story read Tom Mangan's article from 02/27/12 on Examiner.com entitled "Town Of Sweden loses a box full of confidential information" by clicking here.
Tom had another article on 05/07/2011 entitled "Brockport receives only $16.76 per parking ticket". You can access this article by clicking here.
Brockport Mayor, Connie Castaneda, had been charged with 10 counts of official misconduct for renting an illegal apartment back in March of 2012. The case has dragged on in Ogden Town Court after the three Sweden justices had to recuse themselves because of their close ties to Castaneda. After 15 months, and one week before the election, Judge Murante dismissed the criminal charges, but left intact the charges of code violations according to an article on June 11, 2013 in the Democrat and Chronicle.
You can read more by clicking here.
In the same article Castaneda justifies her intent to sue the citizens she is purporting to serve as follows:
"Castañeda filed a notice of claim with the village last June, signaling her intent to sue for “false arrest, abuse of process, humiliation and defamation.”
She alleges her arrest stemmed from political disagreements over the cost and long-term sustainability of the Brockport Police Department.
Castañeda has not yet filed that suit, but sent a letter to village residents this week assuring them that any legal action taken in the future “is not only on my own behalf, but it is also for you — for all of you who want to have a voice, who want to offer alternative solutions — so that you won’t be intimidated, threatened or bullied by those who are sworn to serve you.”
You can read more by clicking here.
In the same article Castaneda justifies her intent to sue the citizens she is purporting to serve as follows:
"Castañeda filed a notice of claim with the village last June, signaling her intent to sue for “false arrest, abuse of process, humiliation and defamation.”
She alleges her arrest stemmed from political disagreements over the cost and long-term sustainability of the Brockport Police Department.
Castañeda has not yet filed that suit, but sent a letter to village residents this week assuring them that any legal action taken in the future “is not only on my own behalf, but it is also for you — for all of you who want to have a voice, who want to offer alternative solutions — so that you won’t be intimidated, threatened or bullied by those who are sworn to serve you.”
For more information click here.
Friday, June 14, 2013
The seeds of discord have been sown in Brockport over the last decades because of an attitude of exploiting Brockport's resources for personal wealth at the expense of the well being of the community as a whole.
Currently, there are those that would attack the body politic and kill it off in the form of dissolution and a reduction of practices and policies which contribute to the common good. This coming election on June 18th there is a choice between those who would serve its citizens and those who would sue its citizens. Brockporters have a choice between choosing leaders who propose to serve and those who, if they don't get their own way, will sue and attack.
Many Brockporters have worked hard over the last few years to avoid the drama and build relationships based on truth and justice. Positive results have been experienced and those who have brought these results about and want to continue to serve, deserve our support.
Please take 30 minutes on Tuesday, June 18th, and go to Village Hall at 49 State Street to vote for continued uplift of Brockport by casting a vote for Blackman, Hannan, and Ciciotti.
Currently, there are those that would attack the body politic and kill it off in the form of dissolution and a reduction of practices and policies which contribute to the common good. This coming election on June 18th there is a choice between those who would serve its citizens and those who would sue its citizens. Brockporters have a choice between choosing leaders who propose to serve and those who, if they don't get their own way, will sue and attack.
Many Brockporters have worked hard over the last few years to avoid the drama and build relationships based on truth and justice. Positive results have been experienced and those who have brought these results about and want to continue to serve, deserve our support.
Please take 30 minutes on Tuesday, June 18th, and go to Village Hall at 49 State Street to vote for continued uplift of Brockport by casting a vote for Blackman, Hannan, and Ciciotti.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
The Brockporter Online News Magazine began publication on June 9, 2010 and so this week it celebrates its third anniverary and moves into its fourth year of informing, educating, inspiring the citizens of Brockport, NY.
As of today it has had over 300,000 hits.
Many thanks to those who have contributed articles and comments, and others who have donated.
As of today it has had over 300,000 hits.
Many thanks to those who have contributed articles and comments, and others who have donated.
Friday, June 7, 2013
by Pam Ketchum
Below is a document that we hope you will print and sign and return to
Pat Pawlaczyk at 1220 West Sweden Road or Pam Ketchum 91 Park Ave,
Brockport. The documents will be presented to the Monroe County Legislature
on 11 June in hopes of stopping the County's plan to site the County Fair at
Northampton Park.
Please forward to any interested residents in Monroe
County.
Another dropping site is the Union Street Eatery at 2139 North Union
Street in Spencerport.
Below is a document that we hope you will print and sign and return to
Pat Pawlaczyk at 1220 West Sweden Road or Pam Ketchum 91 Park Ave,
Brockport. The documents will be presented to the Monroe County Legislature
on 11 June in hopes of stopping the County's plan to site the County Fair at
Northampton Park.
Please forward to any interested residents in Monroe
County.
Another dropping site is the Union Street Eatery at 2139 North Union
Street in Spencerport.
To The Monroe County Legislature
My Name is (Please Print)________________________________
My address is_____________________________________________________
Please vote against the proposal submitted by the Monroe County Fair & Recreation Association, Inc. Allowing them to alienate 25 acres of our park at Northampton.
I will be watching the vote on June 11th.
I will be voting in the next election
Signed_________________________________________
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Tom Rivers reported on the Orleans Hub today, June 6, 2013, that the Chase processing center in Albion will be closing in a few months and 400 people will be laid off.
For more, click here.
For more, click here.
The following video appeared on WHEC TV back in 2012:
Editor's note: Norman Giancursio, Mayor Castaneda's romantic partner, was acquitted of his charges and he has filed legal papers to sue the Village. Mayor Castaneda's charges have been pending in Judge David Murante's court in the Town Of Ogden for 15 months after the 3 justices in Sweden had to recuse themselves because of conflicts of interest, and she has filed legal papers which will allow her to sue the Village, if she so chooses, pending the outcome of her case.
What is the rationale for M. Connie Castaneda to sue the Village she is campaigning to continue to be mayor of? Is she acting in good faith in seeking re-election or is there a conflict of interest?
It is unclear whether she wants to serve or sue the citizens of Brockport. There is a huge question about how she can do both in good faith.
Editor's note: Norman Giancursio, Mayor Castaneda's romantic partner, was acquitted of his charges and he has filed legal papers to sue the Village. Mayor Castaneda's charges have been pending in Judge David Murante's court in the Town Of Ogden for 15 months after the 3 justices in Sweden had to recuse themselves because of conflicts of interest, and she has filed legal papers which will allow her to sue the Village, if she so chooses, pending the outcome of her case.
What is the rationale for M. Connie Castaneda to sue the Village she is campaigning to continue to be mayor of? Is she acting in good faith in seeking re-election or is there a conflict of interest?
It is unclear whether she wants to serve or sue the citizens of Brockport. There is a huge question about how she can do both in good faith.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
City Newspaper on Wednesday, June 5, 2013, had an overview article on the politics of the Village of Brockport. You can access it by clicking here.
Reminder:
People have been leaving comments on The Brockporter anonymously. These comments will not be published. Comments are moderated and must be signed by a writer willing to take responsility for the information and opinions expressed.
You may include your real name in the comment box or send them to davidgmarkham@gmail.com with contact information so authenticity can be verified.
Comments are welcome and encouraged from responsible authors.
People have been leaving comments on The Brockporter anonymously. These comments will not be published. Comments are moderated and must be signed by a writer willing to take responsility for the information and opinions expressed.
You may include your real name in the comment box or send them to davidgmarkham@gmail.com with contact information so authenticity can be verified.
Comments are welcome and encouraged from responsible authors.
If you are someone who loves Northampton Park as a “forever wild” with monarch butterflies, nature trails for year round peace and beauty, place to learn how to ski, family area for all seasons, please read on and pass it on. Since there is next to no hope for I-531 to be extended past its current end at Washington Street, think of the traffic.
Hopefully we can keep it that way without the County Fair coming to Northampton Park.
A flier quote:
“The Monroe County Fair Association is a privately held company.
They sold the Dome Arena and now want to hold the fair at Northampton Park.
Average attendance is 5000 people / day.
Events have included tractor pulls and stock car races.
They are planning multiple other events throughout the year.”
The Monroe County Parks Department is being "paid" a one-time donation of
$500,000 for the privilege of holding the fair there - without a specified end date.
Monroe County Parks Director Larry Staub is quoted as saying
"In this area, there's probably more cows than residents."
The fair association is planning to have a minimum of 3 large permanent structures built
where the ski hill and soccer fields are currently located.
The bulk of the cost of building and maintaining these structures will be paid for by the taxpayer.
There will be a meeting this Wednesday, June 5 at 7 PM at the Union Street Eatery
2139 N. Union St, Spencerport. (formerly known as the Pineway Ponds Restaurant)
There is a "Save Northampton Park" hotline at 585-260-9861.
Please CONTACT your key player regarding this issue, our area legislator:
Richard Yolevich 1035 Parma-Hilton Rd, Hilton 14468 753-1922<Monroe1@monroecounty.
Mike Rockow 222 Ladue Rd, Brockport 14420 637-6204 <Monroe2@monroecounty.gov>
Steve Tucciarello 18 Horatio La, Rochester 14624 429-5575 <Monroe4@monroecounty.gov>
Jeffery McCann 87 Larkwood Dr, Rochester14626 865-7299 <Monroe19@monroecounty.gov>
Robert Colby 261 Colby St, Spencerport 14559 352-3537 <Monroe20@monroecounty.gov>
Please help save Northampton Park!
Hopefully we can keep it that way without the County Fair coming to Northampton Park.
A flier quote:
“The Monroe County Fair Association is a privately held company.
They sold the Dome Arena and now want to hold the fair at Northampton Park.
Average attendance is 5000 people / day.
Events have included tractor pulls and stock car races.
They are planning multiple other events throughout the year.”
The Monroe County Parks Department is being "paid" a one-time donation of
$500,000 for the privilege of holding the fair there - without a specified end date.
Monroe County Parks Director Larry Staub is quoted as saying
"In this area, there's probably more cows than residents."
The fair association is planning to have a minimum of 3 large permanent structures built
where the ski hill and soccer fields are currently located.
The bulk of the cost of building and maintaining these structures will be paid for by the taxpayer.
There will be a meeting this Wednesday, June 5 at 7 PM at the Union Street Eatery
2139 N. Union St, Spencerport. (formerly known as the Pineway Ponds Restaurant)
There is a "Save Northampton Park" hotline at 585-260-9861.
Please CONTACT your key player regarding this issue, our area legislator:
Richard Yolevich 1035 Parma-Hilton Rd, Hilton 14468 753-1922<Monroe1@monroecounty.
Mike Rockow 222 Ladue Rd, Brockport 14420 637-6204 <Monroe2@monroecounty.gov>
Steve Tucciarello 18 Horatio La, Rochester 14624 429-5575 <Monroe4@monroecounty.gov>
Jeffery McCann 87 Larkwood Dr, Rochester14626 865-7299 <Monroe19@monroecounty.gov>
Robert Colby 261 Colby St, Spencerport 14559 352-3537 <Monroe20@monroecounty.gov>
Please help save Northampton Park!
Below is the letter I wrote to our legislative rep, Mike Rockow:
Hi Mike,
My family and I have been adventuring through Northampton Park for almost 30 years. We have a tradition of sledding and snowboarding every weekend and even on the week days throughout the winter months. I go over to the park in the early morning to cross country ski throughout the winter. We walk through the woods and explore with kids and grownup friends. We many good memories connected with the park, one of the few spaces that might represent “wilderness” for our area.
We do not need to commercialize and destroy the woods, fields, creeks and animal habitats. There are other locations in Monroe County that have already been “striped” and denuded. It would be shameful to participate in such activity and ruin our beautiful park where we can enjoy peaceful picnics, winter activities, walking, hiking and exploring.
Please DO NOT support this idea. Save Northampton Park.
Best regards,
Pam Ketchum
91 Park Ave, Brockport, NY 14420 305-4656
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