Anne's Arts & Activities Blog

Besides the serious accident at the intersection of High and Elm streets Friday, Bradford City Police also went to another, less serious, accident on Boylston Street. Officers were also called to a landlord/tenant dispute on Euclid Avenue and a domestic incident on Florence Street. Police were called about threats on Mechanic Street, a wire down on West Washington Street, loud music and noise and Main Street and “paraphernalia” on Kiwanis Court, according to the complaint report and request sheet.

A Celeron, New York, man has been sentenced in federal court to 97 months in prison for possession with intent to deliver large quanities of cocaine and marijuana in the Jamestown area. 57-year-old Stephen Przepiora was convicted of conspiracy to traffic in more than 500 grams of cocaine and more than 100 kilograms of marijuana. Between between 1998 and December of 2009 Przepiora got cocaine and marijuana from out-of-state suppliers and sold the drugs in the Jamestown area, getting a cut from his suppliers, according to prosecutors.

A woman backing out of a driveway in Silver Creek hit another woman, who got trapped underneath the first woman’s car. Sheriff’s deputies say 83-year-old Angela Vandura was backing down the driveway and didn’t see 79-year-old Antoinette Williams, who was walking down her driveway to pick up her mail. Williams was knocked to the ground. Vandura did not realize she hit Williams and continued to back up, eventually completely running over her and trapping her entire body under the car. Family and neighbors were able to get Williams out from under the car. She was taken to Lake Shore Hospital for treatment of leg and hip injuries. Vandura was taken to the hospital for treatment of high blood pressure. Deputies have not filed any charges.

A Bradford man was seriously hurt in an accident Friday morning at the intersection of Elm and High streets. Bradford City Police say a car driven by 55-year-old Karla Sumner of Grand Island, New York, was making a left turn from Elm onto High and turned into the path of a motorcycle operated by 32-year-old George Cabisca. Cabisca could not stop before hitting the car, and was thrown from the bike and hit the driver’s side fender of the car and the windshield and went about another 20 feet. He was taken by ambulance to BRMC. A witness said the motorcycle was traveling at a rate of speed that would not allow him to stop before hitting the car, according to the police report. Sumner will be charged with failing to yield. Cabisca will be cited for speeding.

Mike Buczkowski, vice president and general manager of Buffalo Bisons baseball, will speak Oct. 5 as part of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s Executive Speaker Series. He will speak at 11 a.m. in the Mukaiyama University Room of the Frame-Westerberg Commons. The event is free and open to the public. He will discuss the challenges of managing a professional team, trends affecting the sporting industry, how sports management differs from corporate management and tips for students wishing to enter this field. This year is Buczkowski’s 25th with the Bisons and his 18th year as the club’s general manager, the longest tenure of any general manager in the 126-year history of the franchise. He began with the Bisons, the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets, in 1987 as a public relations assistant during the team’s final season at War Memorial Stadium. Coinciding with the club’s move to Pilot Field in 1988, Buczkowski was promoted to public relations coordinator and then to public ...

Most Rev. Donald W. Trautman, bishop of Erie, has appointed Msgr. Charles A. Kaza, pastor of St. Tobias Parish in Brockway and vicar for the Eastern Vicariate of the diocese, to serve as a second vicar general for the Diocese of Erie. The new position was created because Msgr. Robert J. Smith, who has served as vicar general since 1990, underwent heart surgery earlier this month. Msgr. Smith will remain in his position as well. “I have visited with Monsignor Smith and want to assure people he is on the mend and we expect a full recovery,” Bishop Trautman said. “But with the travel on my schedule this fall (including the mandatory 10‐day Ad Limina visit to Rome in early December) and after consultation with the Priests Council, I felt this was a prudent measure.” A vicar general assists the bishop in the areas of diocesan governance, and along with the bishop oversees the operations of the administrative cabinet, diocesan departments and agencies and matters pertaining to clergy personn...

The results are in from the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments given to students in the spring, and all schools in the Bradford Area School District have made Adequate Yearly Progress. The Pennsylvania Department of Education says the district is on the right track, but students in grades 6-8 and 9-12 still need work in reading and math. The Otto-Eldred, Smethport, Kane and Port Allegany school districts also made Adequate Yearly Progress. http://paayp.emetric.net

The location for the first of a series of public meetings to discuss local opinions on trail towns has been changed. The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford and the Allegheny National Forest Visitors Bureau have teamed together to gauge local interest in developing the area into a “hot spot" for trail activities. The first meeting – set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4 – will now be held in the Mukaiyama University Room in the Frame-Westerberg Commons Building at Pitt-Bradford. Other meetings will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, at the Two Mile Inn, 3434 Route 155, Port Allegany; 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the Kane Community Center, 46 Fraley St., Kane, for a combined Kane/Mount Jewett meeting; and 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25, at the Jefferson DeFrees Family Center, 267 Second Ave., Warren. All meetings are open to the public. The Pitt-Bradford research team is led by students in Dr. William Schumann’s Applied Anthropology course being offered this fall. Schumann can be reached at (81...

Smethport – Wet weather has changed PennDOT’s paving schedule for Route 3011(Bridge Street) near the village of Ormsby, McKean County. Work will now begin on Monday and run through Friday. PennDOT had previously expected work to run Saturday through Tuesday. Crews will begin paving operations at 7 a.m. Monday, with roadwork scheduled through Friday. Area drivers should expect travel delays. The work zone on Route 3011 stretches from Ormsby, south for 2 ½ miles in Keating Township. Drivers in the area should expect short travel delays as roadway flaggers enforce an alternating traffic pattern during daylight hours. Glenn O. Hawbaker, Inc. of State College is the contractor on this roadway improvement project. All work is weather and schedule dependent. Follow PennDOT on Twitter at www.twitter.com/511PAStateCOLL .

The Winter Sounds, a national touring band based out of Nashville, TN will be playing at Tortugas West Texas Bar and Grill on Sunday, 10/2 at 5pm. Playing with The Winter Sounds will be local band, Irie. There will be a $3 cover for the show which will be ALL AGES. About The Winter Sounds: The Nashville 5 piece plays anthemic new wave indie rock punk and folk w/ unique instrumentation and a high energy live show. The band is doing Daytrotter, CMJ, is on tour all year supporting/packaging w/ Junior Astronomers, Rocketboys, 500 Miles to Memphis, Moonlight Bride and many more, are promoting their new EP release "L'été des Trois Michelles" and a vinyl re-release of their critically acclaimed sophomore LP "Church of the Haunted South". They have finished tracking their 3rd LP "Runner" recorded by Scott Solter (Spoon, St Vincent, Okkervil River); set for an early 2012 release w/ a full press, publicity and radio campaign through XO Publicity and Team Clermon...

An Olean man is in jail after being accused of burglarizing houses in Portville and Ellicottville. 25-year-old Paul Tyler allegedly broke into a house on Happy Hollow Road in Portville sometime during the first week of May. Sheriff’s deputies say he stole electronics, jewelry, alcohol and other items. During their investigation deputies learned that Tyler also broke into a house in Deer Crossing Road in Ellicottville, where he stole a TV, wine and other items. Tyler’s bail is set at $15,000. Deputies say they are investigating other burglaries and more charges are pending against Tyler.

George Duke, chairman of the board and owner of Zippo Manufacturing Company, today announced the appointment of Mark Paup and Jim McDonough to the company’s board of directors. In making the announcement, Duke said, “Both of these talented business professionals have demonstrated success in helping the company grow. As board members, each of them will be an asset in guiding the business into the future. We look forward to their significant contributions to the Zippo board.” Paup has served as Zippo vice president of sales and marketing since 2008. He joined the firm’s licensing department in 1994, and has worked as national sales manager, European sales manager and global marketing director. He is also the current president of the Supervising Council of Zippo Europe S.A., a joint venture company, based in Paris. He is a native of Kane and attended Penn State University in Erie. Prior to joining Zippo, Paup was sales manager at Holgate Toy Company, Kane, and owner of New Tech, a marketi...

The United Way of the Bradford Area has made its first thermometer posting of Campaign 2011, “Live United and Lend a Helping Hand,” announcing that the organization is currently at 20% of the $325,000 goal. “We received an early boost with the generosity of the many corporations and financial institutions that support the United Way. We also are very grateful with the number of individual donations from the community, which all add up and truly do signify the ‘Live United’ concept,” stated Executive Director, Megan Minich. In the coming weeks, Minich noted that “the United Way is scheduling employee presentations within many of the community’s organizations, so you’ll see the red rising relatively quickly.” Leadership Division Chair Lisa Minich added, “I’m excited and honored to be a part of this year’s campaign. The need in our community is greater than ever for the services and programs provided by the member agencies. Being at 20% this early in the campaign is a true testament to th...

By ANNE HOLLIDAY WESB/WBRR News Director Delta Development Group is recommending something many people in Bradford have been suggesting for years: Taking code enforcement out of the fire department. That was one of the many recommendations the consultants made during a presentation Wednesday night concerning their work with the city in the Early Intervention Program for financially troubled cities in the state. “(Code enforcement) does not belong in the fire department,” said Deborah Grass of Delta. “We don’t think it makes a whole lot of sense for trained firefighters to be looking for high grass and weeds and garbage and junk cars and those kinds of things.” Grass made it clear that Delta was not doing performance reviews of personnel or departments; they were concentrating on the financial aspects of all city departments. Before the presentation Mayor Tom Riel stressed that while some recommendations in Delta’s report have already been implemented, not every one will be. “Just becau...

The Bradford Little Theatre production of Charlotte’s Web will feature Ethan S. Flexman of Duke Center as Wilbur, Madison McClelland of Allegany, N.Y., as Charlotte and Cailie C. Shanks of Bradford as Fern. The children’s classic by E.B. White adapted by Joseph Robinette will be performed at the Otto-Eldred Junior-Senior High School in Duke Center on Friday and Saturday October 21 and 22 at 7:30 p.m. with a matinee performance at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23. Director Nanci K. Garris said, “We are excited to perform for the first time at O-E school, which boasts a beautiful 300-seat art deco auditorium and new atrium lobby. We believe the new location will enable more people to attend the show, since it is only 12 miles from Bradford and 13 miles from Olean, N.Y.” The family-friendly show tells how little Fern Arable dotes on Wilbur, the runt of the spring pig litter. But once Fern persuades her father to spare Wilbur from the axe, Charlotte the spider turns her web-spinning skills to savin...

On Tuesday Bradford City Council held a work session concerning a proposed housing project in the Elm Street/Project Pride area. Ben Lockwood of Housing Visions of Syracuse gave the presentation. You can listen here . Following the meeting Elm Manager Lisa Keck said the name "NewBury" comes from the names of an early settler and prominent citizen, Daniel Kingsbury, and his wife, Mary Newell. ( Note: I assumed this was obvious, but I guess I should not assume things. Her maiden name was Newell. ) Listen to Tuesday's council meeting here .

The Bradford Area High School Marching Owls Band:

A Galeton man is accused of breaking into the VFW Post in the borough. State Police say 49-year-old Raymond Legerlotz broke into the building in the early morning hours of August 9, when he and another person stole the cash register and drawers. They also allegedly damaged a door and a computer inside the building. Legerlotz was arrested without incident today and charged with burglary, criminal trespass, criminal conspiracy and theft. He is free on $5,000 unsecured bail. An arrest warrant has been issued for the other person, who police have not found yet.

The man accused of kidnapping a couple and sexually assaulting the woman near the Kinzua Dam in August of last year has pleaded not guilty in federal court in Erie. 36-year-old Mike Beaulieu of Anson, Maine, was in court Tuesday on charges of aggravated sexual abuse, kidnapping, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and possession of a firearm by a felon. Beaulieu is accused of approaching the woman and her boyfriend on August 3, 2010, as they ate lunch at the Kinzua Point Information Center. He allegedly restrained the woman's boyfriend, then forced the woman into his truck and drove to the Red Bridge camping area in McKean County, where he used a handgun to force her to engage in a sexual act. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrested Beaulieu a week later at a campground in New Brunswick.