Two Marines gave speeches on Memorial Day in two of our local observances — veterans paying tribute to their comrades in arms who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the benefits of living in a great nation. A nation that has been tested many times over its history, currently ...
I was quite disappointed in the OBSERVER’s View (May 13) that notes Cassadaga should be dissolved and that no one wants to be mayor. Our lakeside village has seen huge improvements in the past few years. Houses put on the market have been sold quickly. We have seen record-breaking ...
I would like to tell you a story. It’s not some fable that’s printed in a hardcover book. It’s a fact. In the spring of 2011 my late husband, as chairperson for Dunkirk’s Harbor Commission, could be found driving around our city dock after his hard day of work. It was after one ...
Ask any Buffalo Bills’ fan and they will tell you that winning the Super Bowl is overrated. Yeah, right. You would have to care nothing about football or be the most non-Bills fan on the planet to overrate a Super Bowl win. I read a spurious statement about heaven being “overrated” ...
Twenty years ago — 1999 A Silver Creek school board member has won the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. The award — sponsored by the National Science Foundation — recognized Daniel Gard for excellence among outstanding teachers across ...
Here are some of the best — and worst — of the week: BEST SPECIAL MAUREEN — For more than 30 years, Maureen Bialaszewski has been organizing the Special Olympics in Northern Chautauqua County. She started as a teacher at the BOCES Hewes Center in Ashville and saw that the Special ...
Editor’s note: This is the second of two parts. Last week, I wrote about dealing with lifetraps as they relate to chemical dependency. A lifetrap is a pattern that starts in childhood and reverberates throughout life. It began with something that was done to us by our families or other ...
The recent death of Doris Day resulted in many articles that celebrated her life as a singer, movie star and humanitarian. A great entertainer, she was worthy of all the praise. However, in most of the articles I read it was never mentioned how she got her start except one which said she ...
Twenty years ago — 1999 Among the eye-catching entries in this year’s Memorial Day parade in Dunkirk was an 1888 bicycle ridden by the Rev. Michael Parker, pastor of St. Hyacinth’s Church. The bicycle has been in Fr. Parker’s family for many generations, beginning with his ...
They are already too tall to ignore in Arkwright. Villenova’s turbines will someday sky even higher while the towns of Charlotte and Hanover will soon be having additional towers erected for the wind-energy business. Is this what we, as Chautauqua County and Western New York residents, want ...
Understand this about the $4.5 billion Congress refused to grant President Donald Trump’s administration earlier this month: It could have prevented an enormous amount of suffering among the very people leaders of the party claim to defend — illegal immigrants. Trump had included the ...
Never forgotten but never seen in decades, the old album now rested across my arms as I carried it down the stairs. Minor snuggled up at my feet as I opened the book. I slipped to the floor beside him. I doubt if pictures of dogs would register with those dimming eyes but figured he might ...
Twenty years ago — 1999 Chautauqua County will stay in the landfill business. Legislators voted 17 to 8 — with four Republicans joining pro-landfill Democrats — to pass the controversial legislation to spend $8 million to build a new cell. Those in favor cited economics as the driving ...
It may be under a different name, but Gowanda will again be buzzing starting Friday. The Happening will be in the village parking lot at 49 W. Main St. This year’s festival will include food vendors, live bands and a number of live events will take place from Friday to Sunday. The music ...
On Friday, May 17, about 2 p.m., I arrived home to find we had no water. I began a search for a phone number to report the problem. 1. Call to Dunkirk Water Department. This is where we pay our water bill. The response was, they didn’t know anything about a water shut off. “They” were ...
Twenty years ago — 1999 Sophie Hodorowicz Knab, the author of three books on Polish traditions, is scheduled to speak at St. Hedwig Social Center on topics from her three books as well as sharing memories of growing up in Dunkirk. Sophie immigrated with her family to the United States at ...
Have you noticed our State Legislature spinning its wheels regarding tough decisions? First, there is the continuing stalemate on legalizing sports betting. There are valid concerns raised by Republicans and Democrats about whether sports gambling would hurt the state, and we note Assemblyman ...
SUNY-Fredonia is similar to a ship listing in a storm. The issue is what, if anything, should be done to right it. The college faces problems of enrollment, morale, and finance. First, consider enrollment. The number of students has declined by roughly 20% from a decade ago. In response to ...
Twenty years ago — 1999 Another new business is coming to Vineyard Drive in the Town of Dunkirk. The town board recently reviewed site plans for the new location of the Larry Spacc Pre-Owned Car and Truck Center now located in the D&F Plaza in the city of Dunkirk. Larry Spacc has no ...
Special services were held at Fredonia Place by the American Legion Post 59. Doug Allen, national anthem singer for the Buffalo Sabres, performed patriotic songs in Forestville. And in Dunkirk, a service was held to remember with a parade that followed to celebrate America. This was just a ...