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The OBSERVER’s View

DYNGUS DAY: Celebrating Polish heritage

Shopping at stores over the past week, we’ve seen chocolate bunnies, egg coloring kits, jelly beans, Easter lilies and … pussy willows. While the majority of the country probably isn’t selling that many pussy willows, it’s a site that continues to be popular here in Western New York. That’s because today is Dyngus Day. According to dyngusday.com, Dyngus Day has become a wonderful holiday to celebrate Polish-American culture, heritage and traditions. Tradition states that Prince Mieszko I, along with his court, were baptized on Easter Monday. Thus, Dyngus Day and its rites of ...

Resurrection brings hope to all

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying ...

Embracing new start for WCA Home

Word of a new beginning at the WCA Home in Fredonia brought plenty of enthusiasm from area leaders and community residents. Last Sunday, it was announced the historic facility on Temple Street would be brought back to life as the new Northern Chautauqua County Headquarters for Aspire of WNY. According to the news release on Sunday, the partnership is the culmination of a multi-year effort by the WCA Home board to secure a mission-aligned nonprofit organization to continue the building and organization’s legacy of human services and community support. On March 10, Aspire of WNY and ...

Lawmakers do not deserve a pay hike

Surely, New York’s Democrats can’t be serious with yet another proposal to increase legislative salaries. Unfortunately, at least one is. Sen. James Sanders, D-South Ozone Park, is proposing a new increase in lawmakers’ salaries from $142,000 to $180,000. We’d say the bill is an April Fool’s Day joke, but it was introduced March 2 instead of April 1. It’s only been three years since state legislators gave themselves a $32,000 raise in exchange for a $35,000 limit on outside income. Sanders says state lawmakers have earned the raise by overseeing one of the largest state ...

Leaders step up on merger plans

Too often, we look to New York state government for money to help solve our problems. One of those problems has been the merger of local governments and school districts. We still don’t think the state has been proactive enough on that front, particularly after the 2008-09 Lundine Commission’s recommendations focused on local government consolidation. And we’ve been critical in the past of the county not pushing harder when it comes to shared services proposals. So it’s hard to criticize County Executive PJ Wendel for finding county money to help with two current merger ...

COUNTY: Loss of Refresco a hit to farming

Farming has been a way of life for many in Chautauqua County for as long as there has been a Chautauqua County. That way of life is increasingly difficult, as we were all reminded recently when news broke that Refresco, a grape processing plant located on Talcott Street in Dunkirk, is ending its relationship with 126 grape growers throughout the region. Officials with the Lake Erie Regional Grape Project have known since the end of the 2025 grape harvest that growers need to make changes. Jennifer Phillips Russo, Cornell Lake Erie Regional Grape Program Team Leader and Viticulture ...