Morning News Brief
Written by Tom Tharp on January 24, 2023
Newly Sworn in Governor Hochul has the highest approval rating she has ever had according to a Siena College poll. Her approval rating average is 56 percent which is up from 49 last month. Her stance on taxes and making more jobs are the most popular. People polled also think she will make the state safer and work to fix the mental health system. Increasing Tuition at SUNY schools was not popular. Democrats were far more likely to approve of her actions and promises but Republicans also approved of the majority of her plans.
A woman in Corfu will serve a year of federal probation after she took money from people for a fraudulent charity in Africa. 57 year old Julie Keller started soliciting money for an orphanage in Africa in 2015 and continued through 2020. She got about 183 thousand dollars in donations and deposited it in several different banks. The case against her found that she knew she was supporting a fake charity but kept fundraising anyway. Each of the banks she worked with shut down her accounts for fraudulent or suspicious activity. It isn’t clear if she kept any of the money or just sent it to scammers. She was ordered to repay 163 thousand of the money she took.
Batavia High School has a new head coach for the Varsity Football Program, Alex Veltz. Veltz is a Batavia High School graduate and a member of the 2003 and 2004 Varsity Football teams. In 2018, he returned to BCSD as a social studies teacher at Batavia High School. He joined the Batavia Football program coaching staff in 2012 and 2013 as a defensive coordinator for the JV team, then returned in 2019 as the JV offensive coordinator and moved to the Varsity program in 2021 as the offensive coordinator. Superintendent Jason Smith says that “Veltz is a Blue Devil through and through!”
The office for the Aging is hosting the Western New York Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association for an event on how to use healthy habits to improve the body and mind. The event is today from 2 to 3 pm and will cover 4 areas of lifestyle habits associated with healthy aging: cognitive activity, exercise, diet and nutrition, and social engagement. Participants will learn, based on current research, the steps they can take now to improve or maintain overall health in each area and use hands-on tools to help incorporate these recommendations into a plan for healthy aging.
Batavia drivers are paying just a little bit more money when it comes time to fill up their vehicles these days. According to Triple A, the average cost for a gallon of regular fuel is three-40. That’s up five cents in the past week and is eleven cents higher than a month ago. The state average is at three-53 a gallon and nationally it is three-45.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester has announced the funeral arrangements for Bishop Emeritus Matthew Clark. He passed away over the weekend at the age of 85 and had been in declining health for some time. A public visitation will be this Sunday from three p-m until seven p-m at Sacred Heart Cathedral and that’ll be followed by another public visitation Monday from ten a-m until 11-30 a-m and Clark’s funeral at noon. Clark was the leader of the diocese from 1979 until 2012.
The Buffalo Sabres put a third game in a row in the win column with a 3-2 overtime victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Rookie Owen Power, Rasmus Dahlin, and Victor Olofsson scored for Buffalo. Craig Anderson Stopped 29 shots in the net. Sabres will continue to try to work their way up in the East as their four game road trip continues tonight against the St. Louis Blues. Puck drop at the Enterprise Center is at 8pm.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen says he’s not planning to have surgery on his injured elbow during the offseason. Allen made the announcement yesterday during his end-of-the season news conference, saying he believes resting his arm will be enough for it to fully recover. Allen was hurt during a game with the New York Jets during the regular season but never missed a start. The Bills were eliminated from the playoffs by the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
