When former Liverpool Mayor Jon Zappola and his family returned from a recent sojourn in the Sunshine State, he went to remove the Christmas wreath from the house, and discovered a mother robin had laid five eggs in a nest she’d fashioned in the wreath.
No wonder the Zappolas’ holiday wreath will remain up for a while on their First Street home!
A former baseball coach and art teacher, Zappola now serves as chairman of the Liverpool Village Housing Authority, which oversees the House at 807 that has provided affordable housing for elders since 1999. The House at 807 on Oswego Street currently has two vacancies. If you’re interested in an apartment there, visit house-at-807.org, or call 457-1334.
Auditors impressed
At the March 17 meeting of the Liverpool Village Board at which the proposed $2,437,648 village budget was discussed, Trustee Dennis Hebert went out of his way to thank Village Clerk Mary Ellen Sims and Mayor Gary White for their work on the village budget every year.
The village’s finances are annually audited by Koagel & Vincintini, a private auditing firm based in Camillus.
“The auditors found our financial situation very clean, and our reserves are perfectly in line with what is required by New York state,” Hebert said. “We’re fiscally sound. Mary Ellen Sims and Mayor White are responsible for our good audits. It should be noted.”
DeFrancisco puts dukes up
Have you ever wanted to see a politician take it on the chin?
Well, you’ll have a chance to witness just that at an unusual fundraising dinner at the Holiday Inn Convention Center, Electronics Parkway in Liverpool, at 6 p.m. April 26, when State Sen. John DeFrancisco will continue his fight to help at-risk youth by actually stepping into the boxing ring with none other than Syracuse Sports Hall of Famer Boxing Coach Ray Rinaldi. The two will be the main attraction for the fundraising event that will bring together community figures and local politicians who want to help end the violence and truancy plaguing Syracuse.
Corporate dinner tables seating eight are available for $1,100 for VIP seating, $800 for ringside tables, and individual dinner tickets can be purchased for $75. The dinner, being dubbed “Fight for a Future,” will kick off the newly formed Ray Rinaldi Foundation,which will work directly with city leaders, other foundations, corporations and the Syracuse Police Benevolent Association to help eradicate inner city problems.
DeFrancisco and Rinaldi conducted a press conference and “contract signing” on March 8 at the West Area Athletic and Education Center, 307 S. Geddes St. Both main eventers said they hope other influential Syracuse politicians will help them put on a great night of fun, either by being corner men or by stepping into the ring with a “rival” of their own.
For additional information, or to find out how you can become a part of “Fight for the Future” contact Barb Karas at 471-8662.
Woody kept it simple
Woody Guthrie kept things simple.
Most of his best songs, he once pointed out, were written with just two chords. He’d only throw in a third chord, he said, if he was trying to impress a girl.
At 2 p.m. Sunday, April 27, at the Liverpool Public Library, Oregon folksinger Adam Miller will present a program focusing on the work of American progressive songwriter Woody Guthrie. Admission is free.
One of the premier autoharpists in the world, Adam Miller is a natural-born storyteller.
An accomplished folklorist, historian, musicologist, and song-collector, he has amassed a remarkable repertoire of over 5,000 songs. Miller accompanies his rich, resonant baritone voice with lively finger-picking acoustic guitar and stunningly beautiful autoharp melodies.
Miller will be the final performer in the library’s Seventh Annual Folk Music Series. This year’s theme is Protest Songs — Music with Meaning, and Miller will recall songrwiter Woody Guthrie (1912-1967), who wrote more than 1,000 American folksongs including “This Land is Your Land,” the best known English-language folksong on the planet.
Sadness in the kitchen
It wasn’t your usual carefree breakfast scene Sunday morning at the GardenView Diner on Old Liverpool Road. Sadness hung in the air like a dark cloud.
Staff and customers had just learned of the sudden death of head cook Rob Cooper, who apparently suffered a heart attack while driving. Rob was just 46 years old.
