LOWVILLE — Lowville leadership reached out to the community during an open house event and presentation for the Downtown Revitalization Grant application on Wednesday, seeking ideas and input from residents, developers and business people.

Beginning at noon on Wednesday, people who went to the Lewis County Historical Society met with consultants Tamara Burk and Elizabeth King of Bergmann, Rochester and shared ideas.

Preprinted white boards with questions at the top asked what people see as the village’s best attributes and the areas for improvement, services that are lacking, and, simply, what could and should be done to improve life in the village.

Although Mayor Joseph Beagle said he wished turnout had been better as only about 18 people trickled in throughout the day, he said those who did come seemed to appreciate and support the ideas already being considered for the application and added a few others to the mix.

Ms. King said the biggest challenge for the village is not a question of worthiness for the grant or having the kind of shovel-ready projects that attract the attention of the grant committee, but rather the short turnaround time: the application must be completed and filed before the end of the month.

The public meeting was a required element for the process, but Ms. King said it was also helpful to ensure that the community agrees with the development being discussed because the stakes are much higher than just the $10 million grant.

The grant, she said, is about the state making a “strategic investment” to increase leverage from private investors. Ideally, the $10 million could drive $60 million in investment to flow into improving downtown.

This was Ms. Burk’s first time in Lewis County. She said she believes Lowville really needs this grant and has a good shot at getting it, but reinforced the need for residents to participate in the process.

“This is your community and everything here is for you, so be very engaged and open minded and patient,” she said, “I’ve seen so many small communities fade away and I don’t want Lowville to become that.”

Mr. Beagle, echoing that point, said the most important thing to him is to make sure the village’s young people see good reason to stay in the village or come back after college to live.

The anchor projects so far include supporting the completion of the Double Play Community Center and affordable, high quality housing at the shovel-ready lot prepared by a local developer.

A potential welcome center, parking for snowmobilers and improvements for walkers and bicyclists including a trail along the railroad tracks and, potentially, rail bikes, and ideas involving new lights, awnings and store-front face-lifts are all being considered.

Mr. Beagle said that what started as seven or eight ideas has blossomed to 12 to 15.

This is the first time Bergman has been involved with preparing an application, but has worked with previous grant winners Geneva, Rome, Lockport and Auburn, bringing insight into what types of projects could ultimately be approved.

On Tuesday, the local committee composed of county Senior Planner Casandra Buell, Mayor Beagle, County Manager Ryan Piche, the county Industrial Development Agency, the Chamber of Commerce, and Board of Legislators Chairman Lawrence Dolhof, will meet to finalize projects to include in the application followed by a conference call with the consultant.

Any input must be sent no later than Friday to lowvilledri@lewiscounty.ny.gov.

CANTON — St. Lawrence University announced Saturday night that it has hired Clarkson men’s hockey assistant coach Brent Brekke as its new men’s head coach. He will be formally introduced during SLU’s reunion weekend on Saturday.

Brekke, a 47-year-old native of Minot, N.D., joined the Golden Knights staff before last season. He was an assistant at Miami (Ohio) from 2008-18 and was the associate head coach from 2010-18 with the Red Hawks. Brekke has been an assistant coach on three teams that went to the Frozen Four during his career.

SLU has been searching for a coach since it fired Massena native Mark Morris on March 29, with two years remaining on his contract.

The Saints went 6-29-2 overall this year and were outscored, 149-75. SLU was 3-17-2 and finished last in ECAC Hockey. SLU thought it had found a new coach last month in American International College’s Eric Lang. But Lang turned down the position and signed an extension at AIC.

Brekke’s first NCAA coaching job was at Cornell, where he was an assistant from 1999-2008. He also was an assistant coach with the Chicago Freeze of the North American Hockey League from 1997-99.

“It’s a place that has a rich tradition and history of success,” Brekke said of SLU. “I still see that as something that is an opportunity to be (again), especially with the resources and rebuilding of Appleton (Arena). The backing and support are tremendous. There are a lot of things in place to be successful.”

Brekke was already living in Canton while he worked at Clarkson, so he has the bonus of getting his first head coaching job without having to uproot his family to another town.

“I’ve gone through some head coaching interviews over the years, this was the first time I was able to sleep in my own bed the night before the interview,” Brekke said.

“It’s hard,” Brekke said of landing a Division I head coaching position. “In college coaching if you do a good job you can have these positions for a long, long time. There are some outstanding coaches who have been at the helm for 15 or 20-plus years. The jobs don’t come up very often. I feel extremely fortunate to land a head coaching job. When they do become available there are a lot of qualified athletes out there. I feel very fortunate to be offered this opportunity.”

The Saints are coming off a tough season, but Brekke’s season at Clarkson has shown him the things the north country has to offer to recruits.

“You have to find kids that like a small community,” Brekke said. “A lot of kids playing in successful junior teams are in small communities that draw well. You won’t go anywhere and hide (at Clarkson or SLU). You’ll be in an area where everybody knows who you are, you are engaged with your academic community and also the town. Those (recruits) are the kids that want that small, unique fit. Both (schools) are highly regarded academically and offer great degrees. You have the opportunity to develop into a professional athlete, but you also have a great degree to fall back on. It’s pretty special at both institutions.”

SLU’s search was led by two alumni who are National Hockey League executives, New Jersey Devils general manager Ray Shero and Buffalo Sabres assistant general manager Randy Sexton, along with former Saints head coach Joe Marsh.

“As former Saints hockey players, we are thrilled to have hired someone who has superb coaching knowledge, a proven track record, and understands the history and tradition of our Division I program,” Shero said in a statement. “This is a great day for St. Lawrence University.”

Said Saints athletic director Bob Durocher, “Brent will fit in well within our culture and we look forward to him leading our program.”

Brekke, a defenseman who was drafted in the ninth round by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1991 National Hockey League draft, played NCAA hockey at Western Michigan from 1990-94. His best season came in his senior year when he scored four goals with 25 assists in 39 games. He also played in the ECHL for the Dayton Bombers and played in the area in the American Hockey League with the Cornwall (Ontario) Aces in 1994-95 and one game in 1995-96.

Brekke’s wife, Stacey, was a track and field athlete at Western Michigan. His daughter, Bailee, plays on the Dartmouth women’s hockey team, and he has a son, Cody.

MASSENA — What was the St. Regis Nursing Home in Massena has a new name, but the same services the community has come to expect.

Effective May 1, the facility became known as Massena Rehabilitation and Nursing Center and is now owned by Personal Health Care from Tarrytown.

“The family business got to the point where we needed to transfer the ownership to others. All of the employees remained,” Administrator Ike Bogosian said.

The St. Regis Nursing Home was founded by Mr. Bogosian’s grandfather, Ike, Dr. Henry Dobies and others on Dec. 14, 1971 at what had formerly been a Holiday Inn. The nursing home initially had a bed capacity of 152 residents — 44 skilled beds and 108 health-related beds.

John Bogosian served as its administrator for many years.

“He started on Aug. 14, 1974. His last day was April 30, 2019 — 44 years and eight months,” Mr. Bogosian said.

In April 1999, the nursing home began a major renovation and construction project that was completed in May 2001, expanding it to a 160-bed nursing facility with two additional Respite beds. It now has about 200 employees.

Mr. Bogosian, the current administrator, has been with the nursing home for 18 years.

“I started out mowing the lawn. I’ve had various positions in the facility. I really know the facility like the back of my hand. I’ve had great mentors in the past, my uncle being one of them,” he said.

The facility has been and will continue to be not just a nursing home, but also a place where patients can undergo rehabilitation.

“We have a great rehab department. Maybe the person had a stroke or hip replacement or knee replacement. They just need to get a little bit stronger to become more independent before they go to their home,” Mr. Bogosian said.

They also offer skilled nursing for those who can’t take care of themselves in their home.

“We have a great team of directors managing their departments,” he said.

The name may have changed, but Mr. Bogosian said the new owners want to continue being an integral part of the community.

“They want to be a great resource for the community and to be involved in the community,” he said. “We want to take care of our community and be here for the community. We’re here for the long haul and really want to be the nursing home and rehabilitation center of choice that St. Regis was.”

I’m really excited about this change. I’m thrilled that I get to lead the facility into the future.”

On the evening of Dec. 28, 1943, Mrs. Edith (Loucks) Coleman of Watertown received a telegram at her 124 S. Massey St., Watertown home. The dispatch said that her husband, Cpl. George E. Coleman, 37, was missing in action in the European theater during World War II.

The telegram gave no details about how her husband, a well-known and skilled local baseball player who before his induction had worked at New York Air Brake as an electrician, had been lost.

The telegram to Mrs. Coleman, an operating room nurse at Mercy Hospital, also read that any further details about the situation would be sent to her upon receipt by the War Department.

Hundreds of other families across the country would receive similar telegrams that December and in January of 1944 with equally sketchy information about the circumstances of the losses.

Loved ones were left wondering and waiting, and no doubt hoping that their soldiers would eventually turn up. But the War Department knew that they would not. There was no hope for the missing victims of the HMT Rohna transport ship. Most of the bodies in the waters, too cold for long-term survival, were not recovered. In most cases, there were no funeral services or burials for the soldiers.

According to a declassified “Secret” War Department message dated Jan. 10, 1944, the War Intelligence Division recommended that it was desirable to announce the loss of American lives due to the sinking of a troop ship. “Next of kin have been told soldiers missing in action. Believe it desirable to inform them soldiers were lost at sea otherwise they will continue to hope they may be prisoners,” the memo read. “Unnecessary to give name of vessel or date of sinking.”

Taking the cue, in February of 1944, the War Department reported a troop ship had sunk in European waters, with 1,000 American lives lost. Families were updated by telegram: “There is reason to believe the enemy does not know of the results of this attack and therefore the date is withheld.”

Six months after the Nov. 26, 1943 attack on the Rohna, families received another telegram. It confirmed the demise of their loved ones.

“It is regretted that for reasons of military security neither the name of the ship nor other details may be disclosed at this time,” the spring of 1944 telegrams about the incident read. “The exact location of the disaster cannot be given. However, the latest reports indicate that it occurred in the European theater and not in the African area as you were previously advised.”

His Majesty’s Transport Rohna went down in darkness and bad weather in the Mediterranean Sea about 12 miles off the coast of Djidjeli, Algeria (North Africa) following an air attack by German aircraft. But what specifically sank it was top secret.

Its sinking was the greatest loss of American lives at sea due to enemy action. The lives of 1,015 Americans and approximately 100 British and Indian crew members and Red Cross workers were lost.

The approximately 1,000 survivors would go on to serve in the China/Burma/India theater. But they were told to not to write home about or speak about the Rohna. Over the years, the story of the disaster became largely lost to history.

A documentary in development, “Rohna: Classified,” will “expose” the Rohna story.

“The next-of-kin of the Rohna heroes need to know the truth,” filmmaker Jack Ballo said.

According to files of the Watertown Daily Times, the following soldiers from Northern New York lost their lives when the Rohna sank:

n Cpl. George E. Coleman, Watertown, age 37, who was married to Edith L. Loucks.

n Pfc. Jasper R. Smith, 20, Stone Mills.

n Tech. 5th grade George L. Montgomery, 22, Massena.

n Cpl. Tech Russell E. Loft, 33, Adams/Watertown.

n Pfc. Herman C. Bishop, Cranberry Lake.

Reflecting the secrecy of the tragedy, the Times’ archive has no clipping file on the “Rohna” ship itself. In addition to the local people who died, files show a survivor of the sinking, Paul Flick Jr. of Watertown and Arcadia, Fla., who died in 2000 at the age of 78.

Eventually, details of the Rohna disaster were released under the Freedom of Information Act. In 1993, a Rohna survivor told his story to American History magazine in an article titled, “WW II’s Secret Disaster.”

“That got things started,” Mr. Ballo said.

A few weeks later, on Veterans Day 1993, Charles Osgood featured the Rohna story on his CBS radio program.

“That broke the story loose,” Mr. Ballo said. “A lot of survivors started to talk to each other. A lot of people came home and didn’t tell anybody. They didn’t tell their wives or children about it because it was so painful.”

On May 30, 1996, a memorial was dedicated to Rohna victims and survivors in Seale, Ala.

In 2000, Congress recognized and gave honor to all who were directly and indirectly involved in the Rohna disaster. On Oct. 10, 2000, a resolution authored and introduced by Congressman Jack Metcalf of Washington State was voted on in the House of Representatives and passed unanimously.

“The United States Government had not properly acknowledged this event,” Rep Metcalf said on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. “Because inadequate records were kept, some survivors had to fight for years to prove that the Rohna even existed, let alone that survivors might be due some recognition. ... Americans need to know about the Rohna. They need to know about the men, who died on board, sacrificing their lives in the fight against tyranny.”

But a co-producer of “Rohna: Classified,” said the story of the disaster is still under appreciated.

“I have a friend, a professor who teaches at the Naval War College. He never heard of it,” said Michael Walsh, who also authored the book, “Rohna Memories: Eyewitness to Tragedy.”

“It’s amazing to me that historians and people who should be in the know haven’t heard of it,” said Mr. Walsh, who also authored “Rohna Memories II.” “It’s been under the radar. It’s occasionally gotten some local press about a local man, but the secrecy really worked.”

The HMT Rohna was formerly a British India Steam Navigation Company passenger and cargo liner that was built on Tyneside, England in 1926 as the SS Rohna. She was requisitioned as a troop ship in 1940. It was one of 24 ships in a convoy that on Nov. 26, 1943 was attacked by a wave of German bombers. At first, the convoy fended off the attack. But one German Luftwaffe Heinkel 177 bomber made a final run. It was armed with Nazi Germany’s latest technology: a rocket-powered, radio-controlled Henschel HS-293 glide/guided bomb. It was an offshoot of the regime’s V-2 rocket program. The bomber pilot, Hans Dochtermann, set his sights on the Rohna. He put the aircraft in position and his partner launched and guided the bomb that struck the Rohna’s engine room.

Timothy F. Sidoti, 68, of Camarillo, Calif., recalled the stories that his deceased father, Rohna crew member Army Air Corps Sgt. Peter Sidoti, shared about the tragedy. Timothy attended the first reunion of the Rohna Survivors Memorial Association in the mid-1990s. Tim said his father and mother divorced when he was 9.

“I always stayed with my father,” Mr. Sidoti said in a phone interview. “I was with him until the day he died. I heard the stories.”

But many people, including relatives, had doubts about those stories, Mr. Sidoti said. But they were confirmed when at the Rohna reunions, he met his father’s commanding officer and others who knew his father.

“All the memories of all the stories my father told me were confirmed,” Mr. Sidoti said. “I get emotional talking about it. I grew up with my dad hearing all these stories, but a lot of family members never believed anything my dad said. They were just war stories. People embellish. But I heard it all and I was hearing these stories and they were backing up my dad’s stories.”

The story of Sgt. Sidoti on the Rohna and what he was doing at the time of the attack can be traced back to his native home of Cleveland, Ohio. Sgt. Sidoti was a first generation Italian immigrant from Sicily. Before the war, he helped to run his family’s bakery. He was 5 feet-2-inches tall and was trained to be a turret gunner on a B-17 bomber.

“When he was on the ship, he was down in the galley baking bread,” Mr. Sidoti said. “He just liked staying busy. When they came under fire, they yelled down below, ‘We need gunners up here!’ He went up and strapped himself into a 20-millimeter gun.”

His father shot down two planes, Mr. Sidoti said.

“I remember my dad telling me he was shooting at this flying torpedo. It was about 5 or 10 feet above the waves. It was kind of like it was going up and down and they kept shooting at it when he realized he wasn’t going to shoot it down. Just before it hit the ship, he unbuckled his belt. The bomb went in and exploded. He somehow survived in the waters for 10 hours before being rescued.”

Mr. Sidoti said his father’s injuries caused him to be sent back home and he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder until his death in 1982 at the age of 60.

Brian Warren of Syracuse said that his father William S. Warren, 94, who has lived in the same house in Syracuse since 1937, was a medic in World War II and boarded the Rohna in Oran, Algeria.

The younger Mr. Warren said that his father’s hearing is terrible and it’s very hard for him to communicate.

“He told me these stories when he was younger. I don’t think he would remember most of it now,” Mr. Warren said.

Mr. Warren said his father boarded the Rohna on Thanksgiving day in 1943 and spent the night on the ship.

“The day the convoy was shipping out, an order came down that they were trading places with an Army Air Corps unit on the Rajula. They made the switch and the Rohna was one of the first ships to head out in the convoy.”

Mr. Warren said that his father, who became a TV repairman after the war, recalled the convoy traveling through a sea of dead bodies.

Of the convoy, the minesweeper USS Pioneer rescued most of the Rohna’s nearly 1,000 survivors.

Mr. Ballo, the filmmaker, said he was inspired to create a Rohna documentary after he discovered a box of letters in the attic of the home that’s been in his wife’s family for more than a century. The couple moved into the home about a decade ago.

The letters were by Sgt. Joseph Pisinski, who was writing home to his mother.

“They were so personal and sad in many ways,” Mr. Ballo said in a phone interview from his home in South River, N.J. “He got on the Rohna for his first official day of war and his ship was attacked the next day. After all that training, in his second day of war, he was killed.”

Mr. Ballo said he’s been in his wife’s family for 30 years and the letters were the first he heard about the soldier.

“I only once vaguely remember she had this great uncle who died in World War II,” Mr. Ballo said. “Except for knowing that, no one ever spoke of this man.” Intrigued, he did a Google search with Sgt. Pisinski’s name and military ID number. He then discovered the “Rohna Memories” books by Mr. Walsh.

Mr. Ballo also discovered that Mr. Walsh regularly went to Rohna reunions and was filming the stories of survivors and their relatives. The recordings have become the basis of his “Rohna Memories” books.

Mr. Ballo attended the 2018 reunion in Memphis, Tenn., and sought out Mr. Walsh and to pitch the idea of a documentary to him.

“Meeting Jack was the best thing ever,” Mr. Walsh said from his home in Newport, R.I. “I’ve had this documentary in my head for a while. But I didn’t have the means to do it. Jack has the heart to do it, he wants to do it and he’s pulled together a team. He’s a real action kind of guy.”

A third co-producer on the documentary team is William Jersey, who has been producing documentaries for broadcast television for over 50 years, including for all the major networks.

“If we don’t document this, if we don’t pass it on, it will be lost forever,” Mr. Sidoti said. “Not too many young people are interested in war stories.”

The Rohna Survivors Memorial Association has been a great resource for the filmmakers. Its annual reunion, also for convoy members and all relatives, is June 6 to 9 in Virginia Beach, Va.

Mr. Walsh said he started going to the reunions in 2001 with his stepfather, who had been a sailor on the Pioneer, but not at the time of the attack. Mr. Walsh, a photographer and video producer by trade, had read the book “Forgotten Tragedy” by Carlton Jackson, published in 1977.

“I didn’t expect anything,” Mr. Walsh said. “I was just going with my stepfather. I read the book and thought it was interesting.”

But he also found the stories shared at the reunions interesting. He hasn’t missed one since 2001.

“I had my video camera and started interviewing guys in my hotel room, just because I felt like their stories needed to be recorded,” Mr. Walsh said.

He has approximately 38 hours of interviews with survivors and family members. He had transcripts made of the interviews, which form the basis of his two books, with the first released in 2005. Those interviews will be incorporated into the documentary.

“A lot of these guys never let their story out,” Mr. Walsh said.

He gave two examples: n “One man had not thought about it,” Mr. Walsh said. “But when 9-11 came about, there was something about the trauma of seeing the airplanes going into the towers that brought back the missile going into the side of the ship.”

n Another man was moved while watching television decades after the sinking.

“It was a military movie and a ship was sinking,” Mr. Walsh said. “His wife looked over and he was crying. She goes, ‘It’s just a movie, what are you crying about?’ And he goes, ‘That happened to me.’ It was the first she heard about it.”

Mr. Ballo said there is a couple of reasons why he thinks the government kept secrets around the attack of the Rohna.

“The main reason it was classified is because they didn’t want the enemy to know how effective the missile was,” he said. “They didn’t want them to know they did so much damage to the U.S. with one missile.”

The other reason, Mr. Ballo said, was that the government may have thought that the knowledge of the specifics of the attack would have deflated morale of the Allies.

“They both make a lot of sense to me,” Mr. Ballo said. “The problem is, they didn’t declassify it at a certain point, or when the war was over.”

The first telegrams on the matter gave false hope, the filmmaker said.

“They were interesting telegrams because the War Department knew they had all died. The water temperatures were so cold and the experts said there was no way anybody could have survived through the night and into the next day.”

“The reason they didn’t tell the parents? I don’t know, maybe it’s normal or standard procedure,” Mr. Ballo said. “I’m not saying that’s right or wrong. But it took them a month. And then they didn’t tell them they were presumed dead until told they were missing.”

The six-month gap of not knowing the truth must have been grueling for families, Mr. Ballo said.

“In those six months, imagine how many letters and telegrams were written to the War Department, saying, ‘What’s going on with my son? What have you heard?’ That’s really the greatest sin of this whole disaster — what they put these families through.”

“Of course, they knew the truth, but the war was still going on. Maybe that was normal,” Mr. Ballo said. “I don’t see that as morally wrong if that’s what standard procedures were. But they didn’t declassify it. So the parents of these soldiers, most young kids, they went to their own graves never knowing the truth about what happened.”

WATERTOWN — Labor attorney Terry O’Neil soon will be done with representing the city in the long drawn out contract dispute with the firefighters’ union after his firm racked up more than $850,000 in legal bills.

Councilwoman Lisa A. Ruggiero said it won’t be soon enough.

“It’s time to say goodbye and be done,” she said. “I think he’s reached the end of the road.”

She’s frustrated that the legal bills now total $858,975 from the time when Mr. O’Neil’s firm, Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC, was hired in 2015.

During this fiscal year, the city spent $146,739.57 and the tab will continue to grow as Mr. O’Neil finishes up his legal work over the coming months.

Once Mr. O’Neil is out of the picture, the city’s negotiating team — led by City Manager Rick Finn, Human Resources Director Matthew Roy and City Attorney Robert J. Slye — will take over and negotiate with the Watertown Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 191, Mayor Joseph M. Butler Jr. said Friday.

“We’ll be doing it in-house,” Mayor Butler said.

The Long Island attorney is finishing up some lingering legal tasks for the city that include going before an arbitrator to resolve the labor dispute’s main sticking point, the stipulation that 15 firefighters must be on duty at all times.

He’s also still working on a ruling to decide the nuts and bolts of the contract dispute, called “interest arbitration,” which will determine such issues as how much firefighters are paid and how much they pay for health benefits.

A three-member panel — consisting of Mr. O’Neil, union attorney Nathaniel Lambright and an impartial arbitrator — held two days of hearings last fall. The decision should come in June.

But union President Daniel Daugherty said Mr. O’Neil continues to purposely delay — as he has done since he was retained as the city’s attorney — getting those issues to a conclusion.

Recently, Mr. O’Neil rejected a list of arbitrators that the state Public Employee Relations Board provided and now another list must be drawn up, Mr. Daugherty said.

The attorney also continues to submit additional evidence and opinions about interest arbitration, further delaying that ruling, Mr. Daugherty said.

Mr. O’Neil, who could not be reached for comment on Saturday, also is involved in a few minor improper labor practices cases that the union has against the city.

After that, Mayor Joseph M. Butler Jr. said there won’t be any more work for the Long Island labor lawyer.

“All the heavy lifting will be done,” he said.

Four years ago, the city retained Mr. O’Neil to handle negotiations with the firefighters. The New York Conference of Mayors provided the names of Mr. O’Neil and three other attorneys to choose from. Mr. O’Neil was known across the state for his expertise in labor matters.

It was the first time that the city had gone with an outside attorney for negotiations with the bargaining unit.

Much of Mr. O’Neil’s work and legal bills revolved around defending the city from the “minimum manning” clause in the contract that stipulates 15 firefighters must be on duty at all times.

In court, Mr. O’Neil argued that the minimum manning issue resulted in “no-layoff clauses” and job security. The city maintained the fire department was overstaffed. The firefighters’ union contended it was a safety issue.

The case went through the courts, starting with a decision in the city’s favor when state Supreme Court Judge James P. McClusky determined in January 2018 that the city can block arbitration in the contract dispute.

The union appealed and won when the state Appellate Division, Fourth Department, Rochester, unanimously agreed in February to allow an arbitrator to determine if minimum manning can continue.

In a controversial vote in February, council members decided to take the arbitration case to the state’s highest court. Mr. O’Neil convinced council members to proceed with the case.

On June 9, however, the Court of Appeals denied the city’s request to hear the case, so it will be up to an arbitrator to decide.

It’s expected that the firefighters’ union will win.

Once the matter goes through arbitration, the two sides must then begin negotiating a new contract that goes back to July 2016.

Yet Mayor Butler says the city did the right thing, noting that the city had to pursue the contract dispute in court because it had to protect city taxpayers from the financial drain that minimum manning had cost the city for decades.

He also said Mr. O’Neil’s legal arguments “were well thought out and articulate.” But Mr. O’Neil and the city came up against a court that’s pro-union, the mayor said.

“The Appellate Division’s decision on manning clearly protected the union’s position and the contract itself,” Mayor Butler said. “And it will be up to the arbitrator to tackle, if he wants to, that issue.”

It will be decades before the city can pursue the minimum-manning issue once again, he predicted.

“We knew it was going to cost a lot of money,” Mayor Butler said.

And the legal bills will continue.

Mr. Finn appropriated an additional $20,000 in his proposal for legal bills associated with the fire department, which would then put the amount to more than $875,000.

Councilman Cody J. Horbacz acknowledged it’s creeping to the $1.3 million that it would cost for a new ladder truck. Last week, council members decided against buying a new truck, and, instead, to refurbish a 2004 aerial truck, citing the city cannot afford a new one.

The city never got its money’s worth in fighting the union for so long, Councilman Horbacz said. There were too few court victories that went the city’s way, he said.

“We spent almost $900,000 to find out we have no contract and we still have minimum manning,” Councilman Horbacz said.

Looking back now, the city could have negotiated a new contract with the union years ago and saved a lot of money, the councilman said.

MASSENA — The president of United Steelworkers Local 420-A said members in Massena voted overwhelmingly on Friday to give their negotiating committee the authority to implement a strike against Arconic and Alcoa if necessary.

No numbers were available on the final vote count. But Mark Goodfellow said the union was “organized and mobilized” and would not allow Alcoa or Arconic “to bully us into accepting anything less than the fair contracts we have earned and deserve.”

“These jobs are worth fighting for, and we intend to keep it that way,” Mr. Goodfellow said.

He said the vote doesn’t necessarily mean that a strike is a certainty. He said that, although the union would prefer to resolve outstanding issues without a work stoppage, “the membership has delivered a clear message through its overwhelming support for strike authorization.”

Union members were notified on Tuesday that the International Union had authorized Local 420-A to conduct the strike authorization vote. Voting was done from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday at the union hall, 24 Woodlawn Ave., with separate ballots for each company.

The approximately 357 Alcoa employees and about 132 Arconic employees have continued working under the terms and conditions of a contract that was set to expire on May 15. The negotiating committee, Alcoa and Arconic agreed to extend the contracts while negotiations proceeded, subject to termination with written notice by either party.

Union officials have said the companies are demanding “major economic and non-economic concessions that the union considers excessive and unnecessary.” Among the issues are proposed changes to pensions and health care.

International Vice President Tom Conway, who chairs the negotiations, has urged Arconic and Alcoa management to recognize workers’ contributions to their success.

“USW members have dedicated years of hard work and personal sacrifice to keep these facilities operating efficiently and profitably,” he said, adding that “corporate executives and shareholders are reaping the benefits” while Arconic and Alcoa continue to “demand concessions too broad and too deep for their families to absorb.”

The last strike was in 1986, and United Steelworkers were set to strike again in 2010 as they awaited word of a last-minute contract with Alcoa. However, that never took place, as members across the country voted on June 24, 2010 to accept a four-year labor contract with Alcoa Inc. Nationally, 68 percent of the 4,496 workers who voted were in favor of the plan. Workers in Massena voted overwhelmingly in favor of the pact.

Since then, Alcoa Inc. split into two publicly traded companies — Alcoa Corp. and Arconic — meaning separate contract negotiations for the two companies.

The United Steelworkers represents 850,000 men and women employed in metals, mining, pulp and paper, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply and the energy-producing industries, along with a growing number of workers in public sector and service occupations.

From staff reports

OSWEGO — Repairs on the west arrowhead breakwater in Oswego will continue with the awarding of a $4.7 million contract.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District awarded the contract May 15 to Dean Marine and Excavating Inc., of Mount Clemens, Mich. The contractor is anticipated to begin work this summer, including a 600-foot repair along the lake side of the breakwater.

During 2018, the Corps of Engineers repaired 475 feet of the 2,700 feet Oswego Harbor west arrowhead breakwater. This contract award will allow repair work to continue this year. The breakwater will allow for safer passage for commercial and recreational traffic, while also serving as a means to dissipate wave action in Oswego Harbor.

“This funding will ensure Oswego Harbor remains open for both commercial and recreational business,” said U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y. “With the threat of high water and damaging waves expected to continue along Lake Ontario, I will continue to work in Congress to secure funding that will make our shores more resilient.”

“The Port of Oswego is a vital navigation channel that connects commercial ships and recreational boats from the Great Lakes to Central New York, helping to drive local tourism and contributing to the economy,” said U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. “The completion of the arrowhead breakwater repairs will help ensure that ships can continue to safely navigate through Oswego Harbor, and I’m glad that this project is moving forward.”

“The Port of Oswego is vital to the economy of our entire region. In Congress, I’ve consistently advocated for funding so that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is able to keep this port functional and open for business,” said Rep. John Katko, R-Camillus. “Repairing the breakwall will ensure commercial and recreational boaters are able to safely navigate the Port, and I applaud the Army Corps for prioritizing this project.”

Oswego Harbor is a deep draft commercial harbor interconnected with seven commercial ports, supporting more than 250,000 tons annually. It is home to 536 recreational slips, six boat launches and 29 charter boats. It generates $19 million in economic benefits and supports a total of 209 direct, indirect, and induced jobs.

“Buffalo District is proud to be able to contribute to the safety of Oswego Harbor through this repair of the west arrowhead breakwater,” said Lt. Col. Jason Toth, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Buffalo District commander. “We are thankful for all of the advocacy and support we receive from Sen. Schumer, Sen. Gillibrand and Rep. Katko to continue assisting with these projects and taking care of the American people.”

CARTHAGE — A French researcher is seeking relatives of Lt. Paul E. Chaufty, a U.S. pilot from Carthage who was killed in a plane crash in France during World War II.

Last fall, Marti Hayotte of Normandy contacted the Carthage Republican Tribune through Facebook.

“I am currently working on the crash of an American plane on the territory of my village,” Mr. Hayotte wrote, also asking for any information on Paul E. Chaufty (1915-1944). “The pilot who died in the accident on August 13, 1944, was a child from Carthage. I am looking for a member of his family.”

He later explained he is writing a book on the liberation of his sector in August 1944.

“Paul Chaufty is one of the only American soldiers who died in this area so I would like to highlight his career and his life,” wrote Mr. Hayotte. “Moreover it’s a friend who died this year at the age of 95 who had discovered Paul’s body in a field the day after the crash. My goal would also be to put a stele (stone) in his honor in the village.”

Since that time, volunteers at the Carthage Free Library Heritage Room and Watertown Daily Times librarian Kelly Burdick found some information on the pilot.

According to newspaper accounts, the Carthage native, born Jan. 3, 1915, the son of Charles and Carrie Chaufty. he graduated from Carthage High School in 1924 and enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Forces on July 8, 1941, and following Pearl Harbor, transferred to the U.S. Air Forces.

The lieutenant’s death was reported in the Nov. 9, 1944, edition of the Carthage newspaper. A telegraph had informed his family he had been missing in action since August of that year. In August 1948, the remains of Lt. Chaufty were returned to the United States, followed by interment in Fairview Cemetery in September of 1948. According to a Carthage Republican Tribune account, full military rites were conducted by members of the American Legion Bassett-Baxter Post 789.

His father’s obituary from the Watertown Daily Times, dated Sept. 18, 1944, states “First Lieut. Paul Chaufty, pilot of a P-47 Thunderbolts, was on Sept. 1, reported missing in action since Aug. 18, following an attack by U.S. Army Air Force planes over France. He had completed more than 40 missions.”

The senior Mr. Chaufty, son of Joseph and Amelia Keller Chaufty, moved to Carthage as a young boy, living on a farm on the Carthage-Croghan state road, then moved into the village, residing on South James Street. The Chauftys had nine children. Besides Paul, there were Adelaide (Mrs. Charles Jenks), Helen (Mrs. A.L. Becker), Harold, Francis, Mason, Reuben, Robert and Melvin.

When Lt. Chaufty’s mother, Carrie M. Brierton Chaufty, passed away in 1957, her obituary said he was killed in France while on a mission Aug. 13, 1944, in World War II. Mrs. Chaufty was a native of Carillon, Quebec.

Mr. Hayotte said his research is on hold until he finds relatives of Lt. Chaufty.

CANTON — An Ogdensburg woman was warned by a judge in St. Lawrence County Court on Friday to refrain from “B.S.”in the court’s drug treatment program.

Jade J. Vernsey, 35, of 802 Lafayette St., pleaded guilty May 7 to third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a reduced count of the A-II felony of second-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, in a plea deal with the district attorney’s office.

At 10:43 p.m. on March 17 in the city of Ogdensburg, Ms. Vernsey had more than an eighth of an ounce of methamphetamine.

As part of the plea deal, Ms. Vernsey was accepted into the court’s Judicial Diversion Program Thursday.

She will have to successfully complete the program in order to be placed on one year of interim probation to earn the opportunity to vacate her felony plea, plead to a misdemeanor and be placed on straight probation.

The deal also satisfies counts of second-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and third-degree unlawful manufacture of methamphetamine.

“You’re not going to be able to B.S. your way through,” Judge Richards told her Friday. “You want to get through this program, you’ve got to buy into it because if you don’t, you’re going to be right back here and you’re going to face nine years in prison. You’re not going to get a misdemeanor.”

Ms. Vernsey was returned to St. Lawrence County jail without bail to be released to treatment.

CANTON — A former Potsdam man accused of attacking a woman with a machete denied the charges Monday in St. Lawrence County Court.

Jason L. Plaster, 45, formerly of 229 Needham Road, currently an inmate at the St. Lawrence County jail, pleaded not guilty Monday to the indictment charging him with second-degree assault and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

The indictment charges on Feb. 27 in the county, Mr. Plaster, wielding a dangerous instrument, caused injury to another person.

According to St. Lawrence County sheriff’s deputies March 2 arrest report, Mr. Plaster was involved in a domestic violence incident on Needham Road when he struck a woman with a machete, causing a cut to her leg.

He was returned to St. Lawrence County jail on $5,000 cash bail or $10,000 bond.

In other court action Monday:

Jamie L. Northrup, 41, last known address 187 Center St. Apt. 1, Massena, was sentenced to two years in prison with two years of post-release supervision, mandated to be served in a substance-abuse treatment program that involves six months of military-style shock incarceration, with the remainder of the sentence completed on parole.

Kevin N. Castor, 34, of 49 County Route 45, Apt. 10, Rooseveltown, had his April 2 guilty plea to felony aggravated driving while intoxicated vacated and he pleaded guilty to the reduced misdemeanor count of the charge after he successfully completed one year of interim probation.

He will also serve 240 hours of community service.

On Nov. 23, 2017 on North Raquette River Road in the town of Massena, Mr. Castor drove a 2017 Dodge Ram while he had a blood alcohol content of 0.19 percent.

He was also ordered to pay $1,445 in court fines, fees and surcharges.

Edward R.P. Baker III, 35, of 68 Austin St., Gouverneur, was placed on one year of interim probation for his March 1 guilty plea to third-degree attempted burglary, a reduced count of the indictment charging him with felony third-degree burglary.

On June 11, in the city of Ogdensburg, Mr. Baker entered a building at 228 Franklin St. with the intent to commit a crime.

Final sentencing is scheduled for May 4 and he was ordered to pay $115 in restitution and a $11.50 surcharge before that time. He will also have to successfully complete substance abuse treatment.

CANTON — An Ogdensburg man who has been indicted a second time on contempt and family offense charges not only denied the charges Monday in St. Lawrence County Court, but is also contesting a slew of charges in a different indictment including attempted kidnapping and burglary.

Jacob R. Brabant, 35, of 508 Cedar St., pleaded not guilty to the indictment charging him with four counts of felony aggravated family offense and four counts of misdemeanor second-degree criminal contempt.

The indictment charges at 5:33 p.m. and 6:57 p.m. on Dec. 11 and again at 10:20 p.m. and 10:39 p.m. on Dec. 12, all in the town, Mr. Brabant disobeyed a court mandate to stay away from a member of his family or household.

The indictment says the order of protection was issued Oct. 4 by St. Lawrence County Court Judge Jerome J. Richards, in favor of the protected person.

According to a statement attached to the indictment, Mr. Brabant was previously convicted in Ogdensburg on July 18, 2017 of misdemeanor fourth-degree criminal mischief.

This is the second time Mr. Brabant has been indicted on the charges, as a previous indictment had been dismissed allowing the district attorney’s office to represent the charges to a new grand jury.

Moreover, Assistant District Attorney Joshua A. HaberkornHalm told the court that Mr. Brabant is currently challenging an indictment charging him with second-degree attempted kidnapping, second-degree burglary, second-degree assault, second-degree strangulation, aggravated criminal contempt, first-degree criminal contempt and third-degree criminal contempt.

In that indictment, it charges on Nov. 29 in the city of Ogdensburg, Mr. Brabant entered a building located at 1028 Ford St. Extension and, while either trying to enter the building or in immediate flight afterward, he intentionally caused physical injury to, strangled and attempted to abduct Breonna A. Storie, who was not a participant in the crime. The alleged crimes were all in violation of an Oct. 4 order of protection issued in St. Lawrence County Court in favor of Ms. Storie.

Mr. Brabant is also accused of intentionally damaging property of Cindy Mahnke on Nov. 29 in the city in an amount exceeding $250.

According to a statement as to prior felony conviction attached to that indictment, Mr. Brabant was previously convicted on Nov. 5, 2007 in St. Lawrence County Court of felony second-degree assault and was sentenced on Dec. 14, 2007 to five years in prison with five years of post-release supervision.

Mr. Brabant was released under probation supervision.

CANTON — A Massena man is charged by a St. Lawrence County grand jury with the repeated rape of a child less than 11 years old.

Sawyer E. White, 22, 41 Somerset Ave., is charged with three counts of first-degree rape, three counts of predatory sexual assault, both felonies, and three counts of misdemeanor endangering the welfare of a child.

The indictment charges on or about August 2018 in the village of Massena, White had sexual intercourse with a 10-year-old. The indictment also charges that he repeated the crime against the child in August and/or September and a third time in September.

Under the count of first degree rape, the child was under 11 years old, while under the predatory sexual assault charge the crime of first-degree rape was alleged to have been committed against a child less than 13 years old.

In other grand jury action:

Vincent C. Lashomb, 65, of 311 Mills Road, Norfolk, is charged with second-degree assault and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

The indictment charges on Jan. 3 at an unspecified location in St. Lawrence County, Mr. Lashomb injured a person while possessing a “dangerous knife” and another dangerous instrument with the intent to use them.

According to the original state police arrest report, at 6:46 p.m. on Jan. 3, at 9775 Route 56 in the town, Mr. Lashomb stabbed a 29-year-old man with a pocket knife in the upper abdomen. The victim was taken to Massena Memorial Hospital by Norfolk Volunteer Rescue Squad.

Jonathan M. Blair, 38, of 334½ Main St., Gouverneur, is charged with two counts of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and two counts of driving while intoxicated.

The indictment charges at 2:45 a.m. on Dec. 23 on County Route 11 in the town of Rossie, and again at 12:25 a.m. on Jan. 12 on Williams Street in the village of Gouverneur, Mr. Blair drove a 2006 Pontiac while intoxicated. It alleges that he did so knowing his license had been revoked, on June 9, 2005, for driving while intoxicated.

According to information attached to the indictment, Mr. Blair had been convicted of misdemeanor DWI on May 9, 2005, in Gouverneur Town Court.

CANTON — The arrival of emerald ash borers — green beetles that destroy ash trees — has been confirmed in St. Lawrence County, but measures can be taken to minimize the damage, officials said.

In recognition of Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week, the St. Lawrence County Emerald Ash Borer Task Force has created a list of recommendations on ways to deal with the invasive species.

First off, people should find out if they have any ash trees on their property. Several online sources and library books are available to identify the trees. People can also call St. Lawrence County Cornell Cooperative Extension, the Soil & Water Conservation District or the state Department of Environmental Conservation office.

Property owners are advised to take the following steps:

n Examine your ash trees. Make sure they are healthy. You might get an opinion from a certified arborist, especially if there is evidence of deterioration. Signs include crown loss, broken branches, splits in the bark, new shoots sprouting from the base of the tree and evidence of woodpecker activity. Information about how to find an arborist can be found on the state DEC’s web site at https://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/5291.html

n If you see evidence of deterioration, consider taking damaged trees down as soon as possible. Emerald ash borers are attracted to damaged trees so removing damaged trees prolongs the time before the beetles infest ash trees.

n Once emerald ash borers are reported in your area, you’ll want to consider whether you want to and can afford using insecticide as a preventive measure. At that point, go back to your certified arborist, or talk to a certified pesticide applicator.

n There are several different chemicals used and several different application strategies. Prices will depend on specific circumstances. A strategy to use insecticide means that you will need to reapply the chemical every year/ every two-three years, depending on the chemical used. Your pesticide application strategy should be long-term, lasting 15 plus years.

n You may not be able to afford pesticide application. In that case, you will need to make plans to take down your ash trees, on a schedule that you can afford.

n You will want to start by taking down ash trees that would be liabilities such as trees near structures, trees near power lines and trees near sidewalks and roads. If you have isolated ash trees that won’t cause damage when they get infested, die and then collapse, you can leave them alone and let nature take its course.

n Make sure that the wood doesn’t get moved away and that all the wood gets chipped. Chipping has been found to kill the larvae.

For more information about EABs, check out http://wdt.me/bEUhdV. Members of the public can also contact the EAB Task Force at 315-379-2292, or Aaron Barrigar, district forester, at 315-386-3582, or contact the state DEC’s Potsdam office at 265-3090, or contact Cornell Cooperative Extension at 315-379-9192.

MASSENA — The Massena Recreation Department is gearing up for summer.

They begin accepting registrations for Massena Youth Soccer next week, and the picnic area of the Massena Town Beach is available for use.

“We have soccer registration starting Tuesday,” Recreation Director Michael McCabe said.

Massena Youth Soccer registration runs from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 28 to June 14, except on June 6 and 13, when it’s 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Massena Arena. The cost is $45 per player, which includes a jersey.

Mr. McCabe said this year’s divisions include co-ed pre-kindergarten and kindergarten; boys grades one and two, three and four, and five and six; girls grades one and two, three and four, and five and six; and co-ed grades seven and eight.

The season runs from approximately Aug. 5 to Sept. 27, with two games/practices at a minimum each week. The boys division will run Monday and Wednesday, the girls division runs Tuesday and Thursday, and the pre-kindergarten and kindergarten division runs Monday and Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday.

Registration forms can be downloaded at www.facebook.com/massenarecreationcommission or picked up at the Massena Arena.

Anyone with questions can contact the Massena Recreation Office at 315-769-3161.

At the Massena Town Beach, the picnic area will be open from mid-morning to early evening starting Saturday. Pavilions are also available for rental at $50 a day.

“Reservations are going fine. People are already making reservations,” Mr. McCabe said.

The park, but not the bathing area, is also open during the week until 3 p.m.

Inside the Massena Arena, meanwhile, pickleball sessions are held at 9:30 a.m. every Tuesday and Thursday. The sessions are free of charge.

FORT DRUM — Fort Drum held three courts-martial in February and March. All U.S. Army courts-martial are summarized and the final disposition published; the following information is based on those summaries.

On Feb. 2 at a general court-martial, an unnamed sergeant was acquitted by a military panel of one count of aggravated sexual contact, one count of assault with battery and two counts of abusive sexual contact.

On Feb. 26 at a general court-martial, Pvt. Michael A. Estes Jr. pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault. He was reduced in rank to E-1, forfeited all pay and was sentenced to five years confinement and a dishonorable discharge.

On March 29 at a general court-martial, Sgt. 1st Class Michael A. Robinson was convicted by a military panel of three counts of rape of a child, one count of sexual assault of a child, four counts of sexual abuse of a child, one count each of sodomy and obstruction of justice. He was found not guilty of one count of indecent conduct and three counts of committing a lewd act on a child.

Robinson was sentenced to a reduction in rank to E-1, 30 years of confinement and a dishonorable discharge.

The New York State Zoo at Thompson Park Zoo hosted its annual ribbon cutting ceremony at the Heather A. Freeman Butterfly House on Saturday.

LOWVILLE — Lowville leadership reached out to the community during an open house event and presentation for the Downtown Revitalization Grant application on Wednesday, seeking ideas and input from residents, developers and business people.

Beginning at noon on Wednesday, people who went to the Lewis County Historical Society met with consultants Tamara Burk and Elizabeth King of Bergmann, Rochester and shared ideas.

Preprinted white boards with questions at the top asked what people see as the village’s best attributes and the areas for improvement, services that are lacking, and, simply, what could and should be done to improve life in the village.

Although Mayor Joseph Beagle said he wished turnout had been better as only about 18 people trickled in throughout the day, he said those who did come seemed to appreciate and support the ideas already being considered for the application and added a few others to the mix.

Ms. King said the biggest challenge for the village is not a question of worthiness for the grant or having the kind of shovel-ready projects that attract the attention of the grant committee, but rather the short turnaround time: the application must be completed and filed before the end of the month.

The public meeting was a required element for the process, but Ms. King said it was also helpful to ensure that the community agrees with the development being discussed because the stakes are much higher than just the $10 million grant.

The grant, she said, is about the state making a “strategic investment” to increase leverage from private investors. Ideally, the $10 million could drive $60 million in investment to flow into improving downtown.

This was Ms. Burk’s first time in Lewis County. She said she believes Lowville really needs this grant and has a good shot at getting it, but reinforced the need for residents to participate in the process.

“This is your community and everything here is for you, so be very engaged and open minded and patient,” she said, “I’ve seen so many small communities fade away and I don’t want Lowville to become that.”

Mr. Beagle, echoing that point, said the most important thing to him is to make sure the village’s young people see good reason to stay in the village or come back after college to live.

The anchor projects so far include supporting the completion of the Double Play Community Center and affordable, high quality housing at the shovel-ready lot prepared by a local developer.

A potential welcome center, parking for snowmobilers and improvements for walkers and bicyclists including a trail along the railroad tracks and, potentially, rail bikes, and ideas involving new lights, awnings and store-front face-lifts are all being considered.

Mr. Beagle said that what started as seven or eight ideas has blossomed to 12 to 15.

This is the first time Bergman has been involved with preparing an application, but has worked with previous grant winners Geneva, Rome, Lockport and Auburn, bringing insight into what types of projects could ultimately be approved.

On Tuesday, the local committee composed of county Senior Planner Casandra Buell, Mayor Beagle, County Manager Ryan Piche, the county Industrial Development Agency, the Chamber of Commerce, and Board of Legislators Chairman Lawrence Dolhof, will meet to finalize projects to include in the application, followed by a conference call with the consultant.

Any input must be sent no later than Friday to lowvilledri@lewiscounty.ny.gov.

WATERTOWN — An Ogdensburg man convicted of grand larceny was sentenced to jail Thursday in Jefferson County Court.

Michael J. Larock, 31, was sentenced by Judge James P. McClusky to six months in jail followed by five years of probation with credit for time served as agreed upon in his April plea deal.

He admitted to attempted menacing of a police officer and fourth-degree grand larceny of items valued greater than $1,000 for having stolen two generators from Gander Outdoors at the Salmon Run Mall and pulling a knife on the arresting officer during the Jan. 24 incident.

Judge McClusky said the Probation Department’s report indicated Mr. Larock doesn’t want to make any “adjustments” in his life but hopes Mr. Larock will rethink that position and avoid ending up back in his courtroom.

Mr. Larock must also pay $375 in court surcharges and fees.

In other Jefferson County Court cases:

Danny W. Hussey, 42, was sentenced to one year in jail for violating his probation after he admitted to using alcohol and drugs.

Mr. Hussey was on probation from an incident in 2017 in which we was accused of hitting an underage girl in the back of the head with a baseball bat.

Joshua N. Roshia, 35, of Francis Street, was sentenced to time served, five years of probation, participation in a victim’s panel and revocation of his driver’s license.

He had been convicted of felony DWI, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and felony first-degree criminal contempt of court in two separate cases.

Mr. Roshia’s convictions stemmed from a Sept. 17 incident in which he had a blood alcohol content of 0.21 percent while driving on South Hamilton Street in the city around 3 a.m.

In the same incident, Mr. Roshia violated a stay-away order of protection for his ex-girlfriend, grabbing her neck and pulling the steering wheel while she was driving, causing the car to crash.

Mr. Roshia is also required to pay a total of $1,945 in court fees and surcharges.

NATURAL BRIDGE — Amid the broken and buried headstones a new memorial marks the grave of a Revolutionary War soldier in the Sand Hill Cemetery.

In doing genealogical research on her family, Lillian Dawley Kinney of Watertown learned her great-grandfather, William Dawley, was an original settler of Wilna.

With the help of town Councilman Daniel C. Nevills, who is the Sand Hill Cemetery sexton, Mrs. Kinney located her ancestor’s gravesite.

However, the headstone had broken off, was buried and when unearthed was barely readable.

Through the efforts of New York State American Legion Department Adjutant James W. Casey, a new stone was purchased from T.F. Wright & Sons Granite Foundry, Carthage.

“All I did is ask for help and he (Mr. Casey) paid for everything,” said Mrs. Kinney. “What an amazing organization. My father, the late John Dawley, would be so extremely happy to see this happen.”

She added her father was a World War II veteran, serving as a medic in the Navy station on a LST — Landing Ship, Tank — in the Philippines.

State Department Commander Gary M. Schacher was on hand for the unveiling.

“Veterans take care of veterans,” he said. “This is our 100th anniversary year. We do as much as we can for veterans.”

As for the memorial, “I told them I wanted it to look like the ones at Arlington (Cemetery),” Mrs. Kinney said.

Mrs. Kinney’s cousin, Alice Dawley Stewart of West Carthage and brother, Thomas Dawley of Watertown were also in attendance at the unveiling.

“It is a great honor that they were able to do this for us and our ancestor,” said Mrs. Stewart.

“I was surprised at the dedication of the American Legion,” said Mr. Dawley.

Looking around the old cemetery, he added, “You look around here and these people lived their whole lives, worked, provided for their families, but now you don’t even know who they are.”

Through her research, Mrs. Kinney learned, “William was the grandson of a man that was forced to fight in King George’s war in 1746 in Rhode Island. William’s father and father-in-law fought in the Revolutionary War in 1777 in Tyringham, Mass.

William joined the civilian militia that was formed in Herkimer.

He belonged to the New York Militia 10th Regiment that marched to Sackets Harbor and he was discharged in January 1813.

He returned to the area, traveled to Wilna in 1819 and was one of the original settlers; purchasing land, farming and working as a mason in Watertown.

He raised 10 children.

Before leaving, Mrs. Kinney said, “Look around this cemetery — they are the reason we are all here. There is a lot of history in our cemeteries and (I) hope others look for their ancestors and settlers.”