By Historian Robert Lowell Goller On Christmas Eve 1914, East Aurora hosted what was likely among the first electrified Christmas tree lighting ceremonies in the world. Just a decade after the first recorded use of outdoor electric Christmas lights (on a tree in San Diego in 1904), and just two years after the first public tree lighting ceremony with electric lights (in New York City’s Madison Square Park in 1912), East Aurora flipped the switch on 250 electric lamps adorning a 35-year-old evergreen tree on the Roycroft Campus. Although the exact location of the pine tree is unknown, an account...

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Bird feeding season is upon us now that October has come to an end. Does that mean your bird feeding station is going to be overrun with hungry birds? No, not yet, but there are several reasons to get your feeders ready and supplied with a variety of quality seeds. First of all, having feed in the feeders is a way of letting your birds know that there is food available. Over the last week or two I have noticed a significant insurgence of birds present in small feeding groups around the yard. Yes, many birds are still finding plenty...

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By Robert Lowell Goller East Aurora didn’t even have an airport in May 1938, so news that the local postmaster was planning an air mail service caught many by surprise. East Aurora Postmaster Wayne Wright led a committee charged with launching the first plane from East Aurora with U.S. mail aboard. The May 19, 1938 flight, from East Aurora to the airport in Cheektowaga, was more symbolic than anything else, part of a nationwide effort to commemorate National Air Mail Week and the 20th anniversary of the first air mail service in the U.S. In the two decades since the...

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A pair of requests for solar energy panels has taken a step forward in the Town of Marilla.  The Town Board voted 4-1 to declare no environmental problems exist on properties where owners have proposed solar energy panels the night of Thursday, April 10.  Property owners on Stolle and Two Rod roads want to install the panels to sell electricity.  Councilman Matthew Dolegowski opposed the measure without giving a reason. When asked after the meeting, he declined to answer.  During the March 13 meeting, he voiced his preference for the original proposal, which included longer distances from the panels to...

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The Aurora Starfish Fund is ramping up its fundraising efforts with an expanded committee of Kiwanis, Rotary and Lions club members and a new purpose: connecting with WNY Heroes to help veterans, with a special emphasis on service dogs. Thanks to the Starfish Fund, organized in 2022, ,100 donated by generous folks in our community is now helping young people affected by Vladimir Putin’s ongoing war in Ukraine. It took some effort, but after raising the funds for Ukraine through a raffle with a car as first prize, Starfish Fund organizers were able to identify an organization that could safely...

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Earlier this month, officials within the East Aurora Union Free School District were informed that student data had been breached. The data included names, addresses and phone numbers of students and guardians. The district uses PowerSchool to collect student information. Messaging to families and guardians said that the system does not retain social security numbers or financial information and passwords were not compromised. PowerSchool is a cloud-based software solutions provider for schools and districts that supports over 60 million students and over 18,000 customers worldwide. PowerSchool’s Student Information System (SIS) is used by East Aurora for enrollment, student records, grades,...

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Here's the weather forecast from the National Weather Service in Buffalo. M.L.King Day Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. High near 11. Wind chill values as low as -10. West wind around 16 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible. Tonight Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Low around 5. Wind chill values as low as -10. West wind 11 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 4 to 8 inches possible. Tuesday Snow. The...

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M.L.King Day Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. High near 11. Wind chill values as low as -10. West wind around 16 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible. Tonight Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Low around 5. Wind chill values as low as -10. West wind 11 to 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 4 to 8 inches possible. Tuesday Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. High near 11. Wind chill...

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This audio article podcast is sponsored by H D E electric in Elma. Leah Nolan Torres joined the Jamison Road Volunteer Fire Company in February 2015 at the age of 16 as a junior firefighter. As she nears her 10-year anniversary with the company, she has been elected to serve as the 3rd Assistant Chief. She will be the first female to take on this high of a leadership role in the company’s 84-year history.  Torres said that firefighting was something she had grown up always wanting to do. “I had grown up around the fire hall, it was always...

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The East Aurora Village Board has decided to revoke a Special Use Permit for a cannabis dispensary on Main Street. The permit was approved in April 2024 to a Michigan based company called Highwire. The owner of the company, Eric Kennedy, does not have a state license to operate in New York and during the permitting process, he told the board that having municipal approval would assist him in receiving a state license from the Office of Cannabis Management by expediting the process. When the special permit was approved, there were 88 cannabis dispensaries operating with a license in New...

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