September 2026

October 1st meet in the lobby of the Kenan Civic Arena at 5:30pm.

Please note: the program starts at 5:30pm - there is an elevator if needed Jimmy Lewis, Director of Events and Venues for the Kenan will lead a tour of the new Kenan Civic Arena. The new Arena was a decade in the making. It started with an idea and on September 5 , the community was introduced to the $16.5  milllion multipurpose venue with space for athetics, arts and learning.

Dinner/ business meeting in the M &T Community Room on the 1st floor at 6pm. Dinner is a box lunch from Lock 34 - Turkey Club Sandwich with pasta salad, beverages will be provided. Cost for dinner $20. Thank you to our Hostesses Judy Cummings and Margo Covell.

Annual Dues

Our annual dues are$40.00. Payment options: They can be paid at the meeting or mailed to our treasurer Anna Beth Kinyon , 7259 Clarkview Drive, Lockport, New York 14094.

Opportunites to Support LCWC

Scholarship Committee is looking for 1-2 people to join.

Co-chairman needed for scholarship fundraiser

Hostesses needed for upcoming meetings

Contact Patty Russell 716-998-9343 if interested

Good News

LCWC scholarship winner, Alexis Runfola was selected for the prestigious Patrick P. Lee Scholarship at SUNY Niagara. She was one of 6 students who received this award focused on STEM programs.

Next Board Meeting October 8 at 7pm hosted by Anna Beth Kinyon 7259 Clarkview Dr.

Next Program/Meeting November 5, 2026

 April 2026

Please join us on May 7, 2026 for our Annual Scholarship Award and Recognition Dinner to both meet our Scholarship winners and to honor our 50 year members, Daniele Priest, Shirley Frombgen and Joanna Southard! The Dinner will be at 80 Main Street, Lockport, New York at6:00 PM. The doors will open at 5:30 PM. The menu has two selections: Pecan Crusted Chicken for $28.00 or Stuffed Shrimp with Pesto Cream Sauce for $30.00. Dinners will include potato, vegetable, coffee, tea, soft drinks and cake. The cost will cover all gratuities as well.

Reservations must be made to the Telephone Committee by Thursday, April 30, 2025 at 7:00PM. Hostesses are Shirley Wagner and Darlene Loffredo. Please note that this will the be the last meeting for this year so please come and meet our Scholarship Winners, their moms and honor our dedicated 50 year members. Remember all meetings are open to guests as well. This meeting is especially wonderful because we get to support our Scholarship winners as they begin to plan for their next journey.

Please give a round of applause and great thanks to all those who have helped with this year’s fundraiser – It was a great success as usual! A report shall be made at the May Banquet as to the particulars of the Fundraiser. Thank you to all of our members for their generous support through donations, creating baskets for the raffle, buying tickets and volunteering time! It’s wonderful to see such support for our Scholarship Program!

Let us also recognize the hard work of our Scholarship Committee – Chairman, Nancy Fischer,and committee members, Anne O’Bryne, Daniele Priest (Treasurer), Ann Van Dusen and Patricia Kennedy.

A new Directory will be available to all members this fall. If there are any changes to your address, telephone number or email address, please let Patty Russell or any other Board member know of the appropriate changes. If anyone is interested in receiving the Megaphone electronically and isn’t already receiving it that way, please send an email to Judy Johnson to be added to the email list. Her email is jljlgesq@aol.com.

The next and last Board of Directors meeting for this year will be on May 14, 2026 at 2:00 PM at the home of Mary Beth Wilson, 7 Berkley Drive, Lockport. Please contact her if you will not be attending.

See everyone on May 7, 2025 at the Banquet!

 February 2026 

Our next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 5, 2026 at 80 Main Street, Lockport. Our speaker for this program is Erin Strassburg from the Dale Association. Ms. Strassburg is the Travel Coordinator/Program Provider and is planning on talking about the travel opportunities, community engagement and volunteering opportunities offered by the Dale Association. She is a graduate of Buffalo State College with a degree in Communications and Public Relations. She has been creating engaging programs, travel adventures, and special events, together with championing the quality of life for senior citizens and community members alike for the past five years with the Dale Association. The program should be timely and interesting, so please plan on attending. Remember that guests are always welcome to attend, so bring a friend! The doors will open at 5:30 PM for registration. Dinner will be served at 6:00 PM. 

The menu is Panko Parmesan crusted chicken, served with potato and vegetable, rolls and butter. Coffee and tea will be served. The cost of the dinner is $25.00. Hostesses are Gail Marshall and Anna Beth Kinyan. Please call in your reservation to the Telephone Committee by Thursday, February 26, 2026. You may also make an email reservation with Susan Grigg at smmgrigg@aol.com. Reservations may also be made by calling Gail Marshall (716-434-4306). Please do not call Marybeth Wilson as she is away for the winter. Every meeting is a guest meeting, so bring a friend. We had a great turnout at the last meeting so let’s do it again!! It sounds like an interesting program. 

The recommendation of the Scholarship Committee was passed at our last meeting. It reads as follows: “At this time, the Scholarship Committee recommends for the year 2026 that we support awards up to $8,000.00 as applications are received and reviewed by the Scholarship Committee. Members of this important committee are: Nancy Fischer, Chair, Daniele Priest, Treasurer, Ann VanDusen, Patricia Kennedy and Ann O’Byrne.

 Dues are now $50.00. If you have not paid your dues, you may do so at the meeting or by mailing them to Anna Beth Kinyon, 7259 Clark View Drive, Lockport, New York 14094. If you would like to receive your Megaphone by electronic mail, please forward your email address to Judy Johnson-Paonessa at jljgesq@aol.com. Remember electronic delivery will save the cost of the postage. 

Our College Scholarship Fundraiser is scheduled for Sunday, March 29, 2026 at the Lockport Town and Country Club. The doors will open at noon, with luncheon served at 1:00 PM. Tickets and other information has been mailed to members and you should have received this information. It is time to be thinking of themes for baskets. The Basket Raffle has been historically successful in raising scholarship funds. Basket are fun to make and are always needed. Members are expected to contribute a basket. Remember that gift cards are always an option and it is helpful to place them in either a small frame or basket. We are in need of volunteers to sell tickets and distribute baskets on the day of the Fundraiser. Please let Patty Russell or any Board member know if you are able to help out. So please consider volunteering. 

Thank you for continuing to support the College Club with your attendance at meetings and support of the annual Fundraiser. Other volunteer opportunities include becoming a member of the Leadership Team that constitutes the Board of Directors. Program Leaders are always needed and are of such importance because they help to find our speakers and topics for meetings. If this is something you may be interested in helping with please let either Patty Russell or any Board Member know of your interest. 

 The next Board of Directors meeting will be held on Thursday, March 12, 2026 at the home of Patty Russell, 102 Continental Drive, Lockport, NY at 7:00 PM. Call to confirm your attendance

 January 2026 

Our next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 5, 2026 at the 80 Main Street, Lockport. Our speaker for this program is Heather Hare, one of our newest members! Heather is the Chief Marketing Officer at Buffalo Toronto Public Media, where she has worked in marketing and communications for more than seven years. BTPM is the local public television and public radio service for the Western New York area. Programming includes our local PBS station, Create and PBS Kids; local public radio provides both NPR, classical and jazz formats. Heather has a Bachelor’s Degree in print journalism from George Washington University. She has served on the Lockport City School District Board in the past and is currently serving on the Boards of Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Mended Little Hearts. She will be sharing the effects of the cuts in Federal funding on public television and radio and giving us an overview of what we can look forward to in current programming. 

 The doors will open at 5:30 PM for registration. Dinner will be served at 6:00 PM. The menu is Pork tenderloin with peach chutney, served with mashed potatoes, vegetable and rolls and butter. Coffee and tea will be served. The cost of the dinner is $25.00. Hostesses are Gail Marshall and Leslie Tobin. Please call in your reservation to the Telephone Committee by Thursday, January 29, 2025. You may also make an email reservation with Susan Grigg at smmgrigg@aol.com. Reservations may also be made by calling Gail Marshall (716-434-4306). Please do not call Marybeth Wilson as she is away for the winter. Every meeting is a guest meeting, so bring a friend. We had a great turnout at the last meeting so let’s do it again!! It sounds like an interesting program. 

Please make every effort to attend the February meeting as we will also be hearing and voting on the recommendation of the Scholarship Committee with respect to the number of scholarships the Club will be giving this year.

Dues are now $50.00. If you have not paid your dues, you may do so at the meeting or by mailing them to Anna Beth Kinyon, 7259 Clark View Drive, Lockport, New York 14094.

 If you would like to receive your Megaphone by electronic mail, please forward your email address to Judy Johnson-Paonessa at jljgesq@aol.com. Remember electronic delivery will save the cost of the postage.

 Our College Scholarship Fundraiser is being planned with the details to follow soon. The event will be held at the Lockport Town Country Club. We need to thank Patti Russell and Anna Beth Kinyon who are making arrangements with the Lockport Town and Country Club for this wonderful event. It is time to be thinking of themes for baskets. The Basket Raffle has been historically successful in raising scholarship funds. Basket are fun to make and are always needed. Ticket Chair is Daniele Priest. Table Decoration Co-Chairs are Anna Beth Kinyon and Patty Russell. Leslie Tobin, Heather Hare and Karen Young have volunteered to serve as of Basket Raffle Co-Chairs – their duties are setting up and arranging the baskets on the day of the fundraiser. We are in need of volunteers to sell Basket Raffle Tickets on the day of the Fundraiser. Please let Patty Russell or any Board member know if you are able to help out. So please consider volunteering. 

Thank you for continuing to support the College Club with your attendance at meetings and support of the annual Fundraiser. Other volunteer opportunities include becoming a member of the Leadership Team that constitutes the Board of Directors. Program Leaders are always needed and are of such importance because they help to find our speakers and topics for meetings. If this is something you may be interested in helping with please let either Patty Russell or any Board Member know of your interest. 

 The next Board of Directors meeting will be held on Thursday, February 12, 2026 at the home of Karen Robison, 7256 Clark View Drive, Lockport, NY at 7:00 PM. Call to confirm your attendance.

 November Meeting of Lockport College Women’s Club

Our November meeting of College Club will be held on Thursday,

November 6, 2025 at 80 Main. The doors will open at 5:30 for registration

and socializing. There will be a cash bar and soft drinks are free of charge

as they are included in the price of dinner. Our dinner will be served at

6pm. The dinner includes chicken and biscuits, vegetable, rolls and butter,

coffee, tea and soft drinks with assorted cookies for dessert. The cost of

dinner is $25.00. Please make your reservation with the telephone

committee or Marybeth Wilson by Thursday, October 30, 2025 before 7PM.

Our hostesses will be Judy Cummings and Darlene Loffredo. Sue Grigg

will take email reservations and her email address is smmgrigg@aol.com.

Dues of $40.00 can be paid at the November meeting or mailed to our

treasurer Anna Beth Kinyon,7259 Clarkview Drive, Lockport, New York

14094. Dues increase to $50.00 if paid after December.

During this year of celebrating the history of Lockport, we are pleased to

welcome Ann Marie Linnabery who serves as the Assistant Director and

Education Coordinator at the History Center of Niagara as our November

speaker. Ms. Linnabery has an M.A. in American History from SUNY

Buffalo and has worked for 30 years at museums in Buffalo, Lewiston and

Lockport. She also writes a weekly Niagara County history column for the

Lockport Union Sun and Journal. Her topic is “Mr. Kenan’s Neighborhood”.

She will share the fascinating life and legacy of William Rand Kenan Jr.

who went to Niagara Falls after graduating from the University of North

Carolina at Chapel Hill to work at what later became Union Carbide. He

and his wife moved into the Kenan House on Locust Street in 1913 after

renovating the home. One of his many interests was his herd of Jersey

cows kept behind their home! Come and learn more about the many and

varied interests of William Rand Kenan Jr., his neighborhood in Lockport,

and how his home became a cultural facility for the community we now

know as the Kenan Center.

At the October meeting, the College Club budget for 2025-2026 as

presented by Treasurer Anna Beth Kinyon was accepted by members

present. Leslie Tobin introduced two new members to College Club. We

were pleased to meet Karen Young and Heather Hare and look forward to

seeing them at future meetings. We also enjoyed the correspondence

shared by Scholarship Committee treasurer Daniele Priest from a number

of our scholarship winners. We currently have eight bright young women

receiving $1000 a year from College Club as they earn their college

degree. We also enjoyed the program about the construction of the new

Kenan Community Center and programming available there as presented

by an enthusiastic Mr. William Patti, Executive Director of the Kenan

Center.

A heartfelt thank you goes out to members and friends of Lockport College

Women’s Club for the generous and thoughtful donations to our

Scholarship Fund in memory of longtime member Rae Greco and my late

husband Bob Russell. A combined $875.00 was donated to our

Scholarship Fund including $200.00 from the Grigg Lewis Foundation in

memory of Rae who is the mother of Grigg Lewis Foundation board

member Joan Aul.

Our Annual Scholarship Fundraiser takes place in April. We are looking for

volunteers to serve as Co-Chairmen for the event. The basic format is in

place. The co-chairmen would choose the date at the Country Club and

decide on the menu. We also need a committee to help set-up the Basket

Raffle the day of the fundraiser. Working on a small committee is a fun way

to get to know other members of College Club! Please call Patty if you

would like to help out.

Members of the board would welcome anyone in College Club interested in

becoming more involved in College Club. Call us and consider joining us at

a board meeting to find out more about ways you can help. We enjoy

dessert and coffee and set up our meetings and speakers.

Our thanks to Ann VanDusen for maintaining our blogspot. The email

address is : lockportcwc.blogspot.com.

BRING A BOOK AND TAKE A BOOK! We are all readers in College

Club. We would like to encourage everyone to bring a book they are

finished with to our November meeting and take a new book home.

Look for the sign on the front tables at 80 Main in November!

See you at our November meeting. Make your reservation by October 30th.

We do not have meetings in December or January. The next Megaphone

comes out in January with all the news about our meeting on February 5,

2026.

Our next Board of Directors meeting will be on January 8, 2026. It will be

hosted by Anna Beth Kinyon. The meeting will begin at 2pm. Please let

Anna Beth know if you are unable to attend.

 September 2025 

Please join us on October 2, 2025, at 6:00 PM at 80 Main Street, Lockport for our first meeting of the year! Our speakers will be William Patti and Leah Sobrieski from the Kenan Center. Mr. Patti is the Executive Director of the Kenan Center and Ms. Sobrieski is the Sports and Recreation Manager at the Kenan. Mr. Patti is a Lewiston native and has a long history with theater and the Arts; he has a BFA in Theater and BA in English from Niagara University and MFA from Kent State. He has served as a teacher, Arts Administrator and Producing Artistic Director for other organizations before returning to Western New York. Before arriving at the Kenan Center, Mr. Patti served as the General Manager at Shea’s in Buffalo. Ms. Sobrieski is a graduate of LHS, SUNY Geneseo and has a Masters Degree from Daemen College. She has served as the Academic and Operations Coach for the Women’s Basketball team at Canisius College. Both are delighted to speak to us about the upcoming construction at what will be the new Kenan Amphitheater and the plans for the future of the Kenan Center and its programming as we move into the future. The meeting will be a dinner meeting with a menu of turkey, mashed potato, vegetable, tea and coffee. The cost is $30.00 and includes coffee, tea and soft drinks together with the room reservation and gratuity. Hostesses are Mary Beth Caswell and Barbara Feidner. Reservations must be made by Thursday, September 25, 2025 at 7:00 PM by calling the telephone committee. Sue Grigg has agreed to continue to take email reservations as well and her email address is smmgrigg@aol.com. 

The Budget will also be presented at this meeting for the approval of the club. 

Treasurer, Anna Beth Kinyon will be accepting payment of Dues at the meeting. Dues are $40.00 and will increase to $50.00 after December. Dues can also be mailed to Anna Beth Kinyon, 7259 Clarkview Drive , Lockport, New York 14094.  

Please note that Madelene Angelo has a new phone number and is no longer using the land line number in the directory. The new number is – 716-471-3451 

If you have an email address, we would like to send the Megaphone to you through email to save postage. Please provide your email address to Judy Johnson-Paonessa (jljgesq@aol.com) or to any Board member. 

We are in need of volunteers to act as the Co-Chairs of the Spring Fundraiser! Not much work there, but lots of fun – the primary duty is to set the menu for the Luncheon. We are also looking for two people willing to be Co-Chairs for the Basket Raffle - duties to include setting up the baskets on the day of the Luncheon, deciding what to do with the Door Prize raffle tickets, announcing ticket and basket winners and delivering the baskets to the winners. Any Board member would be happy to take your name! 

And speaking of volunteering, there is always room for new volunteers to serve on the Board of Directors. An important job is that of our Program Coordinators. This person or persons considers what programs and speakers would be of interest to the Club. It always is nice to have people willing to work on developing interesting programs for our meetings. 

The next Board Meeting is scheduled for October 9, 2025 at the home of Mary Beth Caswell 5886 Marion Drive, Lockport, New York. Please contact her if you will not be attending.

May 2025 

The Spring Banquet was a wonderful evening where we celebrated our Scholarship winners and honored our 25 and 50 year members. For those who were unable to attend, the Scholarship Committee Chair, Daniele Priest introduced our two winners – Lillian Bushley and Isabella Talluto. Both of our winners have impressive resumes including scores of over 1300 on the SAT’s. Our hearty congratulations go out to both! 

Lillian Bushley ranks seventh in her class with an average of 101.63. She is planning on pursuing a degree in environmental sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology. She hopes to conduct research studies to improve environmental impacts, work for State policy agencies and hopes to eventually create a non-profit to support local environmental efforts. She is active in many school groups and holds several officer positions. She is the Treasurer of WARLOCKS and Student Council. She is the Vice-president of the Wind Ensemble, Advanced Jazz and Latin Club. She is also the President of STEM Club. Lillian is on the Principal’s Advisory Committee, Rotary Club, Mindworks, Recycling Club and Foreign Education Club. 

Lillian is also a student athlete and is Captain of the Varsity Tennis Team and participates in Varsity Bowling and Flag Football. She is an AP Scholar and a Scholar Athlete and a member of the National Honor Society and the Honor Societies for Science, Math, Social Studies and Latin. She is a member of the Tri-M-Honor Society. And, in addition to all of her studies, athletics and club activities, she works part-time at the Lockport Town and Country Club. 

Our second winner, Isabella Talluto, has an equally impressive resume. Isabella ranks eighth in her class with an average of 101.33. She, also, will be attending the Rochester Institute of Technology where she plans on studying Biological Sciences. Her career goal is to work in a research laboratory producing medicines and vaccines for infectious diseases. 

Isabelle has been active in theater at LHS. She has been the Stage Manager for the past two years for the Fall Play and Spring Musical. She has been part of the state crew throughout her high school career and is now with the Paid Stage Crew this year. She has been the Secretary of the Drama Club since her sophomore year. Isabella is also in Concert Choir, Latin Club, Sources of Strength and Page-Turners. She is dancer and has been taking lessons since 2014.  

Isabella has received a number of awards. She is an AP Scholar, Girls State Nominee and is the recipient of the Elmira College Key Award. She is a member of the National Honor Society along with the Science, Latin and Thespian Honor Societies. 

Isabella also works part-time as a banquet server with Lockport Locks and Erie Canal Cruises.