...Cohocton native, soldier Devin Snyder returns home, with family and friends.Lynn Brennan.Sgt. Devin Snyder’s casket is carried into the Walter E. Baird and Sons Funeral Home in Wayland Monday afternoon.

By Andrew Poole
The Evening Tribune
Posted Jun 14, 2011 @ 09:07 AM
Last update Jun 14, 2011 @ 09:26 AM


Cohocton, N.Y. — It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

Devin Snyder’s homecoming in July was supposed to be a 14-day solace, a two-week reprieve from the carnage and intensity of duty in the Middle East.

It was supposed to be a time rife with the enjoyment of family and friends, of the Cohocton community that watched her grow up during the past two decades.

She is home now. But it wasn’t supposed to be like this.

U.S. Army Sgt. Devin Snyder — beloved daughter, sister, friend, student, soldier — dead at 20 years of age, killed by a roadside bomb on June 4 in the Laghman Province in Afghanistan.

Nine days after her tragic death, a state police-escorted cortege — led by Trooper Chris Smith, father of fallen Hornell Marine Lance Cpl. Zach Smith — wound its way through Wayland and Cohocton, coming to rest at the Walter E. Baird & Sons Funeral Home in Wayland.

Hundreds lined the route, many with flags and tears and signs professing love, and all with silence as they braved the heat to catch a glimpse of the hearse carrying their track star-turned soldier.

Just after 1 p.m., the cortege turned the bend on State Route 63 toward the Village of Wayland, proceeding through rows of silent students waiting outside the school Snyder graduated from in 2008.

The procession entered the village, passed sidewalks thick with muted spectators, and then headed north on State Route 21 and into Cohocton. Finally the cortege passed her family’s house on State Route 415 and the home of little Lauren Grace Hughes, the girl who lived across the street from Snyder, the girl whom Snyder babysat, the girl now proudly brandishing an American flag in memory of a friend and mentor.

Approximately four hours after her body was transferred by an Army honor guard from a plane at Rochester International Airport for the ride home, the cortege reached the funeral home. Another Army honor guard conveyed her body inside, as Patriot Guard Riders, holding flags skyward, encircled her family.

Friends, teachers, neighbors, and strangers lined the sidewalk, many with tears even the hot June sun couldn’t evaporate, and all carrying the sadness of knowing a life extinguished far too early.

Devin Snyder is home now. And here, amongst family and friends, she’ll stay.

.....Body of soldier comes home Lynn Brennan | The Evening Tribune.Jacob Longuil, of Conesus, salutes as Snyder’s procession makes its way through Wayland.



Posted Jun 14, 2011 @ 12:02 AM


Cohocton, N.Y. — The body of an American soldier killed in Afghanistan earlier this month arrived in western New York Monday, escorted home by a procession that included 150 Patriot Guard motorcyclists.

A plane carrying the body of Army Sgt. Devin Snyder arrived late Monday morning at Rochester International Airport. Bystanders holding flags lined an airport road as the hearse bearing the casket drove past.

The procession traveled 40 miles south and arrived around 1:30 p.m. in Wayland.

A 2008 graduate of Wayland-Cohocton High School, Snyder came from a family with strong ties to military service. Her father, Edward Snyder, is a U.S. Navy veteran, and two of her siblings, Natasha Snyder, 23, and Damien Snyder, 19, are serving in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army, respectively.

Snyder is survived by her parents, Ed and Dineen Snyder; two brothers, Derek (Mariah)
Snyder, 28, and Damien Snyder, 19; a sister, Natasha Snyder, 23; and a niece, Ariel.

Snyder, 20, was one of four soldiers killed June 4 in Laghman province when insurgents attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device.

Calling hours are 1-7 p.m. Thursday and Friday at Walter E. Baird Funeral Home, 300 W. Naples St.

Services are 10 a.m. Saturday at the Cohocton Sports Complex of the Wayland-Cohocton Central School District.

Cohocton Awaits Return Of Fallen Hero
Cohocton Awaits Return of Fallen Hero (Tom Maloney) Reported by: Sean Carroll Email: scarroll@13wham.com
--- The family of Devin Snyder, 20, expects her home some time next week. The community she grew up in is making preparations and grieving her loss while trying to comfort her family.

Late Friday Cohocton Town Supervisor Jack Zigenfus told 13WHAM News that the Snyder family was just informed that the U.S. Army is posthumously promoting Specialist Snyder to the rank of Sergeant. According to the Department of Defense Snyder was assigned to the 793rd Military Police Battalion and on Saturday she was one of four soldiers killed when an insurgent attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device.

The 2008 Wayland-Cohocton High School grad was known for her outgoing personality, athletic excellence, and as a proud member of a military family. Snyder’s father is a U.S. Navy veteran and her brother and sister are currently enlisted.

The Snyder name is a familiar one at the Cohocton Veterans Memorial where an American flag flies at half-staff and yellow ribbon joins the U.S. Army flag. Snyder’s have served our nation in wars and peacetime dating back to the Civil War.

“The Snyder's date back in this community for generations," Zigenfus, who is also a family friend said.

This week that community has prepared for the return of their fallen hero. They’re hanging yellow ribbons everywhere, posters with Snyder’s photo and a simple message “Your Community Honors You” hang in store windows, and an American Flag flies on every home and in every lawn.

"It's the waiting, it's hard on us it's hard on the family," Cohocton Village Mayor Thomas Cox said. "It's a sad time for all of us, it's tough."

Snyder was the girl you’d see at the town park on summer days like this; she was a camp counselor for years and the local children looked up to her. Sure, folks here remember last January when it was Marine Lance Corporal Zach Smith of Hornell who was killed in the line of duty. But this time, with Devin, it just feels different.

"It's tough, Hornell was close but it doesn't happen in Cohocton,” Cox said while choking back tears. “I know everybody says that, it's not going to happen here, but it does. It does."

Cox said Smith’s parents paid the Snyder family a visit this week. Smith’s father Christopher is a New York State Trooper who intends to be among those escorting Snyder’s remains home to Cohocton next week. There are already plans for a public memorial service at the school’s sports complex. It won’t be easy for anyone but the community will go through this together.

"I think because of its close-knit ties that when something happens, especially of this magnitude, I don't think there's anything that this community wouldn't do to help one another,” Zigenfus said. “That's what we do here."

Ribbons spread across Cohocton to honor Devin Snyder, family. Andrew Poole.Volunteers placed large, handmade yellow ribbons — with smaller red, white, and blue ribbons — across Cohocton on telephone poles and the new gazebo Wednesday in honor of U.S. Army Spc. Devin Snyder, who was killed Saturday in Afghanistan.


By Andrew Poole
The Evening Tribune
Posted Jun 09, 2011 @ 10:20 AM


Cohocton, N.Y. — In what will probably be one of several memorials for U.S. Army Spc. Devin Snyder, volunteers hung yellow ribbons across Cohocton on Wednesday in remembrance of her sacrifice.

Volunteers attached handmade large yellow ribbons — with smaller red, white, and blue ribbons in the middle — to telephone poles in the village.

Cohocton native Snyder, 20, and three other military policemen were killed Saturday by a roadside bomb in the Laghman Province in Afghanistan. She was scheduled to come home for two weeks in July.

A 2008 graduate of Wayland-Cohocton High School, Snyder came from a family with strong ties to military service. Her father, Edward Snyder, is a U.S. Navy veteran, and two of her siblings, Natasha Snyder, 23, and Damien Snyder, 19, are serving in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army, respectively.

Snyder is survived by her parents, Ed and Dineen Snyder; two brothers, Derek (Mariah) Snyder, 28, and Damien Snyder, 19; a sister, Natasha Snyder, 23; and a niece, Ariel.

Cohocton Supervisor Jack Zigenfus said the whole community came together to hang the yellow ribbons.

“It’s normal to display support for the family,” he said. “Our plan was to line the streets in the village, especially the route to the cemetery.”

By Wednesday afternoon, the ribbons were hanging from telephone poles along State Route 415. Zigenfus said the remaining ribbons would be placed in the village after he met with the Atlanta and Cohocton American Legions, the Cohocton fire department and Atlanta-North Cohocton Fire District, Mayor Thomas Cox, and the Cohocton police department Wednesday night.

Zigenfus said the meeting was to coordinate memorial efforts for Snyder, according to her family’s wishes. Cohocton police Officer-in-Charge Rob Anger is coordinating Snyder’s procession with the state police and Livingston and Steuben County Sheriff’s Offices.

Dates and times for the services have not been set.

The supervisor said he will likely recommend to the town board at the June 20 meeting that a pavillion at Lawrence Parks be named after Snyder, who worked in the park for several years.

Natasha and Damien Snyder also worked in the park, and Dineen Snyder, the fallen specialist’s mother, was the park director for several years.

“It’s a fitting place to honor her. There’s a long family connection with the park,” said Zigenfus.

Friends remember Cohocton native Devin Snyder
U.S. Army specialist, 20, killed Saturday in Afghanistan. AP.An Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of Spc. Devin A. Snyder during a dignified transfer ceremony at Dover Air Force Base, Del., Monday. According to the Department of Defense, Snyder, of Cohocton, died while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

by Andrew Poole
The Evening Tribune
Posted Jun 07, 2011 @ 08:54 AM


Cohocton, N.Y. — There isn’t just one memory of Devin Snyder that stands out to Micalah Sick. It might be when Sick, now 17, was in eighth grade and looked up to Snyder as both a soccer player and mentor. It might be later, when the two would drive to the Food Mart and wolf down popsicles before track practice.

Regardless, Sick, a senior at Wayland-Cohocton, knows what Snyder’s place is with her and in the Cohocton community.

“She was my hero. I looked up to her. If I needed to talk to anybody, she’d listen. She helped me grow up,” said Sick. “She’s a local hero. She’ll always be a hero for us.”

Two days after Snyder, 20, was killed by an improvised explosive device while serving as a specialist in the U.S. Army Military Police in Afghanistan, flags across Cohocton hovered at half-mast in mourning. Town Supervisor Jack Zigenfus said flags would remain at half-mast until the completion of Snyder’s funeral services.

Snyder, a Cohocton native, was deployed to Afghanistan in April, and due to come home for two weeks in July.

In Monday’s Tribune, family members remembered her as strong-willed and compassionate, whose heart was always set on joining the service.
“She would give somebody the shirt off her back,” said her mother, Dineen Snyder, in Monday’s Tribune. “She would have taken a bullet for anybody.”

Part of a family with a long line of service, Snyder spoke of joining the military throughout high school. Her father, Ed Snyder, is a U.S. Navy veteran, and her sister Natasha Snyder, 23, is serving in the navy and her brother Damien Snyder, 19, is serving in the U.S. Army.

“That was going to be her career. She wanted this since high school and she was the type of person who know what she wanted and worked her butt of for it,” said her uncle, Ron Snyder, in Monday’s Tribune.

Sara Stone, 20, a friend and teammate of Snyder’s in high school who has lived across the street from the Snyder family for two years, said it was unbelievable Snyder was killed.

“She was always strong about everything, in every situation,” said Stone. “I hadn’t talked with her in a couple years. I wished I had.”

Two of Snyder’s soccer coaches, Julie Martin and Bill Sick, remembered her as a player whose fiery energy inspired teammates.

“She was a very spirited girl. She had a little spitfire in her. She put her heart and soul into whatever she did. If she was going to do something, she was going to do it all out and not hold back,” said Martin.

“Whatever anybody needed, she’d do without hesitation. That was her nature,” added Bill Sick.

Wayland-Cohocton Superintendent Michael Wetherbee said the school was planning on honoring Snyder, but wanted to work with her family on the memorial.

“A lot stood out about Devin,” said Wetherbee. “She was a wonderful young lady in high school, a very, very good athlete in soccer and track, and an extremely likeable student when she was here.

“Obviously, she came from a family where military service is important. We put the highest regard on students who want to pursue that noble profession.”

Area politicians also expressed their grief and appreciation for Snyder’s sacrifice and their support for her family.

“It’s always troublesome to me when war hits home, when our young men and women pay the ultimate sacrifice,” said Congressman Tom Reed in a conference call Monday. “My thoughts and prayers go out to her family.”

State Senator Tom O’Mara, R- Big Flats, also expressed his sadness at Snyder’s death in a release Monday.

“I know that I join the community of Cohocton and the residents of Steuben County and our entire region in mourning Devin’s passing and in expressing our enduring gratitude and respect for her service,” he said.

Snyder is survived by her parents, Ed and Dineen Snyder; two brothers, Derek (Mariah) Snyder, 28, and Damien Snyder, 19; a sister, Natasha Snyder, 23; and a niece, Ariel.

Funeral arrangements are still incomplete as of Monday afternoon, but will be handled by Walter E. Baird & Sons Funeral Home in Wayland.

http://www.wetmtv.com/news/local/story/Local-Soldier-Makes-Ultimate-Sacrifice/btIS29o_8EqVoz4lrGDHsw.cspx

http://blip.tv/wenytv/remembering-spc-devin-snyder-5247857

Army Spc. Devin Snyder


By Andrew Poole
The Evening Tribune
Posted Jun 05, 2011 @ 11:56 AM
Last update Jun 06, 2011 @ 10:57 AM


Cohocton, N.Y. — The war in Afghanistan claimed the life of yet another Steuben County native over the weekend.

Over a year after Hornell native Zach Smith was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan, Cohocton native Devin Snyder, 20, a specialist in the U.S. Army Military Police, was killed by an improvised explosive device near Mehter Lam in Afghanistan on Saturday.

According to her family, three other U.S. Army members riding in the vehicle with Snyder were also killed in the blast.

Her mother, Dineen Snyder, remembered her daughter as an “outright sweetheart” who could always bring a smile to anyone’s face.

“She would give somebody the shirt off her back. She was very strong-willed, but very compassionate at the same time. I had always been afraid of her being in the army. She would have taken a bullet for anybody,” she said.

Snyder was deployed in Afghanistan in mid-March, said her mother, and was due home in July for two weeks.

Snyder was part of a family with strong ties to the military service. Her father and former Cohocton mayor, Edward Snyder, is a U.S. Navy veteran, and two of her siblings, Natasha, 23, and Damien, 19, currently serve in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army, respectively.

Although confirming she was scared of her daughter joining the army, Dineen Snyder said she and her husband never tried to talk their daughter out of joining the service.

“She always had her heart set on joining the Army. We always let our kids make their own choices as to what they want to do. We were supportive,” she said.

Ron Snyder, the specialist’s uncle, agreed she always had her heart and mind set on joining the military.

“That was going to be her career. She wanted this since high school, and she was the type of person who knew what she wanted and worked her butt off for it,” he said. “She had a personality that wouldn’t quit.

“I don’t think she had any other interests except the army. That was her goal, to go as far as possible. She was probably a 30-year person.”

A 2008 graduate of Wayland-Cohocton Central School, Snyder was an avid soccer player and track star, who earned the nickname “Twiggy” when she started running track on varsity, said former Wayland-Cohocton girls track coach Jeff Englert.

“We brought her up as an eighth grader,” said Englert, who coached Snyder in high school. “She was always a real pleasant kid to be around. The older girls were taken with her. She just took their hearts. She was very humble, always looking to get better and better.”

Englert said he became close with her and the rest of her family during her five-year track stint, and that he’d stayed in touch with Snyder since she joined the service.

“She did a lot of great things for me as a friend her senior year. She told me the heartbeat of the team, anything I needed to look at as a coach. She helped me become a better person and coach,” he said. “She had everything going for her. To have it end like this is awful.”

Snyder is survived by her parents, Ed and Dineen Snyder; two brothers, Derek (Mariah) Snyder, 28, and Damien Snyder, 19; a sister, Natasha Snyder, 23; and a niece, Ariel.

Snyder’s family is flying to Dover, where her body is arriving today. Services aren’t scheduled yet but will be held at Walter E. Baird & Sons funeral home.

Copyright 2011 Hornell Evening Tribune. Some rights reserved

State Government Awards $191 Million To Wind Projects
June 02, 2011 05:18:00

Howard Wind Project Recieves Some Of This Money

June 2, 2011



Albany, NY - Governor Andrew Cuomo says the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the Public Service Commission (PSC) have awarded $191 million to 17 power projects across the state.



Wind projects selected include:

· Howard Wind Farm, Steuben County
· Stony Creek Wind Farm, Wyoming, Wyoming County
· Allegany Wind Farm, Great Valley, Cattaraugus County
· Marble River Wind Farm, Churubusco, Clinton County



According to the governor's office, the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) was created in 2004, and promotes the development of new renewable energy resources, and the RPS is funded by a surcharge collected from ratepayers served by utility companies.



Local critics of wind energy say the RPS is a scam in which credits are sold from one wind company to another, whether wind is generated or not, and that it was not until the RPS system came along that industrial wind projects started up in the southern tier.



"They're trying for these credits and that's the end of the story" said Howard resident Gerry Hedman. Hedman, a wind protester who lives near property where a wind turbine will be soon constructed, unsuccessfully sued the Howard Town Board over the wind project.

Quint Baird starting pitcher

.....Double trouble: Nobles’ big night pushes Eagles in BB title game.Zoom Photos. Derrick Balinsky.Way-Co starting pitcher Quint Baird.



By Derrick Balinsky
The Evening Tribune
Posted Jun 01, 2011 @ 10:45 AM


Dansville, N.Y. — Zach Nobles put both his bat and glove to good use Tuesday night.

The outfielder-pitcher notched a perfect day at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a double and two RBI, while also pitching a solid 1 1/3 innings of relief as the top-seeded Wayland-Cohocton Eagles made their way to the Section V, Class BB championship round with a 10-5 victory over the fourth-seeded Livonia Bulldogs at Babcock Park in Dansville.

“It’s nice to get back to this stage. It’s been a couple of years since we been to the finals,” Way-Co skipped Wager said minutes after the conclusion of the game which was delayed nearly an hour due to an unplayable heat index on the field. “It’s nice to see the kids get excited but not overly celebrate because I think that they’re not satisfied yet.”

Livonia bounced back from an early deficit to knot the game at three with a three-run third. They opened up a 4-3 advantage in the top of the fourth, but the maroon and gold would answer with a five-run fifth which essentially sealed the Bulldogs’ fate.
“We had a couple of clutch hits,” Wager said when asked about the fifth-inning offense. “In the inning before, we had bases loaded with nobody out and two, three, four in our order coming up and I think we only came up with one. So it was nice to see a couple of clutch hits to finally break the game open a little bit.”

“We got that first out on a pop-up to the shortstop and then on a second pop-up, my second baseman got a little gun shy after a collision earlier,” Livonia head coach Scott Gillman said. “You could see that he didn’t want to go after the ball. Once that fell in, you’ve got yourself base runner to contend with and the next kid singled. Before you know it was just hit after hit after hit. When you extend innings like that, especially with how hot it was, people get tired and it starts to wear on you.”

The Bulldogs spotted the Eagles a 3-0 head start by the end of the first inning.

“The guys have done a good job this year of getting off to good starts,” Wager said. “In any sport that’s important. You get off to a good start and you build confidence as you go, and hopefully you keep it.”

“It was very difficult to try and come back after getting behind early,” Gillman said. “We did the same thing against Aquinas — we were down three after one and it was the same thing here. You can’t live too long falling behind as much as we did and it finally caught up with us. Even though we were able to catch up and take the lead, we weren’t able to do that the second time. I think it came down to their ability to hit the ball and our inability to throw strikes. Our freshman walked seven kids and that’s just something he’ll have to get better at.
“Experience and depth,” Gillman added, referring to the biggest differences between the two clubs. “We don’t have a whole heck of a lot of experience. And as far as pitching, we don’t have a whole heck of a lot of depth. Our freshman started tonight and it was a good experience for him to pitch a semifinal. Hopefully that will carry him for the next three years.”

Evan Englert went 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Tyler Brown also ended up 2-for-3. Ryan Gibbs was 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI and Tyler Thielges chipped in at 1-for-3 with a pair of RBI.

Quint Baird struck out seven over 5 2/3 innings, giving up five runs (four earned) on five hits and four walks.

“I thought he was solid. For the conditions, and as hot as it was, I thought he pitched very well,” Wager said. “He was just over 100 pitches and he said he was fine, but we just thought it was time to make the switch.”

The Bulldogs go out of business at 13-8 and will lose five starting seniors to graduation.

“It’s always tough when you lost your last game,” Gillman said. “My expectations are always high coming into any season, but I didn’t expect to win 13 games with this team. We only really had four returning players and a bunch of young kids stepping in. To win 13 games and reach the semifinal round of our bracket, we’re proud of that but still the short of it is that you don’t want to lose.
“We lose our senior horse who has done most of the pitching for us, a three-year catcher and our shortstop. The center fielder will be tough to replace, too, because he’s our catalyst lead-off hitter.”

The Eagles will meet up with second-seeded Hornell on Friday afternoon at a time and venue that has yet to be determined. The two teams split their regular-season series, Wayland winning on its home field 8-5 and Hornell winning 4-0 at Maple City City Park to clinch the Livingston County Athletic Association Division I championship.

“These are two pretty evenly matched teams. We split during the regular season, but I think the kids are confident,” Wager said. “They know that we’ve had a lot of success against these guys the last few years. Again, they’ll be confident going into the game, it’s just a matter of producing and getting the job done.”

Wager was unsure which of his pitchers would be called upon to get the next start and he didn’t rule out throwing Baird back on the hill.

“It’s hard to say,” Wager said. “We’ll see how Quint bounces back. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.”

Copyright 2011 Hornell Evening Tribune. Some rights reserved

Way–Co middle school gets free 21st Century Wireless Lab.Zoom Photos. Jeff Miller.Brian Resler, sales manager for the Chicago office of Toshiba, demonstrates Toshiba tablet PCs to eighth graders in the Wayland-Cohocton Middle School libarary May 26.


By Jeff Miller
Genesee Country Express
Posted Jun 02, 2011 @ 12:00 PM
Last update Jun 02, 2011 @ 02:38 PM
Wayland — At a time when budgetary constraints are making it impossible for area schools to make large purchases, Wayland–Cohocton Middle School recently installed a wireless computer lab worth about $48,000.

The district acquired its new lab absolutely free.

A year ago, Anita Pragle, a teacher's aide, learned about a 21st Century Wireless Lab sweepstakes through a partnership between CDW-Government and Discovery Education. Rules allowed contestants to enter as often as they wanted, so Pragle did — every single day for about a month and a half via the internet. Out of 118,000 unique entries (or roughly 600,000 total entries for each school that entered more than once) from all 50 states, Wayland-Cohocton was one of three schools that won the grand prize.

“I didn’t believe it for a while,” Pragle said, adding that she thought the phone call was some kind of hoax. But it wasn’t until Lynn Siciliano, head of the school’s technology department, who was also notified the school had won at the same time, told her that it was indeed for real, that she finally accepted it.

Pragle said the receipt of the new computer equipment is right on time. The school was down to four laptops in the computer lab and 13 computers in the library for students to use. It wasn’t uncommon for the library’s computers to be fully occupied, Pragle said. “Most of the time, we sent students away.”

To launch the new lab, representatives from Discovery Education, CDW-G and Toshiba showed students and teachers how to use the new technology May 26. Pragle said the new system will be housed in the computer lab and be taken to classrooms on an as-needed basis. The whole lab can fit onto a cart and wheeled wherever it needs to go.

“That’s what makes it so nice,” Pragle said.

In addition to the three grand-prize winning schools, 20 other schools won other equipment. In all, schools received more than $150,000 worth of technology equipment from the 2010 sweepstakes.

The contest is in its ninth year, and has awarded nearly 30 wireless labs to schools across the country. Each winner is chosen through a random drawing.

Copyright 2011 Dansville-Genesee Country Express. Some rights reserved