Travis Sanders

BUFFALO – A former city resident and former general manager of a local junior hockey team has been arrested on child pornography charges.

The U.S. Attorney’s office in Buffalo says 32-year-old Travis Sanders was arrested in Texas following a criminal complaint that he allegedly received and distributed child pornography while living in Western New York.

The case was brought to the attention of the department of Homeland Security by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police National Child Exploitation Center.

Canadian authorities claim an individual with the username “Damion Forsberg” was using Skype and regularly shared pornography that sometimes included children. An investigation revealed the individual to allegedly be Sanders and that he was living in Jamestown when the sharing allegedly took place. Authorities seized a laptop and cellphone allegedly belonging to Sanders and say they found images and videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

According to the Post-Journal, Sanders is the former general manager and assistant coach of the Southern Tier Xpress junior hockey team in Jamestown. He left Jamestown in July to take a similar job with a team in Teaxas.

Sanders was arrested in Texas and will be extradited to Western New York at a later date to face prosecution.

The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.

The former Philadelphia Rebels hockey club have signed an eight-year contract to play in Jamestown.

Jamestown has been without a Tier 2 Junior hockey team since the Ironmen club pulled out in 2013.

Since then the Southern Tier Xpress – a Tier 3 hockey club – has been playing in the arena. That team will not return for a season this fall, though officials say another Tier 3 team could also play at the arena, in addition to the new Rebels’ club.

The annual Downtown Jamestown Holiday Parade attracts thousands of people each year. (Photo courtesy of jrconline.org)

JAMESTOWN – It appears the weather is going to be perfect for a parade… or at least as perfect as it can get in December.

Thousands of people are expected to be in downtown Jamestown tonight for the annual Downtown Jamestown Holiday Parade, with the forecast calling for cloudy skies but no precipitation with temperatures in the low to mid 30s.

The event is coordinated each year by the Downtown Jamestown Holiday Parade, who says the name of this year’s parade is the Tinseltown Christmas Parade and Holiday Celebration, with participants encouraged to incorporate famous holiday movies from throughout the years into their floats.

The Parade will be presented by The Resource Center and will feature pre-parade musical entertainment, a traditional tree lighting ceremony with Mayor Sam Teresi, the arrival of Santa Claus, and a fireworks display above the Spring Street parking ramp, sponsored by the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation.

The parade starts at 6:30 and will begin on the Third Street Bridge and continue down Third Street to City Hall. Parade line up will begin at 5 pm on West Third Street between Hallock Street and Porter Avenue (Farm Fresh Plaza).

Other events scheduled for that weekend in partnership with the downtown holiday parade:

• An appearance by Santa at the Santa’s Family Workshop event at the Jamestown YMCA from 7 to 9 pm.
• The Southern Tier Xpress is hosting an Ugly Xmas Sweater game at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena at 8:30 pm.
• Toys for Tots toy drive, sponsored by The Resource Center with residents encouraged to drop off newly purchased toys at the TRC float in the parade.
• Also on Saturday, the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts will be showing Elf starring Will Farrell on Saturday, December 5, at 2:00 pm. The showing is sponsored by Jamestown Up Close.

For more information on parade activities, visit www.JamestownRenaissance.org or call 716-664-2477 ext 226.

Pictured from left: Steve Waterson, TRC Director of Public Relations, Selina Phillips, TRC Executive Assistant, Terri Johnson, TRC Director of Rehabilitation, Employment and Community Services, Greg Lindquist, Executive Director for the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation, and Heather Brown, TRC Assistant Executive Director.

JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown Renaissance Corporation has announced the theme for this year’s downtown Jamestown holiday parade. The Tinseltown Christmas Parade and Holiday Celebration, presented by The Resource Center, will feature pre-parade musical entertainment, a traditional tree lighting ceremony with Mayor Sam Teresi, and a fireworks display above the Spring Street parking ramp. Applications to participate in the parade are now being accepted and are available for download online.

The Tinseltown Christmas Parade and Holiday Celebration will be held on Friday, December 4, beginning at 6:30 pm. The parade itself will begin on the Third Street Bridge and continue down Third Street to City Hall. Parade line up will begin at 5 pm on West Third Street between Hallock Street and Porter Avenue (Farm Fresh Plaza).

“We try to choose a parade theme that will appeal to everyone and will be easy for all ages to participate in,” said Edwin Rodriguez Jr., events and marketing associate for the Jamestown Renaissance Corporation. “We selected Tinseltown Christmas to make sure we include modern holiday classics along with the traditional films we all know and love. This year’s parade celebrates your favorite holiday movies, your way,” said Rodriguez. Participants are encouraged to choose any of their favorite holiday movies to reenact in the parade, from traditional films like Miracle on 34th Street and Christmas Story to modern classics like Frozen, Elf, and more.

“The Christmas Parade is a wonderful example of our community coming together, and it is our pleasure to support this event which reaches so many in the Jamestown area,” said Denise Jones, Executive Director for The Resource Center. “TRC encourages our staff, and the individuals we support in participating and giving back to our community, and the Holiday Parade pairs very nicely with our long-going support of the Toys for Tots program.  We appreciate the extensive amount of effort Jamestown Renaissance and many other community organizations and businesses invest in making our community a great place to live, work, and play,” said Jones.

Along with The Resource Center, the Tinseltown Christmas Parade and Holiday Celebration would not be possible without the following: Parade Fireworks sponsored by the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation; Official Transportation of Santa sponsored by Shults Auto Group; Official Grand Marshall Transportation sponsored by Elite Kreations Auto Detailing; Additional support for the event is provided by Southern Tier Xpress and the 38 libraries of the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System.

Special thanks to the City of Jamestown, Jamestown Renaissance Corporation, Gebbie Foundation, Jamestown Up Close, and Jamestown YMCA.

Other events scheduled for that weekend in partnership with the downtown holiday parade:

• Santa will be ending his parade travels on Friday, December 4, at the Santa’s Family Workshop event hosted by the Jamestown YMCA from 7 to 9 pm. Santa’s Family Workshop includes holiday activities, food, and more.
• The Southern Tier Xpress hockey team is hosting an Ugly Xmas Sweater night at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena after the parade. Puck drop is at 8:30 pm. Wear your best ugly holiday sweater for a chance to win great prizes.
• Toys for Tots will be accepting applications on December 4 from 1 to 4 pm and December 5 from 9 am to noon at the Lillian Vitanza Ney Renaissance Center at 119-121 W. Third Street. All applicants must meet the eligibility requirements and bring identification for themselves and all children along with proof of household income.
• The Reg Lenna Center for the Arts will be showing Elf starring Will Farrell on Saturday, December 5, at 2:00 pm. The showing is sponsored by Jamestown Up Close.

For more information on Jamestown Renaissance Corporation special events or to sign up for the Tinseltown Christmas Parade and Holiday Celebration, please visit www.jamestownrenaissance.org to download the appropriate application or call 716-664-2477 ext 226.

The Southern Tier Xpress (2-3-1) will be sporting pink socks in support of breast cancer awareness as they face-off against the Pittsburgh Vengeance (3-2-0). This NA3HL rivalry will commence with a ceremonial puck drop at 5 p.m. 

Tickets are only $5! For more information on Pink the Rink or to purchase tickets, please call 716.484.2624, visit www.jamestownarena.com, or join the Pink the Rink Facebook event. Breast cancer awareness: will you get credit for the assist? Without you, it will take longer!

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  Caladh Nua

  Highlighting the weekend is an appearance by Irish music group, Caladh Nua, who will perform at Reg Lenna Center for The Arts on Sunday at 7 p.m. Coming from southern Ireland, the quintet performs traditional Irish music with a contemporary flair.

• Meanwhile, Jamestown Community College’s production of All My Sons opens Friday night at 8 p.m. in the Scharmann Theatre on JCC’s Jamestown Campus. Performances will also be held March 7, 13, and 14 at 8 p.m. and March 8 at 2 p.m.

• The two-man play Mass Appeal, by Bill C. Davis, will be presented by the Winged Ox Players starting Friday Night at 7:30 p.m. and continuing Saturday night and also next weekend at St Luke’s Episcopal Church in downtown Jamestown. Directed by Steven Michael Cobb and featuring Daniel Pierce and Lars Benson in the lead roles, the comedy-drama focuses on the conflict between a complacent Roman Catholic pastor and the idealistic young deacon who is assigned to his affluent, suburban parish. The play invites us to question the status quo and addresses issues around women’s rights, homosexuality, and alcoholism.

• The Southern Tier Xpress hockey team will host a playoff hockey game on Saturday. The team clinched a spot in the playoffs after wrapping up their season 26-20-1 in the NA3HL’s East Division. The Southern Tier Xpress is playing the top-seeded Metro Jets in a best two-out-of-three series. Game 1 took place Thursday in Waterford Michigan with the Xpress losing 4 to 3. Game 2 brings the teams to Jamestown and will take place at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena on Saturday, Starting at 5 p.m.

For a complete rundown of live entertainment in Jamestown, including the local music scene, check out this week’s WRFA Rock and Roll rundown.

The event will include races on both Saturday and Sunday, an attempt at breaking the world record for most people grape stomping and an appearance by legendary comedian and actor Bob Newhart. Plus, there will be a variety of other activities that tie in with the weekend-long event.

The event is being sponsored Univera Healthcare and coordinated by the Lucy-Desi Center for Comedy, Chautauqua Striders and the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena. Lucy-Desi Center executive Director Journey Gunderson says she is obviously excited to have a legend like Newhart come to Jamestown on Saturday night.

“The coolest part of everyone’s reaction is that they’re excited to see someone who they consider one of the most iconic comedy legends in American history,” Gunderson recently told WRFA. “And young people know him from The Big Bang Theory – we’ve heard young people tell us, ‘I love [Newhart’s character] Professor Proton!’ So that is something I didn’t necessarily expect but have been excited to see. It’s a really cool thing to see that the audience is really going to range in people who knew him from Bob Newhart, his TV show in the 70s and 80s, to people who know him from his 2013 Emmy Award-Winning performances on The Big Bang Theory.”

Bob Newhart will return to Jamestown on Oct. 10, 2014.

Gunderson says this will actually be Newhart’s second appearance in Jamestown. He was also in town in 1996 for the Lucille Ball Festival of Comedy celebration.

A limited number of tickets for the Bob Newhart show at the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts on Saturday night are still available and can be purchased by visting www.lucyrace.com or by calling 484-0800. They can also be purchased at the Reg Lenna box office.

The weekend will also include an effort to break the world record for most people grape stomping in one location. Gunderson said that this is simply a fun way to celebrate Lucy and one of her most memorable scenes on television.

“Jamestown received so much positive press from the 2011 Guinness World Record of the most people dressed as Lucy Ricardo so its’ always been in the back of our minds and not the forefront certainly to break records, but to celebrate comedy, so we looked at it that way,” Gunderson said. “We wanted to celebrate one of the most iconic comedy scenes in television history – so many people celebrate the scene when Lucy stomps grapes in that classic I Love Lucy episode… and also celebrate that we are in the largest grape-growing region east of the Rockies.”

The current record for most people grape stomping is 970 and was set in Spain. However, Gunderson is confident that that the new record will be set this Saturday, starting at 11am. The grape stomping will take place on W. Second St. near the Jamestown Gateway Train Station. Everyone is encouraged to stop by and register to take part up to the start of the event.

And of course the main purpose of the event this weekend is the 5K race on Saturday along with the half-marathon on Sunday. This is the second year for both events and Gunderson says registration this year has already surpassed last year. And even if you don’t plan to run, Gunderson is encouraging all residents to come out on Sunday and cheer on the runners and celebrate in the post-race activities, which include a live concert from Jamestown’s own Smackdab – beginning at 11 a.m. Sunday in front of the Ice Arena.

Another event this weekend that ties in with the Lucytown Half Marathon and 5K run is hockey at the Ice Arena, which features the Southern Tier Xpress taking on the Pittsburgh Vengeance Saturday afternoon.

For more information on all the events, visit www.lucyrace.com or by calling 484-0800.

WRFA’s interview with Journey Gunderson, regarding the 2014 Lucy Town Half Marathon, will take place Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. on WRFA.

The first wave of tryouts is to be held this upcoming week on May 16 -18 at JSBA.

Tryout schedule:

• May 16: 4:00 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.
• May 17: 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
• May 18: 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Additional tryouts are also scheduled for later this spring.

The cost of each tryout is $250, but there are multi-tryout discounts available. For more information or any questions, please e-mail southerntierxpress@gmail.com or call JSBA at 716-484-2624.

Logo for the NA3HL that the new Jamestown hockey team will be affiliated with.

JAMESTOWN – A name has been announced for the new junior hockey team that will be skating on the ice at the Jamestown Savings Bank Arena starting later this year.

The Jamestown Area Hockey Associates announce that Southern Tier Xpress will be the name of the new junior hockey team. According to a media release from the ice arena, the name was suggested by local resident Bud Tomassi.

In March, the owners of the new team announced a ‘Name Your Team Contest’ in an effort to find a name for the new team. Tomassi’s suggestion was reportedly one of over a thousand that was submitted. Tomassi says that he suggested the name because it identifies more with the geographical area rather than just Jamestown proper – adding that The Xpress links the region back to the days of the railroad, the Gateway Train Station on Second Street and the economic importance both once had to the area. He said it also associates itself with the Southern Tier Expressway that runs through the region.

The Southern Tier Xpress is part of the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL), a top level Tier 3 league in the North American Hockey League association. The Xpress will also encompass a pair of youth feeder teams including an under 14 and an under 16 team.

Tryouts for the feeder teams will be held on April 21, 23 and 24 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the JSBA.  Tryouts for the Xpress NA3HL team are set for May 16-18 and will also be held at JSBA.