Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother’s house we go! My dad knows the way to fix the sleigh, when the radiator decides to blow, OH! When I was a kid, my favorite part of the holiday season was the road trips. We have family all over northern New York and Canada, and my parents were adamant about…
3.11.2026
’Tis the season! The holidays are stressful—wholesome, but stressful. And one of the easiest ways to break the ice with Mom’s second cousin once removed whom you last saw when you were six, is to have a great cocktail in hand. Ryan Dooling runs The Classic alongside owners Drew and Marie Nye and has been in the hospitality business for…
3.11.2026
The Long Island with warm garlic butter The shores of Lake Ontario might not be brimming with lobster, but it’s not hard to find a top-tier, fresh, juicy roll right in the (585). I like a lot of foods, but seafood is my favorite, and I don’t think that will ever change. East Coast and West Coast, I’ve had it…
3.11.2026
Pasta Bolognese The cheese tray at the brewery was built for four people, not the crowd of us circling it like vultures fifteen minutes into a two-hour panel discussion. We stood there staring at what looked like a Polly Pocket accessory, doing the math on how a roomful of thirty adults were supposed to split eleven cubes of pepper jack. …
3.11.2026
Lynne Hooker It was 1967, and Monroe County was still gun shy, especially in my neck of the woods in the northeastern corner of Chili. Just six months earlier, my friends George-Ann Formicola and Kathy Bernhard had disappeared. They remained missing for a month and were found brutally murdered. So there was an immediate shudder of horror when word came…
2.11.2026
Six mornings a week, long before the lunch line begins to form, the staff and volunteers at St. Peter’s Kitchen tie on their aprons and get to work preparing lunch for the 300-plus guests who will walk through its doors midday. Outside, the aroma drifting from the kitchen evokes Thanksgiving dinner. Inside, it’s even more inviting as team members move…
2.11.2026
Growing up in Webster, Bill Polito heard all about the town’s annual Turkey Trot, a running event held each Thanksgiving morning. In 1988, he moved to a house on Holt Road, a mile from the starting line, and decided to join in the fun. “I ran in high school and decided to give the Turkey Trot a try,” he says.…
2.11.2026
Ashley Cross is a third-generation foster parent who has devoted her life to her community, providing free programs and services to Rochester youth and families through HOPE585, a relationship-centered community where marginalized youth and their families can hope, heal, and thrive. While living in Oklahoma, Cross started the first professional foster home for young ladies preparing to age out of…
2.11.2026
You may have had pie from Special Touch Bakery without even knowing it. “When you go to Wegmans and see the pies that have the hearts on them? We help make those for them,” says Jillian Nalivyko, marketing and public relations manager at the School of the Holy Childhood. Special Touch Bakery has an integrated workforce. Its mission is “Purpose…
2.11.2026
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She’s just terrific

*This article first appeared in a 2018 issue of (585). Sometimes a $50 savings bond can turn into so much more. It fact, it can lead to something just terrific. That’s exactly what it did for Fairport native Rachael Gootnick, owner of the book restoration, book construction, and book jewelry company Just Terrific Handcrafted Goods.  …

Library lunatics

Unable to hide his chagrin, my six-year-old brother walked in the house after school and unburdened his daily troubles. “Taylor, Mrs. Casey yelled at me today.”   “Ok, so Casey is dead to me,” I thought. Nobody—NOBODY—yells at my younger siblings except me; that’s the number one rule in the Oldest Sibling Handbook. Older kids can …

Tasting Summer in a Glass

When Evan Dawson decided to write Summer in a Glass (Sterling Epicure 2011 and Union Square & Co. 2012), he assumed it would be a self-published piece fueled by passion. Telling the story of the Finger Lakes wine community was more important to him than any potential revenue, so Dawson—a morning news anchor in Rochester— …

The Grilled Cheese Factory will have you saying “yes, please!”

I’ll be honest—while the concept is cool, my initial thought was, “How much can one write about a grilled cheese sandwich?” But sitting inside the eclectic purple and yellow, industrial yet artsy walls of the Grilled Cheese Factory ROC (TGCF), that thought left my mind immediately. All it took was one bite of the Dillified …

Patron Saint delivers a tableside theater experience

It begins the moment I step through the door—a low hum of conversation, the gentle clink of drinks, and the scent of something caramelizing. Entering the restaurant feels like stepping into a jewelry box, its emerald-hued interior wrapping around me like silk.  I’m met with a curving reception desk painted deep spruce and a towering …

Communication is key at The Highlands at Pittsford

Senior living communities have a variety of ways of keeping communication lines open and informative for everyone. Retirement and nursing homes employ everything from newsletters to internal TV channels to keep residents informed and in-the-know. No one lives in isolation in these settings, and fostering a strong sense of connection is important to both staff …

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