It can be daunting to step into the shoes of a long-standing, beloved leadership figure, but Kyle Semmel, the new executive director of Rochester’s Writers and Books (WAB) literary center, is enjoying the challenge. Founder Joe Flaherty retired this past spring after thirty-five years of shaping, growing, and being the public face—and only leader—of the …

One would think that deep respect and preservation of history are mutually exclusive to fabricating the past. Not for Heirlooms author Rachel Hall, who delicately balances the factual experience of her WWII-era ancestors with fictional characters who, to Hall, have proper lives of their own.  I meet Hall for our 12:30 interview at the new …

A slender silhouette interrupts the cold lines of the built environment. A hooded acolyte of comfort. The larval form of a creature that evolved for warmth. A sorcerer of chill.   Chinchillo’s creator is Will Cornfield, a photographer and marketing student at Roberts Wesleyan College. Cornfield was working long hours at a college event when he hit upon the elegant design. Chinchillo …

Sometimes life callings come in unexpected ways. For one local man, the call to a new way of living came in the form of a chicken. Shane Camman and his high-school-sweetheart-turned-wife, Heather, had what appeared to be the picture-perfect life. They had four beautiful children, Shane had advanced quickly in the medical sales industry, and …

It’s a rainy Sunday afternoon when I arrive at Barbetorium. I’ve met the owner, Jes Sutton, on a couple occasions, and today he answers the door in his signature head-to-toe black and porkpie hat. Delightful and charming as ever, Sutton offers up an array of beverages, including his new favorite, an apple and cinnamon infused …