Regular readers of (585) Kids have likely heard of the Rochester Children’s Book Festival (RCBF). After all, it has been bringing authors, illustrators, kids, and
Ahhh summer … Picnics, graduation parties, weddings, backyard gatherings with neighbors. Children at home. ALL. DAY .LONG. I am certain that my children don’t eat
A NEW, INCLUSIVE PLACE TO PLAY As a special education teacher and administrator for more than twenty years, Kristen Bonn was often uncomfortable with the
ONGOING TUESDAYS–FRIDAYS SCIENCE TOGETHER Ithaca’s Sciencenter hosts its Science Together programs, which explore different science processes for children up to four years old. Children must
I recently visited my sister and her family in Portland, Oregon. One of the highlights of my visit was spending time with my sweet niece Valentina. When I read Terri Ercole’s article about smiling and the simple joy it brings, I immediately thought of Valentina. Isn’t her sweet smile infectious? One cannot help but smile back when she happily walks in the house after the school day. And those dimples! Well, I could go on and on as is an aunt’s privilege.
My heart is a bit achy since I left , since we have no idea when we will get to see each other again. But then I look at this photo or read the cute texts Valentina sends me, and I feel a bit better. She is only thirteen right now—part little girl and part growing teen. I remember being that age, and I won’t lie, it is a hard time of life. But it is just as hard (or harder) being a parent of a young teen that age. My sister has her work cut out for her, but she is also in for a lot of fun and joy, too.
Valentina is the perfect age for (585) Kids, but it is also valuable to people like my sister and her husband. Never forget that our magazine is for kids, parents, and adults who work closely with children. Take an extra copy and share it with your friends!
Every weekend in October, Lincoln Hill Farms will host Halloween Fest, a festival to celebrate the spooky season.
This will be the farm’s third year hosting the event, which has grown since its inception. “We work hard to make each year bigger and better than the last. From the addition of our Zombie Hunt Tractor Ride to the Halloween-themed games and prizes, and much more, each year is better than the last,” says John Bechtold, content creator and marketer at Lincoln Hill Farms.
Visitors on the haunted hayride will find costumed zombies on the farmland property, although we’re told the vibe is more “spooky” than “scary” and enjoyable for all ages.
Live music will play nearly every weekend, kicking off with Skycoasters on opening night and later including bands like The Mustard Tigers, BarnSalt, ROC Star Academy, and more.
Lincoln Hill Farms prepares and serves food right onsite: everything from barbecue to pizza and ice cream. “We take pride in our barbecue. We source local ingredients and prepare them with an authentic southern flare,” says Bechtold. “The Silo Cup is a must-try, fusing our favorite barbecue dishes into one cup that’s easy to take on the go. Think barbecue trash plate.”
At Cobblestone Arts Center, adults with disabilities participate in day programs exploring dance, music, and visual arts. The arts center in Farmington also boasts a touring theater group, the Cobblestone Players.
In support of its programs, the center is hosting WinterFest on December 13 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. “As both a fundraiser and a celebration of culture, Winterfest brings together neighbors, artists, and families for a joyful start to the holiday season,” says Sarah Andreacchi, performing arts & community outreach coordinator at Cobblestone.
The free festival will feature performances from select teaching artists, including Grupo Cultural Latinos en Rochester (Latino music and dance), Dylaina Young (belly dance), and Nanako Horikawa Mandrino (Japanese tea ceremony).
Families will be able to visit with Santa, Mrs. Claus, and the Grinch. Inside the art studio, kids can make their own ornaments or work on a LEGO build (for a small donation). The Victor Pops Community Band, a forty-piece brass band, will kick off the onstage performances. The Cobblestone Community Players will be caroling, and dancers from the St. Peter’s Community Arts Academy in Geneva will perform.
Artisan vendors will be on site, offering everything from jewelry and clothing to handmade soap and woodworking. Local food trucks and restaurants will offer diverse fare at the festival, including El Morro Puerto Rican Food Truck, weather permitting.
John Deming, director at the school, says the ballet company already had such a beautiful space they were utilizing, and they had the teachers.
“Starting the school was born first from a love and passion for teaching. . . . Our professional dancers are all passionate about teaching at the local schools. So having the space and the faculty already in-house, it seemed like a no-brainer,” he says.
RCB and the school have a shared mission to make ballet more accessible and inclusive, and they encourage participation from dancers of all ages and disabilities. The school also offers need-based scholarships and financial assistance to make entry into the school more accessible.
The School of Rochester City Ballet is unique in that every faculty member is a current professional dancer. “Having a still-performing, professional ballet dancer not just tell you the step or correction but show you offers a layer of clarity for our students,” says Deming. “Still being in the field today, our teachers are more in tune with the everchanging landscape of this art form.”
The curriculum includes ballet, pre-pointe, pointe, jazz, partnering, and more. Classes are available for dancers as young as three years old. rochestercityballet.com/the-school-of-rcb
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of (585) Kids.
Joe’s Family Farm in Brockport gets a spooky makeover this season every Friday and Saturday. Take a walk through the haunted corn maze for a fright, or explore the blackout corn maze for a peaceful, family-friendly walk by flashlight. Quiet wagon rides are available for a scenic ride around the farm, and there will be food (including s’mores) and hot drinks.
This year’s SCB Fall Fest, hosted by Sarah’s Country Barn, will feature more than fifty local artisans, music, food vendors, and more. This year’s benefitting charity is the Ontario Food Pantry, which serves sixty to 100 families a week. Entry fee is $1 or one non-perishable food item.
At Elmira’s Trunk or Treat event, organizations decorate the trunks of their cars and hand out candy to families in attendance. Vehicles line up on Main Street in front of Wisner Park. The historic Elmira Popcorn Truck is even expected to make an appearance.
This family-friendly run or walk through the Cobbs Hill area includes a 5K option or a half-mile option for kids aged four to twelve. Participants are encouraged to wear Halloween costumes. There is an option to participate virtually. In-person registration includes post-race treats.
In this musical, featuring singer-actor-puppeteers, the world of Gabby’s Dollhouse comes to the stage. Gabby and friends work at rebuilding a rainbow broken by CatRat. The live show will feature songs like “Sprinkle Party,” “You Can’t Spell Meow Without Me,” and more.
Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, one of the most popular ballets of all time, comes to West Herr Auditorium Theatre this fall via a cast of dancers from around the world. The ballet tells the story of a princess who has been transformed into a swan by a sorcerer. Only true love can break the curse.
The twenty-eighth annual Rochester Children and Teens Book Festival is a free event that features presentations for all ages and a craft room for kids. Fifty authors will be onsite to interact with and sign books for purchase.
Every year, the George Eastman Museum is taken over by dozens of deliciously decorated gingerbread houses. These visual treats for the family will be auctioned in a silent auction. Visit eastman.org for admission information.
This spectacular show features holiday songs from Mariah Carey, Elvis Presley, and more. Its full-dome laser presentation is sure to bring holiday cheer to all. Tickets and times are listed on rmsc.org.
This three-mile walk/run around the South Wedge takes place Thanksgiving morning and starts and ends at Abundance Cooperative Market on South Avenue. There are four stops along the route, where participants can pick up free cider and donuts, enjoy a Swiftwater beer tasting, and more. The event is free.
This holiday classic follows Ebenezer Scrooge as he is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve. The spirits show Scrooge who he has been, who he is, and who he may become in the future. Visit gevatheatre.org for times, tickets, and more information.
Jim Henson’s classic TV special, Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas, comes to OFC Creations's stage this holiday season. Ma and Emmet Otter don’t have much this Christmas, and they both consider risking what they have to make each other’s season a little brighter. Must be at least five years old to attend.
The Rochester Public Market is decked out with lights and music of its Holidays at the Market event. Trees, wreathes, and decorations are available purchase as well as a variety of items for gift-giving. Kids can visit with Santa or ride in a horse-drawn carriage. The event runs every Sunday from November 30 to December 14, with a special evening event on Thursday, Dec. 18.
Sugar plum fairies and snowflakes will dance their way onto the stage in this production of the Christmas favorite The Nutcracker. The production features performers from all over the world, as well as puppetry and acrobatics.
Sixteen days of activities will make up the seventh annual ROC Holiday Village. The festival will feature free ice skating, outdoor seating around firepits, free meet-and-greets with Santa, live music, food trucks, cozy winter igloos, and more.
The Village of Avon will be bustling with music and family-friendly activities during this year’s Avon Holiday Spectacular. Businesses will offer special treats and discounts, and Santa and his elves will be visiting the village for the evening.
This winter, cozy “snow globes” are available for rental on the Lake Street walking bridge in Elmira, over the Chemung River. Rentals of the furnished, transparent dome lounges are available for up to six guests for an hour and a half. Complementary s’mores boards and blankets to keep warm are included. Add-ons include a bucket of beer, mimosas, hot chocolate shooters, and donuts.
The Grinch learns Christmas joy, alongside his pet dog Max and Cindy Lou Who, in this holiday classic brought to life. This performance is sure to grow the hearts of all attendees! Tickets are available through the OFC website.
Savory or sweet breakfast casseroles are the perfect way to elevate a weekend morning, feed a crowd, or be ready for busy weekday mornings.
A small amount of prep work the night before results in an easy morning where all you have to do it pop the casserole into the oven to bake.
Be sure to set your oven to preheat automatically, so you can wake up and start baking before you’ve even had your first cup of coffee!
Egg-based savory casseroles are easy to make and always popular. Some have hash browns as a base. You can use store-bought frozen hash browns to simplify the prep. I always like a strata—a great way to use leftover veggies and bread that is becoming stale. It is easy to find many recipes for both online; feel free to mix and match ingredients with what you have on hand, or your family’s preferences.
The recipe here is for a sweet French toast berry casserole—enjoy!
Overnight French Toast Casserole
INGREDIENTS
1–2 French bread baguettes cut into slices
8 eggs
2 cups of milk (dairy or other)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2/3 cup brown sugar
3 cups berries* (I used sliced strawberries, blueberries,
and blackberries)
Powdered sugar for dusting
Maple syrup/ honey to serve
Whipped cream (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Spray a 9x13 casserole dish with cooking spray
2. Add sliced bread to the dish; you will create two
layers. You may want to layer some of the fruit in
between the two layers.
3. In a bowl combine milk, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon,
nutmeg, and brown sugar. Whisk to incorporate all
ingredients.
4. Pour mixture over bread
5. Add fruit and mix in.
6. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
In the morning:
7. Preheat oven to 350 F
8. Bake UNCOVERED for 40–50 minutes.
9. Dust with powdered sugar
10. Serve with maple syrup or honey and whipped
cream for a sweet treat.
*You can use other in-season fruit, too. Sliced peaches or thinly sliced apples would be delicious. I would not recommend using frozen fruit, as it has too high of a water content and will result in soggy French toast.
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of (585) Kids.
Lindsey LeTran, right, with student government advisor Ashley Fisher
Audrey is searching for kids in the Rochester area who are doing big things.
Today she interviews seventeen-year-old Lindsey LeTran who was selected as a 2025 Bezos Scholar. She is a senior at Canandaigua High School and has one younger brother and one older sister. Her favorite book is The Handmaid’s Tale, and her favorite subject is history. Lindsey loves animals, creating video edits, and Vietnamese food. She plays the violin and cello.
Can you tell us about the Bezos Scholars Program?
It’s a year-long leadership development program sponsored by Mike and Jackie Bezos. In June, I attended the Aspen Ideas Festival with my educator, Ashley Fisher, along with world leaders and change makers like Wes Moore and Brené Brown. We spent a week there, getting inspired by all these people and getting to bond as a cohort. There’s seventeen of us, five from Africa and twelve from the US. The rest of the year, each of us will develop a passion project that addresses something that we want to change in our community.
Can you tell me about your project?
I want to talk about student engagement and providing resources for students who can’t typically do extracurriculars. Right now, we’re out interviewing people about the problems they see in the community. After that, we’ll start developing our team, and then we’ll eventually launch our project around February. They give us $1,000 for the first year and the goal is to continue the project, even after I’m out of school.
How did you get involved in all this?
My student government advisor, Miss Fisher, told me about it, but I didn’t initially apply. I thought it was cool, but I thought there’s no way I’d get in with only seventeen kids chosen out of three thousand applicants. But Miss Fisher pushed me to take the leap of faith. So, take all the shots you could take, because you miss all of them if you don’t. Once we got to Aspen, I found out everyone else felt the exact same way. And these are kids who have NASA internships, even a published author. So it’s universal!
What kind of work did you do to get in?
It wasn’t based on accomplishments you’ve already done but having the potential to be an incredible leader and change maker. I had a lot of leadership experience with our State Leadership Council. I was big in student government. I’m on our unified athletics teams and promoting inclusion. Just being active in the community and having your own passions.
How much time do you think you put into this?
Oh, a lot! We’ve had Zoom call meetings every Saturday since May. Those last three to four hours. Then there’s all the individual assignments they have us do to develop our project. So I’d say maybe eight to ten hours a week. But they have really good resources. They provided me with a counselor to help with college applications and take the stress off which is amazing.
What do you think you’ve learned from being a part of the program?
I feel like I’ve changed so much as a person. I’ve been more openly curious. That’s definitely something we learned in Aspen, because we’re meeting so many cool people, and those people are right at our disposal. I got to meet and talk to the CEO of Ford. And I feel like I’ve taken that and brought it into my life. I went to a program at SUNY Geneseo and I got to talk to all the professors. I felt my curiosity growing. Gratitude is something I’ve also learned a lot. And we learned something called twenty seconds of courage, which is whenever you’re doing something that you’re nervous about, just do your twenty seconds of courage and just go for it.
You are also involved in NYSCLSA—what is that?
New York State Council on Leadership and Student Activities. That’s like a statewide leadership council, part of our national student council. I served last year as the secretary and this year as the vice president. We host an annual leadership conference in locations around New York State that is planned fully by students. It’s basically a weekend of leadership development and we invite student councils from all over New York.
Where do you see yourself in the future?
I want to go to law school and I want to be a public servant, but I also just want to live my life to the fullest. I want to continue doing projects that I’m passionate about to change my community. I’d love to do something similar to the Bezos Family Foundation. I want to be someone who can help the future generations; and also travel a lot and see lots of cute dogs.
Is there anything that you want kids to know?
Always be curious! Take those twenty seconds of courage and just put yourself out there. I think while we have so many young people that are doing so many amazing things, there can never be too many.
Do you know a kid who is doing big things? Send Audrey a message! [email protected]
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of (585) Kids.
Prowl, prowl, purr, purr! Visitors watch a snow leopards leap from a snowy rock, searching for its next meal.
Snow leopards are originally found in high rugged mountain ranges in Central and South Asia.
But for fifteen-year-old male snow leopard Kaba and nine-year-old female Timila, their home is the Seneca Park Zoo.
Timila was born in May 2016 at the Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia, and Kaba was born in May 2010 at the Cape May County Zoo in New Jersey. Snow leopards can live up to twenty years in conservation care—about twice as long as they would in their natural range. This means Kaba and Timila have many more years to climb, play, and teach visitors why it’s important to protect snow leopards in nature.
“Most of the outdoor exhibits have an open top to them, but the snow leopard yard is fully enclosed with a mesh top on it, because snow leopards are agile climbers and excellent jumpers,” says zookeeper Heidi Beifus, “It also has hills and rocky outcroppings similar to what they would have in nature.”
Snow leopards tend to prefer cooler climates, so at this exhibit visitors can see Kaba and Timila laying high up in trees and perches.
To help keep them comfortable, their habitat has shady spots with fans, misters, and even sprinklers that turn on during warm days. This way, the snow leopards can stay cool while visitors get a closer look at these amazing animals. When someone visits the habitat, Kaba and Timila may not be springing off of the perches. Instead, they may find them sleeping and lounging. This is because snow leopards are mainly active around dawn or dusk, and sometimes they are hard to spot in the wild. This makes mornings a great time to visit the Zoo.
These active cats can be loud; however, snow leopards cannot actually roar! Since they have under-developed vocal tissue, Kaba and Timila find other ways to communicate. “Snow leopards use many ways to communicate with each other, such as vocalizations, body postures, facial expressions, and marking. Yowling is for searching and signaling to others from a distance to help them find each other. Chuffing, rubbing on objects, and rolling around are all friendly and inviting gestures,” Beifus says. “Growling, snarling, and hissing, with ears pinned back and down, are warnings to stay away. They mark their territories, to give information about themselves to others by spraying and urinating in and around their areas.”
Even though Kaba and Timila are safe in the park, they are often at risk in their natural range. Snow leopards are listed as a vulnerable species, which means they are at high risk of extinction. The main reasons for this are human conflict like poaching, mining, and climate change. Snow leopard cubs also have a tough start in life. When they are born their eyes are closed for the first one to two weeks, and they are totally dependent on their mother. Snow leopard mothers spend lots of time grooming, feeding, and keeping their babies protected.
Once they are a couple of months old, their mother starts to add meat and solid foods into their diet. After a few months they begin to follow her and learn to hunt. At two years old, they know everything they need to survive on their own. “Cubs grow up very quickly,” says Beifus. These snowy cats can grow to be the size of you and me! Female snow leopards tend to weigh around 60 –85 pounds, while males weigh between 90–115 pounds. “Their long thick tails are almost the length of their body!” mentions Biefus. Since these prowlers get so big, safety always comes first at the zoo. Visitors may see Kaba and Timila being fed, but no zookeeper ever goes inside their habitat.
“We secure them on one side while we put their food on the other, then we let them over to find it and eat,” explains Beifus. “We can even feed them up close by placing food on long tongs and offering it through the mesh.”
From their powerful leaps and long, thick tails to their playful cubs and unique ways of communicating, snow leopards are remarkable creatures. By learning about them and supporting efforts to protect them in the wild, we can help make sure future generations of snow leopards have rocks to climb, shady places to rest, and plenty of space to prowl, purr, and play.
Next time you visit the Seneca Park Zoo, take a moment to visit Kaba and Timila—or find them on senecaparkzoo.org.
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of (585) Kids.
The universe is waiting for you at the Rochester exhibit, Astronauts. RMSC has brought in an exciting new traveling exhibition from Perth, Australia. The exhibit is an immersive experience where visitors have the opportunity to play the role of astronaut. It will be open October 17, 2025, through May 3, 2026.
This fun hands-on exhibit will highlight thirteen individuals from the Rochester area who have had an impact on aeronautics and space exploration. “Pam Melroy, the former assistant director for NASA, will be donating a whole bunch of objects that she had up with her in various space shuttle missions that we’ll have on display, as well as a piece of art that was done by one of her high school classmates at Bishop Kearney,” says Calvin Uzelmeier, RMSC Vice President of Programs and Exhibits. The exhibit also features Sian Proctor, the first female African American space mission pilot, who also piloted a SpaceX mission. Blanche Stuart Scott, the first female pilot in the United States, will be featured along with her teacher Glenn Curtiss, a pioneer in early flight. There are many members of the Rochester community that have contributed to and impacted space exploration and broke many barriers doing so.
The space lab is the first hands-on section that visitors will experience. Living and working environments in space are on display and interactive for everyone to enjoy. A simulation mission control that replicates the International Space Station will ensure that a rocket leaves earth and returns from space safely. There is even the chance to blast off at the rocket launch experience, where everyone can watch the rocket leave Earth and experience what it would be like to be above it.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education is an important part of growing up and education, which is why going to these exhibits and learning about these jobs will help stimulate STEM interests. “Many little children want to be astronauts when they grow up because exhibits like this spark their curiosity and give them a better understanding of the world,” says Uzelmeier. “Exposing kids to possible careers while young will guide them toward exploring their interests and thinking about the future.”
Another new addition to RMSC is a film at the planetarium that will coincide with Astronauts. Space, The New Frontier, narrated by actor Chris Pine, will offer some synergy between the exhibit and the planetarium to bring interest to space exploration and study. This exhibit and the planetarium are open to all ages and will inspire everyone to discover more about space. Space is vast and scientists are learning new information everyday about the universe and our planet. Maybe this exhibit will inspire you to be an astronaut or scientist when you grow up.
Adults will find inspiration when visiting this exciting exhibit, too!
GLOSSARY
International Space Station: Large spacecraft that orbits Earth, serving as a research laboratory and home for astronauts.
SpaceX: A privately owned company that builds rockets and spaceships.
Planetarium: A building or room that projects pictures and videos of the sky onto a dome shaped ceiling.
NASA: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is a US government agency responsible for space exploration, research, and scientific discoveries involving air and space.
Aeronautics: The study of how and why things fly.
This article originally appeared in the Fall 2025 issue of (585) Kids.
GG McQueen is celebrating the release of her debut picture book, Squash & Pumpkin: #SquashGoals. Squash is tired of all the attention Pumpkin gets each fall and creates a plan to become the hottest new gourd of the season! With illustrations by Michael Slack, this story is packed with fall festival shenanigans, humor, and a lot of heart.
This story came to McQueen while exploring a farm stand with her niece. She recalls, “I was staring at this incredible display of different types of squash, and the thought popped into my head: What does it feel like to be one of the other gourds, when pumpkin is the star of autumn? That was the essence of the book!”
McQueen was a television writer and producer in New York City before moving to Rochester. As a kid, she used to watch the credits at the end of movies and think about who all the people were and the jobs they did. She ended up working in television production and eventually writing for television. She performed theater and comedy and even did some voiceover work. But the best time of her life was the college semester she spent working at Disney World as a popcorn scooper at EPCOT.
For any young writers out there, McQueen wants you to pay attention to what makes you happy and infuse it into your writing. She believes that if you are experiencing life, you are a storyteller. So follow the fun!
She is excited to meet her readers and is hosting events this fall all over the Rochester area, from Schutt’s Apple Mill and Stokoe Farms to scarecrow and Halloween festivals. McQueen is also one of over fifty authors who will be featured at the Rochester Children and Teen Book Festival on November 8 at Monroe Community College.
Squash and Pumpkin: #SquashGoals is now available at all major booksellers. For more information and updates, check out ggmcqueen.com.
FUN FACTS with GG McQueen!
Favorite Food: Butternut squash is my all-time favorite comfort food. I don’t want Acorn Squash and Pumpkin to know, though!
Favorite Subject: English and art. The art room was my happy place!
Catherine Valleroy has been writing since she was eight years old. She spent years in education, fundraising for the University of Rochester and the Rochester Institute of Technology, but her heart was always set on writing. She especially loves poetry, journaling, and meditation.
Valleroy believes that centering oneself is giving the opportunity to write what comes to the surface. One particular story that had been on her mind for decades recently came to the surface in the form of her debut picture book.
Years ago, her young nephew Noel became overwhelmed at the commotion of construction at his house. At just three years old, he knew exactly what he needed at that moment. He walked up to his uncle with his arms raised and said, “Need love.” Valleroy’s dedication page reads: “To Noel who needed love and to Dave who gave it.” Her debut picture book was written for children but can be enjoyed by people of all ages.
Need Love is the first picture book in a three-book series focused on feelings, behaviors, and interactions. Illustrator Tera Colleen did a fantastic job creating the characters without gender, race, or body shape.
A perfect holiday gift, her book will be available for purchase online when it launches this October. Valleroy is working on the next two books in her series, Don’t Be Afraid and Sharing is Caring as well as a spoken word album. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her running meditation groups and performing at The Little.
Valleroy had a very special twenty-one-year-old cat named Dixon who had been affectionately nicknamed Poetry Cat. Many poems have been written over the years with “P.C.” by her side. Now she has a new poetry cat named Precious.
Valleroy wants to encourage everyone to write, especially kids. “GO FOR IT!” she says. “Find your inner voice. No matter what you write, it’s wonderful!”
Regular readers of (585) Kids have likely heard of the Rochester Children’s Book Festival (RCBF). After all, it has been bringing authors, illustrators, kids, and
Ahhh summer … Picnics, graduation parties, weddings, backyard gatherings with neighbors. Children at home. ALL. DAY .LONG. I am certain that my children don’t eat
A NEW, INCLUSIVE PLACE TO PLAY As a special education teacher and administrator for more than twenty years, Kristen Bonn was often uncomfortable with the
ONGOING TUESDAYS–FRIDAYS SCIENCE TOGETHER Ithaca’s Sciencenter hosts its Science Together programs, which explore different science processes for children up to four years old. Children must
