- [Joleene] Tonight on "WPBS Weekly: Inside The Stories."

The OBI Land Trust along Lake Ontario's eastern shore preserves land that is accessible to you.

Discover places to visit and appreciate this summer.

And more and more bikers are enjoying the ride.

Stay with us for tips to share to maximize your safety while out on the trails.

Also, Ottawa vocalist Renee Landry shares her powerhouse vocals.

If you aren't a fan yet, you just might be after hearing her.

Your story is your region, coming up right now on "WPBS Weekly: Inside The Stories."

(theatrical music) - [Announcer] "WPBS Weekly: Inside The Stories" is brought to you by the Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation, The Watertown Oswego Small Business Development Center, Carthage Savings, CSX, the Oswego County Community Foundation at the Central New York Community Foundation, the Richard S. Shineman Foundation, and The Badehausen Legacy Fund at the Northern New York Community Foundation.

- Good Tuesday evening everyone and welcome to this edition of "WPBS Weekly: Inside The Stories."

I'm Joleene DesRosiers.

If you're an active individual, then you've seen plenty of bikers riding along nearby trails or roadways.

Maybe you're one of them.

If so, are you maximizing your bike to the fullest while practicing bike rider safety?

Producer Eric Cleary shares tips for bike riders of all levels.

(light music) - [Eric] Every summer, thousands of cyclists hit the roads and trails in the U.S. and Canada.

Sharing the roads and pathways with vehicles, other cyclists, and pedestrians can be a tricky balancing act.

So what can cyclists do to prepare their bikes to stay safe while riding this summer?

The first thing Todd Landry of Bushtukah recommends is a good bike cleaning and tuning at your local bike shop before bike season begins.

- Clean the frame, clean the drive train, so that includes your chain, your gears, and so on.

That's a great starting point.

You wanna make sure that all the important components, so your gearing, your brakes, they're all in good working order.

Do a bolt check.

Check to make sure that your handle bars aren't moving when they shouldn't be moving.

- [Eric] Landry stresses the importance of prevention and protection while out on the trails.

For protection, he recommends helmets, gloves, and sunglasses to protect your eyes.

For prevention, it's all about remaining visible with bright colored clothing and lights.

- If I was looking at prevention, I'd be looking at things such as lighting.

So daytime running light that have a really good flash, a flashing pattern.

And this is one that we've got here and I'm gonna turn it on just so you can kind of see what the flash pattern is.

So it's kind of a one, two.

It's just something highly visible.

And then I guess one of the last things I would say is and it's a simple thing but a bell, right?

Have a bell.

It alerts people in front of you, whether it's a ride or whether it's a pedestrian, that you're coming up behind them.

- [Eric] These sites and sounds are what keeps cyclists like Declan Lo Monaco safe on the roadways when he sets out.

- [Lo Monaco] You know, I've had some good experiences, some bad too.

There are some roads that are safer than others.

But fortunately, there're bike paths that can take you to all these different routes like the one down by the canal.

There's also one that goes through the Experimental Farm, which I find is cool.

- [Eric] Lo Monaco has been riding for 12 years and he practices what so many cyclists don't to keep himself and those around him safe.

- Rules of the road for cyclists, one of my favorite topics.

So, the biggest one, ride with traffic, all right?

You're considered a vehicle on the road so you need to ride with traffic.

You need to obey the street signs.

If there's a stop sign, come to a stop.

If there's a red light, come to a stop.

The other thing is sidewalks.

Sidewalks should really only be used by children, and that usually in that 12 and under group.

They're called sidewalks for a reason.

And they are mainly meant for the pedestrians out there.

So sharing the road with vehicles is super important and it's a huge part of bicycle safety.

So some of the tips that I would say, ride in single file.

I mean, don't be riding three across.

A, it's gonna annoy motorists.

B, it's just not safe, quite frankly.

So ride in single file.

Don't make any sudden turns or movements, something that it's hard for a motorist to anticipate, right?

You wanna be very steady and keep that line that you're going in.

If you need to stop, get off to a safe place.

Don't pull over just on the side of the road.

Move over as far over as you can and those kinds of things.

And then signals.

Hand signals, let motorists know your intentions.

If you're turning right, let them know you're turning right.

If you're coming to a stop, those kind of things.

- [Eric] For riders like Lo Monaco, bike safety, protection, and prevention has made the experience enjoyable and rewarding, bringing himself sufficiency as he goes about his day.

- [Lo Monaco] I normally go 40 kilometers a week, I would say.

And I get the exercise, I get the fresh air.

I find one good thing about biking is the sort of like the independence.

Everything is sort of all to myself and I don't have to adapt to anything.

- I'd say the only thing that I would leave you with is, when you're on a bike, be aware.

Be aware of your surroundings.

Be aware of everything that's going on.

Yes, you can be out and enjoying your bike ride and you might zone out a little bit.

I know, I certainly zone out a little bit.

But I'm always trying to stay aware of my surroundings because again, things can happen really fast on a bike.

So you've gotta be, you've gotta know what's going on around you and be prepared for any of those things.

And to me, there's that old saying, and I think they use it in all kinds of sports, "have your head on a swivel."

I think that applies to when you're riding a bike.

You wanna make sure that you see everything around you and just really be aware because again, things can go wrong awfully quickly on a bike.

- [Eric] For "WPBS Weekly", I'm Eric Cleary.

- Thanks to the various land trusts in the North Country, wildlife preserves and other parcels of land are protected.

Not only does this benefit wildlife and green spaces, it also benefits you.

Producer Ryan Proven introduces us to the OBI Land Trust in this next segment.

(light music) (birds chirping) - [Ryan] OBI Land Trust is an all volunteer organization that was founded in 1993 by a small group of community members who wanted to take a hands-on approach to preserving the region's natural habitats.

But the organization started out with a slightly different objective.

- We started off actually with a much kind of wider purpose.

The organization was involved in like stonehouse preservation, but pretty quickly we narrowed our focus to land preservation, conservation.

- [Ryan] Through the primary use of conservation easements, also known as conservation agreement or restriction, OBI has been able to preserve nearly 800 acres of wildlife habitat in the shoreline communities of Jefferson County, New York.

- So, our primary public property is Downybrook Nature Reserve, and that's where I'm standing today in the pine forest at Downybrook.

It's 180 acres total.

Downybrook is really where we put most of our time and energy in terms of trail work, nature walks, educating the public about OBI Land Trust.

- [Ryan] Mary Eldrett shares how her and her sister Helen made the decision to preserve the family property for future generations to enjoy.

- Yeah, well, by that time, we got to thinking how great this was.

And we thought, what would happen to it after we were gone?

And we thought is, if there was somebody, some group, that might want it.

And so we approached OBI, thought would they be interested in making a conservation easement with us so that they could continue to keep it wild like what we wanted it so it would be forever wild.

And they got excited about it.

So we agreed, we made an easement.

Downybrook has got at least five different environments for animals to live in.

It's got the marshlands and the water.

There's two.

It's got the open fields.

It's got the brush land and it's got the pine trees, the white pine and white spruce woods.

And then it's got a deciduous woods as well.

So there's all different kinds of environment and it allows for so many different kinds of plants and animals and birds to live out here.

It's amazing.

- There are numerous trails.

I believe there's over three miles of trails at Downybrook.

There is, you can do some bird watching.

We've just actually been added to the New York State Bird Trail here at Downybrook.

- [Ryan] More recently, they've been awarded an additional grant totalling $50,000 in April of 2022 to make additional upgrades to the property.

- And we received this grant to add a viewing platform which will help you view the different birds at Downybrook.

And also to add a driveway and parking area at the east side of our Downybrook property.

- Here at Downybrook Nature Reserve I would say that the most interesting thing, from my perspective, are the beaver ponds that you can visit.

And for me, that was my first experience seeing beaver in the wild was visiting Downybrook.

I'd never really seen them in nature.

So it's really neat and I think that's one of the big draws for people.

- [Ryan] OBI also manages a 15-acre bat conservation area in Evans Mills, New York, where the public can enjoy a woodland trail beneath the canopy of trees that also serve as a conservation habitat for the endangered Indiana bat.

- The Alex Velto Bat Conservation Area in Evans Mills is one of our easement properties.

It actually serves as a feeding area, kind of stopover area for the bats as they move between their caves in different areas.

- I would say what sets OBI Land Trust apart from other land trust organizations is that we are an all volunteer organization.

We're run by about a 10 to 15 member, all volunteer board of directors, and all the money that we receive goes toward our mission.

- There are different ways to get involved with OBI Land Trust, and one way is to become a friend of OBI.

And you can do this by going to the OBI website and there are different levels that you can join or contribute.

We also have an annual fundraising dinner.

We call it our Friendraiser at Wise Guys on August 1st.

And that's a great opportunity to come out and meet the different board members and to hear a little bit more about what land trusts do, not just OBI but other land trusts, and what our missions are and what we hope to accomplish.

- [Ryan] For "WPBS Weekly", I'm Ryan Proven.

- Parenting never ends and here is a Parenting Minute from our sister station, WNET, that we can all benefit from.

(light music) - I make it a priority to read with my little one.

Wanna know why?

- What you wanna read?

(speaking in foreign language) - [Narrator 1] Reading to children is an important part of their development.

The more kids are read to, - Or there.

- [Narrator 1] the better they're able to read.

- I've still got to- - [Narrator 1] Read to your youngsters and expose them to as many words as you can.

- "And the doctor said," - "No more monkey jumping on the bed."

- Good job.

- [Narrator 1] Read in whichever language you're most comfortable reading in.

(speaking in foreign language) - [Narrator 1] You don't have to speak in English.

(Kid speaks in foreign language) Encourage your kids to read in any language.

(Mom speaks in foreign language) - Would - Would - you - you - Eat- - [Narrator 1] After all, children who are read to when they're young are more likely to do well in school.

- That's a great job, Isabela.

- Great job, Isabela Wow.

(Dad and Isabela cheers) (light music) - Hi I'm James, and my wife Kimberly and I have three wonderful boys, Jayden, Jordan, and Justin.

I know as a father that learning starts at home.

"Let's squeeze into juice."

Hey, is that how we get grape juice?

- Yeah.

- So I like to communicate with my child's teachers to let 'em know that, "Hey, we're a team."

Hey, this man, how are you?

(chuckles) I like to connect with my kids' teachers the first week of school, but it's never too late to do so.

When I communicate with my kids' teachers I also keep in mind that they're very busy.

So I keep the messages very short and sweet.

And I like to ask them, what is it that my kids are learning this year?

What are the expectations?

How do we know that they're actually achieving what you need them to achieve?

What can I do to help my child?

The goal for my child is to learn, and together with the teacher I know we could fulfill that.

By building a solid relationship with the teacher, my child knows that I care and so does the teacher.

And that's a win for all of us.

Perfect job.

Gimme five.

- [Kid] Give me five.

- [James] All right, let's go.

(gentle music) - My name is Doris.

My husband, David and I, we have two children, Dahlia and Daniel.

- One.

- (giggles) Go for it.

Our hope for our children is that they are happy, confident, and caring so that they can thrive in school and in life.

(Daniel exclaiming) When I became a mother, it was very important for my children to be able to name and express their feelings so that they can better deal with their emotions.

Remember these?

- [Kids] Yeah!

- [Doris] When my children were very young, we started using picture books as tools to identify emotions within characters.

Sometimes I'll ask them questions to help them begin to identify their feelings for themselves.

I see a sad face, is that right?

(Daniel assents) If they can connect to their own feelings, then they can connect to others' feelings.

- [Daniel] They only had a little- - [Doris] We make time daily to ask questions and practice listening.

- How was your day, Daddy?

- Oh, my day was amazing, Daniel.

- [Doris] And I think it just really shows them how to be a good friend and the importance of thinking of others.

- Congratulations, Dahlia.

- [Doris] Tapping into feelings has helped my children with confidence and self-awareness.

At school they know how to manage feelings as they come up so that they can focus on learning.

- [David] So have a good day in school, okay?

(gentle music) - The North Country is dotted with historic places and stories many that we're familiar with, but some we are not.

Our next segment is taken directly from our four-part docu-series called "Discovering Jefferson County" and shares the history of the city of Watertown.

(light music) - [Narrator 2] In 1796, Benjamin Wright, a popular land surveyor, mapped out what is now the city of Watertown.

Wright and his fellow surveyors scoped out the land from Macomb's Purchase and spent two years developing a map of the area.

Macomb's Purchase made up mostly of Lewis, Jefferson, and St. Lawrence counties and a part of Oswego County.

It was bought by one Alexander Macomb, a merchant and land speculator.

In 1791, Macomb purchased 3,670,715 acres in New York for a mere 8 cents an acre.

At the time, Watertown was one of the least populated areas of Jefferson County.

But thanks to Henry Coffeen, the first settler in Watertown, it fast became the county seat.

- When you're the county seat, all county business comes from here.

You'd have the county courthouse, you'd have the jailhouse, you'd have all those and it would bring those professionals to the area that work in those areas also.

He certainly knew what he was doing because after that was done in 1804, Watertown started to grow at a rapid rate.

- [Narrator 2] After the war of 1812, Watertown began to expand even more with the development of public square.

The railroad was finished in 1851, making travel to Watertown easier.

Once the Black River Canal was finished in 1855, the use of hydropower attracted more businesses and jobs to the area.

It truly was a time of innovation and progress.

Several hotels like the Harris House, the Globe Hotel, the Crowder Hotel, and the American Hotel were also booming.

But one would meet its demise in the middle of the boom.

(gentle music) On Sunday, May 13th 1849, a fire started behind the American Hotel on public square.

Within minutes, the hotel was enveloped in flames and guests barely escaped.

The only source of water for firemen was an old cistern on public square fed by a spring.

It wasn't enough.

The fire destroyed over 100 buildings, wiping out most of the business district.

But the flames didn't end there.

In an odd twist of fate, more fires over the next three years destroyed nearly all the remaining buildings.

The loss resulted in one of the greatest rebuilding boons of the 19th century.

With a strong workforce and already developed infrastructure, the expansion of textile industries led to a new era of prosperity in Watertown, making it a popular destination for wealthy North Easterners.

This class of new wealth began building homes and living in Watertown becoming the city's elite.

This wealthy class was made up of influential community members and a fresh generation of people eager to make a name for themselves.

In fact, in the 1890s and early 20th century, Watertown had more millionaires per capita than any other place in the United States.

- [Voiceover] The historic piece you just watched comes from an original four-part documentary series called "Discovering Jefferson County".

The series was produced right here at WPBS.

If you'd like the entire series at your fingertips, you can order your own copy and enjoy all four parts in the comfort of your own home.

- Our featured musician this evening is considered one of Ottawa's best according to Ottawa Life Magazine.

This powerhouse vocalist has real soul.

Hailing from Sault Ste.

Marie, her commanding stage presence and fierce vocal delivery will surely pull you in.

She is Renee Landry and this is her original tune, "Best Wishes".

(drum beats) (light music) ♪ I'm about to say ♪ ♪ All the things you're not supposed to say ♪ ♪ Would you did me wrong ♪ ♪ And the love is gone ♪ ♪ Time to show your face ♪ ♪ I wish you could feel ♪ ♪ The stab of your knife ♪ ♪ Rippin' through my skin ♪ ♪ Here you go you can borrow mine ♪ ♪ 'Cause they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Set them free ♪ ♪ But I hate you for what ♪ ♪ You did to me ♪ ♪ And they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Let them go, ooh ♪ ♪ But I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Do you think of me ♪ ♪ When you're between her thighs ♪ ♪ Does the girl drag you down ♪ ♪ Keep you up while you lie ♪ ♪ And awake at night ♪ ♪ And I wish I could paint you ♪ ♪ Black and blue ♪ ♪ But you still wouldn't feel ♪ ♪ All the pain that I do, ooh ♪ ♪ 'Cause they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Set them free ♪ ♪ But I hate you for what ♪ ♪ You did to me ♪ ♪ And they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Let them go, ooh ♪ ♪ But I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ So go away and let me go ♪ ♪ And take your potion when you go ♪ ♪ 'Cause we would never meant ♪ ♪ To build a home ♪ ♪ I guess I should have known ♪ ♪ That I could never tame a wolf ♪ ♪ That you take your pangs ♪ ♪ And leave me to run cold ♪ ♪ 'Cause they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Set them free ♪ ♪ But I hate you for what ♪ ♪ You did to me ♪ ♪ And they say if you love them ♪ ♪ Let them go, ooh ♪ ♪ But I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ (emotional music) (light music) - And that does it for us this Tuesday evening.

Please join us next week for a fresh look inside the stories.

A boat named Anna has been sitting on the shore of the Anchor Marina in Cape Vincent for two decades.

What's her story and why is a local community so eager to save her?

And historic Sackets Harbor summarized for you.

We'll share bits of history some you may not already know.

Also, Warden and Co. visits the WPBS studios.

This folk rock trio has roots right here in the North Country.

In the meantime, friends, we want to tell your story.

If you or someone in your community has something meaningful, historic, inspirational, or heroic to share, please email us at wpbsweekly@wpbstv.org and let's share it with the region.

That's it for now, everyone.

We'll see you again next week.

Goodnight.

(light music) - [Announcer] "WPBS Weekly: Inside The Stories" is brought to you by the Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation, dedicated to improving the wellbeing of communities by helping disadvantage children and families.

Online at dmjf.org.

The Watertown Oswego Small Business Development Center, a free resource offering confidential business advice for those interested in starting or expanding their small business.

Serving Jefferson, Lewis, and Oswego counties since 1986.

Online at watertown.nysbdc.org.

Carthage Savings has been here for generations, donating time and resources to this community.

They're proud to support WPBS TV.

Online at carthagesavings.com.

Carthage Savings, mortgage solutions since 1888.

Additional funding provided by CSX, the Oswego County Community Foundation at the Central New York Community Foundation, the Richard S. Shineman Foundation, and The Badehausen Legacy Fund at the Northern New York Community Foundation.

♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ ♪ Yes I hate that you're happy ♪ ♪ And I wish you were miserable ♪ (emotional music) (gentle music)