FULTON, NY – Members of Lanigan Elementary School’s Student Congress each brought a friend and gathered at Fulton’s Patrick Park to clean and beautify the playground.

Students in grades third through sixth worked together to remove trash and debris, rake leaves and grass, pull weeds, and plant flowers just as they had previously at Recreation Park.

Members of the school’s Student Congress have one representative for each classroom and one senator for each grade.

“We meet so we can improve our school and improve our community,” said Halina Cole, a third grade classroom representative.

Students in the school’s Student Congress act as a voice for their peers and are available for their classmates to approach with problems or concerns.

To be elected, interested students had to run an election campaign complete with a speech for their classmates to then vote.

They hold monthly meetings to discuss ideas to promote school and community pride as well as encourage positive behavior through initiatives such as a school-wide anti-bullying campaign and a good behavior passport.

“The Student Congress works together to coordinate projects to help our school and community. It’s a tool to help them become civic-minded and to teach them how our government works, that it’s not only a service but a duty,” said Langian Principal Jeff Hendrickson.

The students brainstormed the idea to adopt a local park and had help from Principal Hendrickson, AmeriCorps member Tim Conners, and their teachers to follow through with action.

“We chose this so people can actually have fun and enjoy themselves at the park. More people will come if it’s clean and safe,” Cole said. “We feel proud and accomplished making our community safer. Even though it’s a small thing, we’ve made a big difference.”

Students in Congress are hopeful to continue their initiative to adopt-a-park each year, while sixth graders are hopeful to bring the initiative to the Junior High next year.

“We want to inspire people so they can see this and start doing the same thing,” Cole said.

As the students work to inspire others, they found help from their own inspiration.

Lanigan students are familiar with Tim Conners, not just as a friendly face in the hallways, but through his recent fundraiser deemed “MounTim Possible” in which Conners raised money for months prior to his summit of Africa’s highest point, Mount Kilimanjaro.

The money raised was donated to several organizations that Conners said saved his life during and after his intense battle with cancer (T­cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia) that not only left him physically blind, but with a newfound vision of life without limits.

His story was a popular one for the hometown hero. As an entire community rallied behind him in support, these young students were engaged with his story from the very beginning.

Now, Conners gives back to the same students that look up to him through his service with AmeriCorps.

“I wanted to get involved with this because it really exemplified what the AmeriCorps program is about- people coming together, volunteering for community betterment. I wanted to come here with the kids, help them out, and inspire them to really want to give back to their community,” said Conners, working the 900-hour AmeriCorps program at Lanigan.

“This is really about them. I just got involved to help them bring their idea to a reality. It’s exciting to help empower the next generation of people that will be serving our community. It’s good to see younger kids getting involved, being community oriented, and serving for the betterment of everyone. These kids are our future,” Conners said.

Don Patrick Jr., Third Ward councilor and the City of Fulton’s Common Council President, said he is pleased to have this fine group of students to look forward to as the city’s future.

“These kids are really taking ownership of the park, and that’s what matters. If they see someone litter or being destructive, they’re going to say something because when you own something, you’re proud of it. You take care of it. And that’s what these kids are doing,” Patrick said.

Patrick Park, while located in the ward Don Patrick Jr. represents, has a much more personal connection to the councilman.

“My uncles, Percy and Ken Patrick, donated the land for this park years ago,” he said. Since his time on the Common Council, Don Patrick Jr. has worked with community sponsors such as Sunoco and Dr. Juan Lopez to get new playground equipment.

Maureen’s Hope created a new event last year, “iBelieve” to bring the community together for encouragement and positivity.

President of Maureen’s Hope, Susan Bertrand says this year’s event will have diverse speakers for various topics. She says that people will be able to connect with these speakers because they are opening themselves up and becoming vulnerable as they share their stories.

In between the speakers, the event will feature ballet dancers and a LeMoyne College a cappella group to help lighten the mood.

One of the speakers, Bryan Morgan, will be holding an interactive session that deals with how motion and exercise can change a person’s mood. Morgan says that when you wake up in the morning and know you are going to have a good day, your body language will show it. He also says that if you are slouched down, with your head hanging, you are going to be in a negative state of mind.

Tim Conners will also be speaking at the event about overcoming challenges. At 15, he was diagnosed with cancer, losing his eyesight as a result, almost dying and then coming back from it all. He is now about to graduate Ithaca College with a 3.9 GPA and plans to climb the tallest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro, after graduation.

Conners says that he received so much support when he was sick that he wanted to give back. As he climbs Mount Kilimanjaro, Connors says, he will be raising $500,000 for charity organizations that not only helped save his life but helped him keep going.  

IBelieve: An Event For Inspiration and Hope will be held this Sunday, April 30th from 3pm to 6pm at the Palace Theater. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for students. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit maureenshope.org.

Maureen’s Hope was originally created by Susan Bertrand in memory of her sister Maureen. It is a not for profit that offers direct support and assistance for community members who are facing the challenges of a cancer diagnosis.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — It is an emotional homecoming for Tim Conners and his dad that has been years in the making.

“Just to be there seven years ago and him to tell me you have cancer to us standing on the highest mountain on the top of Africa. What a journey,” Conners said.

Loved ones, including his dog, Lang, welcomed Tim home after he reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

After beating cancer that stole his sight, Tim has been on a mission to overcome the seemingly impossible.

“I can’t see we’re at the top. I know we’re at the top. People are telling me you’re at the top, but then when I reach out and touch the sign that’s like the real moment for me. Like we’re there. We did this,” Conners said.

After 18 months of planning and 53 hours of climbing, Tim and his team, which included his dad and uncle, reached the top.

Tim said it is still to soon to grasp the gravity of his journey.

He did it to raise awareness and money for all of the charities that helped him beat his illness.

“And to have him pay it forward is the thing I’m most proud of. We saw a lot of kids along the way that didn’t make it and family members who have been beaten by cancer and time does it for all of them,” Betsy Conners, Tim’s mother, said.

The climb was for Tim was grueling.

Cancer and the treatment that followed has left his body vulnerable to the elements.

“We had a lot of support, a lot of perseverance and a lot of love along the way and with all those things combined, we as a group were able to do this,” Conners said.

https://cnycentral.com/news/local/fulton-cancer-survivor-summits-africas-tallest-mountain

ITHACA — Tim Conners, the Fulton native whose battle against cancer spurred a campaign to summit Mt. Kilimanjaro in support of multiple charities, has released his first book chronicling his inspirational journey.

Conners, 22, was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic lymphoma in 2010 during his freshman year of high school. The disease would take his sight, and the grueling treatment isolated him from all but his closest family as his immune system recovered.

But Conners refused to give up — he beat his cancer, and in so doing gained a perspective on life he felt was his privilege and duty to share.

Conners will graduate this spring from Ithaca College with a degree in Communication Studies and has spent the last few years cris-crossing the United States as a featured speaker at conferences and symposiums.

“Ever since everything I’ve faced, people have joked around and said I should write a book and I always thought, ‘yeah, I’ll do that,’ but never did,” Conners said.

With his busy schedule as a motivational speaker and full-time student, work on the project came in fits and starts, but in the late summer, he was finally able to concentrate his efforts on crafting his story.

“I took what I had learned in my life about accomplishing what I wanted, and I decided I didn’t want my book to be talk anymore. I was going to do it,” Conners said.

Earlier this month, Conners released that book, entitled “It’s Impossible Until You Do It,” which tells his story and lays out his unique philosophy from a life steeped in challenges and hope.

Conners said the book contains what he calls “enlightening tools to overcome adversity and be successful, no matter what that is.”

“It’s important for people to read it and reflect and take a different outlook on how they see their world,” Conners added.

Throughout his travels, Conners developed his ambitious plan to raise funds and awareness for five organizations he says helped him through his recovery to support other battling similar circumstances.

One of Conners’ mentors has been Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind man to climb Mount Everest. While spending time with Weihenmayer, Conners came up with his own plan — to summit Africa’s highest peak.

He founded the MounTimPossible, his fundraising organization dedicated to what he calls “The Mission” — traveling to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro.

The journey is planned for next summer and will no doubt be arduous, but with all Conners has overcome in the past, it’s unlikely anything will stand in his way.

“I knew I wanted to include my story of overcoming cancer,” said Conners about writing the book. “I knew I wanted to include information people could apply to their lives that I learned firsthand worked; and I knew I wanted most of all to create something that was going to help people all over the world in their lives so they could overcome their own challenges.”

Conners will donate portions of the proceeds from his book, along with other sustained fundraising efforts “The Mission” will generate exposure for, to The Make-A-Wish Foundation, Golisano Children’s Hospital, No Barriers, The Joe Andruzzi Foundation and Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation.

“It’s Impossible Until You Do It” is self-published by Conners and his family and available for purchase on Amazon.com.

For more information about Tim and the organizations his Mount Kilimanjaro odyssey seeks to support, visit www.mountimpossible.com.

http://www.oswegocountynewsnow.com/news/fulton-native-pens-book-on-overcoming-adversity/article_8d6570d2-c7ce-11e6-afa4-5f8f96c36604.html

SYRACUSE, NY – Aurora of CNY, Inc. presented its Excellence Awards recently at its annual meeting at the Mulroy Civic Center in Syracuse.

Nasser Fitwi: Blind since he was eight years old, Fitwi came to Syracuse almost two years ago from a refugee camp in Ethiopia. Without the help of any vision at all, he had to learn his way around and adjust to a new culture, country and climate. Aurora helped with mobility training, assistive devices such as tape recorders, and advice on handling the reams of paperwork that face a new immigrant. Fitwi learned quickly and now he is working to give back and help others. At Aurora he tutors consumers in English as a Second Language. He lives in Syracuse.

Timothy Conners: Conners, an 11th-grader at G. Ray Bodley High School in Fulton, says he’s up for the challenge of dealing with both cancer and blindness. It’s a relatively new challenge for him. He became legally blind just over a year ago due to the cancer, and he had a bone marrow transplant last year. Conners is still a member of G. Ray Bodley’s varsity football team, and wears his jersey when he goes to games to root for his team. Conners, who lives in Fulton, said he plans to attend college after graduation.

Lindsay Ryan Anthony: Anthony, who has been deaf all of her life, has a long history with Aurora. She worked in Aurora’s Summer Education Program and then joined Aurora’s Deaf Employment Services staff. During her time at Aurora, Anthony held lunchtime sign language classes for staff, took part in the agency’s Deaf Awareness Week activities, and was always willing to do whatever was necessary to represent Aurora and educate the community about deaf culture. Anthony is a member of the Deaf Advocacy Council of Central New York and now works for Project Emerge, a collaboration between Arise and Vera House, where she advocates for people with disabilities who experience domestic and sexual abuse. Anthony lives in Syracuse.