State honors local trooper
ALBANY _ A Stamford state trooper who helped stop a gunman last year was one of 22 troopers honored Monday at the state police annual Awards Day Ceremony.
Gov. David A. Paterson joined state Police Superintendent Harry J. Corbitt to commend the honorees for bravery, investigative persistence, police education, traffic safety and community service.
Trooper Matthew J. Gombosi from Troop C received a Superintendent's Commendation Award. State police described the following scenario:
``On April 17, 2008, the Delaware County 911 center received a frantic call from a 15-year-old girl who reported that her mother had been shot in the abdomen at their residence, located in Grand Gorge. The assailant, who was the girl's father and the estranged boyfriend of the victim, had fled the scene en route to his trailer, located in the village of Stamford.
``A vehicle description was provided and within a short time, Trooper David Morgan located the vehicle, whose driver refused to stop and was pursued by patrols into the mobile-home park. The subject eventually exited his vehicle at his residence.
``While Trooper Morgan and a New York City Environmental Police officer took up a position on one side of the trailer, Trooper Gombosi established a tactical position on the other side. The subject, who had exited his vehicle armed with a .44 caliber magnum handgun, turned and confronted Trooper Gombosi. Trooper Gombosi then discharged his issue sidearm, striking the suspect in the leg. The subject then used his handgun to shoot himself in the head, taking his own life.''
Troopers said at the time that Gombosi fired eight times, striking the suspect once in the leg. Gombosi was also involved in a national story in 2007, as he was shot and wounded by Travis Trim during a traffic stop in Margaretville on April 24, 2007. Gombosi escaped serious injury because the bullet struck his body armor, and Trim fled the scene, sparking a massive manhunt that ended a day later at a farmhouse, with Trim and a trooper being killed.
The awards ceremony followed the annual Memorial Day service to honor the memory and service of deceased members of the state police.
SK examines wood energy
SOUTH KORTRIGHT _ At the South Kortright Central School board meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Jeff Forward, a wood-energy specialist from Richmond, Vt., will present the results of a preliminary biomass heating analysis conducted for the district.
The study examined the potential for converting a majority of the school's primary heat load to come from locally produced biomass energy. That would be in the form of green wood chips or wood pellets.
Estimates suggest that implementing a modern wood-heating system at the school could save more than $2.9 million in operating costs over the 30-year life of the system and $66,000 in the first year.
Forward said that good candidate facilities for biomass energy systems include those with high heating bills, steam or hot-water heating distribution systems and ready access to reasonably priced biomass fuel.
The South Kortright Central School District is one of three districts in the region that received full funding for the study through a competitive grant from the Watershed Agricultural Council's Forestry Program, based in Walton.
For more information on the project, call Collin Miller at 865-7790, ext. 112, or visit www.nycwatershed.org.
Sidney to show school budget
A 2009-10 school budget for the Sidney Central School District will be presented by Superintendent Sandra Cooper at 6 p.m. Sunday at the Masonville Federated Church.
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