From Ski Racer to Beekeeper
From Ski Racer to Beekeeper
Suiting up with Dr. Genene Jarosz Crofut for a spoonful of sweet honey
Some of the old-time skiers in the Ellicottville community may remember Joey and Terry Jarosz from the Ellicottville Ski Club, back in “the day.” Their daughters, Genene and Gretchen, were avid skiers and members of the Holiday Valley ski team when Tom Torge taught young athletes the fine art of ski racing. Genene followed her dreams and left ECS to attend boarding high school at The Mountain House School (National Sports Academy) in Lake Placid and finish at Stratton Mountain School in Vermont. Moving on to the University of Colorado, she then relocated to the University of Buffalo to finish her degree in Physical Therapy in 1992, working in acute care and geriatric rehabilitation for ten years. Then Dental School beckoned.
Genene married her husband, Peter Crofut, had three children and went on to establish a successful general dentistry practice in Amherst, NY. Peter will be retiring as Detective Sergeant for the Amherst Police Department within the next few months. Living in East Amherst, they commute to Little Valley regularly to tend to their hobbies – Peter enjoys maple sugaring, and Genene has her Italian bees. Starting with one hive three years ago, she now manages five, only to give away the honey to family and friends.
My husband and I had the opportunity to visit with Genene and Peter this past Sunday. Even though I have a compromised back and use a cane, Genene was able to suit me up to observe her, head to head, as she showed me her hives and her very busy bees. I had the opportunity to spot and meet the venerated queen, around whom the whole hive activity is focused. She handed me a tool and a bowl and spoon. I never did use the tool but she used hers to pry open the lid of the super and catch the edges of the hanging frames (there were ten of them) onto which the bees build the wax. She pulled out several, looking for the queen. In the process, Genene was able to show me fresh eggs in the bottom of several of those wax cells which indicated the queen had been recently on that frame. Within a couple of pulls, we found her and plenty of worker bees in attendance. Although the queen does not rule or dictate the activities of the hive, the bees could not survive without her and they instinctively know what to do. The workers surrounding the queen will feed her and groom her, predigesting her food and carrying away her waste. Without their constant care, the queen could also die. The boys (drones) have the job of mating with the queen. They leave the hive and gather into a congregation site. The queen will fly out and mate in the air with many drones. The drones will die shortly after mating. She mates only this one time throughout her lifespan which can be 3 to 6 years. Most queens lay well for at least three years which keeps the colony thriving for that time. Once she has fulfilled her usefulness, she will be replaced by the bees themselves or by the beekeeper.
Why the bowl and spoon, you wonder? Our second goal was to scrape up some fresh honey for me to take home. Genene pulled up a nice, full looking frame and handed me the spoon and bowl. She held the frame while I deftly scraped over the thin waxy covering and was surprised to discover a thick layer of gorgeous golden honey beneath the wax. A couple of scrapes from top to bottom and the bowl held a pint of aromatic, clear liquid gold. We rescued a few bees I scraped up in the process and Genene laid them near the entrance of the hive. She assured me the workers will clean up these bees and they will be as good as new before long. Our work finished, the hives were put back in order and we went to the cabin to assess our haul and chat.
Genene and Peter spoke lovingly about their three adult children, Hannah, Peter, and Tucker, who are building their own lives and living near ski areas. After 20-plus-years of ski racing and two years in the US National Championships, Genene still keeps her poles handy, never turning down an invitation to ski with friends at Holiday Valley or HoliMont. When not beekeeping in the summer, she plays softball.
When asked how dentistry and administering physical therapy helped prepare her for her beekeeping hobby, Genene gave credit, not to her formal education, but to her many years ski racing. She spoke of the adrenaline rushes tempered with the zen-like feelings of peace which one gets both on the hill and tending the bees. I did feel that adrenaline rush as I tentatively approached the hives, and I can vouch for the truly peaceful feeling one gets while gently tending these beautiful creatures who take one so close to nature. It’s a beautiful thing. Ahhhh!