Rochester Officials Earn Bills' October Honor
Five Rochester-area football officials were named the Buffalo Bills' October High School Football Officiating Crew of the Month.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in People
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The Buffalo Bills recognized five Rochester-area football officials as the October High School Football Officiating Crew of the Month. The honor is part of a program involving the NFL, the National Federation of State High School Associations and the New York State Association of Certified Football Officials.
Why it matters
The recognition highlights the officials' work on the field, their training of younger officials and their community service. It also draws attention to the volunteer officiating corps that supports high school football.
Referee Bob Lockhart has officiated for 26 years and spent 15 years on his chapter's board. New York's statewide association counts 19 chapters and roughly 1,500 members, while the source does not specify which games the crew worked to earn the October honor.
The players
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are an NFL franchise that announces this recognition monthly as part of the league's high school officiating effort.
New York State Association of Certified Football Officials
The New York State Association of Certified Football Officials is the statewide body whose 19 chapters and roughly 1,500 members supply the officiating crews.
The details
The crew of Bob Lockhart, Jim Maxwell, Peter McCabe, Wray Richardson and Ed Wood was honored as the October crew. Maxwell, who joined the Rochester chapter in 2010, serves as its president and retired as a battalion chief after 26 years with the Kodak Fire Department.
Timeline
October: The crew earned the Bills' October officiating honor.
2010: Jim Maxwell joined the Rochester chapter of the officiating association.
Market Landscape
The Bills' monthly recognition is one installment of a shared NFL and National Federation of State High School Associations program that spotlights grassroots officiating. It places a Rochester crew within a statewide network of 19 chapters that supply officials for New York high school football.
For Rochester-area families and players, the honor reflects the volunteer officials who work local high school games. Fans attending those games benefit from crews trained through a statewide certification network.
The takeaway
Recognition programs like this one help keep high school football officiating visible and encourage new volunteers to train and serve. Readers interested in the work can look to local chapters of the state association.
Further reading
Explore more People profiles on Wisevoter.com for additional context on local figures.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Fingerlakes1.
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