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Kid Safe Night At Blue Ridge School Last Thursday evening approximately 20 organizations presented educational material to the public specifically targeting parents and young children. Information ran the spectrum from child abuse, child internet pornography prevention, teen pregnancy to drug & alcohol abuse as well as fire and gun safety. The Susquehanna County SAFE KIDS Coalition awarded ten bicycle helmets that were donated by District Attorney Jason Legg’s office. Charmarie Bisel, a representative of the Coalition made the presentations for the drawings of the helmets. An eleven year old young lady named Denise (foster children do not get their last names published usually) welcomed the bicycle helmet gift. Denise was planning to go biking with her foster mother, Catherine Kruger who also was a lucky recipient. Bisel noted that the public is invited to participate in the Coalition meetings which are held the first Thursday of every month at 10:00 a.m. in the Children & Youth conference room at the Public Avenue offices. Further information can be obtained by calling 570-278-3889. November 3, 2005 the Coalition will co-sponsor the “Children’s Issues in a Changing World” Conference which is for the public as well according to Bisel. The Honorable Judge Kenneth Seamans and DA Jason Legg were available to show their support and constant concern for the well-being of the children of the county. Displays of various drugs and paraphernalia were exhibited by the State Police, Sheriff and Juvenile Probation departments. The DA’s office also gave gun locks to any one who needed them. Mr. Sami Bourizk, a JPO (Juvenile Probation Officer) stated, “It’s important for juveniles and their parents to understand today’s issues. They should discuss and resolve any issues with appropriate agencies that meet their criteria and needs.” Bourizk further noted that the caseloads are heavy, with each JPO handling 15-20 clients and the five Adult Probation officers being each assigned approximately 100 clients. Tri-County Human Services Center Inc. was represented by Cindy Delaney and Tom Sheeran. Delaney, a Behavior Health Rehabilitation Service Program Manager explained that their office provides therapists and consultants for outpatient needs. And that Tri-County has the only psychiatrist in the county, which is Dr. Ken Lattimore. Services can be obtained by self referrals and can be done in the home, school or community settings according to Delaney. She stated, “It is sad that the little kids have to endure so much and that they are exposed to so much.” Elaine Henninger and Brandy Pitcher represented the End of Day After-School Program which is at both Blue Ridge and Lathrop Street schools. Their program provides activities and academic assistance to students, until 6:00 p.m. after school. A few of the other agencies available were: Susquehanna County Cares , the County Literacy , and the county Drug & Alcohol offices, Blue Ridge School Guidance, Barnes-Kasson Hospital Health Center, Attorney General Tom Corbett, Columbia Fire & Ambulance Hose Company Number One of New Milford and Bethesda Day Treatment Center. Pennsylvania State Trooper Bill Satkowski, Public Information Officer, gave an enlightening presentation about the drug use in our area. He further discussed warning signs parents should be aware of that would indicate drug use by their children or drug presence in the homes of others. An extended discussion took place regarding the volatile and explosive nature of methamphetamines. Explosions can take place not only in the labs but in the trucks used to transport the chemicals according to Satkowski. He stated, “It’s like driving around with a bomb.” Meth is being found in an older population but heroin is being used by the teens, Satkowski explained. Satkowski reassured parents they do have a right to investigate anything suspicious in their homes even if it is the children’s own room. When questioned how divorced parents could deal with possible drug use, violence and abuse in the other parent’s home Satkowski urged parents to keep asking the various agencies for assistance. Later a mother, Karen Grubb of New Milford, who enjoys joint custody, suggested that parents co-operate and state in their divorce orders what behavior is unacceptable for the children to be exposed to. Satkowski explained that some funding for education, enforcement and prevention comes from the sale of drug related seizures. Satkowski acknowledged that Susquehanna County is “both blessed and cursed with the excellent interstate highway system of routes 81, 80 and 84 connecting the various larger cities,” making drug trafficking easy. The event was well received by those in attendance. Many young children were reading the displays, collecting gifts and taking home material to discuss
County Celebrates Red Cross Month Montrose – The Susquehanna County Chapter of the American Red Cross is celebrating Red Cross Month this March by giving thanks to the thousands of people in this community who have personified America’s humanitarian spirit by donating their time, money and blood during the last year. America has always been a place of humanitarian action and compassion: a place where people take care of each other whether they are down the block or around the globe. Putting compassion into action is deeply rooted in the American character and the people in Susquehanna County are no exception. “Although hurricanes and tsunamis make the headlines, many people forget that the day-to-day work of the Red Cross takes place in communities like ours, and is made possible by ‘hometown heroes’ who volunteer their time, and is funded by voluntary contributions from local citizens and businesses,” says Becky Naylor, Executive Director of the local chapter. 170 county residents volunteered more then 1,700 hours this year to help local families when disaster struck; teaching their neighbors lifesaving skills such as first aid and CPR; helping local military families communicate during emergencies; and much more. One of these hometown heroes is Shirley Tator. Thanks to Shirley and more than 30 other volunteers who, on their own time, received special training on how to help families when disaster strikes, more than 50 local families received immediate assistance—shelter, food, clothing—when disasters, such as fires and floods, forced them from their homes, this past year. Many others actively volunteer their time, including “Louise Arnold, Brenna Aileo and Robert Hughes, who as disaster volunteers traveled to Florida to help with relief efforts following Hurricane Ivan; Brenda Loubet, Ray Osburn, Ann Lewis and Cheryl Myers who volunteer 4 to 5 nights a month to take emergency phone calls; Jerry Rogowski and Shirley Sheridan who teach CPR and First Aid classes every month. Ginny Wood, Sharon Siedlecki and Betty Williams who help keep the office among other services going. And many more! The list is long and impressive. “America has always been a place where people look out for each other. We really want to thank everyone who chose the Red Cross as their way to help out in our community,” says Peter Butler, volunteer Chairman of the Susquehanna County Chapter. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared March, 1943 to be Red Cross Month – a tradition that has been continued every year, by every president since. Governed by volunteers and supported by community donations, the American Red Cross is a nationwide network of nearly 900 field units dedicated to saving lives and helping people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. Led by 1 million volunteers and 36,000 employees, the Red Cross annually mobilizes relief to families affected by more than 70,000 disasters, trains almost 12 million people in lifesaving skills and keeps U.S. military families connected worldwide. The Red Cross is the largest supplier of blood and blood products to more than 3,000 hospitals across the nation and also assists victims of international disasters and conflicts at locations worldwide. Marsha J. Evans is the President and CEO of the American Red Cross.
Roger Shepherd Gets Silver Anchor Award Now hear this, all ye landlubbers, sea lawyers, swabs, old salts and all creatures that have their being beneath, upon and above the great waters. Roger H. Shepherd, who served as the first Skipper of Sea Scout Ship 90, New Milford, PA in 1943 has been presented the prestigious Silver Anchor Award from the crew and officers of the ship. Ship 90, the North Star had about 20 Sea Scouts in 1943. They kept a rowboat at Page’s Lake and held their meetings in the back of the old Mid Town Diner, now the dentist office of Russell Swetter DDS. In less than a year, Roger Shepherd was in the US Marine Corps serving his country (in World War II). Since 1993, he has been an active member of Ship 90’s Committee, making yearly donations in support of Sea Scouting and selling flags for Ship 90 in Oceanside, California, where he has lived since World War II.
ROGER SHEPHERD The official presentation was made by Sea Scout Commodore Ron Hall at the Change of Command Ceremony and Recharter meeting of Sea Scout Ship 90, March 5, 2005, held at the Sea Scout barn. Roger still serves as a part-time First Mate aboard the 85-foot “Dolphin,” a high-speed aluminum sports-fisher operated by his nephew-in-law on the Pacific Ocean.
4-H News “Four Seasons” Begins The Four Seasons 4-H Club held their meeting on February 5, with the 4-Hers in Great Bend. At our meeting we discussed what projects we were going to do and who was going to lead them. We decided as a club bowling would be our club project that we’ll start in March. We also elected officers that night for the club. Officers of 2005 are as follows: President Cassandra Summers; Vice-President Ruth Delanoy; Secretary Julie Delanoy; Treasurer Mark Delanoy; News Reporter Rachel Johnson; Photographer Analyn Sears; Game Leader Jonathan Delanoy; Community Service Leader Annette Sears; Fund-raiser Leader Russell Sears; Social/Educational Leader Jim Delanoy; Scrapbook Leader Karen Johnson.
Susky Fire Dept. 150 Club Winners Following are the February 150 Club winners of the Susquehanna Fire Dept. Feb. 5; Arlene Travis, Debbie Doyle, Bill Zalewski. Feb. 12: Lou Parrillo, Toni Romanofski, Jeff Rood. Feb. 19: Chris Kane, Clyde Harvey, Tony Napolitano. Feb. 26: Nancy Gorton, Mary Gow, Tully Perry.
Conservation Corps Offers Youth Work Harrisburg – The Pennsylvania Conservation Corps (PCC) is looking for local young people who want to earn money while serving their community and learning about careers in museum studies. Workers are needed for a special collections care project under The Pennsylvania Anthracite Heritage Museum in Scranton. PCC members are men and women between the ages of 18 and 25. They complete conservation, recreation and historical preservation projects on public lands throughout the state. Members working on the collections crew will clean, catalogue, photograph, and transport historical artifacts, and also improve storage and exhibit areas. No experience is needed, but candidates should have an interest (and, ideally, some education) in history, anthropology, art history, museum studies or a related field. Depending upon where a member lives, transportation may be available to and from the project site. People interested in joining the collections crew may call crew leader John Kowalczyk at (570) 963–4804. The PCC is committed to diversity and equal opportunity.
Waste Oil Drop-Off Site Available Do-it-yourself oil changers in Susquehanna County have a location available to them to recycle their waste motor oil. The Susquehanna County Recycling Center, 5 Ellsworth Dr., Montrose is now a collection site for used motor oil, anti-freeze and used oil filters. Drop-off days and times are Tuesdays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Your used oil should be brought in a five-gallon or less size container. Do not mix oil with any other fluids. There is no fee to drop-off your oil. They do ask that if you are planning to bring 20 gallons or more of oil to please call ahead to let them know. Any questions, call the recycling center at (570) 278-3589 or 278-3509.
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