HEADLINES:
Parks Association Awarded Grant
30th Anniversary
QDMA Group Works To Improve Wildlife Habitat
Child Care Providers Eligible To Apply
Law To Help Resolve Land Use Disputes
Teens Participate In Youth Institute
Chludzinski Brothers Earn Quartermaster Awards

Parks Association Awarded Grant

Thanks to a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), the Blue Ridge Parks Association (a branch of New Milford Borough) will finally be able to complete the long awaited walking track project! Lamp posts will be installed around the walking track which will be black-topped and work its way around the Blue Ridge Park in New Milford Borough. The $80,000.00 cash award will also be used to construct a concession stand, bathrooms and storage area along the 3rd base line of the large ball field at said park. This new building should meet most of the needs of little league teams, school ball teams, football teams, and community activities.

“The Parks Association is thrilled to receive this grant and we look forward to finishing our walking track project. We planned to have this project done long ago, but we have had two floods, the lamp post company went out of business and the price of black top sky rocketed, etc. Now with the help of the DCNR grant, we should be able to get the job done,” said BR Parks Association Vice President, Vicki Drake. “The amount of grant money received was substantially less then what we had requested, so our concession stand/bathroom/storage room part of the project may have to be modified somewhat, but we do hope to be able to get something up that will meet the needs of the community.”

DCNR is the primary source of state support for Pennsylvania recreation, parks and conservation initiatives. Grant funding from the DCNR assists hundreds of communities and organizations across Pennsylvania to plan, acquire and develop recreation and park facilities, create trails and conserve open space.

“Our grant investments work to bolster our vision for the health of our families, the vibrancy of our communities, the strength of our economy and our quality of life in Pennsylvania,” DCNR Deputy Secretary Cindy Dunn said. “These grants allow us to partner with communities so that they can expand and improve the wonderful assets that make the places we call home vibrant and attractive.”

Funding for the grants comes from Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund (Key 93), the Environmental Stewardship Fund (Growing Greener 1), the Growing Greener Bond Fund (Growing Greener 2) and federal funding sources.

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30th Anniversary

Mr. and Mrs. R. Mark Upright, 2179 Reeder Road, Montoursville, PA, observed their 30th wedding anniversary June 30, 2009.

They were married by the Rev. John Houston at St. Boniface Church, Williamsport. They attend Greenview Alliance Church, where their children participate on the worship team.

Mrs. Upright, the former Sharon Wright, is a native of Cogan Station. She is the daughter of the late Dale and Kate Wright. She graduated from Montoursville High School is 1976 where she was a cheerleader. Her squad won the 1976 Central Pennsylvania Varsity Cheerleading Competition. She is a homemaker and has been home schooling her children for 21 years.

Mr. Upright, a native of Thompson, is the son of the late Steave and Kathryn Upright. He graduated from Susquehanna Community High School in 1976 where he was an all-star football player. His team won the 1975 Suburban Conference Championship. He has been employed at Textron Lycoming, manufacturer of airplane engines, in Williamsport, for 32 years.

The couple met at and graduated from Williamsport Area Community College (now Penn College) in 1978.

They are the parents of five sons and three daughters: Fawn, a Messiah College graduate, harpist, and teacher at Ephrata Mennonite School; Austin, a Penn College graduate, state certified engineer-in-training, and survey technician at Vassallo Engineering in Williamsport; Fallon, an interstate timekeeper/payroll clerk employed by Day and Zimmerman Nuclear Products Services; Evan, a chemistry major at Mansfield University; Dale, a computer science major at Mansfield University and lead guitarist in the band “My Hear to Fear;” and Abel, Faith, and Deken, at home.

The couple enjoys gardening, watching sports and praying together. In honor of their anniversary, a trip to Alaska is being planned.

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QDMA Group Works To Improve Wildlife Habitat

Recently members and friends of the Susquehanna Branch QDMA conducted a fruit tree release project on SGL 219. Volunteers donated 43 hours of much needed habitat improvement work on this state game land in Northeastern Bradford County.

Pictured (l-r) above: kneeling - Bob Wagner and Dave Sienko; standing - Scott Sienko, Jeremy Wagner, Jack Sorber, Rusty Ely, Matt Sellers and Darren Pettyjohn.

QDMA Directors Dave Sienko and Jack Sorber lead the group, with Dave conducting a review of chain saw safety, then demonstrating the correct way to fell a tree. Jack guided the group to the preselected work area and helped to identify the fruit trees that needed to be released.

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Child Care Providers Eligible To Apply

Child care providers throughout eight counties in northeastern Pennsylvania, including Susquehanna, are eligible to apply for full scholarships to MetroAction's Small Business Institute program.

The Small Business Institute is a practical, hands-on, learning program designed to help entrepreneurs sharpen the skills needed to develop, manage, and grow a successful business. Participants incorporate their own business experiences while developing the building blocks for success. The program helps business owners understand how all of the pieces of their business work together.

"Training for the actual business side of the business in my industry is non-existent. The Small Business Institute has given me a new outlook on the overall management of my business. This program was extremely helpful," describes Elizabeth Keiper-Aguirre of Freckles and Frills Daycare, Scranton.

She concludes, "I learned so much from the Small Business Institute and enjoyed coming to class. The program showed me how many layers are involved in creating and operating a successful business. This program will help our business in every aspect."

Child care providers attending MetroAction's Small Business Institute program are eligible for professional development credits through the Pennsylvania Quality Assurance System (PQAS), part of the PA Department of Public Welfare's PA Keys to Professional Development program.

"While child care providers spend so much time preparing children for successful futures, MetroAction's Small Business Institute assists the child care providers prepare their own successful entrepreneurial future," states Desiree Ranella of MetroAction.

As part of its commitment to improving the quality of affordable child care throughout northeastern Pennsylvania, MetroAction continues to provide comprehensive resources to area child care providers. MetroAction offers scholarships to eligible child care providers to attend the program for free. For more information on the Small Business Institute scholarship program for child care providers, contact Desiree Ranella at (570) 342-7711 or dranella@MetroAction.org.

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Law To Help Resolve Land Use Disputes

(Camp Hill) - Legislation strongly influenced by the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau (PFB) that authorizes the creation of a Coal Bed Methane Review Board to resolve disputes between landowners and gas companies in Pennsylvania has been signed into law by Governor Rendell.

“Farmers who own the surface rights on properties often run into issues with companies that own the rights to oil, gas and coal underneath their land. The creation of this new board will help resolve common problems, like determining the location of coal bed methane wells on the property and the location of access roads,” said PFB President Carl T. Shaffer.

The legislation, House Bill 1847, amends the Coal Refuse Disposal Control Act by establishing a three-member Coal Bed Methane Review Board. Each of the appointments to the Board will be made by the Governor separately from a list of recommendations submitted by the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau; a list jointly submitted by the Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Association, the Independent Oil and Gas Association and the Pennsylvania Coal Association; and a list jointly submitted by the Deans of the College of Agricultural Sciences and the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State University.

“Pennsylvania Farm Bureau actively worked with state lawmakers, including Senator Don White, and representatives of the oil, gas and coal industries to produce a legislative solution that addresses the key concerns of farmers and other landowners,” added Shaffer.

Farm Bureau notes there have been numerous disputes over the years focusing on the location of wells and access to those locations. Farmers have been especially upset when these projects have resulted in the loss of productive farmland, when other alternatives on the farm were available.

“We’re confident that the review board will provide a positive environment to resolve disputes between surface landowners and subsurface coal bed methane interests, while also providing an opportunity to achieve good faith negotiations among the affected parties. The process will also help farmers, other landowners and energy companies avoid entering into expensive and time-consuming legal battles,” concluded Shaffer.

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Teens Participate In Youth Institute

Power of Ten or P10 teens came together on Saturday, January 23 for a day of learning, planning and camaraderie. 47 teen leaders from communities in the Northeast Health District shared ideas and strategies to reach their families, policymakers and especially other youth about the harm caused by tobacco use.

P10 are teen groups in the Northeast Health District. The teens named themselves Power of 10 at last year’s Institute which represents the 10 counties of the Northeast Health District: Carbon, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Northampton, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming.

P10 teens volunteer as peer educators to provide tobacco prevention in their school district with middle school students. They also participate in merchant compliance checks with adult enforcement agents to ensure minors are not sold cigarettes or smokeless tobacco products at stores. And, they create and participate in community projects to educate the general public about tobacco and how it destroys lives.

The Annual Leadership Institute brings together teens and adult facilitators for educational workshops, networking and action planning. Participants leave feeling inspired and informed, ready to take action back in their schools and communities. P10 youth and facilitators work in partnership to make decisions about the training schedule, presenters of workshop topics, and to make sure the training day is relevant and powerful. Topics presented included advocacy, peer education, merchant enforcement, legislation and media. P10 teens assisted in the design of their new website this past summer and it was unveiled during the media workshop. It's still under construction, but a link to this site will be placed on www.tobaccofreene.com once the site is finished.

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Chludzinski Brothers Earn Quartermaster Awards
Submitted By Ron Hall

Sea Scouts Austin and Christian Chludzinski of Sea Scout Ship North Star 90, New Milford, have earned the highest rank in Sea Scouting, that of the Quartermaster Award. The awards were presented January 2, at the 68th Bridge of Honor held at the Sea Scout Hall, New Milford.

Pictured (l-r) above: Nancy Chludzinski, Quartermaster Christian Chludzinski, Quartermaster Austin Chludzinski and Ed Chludzinski.

Austin and Christian are the sons of Ed and Nancy Chludzinski, Gelatt, PA. A sea scout who holds the Quartermaster rank is considered an expert in seamanship skills, sailing, small boat handling, white water canoeing and leadership skills.

For their service project they renovated Romy’s Place, a thrift store at Acre Lake, PA. Romy’s Place serves as a center for families in need to get free clothing, furniture, toys and household goods. Austin and Christian led a crew of nine volunteers to construct a wall, put up sheet rock and shelves, paint and trim to improve Romy’s Place.

Both Christian and Austin Chludzinski volunteer at SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), belong to the Young Men’s Group at Calvary Chapel and are home schooled.

Christian plays the piano and plans to attend law school. He serves as Boatswain for the sea scouts. Austin serves as the Purser in sea scouting and is involved in cross-country and track and field. He plans on pursuing a career in auto mechanics.

The Quartermaster Awards were presented to Austin and Christian by their parents Ed and Nancy, assisted by Skipper Charles W. Jaget and Delahanna District Scout Executive William Albrecht.

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