June 1

PROGRAM: Sat., June 1, 7:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m., Astronomy for Beginners, Salt Springs Park, For more info call 570-967-7275 for cancellation if weather looks iffy.

June 3

SUPPORT GROUP: Mon., June 3, Support group forming for those with a mental health diagnosis. Peer run. There is hope and wellness, 6:30 pm., UM Community Church, Main Street, Great Bend, PA. For Information call 570-536-3198 or email peertopeerhope@yahoo.com.

June 6

MUSICAL: Thurs., June 6, 7:00 p.m., Faith Mountain Christian Academy presents “Kidnapped on I-Land”, First Baptist Church, Main Streeet, New Milford, PA. Refreshments to follow.

June 8

HIKE: Sat., June 8, 10:00 a.m., Border Trail Hike, Salt Springs Park.

June 9

SERVICE: Sun., June 9, 5:00 p.m., June Vesper Service, St. Pauls Episcopal Church, Montrose, PA.

PROGRAM: Sun., June 9, 1:00 p.m., Dragonflies, Damselflies, and other Insects, Salt Springs Park.

Mon., June 3: turkey salad sandwich, three bean salad, potato salad, ww sandwich roll, orange.

Tues., June 4: bbq pork riblet, coleslaw, corn chowder, ww sandwich roll, grapes & apricots.

Wed., June 5: breaded chicken sandwich, potato wedges, wax beans, ww roll, fruited jello.

Thur., June 6: herbed fish, broccoli & cauliflower, parsley boiled potatoes, potato & cheese soup, ww bread, coconut cake.

Fri., June 7: stuffed cabbage, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, ww dinner roll, butterscotch pudding.π

With only five weeks of school left across the county, now is the time to gather those school projects you have been saving all year for the Harford Fair and to submit your entry blank. The school department at the Harford Fair exhibits up to 2,000 items from all age levels pre-school to twelfth grade. It is an excellent way to exhibit children’s work. The fair is always the third full week of August and will be celebrated August 19-24 this year.

Pictured are teachers JoAnn Voda and April Berger Caruso, two of the team of fourteen judges who judged the entries in the School Department at the Harford Fair last year. Entry blanks in the School Department for this year’s fair are due July 1, 2013 and can be found on their website at www.harfordfair.com.

Teachers can enter items from their classrooms, homeschooled children can enter projects, and parents can individually enter items for their children. Go to the Fair website and click on School House at the top. The general rules will be displayed and then click on section and class for the listing of classes of items for each grade level. Once you have decided what items you are entering you will need to submit an entry blank to the fair office. This can be done electronically or by regular mail. Be sure to use the correct entry blank when submitting items and these, too, are available on the website. Teachers should use the Teacher Submitted Entry Form and parents or individuals should use the Individual Submitted Entry Form.

Important guidelines to consider when entering:

Class Project means one item which all of the class contributes to, such as a class book, a mural, or poster.

Put the students’ names on the entry blank when submitting it so it can be displayed on the tags. Otherwise, only the teacher’s name appears on the tag.

Label all items on the back with student name, teacher’s name, school, and class number it is entered in. In the event that a tag comes off, the school department will still be able to return the item.

July 1 is the deadline for submitting the entry form to enter items in the Little Red Schoolhouse. Once you submit your entry blank, the tags for the items will be mailed to you (be sure to list the address you want them mailed to on the entry blank) or you can pick them up at the fair office. Items in the school department must be brought to the fair between 9:00 AM and noon on Thursday, June 20 and/or Tuesday, July 9. Dominica Skal and Annette Brush are beginning their second year as co-superintendents of the department and will be happy to help you with your entries. Their contact information is also on the website if you have questions.

If you are a teacher submitting items, it is suggested that you let your students know and show them what you are sending before school is out. That is so helpful when students come to the fair and are looking for their work in the Little Red Schoolhouse.

The School Department is just one of the 23 departments which exhibits items during the fair. All department categories, rules, and entry blanks can be found on the website.

Beef herd on the Hepler Beef operation in New Milford Township

The Susquehanna Conservation District (SCD), in cooperation with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), is planning a grazing and nutrient management evening field day for June 24. The field day will be held at the Hepler Beef Farm in New Milford Township and start at 6:30pm. The first one half hour of the evening session will cover the new nutrient (manure and fertilizer) management rules. Then the group will take a guided walk and talk over several of the intensively grazed pastures. The interactive talk and walk will be led by the beef operation owners Curt, Brian and Ben Hepler and assisted by the local NRCS staff. The last part of the evening session will feature refreshments (locally made ice cream).

The Hepler Beef operation has been in business since 1980 when Curt Hepler bought his first beef cows. The operation now has almost 150 animals. Curt’s son Brian and grandsons Ben and Brett (both own part of the herd) are active in the haymaking, feeding, pasture rotation decisions, cow moving and fence maintenance. The beef herd features Angus, Devon, Red Polls and mixed Hereford beef cows.

Laura Holbrook, Chesapeake Bay Tech. for the SCD, explained that “… this is part of the continuing educational outreach effort by your local conservation district. We are trying to bring manure use guideline information out to the field where the manure management workbook and regulations meet the pasture grass and ground. Two main points of this talk will be what are animal equivalent units (AEU) and how to best use the manure management record book. We will also have soil test kits and manure analysis kits available for participants. The evening meeting is for beef, sheep, and other animal operations.”

Bob Wagner, USDA NRCS Soil Conservation Tech., explained, “…a grazing field day brings about the opportunity for like-minded people with grazing/pasturing operations to get together. They can look over what is working on this operation and to discuss what works or does not work on their own operations.” Wagner further explained “…over the course of the last 20 years we, the SCD and NRCS have worked with grazers and those who have pastures to bring about more than 30 different field days. Past field days featured farms and farmers who are rotationally grazing their pasture and special speakers such as: grazing specialists, soil scientists, university professors, cooperative extension personnel and magazine editors. Perhaps the best of the best information is that which the farmers/grazers share with each other!”

If you are planning on attending please RSVP to Laura Holbrook at 278-4600 ext. 262. (This is to get a head count for refreshments)

Bob Wagner has worked for the USDA NRCS for 35+ years and helped farmers and landowners in Susquehanna County solve soil and water resource problems for 30+ years. He and his wife have a small acreage in Jessup Township, Susquehanna County where they have grown and sold Christmas trees, vegetables and flowering plants.

Laura Holbrook is relatively new to the environmental/conservation field and the SCD, graduating from Kings College in 2010. She is part of the partnership of the Lauralynn Tree farm (in operation for 20+ years) in Bridgewater Township, Susquehanna County.