The Arbor Day Foundation is making it easy for everyone to celebrate the arrival of spring by planting trees.

Jon the Arbor Day Foundation in March, 2015 and receive 10 free white flowering dogwood trees.

Flowering dogwood tree

"White flowering dogwoods will add beauty to your home throughout the year," said Matt Harris, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. "Dogwoods are known for their showy spring flowers, scarlet autumn foliage, and red berries that attract songbirds during winter."

The free trees are part of the nonprofit Foundation's Trees for America campaign.

The trees will be shipped postpaid with enclosed planting instructions at the right time for planting between March 1 and May 31. The 6- to 12-inch trees are guaranteed to grow or they will be replaced free of charge.

Arbor Day Foundation members also receive a subscription to  Arbor Day, the Foundation's bimonthly publication, and The Tree Book, which contains information about tree planting and care.

To become a member of the Foundation and receive the free trees, send a $10 contribution to Ten Free Dogwood Trees, Arbor Day Foundation,100 Arbor Avenue, Nebraska City, NE 68410, by March 30, 2015. Or join online at arborday.org/march.

The Harford Fair Entertainment Committee is pleased to announce that Grammy-nominated member of the Grand Ole Opry, Trace Adkins, will perform on Thursday, August 20, 2015 in the main arena at the Harford Fair.  His trademark baritone voice has powered countless hits to the top of the charts and sold over 10 million albums cumulatively.  Not only a singer, Trace is a television personality, actor, author, spokesman for the Wounded Warrior Program, the American Red Cross and has performed seven USO Tours.  Beginning in early March Trace will perform throughout North America and Canada with one of his stops right here in northeastern Pennsylvania.

Trace Adkins, Grammy-nominated member of the Grand Ole Opry will perform at the Harford Fair on Thursday, August 20th in the main arena.  Tickets are available (on-line only) beginning April 1st.

Presale on-line only ticket sales will begin April 1 with best available seating.  To purchase tickets on-line, go to www.harfordfair.com homepage and click on Buy Tickets Now and follow the directions.

Half of Trace’s singles have made the Top 10 list.  Three have made it as number one hits which include “This Ain’t No Thinkin’ Thing,” “Ladies Love Country Boys,” and “You’re Gonna Miss This” which he performed on Celebrity Apprentice.  Two of his hits ranked number two on the charts and they include “Every Light In the House is On” and “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk” which remains his most enduring hit.

Trace is not only known for his singles but also his albums which include his first Christmas album released last October THE KING’S GIFT, a unique collection of Celtic carols and traditional holiday favorites.  With the album, he developed a special holiday tour called The Christmas Show.  This was an 18-city tour designed as a reverent theatrical and musical production that delves into the holiday traditions and lush musical arrangements.  He hopes that the tour will become a holiday tradition in which his fans and their families share the joy of the season with him for many years to come.

United Way of Susquehanna County, in partnership with United Way of Lackawanna and Wayne Counties was able to offer free income tax service to Susquehanna County residents on Friday, February 27th. The service was available to those households with income levels of $51,000 or less in 2014 with some clients qualifying for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) of up to $6,044.

Those individuals and families that were provided aid were most grateful for the help. Many senior citizens, military veterans, individuals and families were on the receiving end of the help from volunteer tax preparers.

One of the individuals on the receiving end of help offered these words, “I appreciate the assistance the tax volunteers provided as I will be able to use the money I would have spent on preparing my taxes to buy groceries for my family.”

For those still needing tax assistance, you can visit the United Way of Susquehanna County website at unitedwayofsusquehannacounty.org and access free income tax services via myfreetaxes.com.

United Way of Susquehanna County has plans to offer this Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA) again next year.

Harrisburg – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is seeking volunteers for this year’s Great American Cleanup of Pennsylvania, which began March 1 and runs through May 31.

“Pennsylvania is a beautiful state, and it’s imperative that we work together to keep it that way,” Acting Secretary Leslie S. Richards said. “I urge individuals to join the thousands of volunteers in their communities to participate in the cleanup this year to keep Pennsylvania beautiful.”

The cleanup is sponsored each year by PennDOT, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, the state Department of Environmental Protection and other partners. Groups participating in PennDOT’s Adopt-A-Highway (AAH) program, which involves volunteers cleaning roadsides year round, are also encouraged to participate in the cleanup.

Interested individuals can find a listing of cleanup events, resources for organizing a cleanup, and other information about the effort online at www.gacofpa.org. Groups interested in adopting a section of highway are encouraged to contact their local PennDOT County Maintenance office and ask for the AAH coordinator, or visit www.dot.state.pa.us.

During last year’s Great American Cleanup, 6.4 million pounds of litter was collected from Pennsylvania’s roads, trails and shorelines by more than 136,000 volunteers. PennDOT’s AAH program contributed nearly 75,000 volunteers who cleaned up nearly 45 percent of the collected litter on 10,317 miles of cleaned up roadway.

Through PennDOT’s AAH program, volunteers collect litter on a two-mile section of state highway four times a year. The program currently has nearly 7,000 participating groups, more than 125,000 volunteers and 15,834 miles of adopted state-maintained roadways.

PennDOT provides gloves, trash bags and safety vests to AAH and Great American Cleanup of PA groups. In addition to the event, during the “Pick it Up PA Days” from April 11 to May 4 registered events have access to reduced or free disposal at participating landfills.

For more information, visit www.gacofpa.org.