By ANITA COHAN
Correspondent
Article Photos
Photo by Anita Cohan
Scholarship winners
The 2011 graduating class recipients for the Alumni Scholarships, left to right, are Ashley McLaughlin, Alex Burdette, Abigail Davies, and Kelsey Taydus. Missing from the picture are Aaron Neimeyer, Devon Gruver, Sharon Sveda, and Rebecca Lindstrom.
Strawberry Shortcake
Festival
A strawberry shortcake/ice cream social will be held Sunday, June 19 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Youngsville First United Methodist Church. Weather permitting, it will be outside.
Bring your father and all the family and cool off with a treat while you visit with friends. Donations will be accepted.
Dinner Benefit
Pulled pork dinner at the Otterbein UMC Fellowship Hall on Thursday, June 23, 4:30 p.m. until sold out. Donations benefit the 2011 Haiti mission trip.
Target Enforcement
Zone
On June 9 between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., Youngsville Police Department and Warren County Sheriff's Office conducted a highway safety checkpoint. Chief Todd Mineweaser, who was in charge of the operation, said, "Over 450 contacts were made, police issued eight traffic citations and 10 written warnings. Only two were not in compliance with the state seat belt laws. I felt it was a very successful operation, and all citations were filed with District Judge Cynthia Lindemuth."
Operators were stopped and asked to show their driver's license, registration, in conjunction with vehicle checks for inspection, seat belt use, and safety practices.
Nearly 1,500 people losing their lives in traffic crashes in Pennsylvania each year, Drive Safe PA encourages motorists to avoid life-threatening behaviors such as not wearing a seat belt, driving impaired and driving aggressively. In Pennsylvania, driver behavior accounts for more that 80 percent of accidents, twice as many people lose their lives in crashes than homicides each year, 350 crashes occur on an average day, and one person is killed in a crash every six hours.
BSVP Open
The Brokenstraw Valley Swimming Pool is now open for the 2011 season. Season passes are still available for families, students/seniors, and adults. Swimmercize classes have also begun and season passes are available for that activity, as well. Blair Learn-to-Swim classes will begin on June 20. Call the pool at 563-9570 or stop in to sign up. Later sessions will begin on July 11 and July 25.
Visit the borough's Facebook page at Youngsville Borough for information and updates regarding the BVSP and other borough happenings.
YHS Alumni
Scholarship Recipients
The trustees of the Youngsville High School Alumni Scholarship Fund awarded scholarships at the YHS Commencement on Friday, June 10, to eight graduating seniors. Each scholarship is in the amount of $1,000.
A committee of administrators and teachers appointed by Dr. Jaskolka chose the scholarship winners from applications submitted by interested students. The basis for consideration among the applicants is leadership, citizenship, and scholastic ability. Since its inception in 1985, and including 2011, 89 scholarship awards have been made totaling $71,850. The eight award winners in the Class of 2011 are:
Alex Burdette, son of Anne Tyers and Frank Burdette. Alex will be attending Penn State University's main campus, majoring in music performance.
Abigail Davies, daughter of Crystal and John Davies. Abby will be attending Mercyhurst College, Erie, majoring in forensic chemistry.
Devon Gruver, daughter of Terri and Steve Gruver. Devon will be attending Asbury University, Wilmore, Ky., majoring in history and psychology.
Rebecca Lindstrom, daughter of Melissa and Joseph Lindstrom. Becca will be attending Indiana University at Punxsutawney, majoring in culinary arts.
Ashley McLaughlin, daughter of Karen and George McLaughlin. Ashley will be attending Robert Morris University, majoring in photography.
Aaron Niemeyer, son of Kathryn and David Niemeyer. Aaron will be attending Indiana University at Punxsutawney, majoring in culinary arts.
Sharon Sveda, daughter of Susan Sveda and Andrew Sveda. Sharey will be attending Edinboro University, majoring in elementary education.
Kelsey Taydus, daughter of Kim and John Taydus. Kelsey will be attending University of Pittsburgh at Titusville, majoring in pre-pharmacy.
Donations to the YHS Alumni Scholarship Fund can be sent to P.O. Box 73, Youngsville, Pa. 16371.
Brokenstraw Creek
Bike Hike Trail
Pastor Rick Hamrick updates the community on the Bike Hike Trail in Youngsville.
"The archeology study that was paid for by the Borough is completed, except for photographing a few items they found. None of the items were of Indian origin. In fact, almost everything they found came from the old house that used to be on the property. It seems likely that it was once a store before it was a residence, and was probably built about 30 years after Young came to the valley. The excavation revealed that the people who lived there years ago could have been fairly wealthy, and they may have even been engaged in making and distributing whiskey! Anyway, the evidence collected even though interesting, doesn't present any red flags for the project. We expect the survey to be mailed to the PA Historical and Museum Commission by the end of June, and they should give us a letter of clearance by the end of July, or mid August." Sadly this is about 5 months longer than they thought it would take. At that time, they trust that DCNR will release the project funding and they can begin in earnest. There appear to be no other roadblocks to surmount before they are able to begin. "Many people have been asking "what can I do to help?" and at present there are just a few small things we can do, since any money we spend before the project is official doesn't count toward our contribution," adds Pastor Rick. "You can sign into the Facebook page so we can update you regularly!"
Here's a way to help, the Bike Trail has a Facebook page that needs a dedicated person to keep it up to date. If you would like help out in any way on the project, become a friend of the Brokenstraw Creek Bike Hike Trail, and when the approval letter is received they will send you a notification. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is requiring a "long form" application, which has been contracted out to a local engineer. The complete package should be submitted by the end of June as well. DEP explained that their permits generally take 90 days to process, but that shouldn't stop the group from working on other parts of the trail that are not in the wetlands areas.
"Many of you have already been walking the trail from behind the Youngsville High School to the Free Methodist Church property on Davis Street, and have enjoyed the natural beauty and seclusion that it affords. Please continue to stay in touch, and we will keep bringing you updates as they come in," recommends Pastor Rick.
Free Methodist
Church Property
"The Davis Street Dock is already very popular with all ages (especially our teens). The pavilion is available for use free of charge, but we do require a reservation. The dock and playground area cannot be reserved. A popular question recently has been, 'when are you going to start building the church' and the short answer is 'we hope very soon'. Several new developments may put the project on the front burner. But we will not know for sure for another two months. We are cautiously optimistic that we will be able to build by later this year," according to Pastor Rick Hamrick.
Pastor Rick will be on a mission trip to an orphanage just outside Juarez, Mexico from June 22 to July 2 along with seven others from the Free Methodist Church. They will be distributing food to the needy, conducting Bible Schools for children and installing electric in a new dorm.
P&T
The 20th anniversary of Pleasures & Treasures Countryside Folk Art Faire is July 9 at the Warren County Fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
This year they have over 20 gate prizes including two tickets to the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game. Roadapple Ridge will entertain, Jack Patterson will play his bagpipes, and the Warren Barbershoppers will serenade. They also have many demonstrations throughout the day. The Double Rainbow Farms will have horses there for free rides and the Shriner Clowns will be in the Kiddie Carnival Area making balloon animals.
Children can listen to a story from the people from the Youngsville Library. The first eight children to the carnival area are going to be treated to a free bear from Beary Creation. They will have other bears and animals there for you to buy and the clothes to go with them. And lots of crafts for shoppers.
Unfortunately, the Second Annual Pleasures & Treasures Trail Run had to be cancelled because of a safety reason with the pavilion being replaced. Hopefully, they will continue next year. New this year, you can have your caricature drawn while you are there by local artist Jeremy Cross. He will also be demonstrating how he paints pictures with spray paint.