Living In New Cumberland

A Random Act of Kindness at Giant

2013-03-03T16:45:00.001-05:00

I want to share a wonderful story about a random act of kindness that happened to my daughter's girl scout leader, and their troop.

Yesterday, my daughter's girl scout troop had a cookie booth. It was your typical day trying to sell cookies outside of a store, well until the end of the day. And, little did we know at the time, the events that would transpire the next day.

We did a brisk business all afternoon. It was a bit cold and windy, but we all made the best of it. The girls had fun, making up songs and trying to get customers to purchase cookies. Even though we were all pretty cold, it was a fun afternoon.

As we were getting ready to pack up for the day, a man and his wife approached the booth. He was looking for Tagalongs. Tagalong cookies are these wonderful crispy wafers, with peanut butter, and covered in chocolate. Unfortunately, we were out of them. The man wanted two cases (24 boxes). Quite a large sale for anyone. The two leaders scrambled, made some calls, and made arrangements to get the cookies. One of the the leaders would have to meet him the next day to get his order to him, and he seemed fine with that arrangement.

The next day the leader, and her husband, met the man at a Rutters, made the exchange, and everyone went their separate ways. But that's not the end of the story.

From Rutter's, the leader, and her husband, went over the Giant to do some grocery shopping. As they were checking out, they just happened to run into the man again. He told them that he purchased a winning lottery ticket at the Rutter's store where they had just met. He said he wanted to share the winnings with the girls. The man explained that he was a former boy scout leader, and then he gave our leader a one hundred dollar bill. The leader was shocked and couldn't believe how things had worked out that morning. She hugged him, and thanked him profusely, as her husband shook the man's hand 'till it was about to fall off.' She couldn't believe what had just happened.

Great people are out there, and they do good things. I'm so glad that I learned about it, and that my daughter's troop was on the receiving end. I hope these girl scouts always carry this man's generosity with them, and pay it forward down the line. It was wonderful that this man was so generous, and that he chose to share his winnings with them.

I don't know if this man will ever see this blog, but I personally want to say Thank You!

Right now, the girls in this junior troop are working on their bronze awards. They are all giving 20 hours of their time to various charities of their choice.

And another thank you to our awesome troop leaders. This wouldn't have happened without your efforts. Sometimes great people come together and wonderful things happen.

New Cumberland High School's Little Indian Handbook

2013-03-01T09:23:00.000-05:00

A few years ago my Mother-in-law passed away. Among her things we found a 1952 New Cumberland High School handbook called "The Little Indian." It was the first handbook of it's kind for the former New Cumberland High School.

I've scanned the handbook into my computer so I can share it with all of you. There is a lot that stands out about this little book. The first thing is that it was created by ninth graders back in 1952. There were no computers, meaning no graphics programs, and no desk top printers. The image of the Indian, the 'Little Indian' logo and the school map, all appear to be original drawings, probably created by students.

Back in the day, the school newspaper was called "The Hi Times," only boys played sports, and there was dancing everyday after lunch. On page 13, the Activities Calendar is filled with dances, parties, and more dances. On page 34, The Assembly Schedule shows events such as Trampoline Stars, The Hammerettes, and Royal Scots. Take a look through "The Little Indian" to discover what kids were doing in high school, and what was expected of them, in 1950's New Cumberland.

I hope you enjoy this peek back into New Cumberland history. Please leave a comment about what you found interesting, and share the "Living in New Cumberland" blog with your friends.

Hope you enjoyed this peak back into New Cumberland history. Please leave a comment about what you found interesting, and share the "Living in New Cumberland" blog with your friends.

Save Our Schools

2013-01-17T12:39:00.001-05:00

I attended the public hearing held by the West Shore School District (WSSD) in regards to the proposal to close either New Cumberland or Lemoyne Middle School. I had never attended such an event, but with all three of my children being affected by this potential decision, I thought it was a good time to start.

Mr. Thomas Burnheimer, Director of Pupil Services, WSSD

The meeting was hosted by Thomas Burnheimer, Director of Pupil Services for the WSSD.
Mr. Burnheimer was joined by several of the administrative staff, including Dr. Jones, Director of Secondary Education, who addressed a lot of the questions. Mr. Burnheimer was the person in charge of pulling together this study that was requested by the school board. He started off the meeting, trying to lighten the mood with comparing the meeting to a party. Basically stating that when you have a party, you try to please everyone with the menu items, but there is always going to be someone there who does not like what you are serving. Not sure if it was just me, but it I thought it was more like a funeral in there than a party, and nobody likes a funeral.

Slide from the presentation to close a middle school.

Mr. Burnheimer then went on to explain the committee process, the study they conducted, and then showed a presentation of the proposal to close the middle school. That presentation can be viewed at this link WSSD Demographics update relating to middle school closure. After the presentation, he opened the floor to questions from the crowd.

There was a crowd of approximately 400 people attending the meeting with about 45 people asking questions or making statements. The meeting lasted 3 hours. The overall theme of the statements, and questions from the audience was to keep both schools open. The audience suggested the school district to find another way to cut spending. The schools should be the last source of cuts. Suggestions from the participants included

Raising taxes
Close and sell the Administration building, placing administration in the schools.
Cut administrative staff

A parent asking a question of Mr. Burnheimer.

Money was not the only issue aired at the meeting. Many parents were concerned about the impact on the students, staff, and community. There were several parents attending whose children do not attend either of the affected middle schools, but will be shuffled between Allen and Crossroads middle schools. Their issue was, why are their kids schools be changed if they don't attend either Lemoyne or New Cumberland? They all wanted their children to stay put in the schools they are presently attending. I think we all want that.

Specific concerns regarding the impact on the children included:

Length of bus ride
Emotional affects
Class size
Overcrowding of remaining middle school buildings
Course offerings
Extracurricular activities changing or being eliminated
Quality of Education
Students getting 'lost in the shuffle'
Reduction of teaching staff

Overall, it was a informative evening. I wanted to attend because I was curious as to what the rest of the community was thinking, especially those in our neighboring community of Lemoyne. There was a little of pitting the two schools against each other, but for the most part, speakers stayed away from those types of statements. It seemed that the people who attended, and spoke just wanted to have a say in this decision. I want to personally thank those of you who got up to speak. I am not a public speaker, and I was glad that there were so many people who were willing, and able to get up to the microphone to air their concerns.

Members of the news media in attendance at the hearing.

If you were unable to attend, and would like to have some input in this decision, you still can. To submit your comments online, click this link, Online comment form WSSD middle school closure. If you prefer to send comments via the postal service, click this link Print out comment form WSSD middle school closure.

Don't delay, please submit your comments today.

All related information and links are provided at one central page here: http://www.wssd.k12.pa.us/news.cfm?story=1939

District Considering Closing New Cumberland Middle School

2013-01-14T18:25:00.001-05:00

Recently, the West Shore School District (WSSD) announced that it was going to close one of the four middle schools in the district. The two under consideration for closure are New Cumberland Middle School and Lemoyne Middle School. The school district is holding a public hearing about this proposal on Wednesday, January 16th at 6:00 p.m. at Cedar Cliff High School. As of right now, I am unsure if the hearing will be streamed live on the web, but usually these types of meetings are. Check the West Shore School District website on the day of the hearing http://www.wssd.k12.pa.us to see if it will be streamed live on the web.

The findings of the WSSD's Demographics Committee study on this matter was presented at the most recent school board meeting on December 20, 2012. You can view that presentation at this link http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/27890908. Please note that the presentation takes place at 14:13 in the video, it's actual run time is only about 15 minutes. If you want to skip over the actual board presentation and just view the powerpoint presentation itself, you can click here http://www.wssd.k12.pa.us/files/132877/democommittee-dec21.pdf.

In the meantime, take a look at the aforementioned presentation about the closure, get to the hearing, and contact the school board members to let your voice be heard.

Email addresses for West Shore School District Board Members

Region 1 Representatives
(New Cumberland, Wormleysburg, Lemoyne, Lower Allen Township Precinct 4 & 5)

M. Todd Ambrose tambrose@wssd.k12.pa.us

Ronald Candioto (Board Vice President) rcandioto@wssd.k12.pa.us

Frank Kambic fkambic@comcast.net

Region 2 Representatives

(Lower Allen Township Precincts 1, 2, 3, & 6, Fairview Township Precincts 1, 2, & 4)

Dr. Anthony Tezik (Board President) ttezik@wssd.k12.pa.us

Kelli Williamson kwilliamson@wssd.k12.pa.us

Gayle Russell grussell@wssd.k12.pa.us

Region 3 Representaives

(Fairview Township Precinct 3, Newberry Township Precinct 1 & 3, Goldsboro, Lewisberry)

Judith Crocenzi jcrocenzi@wssd.k12.pa.us

Denise Grover dngrover@epix.net

Brian Guistwhite bguistwhite@wssd.k12.pa.us

We're Number 1!

2012-12-11T11:32:00.002-05:00

This past Saturday morning, I started my day by checking out the local news. I perused the websites of the local newspapers and TV stations. I looked for stories about New Cumberland to share with the community on my social media pages, New Cumberland News on Facebook and NC17070News on Twitter. Well, I did find a news item about New Cumberland on www.Pennlive.com. The headline read, 'New Cumberland budget holds line on taxes, fees.' I scanned the article and found out that our taxes were being kept at 3.9 mills. After that, I came across another story about Lemoyne having to raise their taxes. I read through the article for more details, and found out that they were raising their tax rate from 2.1 mills to 2.3 mills. That's when a bell went off for me. Something didn't seem right. I went back over to the article about New Cumberland and double checked the millage rate. Yes, I had it correct, the article stated that New Cumberland is keeping the tax rate here at 3.9 mills. Huh? Lemoyne's current tax rate is 2.1 mills, soon to be 2.3, and ours is 3.9 mills? Seems like a big difference between two neighboring towns.

On a side note, I just to make sure I'm being clear, and want to again specify which tax I am talking about. All property owners pay a county, municipal and school real estate tax. The specific tax that I am talking about is the municipal tax, and that money goes to the borough in which one owns property. Also, a little information about what exactly a 'mill' is. I found the following definition on the Cumberland County Website: "A mill is a way to express tax rate. One mill equals one thousandth of a dollar. One mill is expressed as .001. The tax is computed by multiplying the millage rate set by the taxing body times the assessed value of the property." Here is the link to the page where I found this definition: http://www.ccpa.net/DocumentCenter/Home/View/6869 .

After discovering the difference in tax rates between our town and our neighboring town of Lemoyne, I decided to do a little more digging. I wondered what residents in other West Shore and Cumberland County municipalities pay in taxes.

I did an internet search which took me to the Cumberland County Website. There I found a page entitled "Property Assessment Forms and Resources." Under the heading 'Real Estate Tax Forms' I found the file 'Current Real Estate Millage Rates.' I clicked that title which opened the PDF file 2012 County and Municipal & 2012-2013 School Tax Rates.

This file offers a great deal of information about tax rates in Cumberland County. Looking at ONLY the Real Estate Municipal column, I saw that New Cumberland has the highest Municipal Tax Rate in all of Cumberland County.

That's right, we're number 1 (drum roll, please) in municipal real estate taxes.

Listed below are the top 10 highest municipal tax rates in Cumberland County.
3.9 mills        New Cumberland
3.065 mills    Wormleysburg
3.058 mills    Carlisle Borough & 2nd, 3rd, 4th Annex
3.022 mills    Camp Hill
2.6 mills        Shippensburg Borough
2.58 mills      Mechanicsburg
2.434 mills    Newville
2.1 mills      Lemoyne (To be raised to 2.3 next year)
2.1 mills        Shiremanstown
2.05 mills      Lower Allen & L.A. Annex/Shire

Now, when you combine New Cumberland's municipal tax rate with the school tax and county tax, we fall lower on the overall list. The West Shore School District, which serves New Cumberland and other municipalities, has one of the lowest school tax rates in Cumberland County at 9.3 mills.

The view the entire 2012 County and Municipal & 2012-2013 School Tax Rates file, please click this link: http://www.ccpa.net/DocumentCenter/Home/View/8646

I encourage you to visit the Pennlive articles at these links:

New Cumberland Budget holds line on taxes

Lemoyne homeowners to see 9.5 percent increase in taxes next year

Thumbs Up & Thumbs Down

2012-09-18T11:08:00.000-04:00

I've come up with a list of things in New Cumberland that I think deserve a "Thumbs Up" or "Thumbs Down." Yes, it's a spin off of an idea in the newspaper, but they never seem to cover New Cumberland. So, I thought I would put my own spin on things.

THUMBS UP to school being back in session. It was a great summer, but it's time to hit the books again! Additional Thumbs Up to all the great teachers and support staff at our local schools.

THUMBS UP to New Cumberland Borough Council. Ever since I moved to the area, I could never figure out why Trick or Treat was not on October 31st. Finally, Borough Council has decided that the kids can dress up in their costumes and Trick or Treat when the rest of the country does...on Halloween! Please continue this tradition in the coming years. Thank you!
(*NOTE: This was for the year 2012 only. Most years, Trick or Treat falls on the fourth Thursday of October)

THUMBS DOWN to the vandals who struck at Neato Burrito. They smashed windows on the building and van, as well as their neon sign. Neato Burrito is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the vandal(s). Send tips to comments@neatoburrito.com.

THUMBS UP to the friends of Matthew Streeval, the man who died in the fire on Fourth Street on August 14. Through donations and a charity event, they have been raising funds to take care of his final arrangements. Matt was fortunate to have such great friends.

THUMBS WAY DOWN to Pennsylvania American Water and the paving company they hired to repair Bridge Street during their pipe replacement project. I don't have to tell you that riding down Bridge Street is a lot like traveling on a dirt logging road. And, now I'm hearing that PennDOT is not paving Bridge Street until Fall 2013. PA American water needs to step up and fix this problem immediately. Maybe if the water company hears from New Cumberland residents, they might speed things up. If you would like to contact them, you could contact their customer service at 1-800-565-7292 or email infopa@amwater.com. Going through customer service isn't always satisfying, so I did some digging and found the original press release about our water pipe upgrade. This press release is available to the public, as is the name and contact information of the PR guy at PA American water. Click the link below to see that press release. Click here for the link to the PA American Water Press Release about Water Pipe Upgrade in New Cumberland.

THUMBS UP to the New Cumberland Apple Festival. After last year's cancellation, they've regrouped and decided to move the location to Bridge Street. Borough Park is a wonderful location if there's no rain, but the risk of cancellation due to flooding puts a lot of stress and financial burden on the volunteers and vendors. Thumbs up to the organizers for thinking outside the box and coming up with a solution. The 26th New Cumberland Apple Festival takes place on Bridge Street between Third and Sixth Streets on Saturday, September 29 from 9am until 3pm.

It's River Rescue Carnival Time Again!

2012-07-31T13:10:00.001-04:00

This blog was originally written for the 2012 New Cumberland River Rescue Carnival. I've been seeing a lot of visitors coming to this page for information. So here is the basic information and links to more information about the 2013 New Cumberland River Rescue Carnival. Please be sure to check out the blog entry I wrote and photographs I took of the 2012 carnival. Have fun at the carnival!

2013 New Cumberland River Rescue Carnival Information

July 31, 2013 thru August 3, 2013
Beside Hillside Elementary School
6th and Brandt Avenue
New Cumberland
Hours 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM.

Food starts at 5:00 pm. Rides start at 6:00 pm

Links

New Cumberland River Rescue Fundraising Webpage.
New Cumberland River Rescue Facebook Page.

2012
One thing you can depend on happening every summer is the New Cumberland River Rescue Carnival. By late July, the rides start showing up in the field below Hillside School. As soon as those ride trucks show up, my kids start bugging me about when we are going. Each day, as we drive by on Brandt Avenue, we take notice of the progress made, and eagerly await our chances of winning a gold fish or a stuffed animal. The thought of funnel cakes, fries and ice balls make our mouths water. We can almost hear the laughter of the children and the buzzing carnival rides.

This year the carnival takes place Wednesday, August 1 through Saturday, August 4. The food stands open at 5pm. The rides open at 6pm. Everything closes down at 10:30pm each night. The carnival is open rain or shine, but will shut down in the event of lightning. Wristband night is Wednesday, 8/1, and the cost is $15. On Thursday, 8/2, you can get a strip of tickets for $15, and rides will only require one ticket instead of two. The carnival is located in the field below Hillside School, along Brandt Avenue and Beacon Hill Road.

In the meantime, take some time and a few dollars, and head over to the River Rescue Carnival. You are sure to have fun, riding the rides, playing the games, and running in to some old friends you probably haven't seen in a while. And of course, the proceeds go to support New Cumberland River Rescue. They are loyal and diligent in their service to our community. Last September, during the big flood, they went above and beyond the call of duty for New Cumberland, and other mid state communities. Please, show your appreciation and support by attending their carnival.

NOTE: Please be sure to check out photographs from the 2012 Carnival on our 'Photographs 7/2012-12/2012' page. The link is above this entry. Thank you.

Gone Fishin'

2012-07-16T00:38:00.000-04:00

Sunset at Conewago Day Use Area at Gifford Pinchot State Park.

While growing up, my family always took trips to the lake. I grew up in the western part of the state, so my lake memories involve Lake Wilhelm, Lake Erie, and Pymatuning Lake. My Dad would take along one of his boats. My Mom, my brother, and I would swim, fish and take turns in the boat. Now, I don't want to mislead you, when I say my Dad would take one of his boats. My Dad had a little Sunfish sailboat, that he shared with my uncle, a canoe he made from a kit, and a small aluminum fishing boat. He'd plop one of those vessels on the top of the van, secure it with rope and we'd be off. Those trips to the lake made for a lifetime of memories that I still cherish today. Now, as a parent, I understand why we went fishing so much. Not only is it relaxing and a great way to spend time with the kids, it's inexpensive and fun. Once you get the initial fishing gear and license purchase out of the way, entertainment is just a carton of bait away.

It's very comforting to know that I can hop in to the van and drive 20 minutes to the lake at Gifford Pinchot State Park. Yes, I know we have the Yellow Breeches running through town, but it doesn't feel like a get away so much, when you just drive down the street a few blocks. I like to put a little mileage between myself and home when I plop that bobber in the water.

One thing I've learned this past summer is where, and where not to, buy bait. I'm a simple fisherman. I don't need anything fancy. Just give me some night crawlers, and I'm happy. But, if you are going to sell bait, make sure what you are selling is alive. Buying bait near the lake is your best bet. Hawghead Marine & Tackle Center is your most reliable option for bait when fishing at Pinchot. The nightcrawlers are cheap at $5.49 for two dozen, and the worms are always squirming. I've learned that buying bait from Market Mart here in town is not a good idea. Not only where the worms half dead, they were the most expensive I've come across at $7+ for two dozen. We've also stopped at Rutters along Limekiln Road, too. Their worms were lively, and went for $4.49 a dozen. You can buy bait at the boat rental center at Pinchot State Park, but I'm not sure of their hours, and they've been closed when I went during the week.

A few years back I had started fishing again, but got discouraged and distracted. The kids were pretty little, and taking all of them fishing was a lot more work than it was relaxing. Now that my children are a few years older they can do a bit more for themselves, and I decided to give it a try once again. This time, I've discovered the key to having a relaxing time while fishing with children is to take only one of them with me at a time. I love all my kids, but having all three of them fishing together is bound to scare away the fish, as well as other fishermen. This summer, Conewago Day Use Area is where we've been casting our rods. Almost every time we've gone there we've caught fish. My son, is the only one not to catch anything yet, but we are hoping to change that when we go this week. I've caught one sunfish. My older daughter caught two bluegill. My younger daughter caught three fish, one of which was a large mouth bass.

Fishing at Conewago Day Use Area.

The fishing is good at Pinchot, but eventually you run out of bait. The Conewago Day Use Area is not just a great place to fish. There are several things there to keep you busy for hours, including an environmental center, disc golf course, frog pond and hiking trails. If you hike up past the Environmental Center, you can observe quite a bit of turtle activity in the lake. Rocks and downed trees provide a wonderful habitat for the them. One day while we were fishing nearby, one little turtle seemed to be playing tricks on us. He'd pop his head out of the water, swim over to our bobbers, dive and take our bait. I've noticed several bird species, squirrels, chipmunks and other animals scurrying around the park, too. I like when I see turtles, frogs, and other wild life at the lake. It shows the area is healthy, well taken care of, and stocked with fish for them to feed upon.

Like someone once said, "A bad day fishing is better than a good day at work." I'll have to wholeheartedly agree. Especially, when you see the look upon a child's face when they've caught their first fish.

Yep, now I understand why my parents took me fishing so much.

Links to information mentioned in this entry.

Gifford Pinchot State Park

Hawghead Marine & Tackle Center

Help Hillside School Be A Winner!

2012-06-28T09:29:00.001-04:00

Hillside Elementary School

School funding is all over the news these days. Most of the news involves there not being enough funding to go around. Here in the West Shore School District our taxes were raised for the 2012-2013 school year. In Cumberland County, the school taxes went up 3.33%, while our York County neighbors had theirs raised 4.58%. We hear about other districts cutting sports and kindergarten. We are lucky that has not happened in our schools, yet.

As taxes go up, parents are being to asked to chip in for their children to be able to participate in sports and other activities. West Shore School District has recently enacted an activity fees for middle and high school. These fees range from $50 - $200, to cover sports, band, JROTC and more. To find out more about the West Shore School District's activity fee, click here.

We seem to pay more and more, and get less and less for our tax dollars. Schools are always looking for new ways to raise money. There are the usual fundraisers, but sometimes we need something different.

So, it's summer, and school's out, why am I writing about school funding? Our town's public elementary school, Hillside, is trying something new. Avery Office Products has a promotion called "Avery Give Back to Schools." Hillside is trying to win this promotion, but they need the entire community to get behind them and vote. To win this promotion, they need community members to go to the Avery Give Back to Schools Website, login with your Facebook ID or register for a website ID. After logging in, find Hillside by searching the name or zip code 17070. You will click to vote, then verify your vote. It's simple and it takes less than a minute. Unfortunately, one vote on one day, won't be enough. They need you to vote every day between now and September 14. Please bookmark the Avery site, and when you check your email, or Facebook page, take a minute to vote for Hillside. I will keep a link here on this page so you can easily connect with the promotion.

What will Hillside win? If they are among the top 5 vote getters, they will receive $10,000 worth of Avery School Supplies, $1,000 worth of gift cards, and 25,000 Box Tops for Education coupons. 25 runner up schools win 10,000 Box Tops for Education coupons. For just participating in the promotion, all schools have a chance of winning one of 10 prizes of 5,000 worth of Box Tops for Education coupons.

I know if we can get our community behind Hillside, they can be one of those top 5 winners. Currently Hillside ranks in the 260's out of approximately 16,000 schools. Thank you for helping Hillside be a winner!

Click here to vote for Hillside.

PS: Just learned you can vote more than once, if you vote for two different schools, so make sure you vote for New Cumberland Middle School, too!

West Shore Swimming Holes

2012-06-12T14:09:00.001-04:00

Only the geese can cool off in New Cumberland.

As well all know, New Cumberland does not have a swimming pool. I wish someone would have had the forethought to build a public pool somewhere in this borough over the years. Up until a few years ago, the YMCA operated their outdoor pool just outside of town. It wasn't great, but it was in close proximity to our town. Over the years, that pool descended into disrepair and had to be closed. My husband tells me that when he was a kid he would swim at a pool at the Army Depot, but I don't think that's an option anymore for us from town. And, even though there is no swimming allowed in the Yellow Breeches from Borough Park, on occasion, you'll see people wading in or kids jumping in from the Fairview side. (I do not recommend either of those actions, by the way.) Unless you are fortunate enough to have your own pool, or get invited to a friend's pool, residents of New Cumberland have to head out of town to to take a dip. So, where can we go swimming?

No swimming is allowed in the Yellow Breeches from Borough Park.

The Lemoyne Pool was totally revamped for the 2010 season. Admission ranges from $3-$10, depending on what time you go. Age 3 and under are free. Residents and non residents can purchase pool season passes. The pool is handicapped accessible, features slides, a tot area and much more. For more information click here to go to the Lemoyne Parks & Recreation website.

Lemoyne Pool

The Hampden Pool is a little further up the road. Admission rates are $7-$13 depending on when you go, who you go with, and your age. Kids age 2 and younger are free. Yearly memberships are available. Features of the Hampden pool include a 550,000 gallon pool, tot pool, 120 foot slide and much more. For more information about the Hampden pool, click here.

Hampden Pool

A favorite of my family's is the Boiling Springs Pool. It's a longer drive, but it's worth it. This natural spring fed pool may be a little chilly, but on a hot day, you'll appreciate the coolness. They have a total of 4 pools with varying depths, along with 3 water slides. Admission ranges from $4-$12, depending on your age and when you go. Age 3 and under are free. Like the other pools, they offer a season pass. Six times during the 2012 season, they offer "$5 Fridays." To find out when "$5 Fridays" happen, or more information about the Boiling Springs Pool, click here.

Boiling Springs Pool

If you are looking to get back to nature and take a dip in a lake, take a drive out to Gifford Pinchot State Park to use the Quaker Day Use Area Beach. However, swim at your own risk, because the state no longer provides life guards. This is an odd swimming area. It is comprised of a grassy area along the lake, with a concrete wall that just drops down into the water. A small chain link fence tops the wall and has occasional gates through which you can enter to get into the water. There is a children's play area near the beach, as well as a snack bar, changing rooms and picnic area. Admission is free. For more information about Quaker Day Use Area at Pinchot Park, click here.

Quaker Day Use Area at Gifford Pinchot State Park.

The municipalities of Camp Hill and Mechanicsburg have their own pools, too. However, to use those pools you must be a resident or live in one of the adjoining municipalities. So, if you are from New Cumberland, you are out of luck.
Click here for link to Camp Hill Pool. Click here for link to Mechanicsburg pool.

Camp Hill Pool

Mechanicsburg Pool

Even though New Cumberland does not have a pool, we have our choice of several places to swim in the immediate area. We're on the cusp of summer, find a pool you like and dive in!

Memorial Day Ceremony & Parade 2012

2012-05-28T16:39:00.000-04:00

Today, New Cumberland did a great job honoring our soldiers, the fallen, those who came home, and those still serving. Thanks to all who organized, participated, and show up to watch. My words cannot do the day justice. I'll just let the photographs tell the story of Memorial Day 2012 in this little town we call New Cumberland.

A Fish Tale

2012-05-24T10:49:00.000-04:00

Last Friday afternoon, I was meeting my son after school, when I saw his technology education teacher, Mr. Faranov, loading some things into his car. I spoke with him and he told me he was going to release the fish into the Yellow Breeches that day. Soon my son, Jacob, came strolling out and told me he wanted to go to the park and see the fish released. We had a little bit of time before we had to get my younger kids from the Hillside, so I said, "Let's go!"

Brook Trout Eggs

Releasing 'the fish' is a big deal. Mr. Faranov and his students raise the brook trout from eggs to fingerlings in a tank in their New Cumberland Middle School classroom. They take care of them by feeding them and monitoring tank quality. Then when the time comes, he, along with some students take the young fish to be released into the Yellow Breeches Creek at New Cumberland Borough Park.

Andre Faranov, or 'Mr. Faranov,' as he is know to his students, has been participating in the Pennsylvania Trout in the Classroom project every year for the past four years. It all started in the fall of 2008 when he was awarded a grant from the PA and Cumberland Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited. This is a statewide program made possible through a partnership between Pennsylvania Council of Trout Unlimited and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

Brook Trout in Aquarium in Mr. Faranov's New Cumberland Middle School classroom.

We drove to Borough Park and met Mr. Faranov near the large pavilion. Jacob assisted him in carrying the fish over to the banks of the Yellow Breeches. Mr. Faranov scouted out a favorable location to release the fingerlings. The best area, he told us, is a spot that allows for the small fish to escape and hide from predators. After a short search, he found a good spot, a rocky area, with a fallen tree nearby. Jacob and Mr. Faranov scaled the steep bank with the bucket. They simply reached into the bucket with a net, scooped up a few fish, and released them into their new environment of the Yellow Breeches. And off the swam the fish into their new home.

Jacob and Mr. Faranov carrying the fish to be released.

The next time you are at Borough Park, fishing or trying to catch a glimpse of a fish, it just might be one of many that Mr. Faranov and his students have raised and released over the years.

Releasing Brook Trout into the Yellow Breeches Creek at New Cumberland Borough Park.

New Cumberland Circa 1922

2012-05-16T12:02:00.002-04:00

I was cleaning out my attic, and I came across a bunch of old posters that my husband had saved from his younger days. I started unrolling them to see what they were. I found the much younger Rolling Stones, quite a few Budweiser Girls, and then I discovered something that looked a little out of place. This was a different type of poster, the paper was a better quality, as well as longer and wider. I unrolled it, and much to my amazement, I found this treasure.

1922 Map of New Cumberland Borough

A 1922 map of New Cumberland. It belonged to my husband's grandfather. It shows the boundaries of the borough in 1922. There are some interesting differences. It looks as if the original northern border ran along what is now Beacon Hill Road and Sixth Street. Also, as you can see, there were no housing plots or streets in the area between Fifth and Beacon Hill Road.


Area above Brandt Ave between Fifth Street and a Private Road (that road is now known as Beacon Hill Road.)

Look closely along Sixth Street, you can see a chalk mark for the original Borough Line.

While most street names appear to the the same as they were 90 years ago, one street name has been changed. What is now known as Poplar Avenue, was listed as "Popular Avenue" on this map.

Poplar Avenue used to be Popular Avenue.

Another difference is in the area at Market & Third. On this map, that area has grass plots. Now that area is used for parking.

Parking areas on Market street used to be Grass Plots.

Borough Park was not yet in existence yet as of 1922. The topography of the that area and Yellow Breeches Creek has been changed since this map was made. I heard that the landscape of Borough Park had been altered at some point, and this map seems to confirm that. As you look at the map below, you can see that the Yellow Breeches was split into two. That upper branch of the creek goes through what would probably be the ball fields today.

Area that is now Borough Park.

Also, if you look at the picture below, you can see that the neighborhood next to borough park had not been plotted out for houses yet.

Neighborhood above Borough Park

Another contrast is the area of Hillside Road and Hillside Drive, both of which run above Poplar Avenue. Originally, it was laid out as one street know as Hillside Avenue. This avenue ran parallel to Poplar to the creek side border of the borough. The landscape of the area probably prevented them from completing this street as planned, as Hillside Road pretty much runs right into the side of a hill. Now, we have Hillside Drive which juts up over that hill off of Hillside Road. The original parcels along Hillside Avenue appear to be much larger than those plotted currently along Hillside Road.

Hillside Road and Hillside Drive have replaced the planned Hillside Avenue.

The area now known as Memorial Field appears like it was originally divided with residential lots, but later it was changed to designate that area "Play Grounds." Those playgrounds are now known as Memorial Field. You'll notice that the "Play Grounds" were as smaller area, too. Rosemont Avenue originally ran straight through Memorial Field, crossed over Fifth, and eventually intersected with Poplar. Somewhere along the way, someone decided to make the playgrounds larger and eliminate a good portion of that street.

Originally, Memorial Field was much smaller and Rosemont Avenue was much longer.

It's pretty interesting coming across a piece of history like this. This map allows us a little glimpse back in time to how things used to be and makes us wonder how some things got changed. Below is a map of how things actually are in the same area of New Cumberland in 2012.

2012 Map of the same part of New Cumberland.

The End of an Era: The Siren

2012-04-30T14:01:00.003-04:00

I live so close to the New Cumberland Fire Department that if there were ever an emergency at my house, the firefighters could run to my house. That's a bonus of living so close. One thing that is not a bonus is the siren.

We've stuck it out over the years, figuring that the loud siren was part of life. It was for the public good, so surely we could live with it, just as others had for years before us. Anyone, who lives within earshot of it, knows the inconvenience of it going off between 10 pm and 7 am. It usually sounds two to three times in 10 minute intervals. Try getting back to sleep after that. And if it goes off around 5 am, well, you might as well just stay up. Losing a little sleep is nothing compared to sacrifice our firefighters give or to what the people who need their help are going through. Those of us who live nearby, complain, but we realize the siren is for the benefit of the public welfare.

The New Cumberland Fire Siren

Recently, a neighbor told me the siren was going to be phased out. I thought that was wishful thinking, but after contacting the New Cumberland Fire Department and Exelon, the parent company of Three Mile Island, I found out that it was true. Eventually, the old siren will be shut down permanently and the recently installed new siren will only be sounded for testing once or twice per year or during an actual TMI emergency.

Last October, Exelon announced that it would replace all 96 sirens in the 10 mile radius around it's Three Mile Island Nuclear plant. Here in New Cumberland the new siren was placed next to the old,one, behind the Fourth Street fire station, in December of 2011. A feature of the new siren is that it has a battery back-up. As recently as late March, the new siren was tested.

New Siren being placed December 2011

How will the fire department members be notified of emergency calls? All active firefighters will now be given pagers. The funding for the new pager system is being made possible by a $5,000 grant to the fire department by Three Mile Island/Exelon Corporation. I was informed by Ralph DiSantis, of Exelon, that as of this article, the funds have not yet been given to the fire department, but they plan to do so in the very near future.

Jeff Gouldy, the Deputy Chief for the New Cumberland Fire Department, was kind enough to answer my questions regarding this matter. He told me, "Once we have received the new pagers and we verify they are working correctly, the old siren will no longer sound for fire department emergencies. The old siren will continue to sound for the TMI emergencies until the new siren is activated. You should stop hearing the old siren for fire department emergencies in the next few months."

Deputy Chief Gouldy offered some history on the use of the sirens in New Cumberland. He shared with me that in the early 1970's, there were 2 sirens in the borough. Many of you may remember one of the sirens was at the old station on 4th Street, and the other was located at 16th and Elm. Into the early 1980's, both sirens would blow for any emergency call. The sirens had a code to them. For medical calls, it blew once; for auto accidents, it blew twice; and for fire calls, it blew five times. Back then, every fire fighter and EMT relied on those sirens. The 16th and Elm siren stopped working sometime in the 1990's and was eventually taken down. He didn't know when the sirens were initially installed.

Thanks to technology, and the generous donation from Exelon, the New Cumberland fire siren will become obsolete and go the way of eight track tapes, typewriters and horse drawn carriages. The next time the siren awakens you in the middle of the night, you can rest more easily knowing that this might be the last time it you hear it.

Thank you to New Cumberland Fire Department Deputy Chief Jeff Gouldy and Ralph DiSantis of Three Mile Island/Exelon Corporation for the information they provided for this entry. An additional thank you to the members of our Fire Department for their service and dedication to our community. (And thanks to my neighbor for tipping me off!)

Play Ball!

2012-04-24T12:11:00.001-04:00

This past Saturday morning throngs of girls dressed in navy blue, yellow and gray uniforms converged upon New Cumberland Borough Park. This was not a normal day at the park, it was the inaugural opening day for the Cedar Cliff Youth Softball Association. You may be saying, "What's the big deal? They've been playing softball down there for years." This season is a big deal for softball on the West Shore. Softball has been played on the West Shore for decades under the names of Highland and New Cumberland Softball Associations. This year those two organizations merged to become one under the name Cedar Cliff Youth Softball Association.

Players wait for the photographs at Veteran's Pavilion.

Players started arriving as early as 7:30 am to have their individual and team photos taken by Fine Art Photo. Girls lined up near the Veteran's Pavilion and took their turns posing with bats and standing proudly with their teams. Those photographs taken on Saturday will turn into cherished mementos as the years pass.

Teams lined up for the Opening Ceremonies.

Soon, it was time for the official "Opening Ceremonies." As word spread, girls ranging in age from 5-18, gathered with their respective teams and made their ways through the jammed parking lot and over to the lower ball fields. There the girls lined up in the outfield and prepared for the festivities. Teams proudly displayed home made posters decorated with team and player names. Jen Shade, from 105.7 The X morning show, kicked off the ceremony with words of welcome and encouragement for the crowd.

Jen Shade from the X 105.7, and Rascal, the Harrisburg Senators mascot, helped with the Opening Ceremonies.

This day was all about the girls participating in this 2012 season. Each team paraded in from the outfield to the infield. Teams were introduced and cheered on by the hundreds of spectators. Every girl was given the opportunity to announce their name into the microphone. 'Rascal,' the Harrisburg Senator's mascot, was even on hand to give the girls high fives as they arrived on the infield.

Recognition of Volunteers.

Once all 20 teams were introduced, Cedar Cliff High School JROTC did the Presentations of the Colors, and a softball player sang The National Anthem. Also, on the program was the recognition of 3 volunteers who have kept Softball going in New Cumberland and Highland park for the last several years. As with all ball games, there has to be a first pitch. A tradition brought in from the Highland league had the oldest player in the league toss out the first pitch to the youngest player.

Scoring a run in an instructional game.

Games started promptly at 11:00 am and ran all day until the rain chased the girls out around 5:00 pm. My younger daughter's instructional game started at 1:00 pm. The weather was unbelievably sunny and warm. The little girls did really well and their enthusiasm for the game cannot be matched.

At bat at the U10 slow pitch level.

My older daughter's Under 10 slow pitch game started at 3:00 pm in the bright sunshine. Within an hour, gray clouds started rolling in over the horizon. Everyone kept a careful watch to the darkness in the north western sky. The cool breeze and the persistent winds gave warning that it was only a matter of time before the girls would have to stop. At one point, lightning was spotted and the players, coaches and spectators retreated to the nearest pavilion. After waiting several minutes, coaches decided it was all clear and everyone headed back to the field. We all knew it wouldn't be too long before the rains would arrive. And sure enough, they did. As coaches called the players off the field, parents rushed to help them gather their equipment. Then everyone made a mad dash for their cars

The rain arrived to put an end to a great day of Softball.

Despite the wet ending, the day showed much promise. The time and dedication of the players, coaches, and volunteers made sure that this league got off to a good start and will go on for years as the Cedar Cliff Youth Softball Association. My personal thanks to all of you who made the day happen for not only for my two girls, but for all of girls who are participating in this year's season and the many seasons to come.

School Field Trip Memories

2012-04-13T10:47:00.000-04:00

This past Tuesday, I had the honor of accompanying the fourth grade class from Hillside Elementary School to their annual field trip. Every year for the past 13 years, Hillside's fourth grade makes its annual trek across the Susquehanna River to visit the State Museum and tour the Capitol building.

This got me to thinking about the field trips I took as a kid. Probably, my fondest memories of my school days are when we took field trips. I grew up in Pittsburgh, so we had the opportunity to visit a lot of great places. Frick Museum, the University of Pittsburgh Nationality rooms, Three Rivers Stadium, along with many, many others. My favorite was Meadowcroft Village in Avella, PA. It was about an hour trip from our school, so it was a fun ride filled with songs and games. I remember singing '99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall' on many of our bus rides. I don't think that song would be allowed now a days. Meadowcroft Village is a recreated 19th century village. Besides the bus ride, I think I liked it just because we could just wander around freely outside and visit the many structures that made up the village

Back to Tuesday's field trip. We arrived at the school at 8:30 am. After checking in with the office, we proceeded to the classroom. We dropped off my younger daughter at her first grade hallway and went upstairs. Parent chaperones were directed to an empty classroom to be given their student assignments and instructions for the day. I was assigned my daughter, two girls and two boys. I knew a few of the kids, so it looked like a good group.

The kids lined up and the parents joined in with their groups. We traveled down the hallway, the steps and out the door to the bright yellow buses awaiting us in the bus loop. We set off on our short drive across the river. Soon, we arrived at the state museum.

The kids were eager to get going. We all walked down some steps, passed by a Liberty Bell replica, through doors and entered a room where we could store our lunches. I collected my group of fourth graders and we set off into the museum. Everyone wanted to hit the gift shop, so we got that out of the way first. The kids selected crystal necklaces, candy, mood rings and more. Items they surely could have gotten anywhere, but, hey they are 10 year old kids and the money was burning holes in their pockets

William Penn Statue

Artwork at Folk Art Exhibit

With that under our belts, we took a short escalator ride up to the first floor. In all his glory, William Penn's enormous statue welcomed us. They kids gathered underneath for a great snapshot and we moved on to the displays in the rest of the floor. We wandered through the art galleries and studied several pieces of artwork. The kids discussed whether or not they liked them or even understood what they represented. In another gallery, we stumbled came upon the exhibit called, "Making It Better: Folk Arts in Pennsylvania Today." There were many different representations of culture and style from residents across the state. Finally we wandered through the Village Square, which is a replica of an old time village. We only had an hour to explore the museum, so I tried to keep the kids moving so we could make it through the entire place in an hour. We spent about 20 minutes on each floor. Wish we had more time, but we had to be at the Capitol building at a certain time for our scheduled tour.

View from second floor landing at the State Museum.

After another escalator ride, we arrived on the second floor. The view from the escalator is quite breathtaking and a little intimidating as well. That huge open space looking down upon the William Penn Stature, the flags and the mural are an impressive scene in itself. On the second floor we entered into an area with a Native American Village, Civil War Exhibits and an area with several examples of transportation through the years. The kids don't really stop to read any of the information that is provided, so we got through the floor in our allotted 20 minutes pretty easily. So, out to the escalators we went and up to yet another floor full of Pennsylvania treasures.

Ancient Crocodile

Mammoth skeleton

The third floor holds some pretty cool stuff. We wound our way through the hall of geology and entered the Paleontology exhibit where we viewed some scary looking prehistoric crocodiles, dinosaurs and a mammoth skeleton. All of which were Pennsylvania inhabitants long before any of us ever existed. We traveled through the Mammal hall where a variety of preserved animals were arranged in scenic displays behind glass enclosures. After that, we made our way through several displays of birds, fish, reptiles and other Pennsylvania wildlife. Our hour was just about up so we went back downstairs to meet up with our group.

Pennsylvania State Capitol Building

Soon, we departed on a walk that took us over to the Capitol building. We entered through a door near the fountain and prepared to go through security. There we had to pass through a metal detector and place our bags and belongings in an x-ray machine. Once everyone was inside, we navigated our way through hallways into the Capitol's main rotunda. The main rotunda is spectacular. The kids were quickly lined up on the rotunda's marble steps for the complimentary photo opportunity. Once the capitol photographer snapped some photos, the tour guide joined us to start our tour.

Main Rotunda

We climbed the magnificent marble staircase and entered the Senate Chamber. Once inside, you are surrounded by marble, gold leaf, and the murals. I don't think I heard much of what the tour guide said. I was just mesmerized by all of the elaborate details surrounding me. One of the girls in my group pointed out that everything in the building was nice and had designs, even the exit signs and fire extinguishers.

Senate Chamber

Next we visited the State Supreme Court Chambers. The incredible artwork, the detailed wood work, the distinguished chairs, everything was like something out of a museum. It's hard to believe that they let people work in this place.

Supreme Court

Soon we were off to the House of Representatives where our State Representative, Sheryl Delozier, met with the kids. Representative Delozier was kind enough to take time out of her busy day and explain what she does, the rules of the house, how the voting takes place, and where she sits. Then she stepped aside and allowed our tour guide explain the history and some of the details of the room. While the tour guide explained the history, a few of us were able to speak with Representative Delozier. She explained that after smoking was banned in the House, restorers came in and thoroughly cleaned the walls, furniture, fixtures, murals and more. After the cleaning took place, several of the details in the murals that had been covered in smoke residue for years, became clear again. I think if I were to work there, I probably not get much done as I would be staring at all the intricate details in the room.

Representative Delozier in the House of Representatives

That was the conclusion of the tour. We descended through the narrow staircases to an area with several school cafeteria style lunch tables. We sat down to enjoy our packed lunches and take a rest. When we were finished we traveled over to the Welcome Center. The kids were able to learn how laws are made, watch a video and pretend to vote on legislation. The biggest attraction seemed to be the moving sculpture, where balls make their way through the huge maze. Several numbers were set up within the sculpture and those numbers coordinated with informational placards listing the steps taken to getting a bill made into law, but no one was really paying attention to those details. The kids just wanted to watch the balls make their passages through the maze of wire and tubes. It was soon time for us to make our way back to our school buses and travel back to Hillside.

Ball maze in the Welcome Center

The kids seemed to have a great time and I did, too. I had a nice group of kids who listened well and stayed together. The whole fourth grade behaved very well and I even heard the photographer at the capitol comment that kids were very well behaved and he couldn't believe the kids were even shushing their fellow students to be quiet. The fourth grade class from Hillside did a fine job representing their school. As a parent, I was very proud of them.

Students in Grade 1-5 go on only one field trip per year. The field trips are funded by the Hillside Parent Teacher Organization. The money for the field trips is raised by the kids themselves by participating in fundraisers such as the fall product sale and the Spring Dance-A-Thon. Those of you who have supported fundraisers are directly responsible for allowing the kids to take these yearly trips. Thank you!

Everyone probably has some favorable memories of school field trips. What was your favorite school field trip? Please share in the comments section. Thanks.

Link to Meadowcroft Village
Link to The State Museum of Pennsylvania
Link to Information on touring the Pennsylvania Capitol

Spring! Tulips, Trees & Geese, Oh My!

2012-03-23T12:37:00.001-04:00

Yes, it's springtime in New Cumberland. Although it only officially began Tuesday, the spring weather has been with us for weeks. Winter was never really committed to us this year anyway. It decided to visit elsewhere this year and that's fine with me. Maybe the lack of winter weather this year will help me to appreciate next year's snowfalls, ice and bitter temperatures. Nah, I doubt it.

Borough Park after February snowfall.

I can only recall 3 snowfalls this year. The one at the end of October, which was still Autumn, one in January, and another in early February. We got off easy. I thought for sure after last year's torrential rains, the precipitation would continue through the winter and we would have a record snowfall this year. I'm glad I was wrong.

View from Reno between Front and Second.

I've been taking advantage of this beautiful weather and taking walks around town. One thing for sure is we have a lot of lovely spring trees, shrubs and flowers. Pink and white blossomed trees dot the landscape. My daughter picked up some of the fallen pink blossoms from the ground and tossed them up saying, "Look, pink snow!" I'll take that snow any day over the real stuff. Gorgeous daffodils and hyacinths are in bloom everywhere these days. In the past few days, I've noticed the tulips have just begun to open. Tulips are my favorite. When the tulips show up, the snow is usually gone for good.

Borough Park ball fields are springing to life.

A walk through borough park makes me feel like we are further into spring than we actually are. The little tykes are practicing ball, other tots are frolicking on the play sets, while numerous adults walk or run laps. Haven't noticed as many geese as in previous years. One can only hope that many of them have found another place to poop and lay eggs this year. I still scratch my head over the ban on dogs at the park. We usually have all these geese wandering and doing their business all over the park. No one cleans up after them. Then we have this ban on dogs at the park. 99% of dog owners clean up after their dogs and keep them on leashes, but they are not allowed. On top of that, the dogs would scare away the messy geese. I am not a huge dog fan, but it's about time New Cumberland allow them in the park.

Bridge Street Business District.

Another walk through town took me up Bridge Street, through the business district. I love the look of Bridge Street in the spring. Those trees look like white puffballs just swaying in the breeze. I wish they would stay like that all year round.

Elkwood Park

Further up, I passed Elkwood park, which was inundated with daffodils. As I walked up Bridge Street, lovely blooms popped up in front of churches, homes and businesses.

Park Avenue

I looped back to the library where the grounds are always appealing and well groomed. Daffodils and pink blossoms painted the grounds.

New Cumberland Library

My travels then took me up near the new school. Just as I walked across Seventh street, I glanced back, and WOW, this house just screamed spring. Golden forsythia bushes along with those bright pink and white trees. If that isn't one of the best springtime landscapes in town, I don't know what is.

I think it especially stands out against the lack of color coming from the grounds at the new school. Let's all pray for rain, so the grass starts to grow on the hill below the new school. Then we won't have to look at that drab brown dirt any longer.

The hill below the new Hillside School has been planted with grass seed.

Spring has just begun. Who knows what this spring will hold for us? I can only hope we avoid the violent and drenching storms of last spring and summer. Happy Spring Everyone. Enjoy this beauteous weather while it lasts!

The Other New Cumberlands

2012-03-09T10:19:00.002-05:00

The last blog entry was pretty heavy. I appreciate everyone's support and taking the time to read what I wrote. It is my understanding that there is a police investigation into the matter of the PTO funds. I hope we all hear the outcome of this soon. I was going to donate funds from the advertising on this blog to Hillside's PTO, but Google, the company that provides the advertising, decided that my blog was no longer worthy of their advertising and removed the ads. They will not pay me for the ad clicks. So, thanks to those of you who took the time to visit the ads while they lasted.

That being said, this week wanted to write about something totally different and light weight. Several years ago, I had a job where I had to drive all throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia and eastern Ohio. My travels took me through several small towns. One of those small towns was our town's name sake, New Cumberland, West Virginia.

Historical Marker in New Cumberland, West Virginia.

New Cumberland, West Virginia is located 245 miles from here and about an hour west of Pittsburgh. It is a quaint little town located in West Virginia's northern panhandle, which is a thin slice of land located between Pennsylvania and Ohio. Like our New Cumberland, that New Cumberland is situated along a river, the Ohio River. They have about 1,100 residents as compared to our 7,300.

Considerably smaller than us, they have a lot going for them. They have a state park nearby called Tomlinson Run State Park. They have docks for boat access along the Ohio River. They also have what they call the 'C House.' It's a community center that hosts dances, skating, basketball and more. And, like our town, they have several ball fields. They have 2 golf courses nearby. About 5 miles away they have the Mountaineer Racing and Gaming Resort. Apparently, that's a big employer for their town's residents.

Even though it seems small as compared to our New Cumberland, it's a big town out in the panhandle of West Virginia. New Cumberland is the county seat for Hancock county. It is home to many county offices and the county courthouse. The Hancock County Historical Museum is located in New Cumberland. There is also the New Cumberland Locks and Dam. It is named for the town but it is not actually located there. It is situated about 2 miles down the river closer to Stratton, Ohio.

New Cumberland Locks and Dam

Residents of the West Virginia New Cumberland are proud of their town. In the past decade they have won several awards recognizing the appearance of their town including; 2003 All Star Community, 2005 & 2007 Recognized for beautifying the city and 2007-2007 West Virginia Make It Shine award.

There is also another "New Cumberland" in Ohio, but this New Cumberland is not an incorporated town and doesn't even have a post office. It is located about an hour west of New Cumberland, WV.

If you ever find yourself in the panhandle of West Virginia or eastern Ohio, take a drive through one of the other New Cumberlands and see how the other "New Cumberland" lives.

Finding the Artist in Everyone at Basso Art Studio

2012-02-17T13:01:00.001-05:00

Last spring, while walking through town, I noticed a sign go up outside of Oxford Hall Celtic shop. The sign read 'Basso Art Studio.' Nearby, I saw a box hanging off of a railing. The box contained class schedules for a brand new art studio and school being started up by Laura Basso. I'm always looking for activities for my kids. My family loves art and being creative, so I looked over the schedule to see if anything fit our hectic schedule. Sure enough, there was a class for my kids. The kids loved it and they looked forward to going each week. My goal was to try to expand their artistic range a little. They are obsessed with drawing anime/manga, a Japanese style of animation. The class, and the teacher, broadened their artistic horizons and allowed them to share their interest in anime. When our schedules allow, I know we'll be going back to Basso Art Studio for more classes.

The Entrance to Basso Art Studio is down the stairs.

Basso Art Studio, founded just last year, is tucked away underneath the Oxford Hall Celtic Shop, in the business district of New Cumberland. The proprietor is Laura Basso, and after years of working for others, she decided to establish her own studio. Laura grew up right here in New Cumberland and now lives nearby, in Etters. She has been studying, working, and teaching the arts most of her life. She has a degree in Fine Arts from Kutztown University and has exhibited her work in venues throughout the mid state, including Whitaker Center, Mechanicsburg Art Center, New Cumberland Library and more.

Laura Basso didn't start out with the intention of being an art teacher. That came about through her wanting to be involved in her kid's school. West Shore School District used to have a program called the "Famous Artists Program," where parent volunteers would go into classrooms and present lessons about popular artists and their works. Laura thought that was right up her alley and ended up spending 8 years with the program. Through her volunteerism, she found out that she enjoyed sharing her love of art with others. From there, she took up teaching art classes at a local gallery. Last May, she branched out and opened her own studio and school. She says her young business is growing and thinks being on Bridge Street helps bring in a lot of people. She says, "I moved here and got so much support from the community."

Laura Basso in her studio.

Starting any kind of business can be difficult, but Laura tells me she's making it work. "I just love it so much and get such a positive feedback from the kids, and the parents, that I just keep doing it. It's fun, I'm lucky."

Laura's words say it all when she talks about the children's classes, "I have just a positive response. Lots of smiles, it's like magic. Everything clicks and I see the light bulbs go on in their heads."

She adds, "It gets the kids to use creative problem solving skills, which is beneficial in any subject, just for lifelong skills, or any career you go in to."

Laura offers classes for adults, too. The classes are open to any skill level. She tells me she gets a lot of people with little experience or who haven't done anything in a while, but those students are often her favorites. She teaches most of the classes herself, but recently added Shannon Kelley, who focuses on preschool art, and Donna Kovalchick, who teaches photography. She says, "I think it's inside all of us. It doesn't matter if you can't draw or have no experience, you can still find that creativity in you just for life fulfillment and enjoyment."

Kids and adults can get creative at Basso Art Studio.

March is 'National Youth Art Month,' and Laura has activities planned to get more kids interested in art. Youth Art Month is observed each March to stress the value of art and art education for all children. The studio will be hosting a Youth Art Exhibit all month. To kick it off, Laura will host a reception at the studio on March 10th, from 1 pm - 4 pm. On that day, kids and families are welcome to go into the studio and try their hands at creating their own art. Laura will have art supplies available for the kids to use, and when they are finished, they can take their masterpieces home with them. The event is free and open to the public. The studio's class schedule will be available at that time. Refreshments will be available. In addition to the open house, the Children's Art Exhibit will be available for viewing March 17th, 24th & 31st. But, if your kids want to be creative, make sure they get there on the 10th, that's the only day she'll have the supplies out for them to use. To see the National Art Month flyer for Basso Art Studio, click here for the Youth Art Month Flyer.

Create a picture of a yummy treat!

Classes and lessons are available for both children and adults. Classes offered include; preschool art, multimedia art, teen drawing, pastel and much more. Laura offers painting parties, a scout merit badge program, home schooling classes and private art lessons. Laura tries to think outside of the box and come up with unique classes for her students. A friend of hers gave her the idea to have a class where students purchase a dessert from Dingeldein Bakery, (which is just across Bridge Street from the studio), then bring the dessert to the studio where they will create a picture of it. When finished, the students get to enjoy their desserts along with some complimentary tea from the Oxford Hall Celtic Shop. You get to be creative and enjoy a wonderful dessert, what could be better!

Basso Art Studio is located in downtown New Cumberland at 315B Bridge Street, just below the Oxford Hall Celtic Shop. For more information about Laura and Basso Art Studio, please go to http://www.bassoartstudio.com/.

For more information about Youth Art Month, go to
http://acminet.org/youth_art_month.htm

Links to other businesses mentioned in this blog:
http://www.oxfordhall.com/mysitecaddy/site3/

New Cumberland Noise

2012-01-13T11:41:00.001-05:00

When I first came up with the idea to write about noise in New Cumberland, I was looking to vent about my neighbor's wind chimes that seem to wake me at 3 am with their relentless "BONGing" noises. To be honest, my one neighbor's chimes are so loud, it's like living next to a church and listening to broken church bells at odd times of the day and night. Before these neighbors moved in, another neighbor's smaller chimes bothered me a little. However, since the new neighbor's gigantic bonging chimes have been placed about 10 feet from my bedroom window, I hardly notice the subtle tinkling from chimes across the street anymore.

All these wind chimes got me to thinking about other noises that we live with here in town. I live in close proximity to the fire department, so when the siren goes off, it pretty much drowns out everything. If I'm having a conversation, I have to stop and wait for the siren to be done before continuing. Every time a family with a baby moves onto the street, there's always a discussion about trying to get the thing shut off, but to no avail. It's something we all have come to live with. My children, and generations of children before them have survived the fire siren, it's just part of life here in the lower part of town. When my oldest was born, the siren upset him, so we got a creative and renamed it. We called it the "Hug Siren" and whenever it would go off, we'd get a hug. Nice little benefit from such a noisy thing.

New Cumberland Fire Department's Siren

In the past year, the helicopters have been making a comeback and their noise seems to agitate those who live in the higher elevations of the town from time to time. My husband, who grew up here, tells me that the presence of helicopters today is nothing compared to when he was a kid, and no one seemed to complain. Since we have not one, but two airports nearby, airplane noise is just another sound we hardly notice in our every day lives. There are the tiny two seaters buzzing in and out of the Capital City Airport and the big guys making their approach to Harrisburg International.


One of the helicopters that fly over New Cumberland.

Summertime brings a whole different set of noises. The laughter and sounds children at play is a wonderful summertime noise. Another pleasant summertime sound is the roar of the crowd from the sports fields. Occasionally, you'll hear that "bat meets ball" sound or the whistles from the football game to complete the effect. Other warm weather noises aren't so welcome. One year, there was a young man who lived nearby, who, at least once a week, thought everyone in the neighborhood wanted to listen to his music. It was like he was hosting his own little block party that no one wanted to attend. Then there's those guys who have the thumping music radiating from their tinted window sportscars. They are usually the same guys who leave the sound of screeching wheels behind when they pull out of a side street too quickly. Of course, there's the occasional dog barking or a parent yelling at their kids. Around Independence Day, we have our fair share of fireworks crackling from all directions.

As I was finishing this entry, I opened my back door to let the dog in and I was reminded of another pleasant sound that fills the air of New Cumberland. The sounds of church bells. On Sundays, there a several bells that echo through town, but other days, the bells that I hear are coming from Trinity United Methodist Church on Bridge Street. I'm not sure of the exact schedule of music, but I know we get bells on the hour and songs at certain times of the day. These are welcome chimes that have a a tune that is pleasing to the ear, and a set reason behind then. Now, if I could only get the my neighbor's chimes to play a tune, and at normal times of the day to boot

I'm sure there are many more sounds that fill the air of New Cumberland. What sounds do you hear in your part of town?

Trinity United Methodist Church on Bridge Street.

Volunteer Spotlight

2012-01-03T13:12:00.001-05:00

Thank you for checking out the blog. A special thanks to the "New Cumberland PA" Facebook page for referring so many readers to this site. Last week's response was overwhelming. Onto this week's entry.

Our town is more than just buildings and streets, the soul of the town is it's residents. A few weeks ago I wrote about the enormous responsibilities that many of our citizens take on when they offer their time to community activities. From time to time, I am going to share some of their stories. The volunteers that I am most aware of are the ones who offer quite a bit of their time with our schools, scouts and youth sports. That's the circle I am involved with right now, but I realize community volunteerism goes beyond just helping our children. We have churches who provide for the less fortunate, Vickie's Angel Walk who raises money for cancer victims, the Fire Department and so much more. All of these efforts help make New Cumberland the caring community that it is.

Today, I'm going to introduce you to a friend of mine, Anita (Cook) Uibel. If your kids go to Hillside or are involved with youth sports, you probably already know her. Personally, I met her and her husband, Matt, twelve years ago at a childbirth class when we were both pregnant with our sons. Over the years I've gotten to know them both, and have had the opportunity to watch their involvement in the community grow

Anita Uibel is one of those people who volunteers with multiple organizations through out the community. You wonder how she juggles it all, along with raising her own children. Not only does she volunteer, but she takes on what many people try to avoid, the added responsibility of being in charge. She spends a lot of time and effort putting together activities for Hillside Elementary School. For the past seven years, she has been the chief organizing force behind such yearly events as Field Day and After School Clubs, as well as Science Night, which she shares responsibility with another parent, (Megan A). In addition to her help at the school, she is in involved with youth sports. Anita, along with her husband, Matt, have been organizing and coaching the Cedar Cliff Youth Boys Basketball league for the past three years. She coaches her daughter's basketball team and coaches baseball in the spring, too. If that's not enough, she tutors kids after school at New Cumberland Middle School. To top it all off, she helps with The Coakley's Foundation, a local charity based out of Coakley's Restaurant and Irish Pub.

(The Coakley's Foundation is dedicated to raising funds to help local kids who need financial help with the expenses involved with community sports & arts programs. Coakley's main way of raising funds is selling T-shirts and related items. I have provided a link at the end of this blog entry.)

You may be asking yourself, why would anyone take on so many extra responsibilities? I know I have a hard time just juggling my own household, let alone taking on activities that involve hundreds of people. These are volunteer positions, there's no pay. What does Anita get out of her efforts? She tells me, "I enjoy being in the company of children and I really like getting to know them. It is very rewarding going into school and being able to know a lot of the kids by name and being able to have conversations with them. Plus, I get to play and do all the things I enjoyed doing growing up!"

Anita has a background in teaching and sports. She was a standout basketball player for Red Land High School, a former basketball coach and middle school science teacher. So, it's not like her background is that far off from what she is doing now, she just doesn't get paid for it anymore. Anita tells me that she loved her job, but when she decided to stay home and raise her own young children, she missed being around the older kids. Offering time to schools and sports filled that void for her. Many of the capacities in which she volunteers arose from just being involved in her own children's activities.

As for kids and their participation in casual sports these days, Anita says, "It seems to me that only a small number of kids today go to parks and play pick up games on their own. Plus there are not a lot of opportunities for children to participate in activities unless they pay money to do so. Frankly, in our town, there is really nothing for kids ages 10-15 to do unless their parents pay. I just want kids to experience the fun I had growing up and maybe learn a few things along the way."

Anita says about the activities she's involved with, "It keeps kids involved. Plus with (Hillside's) Science Night, maybe it will spark an interest in Science in a child!" As for her involvement with The Coakley's Foundation, " (It) gives kids the opportunities to participate in paid activities that they may otherwise not have the money to do."

Anita is not the only person here in town who spends countless hours putting together activities for kids, many others do as well. Not everyone has the time, patience or energy to take on what she and others do. Personally, I want to thank Anita and all those others out there who take on these tasks, whether it be for Scouts, Sports, Parent-Teacher Organizations, or whatever. What you do makes our town a better place to live, it gives our kids something to do and teaches them life lessons.

So, next time you sign up your child for activities, think about Anita, and the many people like her, who spend their own time organizing them. Please, make an effort to thank them and volunteer a little of your own time to ease the burden on them.

Link to Coakley's Foundation

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2011 Year in Review Part 2, Aug-Dec

2011-12-30T16:26:00.002-05:00

Here in New Cumberland, we come to expect certain events, like the River Rescue Carnival in August, the Apple Festival in September and the Halloween Parade in October. While we become accustomed to these annual events, the unexpected ones still shock and surprise us. If you missed last week's blog, I covered the first seven months of 2011. To view that entry, please scroll down. For now, I pick up the year in August.

August was a busy month. It brought us an old favorite, the loss of a valued community servant, and a new building added to our landscape. The old favorite, the New Cumberland River Rescue Carnival, is like an old friend who comes to visit every year. Happy for it's arrival, but relieved when it finally goes.

2011 River Rescue Carnival

In mid August, New Cumberland lost a dedicated public servant & volunteer. Mr. Terry Stoner served New Cumberland with River Rescue, Fire Police, Borough Council and in many other capacities, too numerous to mention. Thanks to him and his family for the the years of service and sacrifice to our community. In Late August, an earthquake rumbled through New Cumberland. The 5.8 quake centered in Virginia gave us a little shake, but no local damage was reported. August 24th was the start of the new school year and for students who attend Hillside Elementary School, this meant a brand new building for them. The new facility, which cost about 11 million dollars, was a welcome change to many, where others thought is was an unnecessary expense. The school has been open since August and was officially dedicated on October 17th, however the workmen seemed to have struggled to complete the landscaping. I'll be glad when there's finally some grass growing on that hill, then I'll know they are done.

The New Hillside Elementary School

September What can I say about September that hasn't already been said? It was a month with drenching rains followed by historic flooding. Water reached up Bridge and Market Streets toward Second and Third streets. Some residents and businesses were forced out by the flooding. All we could do was wait for the water to rise and recede as buildings succumbed to the advancing water. Even though the water diminished by the end of the month, Borough Park was still saturated and the annual Apple Festival, which takes place there, had to be canceled.

Looking down Bridge Street from Second Street.

Looking down Market Street from Third Street.

Borough Park was covered by the flood waters.

October brought us our annual Halloween traditions. The New Cumberland River Rescue Halloween Parade is always a fun time for spectators and participants. Residents and visitors alike watched the bands, floats, and firetrucks make their annual trek down Bridge Street. Trick or Treat night, always held on the fourth Thursday of October, was very cold this year and found many trick-or-treaters making it an early night. Trick or Treat night became a sad night for the area as well. A teenage boy, who had ties to the New Cumberland community, was struck and killed by a car in neighboring Highland Park. The accident didn't occur here, but many hearts are still heavy from this unfortunate accident. The end of October brought a freak snowstorm. The 5-6 inches of heavy snow weighed down tree limbs and shrubs. Eventually, the limbs and power lines started to snap and as a result, numerous residents were without power for days.

The opening banner in the New Cumberland 2011 Halloween Parade.

The Hershey Kiss Mobile in the 2011 New Cumberland Halloween Parade.

A freak snowstorm in late October weighed down trees and shrubs.

In November, for the fourth year in a row, Library Journal recognized the New Cumberland Library as one of the best libraries in the nation. It was one of only four libraries in Pennsylvania to be selected. Only 262 out of 7,513 public libraries in the United States were chosen for this distinction. It's nice that our little library was rewarded for all the effort it puts forth into serving our community.
Link to New Cumberland Library
Link to Library Journal's State by State Star Libraries

New Cumberland Library

December brought us Christmas decorations, warmer than usual temperatures, and residential burglaries. The snowflake lights went up along Bridge Street, the Christmas tree was lit at Elkwood Park and that house on Sixteenth street had the yard jammed full of lights and figures. It must be Christmas time in New Cumberland. While these were all welcome signs of the season, the burglaries were not. According to the New Cumberland Police Department's Blotter, there have been a half dozen burglaries in our little borough since the beginning of the December. Neighboring communities have been experiencing burglaries, too. As always, watch for suspicious activity and if you do see something, call the police.
Link to New Cumberland Police Blotter and Website
Link to West Shore Regional Police Website (Lemoyne, Wormleysburg)

While many of us are worried about our homes, our schools may see some changes soon. December's West Shore School District board meeting included discussion about the possibility of teacher layoffs and consolidation of sports and activities. No decisions have been made yet. Please contact members of the school board to let them know your opinion on these matters. Below is a link to the webpage that provides a list of all the school board members.
Link to West Shore School Distict Board Members contact information

It's been a year full of ups an downs, celebrations and misfortune, traditions and unforeseen occurrences. Last year at this time, no one could have imagined that the year would be marked with drenching rains, historic flooding, an earthquake or a clown nose man. Who knows what 2012 has in store for us?

2011 Year in Review Part 1 January-July

2011-12-23T19:11:00.000-05:00

As I look back on the year, there have been many newsworthy events here in New Cumberland. Listed below are some happenings that I recall.

January Unfortunately, the first major event of the year was the discovery of Trisha Edelman's murdered body in a Fifteenth Street apartment. Police allege that Adam Trump murdered her elsewhere and moved her body to his New Cumberland apartment. Trump sits in the Cumberland County Jail awaiting trial for criminal homicide, criminal homicide of an unborn child, possession of a firearm and theft by unlawful taking.

March After 3.1 million dollars and 16 months of renovations, the historic Iroquois Hotel celebrated it's grand reopening in March. The building was converted into senior housing and retail space. The hotel, which dates back to 1906 , fell into disrepair and was most recently was the site of a Meth lab bust in 2005. In it's rehabilitated form, it houses low income senior citizens and retail space.

Iroquois Hotel, New Cumberland, PA 2011

April-May-June The spring storms rattled our nerves and set the tone for the next several months. These violent storms were just a warning for what was to come later in the year. The local parks like Borough, Memorial field and others were soaked. Many baseball and softball games, as well as other outdoor activities, were postponed or canceled. Some storms had us hiding in our basements and had the Yellow Breeches Creek spilling out over her banks. By the end of the spring, we had thought we had seen the worst of it. Little did we know what was in store for us later in the year.

The baseball fields at Borough Park were soaked in 2011.

April through present brought us more noise from the skies, but this time in the form of helicopters. People first started noticing the military helicopters flying low last spring. The choppers are part of National Guard training exercises taking place at Capital City Airport. While things seemed to calm down in May, the noise picked up again in September. Things have calmed down once again, and we hope for the residents affected, it stays quiet. New Cumberland and the military have a good, longstanding relationship. The National Guard has tried to adjust their flight plans as to not bother the residents as much, and that action is appreciated.

Military Helicopter flying over New Cumberland, PA

June and July brought us an unusual sight. "Clown nose man," as he came to be known, started appearing on our streets and created quite a stir. A young man wearing a red clown nose and carrying a plastic toy gun roamed our streets. Some claimed he was harmless, while others alleged he attacked cars and pointed his toy guns at children. With so much violence in the news, New Cumberland residents didn't seem too patient on waiting it out to see if this guy was harmless or not. After much discussion and controversy, he soon disappeared from our landscape.

July A pedestrian was struck by a car on Bridge Street. I hope the man who was hit is recovering and wish him well. It was an unfortunate reminder to drivers to slow down and keep an eye out for pedestrians as well as a reminder to pedestrians to use crosswalks and not to assume a driver sees you or will stop.

July thorough September. The long awaited demolition of the Old Hillside school started in Mid July and was finally completed late September. The building served as a the site for education, activities and friendships from 1956-2011. This old building held many memories for both children and adults. It was sad to see it go. For more photo's of Hillside Elementary, before, during and after demolition, go to the Facebook page Hillside Teardown 2011

Hillside Elementary School awaiting demolition.

Partially demolished first floor at Hillside Elementary.

Partially demolished second floor at Hillside Elementary.

Tearing down the multi-purpose room at Hillside elementary.


The old Hillside Elementary site.

This just covers the a little more than first half of the year. Next week, I will cover August through December.

Did I miss an event? Do you wish to add anything? Please share your remarks and memories in the comments section. Thanks for your support and please click an advertisement to support this page while you are here.

Welcome to Haldemantown?

2011-12-16T10:29:00.001-05:00

Recently, I stumbled upon the Susquehanna Club's website. It had some interesting information on the origins of New Cumberland. This made me dig out another source of New Cumberland information that my husband had, New Cumberland Frontier, by the late Gilbert W. Beckley, a longtime New Cumberland resident.

New Cumberland is not our town's original name. The town as we know it today was originally named "Haldemantown," after the town's founder, Jacob Miller Haldeman. However, when the town was registered at the Cumberland County Courthouse, it was legally recorded as "Cumberland," instead of "Haldemantown." As the town grew, a post office was established in 1827 and since the town was legally named Cumberland, the post office used that in it's title. As you know there's another town in Maryland, called Cumberland, so the government was afraid there would be confusion between the two towns and it changed the post office name here to "New Cumberland." By 1831, the town's leaders accepted the "New Cumberland" designation and it was officially declared a borough.

According to Susquehanna Club's website, the groundwork for our town all started in 1811 when Mr. Haldeman purchased seventy-one acres from various families. The original layout was established with Water, Market & Bridge being the north to south streets and First through Fifth being the east to west streets. There were 221 original lots, most selling for $300.

Seems a shame that Jacob Haldeman doesn't get his due for pioneering this nice little town. Sure, he has a street named for him, Haldeman Boulevard, but it doesn't seem enough to do him justice. And to think, if whomever recorded the town name as "Cumberland" just would have recorded it as "Haldemantown", well, he would have his name on this town as a legacy. According to the borough's website history page, written by Dr. Gerald S. Brinton, other communities have existed on this plot of land such as Shawneetown, Chartier's Landing and Lowther Manor. However, the town as we know it today is due to Jacob Haldeman's efforts. Haldeman was, literally, a community organizer. He bought, parceled and sold the land. He created a governing body which consisted of judges to handle the fair distribution of lots and hired a town promoter to publicize this new community to potential buyers.

I have to wonder what Mr. Haldeman would think of New Cumberland now. I like to think he would be proud of the growth and the continued pride displayed here by the residents and business owners. So, when you drive into town and see those green "Welcome to New Cumberland" signs, take a minute to remember "Haldemantown" and the man who made it happen, Jacob Miller Haldeman.


Jacob Miller Haldeman, 1781-1857, Founder of New Cumberland

Sources:
http://www.susquehannaclub.com/susquehanna_club_history.html
New Cumberland Frontier Gilbert W. Beckley copyright 1973
http://www.newcumberlandborough.com/history.php

New Cumberland Volunteers

2011-12-09T12:23:00.000-05:00

I want to thank everyone for their great support of my blog. Had the biggest response yet to last week's entry about Koziar's Christmas Village. If you are stopping by to check out that review, scroll down, it's below this entry. If you are checking out my latest entry here it is.

A few weeks ago in my blog, I listed some things I was thankful for in New Cumberland. In the upcoming year, I hope to expand on many of the ideas put forth in that blog.

One of the items I was thankful for was community volunteers. Through my years here at New Cumberland, I have volunteered some time at the schools and scouts. I volunteer with these organizations because my children attend them and that's the circle I'm involved with now. I help out from time to time, but I have realized over the years that I am not a good one to be in charge. I like to say "I make a good worker bee," and that's fine, I can accept that role. I attempted a leadership role, but soon realized that being in charge was not for me. I did my best while taking on the role, but when my time was done, I stepped aside to allow someone else to take a turn. I always respected people who volunteered their time, but this experience gave me a whole new respect for those people who offer to be in charge. So, what about those people who are willing to stay in those leadership roles for extended periods of time? There are several people here our community who jump in and lead the charge with many organizations. Whether it be just an individual, or a husband and wife team, these people dedicate their time to our community and make all of our lives a little easier.

Think about it; when one of these people steps up and decides to take on the roll of Scoutmaster or to run the youth basketball league or become an Officer in the Parent Teacher Organization, they take on a huge responsibility. Their leadership, dedication, and skills affect all those kids (and their parents) who decide to participate in those activities. Another thing to think about is the volume of activities that happen in this town and the adjoining communities that share sports and social activities with us.
Baseball, Softball, Basketball, Football, Soccer, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Parent Teacher Organizations and so much more happens in this community year round. In each and every one of those organizations, people step up to be Board Members, Den Leaders, Troop Leaders , Coaches and more. And within each one of those organizations, work has be be delegated out to others who also step up to ease the burden on those willing enough to take on those leadership roles. The thought of the undertaking of it all is enormous.

So, this brings me to my next question. Who does all that work and why? What motivates them? What do they get out of it? Do they ever get tired of doing all that work?

For upcoming blog entries, not every one, but every once in a while, I plan to interview some of these community volunteers. I hope you will come back to read their stories.