PROJECT LIFESAVER
Local authorities have been working with the Hope Foundation for upwards of 15 years on Project Lifesaver, a system that provides life-sustaining protection to families and caregivers of those with special needs. The nonprofit operation supplies bracelets with small transmitters attached to them intended to find those with disabilities who have a tendency to wander. Each year in Lycoming County, the tracking system is said to find people who have wandered from home. Altogether, the international organization has rescued 3,786 lives and counting. According to the SUN Gazette, the Hope Foundation continues to raise funds so that the service can remain free to families in need.
KELLER REQUESTING US CAPITOL TO BE OPEN TO PUBLIC
US Rep Fred Keller, whose 12th Congressional District includes Lycoming County, recently signed a letter sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging the U.S. Capitol to no longer be shut off to the public. “The United States Capitol has been closed to the public for over a year, despite plummeting COVID-19 case rates and increased vaccine availability. As Speaker, Nancy Pelosi has a duty to reopen the House and respect the constitutional rights of American citizens to participate actively in our democracy.”
LOCK HAVEN CITY’S FEDERAL FUNDING FROM AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OF 2021
Lock Haven city council, last night, held a meeting to effectively budget upwards of $950-thousand in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. In total, the Commonwealth received $6.15 billion. According to a letter to the city from Gov. Tom Wolf, there are a number of permissible uses for the dollars, approved by the federal government in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to therecordonline.com, these include public health expenditures, replacement of lost public sector revenue, providing premium pay for essential workers and investments in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure. The city manager told council a budget will be presented to council during its July 12 meeting. He called the unanticipated money “a great opportunity for the city.” Wilson said a public hearing on plans for the money will be held prior to the July 12 meeting.
CHIRP FUNDS TO HELP STRUGGLING HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Eighty-three restaurants, bars and other businesses in Northumberland, Snyder, Montour and Union county are approved for $2.1 million in pandemic relief funds. Last week in a press conference, the state Department of Community and Economic Development, announced 19 businesses in Union County received $502,354 in COVID-19 Hospitality Industry Recovery Program (CHIRP) funds. There are pending CHIRP announcements expected for early July for 38 businesses in Northumberland County, 16 in Snyder County and 10 in Montour County, according to SEDA-COG Community Relations Director Kristen Moyer. The Daily Item reports CHIRP funding through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development is allocating $145 million to hospitality industry businesses negatively impacted by the pandemic. In total, 311 businesses in 11 Valley counties received a total of $7.1 million in CHIRP funds, including $1,028,268 in Northumberland County, $457,268 in Snyder County and $206,480 in Montour County.
COURT RULED NCAA AND EDUCATION-RELATED BENEFITS FOR ATHLETES
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday the NCAA can’t limit education-related benefits — like computers and paid internships — that colleges can offer their sports stars, a victory for athletes that could help open the door to further easing in the decades-old fight over paying student-athletes. Schools recruiting top athletes could now offer tens of thousands of dollars in education-related benefits that also include study-abroad programs and graduate scholarships. A media outlet reported that under current NCAA rules, students cannot be paid, and the scholarship money a college can offer is capped at the cost of attending the school. As a result of yesterday’s ruling, the NCAA itself can’t bar schools from offering Division I basketball and football players additional education-related benefits. But individual athletic conferences can still set limits if they choose.
NAMES RELEASED BY LYCOMING COUNTY CORONER REGARDING SUNDAY’S MOTORCYCLE CRASH
The Lycoming County Coroners office along with Pennsylvania State Police and Montoursville Fire Department personnel were called to the scene of a motorcycle crash on I-180 just east of Fairfield Road exit on Sunday. A motorcycle traveling west struck a deer, and the two occupants were thrown from the motorcycle. The Lycoming County Coroners office determined that Ralph and Susan Strieby, of Williamport, died on the scene from multiple blunt force trauma at 8:05 p.m..
NURSING EDUCATION SUPPORTED BY GEISINGER FOR EMPLOYEES
According to Geisinger, employees interested in a nursing career will be provided financial, educational, and wellness support to its employees. The program is open to any employee who has worked with Geisinger for a year or more and isn’t already a registered nurse or provider. While supporting employee career and professional goals, the program will also mitigate a shortage of nurses across the organization and beyond. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nation needs 1.1 million new RNs by 2022 to avoid a nursing shortage.
DUI AND OTHER CHARGES FOR DUBOISTOWN WOMAN
A DuBoistown woman told city police she had driven because at home, she was hearing and seeing things and needed a Catholic priest to bless her house. On March 15, she got in her car and drove. Whitney Steele-Phillips, 35, of Euclid Ave., was found passed out in her car in the 300 block of Locust Street about 7:30 a.m. During a series of field sobriety tests, her actions led the officer to suspect she was under the influence of a depressant and stimulant. In the vehicle, police seized pills and drug paraphernalia, according to a media source. Steele-Phillips was charged with DUI and other charges. She is to appear before District Judge Christian Frey.
2021 PENNSYLVANIA STATE LAUREL QUEEN
The 2021 Pennsylvania State Laurel Queen was crowned on Saturday, June 19th, in the Coolidge Theatre at the Deane Center for the Performing Arts in Wellsboro. Jocelyn Renninger, a June graduate of Central Mountain High School in Mill Hall, was crowned and awarded a $1,500 educational scholarship. First runner-up Miss Williamsport Alayna Dake received a $750 scholarship and second runner-up Miss Saegertown Amber Costello, a $500 scholarship. According to northcentralpa.com, the Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce, through the Wellsboro Foundation, sends the scholarship funds directly to the college each young lady attends to help pay tuition.
2020 PROPERTY TAX / RENT REBATE PROGRAM
Eligible Pennsylvanians age 65 and older, widows and widowers age 50 and older, and people with disabilities age 18 and older now have until December 31, 2021 to apply for the state’s 2020 Property Tax and Rent Rebate program. Income limits for claimants are $35,000 per year for homeowners and $15,000 per year for renters. According to a media source, the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue will begin distributing rebates starting on July 1, 2021.
