Congratulations to Tim and

Katie LaBar on their

Academic
Acheievements.
Tim received his Masters
Degree in Sports Managment
from Ohio University. Katie
was placed on the Deans List
for Ohio State University with a
3.6 GPA with a major in
psychology and a minor in
criminology. Tim and Katie are
the children of Gregg and Paula
LaBar of Lakewood, Ohio, and
are the grandchildren of Bonnie
and Ronald LaBar of Bangor,
PA, and Mary Stahl of Blairsville, PA.
Sebastian Loren, a local
kindergarten student, is
participating in the St. Jude
Math-A-Thon and he needs
your help! This program
allows Sebastian to help the
kids at St. Jude Children's
Research Hospital who are
battling cancer and other lifethreatening diseases, while also
practicing his math skills.
Please help Sebastian raise
money for St. Jude by making a
donation online at www.
mathathon.stjude.org/SLoren.
Donations will be accepted
through March 31st.
Kindergarten registration
packets are available for
parents and guardians at any
Bangor Area School District
elementary school (Five
Points,
Washington,
or
DeFranco). Parents and guardians may pick up a packet at any
elementary school or the
administration building. Packets are also available for download at www.bangorslaters.org.
In order to receive a scheduled
screening appointment, the
completed registration packet
and mandatory documents need
be returned to Mrs. OBrien at
Washington, or Mrs. Kelton at
Five Points as soon as possible,

but no later than March 23rd. In

order to determine your childs
school assignment, parents will
be asked to inform the school
district where their child will be
picked up for school and where
he/she will be dropped off. A
child is eligible for admission to
kindergarten if he/she has
attained the age of five years old
by the first scheduled day of the
school term for students
(August 29th) and successfully
completes the districts kindergarten
screening
process
(School Board Policy # 201).
Kindergarten screenings for the
2016-2017 school year will
occur on April 6th and 7th at
Washington Elementary and
Five
Points
Elementary
Schools. All screenings will be
by appointment only. An adult
must accompany the child(ren)
for the screening appointment.
In order to make the transition
to kindergarten as organized as
possible, timely registration is
vital. Please pick up your registration packets and one for a
friend, too, who has a student
age appropriate for kindergarten.
The Blue Valley Farm Show
is now accepting applications
for any student who is or has
been a member of the
Northampton County 4-H
Clubs. Two $500 scholarships
will be awarded. Applications
must be submitted no later than
March 31st. Winners will be
presented during the annual
Blue Valley Farm Show in
August. For more information,
call Audrey Koeler at 610-4953389.
The Bangor Womens Club
will be accepting applications
from senior students at
Bangor and Faith Christian
High Schools for consideration for their 2016 scholarship. The scholarship amount
is $1000. Applications can be
obtained from the school

guidance office and the deadline

to submit the completed application is April 15th.
The Slate Belt Chamber of
Commerce applications for
Scholarship
Achievement
Award 2016 are available at
the guidance departments of
Bangor High School, Pen
Argyl High School, Faith
Christian and Career Institute
of Technology. The Slate Belt
Chamber of Commerce will
award one scholarship to a
senior from each of the five area
schools. Applicants must reside
in the Slate Belt to apply. The
scholarships will be presented to
the students based upon the
following criteria: academic
accomplishment, demonstrated
service to school and/or community, demonstration of leadership capabilities, and future
vocational plans. Please note: A
separate award, The Frederick R. Curcio, Jr. Scholarship
Award, may also be applied
for at this time. To qualify, a
senior must be either registered
at Lincoln Technical Institute or
majoring in computer science.
Applications must be received
by April 15th. A Scholarship
Awards Dinner is planned for
May 19th. For more information, contact the guidance
department or the chamber
office at 610-588-1000.
Slater Family Network is
sponsoring a $2,000 scholarship for a 2016 Bangor High
School graduate. Applications
are now available on the school
district website under the Slater
Family Network tab, in the HS
guidance office or the SFN
office
behind
DeFranco
Elementary School. Completed
applications are due at SFN on
April 28th.
The family of Denny Strouse
is sponsoring a $1,000 scholarship through Slater Family
Network for a 2016 Bangor
High School graduate. The
applications are available on the
school district website under the
Slater Family Network tab, in
the HS Guidance Office, or the
SFN office behind DeFranco
Elementary School. Completed
applications are due at SFN on
April 28th. Call the SFN office
at 610-599-7019 with any
questions.
Upper Mt. Bethel Twp. is
looking to form a community
park committee and is seeking
three residents of Upper Mt.
Bethel Twp. to join. The
committee is strictly volunteer to
oversee phases of the park and
scheduling of events at the park.
Please submit your letter of
interest to Upper Mount Bethel
Township Municipal Building,
Attn: Board of Supervisors, 387
Ye Olde Highway, Mount
Bethel, PA 18343, or email
officesecretary@uppermtbethel.
org.
Crime Victims Council of the
Lehigh Valley, your local
victim service and rape crisis
center, is accepting applications for volunteer positions.
This is an excellent opportunity

for students and adults to gain

experience in working directly
with crime victims and their
families, while helping those in
their time of need. Tasks
include: providing support to
callers on our the 24-hour hotline
in the comfort of your home;
accompanying
victims
of
violence to hospitals, police
stations, and court; and assisting
with office tasks, projects, and
fundraisers. Most training
sessions will be held in the
evenings at the CVC office in
Allentown, located at 801 Hamilton Street, on the third floor.
One session will be held at the
Penn State Ag Extension, near
Dorney Park. For more information, visit the volunteer page at
www.cvclv.org, or contact Sara
Ullmer at 610-437-6610, ext. 26,
or
sullmer@cvclv.org,
to
arrange an interview.
The Slate Belt Heritage
Center is looking for volunteers to assist with the second
phase of its Homefront Project. The phase has begun and
biographies of each of the letter
writers are being researched.
Volunteers will meet on Mondays from 9am to noon. For
additional information, contact
the
center
at
SBHC@
frontier.com or contact Karen
Brewer at 610-588-8615.
The Bangor High School
Class of 1966 will hold their
50th Reunion on October 8th
at the Delaware Water Gap
Country Club. Cocktails and
class picture will be at 6pm with
a buffet dinner to follow at 7pm.
On October 7th, the class will
attend the Bangor High School
football game and sit as a group.
They will then have a get
together at Liberty Fire Hall after
the game. In honor of this being
the 50th reunion, the class will
be the guests at this years
Bangor High School graduation
and will sit as a group. Time and
definite date are to be
determined.The class is seeking
a current address for the following classmates: Sondra Buskirk
Baier, Jacqueline Williams
Bartosh,
Patricia
Pysher
Bennett, Robert Mack, Charlene
Pasqualino, Linda Repsher
Silvius, Linda Meixsell Yeakel,
Richard Danner, Glenda Dunk,
James Folk, James LaBarre,
Diana Galatioto, Donna Davidson Edwards, David Tieff,
Mikael Turner, and Thomas
Kittle. Please contact Karen
Brewer at 610-588-8615 or
484-894-5661 with information.

Congratulations to Christopher Leno of Andover, NJ for

making the Deans List at the
Stillman School of Business,
Seton Hall University.
Congratulations to the
Youth Center in Glen Gardner for receiving two grants
totaling $1,500. The Youth
Center been serving families
from all communities since
1970 and they are grateful of
both donations. For more infor-

mation about The Youth

Center, call 908-537-4594 or
visit www.theyouthcenter.net.
The Chester Lioness Club is
offering two scholarships to
senior students residing in
Chester, Mendham or Washington Twp. in Morris
County. Each scholarship may
be up to $1,000. Criteria for
selection of candidates for these
scholarships include academic
record, classroom and extracurricular activities, community
activities, individual interests
and hobbies, and outstanding
accomplishments in activities
that demonstrate leadership and
service. Financial need is also a
consideration. These scholarships are available to public
high school students, those
attending private schools and
those who have home tutoring,
as well. Applications may be
obtained in the College
Resource Center at both West
Morris Mendham and West
Morris Central High Schools.
The completed form must be
returned to the College
Resource Center at the high
school by March 21st. A letter
requesting an application may
be sent to the Chester Lioness
Club in care of Anne MacMillan, 15 Cora Lane, Chester, NJ
07930. For moreinformation,
call 908-879-7621. Completed
applications must be forwarded
to the Lioness Club by April
4th.
Kindergarten registration
and screening for September
2016, for Blairstown Elementary School, will be held on
April 5th, 6th, and 7th. The
registration paperwork must
be received by March 22nd,
due to this year's spring
break. For more information,
and to schedule your childs
kindergarten screening appointment, call Eileen at 362-6111,
ext. 109. Kindergarten pupils
must have reached their fifth
birthday prior to or on October
1st, 2016. Registration documents required, and must be
brought to the school office
before your screening, are:
completed registration form
which can be found on the
school website under forms;
Childs birth certificate with the
raised seal; signed doctors
certificate of immunizations,
and, if you do not have a student
registered
at
Blairstown
Elementary School, you must
provide proof of residence.
The
United
Methodist
Women are having a pastie
sale on Friday, April 1st.
Pasties can be ordered with or
without onions and are $5.50
each. Orders will be taken thru
March 27th by calling Michelle
Peterson at 908-362-6703.
Orders can be picked up at the
First United Methodist Church,
located at 10 Stillwater Road, in
Blairstown from 4-6pm.
Knowlton Twp. Elementary
School is planning for the
2016-2017 school year. At this
time they would like to
identify as many children as
possible who will be eligible
for kindergarten in September. To be eligible for kindergarten, a child must be five
years old by October 1st. If you
have not already done so, and
you have a child who will be
eligible for next years kindergarten class, call the school at
908-475-5118, ext. 200. Dates
for screening of next years
kindergarten students will be
released at a later date. Parents
will receive details in the mail.

Please pass this information

along to anyone in Knowlton
Twp. who may have a child
eligible for kindergarten in
September.
Knowlton Twp. Elementary
is now accepting registrations
for their preschool program
for fall. Children must be four
years old by October 1st, and
must be toilet trained. The
program runs Monday through
Friday from 9am to 11:30am
when school is in session.
Transportation is not provided
for this program. If interested,
please contact the school office
at 908-475-5118, ext. 200.
NAMI (National Alliance on
Mental Illness) is offering a
free Family to Family Education Program starting April
6th. A series of 12 weekly
classes structured to help
caregivers understand and
support individuals with serious
mental illness while maintaining their own well being. The
course is taught by a team of
trained NAMI family member
volunteers who know what its
like to have a loved one struggling with a brain disorder.
There is no cost to participate in
the NAMI Family to Family
Education Program. Registration is required. To register,
email
namiwarrencounty
@naminj.org or call Elaine at
908-619-9619. Classes begin
Wednesday, April 6th, from
7pm-9:30pm,
at
Warren
County Community College,
475 Rt. 57 West, in Washington.
Knowlton Township has
entered into a cooperative
gypsy moth control program
with the NJ Department of
Agriculture. A contract will be
awarded to apply Bacillus
thuringiensis var. kurstaki
(FORAY 76B, EPA Reg#
73049-49) using aircraft to
areas infested with gypsy moth
larvae. Aerial application will
begin on or after May 16th
through June 15th or until
completion from 5:30am to
2pm, and possibly in the
evenings from 5pm to 8pm in
the affected areas. A map
indicating the exact areas to be
treated along Mt. Pleasant Road
is available for inspection at the
municipal building. Residents
may contact the municipal
clerks office at 908-496-4816,
ext. 6, or stopping by the office,
located at 628 Route 94 in
Columbia for information
regarding the exact date, application times and any other
information concerning the
treatment program. Individuals
wishing additional information
about pesticides may contact
the National Pesticide Information Center at 1-800-858-7378.
For emergencies, call the NJ
Poison Information and Education System at 1-800-222-1222.
For pesticide regulation information, pesticide complaints,
and health referrals, call the NJ
Pesticide Control Program at
609-984-6507. Upon request,
the pesticide applicator, or
applicator
business
shall
provide a resident with notification 12 hours prior to the application except for Quarantine
and Disease Vector Control
only, when conditions necessitate pesticide applications
sooner than that time. Additional information about the
program is also available on the
NJ Department of Agriculture's
website at nj.gov/agriculture/
divisions/pi/prog/gypsymoth.ht
ml.

Dr. Debra Koss will be the

guest speaker at a forum
hosted by The Hopatcong
Womans Club, NAMI
Sussex, and Family Partners
of Morris and Sussex Counties on March 22nd from
6pm to 8pm at the Louise
Childs Branch of the Sussex
County Library, located at
21 Sparta-Stanhope Road in
Stanhope, New Jersey. The
focus of the evenings forum
will
be
Addressing
Childrens Emotional and
Behavioral Health Issues.
Light refreshments and
introductions and resource
announcements from the
sponsoring
organizations

will precede the presentation

by Dr. Koss, followed by a
question and answer session
and opportunity for open
discussion with the doctor.
Debra E. Koss, MD, is a
board certified child and
adolescent psychiatrist who
has been in private practice
in Sparta since 1999. She
provides psychiatric evaluation, psychotherapy and
medication treatment for
children and adolescents. Dr.
Koss is Clinical Assistant
Professor with the Department of Psychiatry at
Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School where
she is involved in teaching

and mentoring, Advocacy

Liaison for the NJ Council of
Child
and
Adolescent
Psychiatry, and Trustee to
the NJ Psychiatric Association.
She is actively
involved in mental health
advocacy, both at the state
and national levels, to
increase awareness regarding mental illness in our
youth and to promote the
importance of improved
access to early intervention
and treatment.
The forum is free and open
to the public. Registration is
suggested. For additional
information and registration,
please call 973-940-3194.

When Village Family

Clinic holds its annual open
house, it's for everybody,
from current patients, new
patients, friends and family.
This spring's open house
will take place on April 9th
from 10am to 1pm and
includes something for
everybody. Free adjustments, free exams, and free
tours; a bouncy house for
kids; free food for the
hungry; live music with

Jessica Koppinger; and TV

and Kindle giveaways.
Among the services available at Village Family
Clinic are chiropractic,
physical therapy, massage
therapy, acupuncture, medical
pain
management,
CDL/DOT physicals, spinal
decompression, and cold
laser.
Village Family Clinic's
state-of-the-art facility is
located on the first floor of

the Allamuchy Corporate

Center (next to Panther
Valley Church) on Rt.517,
one mile south of Rt. 80
Exit 19 and two miles west
of Hackettstown, NJ. The
clinic is open Monday
through Friday, from 9am to
7pm. For more information
about
Village
Family
Clinic, call 908-813-8200
or
visit
www.
HackettstownFamilyClinic.
com.

PA Senator Mario Scavello

will host a free A1C Diabetes
Screening on Tuesday, March
22nd from 10am to 3pm at his
Pen Argyl District Office,
located at 2 North Robinson
Avenue, in Pen Argyl, PA.
The screening is hosted in
partnership with Pocono
Medical Center.
This diabetes screening
opportunity is a critical
preventative step in assisting
constituents of my district to
monitor their health and guard
against disease, Senator

Scavello said. If you or

someone you know may be at
risk for diabetes, please
consider taking this first step
by getting tested.
The A1C test is a blood test
that provides information
about a persons average
levels of blood glucose, also
called blood sugar, over a
three month period. The A1C
test is the primary test used
for diabetes management and
diabetes research.
All tests will be performed
by qualified medical person-

nel.
To make an appointment for
your free A1C test, please call
Senator Scavellos Pen Argyl
District Office at 610-8631200.
State Senator Mario Scavello represents the 40th Senatorial District, which includes
portions of Monroe and
Northampton Counties. To
find out more information
regarding this event or any
state-related issue, please visit
www.marioscavello.com or
email mscavello@pasen.gov.

By Jana Morris, Executive

Director/Founder of Recovery
Revolution

members are most times left

confused, wondering how to
cope with these issues and are
uncertain about what to do.
Codependency can look different for each individual. Usually
the codependent person is so
absorbed in others problems
that they dont have time to
identify their own. Instead of
taking care of their own needs
they
become
compulsive
caretakers of someone else
whom they love.
Codependency can become a
co-addiction where the codependent usually gets a false
sense of control and some
reward or satisfaction out of
caring for others. The codependent also acts as an enabler to

the persons behaviors theyre

trying to control. By constantly
trying to rescue others from
their problems, the codependent further influences them,
whether its drug use and/or
other ill-wanted behaviors.
There are ways to help and
hinder another persons addiction and recovery, however it is
beneficial to reach out for help.
Recovery Revolution has a six
week program for family members who need help and
support.
A Clean Slate, located at
100 S 1st Street in Bangor, PA,
also has a lot of information for
family members and free
support programs available in
the community.

Codependency is defined as
an excessive emotional or
psychological reliance on a
partner, typically a partner who
requires support due to an
illness or addiction. Codependency is a problem common in
both people that are addicted
and their family members.
Addiction significantly impacts
one out of eight Americans,
which in turn means that it
affects one out of four families.
Individuals with an addiction
sometimes manipulate the
family members love and
create havoc in the lives of their
loved ones. Sadly, the family

Lehigh Valley Horse Council Meeting: March 16th,

7pm. 1831 MacArthur Rd.,
Whitehall. FMI, call 610837-7294 or 610-704-4130.
Slate Belt Young at Heart
Club Meeting: March 17th,
1pm. St. Elizabeth Church
Hall. Special St. Patrick's
Day program. Open to all
seniors, 55+. FMI, call Mary
Lou at 610-863-4846 or
610-844-4630.
Maundy Thursday Worship Service: March 24th,
6pm. Richmond UMC, 8538
Delaware Dr., Bangor. FMI,
call 610-588-7317.
Bus Trip to 9/11 Memorial,
Museum & Freedom Tower
in NYC: May 18th, departure at 8:30am. Our Lady of
Victory Church, Cherry Lane
Rd., Tannersville. Returning
around 8pm. Admission fees,
transportation & gratuities:
$95 per person. FMI or to
register, call Marge at 570629-0509 by March 25th.
Incl. name, phone number,
number attending, & $50
deposit per person.
Pet Photos w/ Easter
Bunny:
March
19th,
11am-3pm. Pocono Commons, Rt. 611, Stroudsburg.
$8 per photo. All proceeds
benefit Waggin' Tails Pet
Rescue,
Brodheadsville.
FMI,
visit
waggintails
rescue.com or facebook.com/
waggin.tailsrescue.
Portland Lodge No. 311 &
Portland Events Committee
Community Easter Egg
Hunt:
March
19th,

12:30pm. Egg hunt begins at

1pm. Easter Chick & Bunny
will arrive on Margaret, the
Pink Fire Truck at 1pm. Open
to children 0-10. Rain or
shine. BYO baskets.

Upper Mt. Bethel Twp.

Easter Egg Hunt: March
26th, 11am. Upper Mt.
Bethel firehouse, Rt. 611.
Open to ages 12 & under.
Rain or shine.

Slate Belt Heritage Center

Re-Opening Ceremonies:
April 14th, 7pm. Slate Belt
Heritage Center, 30 N. 1st
St., Bangor. FMI, call 610599-4993.

E. Bangor Community Egg

Hunt: March 19th, 3pm. E.
Bangor Park. Benefits American Cancer Society. Easter
Bunny, prizes for kids, bake
sale & 50/50. Donations &
volunteers welcome. FMI,
call Ashley at 484-892-1567.

E. Bangor Vol. Fire Co.

Basket Bingo: April 1st,
7pm. FMI or tickets, call
610-588-5996.

The
Crystal
Laundry
Presented
by
Harvey
Drury: May 12th, 7pm.
Slate Belt Heritage Center,
30 N. 1st St., Bangor. FMI,
call 610-599-4993.

E. Bangor UMCC Lenten

Cantata:
March
20th,
9:15am. 136 W. Central Ave.
(Rt. 512), E. Bangor. FMI,
call 610-588-4453 or visit
ebumc.org.
Pet Pictures w/ Safe Haven
Easter Bunny: March 20th ,
11am-4pm. Sit, Stay N' Play,
1501 N. 5th St., Stroudsburg.
Pictures are $10 for a framed
4x6 print and 3 for $25. FMI,
a list of dogs avail. for adoption & adoption applications,
visit www.SafeHavenPa.org
or
email
SafeHaven@
epix.net.
Perryman & Keglovits 14th
Annual All-Star Game:
March 21st, Girls 6pm;
Boys, 7:30pm. ESU Koehler
Field House, E. Stroudsburg.
FMI,
visit
www.perry
mankeglovits.org, or call
570-460-5156 or 570-2697580.
Free A1C-Diabetes Screening: March 22nd, 10am3pm. Senator Mario Scavello
Northampton Co. District
Office, 2 N. Robinson Ave.,
Pen
Argyl.
Apointment
necessary. FMI or to make an
appointment, call 610-8631200.

Blue Ridge Cherry Valley

Rod & Gun Club Women
on Target Instructional
Shooting Clinic - A
Program from the Women
of the NRA: April 16th.
Rain or shine. Ladies only,
age 12+. Four clinic sessions
& one-on-one instruction.
Register by April 1st. FMI,
contact Margaret at 570420-8795
or
secretary@brcv-rod gun.org.
Blue Ridge Cherry Valley
Rod & Gun Club Refuse
To Be A Victim Seminar:
April
30th,
8:30am12:30pm. Register by April
1st. FMI, contact Margaret at
570-420-8795
or
secretary@brcv-rod gun.org.
Friends of the Bangor
Public Library Free Spring
Brunch w/ the Author:
April 2nd, 10am. 39 S. Main
St., Bangor. Local author
Vikki Romano will feature
her latest release "Edge of
Darkness. Registration req'd.
FMI or to register, call 610588-4136.
Krusaderz 4 A Kure's
Annual Tricky Tray: April
9th, 11am. William Pensyl
Social Hall, Portland Hook &
Ladder Co. #1, Portland.
Drawings at 1pm. benefits
American Cancer Society,
Slate Belt Relay for Life.

Vettes for Vets Car, Truck

& Motorcycle Show: June
12th, 9am-3pm. Blue Valley
Farm Show, 707 American
Bangor Rd., Bangor. FMI,
visit www.slatebeltcorvette
club.com.

Childrens Easter Party:

March 18th, 7pm-8:30pm.
Glenwood Baptist Church,
1863 Co. Rd. 565, Glenwood. Open to children ages
5-12. FMI or to pre-register,
call Cindy at 862-668-9114;
leave your contact info.
Space is limited.
Free Easter
March 19th,
Village Family
Co. Rd. 517,
Hackettstown
908-813-8200.

Egg Hunt:
10am-noon.
Clinic, 1500
Suite 108,
FMI, call

Knowlton Twp. Recreation Annual Easter Egg

Hunt: March 19th, 11am.
Tunnel Field, Rt. 94. Rain
date: March 20th. Easter
Bunny will be walking
around & Knowlton Lions
Club will have free hot dogs,
donuts, cider, coffee, &
water. Prizes for every child.
4-H Tack Swap & Sale:
March 19th, 10am-2pm.
Independence firehouse, 24
Cemetery Rd., Great Meadows. FMI, call Jan at 908459-58-12 or Wanda at

908-797-1239.
Tranquility UMC Holy
Week
Services:
Palm
Sunday,
March
20th,
10am; Maundy Thursday,
March
24th
7:30pm;
Easter Sunrise Service,
March 27th, 6:45am on the
lawn, immediately followed
by breakfast; Traditional
Easter Worship, March
27th, 10am. 5 Kennedy Rd.
(Rt. 611) Rt. 517, Hackettstown.
Blairstown Seniors Trip to
Brownstone: April 20th.
Sign-up on March 23rd,
1pm at town hall. Open to
residents 55+. Sounds of
Sinatra. FMI, call Mickey
at 908-362-8919.
Panther Valley Ecumenical Church Spaghetti
Dinner: April 1st, 5pm8pm. 1490 Rt. 517, Hackettstown. Adults $10, children
$5, under 3 free. Tickets at
door are $2 more. Takeout
available. FMI, call 908852-5444.
NJ Audubons Friday
Night at the Swamp:
Fridays, April 1st-29th,
5pm-7pm. Great Swamp
National Wildlife Refuge.
Free & open to the
public.Please meet at the
Great Swamp at the Overlook on Pleasant Plains
Road, about a quarter mile
east of North Bridge,
Barnardsville.
NJ Audubon Greenwood
Gardens Field Trip: April
7th, 8am-11am. Greenwood Gardens, 274 Old
Short Hills Rd., Short Hills.
Registration w/ Greenwood
Gardens reqd. FMI or to
register, visit www.green
woodgardens.org or call
973-258-4026.
Annual Spring Ladies Aid

Rummage Sale: April 8th,

9am-4pm. Yellow Frame
Church, Rt. 94 & 1 Yellow
Frame Rd., Fredon. FMI,
call 973-383-5364 or 610588-9166.
St. Joseph Regional School
Honoring Alumni Night:
April 9th, 6pm. Celebrating
60 years of loving & faithful
educational
community.
Country-Western
Casino
Night theme. All proceeds
support Catholic education
at St. Josephs School in
Newton, Sussex Co. FMI,
call 973-383-2909.
18th Annual Stateliner
Spring
Classic
5K
Run/Walk & Childrens
Fun Run: April 17th.
Phillipsburg High School,
Maloney
Stadium,
489
Hillcrest Blvd., Phillipsburg.
FMI, contact James at 908213-2404
or
spring
classic@hotmail.com.
North Warren Marching
Band Tricky Tray: April
22nd, 6pm. NW Regional
High School. First drawing
at 7:30pm. Pre-sale tickets
avail. until April 8th. Tickets
are $12. Light refreshments
& snacks avail. for purchase.
FMI,
email
nwrmbtt@
gmail.com.
Soroptimist International
Annual Tricky Tray Fundraiser: April 23rd, 6:30pm.
Independence Firehouse, 24
Cemetery Rd., Great Meadows. FMI, tickets & donation opportunities, email
sitrickytray@gmail.com or
call 201-952-3732.
Panther Valley Ecumenical
Church Rummage Sale:
April 29th, 9am-3pm &
April 30th, 9am-1pm.
Panther Valley Ecumenical
Church, 1490 Rt. 517, Hackettstown. Donations may be
brought to the church April
25th-27th, 9am-2pm; &
Mondays & Tuesdays, 6pm8pm. Accepting all clothing,
HH
items,
glassware,
baskets, small appliances,
sporting goods, jewelry, &
seasonal items.

Picture a hurricane hitting

our area, the way Superstorm Sandy did nearly four
years
ago.
One
communitys roads are
closed due to flooding,
streets in another area are
blocked by downed wires.
Power outages mean that
wells wont pump, leaving
homes in several townships
without potable water. And
shelters are ready to take
residents who cant stay in
their own houses.
Emergency management
officials need to communicate different messages to
the various areas that are
facing different problems
where to avoid, where to
stay, where to pick up drinking water and quickly,
too.
Warren County has a new
tool to deal with situations
like this and other emergencies that arise: the Swift911
system, which will provide
voice messages and eventually text, web and social
media alerts to area
residents who sign up to
receive them. County public
safety officials are urging
residents to register, at no
charge, to receive the emergency alerts.
Were able to notify a
great number of people in
an emergency using the
system, said Frank Wheatley, Warren County Public
Safety Director and the
county Emergency Management Coordinator.
Residents can sign up to
receive emergency alerts by
clicking on the Swift911
graphic found on the home
page of Warren County
governments official website at www.co.warren

.nj.us, and following the

links to register. Signing up
also can be accomplished by
texting
the
word
SWIFT911 to 99538 to
receive the free mobile app
available for Android, Apple
(IOS) and Windows phones.
The app uses GPS location
services, so that if a user
travels to an area where an
emergency alert is activated,
the information will go to
that users cell phone, even if
he or she is not subscribed to
that locations list.
The alerts will help to keep
people out of harms way,
Wheatley said, and can
divert them from specific
hazards, be it a chemical
spill, crime scene, flood, or
anything else that occurs.
In addition to receiving
alerts from Warren County,
public safety officials are
planning to enroll local
police chiefs and emergency
management coordinators so
that they can send their own
alerts.
SwiftReach Networks, the
company that provides the
Swift911
system,
was
founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Mahwah, NJ,
although it works with communities throughout the
nation. Dwane R. Razzetti,
Director of SwiftReachs
Emergency
Management
Division, said its customers
include one of New Jerseys
smallest communities
Teterboro, with 48 phones
signed up to cities of up to
2.2 million people.
You can put in multiple
addresses, home and work,
and link family members,
Razzetti explained during a
session held at the Warren
County Public Safety Build-

ing to launch the enrollment

effort. You should put every
phone number you have in
the system: work, home,
unlisted phone numbers, cell
phones.
The system is able to automatically translate messages
into 44 different languages,
and a mapping feature
allows the alerts to be
targeted to specific areas,
even down to selected
households.
The system also will
include a local hotline that
residents can call to hear the
alert message, Razzetti said,
noting some who receive an
alert will need to call back
for further information or to
hear it again.
Freeholder Director Jason
J. Sarnoski, who attended the
Swift911 launch, said the
system shows how modern
technology can aid in public
safety. If this had existed 10
or 20 years ago during other
emergencies, it could have
saved money, property and
lives, he remarked.
The tools available today
help the public to be more
informed,
and
makes
protecting
them
easier,
Sarnoski said, adding, We
feel strongly about investing
in this kind of technology.
Warren County again is
on the cutting edge of technological capabilities to
enhance the safety of our
citizens, said Freeholder
Edward J. Smith. He noted
the installation of the system
is a cooperative effort with
the Merrill Creek Reservoir,
which is funding the majority of the project to satisfy
their safety alert needs.

As part of St. Lukes overall

efforts to promote literacy,
they celebrate Dr. Seuss Day
with schools at each of their
campuses. The link between
literacy and health is strong,
and they want to make our
community healthier by
getting involved! Volunteers
from the Anderson Campus
celebrated with Washington
Elementary School, in the
Bangor Area School District
on Friday afternoon, March
4th.
The book they chose to read
this year was Green Eggs and
Ham. Each volunteer read to
a classroom of children and
then donated the book to the
classroom by signing it and
giving it to the teacher! This
years theme is Would YOU
Eat Greens, Eggs and Ham?
and they invited all volunteers to wear green and a silly
hat and/or silly socks for the
event to make it even more
fun. All the Washington
children and staff were
encouraged to wear green
and a hat, too. Teachers were
encouraged to talk with their
class about eating green

things like spinach, kale and

broccoli!
Our volunteers
distributed bookmarks and
Dr. Seuss activity sheets for
the students participating in
this event.
Volunteers from St. Luke's
University Health Network
included Ann Marie Szoke,
Catherine Heard, Christine
Kratzer, Megan Hathaway,
Rosemarie Lister, and proud
Bangor Graduate Alycia
Capone. Volunteers from the

Bangor
School
District
included Superintendent Dr.
Frank DeFelice, Braden
Hendershot, Joe Kondisko,
Rosemary Kocher, Deb
Bowman and intern Katie
Werkheiser.
Washington
Township Police Chief Scott
Miller and Northampton
Community College's director of civic engagement Deb
Bohr, also volunteered to
share their talents by reading
to the students.

On Thursday, March 24th,

at 7pm, Faith United Presbyterian Church in Pen Argyl,

PA will be holding its

annual
Upper
Room
service. The community is

invited to attend this

dramatic re-enactment of
the Lords Supper. The first
activity before service
begins at 6pm is a simple
supper of soup, crackers,
and dessert. Then at 7pm,
the service begins as
worshipers gather in the
sanctuary where the focus
is on the communion table
and the 12 empty chairs
arranged in a circle.
The service begins with
prayers led by a mother and
father. Through the reading
of scripture, the events of
the first supper in the upper
room unfold.
Reverend Ruth Ann
Christopher, who is presiding over the Upper Room
service at Faith church,
explains, The high point
of the service is when 12

people at a time are ushered

to the twelve chairs to
receive communion.
The
result is a deeply moving and
truly meaningful experience.
The community is invited to
experience this very special
service. No reservations are
needed to attend the optional
supper portion of the
program
which
starts
promptly at 6pm. The Upper
Room service begins at 7pm
and there will be a church
bulletin available describing
the service.
Dont forget to mark your
calendars as Easter services
will be held on Sunday,
March 27th at 10am.
More information, and
directions to Faith United are
available online at www.
faithunited.net.

Student musicians from

throughout
Northampton
County have joined forces and
will continue to prepare over
the next few weeks for the
first-ever
Northampton
County Band Festival, which
will be held on Saturday,
April 9th at 7pm at Easton
Area High School. Tickets
will be available at the door for
$5.
The Band Directors from
Bangor Area High School,
Easton Area High School,
Freedom High School, The
Lehigh Valley Charter High
School for the Performing
Arts, Northampton Area High
School, Pen Argyl High
School, Saucon Valley High
School, and Wilson Area High
School, are pleased and
excited that this event has been

organized for the benefit of the

students, and everyone is
looking forward to the upcoming rehearsals and concert.
Each piece in this program
will be directed by one of the
participating schools band
directors, giving the students
an opportunity to perform
under the baton of nine different directors at the concert.
The festival rehearsals have
also proved beneficial to the
directors, who have enjoyed
the camaraderie and professional development of working with one another in the
rehearsal setting.
Both the students and directors alike owe a special debt
of gratitude to Ms. Carole
Lutte for organizing and
hosting this event in its
inaugural year.

Five Congressmen joined

voices with the Greater
Lehigh Valley Chamber of
Commerce on March 8th to
talk about the state of
Lehigh Valley business and
to talk about politics in
general as part of the
recording of Chambers
weekly Business Matters
program.
St. Lukes University
Health Network was the
events presenting sponsor
as the panel discussion was
held in the glass-filled
dining room of St. Lukes
Center in Hanover Township, Lehigh County.
Louis J. Barletta (R) PA
District 11; Matthew Cartwright (D) PA District 17;
Charles Dent (R) PA
District
15;
Michael
Fitzpatrick (R) PA District
8, and Leonard J. Lance
(R) NJ District 7 answered
rapidly fired questions
presented by host and
Chamber President and
CEO Tony Iannelli.
Conversations touched on

everything from Presidential primaries, conventions

and elections to the
economy, and Supreme
Court nominee practices as
well as gun control.
Business Matters is broad-

cast at 7:30pm. Mondays

on WFMZ Channel 69.
The show was recorded
before a live studio audience at St. Lukes Center,
where the health network
recently consolidated its

administrative offices. The

move was an opportunity to
reuse and repurpose 250,000
square feet of an existing
facility, cutting significant
costs and sharply increasing
efficiencies for the system.

Ciao Amici,
Every year as St. Patricks
Day approaches there are
many stories, some true,
some false. I decided to do a
true or false quiz about St.
Patricks day
1) Was St. Patrick Italian?
2) Did St. Patrick really
banish all snakes in Ireland?

3) The Irish in Ireland eat

corned beef & cabbage on St.
Patricks Day?
4) Another way to say St.
Patricks Day is St. Pattys
Day?
5) A cream puff is a traditional dessert for St. Patricks
Day?
6) With its leprechaun
mascot, you will find this
magically delicious cereal,
on any Irish breakfast table?
7) St. Patrick's Day parade
organizers in Chicago have
the greenest tradition of
allthe dyeing of the
Chicago River into a brilliant
emerald hue?
8) According to St. Patrick's
Day lore, Patrick used the
three leaves of a shamrock to
explain the Christian Holy
Trinity: the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit?
9) Scranton ranks 6th in the
United States for largest St.

Patricks day parades?

Answers
1) This could go either way.
Some say St. Patricks parents
were Roman and moved to
England where he was born.
2) False - there were no
snakes in Ireland to begin
with, but the snake was a
symbol of paganism and it is
St. Paddy that can be accredited for ridding Ireland of
paganism and bringing Christianity to the green isle.
3) False - Beef was very
expensive in Ireland so the
inexpensive pork is used for
bacon and cabbage.
4) False - Don't make this
common American mistake
and call the holiday "St.
Patty's Day."
In Ireland,
Patty is short for Patricia,
not Patrick. Padraig is the true
Irish spelling of Patrick, and
the correct way to shorten it is
Paddy.
5) False - This is reserved for
March 19th, St. Joseph Day.
6) False - Lucky charms are
an all American product
made by Minneapolis-based
food giant, General Mills.
7) True - The Chicago River
is dyed green.
8) True - St. Patrick depicted
with shamrock in detail of
stained glass window in St.
Benin's Church, Wicklow,
Ireland. So he is associated
with the 3 leaf clover not the
four leaf.
9) True - Scranton ranks 6th
in the U.S.A, which bills itself
as the countrys second
largest based on attendance to
resident ratio it is quite the
festival.
A good laugh and long
sleep are the best cure for
anything. ~ An Irish Saying
Con cordiali saluti, Joe
Growing up in the Butcher
Shop, is available at the shop
or on our web page. To
receive menu specials and our
newsletter, join our mailing
list at www.JDeFrancoAnd
Daughters.com, click on
mailing list and enter your
email. Send your Roseto
stories, recipes and comments
to portipasto@epix.net or call
610-588-6991. J. DeFranco
and Daughters is located at
2173 W. Bangor Rd. in
Bangor, PA. Store hours are
7am to 7pm, seven days a
week, with catering available
anytime or by appointment.

The Skylands Sierra Club is

sponsoring an Edible Plants
Hike on Sunday, April 3rd,
led by Heather Housekeeper,
who is a long distance hiker, a
certified herbalist and a
writer. The two to three hour
hike will be along the Appalachian Trail within Stokes
State Forest in Branchville,
NJ, starting at 10am. This
easy to moderate hike will
include lots of stopping to
examine plants along the
way.
Housekeeper has authored
two books about edible
plants, A Guide to the Edible
and Medicinal Plants of the

Mountains to Sea Trail and A

Guide to the Edible and
Medicinal Plants of the
Finger Lakes Trail. On the
Stokes hike, she will identify
and describe plants along the
trail which are safe for

humans to eat, some of which

have medicinal properties.
Participants will gain enough
knowledge to find these
plants on their own hikes.
They are encouraged to bring
cameras and notebooks.
The hike will be limited to
the first 20 people to register.
A donation of $20 is
suggested. For questions and
to reserve a spot, contact
Dave Alcock, Outings Chair
of the Skylands Group of the
NJ Sierra Club Chapter, at
dwhoob@hotmail.com.
Alcock will notify everyone
who registers where to meet
up at Stokes.

(NAPSI)About half a
million buildings catch fire in
the U.S. every year, reports
the National Fire Protection
Association. The change of
each season is a timely opportunity to fine-tune your
homes fire safety. Keep the
home fires from burning your
house by heeding these
seasonal hints.
Spring
Clear away dead plants and
debris from around the outside
of your house.
If doing your springcleaning involves a lot of
laundering of clothes and
curtains, be sure to clean the
lint filter in your dryer before
or after each load of laundry.
Remove lint that has collected
around the drum.
Make sure your dryers
exhaust vent pipe is not
restricted and the outdoor vent
flap will open when the dryer
is operating. Gas dryers
should be inspected by a
professional to make sure that
the gas line and connection
are intact.
Turn the dryer off if you
leave home or when you go to
bed.
Summer
If you set off fireworks,

make sure theyre legal.

Always read the directions
and warning labels. Dont
light fireworks indoors or near
dry grass. Keep a fire extinguisher handy.
When cooking outdoors,
never add fluid directly onto a
lit grill. Never throw water
onto the grill. If youre using a
charcoal grill, let the coals
cool
completely
before
disposing of them. Cover
them with water and mix to
ensure theyre all extinguished.
Fall

Use
battery-operated
candles
in
Halloween
jack-o-lanterns. Make sure
childrens costumes are made
with fire-retardant materials.

Use caution when burning

leaves. Stay clear of the home
and any other buildings.
Winter
Make sure your indoor and
outdoor holiday lights are in
good repair and used appropriately.
Have your chimney
inspected
annually
and
cleaned when necessary.
Keep a glass or metal screen
in front of the fireplace opening to prevent embers or
sparks from jumping out,
unwanted material from going
in, and to help prevent the
possibility of burns to occupants. Be sure the fire is out
before going to bed.
Have your furnace
inspected yearly.
If you use an electric heater,
be sure not to overload the
circuit.
Candles are festive for the
holidays and romantic on
Valentines Daybut dont

leave them burning when you

leave the room.
At any time of year, see to it
that every level of your home
has a working smoke and
carbon monoxide (CO) alarm.
Check and clean these
monthly and change the
batteries twice a year.
New Fire-Safety Device
To protect your home and
family further, consider a new
device that listens to your
smoke and CO alarms and
notifies your smartphone if
they sound. The Leeo Smart
Alert is easy to set up using
the free app for iOS and
Android. No tools or special
installation is requiredsimply plug it in and set up
with your existing Wi-Fi
network.
You can add contact information for friends, family
members or neighbors. If
theres an alarm in your home
and you dont immediately
reply to the Smart Alerts calls
and push notifications, it will
contact your preset emergency
list until someone responds.
The Smart Alert also
functions as a night-light with
customizable colors, and
monitors
your
homes
temperature and humidity.
New technology such as the
Smart Alert can greatly
improve your homes fire
safety throughout the year.
For further fire-safety tips,
see nfpa.org. For further facts,
visit leeo.com or call 1-888487-LEEO.

Hello, fellow readers!

Indeed, it feels like spring has
arrived early but don't let
Mother Nature fool you into
starting seeds too early in the
garden. Check seed packs for
when to start them outside. Its
time to start seeds indoors
though; the rule of thumb is
eight weeks before the last
predicted frost, which is May
15th here.
Of course there are plenty of
outside chores to be done. My
dear Curt and nephew Josh are
scheduled to work together on
Saturday, so here's my wish list
boys.
Go ahead and cut down the
ornamental grasses and butterfly bushes I leave standing for
winter interest. Its okay to use
your chainsaw; I know how
much you love power equipment. Cut the grasses just above
ground level and the butterfly
bushes to about eight inches
above the ground. Please don't
confuse them with the hydrangea you mowed down last year,
as I havent recovered from the
shock. They have though, and
maybe with some luck theyll
bloom this year.
I know, Mr. Fastidious, that
youd love to use your spiffy
backpack blower on the decaying leaves in the gardens, but
they provide nutrients and help
suppress weeds. I promise they
aren't so thick and matted that
the perennials won't come up.
Surly you are concerned about

that.
I understand your fantasy of a
baseball field lawn like your
brothers with stripes and everything. But I'm afraid synthetic
chemicals are a no-go here. You
can spread some corn gluten in
the lawn, which is an organic
pre-emergent. It won't kill the
weeds that are there, but will
prevent new weeds seeds from
propagating. Weeds dont
bother me, as you know.
Theyre as green as grass.
Please cut back the dry perennials I left standing to encourage
self-seeding and because they
look nice dusted with snow.
While youre at it, if you don't
mind, you can snag the seed
heads that didn't drop and put
each kind separately in clean
paper cups. No need to the label
whats what, unless youre
dying to brag about all youve
learned since being with me.
One more thing if you don't
mind. The stone patio has
patches of algae. I know I said
green is good, but algaes
slippery when wet and Im
concerned for a certain someone
that tends to be a tad clumsy. I'd
say power wash the patio, but
it's tricky not to blow out the
wonderful sedum rooted in the
nooks and crannies. I heard that
1/3 cup white vinegar mixed
with 2/3 cup water sprayed on
the algae may do the trick.
Perhaps after you spray, scrub
each
stone
individually
(keeping away from the joints)
then hose off. You're the best!
In case I forgot to mention, if
you could forgo the chainsaw on
the hydrangea and stay clear of
the beautybush too that would
be great. Happy almost spring!
Garden dilemmas?
askmarystone.com
Please say hello: Ill be exhibiting at the upcoming Springfest
Garden Show from March 17th
through 20th at the Sussex
County Fairgrounds located on
37 Plains Rd. in Augusta, NJ.
And on Friday March 18th at
2pm, join me and my colleague
Marty Carson as we present a
garden party tale to illustrate
Ideal Plant Companions. Look
forward to seeing you there.