Born February 25, 1947, in New York City, NY, he was the son of George and Anna Vrabel Kertis. On March 21, 1987, in Richboro, he married the former Valerie J. Thiers, who predeceased him on January 13, 2014. In addition to his wife, he was predeceased by a sister, Veronica.
EMPORIUM, PA – Discover the joys of gardening and transform that “brown thumb” into a green oasis! The Barbara Moscato Brown Memorial Library is thrilled to host a Spring Garden Class on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 5:00 PM, featuring Penn State Extension Master Gardener, Stephen Marconi.
Always dreamt of having a garden but felt challenged by a perceived lack of gardening skills? Fear not! Stephen Marconi will guide attendees through an evening of discovery, sharing valuable insights into gardening techniques suitable for all skill levels and living spaces. Whether you have a sprawling backyard or a cozy balcony, this class will empower you to cultivate your own fresh, tasty vegetables or beautiful flowers.
EMPORIUM, PA – The Barbara Moscato Brown Memorial Library proudly invites the community to an engaging program, “Josephine Baker: Women in History,” presented by the dynamic Susan Cannavino of Presentations With Pizzazz in celebration of Women’s History Month in March. The event is scheduled for Monday, March 11, 2024, from 5:30 to 6:30 PM, offering both virtual and in-person attendance options.
The EMS Task Force met last evening to continue our ongoing conversation about how to help our ambulance companies keep running despite growing financial and staffing challenges.
While a recent state law significantly increased the Medicaid reimbursement rate for mileage and services, the group talked about the need for local municipalities to do more to support the cost of readiness – the cost of having an equipped ambulance and crew ready to respond at a moment’s notice.
We also talked about training and staffing, and how to better ensure people who complete EMS training follow through by taking the national certification exam and then put what they have learned into practice.
I want to thank the more than three dozen people who took the time to participate in the meeting and extend a special thanks to Anthony Martin, recently appointed director of the Bureau of EMS within the Pennsylvania Department of Health, and Tom McElree, executive director of EMS West. I am equally grateful to our county emergency services directors – Marty Kim in Cameron, Nathan Burgett in McKean and Glenn Dunn in Potter – for sharing county-specific statistics about their call volumes.
Our next step is to form small groups in each county to work toward solutions to the unique problems they face. If you are interested in participating, please contact my Bradford office at 814-362-4400.
2024 Wine Walk tickets are now available for purchase! Get your groups together & come grab your tickets for a great night of fun, snacks, music & Wine!
Saturday, April 27 on Main Street in Coudersport
Please bring $25 cash or check (made to Main Street Events)
3:00, 3:30 & 4 o’clock time slot tickets can be purchased at Mama Made.
BRADFORD, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford will host Jeff Boyer’s Big Bubble Bonanza at 7 p.m. Feb. 27 in the Bromeley Family Theater of Blaisdell Hall.
The Bubble Bonanza, presented by Pitt-Bradford Arts, will feature bubble rainbows with people inside, audience members making volcano bubbles and gigantic bubbles that blow their own bubbles.
Big Bubble Bonanza is the latest comedy bubble show from Jeff Boyer, who has been performing for 25 years. The show blends comedy, music and interactive bubble-magic for a sensory-friendly bubble extravaganza for the whole family.
The Volunteers That Care had their monthly meeting Monday, February 12, 2024 at the American Legion Post 192. As February 2nd is National cancer Prevention Month Day, February 4th is World Cancer Prevention Day and February 15th is International Child Cancer Prevention Day, we took this as an opportunity to observe these dates. So many are struck by cancer and our hearts go out to those people. With the gas cards we give away, we can help you get to and from your treatments. We can be reached at Volunteers That Care, PO Box 750, Coudersport Pa 16915. Or, in you know one of the volunteers, please talk to them directly. We wish you all a good day and God Bless you all.
Elk County Council on the Arts to Hold Funding Creativity Night in Ridgway
The Elk County Council on the Arts is inviting artists in the area who want to take their career further and engage more in their community to the ECCOTA Gallery on March 21st for Funding Creativity. Funding Creativity is an event series hosted by the Elk County Council on the Arts in an effort to showcase programs and opportunities for local artists through ECCOTA’s partnership with the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
Pictured Left to Right: Dianna Carnegie, Environmental Service and Ken Hernandez, Food & Nutrition Department
BRADFORD, PA / OLEAN, NY – Upper Allegheny Health System (UAHS), which is comprised of hospital campuses, Bradford Regional Medical Center (BRMC) and Olean General Hospital (OGH), is excited to announce the February 2024 Star Award winners.
The Allegany County Board of Legislature adopted a five-year strategic plan for Economic Development on Feb.14, 2024. This Plan serves as a framework for achieving the Legislative mission of improving economic development in Allegany County. This plan reflects input from quantitative and qualitative data analysis, local and regional stakeholder engagement, and best practices in rural economic development. Debra Root, District III Legislator and Chair of the Planning and Economic Development Committee points out that “This has been a long time in the making and gives us a road map that all county, local, and regional partners can utilize in the collaboration for our present and long-term economic development success here in Allegany County.”
The plan includes a situational assessment resulting from the research and engagement phases of the planning process, and strategies and action maps for nine areas to concentrate on.
Joseph P. STALLONE, 67, of Wellsville, NY died Thursday, February 15, 2024.
Friends may call at Olney-Foust Funeral Homes & Cremation, Crowell Chapel, 296 North Main Street, Wellsville, NY on Tuesday, February 20, 2024 from 2:00 – 4:00 & 7:00 – 9:00 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated 11:00 AM, Wednesday, February 21, 2024 in Immaculate Conception Church, Wellsville. The Rev. James Hartwell will be the Celebrant.
Notice is hereby given that the McKean County Department of Emergency Services is in the process of updating the McKean County Hazard Mitigation Plan. Public meetings will be conducted to inform the public about the hazard mitigation plan and to gather public input and participation during the 2025 hazard mitigation plan update. The dates, times and locations of these public meetings will be outlined in future public notices. The update process is currently active and will run through February 2025. If you have questions, please contact Gerard Rettger, McKean County Emergency Management Agency Deputy Director at 814-887-4911 or GRRettger@mckeancountypa.org. A copy of the current 2019 McKean County Hazard Mitigation Plan is located at: https://www.mckeancountypa.org/…/2019_mckean_county….
Please send any comments on the current plan or recommendations for the new plan to Gerard Rettger.
BRADFORD – The annual Property Tax/Rent Rebate Clinics hosted by Rep. Martin Causer (R-Cameron/McKean/Potter) continue next week as follows:
Emporium Senior Center, 105 E. Fourth St., Emporium: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 10 a.m. to noon. Appointments preferred. Call 814-486-3707.
Eldred Senior Center, 169 Main St., Eldred: Wednesday, Feb. 21, 9-11 a.m.
Galeton Public Library, 5 Park Lane, Galeton: Wednesday, Feb. 21, 1-3 p.m.
The service is free.
A new state law increased income eligibility limits to $45,000 for both homeowners and renters, and residents should exclude 50% of Social Security when calculating income. The maximum rebate was also increased from $650 to $1,000. The program benefits eligible residents 65 years and older; widows and widowers 50 years and older; and people with disabilities 18 years and older.
Additional clinics are planned inSmethport, Austin, Ulysses, Port Allegany, Bradford, Mt. Jewett, Shinglehouse and Coudersport. For a full schedule of events, visit www.RepCauser.com.
The state’s bear hunters remain as loyal in their pursuit as ever, but there are way more of them.
Pennsylvania had fewer than 130,000 bear hunters in 2003. In 2023, it had 206,124. That total – the fourth-highest ever – marked the fifth year in a row that bear license sales topped 200,000.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (February 16) – The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) will conduct a meeting of the Habitat and Environmental Committee on Monday, February 26, 2024, beginning at 10 a.m. This meeting will be held online with committee members participating remotely.
Because this meeting is being held in a virtual format, the process for accepting public comment will be different than an in-person gathering. Public comments pertaining to the agenda can be submitted by calling (717) 705-7846 beginning on Wednesday, February 21 at 8 a.m. until Thursday, February 22 at 12 p.m. Recorded comments will be limited to five minutes and will be presented to committee members prior to the meeting.