The National Weather Service in Buffalo has issued a * Severe Thunderstorm Warning for… Northwestern Cattaraugus County in western New York… Central Erie County in western New York… Northeastern Chautauqua County in western New York… * Until 830 PM EDT. * At 739 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Silver Creek, or 12 miles east of Dunkirk, moving northeast at 50 mph. HAZARD…60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail. SOURCE…Radar indicated. IMPACT…Minor damage to vehicles is possible. Expect wind damage to trees and power lines. * Locations impacted include… Buffalo, Cheektowaga, West Seneca, North Tonawanda, Lackawanna, Kenmore, Depew, Tonawanda, Amherst and Dunkirk. This includes Interstate 90 between exits 49 and 58. HAIL THREAT…RADAR INDICATED MAX HAIL SIZE…1.00 IN WIND THREAT…RADAR INDICATED MAX WIND GUST…60 MPH
BRADFORD, Pa. — The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford honored Joelle Warner, director of donor relations and stewardship, during its Honors Convocation on Friday with the President’s Award for Excellence in Overall Performance from Richard T. Esch, Pitt-Bradford president.
“I am very happy to present this award to Joelle, who approaches her work with an exceptionally high level of professionalism,” said Richard T. Esch, Pitt-Bradford’s president. “She also cares deeply about our students, our faculty and staff, and our generous supporters.”
The President’s Award was created in 2016 to recognize a staff member who has demonstrated exemplary performance and outstanding individual contributions to the Pitt-Bradford campus.
Warner’s coworker, Christine Tyler, director of development and major gifts, nominated her for the award.
Tyler noted that Warner’s consistent professionalism, organization and diligence were of immense benefit to the university as she planned the dedication of the George B. Duke Engineering and Information Technologies Building and an annual luncheon for scholarship donors to meet their recipients.
During that time, Warner also arranged for donors to tour the new building and arranged for signage, including a new digital display, while also gathering thank you letters from donor recipients, tending to the needs of other donors and making each donor she works with feels valued.
“Joelle has made a tremendous impact on Pitt-Bradford’s ability to raise philanthropic funds and to acquire, cultivate and steward donors,” Tyler wrote. “She has assisted countless donors to establish scholarships at Pitt-Bradford [and] worked with corporate donors on in-kind donations. … The standard of excellence that our donors have come to expect from Pitt-Bradford’s advancement program can, in large part, be traced directly back to Joelle’s efforts.”
Tyler told a story to illustrate Warner’s individualized touch. “Last year one of our older donors, recently widowed, was not able to attend [an event] due to mobility issues. Joelle arranged to drive to the donor’s home a few days after the event to deliver a gift in person and spend some time visiting. Not because that falls under ‘other duties as assigned,’ but because that’s who Joelle is as a person.”
Warner and her husband, Kyle, live in Kane and enjoy traveling with their dog, Becca, snowmobiling and vintage motorcycle racing, and spending time outdoors and with their families.
Previous recipients of the award include Christina Marrone, registrar and director of enrollment services; Kim Masone, former conference services manager; and Richard Kahle, facilities director of the Richard E. and Ruth McDowell Sport and Fitness Center.
The Bradford Area Ministerium will be hosting an event on Veteran’s Square on May 4th from 12-1pm for the National Day of Prayer. Attached is a flyer for the event.
This national event is an opportunity for communities all across America to join together to pray for our nation by praying for seven centers of influence: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family.
We invite you to attend representing your agencies and areas of leadership influence so that the community churches can pray together for you and your leadership. We are looking forward to this time of unified prayer as a community!
Due to our transition to a new Integrated-Library System (ILS), patrons who use the Libby App with Seneca Library District must sign out and then sign back in. We are sorry for the inconvenience. Please follow these instructional videos on how to sign out and then sign back into Libby. Your PIN is the last four digits of your phone number. Sign Out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkZY7oceGRQ Sign Back in with PIN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vlZ3q5kxx4
The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners gave final approval to the 2023-24 hunting and trapping seasons and bag limits.
Modifications adopted for the 2023-24 seasons include:
· For black bear, Wildlife Management Units (WMUs) 1B, 2C, 4A, 4B and 4D were removed from the extended firearms black bear season because of declining nuisance complaints in these units.
· For elk, the archery season will be a week later than in 2022-23 to provide additional time between the license drawing and the beginning of the season.
· For furbearers, WMUs 3B and 4E have been opened to river otter trapping because habitat and population data indicate these units can support sustainable otter harvest.
· For small game, there has been a significant expansion of opportunity for put-and-take hunting of captive-reared bobwhite quail in most of Pennsylvania, achieved through an earlier season opening date, later season closing date and removal of the daily bag limit. Also, adjustments to crow season dates and addition of Thursdays as hunting days were approved to shift hunting opportunity from the peak breeding season to the fall and winter months.
· For falconry, an expansion of falconry opportunities, to include the period of overlap with the regular firearms deer season and the authorization of falconers to take certain furbearers were approved.
· No substantive changes were made to white-tailed deer or wild turkey seasons, although the 2024 youth and regular spring turkey seasons will open five days later than in 2023 due to normal calendar fluctuation and the wild turkey management plan guideline of opening the regular season the Saturday closest to May 1. The seasons and bag limits adopted by the board would continue with a Saturday opener to the firearms deer season. License data demonstrates a positive change following the implementation of the Saturday opener. In particular, data shows the move to a Saturday opener was followed by increased license sales by hunters ages 18 to 34 and female hunters. The board also approved a measure that makes all mentored hunters, including mentored adults, eligible to participate in the October special firearms season for antlerless deer and bears.
The Game Commission also announced 1,095,000 antlerless deer licenses will be allocated statewide for 2023-24, which is up from the 948,000 licenses allocated for 2022-23.
Photo by John Eaton. Chava (Megan Gallant), a female astrophysicist and the bartender (Louie Preston) toast her birthday with vodka because there is no water.
Earth Day weekend at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, April 21 and 22 and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 23 in the Warehouse Theatre at 3 Central Avenue in Wellsboro, the Women’s Project is presenting “The Moons of Jupiter” by Jessica Litwak, a leader in the field of creative activism and socially engaged theater.
The play takes place in the future. The global water shortage has sucked the earth dry. Water is only available through black market traffickers at impossible prices. The only thing left is vodka.
A female astrophysicist, celebrating her birthday in a bar, tries to buy a glass of water. She has been working on an instrument that retrieves water from space.
Climate change can be a tough subject to address, but it’s never been as entertaining as it is in “The Moons of Jupiter,” as the Greek gods try to sort it all out.
Zeus has a plan to abandon earth entirely, but his three daughters, Aphrodite, Athena and Artemis make a pact to help the female astrophysicist save it.
Athena provides four scientists (Galileo, Newton, Darwin and Einstein) to help. Artemis and Aphrodite try other techniques, but nothing works.
Mythology, sci-fi and rap songs are woven throughout the play. “There is zany humor and dark intensity, too, as the history of science, the future of planetary travel, and the courage and necessity of looking toward the unknown for solutions are explored in this play,” said Director Lilace Guignard.
Tickets for “The Moons of Jupiter” are $16 for adults and $8 for youth 18 and under.
To buy tickets for the show on April 21, 22 or 23, go to hgp.booktix.org.
For more information, call 570-724-2079 or email hamgib@gmail.com.
Matthew Ball – The Boogie Woogie Kid is performing on Saturday, April 22.
Saturday, April 22 at 7:30 p.m. Matthew Ball -The Boogie Woogie Kid, a pianist, singer and songwriter, will perform in the Deane Center’s Coolidge Theatre at 104 Main Street in Wellsboro.
This is the fifth in the Wellsboro Community Concert Association’s six-concert series.
“I was unhappily practicing law,” said Ball. “A short time later, I attended a hometown Boogie Woogie festival in Michigan. It inspired me to pursue my passion. Now I am known as the attorney turned musician who became a performing artist and YouTube sensation.”
Join Ball, the piano and song man with 5 million YouTube views, for a family concert of New Orleans song, Boogie-woogie piano, and Swing Era favorites from the Great American Songbook. He has been called “the fastest fingers in the Mid-west.”
He presents an upbeat program of arrangements of classic American songs like “It Had to be You”, “In the Mood”, “When the Saints Go Marchin’ In”, “That’s The Glory of Love”, “Basin Street Blues”, “Bumble Boogie”, “Just a Closer Walk with Thee”, “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out”, “What a Wonderful World”, and more.
His performances are described as “Awesome!” “Crushing!” “Fantastic!”
In 2020 he became a CAFE grant award winner in recognition of his “family-friendly” music contributions to the community.
Don’t miss this toe-tappin’ evening of music fun. For a preview visit Matthew on Facebook or online as “The Boogie Woogie Kid.”
Adults with a season pass can attend with children 12 and under admitted free.
The ticket price for the Matthew Ball aka The Boogie Woogie Kid concert on April 22 is $20 per adult with children 12 and under admitted free. A student who is 13 to 18 will be admitted for $5 per concert.
Last in the series is The Revelers concert on Friday, May 19.
Information about and tickets for individual concerts are available by visiting www.wellsborocca.org or by calling the Deane Center at 570-724-6220.
Photo by John Eaton Charlie Messina (left) and Jim Tutak (right) present three checks that total $891.24 to Wellsboro Area Food Pantry President Bill Yacovissi (center) who devotes his time and expertise to the Pantry’s operation. One check was for $341.24, the net proceeds of this year’s Burns Supper, another was for $50 on behalf of Gerard P. Doran, the piper (not shown) and the third was a personal donation of $500 made by Messina.
In 2011 Charlie Messina, Pat Davis, Larry Biddison, Jerry Tutak and Jim Tutak began what has become an annual tradition in Wellsboro: The Robbie Burns Supper and Poetry Slam.
The Tutak brothers had participated in several Burns Suppers in New Jersey. When Jim migrated to Wellsboro he saw the need for a major Hibernian cultural and social event, especially in the dreary month of January. The five organizers held their first Burns Supper that year with copious amounts of haggis and single-malt whiskey, not as an antidote to the haggis as some would say, but to facilitate fellowship. It was agreed that the proceeds over and above costs would be contributed to the Wellsboro Area Food Pantry.
Since then the event has been held annually on the Sunday in January nearest to the January 25 birthday of Robbie Burns, Scotland’s celebrated poet. Along with the haggis and whiskey there was a piper, Scottish music, the “Address to the Haggis” and recitations of poetry, old and new. With the exception of a suspension in 2021 and 2022 due to Covid, the event had continued to grow and is now indisputably the foremost celebration of Scottish culture in Tioga County.
For the first time since the pandemic had begun, the supper was held on January 23 of this year at Timeless Destination, a Wellsboro restaurant. The piper who generously provided his talents in exchange for a $50 donation to the Wellsboro Area Food Pantry was Gerard P. Doran of Wellsboro, who is available for weddings, funerals and bar mitzvahs. The expertly prepared haggis is from Stewart’s Scottish Butchers in Kearny, New Jersey and side dishes by Timeless Destination staff. Kathy Tutak, Jim’s wife, prepared an authentic Tipsy Laird dessert, an epic feat in itself.
A splendid time was had by all and the Wellsboro Area Food Pantry received $341.24, the net proceeds of this year’s Burns Supper plus the $50 bagpiper Gerard P. Doran was to be paid for piping in the haggis but instead requested that it be donated bringing the total to $391.24.
Plans are already underway for the next Robbie Burns Supper and Poetry Slam, which will be held on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2024. Save the date. For more information, contact Jim Tutak at legaltak@aol.com.
On Friday morning at 0045hrs, DCVFD was dispatched to assist BTVFD (ST.15) on box 15-3 for a working residential structure fire.
Squad 11 responded to the scene to fulfill the RIT Assignment. Once on scene and briefed from command, Station 11 personnel set up RIT and put up ground ladders to the 2nd division to ensure the safety of firefighters. Crews were later requested to assist Bradford Township with overhaul. Squad 11 was released from the scene at 0245hrs.
Squad 11 responded to the scene with 7 personnel. Limestone NY VFD held a transfer assignment for Station 11 at our Derrick City Station to provide coverage in our first due area.
Submission period applies to PennDOT-owned projects and infrastructure
Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Office of Public-Private Partnerships (P3) announced today that it is accepting unsolicited proposals for transportation projects from the private sector through April 30.
The submission period applies to PennDOT-owned projects, infrastructure, and services. During this period, the private sector can submit proposals offering innovative ways to deliver transportation projects across a variety of modes including roads, bridges, rail, aviation, and ports. Proposals can also include more efficient models to manage existing transportation-related services and programs.
Unsolicited proposals are being accepted through 11:59 PM on April 30. Instructions on how to submit a project and information on the unsolicited proposal review process can be found on the state’s P3 website.
PennDOT holds an unsolicited proposal period in April and October each year.
The private sector may also submit applications for non-PennDOT-owned assets directly to the P3 board during this time. Transportation entities outside of the governor’s jurisdiction, such as transit authorities and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, may establish their own timelines or accept proposals year-round.
The state’s P3 law allows PennDOT and other transportation authorities and commissions to partner with private companies to participate in delivering, maintaining, and financing transportation-related projects.
As part of the P3 law, the seven-member Public Private Transportation Partnership Board was appointed to examine and approve potential public-private transportation projects. If the board determines a state operation would be more cost-effectively administered by a private company, the company will be authorized to submit a proposal and enter into a contract to either completely or partially take over that operation for a defined period of time.
The next unsolicited proposal acceptance period will occur in October. To learn more about P3 in Pennsylvania, including active projects, visit PennDOT’s website.
The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners met today in Harrisburg. Among other business, the board adopted the 2023-24 hunting and trapping seasons and bag limits. The final seasons and bag limits are provided in a separate news release. Other meeting highlights follow.
NEW ANTLERLESS LICENSE PROCESS FINALIZED
The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners today took final action to restructure the state’s process for obtaining antlerless deer licenses.
Until recently, state law had required antlerless licenses be issued only by county treasurers. Hunters seeking antlerless licenses would send applications and receive licenses by mail in what was considered an outdated and inflexible process.
Earlier this year, a new law took effect that enables all license-issuing agents to sell antlerless deer licenses, meaning hunters in the 2023-24 license year will be able to purchase them online or anywhere else licenses are sold.
With today’s vote, the Board of Commissioners has finalized the process by which licenses will be sold.
· Antlerless licenses will be purchased online and at issuing agents; there will be no application by mail.
· Antlerless licenses will go on sale during the first day of license sales, the fourth Monday in June (Monday, June 26 this year).
· Only residents can apply initially.
· Application by nonresidents won’t begin until the second Monday in July (July 10).
· A hunter can get only one license in the first round.
· A second round will begin the fourth Monday of July (July 24). Residents and nonresidents are eligible.
· A hunter can get a second license in the second round for any WMU where tags are available.
· A third round will begin the second Monday of August (Aug. 14). The sale of Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) permits also will begin on this date.
· A hunter can get a third license in the third round.
· Then, in the fourth round beginning the fourth Monday of August (Aug. 28), a hunter can buy additional licenses until reaching their personal limit of six. Additional licenses, if available, then can be purchased after the season begins, as the hunter harvests antlerless deer and reports them.
· In each round, antlerless license sales won’t begin until 8 a.m.
The Game Commission will be making several announcements to inform hunters what they should do to obtain their antlerless licenses through this new method. Hunters are encouraged to review their HuntFishPA customer profile information to make sure contact information including their address, phone number and email are correct and up to date. That will allow the Game Commission to communicate directly with hunters.
In any case, the new, modernized process will increase convenience for hunters getting their antlerless deer licenses, said Game Commission Executive Director Bryan Burhans.
“A simpler, more convenient system is better for hunter satisfaction, and ultimately, hunter recruitment,” Burhans said. “We thank Sen. Dan Laughlin for championing this change, which will fully modernize the process for issuing antlerless licenses.”
More information about the new process can be found online here.
WMU 2H DISSOLVED, AREA PLACED WITHIN WMU 2G
Wildlife Management Unit 2H, which a decade ago was parceled out of neighboring Wildlife Management Unit 2G, has been placed back within WMU 2G.
The change will take effect in the 2023-24 license year to begin July 1.
The Board of Commissioners today adopted to a measure that dissolves WMU 2H – located in northcentral Pennsylvania, north of Interstate 80, south of U.S. Route 6, east of U.S. Route 219 and west of state Routes 155, 255, 555 and 120 – and moves its area into WMU 2G, which is east of WMU 2H and shared a boundary with it.
The 2013 decision to create WMU 2H was intended to give consideration to habitat differences between that area and the larger WMU 2G. More recently, however, Game Commission staff determined WMU 2H is too small to effectively collect adequate wildlife and hunter data for big game species. Furthermore, WMU 2H remains similar to WMU 2G in deer harvests and forest management.
Wellsboro Shared Home, 27 Bacon Street, Wellsboro, announces a motorcycle benefit ride on June 25, 2023. The starting point will be hosted by Eisenhauer’s Tioga County-Harley Davidson, 2911 S. Main St. Mansfield, PA, with registration beginning at 9am at their pavilion. All drivers and passengers must register by signing a standard waiver. Kickstands up by 11:00am. Drivers’ donation is $20; passengers’ $10. All proceeds will benefit Wellsboro Shared Home and her residents.
The beautiful Victorian Home, Shared Home, was made into a Personal Care Home in 1979. The walls encompass loving care, warmth, kindness, camaraderie, and dignity in a safe and secure setting. The residents are well-taken care of by round the clock staff offering delicious hot meals, fresh laundry, expertly administered medications, with each individual’s personal care needs never overlooked. “It takes money to provide such care and shelter, and we deeply appreciate all the motorcycle and human services enthusiasts who will join us on June 25th,” says Asst. Administrator Wendy Reber.
For more information about the ride and the 100 mile round trip route, please contact Wendy or Virginia at 570-724-2300 between 7:30am and 3:30pm weekdays.
BRADFORD – Rep. Martin Causer (R-Cameron/McKean/Potter) is inviting emergency medical services (EMS) providers, county and local officials, and concerned citizens to a town meeting focused on finding solutions to the state’s growing EMS crisis.
The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 11, at the Smethport Fire Department, 109 S. Nelson St., Smethport.
“Ambulance services across the Commonwealth are struggling with rising costs, declining revenue and a shortage of providers,” Causer said. “The problem is especially severe in rural areas like ours.
“We all need to work together to ensure our emergency responders can continue providing the life-saving services we depend upon,” he added.
Aaron Rhone, director of the Bureau of EMS within the Pennsylvania Department of Health, is scheduled to attend, as is Heather Sharar, executive director of the Ambulance Association of Pennsylvania. A full agenda is still being developed.
Causer noted lawmakers in Harrisburg have been working to address the EMS crisis by enacting policy changes requested by the EMS community, including increased Medicaid reimbursement rates, payment for treatment without transport, volunteer incentives, training availability, staffing requirements and more.
“Unfortunately, even with these changes, the challenges facing our EMS providers continue to mount and threaten their ability to continue operating,” Causer said. “Already, many ambulance companies across the state have shut their doors. We have to do all we can to keep our EMS companies up and running. Lives depend on it.”
RSVPs for the meeting are requested but not required. Those who wish to attend are encouraged to sign up at www.RepCauser.com or call one of the offices in Bradford (814-362-4400), Coudersport (814-274-9769) or Kane (814-837-0880).
Shapiro Administration Invites Foodbanks, Pantries to Apply For $1.6 Million In Funding to Expand Emergency Food Access Secretary Redding invited qualified food banks, pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens that offer emergency food assistance to apply for $1.6 million in The Emergency Food Assistance (TEFAP) Reach and Resiliency Grants. The grants are just one element in Governor Josh Shapiro’s Administration’s commitment to increasing food security and access to healthy food for children and families across Pennsylvania, wherever they live.Read More
U.S. Senator Bob Casey, the White House, U. S. Treasury, and Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority Announced the Approval of $200 Million In Federal Funding for Pennsylvania BroadbandPennsylvania Broadband Development Authority Executive Director Brandon Carson announced the approval of grant guidelines for the Pennsylvania Broadband Infrastructure Program, which will provide $200 million in funding to businesses, non-profits, local government, and economic development organizations. The application process for this program will open on May 10, 2023.See More
Secretary Redding attended the York County Economic Alliance Legislative Luncheon. The focus of the conversation was the rural economy. From the farm gate to the dinner plate, agriculture is the common ground where we come together to have discussions, and to get things done. Agriculture is a unifier. When farmers succeed, York County and Pennsylvania succeeds.See More
Secretary Redding spent an afternoon in rural Chester County, beginning with a tour of the White Horse Construction company and meeting with their skilled craftsmen. Following a tour of White Horse Construction facility, he had the chance to meet with students from the Maple Grove Amish School, sharing in discussions about what PA agriculture means to them along with things going on across our state.See More
Secretary Redding attended a pivotal meeting with the House Ag Committee at the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA. In addition to the meeting, he took a tour of the farm and met the students enrolled in the Rodale Institute Farmer Training program. These beginning farmers bring their own unique experiences and motivation to the shared goal of feeding the world.See More
Now Hiring! Looking to for a career change? Continue your career journey with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture – we’re hiring! We invite job seekers to join our team for the season or year-round, part-time or fulltime.See More
There’s Still Time to Turn in Your 2022 Ag Census! The Census of Agriculture is a complete count of U.S. farms and ranches and the people who operate them. For America’s farmers and ranchers, the Census of Agriculture is their voice, their future, and their opportunity.Learn More
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Recovery Reimbursement Grant Applications are open for the fourth round of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) recovery support for poultry farmers and integrators who suffered losses in HPAI Control Zones (the 10-kilometer perimeter around an infected, quarantined farm). Deadline: Apply by June 29, 2023Apply Now
Farm Credit Foundation for Agricultural Advancement’s Community Education Program Funding Available The Farm Credit Foundation for Agricultural Advancement has announced a new funding opportunity. The program will provide up to $10,000 to local non-profit organizations that provide or support agriculture education and will offer funding for projects that make a positive impact within Horizon Farm Credit’s 100 county footprint and Washington D.C. Deadline: Apply by June 30, 2023Learn More
Bradford Legion Senior League Baseball team will be conducting tryouts on April 30th, 2023. The age for those interested in trying out is 15–19-years-old. Tryouts will be conducted at the University of Pitt – Bradford Baseball field. The times are 11am and 2pm on April 30 th and you will need to attend both sessions. League games start after Memorial Day and will run through Mid-July with the hopes to continue into the playoffs. For more information contact Manager/Coach Jim Henry at 814-598-6184.
The Sinnemahone Canoe and Kayak held Easter Saturday drew 75 competitors from across the state and nearby New York. All but 6 finished the event on the Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning Creek. The fastest competitors from Hansel Lucas from Brookville who raced in a long kayak. Lucas finished the race is 1:36:08.
Competitors from Cameron County who took home first place finishers include Ken Gerg and his partner Dana Leet. The pair competed in the 2-person canoe recreational stock division. Saul Solverson and his son Eastyn took home top honors in the 2 person canoe recreational short division. Steve Vaneerden finished first in the men kayak short while Jeana Bolin finished first in the Women kayak short division.
Bradford Area Public Library encourages all community members to visit the library during National Library Week, April 23-29, to explore all they have to offer. Libraries are full of stories in a variety of formats from picture books to large print, audiobooks to ebooks, and more. But there’s so much more to the story.
Northern Pennsylvania Regional College announces the addition of Michael Giambrone as the institution’s Vice President of Finance and Operations. Giambrone has over 30 years’ experience in banking and finance, having most recently served as Vice President of Mortgage Banking for Northwest Bank.
Allentown units responded to assist Bolivar with a woods fire. Although the fire was not overly large, gaining access proved to be challenging. The terrain was filled with steep rocky hillside and trails that had seen no maintenance. Utvs were eventually able to cut their way in. Allentown 6 laid over 600ft of forestry line along with Indian tanks, chainsaws, rakes. Great job to all involved