What was your favorite Halloween costume and why?

Transcription

Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.
- Elizabeth Lawrence
What was your favorite Halloween costume and why?
Interviews and photos by Frank DiRenzo
Jonathan Landis
John Smith
Mike Rittenhouse
David Smith
Quakertown
Quakertown
Richlandtown
Quakertown
My favorite costume was
Superman because he had super
strength and super powers and he
was my hero as a child.
One of my most favorite costumes
was my Gorilla costume because
I could scare all my friends with it.
My personal favorite was my
T-Rex costume. It made me
appreciate my arms.
My favorite Halloween costume
ever was when I was a box of
crayons because it was unique
and creative.
2
• Upper Bucks Free Press • October 2011
Upper Bucks Community Events
October 1
CDP Fall Vendor Show/Book Fair/
Yard Sale! 10am-3pm, Children’s
Developmental
Program,
995
Doylestown Pike, Qtwn, Lots of
vendors
(Tastefully
Simple,etc.)
Come join the fun and get some early
Christmas shopping done.
All-you-can-eat Pancake Breakfast,
8am-10am at Quakertown Applebees,
benefits QHS Field Hockey
2011 POWER MANIA Fundraiser for
Krenitsky family, (promotes drug free
powerlifting), 347 New Street All
Star Kenpo Karate, Qtwn. Details:
richardson.dav@comcast.net
3rd Annual Pet Wellness Fair, free
rabies vaccines, clinic, pet rescues,
etc. 11am-3pm at Telford Veterinary Hospital, 78 Souderton-Hatfield
Pike, Souderton, 215-721-6989 or
www.telfordvet.com
Yard Sale/Flea Mkt starts 8am,
Trumbauersville Betterment & Social
Club, refreshments available, 2000
Oak Drive (behind Tville Firehouse)
267-733-7890
Tire Recycling Day, 9am-2pm,
sponsored by Springfield Twp EAC at
2320 Township Rd, Qtwn. Details at
www.springfieldbucks.org
3rd Annual Shelly Car Show, 2pm6pm, (rescheduled from Sept. 24),
Free show & registration, 2700
Shelly Rd, Harleysville. Proceeds donated to Last Chance Ranch in Qtwn,
shellysquarecarshow.com,
215-256-9413
Flea Market at St. Paul’s Lutheran
Church, 9am-4pm, 837 Old Bethlehem Rd (across from Haycock
Fire Co.), bake sale and lunch,
484-707-6749
Flea Mkt/Craft Show/Soup Day
at Dublin Fire Co, 11am-2pm,
215-249-3740 for soup order, benefits
Ladies Auxiliary
October 2
All-you-can-eat Breakfast Buffet,
8am-Noon at Lower Milford Fire Co,
1601 Limeport Pike, Coopersburg,
“Blessing of the Animals” at Christ
Church in Trumbauersville, 3pm, 101
N. Main St, Tville
“Blessing of the Animals” at Animals in Distress in Coopersburg,
food, music, bazaar, etc. 1pm3:30pm, free St. Francis medal for
each animal blessed, 610-966-9383 or
www.animalsindistress-pa.org
reservation: Barbara 215-536-4716
aways, etc. Info: 1-866-ST-LUKES
“Living with Dementia” Alzheimer’s
Assoc. 6:30pm-8pm, at 340 Farmers
Lane, Sellersville, call to register at
1-800-272-3900
Annual Yard/Bake Sale at Chestnut
Hill Church, 8am-2pm, 6870 Chestnut Hill Church Rd, Coopersburg,
www.chestnuthillchurch.org
October 5
Annual Fall Festival at Zion
Mennonite Church, 8am-2pm, Cherry
Lane & Front St, Soudertown, flea
mkt, pumpkin patch, car show, bake
sale, horse & wagon rides, food, etc.
215-723-3592
Fall Festival at Menlo Park in
Perkasie, 12noon-5pm, All kinds of
fun activities (zoo, scarecrows, pony
rides, food, etc.) Details at Borough
Office 215-257-5065
Basket Bingo at Christ Lutheran
Church, doors open 1pm, 69 Main St,
Hellertown, 610-868-0074
Basket Bingo, Richland Twp Fire
& Rescue, 64 Shelly Rd, Qtwn,
doors open noon, bingo starts 1pm,
rtfrbasketbingo@ymail.com
Upper Saucon Volunteer Fire Dept.
Open House, 1pm-4pm, at 4445 W.
Hopewell Rd, Center Valley, Tour
the station, meet firefighters, climb
aboard fire engines, Food, games,
give-aways, activities and live demos.
610-791-0266
“Men in Harmony” choral group at
Saucon Mennonite Church, 6639 N.
Main St, Coopersburg. 6pm, free-will
offering with refreshments following.
610-282-0514
29th Annual Super Street Rod Sunday,
9am-3pm at Silver Creek AA, Rtes
412 & 212, Springtown, (pre-1949
cars only), Upper Bucks Street Rod
Association
October 3
Free Bread of Life Dinner, doors open
5pm at Emmanuel Episcopal Church,
560 S. Main & 9th Sts, Qtwn, Call for
transportation options 215-536-3040
Oktoberfest w/Walt Groller at Upper Bucks Senior Ctr in Milford
Square, 11am, tickets purchased in
advance, www.upperbuckssac.com or
215-536-3066
October 6
“Pet Day” at Coopersburg Farmer’s Market, 3:30pm-7pm, $3
registration for gifts and prizes. Proceeds go to Animals in Distress,
beenaturalhealth@gmail.com
610-282-0230
“Loan Programs to Fit Your Business”
at Bucks County Community College, Upper Campus, 8am-10:30am,
sponsored by Univest, 215-536-3211
or www.ubcc.org
October 6 & 7
Fall Rummage Sale, 9am-6pm,
St. John’s UCC at Benner Hall, Cherry St, Richlandtown, ½ price after
2pm on Friday, homemade food,215538-0875 or stjuccrichtown@enter.net
October 7
Evening Dance at Generations,
7pm, 259 N. Second St, Souderton,
live music w/Gary Dee. Raffle and
refreshments, doors open 6:30pm,
register at 215-723-5841
October 8
“New Street Block Party”, 2pm-7pm,
food, games, carriage rides, music,
moon bounce, etc. Calvary Chapel,
347 New St, Qtwn, Free (rain date
Oct. 9)
October 4
9th Annual Toy Run to benefit Bucks
County Children & Youth Services,
presented by Coopersburg PA HOG
Chapter, register 9:30am-10:45am,
Lowe’s parking lot in Quakertown,
all bikes welcome. 610-248-7449 or
215-536-3742
100th Anniversary meeting of
The Woman’s Club of Quakertown, 10am at Spinnerstown Hotel, All are invited. $18 luncheon
Pet Adoption Day at PetSmart
in Quakertown, 10am-2pm, Last
Chance Ranch Rescue will be there,
www.lastchanceranch.org
October 3 & 17
Quakertown Blood Drive at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran, 3pm-7pm,
102 N. Hellertown Ave, Qtwn
WAG-WALK Walk-A Thon, registration begins 10:30am at Lake
Nockamixon Marina, families and
pets invited to a day of fun, food, and
exercise. Benefits Animals in Distress. 610-966-9383 (raindate Oct.9),
www.Animalsindistress-pa.org
Fall 2011 Craft Fair, 10am-3pm
Pennridge Community Ctr, Rtes
113 & 152, Silverdale,215-4537027,snugglebaby@comcast.net
Oldies Dinner Dance at Benner Hall
in Richlandtown, 7pm-11pm, DJ
Ron Funk, call Polly for tickets at
215-536-6716m www.bennerhall.com
“Playing It Safe” program for ages
5-12 w/parent, 10am-3pm at St.
Luke’s Bone & Joint, 1534 Park Ave,
Qtwn, K9 Demo, Jaws of Life Demo,
free food, health screenings, give-
Spaghetti Dinner at Friedens Lutheran Church, 4:30pm-7pm, 2451
Saucon Valley Rd, Center Valley,
610-865-4144
Yard Sale at Solomon’s UCC,
8am-1pm, Route 113, Bedminster,
benefits Hope Outreach Ministries
October 8 & 9
Fall Craft Fair benefits Springtown Volunteer Fire Co. (Sat.
9am-4pm) (Sun. 9am-3pm), crafts,
food & drinks, 3010 Route 212,
springtownfireco.com, 610-346-7730
3rd Annual Upper Bucks Artisan
Studio Tour, (Sat. tour includes visiting artists in their own studios) (Sun.
tour will exhibit artists’ works at
UBYMCA) All proceeds benefit Arts
Center. www.katiestauffer.org
October 9
UBYMCA Arts & Crafts Show,
10am-4pm, 151 South 14th St, Qtwn,
Benefits Katie Stauffer Memorial
Art Center, Linda 215-536-4495 or
215-536-YMCA
October 11
Free Clinic for DPT, Pneumonia,
& Flu Shots at Upper Bucks Senior
Activity Ctr. (Must live in Bucks
County) 2183 Milford Square Pike,
Milford Square, 215-536-3066
Blood Donors Needed, 1pm-7pm at
Haycock Fire Co., 850 Old Bethlehem Rd, Qtwn, 1-800-REDCROSS,
or email: amie@haycockfire.org
October 12
“Preventing Sr. Citizen Fraud”,
Gary Cambardella will speak at 1pm,
Eastern Upper Bucks Senior Ctr, 8040
Easton Rd, Ottsville, 610-847-8178
October 14
Magician Eric Dasher: Halloween Magic, 6pm-8pm at Pennridge
HS Cafeteria, (Family Fridays)
www.perkasieborough.org
October 14 & 15
Keystone Quilters Quilt Show
“A Fiber FAN-tasy” (Fri. 10am6pm) (Sat. 10am-5pm), Raffle, judges, vendors, café, demos, auction,
etc., Quakertown Christian School,
50 East Paletown Rd, Qtwn,
keystonequilters.org
October 15
Flapjack Fundraiser at Applebee’s in Qtwn, 145 Northwest End
Blvd, money raised will benefit remodeling of John Rivers Veterans
Ctr, (which helps educate veterans
and families about their benefits),
p_henny_hoppy@msn.com
Open House at Pennridge Wellness Ctr & Yoga Tree in Blooming
October 2011 • Upper Bucks Free Press •
3
Find the Upper Bucks
Free Press!
QUAKERTOWN
A-Plus Mini Market
Bottom Dollar Foods
Beer City
Cafe on the Way
Classic Temps
Captain Bob’s Seafood
Chick Fil-A
Chilkoot’s Restaurant
Dairy Queen
Dominick’s Pizza
Express Food Mkt (former Wawa)
East Swamp Church
Faraco’s Pizza
First United Church of Christ
Frank’s Pizza
Giant Food Markets
Giovanni’s Pizza
The Grundy House
Hen & Hog
Hobo’s Bar & Grill
James Michener Library
John’s Plain & Fancy
Karlton Cafe
McDonalds
Melody Lakes Clubhouse
Pep’s Ice Cream Parlor
Quaker Cleaners
Quakertown Family Restaurant
Quakertown Produce
QNB Bank
Quaker Bakery
Redner’s Market
Sal’s Pizza Randa
Sine’s 5 & 10
Wawa
Suelkes Roadstand
Swann’s Pantry
Upper Bucks Senior Center
Upper Bucks YMCA
Yum Yum Donuts
Sellersville
A & N Diner
Village Market
Perkasie
Bravo’s Pizza
Giant Food Markets
Landis Food Markets
Pierce Library
Trumbauersville
Fino’s La Cantina
Silver Shears
Spor’s General Store
Trum Tavern
United States Post Office
Coopersburg
Coopersburg Diner
CVS Pharmacy
Giant Food Markets
Good Earth
The Inside Scoop
Paradise Tanning
QNB Bank
Weis Markets
Also available at Spinnerstown,
Milford Square, Coopersburg, and
Zionhill post offices
as well as lots of other high traffic
locations between here and there.
More Community Events
Glen, PA. 11am-3pm, Free, offering samplings of yoga, acupuncture,
massage, chiropractic services, etc.
215-257-3938
Chicken Pot-Pie Dinner, 4pm-7pm at
St. Paul’s United Church of Christ,
104 Green St, Sellersville, $10/adult,
$5/kids 6 and under, 215-257-7268
K of C Charity Pasta Dinner, 6:30pm11pm at St. Isidore’s School gym,
music/dancing, tickets 215-257-4387
or at the door
185th Anniversary Celebration of
Jerusalem
Evangelical
Lutheran
Church. 10am-4pm. All are invited
for fun, food, and entertainment under tents. 733 Ridge Rd, Sellersville,
215-257-9423 or jerevlu@verizon.net
Fall Vaccine Clinic at Richlandtown Firehouse, 12noon-3pm, Test
for rabies, distemper, lyme, heartworm, etc. Proceeds benefit LCR,
lastchanceranch.org
October 16
“Memories of Our Church School”
presentation by ‘Tat’ Moyer, a former teacher at Springfield Church
School. about her time teaching kindergarten. 2 PM, Springfield Township Historical Society, 2165 Route
212, Pleasant Valley, PA. No charge.
Refreshments served. Public invited.
2nd Annual Road Rally by Rotary
Club of Saucon, sign-in begins at
1pm, Rally begins in rear parking
lot of Braveheart Highland Pub, 430
Main St. Hellertown, $35 entry fee,
benefits Rotary’s Polio Plus and International Youth Exchange programs.
Melinda Stitt 610-360-1810
Coopersburg Halloween Parade, 3pm,
Animals in Distress will be entering
a float.
Fall Basket Bingo at Dublin Fire
Co, doors open 11:30am, baskets
are filled, lunch available, benefits fire company, 215-249-9242 or
215-453-1310
October 18
Quakertown Neighborhood Assoc.
meets 7pm at Qtwn Borough Hall (annual meeting), quakertownna.org
4
SAT and ACT Scores
Improve at QCHS
Principal Anita Serge and Superintendent Dr. Lisa Andrejko were
pleased to announce Quakertown
Community High School’s 2011
SAT and ACT results. On both
tests for college-bound students,
the number of students participating and the resulting scores increased.
“We have had an overall commitment from this staff to provide
strategies and skills that help students be successful, not just on
these assessments but also in their
daily academic course work,”
Serge said. “The high school teachers continue to increase the rigor
and expectations of our students,
and our results speak for themselves. We will continue to make
necessary curriculum changes, and
also continue to develop techniques
that will ensure the students of
Quakertown to be competitive with
students not only in this state, but
nationally.”
On the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude
Test from the College Board), the
number of QCHS students taking
the test increased 10 percent since
2010. In reading, scores improved
by nine points and 12 points over
the national average. In math, the
scores improved by three points
and in writing by 14 points since
last year. The local results buck
the national trend. Nationally, the
averages for reading, writing and
math scores have dipped.
The ACT report followed a fiveyear trend. In each of the last five
years, the number of QCHS students taking the ACT increased.
Since 2007, it has increased by
24.6 percent. In 2011, 7.5 percent
more students took the test than in
2010.
Since 2009, all categories have
improved: In English, the scores increased by 1.8 points; in Reading,
scores improved by two points; in
Math by 1.1 points; in Science by
one point. The composite score has
improved each year since 2009.
In each subject category, QCHS
scores were higher than the state
averages.
“Quakertown Community School
District continues to improve and
excel in student achievement at
every level,” said Dr. Andrejko.
“This school district made a promise to do that four years ago by implementing the various components
of the strategic plan…standards
based assessment and instruction,
rigor in the curriculum, technology integration, and a commitment
from teachers and students to not
accept failure as an option. These
results define QCSD as a premier
school district.”
More Community Events
October 19
October 23
Penny Party to benefit Knights of
Columbus. 7pm (doors open 5pm)
at St. John the Baptist School, 2044
Durham Rd, Ottsville. No one under
16 years. Ellen 610-416-5061
Quakertown Halloween Parade, 2pm,
Downtown Quakertown (rain date
Oct. 30)
October 20
Upper Bucks Foodie at Sands
Chrysler Jeep Showroom, 5:30pm8pm, sponsored by First Savings
Banking, details at 215-536-3211 or
www.ubcc.org
October 21
Friday Night Dance w/King Henry, 7pm-10pm at Upper Bucks
Senior Ctr in Milford Square,
www.upperbuckssac.com
October 21 & 22
Fall Rummage Sale at Quakertown
United Methodist Church, (Fri. 9am4pm) (Sat. 9am-noon), Clothing,
household items, toys, jewelry, baked
goods, etc. 1875 Freier Rd, Qtwn
October 26
Halloween Party w/Janet, John, &
Judy at Upper Bucks Senior Ctr in
Milford Square, advance tickets at
215-536-3066, upperbuckssac.com
October 27
Business Card Exchange hosted
by Pennridge Wellness Center,
5pm-7pm, details at 215-536-3211
ubcc.org
October 29
“Wags & Wiggles Halloween Dog
Walk”, 10am-2pm (regis. 10am) at
Gazebo in Perkasie Lenape Park,
benefits LCR, Bring your pets!,
Prizes, entertainment, food, etc. (raindate Oct. 30), LastChanceRanch.org
October 22
QNB & UBCTS “Shredder Event”,
Upper Bucks Technical School, 3115
Ridge Rd, Perkasie, 11am-1pm,
benefits students activities, No newspaper, phonebooks, or books, small
fee, 215-795-2911, www.ubtech.org
UBCTS “Hoagie Sale” $5/ea, ordered by Oct. 10, pick up Oct. 22
during “Shredder Event” at Upper Bucks Tech. School, Perkasie,
215-795-2911, www.ubtech.org
“Autumn Alive” featuring the Broad
St. Pet Parade, 10am-4pm, Quakertown Alive, activities for everyone
“Grapes ‘N Hops Brewfest”, 2pm6pm, hosted by Quakertown Alive,
at the Historic Train Station in downtown Qtwn, www.grapesnhops.org
Indoor Flea Market, 9am-2pm at
Quakertown Fire Co, 5th & W. Broad
St, Qtwn, 267-371-9666
Beef & Beer Fundraiser for 3-yr-old
Talbey Ahlum, 1pm-7pm at North
Penn Gun Club, Tollgate Rd, Trumbauersville. Call Darlene for more
info at 215-536-5834
Halloween Howl Party at Animals
in Distress in Coopersburg, 7pm10pm, food, music, games, hayride.
Funds raised benefit the animals.
Costumes optional, but encouraged.
Details at animalsindistress-pa.org
610-966-9383
October 30
Breakfast at Haycock Fire Co, 8am12noon, 850 Old Bethlehem Rd,
Quakertown, 215-536-2224, haycockfire.org, Thank you for your support!
“The Harmenaires” Concert (gospel music), 7pm at West Swamp
Mennonite Church, 2501 Allentown Rd, Qtwn, benefits Crossroads Community Ctr Prison Ministry, all are welcome, free will
offering, Harley Delp 610-967-6989,
acommonplace.mcc.org
November 7 & 21
Quakertown Blood Drive at Trinity
Evangelical Lutheran, 3pm-7pm, 102
N. Hellertown Ave, Qtwn
Halloween candy sales average
about two billion dollars per year.
Get to Know Your Trainer
My name is Corbin Williams. I am
a Certified Strength and Conditioning
Coach. I graduated from the National
Personal Training Institute (NPTI)
where I was top of my class. I am
the owner and operator of GetReal
Training, LLC and I am also a
part time instructor at N.P.T.I. in
Philadelphia. I believe that fitness
and health is easily obtained by keeping it simple. Getting away from the
basics can become confusing and complicated when trying to lose weight
and improve overall health. This
could result in getting injured or quitting before reaching your goal. You
want to reach your goal and obtain a
healthier lifestyle but do so SAFELY.
You might ask, "How do I go about
doing that when I don't know anything
about fitness and health?" Finding the
right personal trainer for you is crucial
and will in the long run pay off. Most
people are able to become a personal
trainer. It’s not difficult. There are
many different ways one can achieve
that title. One way is to find a place
that offers athe certification, pay a
fee, get the study materials, take a few
hours to take a test, and get “certified”. Or some may go away for a
weekend and get some hands on training and then take the test to get certified. So, now, he/she has that certification, now what? Do they know
how to perform an exercise correctly
and how to correct bad form? Do
THEY even know the correct form,
or do they know how to modify the
exercise for someone who is unable to
perform it correctly or has an injury?
So, the take away message here is to
make sure when choosing a personal
trainer, ask what their experience is?
Where did they go to school? How
many hours of hands-on training did
they have during their school? What
was their experience before they decided to go into personal training? So
why do I tell you this? Not to make
you think “I just won’t use a trainer”.
But to give you the information you
need to protect yourself. It is the job
of the trainer to FIRST make sure you
are safe throughout your workout.
Then they should consider your needs
and goals to develop a custom program
for you. Then And as always, make
the workouts fun and effective while
motivating you and achieving results.
A personal trainer can be one of the
most effective ways to reach a weight
loss goal, as well as strength, endurance, conditioning, balance and stability. The reason is that they keep you
motivated to keep going even when
you feel like giving up. If you are
showing progress and getting results,
what more motivation do you need
than seeing those great results? But
what happens when you hit a plateau
and think, "it's not working anymore"
or "I don't feel like doing this anymore"? That's when you need someone there to push and encourage you;
someone to "shake things up a bit".
The body is an amazing machinepiece of work. Most people give
up or quit because of mental blocks.
Your mind is a very powerful thing
and when harnessed, it can push you
beyond what you ever imagined you
could do. On the flip side, it can trick
you into thinking "it's not worth it,
I'm too tired to continue…I'm not losing any weight…I'm not getting stronger"…etc. A quote to think about,
“Success comes in CANS, Failure
comes in CAN’Ts.” When you put
your mind to reaching your goal you
will reach your goal. YES, it’s that
easy. Keep your goal in view. If you
can’t see the goal you will give up.
If it is too far out it seems hopeless.
Small goals that are easily obtainable
are the key to a successful training
program. If you want to lose 25 lbs,
instead of focusing on the whole bit,
try to shoot for 5lbs, reach that then
go for 5 more and so on. Your trainer
should be able to figure out how to do
this and how long it will take you to
reach your ultimate goal.
To sum it all up, you want to find a
trainer who has had formal training.
You want someone who will ensure
your safety. They should have a clear
understanding of the exercises they are
giving you. Most of all, find someone
who will get real results. So get out
there and find that trainer who will
help you reach your goal and keep you
on the track to a better healthier life.
Corbin
can be reached at
215-416-5757
and at corbwms@yahoo.com.
5
Group to Hold
Craft Fair
Benefitting
MedicallyFragile
Children
The Ridge Crest “Craft Ladies”
will be holding their annual Christmas Shop craft fair Thursday,
October 6, 2011 from 2:00 PM
till 6:00 PM; Friday, October 7,
2011 from 8:30 AM till 7:00 PM;
and Saturday, October 8, 2011
from 8:30 AM till 12:00 noon at
the First Savings Bank Glenwood
branch located at 1129 North 5th
Street, Perkasie, PA. The event
will feature various crafts for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and everyday along with a
raffle to win a quilted wall hanging, Christmas basket or Ladie &
Friends doll. All proceeds from
the event benefit LifePath’s Ridge
Crest pediatric facility in Sellersville for medically-fragile children, and will be used exclusively
for costs which are not provided
for by governmental funding.For
more information, please e-mail
Helen at hlkcraftylady@verizon.
net or Ann Marie at amsurovy@
lifepath.org. Also, you may visit
www.lifepath.org or LifePath’s
Facebook page.
6
Pennridge Addresses
Redistricting Rumors
Every three years, the Pennridge
School District engages the services
of a demographer to project enrollment trends based on residential development and population shifts in
the region.
Depending on the results of those
studies, the need for redistricting
could become apparent. But Superintendent Dr. Robert Kish said
it’s too early to predict whether
redistricting will be necessary this
time around.
“We’re not there yet,” he said
at his regular monthly meeting
with parents.
The demographer will use enrollment data as of October 1 to prepare
the study, which the district expects
to receive in late November.
“Only then will we have an idea
whether redistricting will even be a
consideration for the school board,”
said the superintendent.
The redistricting rumors seem
to stem from a comment Dr. Kish
made at a school board meeting in
the spring, reminding directors that
the demographer would be preparing a report in the fall and that one
outcome could be some level of redistricting.
“Over the summer, my comments
took on a life of their own,” he said
with a laugh. “They were taken
more specifically than they were
meant to be.”
Dr. Kish acknowledged there are
enrollment imbalances among the
three middle schools, some overcrowding at two elementary schools,
and under-enrollment at one elementary school. But whether those imbalances need to be corrected by redistricting won’t be known until the
demographer’s report is analyzed,
he said.
Enrollment patterns are cyclical
and depend on the economy and
neighborhood growth patterns, said
Kish. At one point, Guth was the
district’s largest elementary school;
today, it is the smallest, he says.
Once the demographer’s report
is received, the administration will
study it and make a recommendation
to the school board about whether
any current or future imbalances
need to be corrected through redistricting. All discussions will take
place at public meetings that will be
duly advertised, he said.
“There are no specific proposals
on the table,” said Kish, hoping to
quell unfounded fears among parents. “We’re at least 60 to 90 days
away from that.”
Dr. Kish assured parents that if redistricting is necessary, the district
will be sensitive to the needs of families that could be affected.
“If redistricting is necessary, it
will take some careful consideration
to come up with something we can
all be comfortable with,” he said.
Rotarians to Hold
Road Rally
The Rotary Club of Saucon will
hold their Second Annual “Road Rally,” Sunday, October 16, with signin at 1:00 p.m. and staggered starts
every five minutes beginning at 1:30
p.m. The rally will leave from the rear
parking lot of Braveheart Highland
Pub, 430 Main St. Hellertown. The
entry fee is $35 per person.
Road rally teams will be tasked with
rescuing poor Penelope Pit Stop from
the horrible throes of the dastardly
Snidley Whiplash. Teams will receive
a course book and trivia questions.
The goal of the rally is to successfully
complete the course while simultaneously correctly answering trivia questions in order to capture one of the
many prizes that will be awarded.
Those interested in the event have
the choice to run the rally, enjoy the
fall colors and pick up clues to find
and free Penelope or they can join
the welcoming party at 4:00 p.m. at
the rally’s final destination (a secret
e-mail will be sent to those doing the
latter with information regarding this
undisclosed location).
The anticipated length of the course
is two hours and refreshments will be
provided for the drive. A wine, cheese
and hors d’oeuvres reception is at the
end of the course.
Each rally team must have a driver
and co-pilot; additional riders are allowed on each team. The fee covers
the rally, refreshments for the course
and the reception at the end.
Proceeds of this rain or shine event
will benefit the eradication of polio
and support the club’s International
Youth Exchange.
For further information, or tickets, please contact Melinda Stitt at
610.360.1810.
Grand View Hospital
Adds Physician
At its August meeting the Grand
View Hospital Board of Trustees officially granted medical staff privileges to dermatologist Robert J.
Willard, MD. Dr. Willard received
his medical degree from Jefferson
Medical College. He completed his
internship and residency in dermatology at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and a fellowship in Mohs
Micrographic Surgery at Brown
Medical School. Dr. Willard is an
associate of Dermatology & Mohs
Surgery Center, Doylestown.
Hundreds Enjoy
Church’s Chicken
Barbecue Event
On September 10th Quakertown
United Methodist Church (QUMC)
held their 52nd Annual Chicken BBQ
Dinner to delicious success. A whopping 620 of your neighbors shared in
the festivities while enjoying their ½
BBQ Chicken, potato salad, pickled
cabbage (all homemade) with rolls &
beverage. Don’t forget the ice-cream
for dessert, Mom!
Many busy Dads and Moms took
advantage of the convenient “Takeout” dinners to bring the goodness
home. At just $9 for adults and $4
for kids, not only was this a scrumptious bargain, but over $3,900 went to
charities. The Milford Square Food
Pantry, Bucks County Habitat for
Humanity, and many other local and
national charities benefited from the
proceeds.
According to long time church
members Ruth and Don Barto, “At
one time the proceeds were used to
support the church. Then in 1988,
when two Methodist churches merged
and the new church facility was completed, a point was reached that the
money could be devoted to community missions.” Ruth stated that, “The
most rewarding part is giving back to
the community, which really is the ultimate goal of a church’s mission.”
QUMC also has other tasty meals
throughout the year, including the locally renowned Spaghetti Dinner with
salad bar. The all-you-can eat Ham
Dinner is the next event on Saturday,
November 12th which includes ham
w/raisin sauce, scalloped potatoes,
vegetables and a variety of wonderful
homemade desserts.
So don’t miss out on all the yummy
fun at Quakertown United Methodist Church located at 1875 Freier Rd,
just off Mill Rd.
submitted by
Pat McGovernphoto by
Karen Warfel
Students earn college
credit by scoring well on
PLTW tests
Project Lead the Way (PLTW) students at QCHS knocked end-of-year
tests out of the park in 2011. In Introduction to Engineering Design (IED)
and Principles of Engineering (POE),
ninth and 10th graders passed college
level exams. They scored above the
national and state averages.
Among Pennsylvania schools that
offer PLTW classes, QCHS finished
third with the number of students and
second in percentage of students who
earned college credits in IED. The
other two schools have offered PLTW
for more than 10 years while QCHS
was in its third year with the program.
The QCHS PLTW classes are taught
by Chris Polk, Nick Foley and Brad
Mushrush. Twenty-six students (9th
and 10th graders) earned college credits by passing the test.
In Foley’s POE classes, 92 percent
of students passed Part A of the test,
which was among the highest in the
nation. There are 1,792 schools across
the nation that are PLTW certified.
“Without a doubt this is a huge
point of pride for us,” said Anita
Serge, Principal. “It’s exciting to
know that after just three years, our
teachers and students are achieving at
such high level. This is a direct result
of our staff members bringing passion
to their classes and helping students
find their passions to bring into the
workforce or college. That’s what it’s
all about.”
7
Quakertown Students
Host Fields of Faith Event
Students from Quakertown High
School, Southern Lehigh, and many surrounding schools will be joining thousands of other youth on athletic fields all
across America on Wednesday, October
12, 2011, to share their Christian faith
with fellow students during the sixth annual National Fields of Faith event. This
rapidly-growing,
interdenominational
outreach event will be held at more than
475 locations throughout the nation on
this same date.
While many Christian rallies are anchored to an entertainer or professional
speaker that creates a spectator event,
Fields of Faith is structured as a studentto-student ministry movement. Peers invite their own classmates and teammates
to meet on their school’s athletic field to
hear fellow students share their testimonies, challenge them to read the Bible,
and to come to faith in Jesus Christ.
This will be the third Fields of Faith
event for Quakertown. Last year, 150
students and supporters attended at Quakertown High School field hockey field.
The national growth of Fields of Faith
has been remarkable. Since the beginning
of Fields of Faith in 2004, over half a
million students have joined in the movement. In 2010 alone, more than 150,000
students gathered on 475 fields across 40
states to participate in the event.
It’s not just the numbers that have Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) organizers excited about Fields of Faith. It’s
the real-life impact that these gatherings
are having on young people. Last year’s
series of events saw 3,568 students make
first-time faith commitments to follow Jesus Christ, 5,290 recommitted their life to
Christ, and 12,786 committed to reading
the Bible daily.
“The impact of Fields of Faith has been
incredible in just these past few years,”
said Les Steckel, FCA president and former veteran NFL coach. “It’s all about
young people in these communities coming together on their school’s athletic field
and challenging each other to go back to
the fundamentals of reading God’s Word
and coming to faith in Jesus Christ.”
The impetus for Fields of Faith began
with Jeff Martin, an FCA staff person,
who conceived the idea from an Old Testament reference in 2 Chronicles 34 after
searching how to help today’s generation
of students face spiritual battles and temptations. In the scripture, King Josiah, an
influential teenager very similar to Fields
of Faith attendees today, gathered his people and challenged them to read the Bible.
As a result, they changed their culture.
In 2004, the Josiah-influenced dream
came true when 6,000 students gathered
on school athletic fields throughout three
states for the first Fields of Faith event.
That was the beginning of what has become one of the most significant faith-related gathering of students in a single day.
“Fields of Faith challenges this generation to be committed to reading the Bible
and living a transformed life for Jesus
Christ,” said Martin. “It’s students challenging students, peers challenging peers
and that’s the heart and soul of Fields of
Faith. We are seeing entire communities
changed because of Fields of Faith.”
While Fields of Faith has its roots with
FCA leadership, the event is designed to
include multiple national Christian organizations, local churches, and ministries.
A local leadership team will determine the
program of each Fields of Faith event.
More information about Fields of Faith
is available at FieldsofFaith.com or qfca.
com/fieldsoffaith. To learn more about
the event in Quakertown contact Frank
DiRenzo. Phone: 215-529-8915 x25 or
Frank@ubfp.org.
PHS Seeks Wall of Fame
Nominations
Established in 2001, the Pennridge
School District Wall of Fame honors
graduates who have made significant
contributions to society through either
career achievements or community service efforts. The Wall of Fame provides
another way to take pride in the school
district and to allow graduates to be positive influences on the students of today.
“We want to find ways to express the
pride of the community to our students,” said high school Principal
Thomas Creeden. "This program brings
back graduates and gives us the opportunity to recognize them for their excellent contributions. The “Wall” also will
serve as a permanent reminder of excellence for our students.”
Recipients are honored every other year
at a banquet and presentation ceremony
in the spring. Wall of Fame inductees
have their plaque permanently displayed
in the high school lobby.
Criteria for inclusion on the Wall of
Fame is stringent: nominees must have
graduated from Pennridge High School,
be at least 22 years old, and have demonstrated exceptional achievement in a
career and/or contributed significantly
to the health, welfare or human rights of
the local, state, national or international
community.
To be considered for 2012 induction,
nominations must be submitted by
December 15, 2011. Call 215-4536944. Nominations are kept on file and
reviewed every other year.
8
There’s Plenty to do at
Upper Bucks Libraries
The following programs are offered
by the Quakertown Branch of the
Bucks County Free Library. For more
information or to register for the programs, please call (215) 536-3306 or
visit www.buckslib.org.
October 3, 17, 24, 31 Preschool
Storytime 10:15 – 11am OR 1:30 –
2:15pm Join us for themed stories and
activities for children ages three and
older. Registration begins October 1,
but walk-ins are always welcome.
October 4, 18, 25 & Nov. 1 Bouncing Baby 10:15 – 10:45am Join us
for books, music, and movement for
you and your infant ages six months
to twenty-four months. Registration
begins October 1, but walk-ins are always welcome.
October 4, 18, 25 & Nov. 1 Toddler Time 10:45 – 11:15am Join us for
stories and lots of noise as we navigate through life with toddlers. Registration begins October 1, but walk-ins
are always welcome.
October 8 John Cassidy 3 – 4pm
John Cassidy has entertained thousands of audiences in Las Vegas and
now will be in Quakertown for a free
performance of "The Balloon Freak
Show" for all ages. No registration
is needed; just arrive early for a good
seat!
October 10 CLOSED for the
Columbus Day holiday
October 12 5 Things: Digital Photography 1:30 – 3pm OR 3:30 – 5pm
Learn how to do more with your digital camera during this free workshop.
Digital cameras will be provided for
use during the workshop. Register online today; seating is limited!
October 25 Teen Murder Mystery!
7 – 8pm If you are in grades 6-12 and
love a good mystery, then come on
over to the library for an evening of
"whodunits". Registration is requested and begins October 1, but dropins are always welcome. Attendee
must be between the grades of K and
12. Attendee MUST give 24 HOUR
cancellation notice to allow others on
the waiting list to attend.
The following programs are offered
by the Perkasie Branch of the Bucks
County Free Library. For more information or to register for the programs, please call (215)257-9718 or
visit www.buckslib.org.
October 5, 12, 19 Toddler Storytime 10:15 – 10:45am Ages 2-3. Come
join us for stories, songs, games, and
much more! This is a three week session. Registration preferred, walk-ins
welcome.
October 5, 12, 19 Preschool Storytime 11;15am – 12noon Ages 4-6.
Come join us for stories, songs,
games, and other fun activities! This
is a three week session. Registration
preferred, walk-ins welcome.
October 6, 13, 20 Baby Storytime
10:15 – 10:45am Children ages 6
months to 24 months and their caregivers are welcome to come and join
us for a half hour of stories, fingerplays and activities. This is a three
week session. Registration preferred,
walk-ins welcome.
October 8 John Cassidy: Comedy,
Magic, and Balloons 11am – 12noon
Guinness Book of World Records®
documented him as the world’s fastest
balloon sculptor. John Cassidy combines magic, balloon sculpture and
comedy in a performance that is sure
to delight.
October 10 – CLOSED for the
Columbus Day holiday
October 11 Bingo for Books 7 –
7:45pm Children grades K-5 and their
families are invited to join 45 minutes
of bingo. Win books as prizes! A different theme each month. Registration
preferred, walk-ins welcome
October 22 Young Artists: Dinosaur
Crafts 11am – 12noon Children grades
K-5 and their families are invited to
let their creativity shine. A different
craft theme each month. Registration
preferred, walk-ins welcome
Common Tricks Kids Use to
Avoid Internet Protection
I believe TRUE internet safety is an
oxymoron. Yes, we can implement
precautionary Internet safety systems
to filter content, block unwanted addresses, limit time, monitor chats/
IMs and other activities when our children are online. However, tech savvy
kids are smart these days. They have
lots more free time and motivation to
discover ways to BUST through internet safety nets.
Here are some common mistakes
& potential solutions to help parents.
Instilling integrity and wisdom is the
best safeguard today to truly help kids
stay safe….
Some common pitfalls to watch for:
Tricks tech-savvy children attempt
to circumvent family internet safety.
1. Create alternate email, Facebook,
and other social networking identities.
2. Conduct a “system restore” to a
time BEFORE you installed internet
security–to get rid of the installed program.
3. Conduct a factory reset by wiping their hard-drive completely clean.
Then the software is entirely gone.
4. Install a secondary operating system that will go around the one that
contains your safety software.
5. Eliminate the process of the program from engaging during start-up of
their computer – it never starts.
6. Use the command-prompt to
abort the security file from operating
by going into the program & denying
permission for the software to open.
7. Delete their online usage history. Furthermore, they use online
programs that wipe their history files
clean.
8. Find websites that can be used as
a proxy. They conduct searches from
those sites to get to the inappropriate
websites they want. Then the true history of usage is cloaked.
9. Swap older siblings identity to
get longer computer privileges. Give
themselves administrator privileges in
Windows.
10. Use defects they accidentally
discover that circumvent the software.
What To Do For Improved
Internet Safety?
1. Character is the first line of defense. Instill integrity and wisdom in
children. Teach honesty to kids so
they will confess even if they mess up.
Familiesthat have open communication and close relationships may avoid
long term problems. Children then
rarely go long without showing their
parents how they used the internet inappropriately.
2. Diligently teach online stranger
safety. Train children to protect their
personal identity and information online. Ask them to include you when
they have new “friends”.
3. Consider installing password
protected ROUTER LEVEL internet
safety protection instead of software
installed on each machine. Or, consider whole house monitoring software.
4. Regularly monitor the children’s
progress reports. Many times, software is correctly tracking children’s
inappropriate online behavior but parents do not inspect the information.
5. Use safety software that is easy
to implement and understand. Many
mistakes we’ve experienced were
due to the shortcomings of the internet software. It was difficult to use to
monitor the children.
6. Keep all computing in open family areas, preferably supervised. Keep
computers out of kids’ bedrooms to
help keep them connected to the family instead of cyberspace.
7. Don’t immediately over-react
when you discover inappropriate websites that need to be addressed. Investigate problem internet usage patterns
then strategically address each issue.
If you overact prematurely, the child
may sneak and remove all traces of
their behavior.
8. Calmly communicate your concerns about your child’s undesirable
behavior. Listen a lot and try making small changes at a time. In our
family, we have written letters and
emailed thechild about their suspected
behavior, why it is a concern, what
the long term impact may be, why it
is not part of our family’s values, how
it is harmful and so on… Then, when
it was discussion time, the child, who
had previously been given notice had
the opportunity to process feelings and
the situation without heated emotions.
9. Stay involved. Ask the kids conversationally, “So what are you doing?” to discuss what they are viewing. Maintain a file of all of their
online accounts with passwords.
10. Limit hours online. Teens
especially need to be off-line by
parents’ bedtime.
For more info: http://www.fbi.
gov/stats-services/publications/parent-guide and http://blog.thesource4ym.com/archive/2011/09/21/parental-overreactions.aspx Questions?
parentingtwinsandmore@gmail.com
9
Dominick’s Holds 4th
Annual Pizza Eating
Contest
This was not a contest designed to
impress others with your dainty table
manners. The rules were simple: eat
as many slices of pizza as humanly
possible within a ten-minute time
limit, finishing each slice before starting the next one. How the contestants
managed this was up to them. Some
stood, some sat; most ate with gusto,
while a few took it slow and steady.
Welcome to the 4th Annual Dominick’s Pizza-Eating Contest.
Vince Randazzo, owner of Dominick’s Pizza, says he began the annual
event as just a fun thing to do on a
Saturday in September. He’s gotten a
lot of positive response for the contest
and is considering adding a spaghettieating contest, perhaps in January, if
he feels that there is enough interest.
Just under a dozen contestants signed
up to vie for the cash prize and the
glory of being the top pizza-eater. Last
year’s winner, Steve Rhoads, kept
a laid-back attitude about this year’s
contest. There was some friendly precontest trash talk among the contestants, but everyone was there to eat
pizza and have a good time. Bryanna
Trommer was only female entrant this
year. She knew that she could eat a
whole pizza; she just wasn’t sure how
fast she could do it. Stacey “Eataroma” McCarthy was pumped up. Describing himself as “on the verge of
being a professional eater”, Stacey
practiced some of his fancy boxing
footwork before the contest began to
loosen himself up.
As the crowd watched, Vince gave
the signal to start and the eating began.
Slice after slice was devoured with
little regard for proper table etiquette.
Vince called out the time at regular
intervals, letting the contestants know
how much time was left for them to
stuff their faces.
In the end, Quakertown resident Matt
Haas ate 10 slices in ten minutes to
take the prize. Matt won $200 for his
jaw-tiring efforts. Afterwards he said
that he was feeling okay, but was sure
that within a few hours he’d “have a
date with the couch” and would be
resting for a long while. Second place
winner, Josh Robinson of Milford, NJ
won a $100 gift certificate.
photo by frank direnzo
Drug Drop-Off and Document
Shredding Event to be Held
at Richland Police Station
On Saturday, October 29 there will
be a drug drop-off and paper shredding
event at the Richland Township Police
Department, 229 California Road in
Quakertown beginning at 10am, with
the paper shredding to begin at 2pm.
People are encouraged to bring their
unused prescription drugs to the department and put them into the drug
drop-off box. The box is a secure
device that has been in the lobby of
the police department for the past few
months. Chief Richard Ficco says that
people seem to be using it regularly
to safely dispose of unused medicine
and prescription drugs. The box was
paid for by the Richland Police Department, the Bucks County District
Attorney’s Office and justCommunity,
a local youth development group.
Pennsylvania Agriculture
Branding Bill Sent to
Governor
House Bill 1424 authorizes the program to set standards for excel-
Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) to license and promote the PA Preferred® program
and encourage more businesses to
promote locally grown and produced Pennsylvania commodities
under that label.
The PA Preferred® program began in 2004. The PDA initiated the
lence and to expand consumer markets for high-quality Pennsylvania
products. The Pennsylvania Preferred Act memorializes the trademark and associated guidelines,
ensuring the stability of the program's infrastructure, to encourage
additional private sector investment
by new and existing licensees.
Did you know that there are about 7,809,244 acres
of farmland in use in Pennsylvania, which
corresponds to 27.3 percent of total state land?
Knights of Coopersburg
Columbus HOG to Make
2nd Annual 9th Toy Run
Coat Drive
With colder weather just around
the metaphorical corner, it’s time for
the Knights of Columbus’ 2nd Annual Coat Drive. The local Cardinal
Stritch Council #4649 will be collecting gently used coats from October 8 –
22 at different drop-off points around
the community. Craig Staats, who is
helping to head up the effort, says that
since last year’s drive was so well-received by the community, the organization decided to do it again.
“We were impressed by the quality
of the (donated) coats. The People of
the community were very generous”
and he’s hoping that this year is just as
successful as last year, or even more
so.
Gently used coats can be taken
to the Richland Police Department,
Quakertown national Banks, and the
Quakertown Farmers’ Market. If you
would like to donate, but cannot get
to the donation points, Craig says that
pick-up can be arranged. Coats will be
given to those who need them on November 5.
For more information, please call
Craig Staats at 215- 391-3636.
The 9th Annual Coopersburg
H.O.G. (Harley Owners group) Toy
Run will take place on Saturday, October 8. The fun begins in the Lowe’s
Giant parking lot on Route 309 in
Quakertown. Registration is from
9:30am until 10:45am. The cost of
registration is a new, unwrapped toy,
a store gift card, or cash donation to
benefit Bucks County Children and
Youth Services Agency (CYS). At
11am the rides begins. An expected
400 motorcycles and their riders will
make their way down Station Road
to the traffic circle, up Main Street
into Quakertown, down 9th Street
to Broad Street and on to Route
313. The riders will continue into
Doylestown to the CYS offices in
Doylestown. Pat Ford, the chairperson of the event, said that the annual
ride keeps getting “bigger and bigger” and is hoping for nice weather.
The riders will have a police escort
and will be waved through intersections. Once in Doylestown, there
will be other activities such as a
50/50 raffle and refreshments. The
Big Banana Car is also scheduled to
make the drive from Quakertown to
Doylestown.
2011 Façade Grant
Winners Announced
Quakertown Alive! proudly awarded
two local businesses with checks totaling over $3,400 for their work and improvement to their business’s facades
and structures. The recipients were
Jeff Martin Custom Builders of 225
W. Main Street and John Rivers VFW
Post 11322 of 41 Belmont Avenue.
Jeff Martin Custom Builders was
awarded a check for $2,750 to remove
and replace old, inefficient windows
with Anderson Energy efficient Vinyl
Replacement windows not only improving their Green Thumbprint but
also increasing the attractiveness of
the exterior of their downtown building.
The John Rivers VFW Post 11322
received $700 to replace outdated
wires, lights, aluminum capping, gutters and downspouts, as well to refurbish the cement-block-exterior of the
building.
Quakertown Alive! applied for Main
Street Reinvestment grants on behalf
of their businesses and downtown revitalization efforts. Awarded by the
Department of Community and Economic Development in order to launch
the Façade Improvement Program in
the Borough of Quakertown, or better
known as the Quakertown Alive! Design Challenge Grant. These funds
are provided through the Department’s
New Communities – Main Street Program appropriation.
The Quakertown Alive! Design
Challenge Grant is available to commercial properties within the Program
Areas to stimulate private investment
in downtown properties, to foster an
attractive shopping environment, and
to preserve Quakertown’s architectural heritage. The selection of Design
Challenge Grant recipients is based
solely on project merit and not on financial need.
10
Haven’t You Done
Anything
About Your Hearing?
Most people feel all a hearing-impaired person needs to do is get their
hearing tested, buy and wear hearing
aids so they can hear better.
Too bad it is not that simple. If it
was, then society would be able to get
drive-thru service.
The process is a bit more involved
than that.
The very first step is for the affected
person to realize and accept they have
difficulty hearing and need to get a
complete audiological evaluation. This
is the hardest part. This person needs
to clear all the mental hurdles, stop
denying, and start accepting responsibility for their own destiny. Without
this self-actualization, nothing can be
achieved in making their life better. It
is tough. I know. I had a hearing loss
for many years and needed to finally
confront my problem and do something about it. For me to do something, I decided to pursue a Master’s
degree at the University of Virginia in
1984 and enter private practice. No
one should have to do that.
Next, an appointment is to be scheduled with a private practice audiologist
for an evaluation. Some people make
the mistake of going to a hearing aid
sales store for a free test. That is not
in your best interest. The store or sales
person does not make any money unless your purchase something. Securing an audiological evaluation by an
audiologist is covered by most insurance plans. The audiologist is paid for
their services and is not under pressure to get you to buy amplification.
When arriving for your appointment, try to take your spouse, a family
member, or friend who will provide a
different perspective on the case history and positive support during the
process. Support is an important part
in helping the patient make the transition from their former world of hearing impairment to obtaining the proper
information during the evaluation to
receiving the life-changing devices
and aural rehabilitation.
If a recommendation is made to
obtain hearing aids, there is only
one choice in the matter. GET THE
HEARING AIDS! You have made it
this far. You have the required hearing loss. You have the support of your
family and friends. Motivate yourself
to get the hearing aids and wear them
every day. One thing I have always
known from experience with every
patient, MOTIVATION is the number
one factor in the success of a person
getting and wearing hearing aids.
Once the initial fitting of the new
hearing aids has been done, schedule a
follow up appointment within the first
two weeks. Take a written list of positive and negative concerns to this visit.
Providing this information assists the
audiologist in making the corrections
needed to ensure a custom acoustic
fit for your communication requirements. If you experience any further
issues do not hesitate to contact your
professional for additional services at
no charge.
The choice is yours. Stay where
you are and do nothing or venture
onto the road for better hearing today!
Mr. Murphy knows firsthand
about hearing loss. He has had a
bilateral mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing loss all of his
life and is a binaural in-thecanal
hearing aid user. Mr. Murphy
has been in practice in Pennsylvania since receiving his Master
of Education in Audiology from
the University of Virginia in the
spring of 1987.
Mr. Murphy is affiliated with
a number of hearing-related
national and international organizations and can be reached
at
murphyhearingservices.com,
hearingdoc@aol.com,
and
by
phone at 215-804-1111.
Phoebe resident Warren Storck presents Administrator Mary Kay McMahon with a photo
album chronicling the Springhouse Garden. photo by michele buono
Phoebe Richland
Dedicates Springhouse
Garden Project
“I am so happy to be here on this
glorious day in the beautiful spot”,
proclaimed the Reverend Dorothy
Shelly as she delivered the benediction
at the dedication of the Springhouse
Garden at the Phoebe Richland Health
Care Center. After months of work
and two postponements due to weather
conditions, the garden was officially
dedicated on Friday, September 16.
The Springhouse Garden project
was constructed to give the residents
of the senior care facility a place to
enjoy the outdoors. It is designed to be
accessible to all the residents, so that
all can enjoy being in the garden.
The garden boasts a pavilion and
a fountain, as well as paved paths to
stroll along and enjoy the flowers. The
plants were carefully chosen to bloom
at different times of the year. Birdfeeders and butterfly bushes encourage winged visitors. There’s even a
garden railroad chugging through the
plants near the gazebo.
Commander John Sandle, Gordon
Allem, and Paul Gerhart of the John
Rivers Memorial VFW Post 1132
were on hand to raise the flag. Community Life Coordinator Lauren Ritter released monarch butterflies as Michelle Schery, the Director of Social
services, sang “In the Garden”.
Administrator Mary Kay McMahon
thanked everyone who worked on the
project, bringing the vision of a welcoming outdoor space into reality.
She pointed out that the Springhouse
Garden has been “the most successful
fundraising project to date” because
everyone recognized how important it
is accessible outside space. Community Life Director Kristin Kiehstaller
comments, “The Phoebe Richland
Springhouse Park addition is our outdoor Welcome Center for family,
residents, employees and neighbors to
entertain under the sun and stars! We
are so excited about this new space,
and are overjoyed by the enthusiasm
from all of our customers.”
Dear Aunt Lola...
Dear Aunt Lola,
I was excited to get to vote for the
first time in the last presidential election. I voted for Obama and I really thought I did the right thing. I
tried to get information on all of the
candidates to make the right decision.
Our country is a mess and has not gotten any better since he took office. I
don’t even see a point in voting in the
next election.
I still live with my parents. I am
struggling to put myself through college and there just aren’t any openings in my chosen field. Please understand, I’m grateful to have any work
in this economy, but I rarely go anywhere because I cannot afford it. I
am afraid that even though I am smart
and driven, that I won’t be able to
move out on my own anytime soon.
Any suggestions?
Disillusioned Woman, 22
Dear Disillusioned,
First of all, the 2008 presidential
election did NOT rest entirely on your
shoulders, no more than the election of
2012 will. It rests on the shoulders of
every eligible voter. People don’t talk
much these days about character traits
like honor and courage and duty un-
less they are talking (and they should)
about our military. But, I will.
It is your duty as a citizen to vote.
As a woman it is your obligation. Before the next election, I suggest you
should get together with a few friends,
male and female and split the movie
rental cost for the 2004 “Iron Jawed
Angels.” It will give you a glimpse
into why your single vote makes a difference in a way my rhetoric won’t.
That will solve two problems you
have: your lack of appreciation for
your right to vote, and the need for a
bit of inexpensive time out to hang out
with some friends.
It seems to me that the fact that you
are asking the questions and that you
are concerned and even fearful for
your future, should be your motivation to get involved. Talk to people,
let them know what you think and remain engaged. The worst thing you or
anyone else can do right now is to give
up on your country and your future.
Aunt Lola
Contact Aunt Lola with your questions
at
auntlola@ubfp.org.
Opinions
and
advice
expressed
in
this
column
do not necessarily reflect those of the
publisher or other contributors.
11
Sports Bar Offers Great
Fare, Nice Atmosphere
Vince Randazzo had a goal to one
day own a sports bar. Two years ago
that dream came true when he opened
the Pre Game Sports Bar & Grille
along the northbound side of Route
309 as you drive into Quakertown.
Vince says he wanted a place where
friends could meet and have a great
time.
The Pre Game offers good food and
generous portions that fit nicely into a
family budget. The menu is all-American, from burgers to barbecue as
well as pasta and other dinner entrees.
There’s also a kids’ menu for younger
appetites. And the Pre Game chips deserve a special mention because when
was the last time you had perfectlyspiced homemade potato chips? Don’t
want to cook, but also aren’t feeling
up to a night out? The Pre Game also
offer take out service.
The décor is clean, not cluttered;
open and bright with sports memorabilia throughout. There’s even a fire-
place on the enclosed deck area. With
over a dozen flat-screen television
sets, you won’t miss a minute of the
action on the day’s games. The wall
mounted sets are scattered throughout
the restaurant and on the deck.
The sports bar features 90 different
types of beer and highlights 4 or 5 different micro-breweries each month.
Who knew there was a gluten-free
beer? Vince did and it’s available at
the Pre Game. There are specials every night of the week as well as a daily
(two hour) happy hour.
Regular musical entertainment includes live bands, DJs, and a weekly
karaoke night. Beginning in November, the bar will host Wii Sports tournaments – for the over -21 crowd.
And on November 24, you can come
out for a Thanksgiving Eve party from
9pm until 2am.
For more information about Pre
Game Sports Bar & Grille, go to
www.pre-gamesportsbar.com or call
(267)373-9525. And, of course, you
can also find them on Facebook.
Pre Game Sports Bar & Grille proprietor Vince Randazzo shows off some of his pub fare
at his 2 year old restaurant on Route 309 in Quakertown. photo by frank direnzo
Quakertown Maid
Service Pitches In by
Cleaning for a Reason
Being diagnosed with cancer is
stressful, to say the least, but life
doesn’t stop around you because of it.
On top of all the medical issues and
decisions that the newly-diagnosed
cancer patient is confronted with,
keeping up with the normal day-to-day
schedule becomes a challenge. For
women especially, a big part of “feeling normal” is having a clean home.
The Cleaning for a Reason Foundation understands this and is working
through its partners in the professional
cleaning business to alleviate the problem for woman who are dealing with
cancer.
Cleaning for a Reason provides four
professional house cleanings to women
who are undergoing treatment for cancer. To date, they have helped 4,000
women with over $1 million in donated cleanings. Locally, the You’ve Got
Maids franchise in Quakertown has
been working with the Cleaning for
a Reason foundation to help women
who have been diagnosed with cancer
have the bit of normalcy that is a clean
home. Franchise owner Bruce O’Brien
is committed to the foundation’s aim
of easing the burden of cancer patients
by donating time and services to the
Cleaning for a Reason cause, “We go
into these homes four times with our
buckets and vacuum cleaners in hand,
getting their homes sparkling clean so
they can spend more time getting better than worrying about dust bunnies
and cobwebs in the corners.”
The good people from You’ve Got
Maids have been cleaning the home
of Lisa Hill, who was diagnosed with
cancer two years ago. Lisa, a lab
technician at St. Luke’s hospital, has
a husband and three children and appreciated the “blessing” of having a
clean home. As she explains it, even
though you have cancer, you feel like
you have to keep up with your normal
schedule; your home is your base and
to have it clean is such a blessing. She
said that when her children saw others helping her mother, it was inspirational. “Your home is your nest. It’s
where you are secure and can be at
rest, at peace.”
Bruce and Elsa O’Brien began their
You’ve Got Maids franchise venture
in Quakertown about a year and a half
ago. They employ professional fulltime maids and cover a territory that
extends from Lansdale to Allentown.
The O’Briens have a strong dose of
community spirit. Cleaning for a Reason is not their only charitable endeavor. They have been active with
Special Performers, working with special needs teens and young adults to
express themselves through the power
of dance; as well as volunteering at
the local food pantry. Bruce and Elsa
practice the philosophy of giving back
to their community. “We live here,
we work here, we want to give back
here”, as Bruce puts it.
As with many businesses today, you
can find the Quakertown You’ve Got
Maids business on Facebook. Bruce
and Elsa have hit on a sure way to
make their mark in the local social media world. Every week one lucky fan
wins $100 worth of cleaning services.
Representatives from local businesses
draw the names of the lucky winners
who then have one week to call and
claim their prize.
For more information about the
Quakertown You’ve Got Maids, give
them a call at (215) 529-7837 (SUDS).
For more information about the national Cleaning for a Reason Foundation, you can find them online at
www.cleaningforareason.org.
You’ve Got Maids co-owner Bruce O’Brien
stands with Lisa Hill, a recipient of free
cleaning services via the “Cleaning for a
Reason” Foundation. photo by michele buono
12
Richland Township
Animal Rescue Holds
12th Annual Open House
Hundreds of people visited the Last
Chance Ranch on Saturday, September 17 to help celebrate LCR’s 12th
annual Open House event. There was
a petting zoo, pony rides, games, a
demonstration by the Philadelphia
Mounted Unit, and of course, pet
adoptions. Lori McCutcheon, owner
of Last Chance Ranch, said that the
event gets bigger every year as more
and more people come to see what the
ranch is all about.
Most of the dogs that are waiting
at Last Chance Ranch for their permanent homes are from Philadelphia
Animal Control(PAC). Unfortunately,
many dogs are simply “dumped” and
left to fend for themselves on the mean
streets of the city. PAC has been busier than ever lately. Recently in one
four-day period, they took in approximately 400 animals. To avoid being
overwhelmed, PAC reaches out to
Last Chance Ranch to help the burden. Unlike the Philadelphia shelter,
LCR is a no-kill shelter, so the animals are cared for here or in foster
homes until they are adopted. Lori
says that LCR is in constant contact
with the city animal control unit and
had taken in twenty dogs not long ago.
She gives credit to the LCR volunteers
that many animals are quickly adopted
into their “forever homes”.
23 month-old Christopher Oldham enjoys a
pony ride at this year’s Open House at Last
Chance Ranch. photo by michele buono
Did you know that Christopher
Columbus wrote in Spanish,
not Italian, his entire life?
13
Local Gymnasts Help Set
Handstand World Record
Now there’s something you
don’t see every day! On Saturday,
September 17 the gymnasts from
Power and Grace in Quakertown joined
in a national effort to break the collective world record for most people doing a handstand at one time. At 1pm
sharp, hands went down to the floor
and feet were lifted to the ceiling as
eighty-six people, ranging from children to young adults, joined in the simultaneous effort of over 100 gymnastics clubs across the country to break
the record.
It was a charged atmosphere in the
Power and Grace gym, newly relocated to 122 Pacific Drive. Everyone
seemed very excited to be participating in the record attempt. Owner Cindi Jendall paired the world record attempt on World Gymnastic Day with
the celebration of the grand re-opening of Power and Grace. The former
location, behind the Giant supermarket in Quakertown, had become too
small for the gym’s needs. Cindi had
bought the gym in 2009. It was previously known as Tumbling with Denise. Her daughter Brittany gave the
inspiration for the new name – Power
and Grace – after beating a serious illness that kept her hospitalized for a
month a few years ago. Cindi gives
credit to Brittany, a graduate of Lehigh Valley Performing Arts school,
for much of the gym’s success, “She’s
the one with the talent.”
As the clock wound down to the
magic one o’clock hour, the dozens of
gymnasts lined up around the mats and
practiced their handstand skills. Over
and over again they were upside for a
few seconds at a time as they kept at it.
Then it was time. The countdown was
called and they readied themselves for
the Big Moment.
And they did it. 20, 478 participants
countrywide, including the 86 from
Quakertown, performed concurring
handstands and broke the previous record of 2,402, which was set in Australians to promote the 2005 World
Gymnastics Championships.
Did you know the first Jack O’Lanterns
were actually made from turnips.
Jerusalem Lutheran Church
Celebrates 185 Years
On Saturday, October 15, 2011 from
10:00am-4:00pm Jerusalem Lutheran
Church, 733 Ridge Road in Sellersville,
PA will be celebrating its 185th anniversary. A community tent event is planned
for children and adults alike. Join us
for live music with “The Happy Rangers”, “Trinity Praise Band”, “Fourgone
Conclusion” Barber Shop Quartet, and
“Sacred Serenity”. Be moved by inspirational talks by the Rev. Sandra Brown
and Vicar Rashon Santiago, and author
Elvin Colon will be available for a book
signing. Visit our prayer tent, community based service booths, and a historic
memorabilia slide show. Games and face
painting for the children and a raffle make
it a day for everyone. Plenty of seating and covered areas will be provided.
Parking is available at the church and at
Grandview Outpatient.Community organizations, such as West Rockhill Historical Society, Grandview Hospital EMT,
Sellersville Fire Company, Perkasie Fire
Department, Crossroads Pregnancy Center, Penn Foundation, Keystone Opportunity Center, and Teens Acting for Peace
(TAP), will have a presence providing
information to the public about their organization and services. Stop by and say,
“Hello!” Donations will gladly be accepted by Jerusalem Lutheran as well as the
other community organizations. Event
sponsors include Lutheran Community at
Telford, Mel Nace State Farm Insurance
Sellersville, Steeley Betty Meier Funeral
Home Sellersville, First Niagara Sellersville, Allen Septic Service Buckingham,
Tiger Printing in Telford, and members
of the Jerusalem Lutheran congregation.
This event is free! Items will be available for purchase from vendors including
arts, crafts, food and beverages. If you
are interested in renting a space to sell
your art or craft at this event, the cost is
$30. Please mail your payment no later
than Oct 10th to the church to reserve
your space.
Did you know? The original edifice of
Jerusalem Lutheran Church was built in
1826. For almost 100 years prior to 1826,
a variety of religious denominations held
church service under the “big while oak
tree.” Tradition has it that Jerusalem
Lutheran is one of the original Henry
Melchoir Muhlenberg congregations.
The current pastor, Rev. Wende Bleam,
was ordained and installed on September
16, 2011. Sunday Worship Service is at
10:15am and Faith Formation at 9am.
More information about us and our celebration can be found by e-mail jerevlu@
verizon.net. Website www.JerusalemLutheranChurchSellersville.org, or Facebook search Jerusalem Lutheran Church
Sellersville.
14
Remember the Haunted Hauler?
What once started as a funny idea
while having a few drinks with some
friends at a bar became an unforgettable life journey for local Quakertown
resident Karl Teller. This marked the
birth of the Haunted Hauler which attended over 166 Halloween Parades in
the 12 years; each year coming with a
different theme and brand new design.
Karl said some floats would cost up to
$1,500 to make.
Karl started in 1977 in the mind
and very large garage of Perkasie
trucker Karl Teller. Karl owned a
new Peterbilt truck that he drove to
make a living. He had the idea that it
would be fun and entertaining to build (above, left) The Haunted Hauler in its heyday. submitted photo (above, right) Karl Teller as he appears today. photo by frank direnzo
a float on a flatbed trailer to parade
a permanent place in the Mummer’s Hauler, “Out of all the parades I drove second prize respectably.
at local events.
Museum.
the float in my favorite memories is
Karl was born and raised in QuakKarl enlisted the aid of a few of his
During the twelve-year history of when I drove pass the Free Press ertown, a part of the class of 1959 at
friends and they came up with a plan
the Haunted Hauler, it played host to building in downtown Quakertown
to cover an over the road trailer into
Quakertown High School. Now 70 and
three different work crews. Jay Ger- to see the judges. Just seeing all the
a Halloween scene, complete with a
retired from truck driving, he lives in
coffin, haunted house, and witches. hart was one of the longest volunteers people excited to not see me, but the downtown Quakertown. After hearing
The entire ensemble took up 65 feet of who helped out for over 9 years be- Haunted Hauler!”
fore retiring. Karl had several differNothing last forever, and after 12 all Karl’s stories and looking through
the parade route.
ent
trucks
over
the
year,
but
he
drove
years
the ideas came a little harder and hundreds of photos in his photo alTheir first parade was in Emmaus
the
Hauler
through
all
of
its
appearthe
work
took a little longer. For each bum, I asked him if he could say one
where they placed second. The Helances.
Every
year
the
work
began
on
year
of
the
floats existence, Karl has
lertown Halloween Parade was the fithing to all the fans and supporters that
July
15th
and
needed
to
be
completed
a
dozen
stories
to share for each one.
nal appearance of the Haunted Hauler.
One of the most memorable was he had, what would he say? He replied
Fittingly, Karl and company won first by the day of Halloween Parade. Each
prize. In the middle were parades in year the old creation needed to be re- the year the Bowers Lions Club had “I want to thank everyone who has
seen the Haunted Hauler and thanks
the Pennsylvania towns of Quaker- moved so they could make room for a float in a very competitive parade.
The Bowers Lions Club had a float for memories. R.I.P to the Haunted
town, Temple, Topton, Fleetwood, the new theme for the parade.
Haunted Hauler I started out with that always provided keen completion Hauler, it has run its course.” Even
Emmaus, Boyertown, Northampton,
Upper Perk, Andreas, Bath, Allen- driver Karl, four actors on the trailer, for Karl and the Hauler. One year, the though the Haunted Hauler has been
town, Coopersburg, and Nazareth. and four costumed revelers walking tractor used to pull the Lions’ float
long gone, people still talk about it toThe float also appeared in parades in aside the float. By the time Haunted broke down at the beginning of the paHaler XII was retired, Karl needed rade. The members of the Lions Club day. What one local Quakertown man
Toms River, New Jersey.
Karl hauled the Haunted Hauler and seven actors on the float, and seven had resigned themselves to face that thought would be a once-and-done
they would miss the parade that year. float ended up in over 166 parades
its cast to Philadelphia and appeared walking along with it.
In the 166 different parades the
Karl passed a long tow-chain to the and over one million people seeing the
in the annual New Year’s Day Mummers’ Parade for ten years. During Haunted Hauler visited in its 12 years, disappointed Lions and told them to Haunted Hauler I-XII. The Haunted
that span, the Haunted Hauler finished it placed first place 133 times. The hook it up to their tractor. The other
in the top three winners, seven out other 33 parades the Hauler placed ei- and was attached to the rear axle of Hauler may be gone, but the enjoyof ten times. As a result, Karl and ther 2nd or 3rd place. Kurt related his the Hauler, and Karl pulled both floats able memories from kids to adults will
the Haunted Hauler were awarded favorite memories about the Haunted though the parade. They won first and never be forgotten.
Adventures at Rail
Camp
Hi, my name is Michael Roberts,
and I was a camper at RailCamp 2011
at Steamtown in Scranton, Pennsylvania. RailCamp, which took place
July 10 to 15, is where you learn
about trains, the railroad, and safety
when around trains and rolling stock
(train cars). I expected RailCamp to
be an exciting learning experience,
and that’s what it turned out to be. I
thank my sponsors at the Pottstown
& Reading Chapter NRHS for sponsoring me so I could attend this once
in a lifetime event.
On Monday we took a bus to the
Amtrak locomotive shops in Wilmington, Delaware. While we toured the
shops, we were privileged to see the
Amtrak workers “fly” a locomotive
to another servicing track. “Fly” just
means the workers used two REALLY
big cranes to lift the train to another
servicing track. We then boarded Amtrak train 176 at Wilmington and rode
it to 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. While at 30th Street Station we
took a tour of the C.E.T.C and E.T.
load Dispatchers Office (I don’t remember what the acronyms stand for.)
On Tuesday we learned how to conduct and perform a Railroad Interpretive Program. That is just a presentation on a piece of equipment. Then we
went to the Lackawanna Coal Mine an
Anthracite Museum. We went down
into the mine and toured the museum.
Wednesday my group made steam
engine silhouettes. While building the
silhouettes, we learned how to use a
punch-press, a mig-welder, a rivetgun, a grinder, and a plasma cutter.
We learned about railroading careers
and steam generation on locomotives.
Thursday we watched some results
of being distracted behind the wheel
of a car. Then we toured the electric
trolley museum and took a trolley ride
to the trolley restoration shop.
Friday, the final day of RailCamp,
each of us got to couple and uncouple
the Nickel Plate Road number 514 to
another car. Then each camper got
to drive the GP9, which was the best
part of the entire week. We then got
to drive a 1/8th scale, propane fired
steam engine. Driving the little engine
was a lot of fun. Another cool thing
we did Friday was learn how to prepare a high railer vehicle for riding on
the rails and on the road.
Through RailCamp I got a better respect for the railroad and an increased
interest in working for the railroad. I
would definitely recommend attending
RailCamp to anyone who loves trains,
especially the real trains!
Submitted by Michael Roberts, who is in the
11th grade and is a home-schooled student.
15
THE BENEFITS OF DECISIVENESS
Go ahead, choose. Choose now.
Don't just sit there, make a decision.
We've heard statements like these a
million times.
How many of us flounder because
we have "irons in the fire" or "unfinished train sets in the basement"? Get
rid of them and move on.
You're saying, "I know, I know,
someday I'm going to .....(fill-in-theblank)"
Waiting for a return phone call or
someone to get back to you? YOU call
them back.
Ball in their court? For the decisive
person, that is no longer an acceptable
explanation.
Be bold. Make your decision. Even
if the decision is to do nothing. Not
everything requires explicit action.
Impulsive people have to be careful of
this one. Not everything can be fixed
now. Proper discernment will tell you
if something can be fixed at all.
Have a history of impulsiveness and
making quick decisions? OK, let me
make that clear ...that is NOT decisiveness. That is exactly what I said.
Impulsiveness. There is a huge difference.
Have a nagging issue? Take responsibility for it. Make a decision. You
are the one letting it nag you.
Need to make a phone call? DO IT!
Relationship no longer working?
Make a decision. Be bold.
There is no such thing as a irreversible decision. You can always change
things or do a U-turn ...if you so desire.
Some decisions require a reasonable
amount of thought, contemplation,
and weighing things out.
Is it emotionally derived? Then do
this ...and don't be guilty of impulsiveness. Get a blank paper. Do not
go on your computer. I loved it when
goals and motivational expert, Earl
Nightingale, use to say "Get a yellow
legal pad and a ball point pen". Times
have changed a little, but not when
it comes to decisiveness in your life.
There are some things an iPad just
isn't good for. Draw a line down the
middle of the paper and start writing.
Plusses on one side, minuses on the
other. I believe this takes the dilemma
from emotional to rational. It takes it
out of the head and makes it visual.
Do the math. The answer will reveal
itself to you on the paper. It will be
screaming the answer at you with
just the amount of ink on the paper.
In the same way that darkness disappears when light is present, doubts
and indecision flee in the presence
of rational inspection. Notice I didn’t
say introspection. That is too emotional and possibly one of the reasons
for your floundering.
The result?
You will be happy you were decisive. It is a muscle you may not be
used to using, but it does get easier.
It hurts a little at first. You waste less
time, make better choices about people, business, partnerships, and even
the junk on the shelf or that stack of
papers that is just waiting for you to
throw it out.
Decisiveness is a beautiful thing.
Nothing can stand in the way
of a man or woman who has
their mind made up.
Let that person be you!
Karl W. Heckman, 76, of Quak-
Randall Anthony Zitta, 64, of
Get
more
website
at
of
George
visiting
his
www.georgebruno.com,
by
or
email him at gb@georgebruno.com.
OBITUARIES
ertown, passed away 9/10/11. He
was the husband of Patricia A.
(Reichley) Heckman.
He was a member of the Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Quakertown. Surviving in addition to his wife
are his children and spouses, Mark
and Linda Heckman and Lori and Rich
Desko and the grandchildren.
A Memorial Service Sept. 25, 2011
at 2 P.M.in the Quakertown Kingdom
Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, Route
313 & Thatcher Road, Quakertown.
Spinnerstown passed away on Monday, September 12 after a long illness.
Zitta was the sole proprietor of Zitta’s
Clocks and Watches in Spinnerstown,
which has been owned by the Zitta
family for 66 years. For 20 years,
he taught world cultures and civics
at Quakertown Senior High School.
He is survived by his wife, Maureen; their sons, Adam and Anthony; his sister LuAnn Long and other
family members.
ACORNS
BROWN
CANDY APPLE
CHANGING COLORS
CHRYSANTHEMUMS
CIDER
COOL
COSTUME
FALLEN LEAVES
FOOTBALL
GOLDEN
HALLOWEEN
HARVEST
HAY BALE
JACK O’LANTERN
MIGRATING BIRDS
ORANGE
PUMPKIN
RED
SCARECROW
SWEATER WEATHER
TRICK (or treat)
16
Recently, there have been more
antiques-focused TV shows featuring
regular people having their objects
appraised for estate sales, insurance,
auctions, museum donation, and personal information purposes. While
most Americans believe—incorrectly-that they don’t have anything worth
appraising or valuable, there is still a
great need for in-home evaluations.
First of all, you are wrong to assume
that you have nothing of value. Those
appraisers that also make a living from
buying your objects at low prices and
reselling them for a big profit (even
some on TV) want you to continue to
believe that you have nothing valuable. The truth is everyone has something valuable and everyone has some
junk, too.
Second, across the country and for
more than a decade now, I’ve helped
people evaluate their personal property with in-home appraisal visits.
With my unique approach, I have
taught folks to truly understand how
the markets really work and how you
can make them work to your benefit—
not to someone else’s benefit. Make
sure your appraiser isn’t also involved
in making money on the sale of your
objects as sometimes those folks will
only point you in one direction and
they do not show you all the possibilities concerning your valuable object.
In order to make a smart decision
about a valuable object or collection,
all of the options available must be
revealed and fully explained to the
owner. The smart consumer wants to
know all his options, not just how fast
he can trade his object for quick cash.
Knowing all of the facts and possibilities available to families help them
Appraising your Valuables at Home
glean pertinent information so they
can make intelligent decisions. Liquidating something valuable may not
always be the best solution as many
factors go into selling off something
valuable. Is the market prime for your
piece? Is this the best time to sell your
item? Should you, as the executor
of an estate, sell these items without
proper guidance? Would it sell better
at a different time of the year? Would
your particular item sell better in a
different part of the country? Should
you sell it online with proper marketing? How do you actually do that? Can
you get more money for your piece if
you choose to donate the piece and get
the tax deduction? Should you hold
onto the piece until the economy turns
around? Can you get more using your
piece as collateral rather than selling
it at all? Should you give up such a
large percentage of the selling price to
the auction house or can you get a better deal? These are the questions you
should ask.
Professionalism Speaks
All families have a stake in getting
an appraisal. Some families are faced
with the problem of paying sky high
healthcare bills or tuition payments;
others need to know the best ways to
preserve important heirlooms for the
youngest family members’ future.
Since objects carry all types of emotions, appraisals bring out the best and
the worst in people. I often joke that
during some in-home appraisal visits I
transform from Dr. Lori to Dr. Phil.
I have been witness to sisters-in-law
coming to blows over their deceased
mother-in-law's $15 ceramic cow
creamer. I urge folks to remember that
your family relationships are more
valuable than your family tea service.
TV appraisals
In addition to my client appoint-
ments, I have been conducting in-home
appraisals on TV for many years. I
recall meeting a 35-year-old working
mom who collected vintage textiles,
ceramics, and prints at yard sales and
flea markets. I appraised items in her
home while TV cameras rolled. She
unknowingly had thousands of dollars
worth of 1950s cookie jars that were
tucked away in her pantry which she
told me she was embarrassed to display. The most valuable objects were
hiding and she didn’t even know it.
The antiques market is a tough
jungle to navigate, so make sure you
have someone on your side. Mothers
confide in me that their children say
they don’t want any of her stuff. Then
I come in and educate them about the
value and history of their Mother’s objects and the children always change
their minds.
Most Moms want to be fair to their
kids and don't want their son to get
a $50,000 painting when their daughter is only going to get a table worth
$50. This happens when you just don't
know the current value of your stuff.
Most people want to know and understand all of their options before
making a decision about their heirlooms. Wouldn’t you?
Celebrity Ph.D. antiques appraiser, author, and award-winning TV personality,
Dr. Lori presents antique appraisal events
nationwide. Join Dr. Lori for Free antiques
appraisals in Oaks, PA on October 22 &
23 and in Millville, PA on November 13. As
seen on NBC’s The Tonight Show and Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, watch Dr. Lori
on Lifetime Television. For a full schedule
of Dr. Lori’s events, visit www.DrLoriV.com
or call (888) 431-1010. Follow Dr. Lori on
www.Facebook.com/DoctorLori.
Quakertown
Alive to Host
Beer & Wine
Event
Quakertown Alive! is hard at work
organizing and preparing for the First
Inaugural Grapes n’ Hops Brew Fest,
Saturday, October 22, from 2-6 pm at
the Historic Train Station in Downtown Quakertown.
Quakertown Alive!, is a volunteerdriven, non-profit community development organization based on the
principles of the National Trust for
Historic Preservation and it’s FourPoint Main Street Approach. Now in
their 12th year, QA! produces several
fund-raising and community events
each year. This event will expand
their reach to draw a new demographic, as well as reach a much larger geographic scale.
According to Naomi Naylor, QA!
Main Street Manager, “We have several volunteers and board members
who frequent Beer Festivals all over
the tri-state area, and we feel there is
a big demand for an event to be held
here in the heart of Down Town Quakertown. One of our major goals is to
build awareness about our downtown
and to bring new consumers into our
businesses. We feel with our proximity and easy access from the Lehigh
Valley, Philadelphia even NY, this
event will help accomplish that. Plus,
we have the added bonus of featuring
our beautiful historic Train Station.”
Tickets are $35 in advance, $45 at
the door, and $10 for designated drivers. General Admission will get you
a commemorative glass and unlimited
beer and wine sampling.
Cornelius Durant as he enters as the
first customer to the new grocery store
downtown. The wheelchair he is riding
was recently stolen. photo by michele buono
Wheelchair
Stolen!
Crimes are wrong, we all know that.
but there are some crimes that seem
to take a special kind of mean. Like
stealing someone’s wheelchair from
out in front of his house.
That’s what happened to Cornelius
Durant on the morning of Monday,
September 19. His red, motorized
wheelchair was stolen while he was
readying himself for a doctor’s appointment. Cornelius lives along the
200 block of Front Street in Quakertown. Normally his chair is chained to
a tree, but on this occasion, it was left
unlocked and was taken. Cornelius
said that he saw a black male loading
his chair onto the back of a white Ford
F150 truck that was loaded with scrap
metal. The truck drove off in the direction of westbound Route 313.
The value of his Jazzy motorized
wheelchair and two batteries is about
$5,000. Cornelius asks whoever took
it to just bring it back. He relies on
the wheelchair so that he can go to the
grocery store, the library, and other
places around town.
If you have any information about
the wheelchair, you are asked to call
Quakertown Police at 215-536-5002.
17
Tis the Season
for Stinkbugs
Eeewww gross. It’s stink bug time.
Check the curtains, the linens and
under your stack of newspaper. In
the next few weeks, the fall cooling
off cycle will begin and if stink bugs
haven’t made it into our homes yet,
they will certainly be heading in soon.
Similar to bears, stink bugs go into
a hibernation phase in winter, so they
look for a cozy place to hang out.
They come inside; into walls through
cracks around doors or windows and
into eaves through the soffits. Thankfully, they do not normally reproduce
while indoors but rather they wait dormant until their favorite foods of seeds
and berries become available again,
usually by June, when they head back
outdoors again.
Brown marmorated stink bugs are
thought to have come to our area
somewhere between 1996 and 1998,
where they were first identified in
Allentown, PA and have spread geo-
graphically ever since. It is believed
that the stink bugs hitched a ride to
the U.S. on or in shipping containers
from Asia.
The nasty odor that gives stink bugs
the name comes from a secretion they
produce to ward off predators, but
handling them, injuring or squashing
them, can activate it. If your home
has a particularly large population that
seems offensive, you can contact a local pest control company to provide
chemical spray outside your home to
help ward them off. The later in the
season the treatment is done though,
the less effective it may be.
This week is a good time to arm
yourself with the caulking gun and
seal up the cracks around your windows and doors. Check your window
screens too and repair any holes to
help keep the stinky creatures out of
your home. Good Luck!
START BUILDING
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Bottom Dollar Food, a discount grocer with expansion efforts underway
in the greater Philadelphia market,
opened a new store at 371 W. Broad
St. in Quakertown, PA, on Friday,
Sept. 16.
“We’re very excited to open our
newest store in Philadelphia, and we
look forward to offering our unbelievable prices at this additional location,” said Bottom Dollar Food
President Meg Ham. “Bottom Dollar
Food has unbelievable prices, fresh
produce, quality meats and national
brand selections on items that matter
most. We invite the Quakertown community to come experience a shopping environment that is fun, vibrant
and energetic.”
The Quakertown store is approximately 23,000 square feet and will be
the discount grocer’s 22nd location in
the region. Store manager Jack Marcy, who lives in the Norristown area
and has been with Bottom Dollar Food
since October, said there has been a
lot of buzz in the community about the
new store.
“We’ve had an unbelievable number of people come by the store inquiring about when we’re opening,”
Marcy said. “We’re committed to the
Quakertown community, and I believe
customers will enjoy our unique discount shopping experience.” According to Marcy, the store currently employs 57 people.
As part of the grand opening fes-
tivities, Bottom Dollar Food donated
$500 to the Quakertown Fire Department, $500 to the Quakertown Police
Department, and $1,000 to the Quakertown Community School District.
Quakertown Borough councilman
Dave Erwin remarked that it was so
important to the community that it
again has an “anchor store” in the
shopping center. Many people who
were waiting in line for the store to
open echoed that thought and said how
glad they were to be able to shop in the
downtown area instead of making the
trek to Route 309 shopping centers.
There were hundreds of people on
hand for the opening, drawn by not
only the prospect of a new store,
but also because the first 200 customers were awarded a reusable
bag full of groceries.
Quakertown resident Cornelius
Melvin Durant was the first customer
through the door. He had been waiting
since 5:30 that morning for the 8am
opening and he was excited that Bottom Dollar was finally opening.
Quakertown Council President Jim Roberts cuts the ribbon at the new grocery
store downtown. photo by michele buono
18
Woman’s Club of Quakertown to Celebrate
100th Anniversary
In 1911, a group of enterprising women, mostly wives of local businessmen,
came together to form the Woman’s
Club of Quakertown (WCQ). These 18
women saw the need for a philanthropic
group to help tend the needs of the local
community. “The object shall be to create esteem and friendly relations among
its members, to pursue literary studies
and to promote philanthropic, moral, social, and civil improvement.” The good
ladies of Quakertown set themselves
lofty goals; one hundred years later, today’s women are still rising to the challenge and doing good in the community.
The WCQ annually donates to numerous local institutions, including the
Michener Branch Library on 4th Street.
As a matter of fact, the Women’s Clubs
of Pennsylvania were an integral part of
forming 75% of the libraries in the state.
In April of 1957, Mrs. Lee Smith saw
the culmination of her efforts when the
Free County Library service of Bucks
County came into being. Mrs. Smith
was elected the President of the new
County Library Board. Recently, the
WCQ sponsored Egyptian history programs at the Michener Branch as well
as the children’s summer programs.
The WCQ also donates to the Richland
Library – one of the oldest libraries in
the commonwealth. Co-President Pat
Bossert relates that the Woman’s Club
also donates funds regularly to the local fire departments, food pantries, and
other local institutions.
Co-President Sandy Shelly reflects
that the women of the Woman’s Club
have earned the reputation of helping
out locally as she talks about the hundreds of good women, past and present,
who have served the community.
From its beginning, the WCQ has
been concerned with the health of the
community. In the early part of the 20th
century, many residents would keep a
horse or perhaps livestock of some sort
behind their homes. All those animals
attracted many flies to the area. Realizing the potentiality for a health crisis,
the ladies of the WCQ stepped up to take
action. They offered a bounty of 5-cents
for every hundred fly bodies turned in.
That summer, over 17,000 fly corpses
were turned over to the WCQ. Another
one of the early ideas, placing wastebaskets along the streets of town, had to be
abandoned because the cans were being
used to dispose of animal manure.
In 1922, the WCQ established a Well
Baby Clinic in town. This was, at the
time, a novel idea. In 1958, they organized a Mother’s March on Polio and
raised $2700.
In the late1960s, the Woman’s Club
was partially responsible for Quakertown getting the mobile bandshell
that is still used today. As a matter of
fact, Pat Bossert’s mother-in-law, a
Woman’s Club member, was instrumental in the process as well as Charlie
Walp of the Quakertown Band and the
late Peggy Adams (another WCQ member) and her husband. Today’s members
are hoping to help the borough acquire a
new permanent bandshell.
On December 3, the Woman’s Club
of Quakertown will host its annual
craft show at the Quakertown train sta-
Tour a fire truck and
an ambulance.
Meet your
police officers.
See a Jaws of Life and
K-9 demonstration.
tion. Last year, they
raised enough money
to donate $1,000 to
the Quakertown Food
Pantry. This is also an
opportunity for those
who may be interested
in joining the WCQ
to meet the members
and get more information. Truda Heck mentions that new members
would be “greatly welcomed”.
The WCQ celebrates
their one hundredth anniversary this month
with a special invitation-only program at
the Quakertown train
station. Expected to
attend are local dignitaries including State
Senator Bob Mensch,
State
Representative
Paul Clymer and Bucks
County Commissioner
Diane Marseglia, as
well as representatives
from other local civic
organizations. The program includes an extensive display of Quakertown history through
the experience of its
women.
Through the Helping Hands project, the
WCQ has donated to
the Southeast Veterans’ Center in Coates-
ville. The WCQ has “adopted” two veterans. Because
many of the veterans are disabled and in wheelchairs,
the WCQ as well as other area women’s clubs are collecting new white sport socks as well as new sweatpants
(size 2x – 4x). If you are so inclined to help with this
effort, donations can be dropped off at the Quakertown
Train station at the craft show on December 3. Also accepted at the craft show are donations for the Quakertown
Food Pantry. The group is participating in the state-wide
“Can Can” initiative.
With such an ambitious schedule of philanthropic initiatives, the WCQ is always happy to welcome new members. Today the group’s ranks stand at about 50 women.
The officers know that to remain a viable force in the
community, they need to recruit new members and are
considering ways to encourage more women to join the
organization. They realize that many working women are
unable to attend afternoon meetings and so are considering the possibility of additional evening meetings.
The Woman’s Club has regular luncheon meetings on the first Tuesday of the month at the Spinnerstown Hotel. The ladies meet seven months out of the
year, taking off during the summer as well as January
and February. For more information about joining the
Woman’s Club of Quakertown, e-mail them at
womansclubofquakertown@hotmail.com.
Playing It Safe
Saturday, October 8
Rain date: Sunday, October 9
10 am – 3 pm
St. Luke’s Bone & Joint Institute
1 534 Park Avenue, Quakertown
Hey Kids! Do you know what to do in
case of a fire? Do you know how to
avoid getting hurt while playing?
FREE!
Food, Drinks and
Giveaways.
Hey Parents! Learn with your kids
how you can keep them safe all year round.
This program is geared to children ages 5-12 (children must
be accompanied by at least one parent or guardian.)
Special Thanks To: The Quakertown Fire Department, Quakertown Police
Department, St. Luke’s ETS and Volunteers.
For more information, please call St. Luke’s InfoLink at 1-866-STLUKES (785-8537).
Kids’ Activities • Free Screenings • Anti-Bullying • Natural Disaster Safety • Gun Safety
19
Is 100% USDA Financing
Right for You?
Often times I am asked in this market, “Are mortgage companies really
lending money right now?” There is
a terrific program out there and many
buyers are simply not aware of it. The
USDA has partnered with local lenders to allow them to extend a 100%
financing Program. This program is
getting buyers into their new homes
with little out of their pockets!
So let’s take a look at this program
and see what it is all about. The first
thing you need to know is that there
is no down payment required and you
may actually be able to finance some
of your closing costs if the market value allows. This program boasts generous income limits as well as flexible
credit guidelines. This program also
allows assistance options such as gifts,
grants, and seller concessions as well
as being able to finance repairs that
need to be done to the home. There is
no mortgage insurance required with
these loans. As most of your know
PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance)
can spike your monthly mortgage payment, making a home simply unobtainable.
So what are the general eligibility
requirements? You need to be a US
citizen, the home that you are looking
at needs to be in the Rural Development Eligibility Area. Also, you need
to plan to occupy the home as a primary residence. Here is also income and
credit criteria that you need to meet to
be eligible for this loan. All and all
these loans are helping people who are
unable to put down the 3-5% that FHA
usually asks for. Could be this be what
you need to buy your new home?
Debbie Orzel, Realtor with Keller Williams
Real Estate. Debbie can be reached at: Office(215) 631-1900 or Cell- (215) 982-8485.
Samhainophobia
is the fear of
Halloween.
20
Community Says Goodbye to the
Music Medic and the Dog Park Guy
I’ll never forget the first time I met
Tom Bancroft. At that time he had thick
reddish hair and a mustache. He was
dressed in a white coat and working in
the meat department at Giant supermarket in Perkasie. He came out and helped
me with a cut of beef. Very friendly fellow I thought. Then one day I was walking down the street and encountered him
on the sidewalk in Perkasie with his
well-known black and white dog, Lady.
He said, I remember you from the market. I was surprised he remembered.
We did some small talk and then each
went on their way. I started going to a
church in Perkasie one Sunday with my
kids and sitting there in the sound booth
was the same guy. Again, he remembered me. We chatted it up again. Then
the first summer that the Perkasie pool
was open, there was a DJ there playing
music. He was getting people off their
towels and on their feet, either dancing or doing the limbo stick. Quite a
skill for any DJ. When I went up to get
some refreshments for the kids, I saw it
was Tom again. I made the comment,
“Gosh, you are everywhere!”.
One of the things about Perkasie, was
that there wasn’t anywhere you could
go without bumping into Tom. He had
a great knowledge of music new and old
and he loved people. You couldn’t be a
DJ if you don’t love people. He never
shied away from people.
I started dating a girl named Karla.
She would come to church with me. I
introduced her to Tom. He said “Karla with a K?. She said yes. He replied
“Just the Hooters song?” She said yes.
Well that started a fun routine with Tom
whenever he saw her. If we were at a
public event, he would quietly put on
that song, “Karla with a K”. She would
stop and say “Hey it’s that song!” we
would turn around and there was Tom
grinning back at us just waiting for us to
notice. We would give him a thumbs up
and a smile.
Tom loved getting a thumbs up and
a smile. He never asked for much, was
always grateful, and took pleasure in
making others happy.
Even though I don’t have a dog, I
know he was the same way with fellow
dog owners. His advocacy for the Perkasie dog park was amazing. He never
let up. he was at all the meetings speaking for all dog owners. You can visit
the Bancroft dog park and still feel him
there today.
I visited him on his death bed. I expected to see a down and defeated Tom.
I was wrong. He asked a friend to track
me down and requested to see me. What
possibly could it be for? At my last and
only visit with him, he wanted to discuss some business and connect me with
someone before he passed. It wasn’t
about him at all. He was looking out for
others even in his passing days.
Lord, you made an interesting fellow
there in Tom Bancroft. I don’t know if
he’s spinning records up there or getting people dancing, but like Tom said
to me, “I’m ready to see the Lord, but
I’m not sure if He’s ready for me yet.”
Tom, I’m sure heaven is happy you’re
home now, not sick, whole, and with
Man’s Best Friend.
Submitted by George Bruno
Thomas E. Bancroft
Thomas E. Bancroft,54, "The Music Medic" and "Dog Park Guy", a
26-year resident of Perkasie, died Friday, September 16, 2011, in the home
of his dear friends, David and Kitty
Myers. Born in Philadelphia, he was
the son of the late Walter E. Bancroft,
and the late Marie (Kleinschmidt) Bancroft Lattanzi. He was a 1975 graduate
of North Penn High School, Lansdale.
Tom, aka "The Music Medic" Disk
Jockey, entertained at over 500 weddings as well as countless events and
parties over the years. Recently, he was
employed by the Giant Supermarket,
Perkasie, until 2010. During the 1980's,
he was a managing partner of the former
Tips One, Perkasie, for several years.
He had worked as a manager for Spencer Gifts in Conshohocken and Christiana, DE, and he was employed by the
Heston Swartley Co., Sellersville, and
Zeller's Meats, Cedars, in earlier years.
Tom was an active member of the Perkasie Parks & Recreation Board, working relentlessly the last seven years for
the creation of the Perkasie Dog Park.
The park celebrated its grand opening
in May 2011 on the field that bears his
name. He was a member of First United
Methodist Church, Perkasie. He is survived by his beloved dog, Lady; four
brothers, Walter E. Bancroft, Jr., of
Plymouth Meeting, George D.Bancroft
and his wife, Barbara, of Eagleville,
Edward Bancroft and his wife, Donna,
of Quakertown, and Ronald J. Bancroft
and his wife, Katie, of North Wales; a
sister, Regina M. Ingrassia, wife of the
late Vincent Ingrassia, of Quakertown;
seven nieces; six nephews; two grand
nieces; and three grand nephews. He
was preceded in death by his dogs, Cinder and Jake. Street, Perkasie, where
dogs will also be welcome. In lieu of
flowers, please make donations to
"The Perkasie DOG", c/o the Perkasie
Dog Owners' Group, PO Box 326,
Perkasie, PA 18944.
21
Teens Acting
for Peace
“I definitely think that peace and creativity go hand in hand,” says Jennifer
Yannaccone, a teacher in our Teens Acting for Peace ministry at St. Andrew’s.
Jen has been reflecting on the trip our
TAP staff and mentors made in early August to the Norris Square and Grays Ferry
neighborhoods in Philadelphia. There we
appreciated a number of astonishing, inspired murals with themes of peacemaking, reconciliation, hope, and community
building. We heard some of the stories
behind the murals, and in Norris Square,
we met people from the neighborhood
whose hands-on work, over several decades, has been shaping new history.
Since 2003, teens from St. Andrew’s
and the surrounding community have been
exploring their own vocation as peacemakers, have been prepared and trained
as peace educators, and have served as instructors and mentors in peace to elementary-age children. Peace workshops have
been created and implemented for children kindergarten through second grade,
and third through sixth. In the summer of
2009, a week-long summer Peace Camp
was held that served 30 elementary-age
children, 23 of them from the wider community. Lessons are shaped around the
seven parts of the Pledge of Nonviolence:
To Respect Self and Others
To Communicate Better
To Listen
To Forgive
To Respect Nature
To Play Creatively
To Be Courageous.
Scott Hutchinson has been pastor at St.
Andrew’s Church for nearly sixteen years.
His dear friend and fellow peace educator,
the late Jim McGinnis, pioneered the first
TAP programs in St. Louis high schools.
Eight years ago, Scott invited Jim to come
to Perkasie to prepare local teens and advisors for similar work here. The seeds
planted in the fall of 2003 have been
growing ever since.
This summer Teens Acting for Peace
decided that a well-chosen “field trip”
might offer encouragement and inspiration in our own work. Ann Wright, one
of the TAP Advisors, had been learning
about the Mural Arts Program in Philadelphia, which has produced more than 2800
murals in neighborhoods throughout the
city. What began nearly three decades ago
as an anti-graffiti effort has grown into
program that reaches through all regions
of the city, bringing people together . .
. Art has always been an important part
of our TAP curriculum, as peacemaking
is an endlessly creative endeavor, stoked
by imagination. Bonnie Hill, our longestserving TAP Advisor, is an artist who has
mentored many of our children and those
in the larger community.
From numerous possibilities, the two
neighborhoods were chosen. Norris
Square is a neighborhood in West Kensington where people have courageously
faced the scourges of poverty, marginalization, and drug trafficking. Grays
Ferry, the western-most neighborhood
in South Philadelphia, is where racial
tensions boiled over into violence in the
1990s, and put the neighborhood on the
national news.
We began in Norris Square, where we
were able to explore the area and its murals
on foot. Our friend Efrain Cotto, who pastors St. Philip’s United Methodist Church
and is the former President of the Hispanic
Clergy of Philadelphia, joined us for our
sojourn. Many in our party were surprised
and delighted by the obvious energy and
vitality of the neighborhood. The area is
named for the park at its center (part of
William Penn’s initial plan for Philadelphia), a place that two decades ago was
strewn with needles and uninhabitable for
the children of the neighborhood and their
families. Today the park is clean and full
of community children and adults playing
and relaxing. Activity bustles around it.
Throughout the surrounding streets, gardens and murals give testimony to the life
of a people. The first mural we saw, very
close to the square, was the colorful “Butterflies of the Caribbean,” by Cuban muralist Salvador Gonzalez.
A little more than a block away is Raices (Roots), which was the first major
mural project in the neighborhood. It is
a celebration of communal memory. Images and figures from the history of the
island of Puerto Rico, where many families have their origins, come alive. Raices
is a place for children of the neighborhood
to come and to celebrate their roots. (In
the language of faith: Memory allows
possibility!) Efrain carefully explained the
different figures and images, from Taino
Indians, the folklore figure Vejigante, and
simple farmers, to parrots, conga drums,
and baseball hero Roberto Clemente.
It was only a short walk up the street to
another mural, The Wall of Community
Heroes. It overlooks Las Parcelas, a stunning community garden project, cultural
center, and gathering place. Here, what
were once trash-strewn lots hosting drug
deals are now beautiful, artistic gardens
founded by Tomasita Romero and Iris
Brown. Half of Las Parcelas is made up
of gardening plots planted and tended to
by neighbors. Here also was built a dwelling, “Grandma’s House,” that hearkens to
the island and is said to remind everyone
of their grandmother’s house, except for
one thing it might be missing. The members of the local community each bring the
“one thing” that is meaningful to them and
add it to the house. Our host at Las Parcelas, a young woman named Raisa, shared
the story of the neighborhood, the intense
struggles people faced, and the way that
local leaders, all common people, were
inspired to movement that reclaimed their
home and story. The Mural pictures ten
local “heroes,” including the maintenance
man who cleaned up the lots in his free
time, and Tomasita who taught young
people how to garden. Ann said: “It was
especially meaningful that this (transformation) came about through the efforts of
the women in the community. Women in
poverty often feel helpless, but the women
Pastor Scott with teens at Peace Wall in Grays Ferry
photo by debra hutchinson
of this community found the power and
strength to
reclaim the area for their
families and create a unique setting to
remember their heritage.” We have discovered that Las Parcelas and other communal gardens are related to the Norris
Square Neighborhood Project, which has
been nurturing youth in the same values
as TAP—for nearly four decades! Their
commitment to stoking the spirit of youthdriven change and embodied values has
had a powerful impact on the culture of
their community.
After a good lunch near Temple University, we visited a mural designed by
the late artist Keith Haring, bringing together youth from Philadelphia and New
York City. From there, we went to nearby
Grays Ferry. Our first stop was the Peace
Wall. This striking mural, covering the
side of a house and surrounded by a small
Peace Park, has the image of hands placed
one on top of another in unity, a joining
of different colors and different ages. In
the wake of racial polarization, violence,
and discrimination in the community, muralist Jane Golden and community activist Lucille Ray went door-to-door, asking
people to join together in an arts project
where they could find common good and
image a common future. There were many
slammed doors and much skepticism. “I
failed to see how some silly mural was
going to create equality and justice,” said
one community leader, speaking for residents on both sides of the divide. Golden
and Ray continued to talk to people on
the streets, recruiting children and asking them to bring their parents. Eventually, about twenty people gathered at the
Lighthouse Christian Church, uniting and
getting started. Many skeptics gave in (including the above- quoted leader) and supported the project on the way. While the
mural was being completed, youth from
the community collaborated on four other
neighborhood murals.
By the lower right-hand corner of the
Peace Wall the words of Jesus are inscribed: “Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.”
Catherine Wright was struck by how the
murals can speak to people in different
ways. Of the Peace Wall, she remarked,
“I think it is cool how a painting can make
you question your whole lifestyle.” Her
thoughts coincide with Jen’s reflection
that peace and creativity go hand-in-hand.
Exploring those links, personally and with
one another, not only spreads peace but
transforms us.
We are still processing our experiences
and realizing the God-given gifts of these
interactions. The spiritual imagination
flowing in these communities has stirred
in us a renewed awareness of how the
Great Artist has equipped us and shown us
what is possible. The active faith of people we met and heard about, so full of love
and courage as they faced
frightening obstacles empowered by the Spirit of
Peace, encourages and energizes us in our
work. We understand that the best teachers are those who are good learners! We
trust that we have brought home new tools
to equip us.
Bonnie said: “If I were to pick a favorite part of my day, it would include the
garden and the intimacy you felt
between God, the gardeners, the artists, and
the ability to feel and in some odd way .
. .touch . . . peace.” And to become it.
Teens Acting for Peace will be at 185th
Anniversary Celebration at Jerusalem
Lutheran Church, 733 Ridge Road, Sellersville, PA 18960 on October 15, 2011
from 10:00am-4:00pm. Stop by and meet
Pastor Scott, Ann Wright and some of the
teen representatives.
More information about St. Andrew’s
UCC can be found at www.standrewsucc.
org or office@standrewsucc.org
More information about Jerusalem Lutheran’s 185th celebration can be found at
www.JerusalemLutheranChurchSellersville.org or jerevlu@verizon.net
submitted by Scott Hutchinson
22
There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware
I think it’s time we stop, children,
what’s that sound...
Everybody look what’s going down
“For What it’s Worth” Buffalo Springfield
Baseball Legend Johnny
Bench Speaks on Joint
Replacement at GVH
Major League Baseball Hall of
Fame catcher Johnny Bench shared
his experience with joint replacement with more than 200 people at
the Sellersville Theater on Thursday, September 15, while also entertaining the crowd with stories of his
playing days. The Grand View Hospital Joint Replacement Seminar also
featured a lecture by orthopaedic surgeons James Bumgardner, MD, and
Paul Weidner, MD.
A player for the Cincinnati Reds
from 1967 to 1983, Bench is widely
regarded as one of the greatest catchers in Major League Baseball history. He was a key member of the
Reds’ 1975 and 1976 World Series
championship team known as “The
Big Red Machine.” Bench was
inducted into the Baseball Hall of
Fame in 19898.
Prior to the lecture, Bench visited
with fellow-catcher Ruth Richard,
who played for the Rockford Peaches in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League from 194354. Ruth received a knee replacement
from Dr. Weidner. Bench and Richard compared injuries and knuckles.
Next, Bench visited with joint replacement patients in Grand View’s
Joint Center and presented them with
signed baseballs.
At the Sellersville Theater, Bench
explained how he underwent replacement of his right hip in April
2004 after suffering for years from
chronic joint pain. At that time, he
had discussed his options with his
surgeon and received a Stryker hip
implant. When he began experiencing pain in his left hip, Bench elected
to undergo total hip replacement of
his left hip in February 2010. Just
as he had in 2004, Bench spoke with
his surgeon and opted to receive the
latest technology
available from Stryker. Johnny
was the first patient to receive Stryker’s Mobile Bearing Hip™. Bench
encouraged the crowd to get plenty of
exercise and maintain their weight.
He shared stories of his active lifestyle which includes public speaking, playing golf, and keeping up
with his college-aged son, as well as
his two young sons with his second
wife, Lauren.
There is a Sixties feel in the air.
However, if you are like the majority of Americans, you have no idea
what I am referring to. If hundreds
of Tea Party supporters were protesting outside the Federal Reserve to demand the ouster of Ben Bernanke, it
would lead the news. There would be
hours of coverage on the cable news
outlets, with analysis from the Left
and the Right.
But when hundreds of 20 and
30-somethings occupy a park near
Wall Street in New York City, and
camp there for a week (with plans to
stay for months), not a word is heard
about it. When thousands come together to march down Wall Street, it
is ignored by the media. Even as the
UN meets not far from the protesters
and the President is in town, still there
is no reporting on this protest movement.
On September 17, approximately
1500 people descended into Zuccotti
Park in the Financial District. They
claimed the park as their own, renaming it Liberty Park. The goal and the
name of the movement is Occupy Wall
Street. At least twice a day they march
through the streets, chanting things
like, “Whose Street? Our Street! Occupy Wall Street!”
One young woman explained, “We
are the over-educated and under-employed. We saw Wall Street get a
bailout, while the 99% got sold out.
What else can we do? There is no
hope for a future for us.”
The 99% figure comes from the
protesters who believe that 1% owns
all the wealth in the nation and that
these elites enjoy certain government
protections, and benefits from having
influence in the Government.
“As members of the 99 percent, we
occupy Wall Street as a symbolic gesture of our discontent with the current
economic and political climate and as
an example of a better world to come
(occupywallst.org).”
Every day they hold General Assembly meetings in what they call the
“true democratic process” in order to
discuss goals and decide on what the
“One Demand” they want to present
will be. There are many differing
opinions and the “leaderless” movement will not quickly come to consensus.
People who work in the area are
frustrated with the protest. “I don’t
know what they want,” a well dressed
banker said in an interview. “I don’t
think they know what they want. All
I know is that this is miserable for me.
I have to go five blocks out of my way
just to get around them.”
There is a heavy police presence
around the park and the marches.
There have been a few instances of the
NYPD roughing up some of the protesters, but for the most part, the police have allowed the demonstrators to
camp out and march. Friendly greetings receive friendly responses.
This protest has the feel of the Sixties to it. You may agree with this
movement, or you may disagree. It
should be leading to a national debate.
But chances are, you have just learned
about this from this column. How
can we have a debate when the media
hides the facts from us all?
Health Update: Thanks to all who
stop me and ask how I’m doing with
my lung cancer. I’m still living with it
a year after diagnosis. I recently had
a follow up CAT scan, which showed
no growth and no spread. The tumor
remains the same size it was when it
was first discovered. The only thing
more I could ask for would be a complete spontaneous remission. That is
what I am hoping for. After all, anything is possible if you truly believe.
Beth Coulter
torian of the
is a long time resident and his-
Quakertown
area.
She
holds
Communications and American StudFollow her writings on Facebook@ Beth
Coulter Writings and Thoughts. The views exdegrees in
ies.
pressed in this column are her own and do not
represent the views of the publisher.
Email her at
Beth@ubfp.org.
Trumbauersville
Dedicates New Park
Building to Lions
A pancake breakfast was held by
Trumbauersville Borough on September 17. The breakfast featured pancakes made to order in the Borough’s
recently completed kitchen building,
with all proceeds benefiting the Milford Womens and Childrens shelter.
Councilperson Robbie Recenes, the
Chair of the Borough Parks department , was on hand to serve the breakfast, which was prepared by council
members Ed Child, Mike George and
Court Trimble, along with community
volunteers Roberta Majors, Barbara
Haff, and Sue Trimble. The pancake
breakfast also featured the dedication
of the new kitchen building in honor
of the members of the Trumbauersville
Lions Club. Lions President Gary Parzych was introduced by Council President Fred Potter, and Mr. Parzych
acknowledged Richard Brosius and
Charles Ervin, Lions members that
put in extraordinary amounts of time
and labor to get the building done. A
plaque in honor of the Lions and the
contributions of the club to the community will be placed on the kitchen
building.
Have a Heart? Give Us a Home!
Norman looks like he is a beagle,
bulldog mix of some sort. He is a neat
guy about 4 years old and 30lbs. Norman walks well on a leash, knows
sit, stay, shake, come and down.
We are working on crate training
and he had no accidents in his foster
home. Norman loves playing and going for walks, but also loves to curl
up and snuggle at the end of the day.
If interested in Norman or any other dog, fill out an application at
www.lastchanceranch.org.
Are you interested in owning a
horse? Last Chance Ranch has 37
horses available for adoption! Our
horses range in age from 1 year old to
30 years old, many different breeds,
sizes and are trained in a range of
disciplines. If you are looking for a
new equine companion, think about
adopting! You can learn more about
our equine adoption program and its
benefits at www.lastchanceranch.org.
Updates: Sassy the golden retriever/lab/husky mix featured in September and Darcy featured in August have
been adopted!
23
24
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