What Was That Sound? 'Author! Author!'

Photo by John Armato

Pottstown High School teacher and published author Marilyn Bainbridge with her book, and a handful of interested listeners.

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by John Armato, the unsleeping community relations director for the Pottstown School District.

What do you do if you have a young child who constantly wakes up in the night worried about noises that they hear? 

 Well, if you are Pottstown High School teacher Marilyn Bainbridge, you use your writing skills and become the author of a child’s literature book entitled “What Was That Sound?”

Bainbridge, who has three children of her own, was inspired to write the book to help one of her children who was a particularly light sleeper and would constantly wake up worried about noises in the night.

“I enjoy writing to express myself and entertain others. I saw this as an opportunity to help other parents address the problem of noises in the night,” said Bainbridge. 

 “Children’s literature has always been a topic that interested me and the book gave me a chance to express myself and hope to bring joy into the lives of little ones,” stated Bainbridge.

The 24-page illustrated book follows the adventure of one curious child who is awakened during the night and sets out to find out what was that sound.

Published by Tate Publishing and Enterprises, the story is also available in eBook form. For more details, go to: https://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-63185-459-0.

Summer Break's Over Pottsgrove

So, like many school boards, Pottsgrove takes July off and has no meetings.

I know you've all missed them, but guess what?

They're back.

Here are the Tweets from Tuesday night's meeting.

A Late Night for Borough Council

Ah, you can back for part 2?

How very bold of you.

So for those of you who didn't see yesterday's post, a quick recap.

Monday night's conditional use hearing for the proposed Torres Mini-Mart at King and Washington went on so long, that the all-seeing overlords at the Digital Notebook information complex decided it was just too much information for one sitting.

They decided some of you might just like to know what happened at council, without having to plow through all the Torres testimony.

And so here you are, all sparkly clean, the Tweets from the regular council meeting.

Enjoy them in all their grandeur.

Nothing 'Mini" About Mini Mart Hearing

Remember this Place? Last night, borough council held is second conditional use hearing on a proposal to put a mini-mart grocery story in the first floor of this building. 

So here's the thing.

Last night was a long night, made so by the three-hour duration of the second, yes SECOND, conditional use hearing for a proposal to establish the Torres Mini-Mart in the first floor of this building at King and Washington Streets.

There were lawyers, there was testimony, there were petitions, questions, commentary. You name it.

All the things that make democracy great.

But just because I was subjected to this dear reader, does not mean you have to live through it the same way I did.

So after about 48 seconds of deliberation, I decided to post the Tweets from the hearing today, separately from those from the regular meeting.

Those will appear in tomorrow's post.

"But what about tomorrow night's Pottsgrove School Board meeting Tweet-master? When will that appear?"

I hear you gentle reader.

All I can say is good things come to those who wait.

Without further ado, here are the Tweets from the conditional use hearing made necessary after David and Katy Jackson challenged council's first approval in April, claiming it was inadequate.

Rather than fight it out in court, both sides agreed to come back to borough council for what is essentially a "do-over."

The results of that agreement appear below.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

This year's Garden Contest winters are Anna Johnson, Vanessa Wyatt, Ryan Procsal, Athena Singer and Robbin Pineda

For gardeners, this time of year is about exciting as it gets.

Harvesting, weeding, planning next year's garden.

And that's as true for the gardeners of the Mosaic Community Gardens as farmers in the field.

However, some extra excitement was added recently when the winners of the second annual home gardening contest were announced during National Night Out at the park at Chestnut and Washington Streets.

The contest is sponsored by Pine Hill Farms in North Coventry.

I won't keep you dangling in suspense, here are the winners:

Ground Gardening, 1st Place -- Robbin Pineda, who wins $150 as well as an award certificate.

Ground Gardening, 2nd Place -- Athena Singer, who wins $100 with her certificate.

Container Gardening, 1st Place -- Anna Johnson, who wins $125 and a certificate.

Container Gardening 2nd Place -- Ryan Procsal who, in addition to winning $75 and a certificate.

Honorable Mention -- Vanessa Wyatt, who won $50.

The entries were judged by the Pottstown Garden Club.

The contest began in the summer of 2012 when Dick Heylmun, the owner of Pine Tree Hill Farm, contacted Mosaic Community Land Trust, after learning about their work in the Community garden on Chestnut Street.

Mr Heylmun, an avid gardener himself, conceived of the idea to offer prize money to people living in the Beech to High Street, Adams to Charlotte Street area for creating beautiful street-side gardens and plantings. 

 He knows how pretty a block can be when the residents take pride in their homes and gardens and he revels in the joy and sense of pride that gardens bring to the gardener and all who pass by.

Mosaic partnered with the Pottstown Garden club to develop, advertise and judge the contest. Flyers were distributed to all the homes in the area while the Mercury helped promote the contest in an article about both the garden contest.

That's not all that's going on with the community garden's two locations on Chestnut Street, the produce cart is back in business.

The cart will sell fresh produce from our gardens, donated vegetables from members of the Pottstown Garden Club and local farmers. There will also be a resource table with loads of free information to
learn more about gardening, health and nutrition!

Produce sales will happen each Saturday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. and will continue each week until they run out of vegetables to sell.

The Mosaic Land Trust was also among the sponsors of the showing of  “Frozen” last Saturday. 

"There were bunches of families and loads of kids who showed up to take part in the event.

"The balloon artist was there and make dozens of great balloon animals for the kids.

"Parents and kids alike shared in the experience and had a great time.

"Look forward to another great movie presentation next year," garden manager Laura Washington reported in an e-mail.

In addition to showing movies, the community gardens also host borough youngsters from summer camps at the Olivett Boys and Girls Club at the Ricketts Center and maintains a garden plot for students at Pottstown Middle School, who learn how to grow their own food, and the importance of healthy food.

A Visit With a Quieter Time

Photo by Evan Brandt

A few lucky riders had the opportunity to close out this year's Goschenhoppen Folk Festival with a wagon ride.

So I won't lie, I'm a history geek.

And few things get me more jazzed each year than the Goschenhoppen Folk Festival, which features samples of life in both the 18th and 19th centuries.

For the last four years, my son has been volunteering as an apprentice, along with his best friend, although each prefers a different century.

Benjamin Franklin said "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us

to be happy." A statement with which I agree wholeheartedly. 

However, I would add an addendum: 

"Also, vanilla ice cream and fresh peaches."

This means I am often there early Saturday morning during the drop-off, and have an opportunity to walk through and watch the different stations get set up.

I take pictures and Tweet them out, hoping to generate interest for the event, but also because I like
doing it.

My wife and I often visit, but not every year. It is, after all, the same set of exhibits each year.

I do, however, make sure to do one thing every year.

I get a bowl of Longacre vanilla ice cream with fresh peaches on top. I look forward to it every year and it remains proof positive to me that we can create heaven here on earth.

Anyway, this is the stuff I shot during drop-off and pick-up each year.

And here is the Tout video embedded, so you don't have to click the link in the Storify below.