Ursinus Opens New Local Scholarship Program

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by Ursinus College.

Strengthening its commitment to access and affordability for students, Ursinus College has established the Abele Foundation Scholars Award, which provides financial assistance to students from low- and middle-income families from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

The first eight scholarships were awarded to seven incoming first-year students and one continuing student.

Funded with generous support from Will Abele, a 1961 Ursinus graduate and member of the Ursinus board of trustees, and the Abele Family Foundation, the Abele Foundation Scholars Award provides high-achieving students with demonstrated financial need $10,000 in financial aid after all other gift aid has been awarded to each student.

The aim of this pilot program is to increase access and affordability of an undergraduate liberal arts education. In addition to the $10,000 in financial aid, the scholars receive funding for “startup” costs such as the purchase of a laptop or required books; academically enriching pursuits such as internships, summer courses, or academic conferences; and assistance with student debt upon graduation.

“My wife, Joan, and I are thrilled to assist these talented students as they pursue an Ursinus College education that prepares them to be leaders of the future who live the values of integrity, persistence and empowerment and who understand the importance of paying it forward to others,” Abele says.

Abele scholars will be expected to maintain consistent academic progress; become an active member of the college community by participating in on-campus experiences and internships; and attend programs sponsored by the Abele Family Foundation.

Consistent with the values of the Abele Family Foundation, the scholars will have expressed interest in the U.S. constitution, the economy, history and government of the United States through coursework in these three disciplines.

“One of Ursinus’s top priorities is to attract and retain the best students for our institution,” President Brock Blomberg says. “It is our goal to not only bring them to our college, but to provide the academic support and guidance that allows them to flourish during their four years here. We cannot achieve that without taking bold steps to increase access and affordability so that we can offer the best and brightest students a clearer pathway to Ursinus. This is yet another innovative way that Ursinus is ensuring that any student who wishes to attend Ursinus not only has a means to do so, but will thrive while here. I extend my sincerest thanks to Will and Joan and the Abele Family Foundation for making this pilot scholarship program possible.”

Named as one of the nation’s “Colleges that Change Lives,” Ursinus College is a highly selective, residential college with 1,500 students that is widely recognized for its Common Intellectual Experience. The tree-lined, 170-acre campus is located 25 miles northwest of Philadelphia in Collegeville, Pa.

Grant Helps Good Will Teach Kids Fire Prevention

Photo by Evan Brandt

From left, Rusty Layre, a career firefighter for Good Will Fire Company, Jaince K. Clare, an engineering specialist with FM Global insurance, and Kevin Yerger, chief of Good Will Fire Company, hold the recent fire prevention grant award.

Firefighters would rather prevent a fire than fight one.

Now, thanks to a check for $1,940 from FM Global insurance, members of the Good Will Fire Company can help teach young children how to prevent disaster.

Rusty Layre, a career firefighter with the company, applied the grant “after I heard about it from some other firefighters. We want little kids to know a fire is not something that just happens and they can learn how to prevent them.”

The money will pay for “fire prevent packets” for younger children, ages 3 to 7, said Good Will Chief Kevin Yerger. they include coloring books, crayons, book parks, all of which focus on different fire prevention and fire safety lessons, like conducting escape drills and not playing with matches, lighters or stoves.

“At FM Gobal, we strongly believe in the majority of property damage is preventable, not inevitable,” Michael Spaziani, assistant vice president of the company and manager of its fire prevention grant program, said in a press release.

“Far too often, inadequate budgets prevent those organizations working to prevent fire from being as proactive as they would like to be,” Spaziani said. “With additional financial support, grant recipients are actively helping to improve property risk in the communities they serve.”

Visit www.fmglobal.com/fireservice To learn more about FM Global’s Fire Prevention Grant Program, and other resources for the fire service.

New Hanover Wading Through Development Tide

A developer's concept for how to fit 65 homes, 27 single homes and 38 twin homes, on property off Rhoads Road opposite Liberty Bell Drive and Courtside Avenue. The original proposal was for 39 single family homes.

Yet another housing development has reared its head among the rolling hills and dales of New Hanover Township.

It's unclear if it yet has a name, all too often in memoriam of what it destroys, but here's what we do know:

• It proposes 65 homes, 
• 27 of them single 
• 38 of them twins, 
• and the township supervisors had a decidedly lukewarm reaction to it.

Specifically, Supervisors Chairman Charles Garner said he is not fond of cul de sacs and recommended instead, a "loop road." He said he would like to see the original proposal of 39 single family homes.

Supervisor Kurt Zebrowski, who also sits on the planning commission, said the closely packed proposal did not match the arrangements of the surrounding neighborhood. "It's like you're putting a city in the middle of a suburban development," he said.

Speaking of cities, it was announced last night that the massive New Hanover Town Center project, initially proposed at 852 homes and 210,000 square feet of commercial and office space on 209 acres off route 73, may be getting a little smaller -- by 82 units.

That same project is also seeking a variance from the township's zoning hearing board, to be allowed to have 58 fewer parking spaces than the 952 the zoning ordinance requires.

Without a plan before them -- the last one was submitted in February -- "it sounds like its a cart before the horse situation," said Garner. The other supervisors agreed and voted to send the township solicitor and any other staff required to the zoning meeting in opposition to the variance request.

And then there it Trotter's Gait and its ever-energetic attorney Joe Clement, whose attempts to wrangle agreement out of the supervisors has prompted Garner to initiate something he calls "the Joe Clement Rule," which serves to ensure the minutes indicate no agreement on anything without a vote.

In fact, a court stenographer suddenly appeared when Clement took his turn before the supervisors, evidently to take minutes that are hard to misconstrue.

Specifically, Trotter's Gait calls for the construction of 29 single family homes on a 13.5-acre lot near it's sister development, Pacer's Gait, which calls for seven single family homes on six acres both off Dotterer Road.

Discussion had to do with two relatively simple matters; a storm sewer extension through wetlands, and what defines a healthy woodland and would Trotter's Gait disturb it.

Despite the apparent simplicity of the issues involved, Clement kept the discussion going for nearly 40 minutes, including naming the many members of his family who are part of the development company.

Thankfully, two additional developments items on the agenda, Hanover Green and Hanover Preserves, were removed at the beginning of the evening, so we all got home at a reasonable hour.

Without further ado, here are the Tweets from the meeting:

Homes and Parks Focus of New Hanover Meeting

Park Funding, Free Water Ice and A Bridge Closing

West Pottsgrove became the fourth of eight towns to enjoy the presentation from the Pottstown Regional Recreation Committee Wednesday.

Regional Recreation Director Michael Lane and  Craig Colistra, program officer with the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation, outline the position's accomplishments over the last five years.

Chief among those was obtaining $1.6 million in grants out of $1.9 million sought. West Pottsgrove's share of that grant money is about $140,000, much of it spent in Murgia Park, all for an investment of about $25,000 over five years.

Craig Colistra, standing, program officer with the Pottstown
Area 

health and Wellness Foundation and Regional Recreation
Director 

Michael Lane, seated, addressed the
West Pottsgrove Commissioners 

Wednesday night about
renewing the regional recreation director position.

Lane, who was also recently certified as a playground inspector, surveyed the township's three playgrounds for free and recently submitted suggestions for upgrades and safety improvements, some of which the public works department has already begun work upon, said Township Manager Craig Lloyd.

A project of six of the eight towns that comprise the Pottstown Metropolitan Area Regional Planning Committee, the regional recreation effort here has been declared by the state to be the "most collaborative" it has helped fund in Pennsylvania.

but with that state funding going away in August, 2019, and the health and wellness foundation committing to picking up 50 percent of the cost, the township's share may go up to about $8,000 a year unless East Coventry and New Hanover also decide to join up.

Grosstown Road bridge construction in November, 2017.

Lane said last night that East Coventry seem interested and New Hanover will see their presentation at tonight's supervisor's meeting.

Police chief Matt Stofflet also announced that the police will make their second round of offering free water ice to township residents on the Kona Water Ice truck on the evening of Tuesday, Aug. 7, so keep an eye out for the truck.

(Read about the first round by clicking here.)

Also, Lloyd announced that the recently opened Grosstown Road bridge over Mantawny Creek will
be closed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Aug. 13 to Aug. 24 to put the finishing touches on the bridge, including paving, pavement marking and guardrails.

The new Grosstown Road bridge after it was opened to traffic.

The bridge opened to traffic in December.

The meeting also ran on a bit longer than normal as the commissioners went into closed-door executive session to discuss personnel.

When they came out, they voted unanimously to accept the resignation of police secretary Ruth Smith, as well as to hire an additional part-time officer. They also voted to advertise both positions.

And now, without further ado, here are the Tweets from the meeting.

Parks, Free Water ice and Bridge Closings

National Night Out Set for Aug. 7 at Chestnut St Park

A recent National Night Out event in Pottstown's Chestnut Street Park

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by Genesis Housing Corporation.

Genesis Housing Corporation and the Victory Christian Life Center have announced that this year’s annual National Night Out Community Block Party will be held at the Chestnut Street Park at Washington and Chestnut Streets in Pottstown on Tuesday, Aug.7 from 6 to 8 p.m. (Rain or Shine).

The event is designed to promote neighborhood spirit, community partnership, law enforcement and residents for a safer Pottstown at a free community block party filled with family fun, music, games, info and food.

Free food and information will be available.

The event kicks off with DJ dance music and great community information. There will be free food – hot dogs, hamburgers, nacho chips, water ice, soft drinks and more.

Come see Pottstown’s own Dragon Boat and try out the rowing equipment.

The Phillies Fire Company is bringing a fire truck and will be providing a water spray demo.

Come spend a little time with your neighbors, local firefighters, Montgomery County sheriffs and Pottstown police officers. Have fun with children’s games and activities.

Join with Mosaic Community Land Trust and Pottstown Community Arts creating sidewalk chalk drawings.

Be a part of Pottstown’s National Night Out to learn about services available in the area.

This year’s participating groups include:

• BB&T Bank
• Hobart's Run
• Birthright of Pottstown 
• Laurel House
• Boy Scouts 
• Maternal & Child Health Consortium
• Community Connections 
• Maternity Care Coalition: Early Head Start
• Creative Health Services, Inc. 
• MCIU Early Learning Programs
• Early Head Start (Chester Co Intermediate) 
• Mission Kids

  

  Trojan Man loves National Night Out.

• FARM / PDIDA 
• Mont Co Sheriff Dept.
• First UMC Pottstown 
• Mosaic Community Land Trust
• Genesis Housing 
• Pottstown Cluster
• Glocker Realty 
• Victory Christian Life Center
• Grace Lutheran & Early Learning 
• Women's Center
• Habitat for Humanity 

The National Night Out Community Block Party is funded, in part, by BB&T and WSFS Bank and the Pottstown Neighborhood Partnership. 

More information is available by calling Victory Christian Life Center at 484-941-0693 or Genesis Housing Corporation at 610-275-4357.

Since 1994, Genesis Housing Corporation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has served Montgomery County as a community housing development organization (CHDO) and is dedicated to the development of affordable housing, neighborhood revitalization and the education of consumers on housing and financial issues.

For more information about Genesis Housing Corporation, our programs and housing counseling classes, please visit our website at www.genesishousing.org, email at info@genesishousing.org, visit us on Facebook or call 610-275-4357.

Starfest Celebrates 20 Years Aug. 11th (Or 12th)

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by the  ChesMont Astronomical Society

The region's annual opportunity to get a guided tour of the heavens rolls around for the 20th year Saturday, Aug. 11, thanks to the ChesMont Astronomical Society.

Barring cloud-cover, that's when the 20th annual Starfest will be held at Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site from 5:30 to 11:30 p.m. 

The rain/cloud date is Sunday, Aug. 12.

If the entire weekend is washed out, the back-up weekend is Aug. 18 and Aug. 19, although Keynote Speaker Derrick Pitts will not be available on those dates.

The program will feature speakers, astronomy presentations, and activities for kids. 

10 ChesMont Astronomical society members will set up their
telescopes 

to focus on 10 different celestial objects for easy
viewing by visitors.

Public viewing of the wonders of the Milky Way will be available through more than twenty amateur, high-end telescopes.

The highlight of the evening is 10 Object Row. 10 of society members' telescopes will be focused on a different deep sky object so the public gets a variety of astronomical objects to look at.

Admission and parking is free. Donations are greatly appreciated and needed to support the event.

This year's keynote speaker is Derrick Pitts, Chief Astronomer, Franklin Institute Science Museum

Pitts is currently the Chief Astronomer and Director of the Fels Planetarium at The Franklin Institute.

He’s also been a NASA Solar System Ambassador since 2009 and serves as the “Astrobiology Ambassador” for the NASA/MIRS/UNCF Special Program Corporation’s Astrobiology Partnership Program.

Derrick Pitts

One of his most recent honors is an appointment to the outreach advisory board for the world’s largest telescope, the new 30-Meter-Telescope at Mauna Kea in Hawaii.

 He has been named as one of the 50 most important African-Americans in research science.

For more than two decades, Pitts has hosted award-winning astronomy radio programs for
Philadelphia’s two public radio stations and created signature astronomy television programming for PBS.

One of the highlights of his career was meeting President Obama and his family when he
was invited to participate in the first-ever White House Star Party.

Dr. Pitts is a graduate of Germantown Academy St. Lawrence University, and has received honorary Doctor of Science degrees[7] from La Salle University and Rowan University College of Mathematics and Science[

His twitter handle is @CoolAstronomer and his motto is “Eat, breathe, do science. Sleep later.”

Here is a schedule of the evening's events:

• 5:30 pm Gates Open (Solar observing if clear)
• 6:00 pm Kids Corner Educational Activities.
• 7:00 pm Opening Remarks
• 7:30 pm James Aguirre, Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Pennsylvania
• 8:15 pm Keynote Speaker Derrick Pitts
• 9:15 Drawing of the Grand Prize followed by Public stargazing through Amateur Telescopes.

More information about the program is available by calling Hopewell at 610-582-8773, ext. 0, or visiting the Chesmont Astronomical Society website at www.chesmontastro.org or on Facebook at Chesmont Astronomical Society observing+

Montco Fund Helps Preserve 30-Acre Hay Farm

A 30-acre hay farm in Lower Salford owned by Donald F. Hemsley has been preserved thanks to funds provided by the township and Montgomery County.

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by Montgomery County.

Montgomery County has added another farm to its growing list of farms permanently preserved under the Montgomery County Farmland Preservation Program. 

The first farm to be preserved from the 2017 round of applications, a 30-acre hay farm located in Lower Salford Township, belongs to Donald F. Hemsley.

The Hemsley Farm, which would not qualify for state funding due to its size, was able to be preserved because of increased county funding for farm preservation. 

The farm was preserved with funds from the $1 million dedicated to preservation by the Montgomery County Commissioners and a contribution of $77,316 from Lower Salford Township. 

The Hemsley farm house.

There will be six more farms preserved from the 2017 round because of the additional funding provided from the county.

“We are very pleased to be able to use our additional farmland funding and to partner with Lower Salford Township to preserve this 30-acre farm,” said Val Arkoosh, Chairwoman of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. “The county recognizes its farming heritage and supports our local farming businesses, which provide healthy, local foods and conserve our prime agricultural soil.”

The preservation of this farm helps to implement the future land use vision in Montgomery County’s comprehensive plan, Montco 2040: A Shared Vision. 

The county’s farmland preservation program, which began in 1990, has preserved 162 farms totaling more than 9,400 acres in the county. 

Farming has not only played a significant role in Montgomery County’s history, it is also integral to the county’s sustainable future. The preservation of farmland and farming is important for the economy, environment, and local food availability in the county.

Visit http://www.montcopa.org/FarmlandProgram for more information on the program, the county’s local food initiative, and a list of 2018 farmer’s markets in the county.

 For questions, contact Danielle Dobisch, Senior Planner/Farmland Preservation Administrator with the Montgomery County Planning Commission, at 610-278-5239 or via email at ddobisch@montcopa.org.