Pike West Nile Virus program hires four

April declared Child Abuse
and Sexual Assault Awareness month

By KRISTA GROMALSKI

MILFORD — On the heels of a parade of pre-schoolers celebrating the Week of the Child, the Pike County Commissioners declared April as Child Abuse Prevention Month and Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Liz Cotton of Victims Intervention Program, Inc. told the commissioners that “early intervention is the best” approach to assisting a victim of sexual assault.

“Our services are directly connected to restoring dignity,” Cotton said. “It’s fitting that it’s also Child Abuse [Prevention] Month.”

The commissioners also approved the hiring of four individuals to handle the county’s West Nile Virus monitoring program. The positions are 100 percent grant funded, according to Chairman Karl Wagner, Jr.

Karen Batalin was hired as West Nile Field Director at a salary of $15 per hour for a maximum of 700 hours; Charles Wehinger was hired as the West Nile Field Assistant at $9 per hour for a maximum of 700 hours; and Joanne Derflinger and Gloria Derflinger were hired as West Nile Virus Field Assistants, each at $8 per hour for a maximum of 500 hours. None of the four positions include benefits.

The four personnel will “mainly set insect traps,” Wagner said. “The grant will also cover supplies and equipment.”

Wagner said the county received West Nile funding in 2000.

According to the Penn State Cooperative Extension, the West Nile Virus, previously only found in Africa, Eastern Europe and West Asia, appeared in 1999 in New York. It is carried by a certain kind of mosquito that infects birds, animals and people.

During the summer of 2000, infected mosquitoes were found throughout Pennsylvania, including an area in Pike County.

For more information on prevention of the virus and its symptoms, call the Penn State Cooperative Extension at 570/296-3400.