Rotary donates $5,000 to after-school program

WAYNE AND PIKE COUNTIES, PA — The Newfoundland Rotary has given the Wayne Pike Schools and Homes in Education (SHINE) after-school program $5,000 to help pay for the cost of food and snacks. 

The program has eight operational centers in Wayne Highlands, Western Wayne and Wallenpaupack school districts. 

SHINE serves over 150 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, providing academic enrichment in science, technology, engineering and maths four days a week. 

Given that food insecurity is a real concern in our area, a Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance spokesperson said, providing a nutritious snack and dinner to the students is essential. 

The SHINE Afterschool program is funded in full or in part with a federal USDE grant provided by the PA Department of Education. 

For more information, email Pantea Shademani at pshademani@wpworkforce.org, or call 570/390-7613.

UDC to host ‘Plastics: Damning the Delaware’ presentation on April 6

Rebekah Creshkoff will speak about the dangers of plastic in the Delaware River prior to the April 6 meeting of the Upper Delaware Council.

NARROWSBURG, NY and ONLINE — The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) will host a presentation titled “Plastics: Damning the Delaware” by Beyond Plastics volunteer and Sullivan County resident Rebekah Creshkoff on Thursday, April 6, beginning at 7 p.m. at the Upper Delaware Council office, 211 Bridge St. There will be a Zoom option.

A writer who worked as a communicator in the corporate world, Creshkoff is an environmentalist and “wannabe” naturalist who now works at the Callicoon Farmers’ Market and performs with the Farm Arts Collective and the Delaware Valley Opera. She is a longtime student and assistant teacher of tai chi, and says she is happiest when she’s outdoors.

Creshkoff began checking glass-clad buildings in lower Manhattan in 1997 for bird collisions. The effort was adopted by NYC Audubon and is now known as Project Safe Flight. A vegetarian for ethical reasons since age 10 and full vegan since 2019 to reduce her carbon footprint, Judith Enck’s Beyond Plastic Pollution class inspired her to turn her skills to fight the prevalence of plastic.

The UDC monthly meeting to follow will include status reports from the Delaware River Basin Commission, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and more.

All UDC meetings are open to the public. For further information on how to participate via a Zoom option, call 845/252-3022 or email ashley@upperdelawarecouncil.org.

Check www.upperdelawarecouncil.org or UDC social media pages for any meeting updates.

Free water testing available in Pike County

LORDS VALLEY, PA — If your drinking water comes from a Pike County private well, spring or cistern and you’re concerned about water quality, you can obtain free testing by attending a workshop at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 4 at the Pike County Training Center.

The tests, which will be performed by the Penn State Ag Analytical Services Lab, will check for coliform bacteria, E.coli bacteria, nitrate, manganese, arsenic, lead, copper, barium and sodium.

Penn State Extension has received funding, courtesy of the Pennsylvania Department of Health cooperative agreement with the environmental health capacity building initiative at the Centers for Disease Control, to provide no-cost drinking water testing to a limited number of homeowners in PA.

To qualify for free water testing, you must use a private water well, spring or cistern as your primary source of drinking water, and you must register and attend the in-person educational workshop. 

Registration is required and limited to approximately 35 households. Drinking water test kits will be available at the workshop. Only one water test will be provided per household. 

Registration forms and more information about the program are available online at extension.psu.edu/private-water-supply-education-and-water-testing-workshop , or by calling 877/345-0691.

For questions, call Peter Wulfhorst at 570/832-2803, or email ptw3@psu.edu.

Upper Delaware Litter Sweep needs sponsors, volunteers

The new logo for the 2023 Litter Sweep was designed by Maggie Clauss of Platform Industries.

NARROWSBURG, NY — Volunteers and individual and business sponsors are needed for the third annual Upper Delaware Litter Sweep that will take place in every Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River corridor community starting on Earth Day, Saturday, April 22. It runs through Sunday, April 30.

Participants will receive a commemorative T-shirt; supplies to use, including safety equipment, bags and pickers; and disposal information for their collected trash.

The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) will work with designated litter leaders in the Towns of Hancock, Fremont, Delaware, Cochecton, Tusten, Highland, Lumberland and Deerpark in New York; and Buckingham, Manchester, Damascus, Berlin, Lackawaxen, Shohola and Westfall Townships in PA to coordinate a series of land-based cleanups.

Anyone willing to help provide labor or services should call Ashley Hall-Bagdonas at 845/252-3022 or email ashley@upperdelawarecouncil.org . Provide your name(s), email address and phone number; and note where in the river valley you would like to focus your clean-up efforts.

The appropriate litter leader for that community team will then reach out to confirm local pick-up dates, locations and other arrangements.

The Litter Sweep is wholly funded by donations; the UDC provides administrative support services. Sponsorships help provide approximately 300 T-shirts with a turtle logo designed by Maggie Clauss from local company Platform Industries, advertising and the purchase of litter pick-up equipment and supplies.

Individual and business sponsors at any level of $50 or more who contribute by Saturday, April 15 will be recognized in UDC publicity outreach and its tri-annual newsletter, the Upper Delaware.

Donations via credit cards can be made via a “Donate Now” button at www.paypal.com/paypalme/upperdelawarecouncil. Checks can be mailed to Upper Delaware Council, PO Box 192, Narrowsburg, NY 12764, or monetary donations can be dropped off at the 211 Bridge St. office. Note on the check or envelope that the donation is for the 2023 Litter Sweep.

For more information, call 845/252-3022, visit www.upperdelawarecouncil.org or follow UpperDelawareCouncil on social media.