The Sanatoga Post

The senator's taste buds get a workout.

CREAMERY PA – How does a Pennsylvania legislator, who knows he’s about to be photographed, sample a piece of bread without opening his mouth too wide or dropping white crumbs on his bright red shirt and still look happy about the entire process?

Very carefully, state Sen. John Rafferty can attest.

Rafferty – who represents Lower Pottsgrove and Limerick PA townships and the borough of Pottstown in the 44th state Senatorial district – was among a team of four bread judges Friday evening (Aug. 13, 2010). They were asked to render verdicts on the quality and tastiness of about a half-dozen home-baked loaves that comprised finalist entries in a “Breads Of The World” contest held at the annual Montgomery County 4-H Fair in Creamery PA.

See a gallery of photos, below, from activities at the fair that ended Saturday. Click on any thumbnail image to see the enlarged photograph.

Rafferty, who’s never without a smile, proved to be a master of the photo session. He successfully chewed, thought about the sample, and discussed texture, moistness (or lack thereof) and flavor with fellow judges while cameras clicked away in the Maple Room kitchen at the Cooperative Extension complex on Route 113, where the fair bustled with thousands of visitors over three days.

Choosing a winner was harder than having shutters snap in mid-munch, the judges agreed. They had difficulty separating winners from the also-rans; yes, Rafferty promised, most really were that good. A list of the finalists is expected to be made available later his week by the county Cooperative Extension office.

Related:

• It’s A Crumb-y Job, But Somebody’s Got To Do It
• From Pottstown East, Dozens Competing In 4-H Fair
• WoodMobile, Ag Lab On Exhibit At 4-H Fair
• Annual 4-H Fair Offers A Wee Bit Of Everything
• Baking Contest Returns To 4-H Fair
• Start Planning Now For 4-H Fair Contests

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

The Target store at Upland Square in Pottstown.

POTTSTOWN PA – Cedar Shopping Centers Inc. – which has ownership interests the Upland Square Shopping Center on Upland Square Drive, Pottstown PA, and the Heritage Crossing Shopping Center on Ridge Pike in Limerick PA – on Monday (Aug. 16, 2010) said it would spend about $200 million to buy all or part of seven additional plazas across Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia.

Five of the seven properties are reported to involve “power centers,” big, regional retail complexes much like Upland Square that annually attract millions of consumers looking to spend money for the latest fashions, accessories, electronics, household goods and services.

On the selling end is the Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT), which will use the proceeds to pay down mortgage debt and a line of credit. PREIT will continue to lease and manage the centers for Cedar. In this area, PREIT owns the Exton Square Mall.

Shopping centers involved in the deal are located in Sellinsgrove, Warrington, Allentown PA, two in Lancaster PA, and in Christiansburg VA and Forked River NJ.

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

POTTSTOWN PA – Just slightly more than eight months after Pottstown’s only radio station, WPAZ-AM 1370, went silent, leaders of a non-profit community group trying to return it to the airwaves announced the station owner had agreed Thursday (Aug. 12, 2010) to sell it to them for an undisclosed amount.

Outside WPAZ's Broadcast Lodge on Maugers Mill Road in January (2010), after the Pottstown radio station closed. Fans hope it will re-open soon.

“We are now in the process of purchasing WPAZ 1370 from Great Scott Broadcasting, who accepted our offer,” organizers Rick Rodgers and Ross Landy said in a scrolling message on the website of the WPAZ Preservation Association.

On the group’s Facebook page the following day (Friday, Aug. 13), the pair added “Exciting things have been happening behind the scenes! Financial backing has been secured and negotiations are under way with Great Scott Broadcasting. All is looking really promising, and we’re aiming to have some definite plans in place and signatures on dotted lines by the end of August.”

WPAZ-AM abruptly signed off the air Dec. 10 (2009), during mid-morning programming. Great Scott’s president, Mitchell Scott, at the time said his company was shuttering the station for financial reasons. It has been off the air since, and its offices on Maugers Mill Road, Pottstown PA, are vacant.

WPAZ started in 1952 as the first in a chain of the company’s several radio properties.

Since its closing, Rodgers, Landy and other volunteers have been busy with plans to find or raise sufficient funding to buy the station and operate it with a mix of interns, volunteers and a small paid staff. They have consistently contended WPAZ offered an important voice and information services to the community that were not being matched by other media.

Reading PA area radio station WEEU-AM attempted to fill the gap and gain market share earlier this year (March 2010), by promoting itself in The (Pottstown PA) Mercury and elsewhere as “your area’s hometown local radio station,” as WEEU Station Operations Manager Jo Painter put it in an e-mail to The Post. The effort seemed to gain little traction.

The Preservation Association, however, held fund-raising concerts at Sunnybrook Ballroom in Sanatoga PA during the spring and kept enlisting support via Facebook, where it now boasts of almost 300 fans. It drummed up more assistance with appearances at community events like First Saturdays in downtown Pottstown, where WPAZ once occupied studios overlooking High Street until its move to Maugers Mill Road.

The news from Rodgers and Landy was welcomed by several Facebook commenters.

Related:

• Group Envisions WPAZ As Community-Funded Venture
• Five Weeks Later, Thundering Silence at ‘PAZ
• Radio Station WPAZ-AM Goes Off Air

Editor’s note: The Post thanks reader Andy Yusko Jr. of Lower Pottsgrove, a former board operator and on-air personality at WPAZ, for suggesting this story and contact sources. If you’ve got a story idea or tip we should explore, e-mail The Post.

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

They paid how much?

POTTSTOWN PA – The top price paid for real estate within Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township from April 5-May 12, 2010, was $133,000, the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper reports. The property is located at 3608 Walnut Ridge Estates.

A second property, at 2507 Walnut Ridge Estates, sold for $100,000.

This week’s top reported prices were listed Sunday (Aug. 15, 2010) in “The Top 50,” the newspaper’s weekly review of highest prices paid for real estate sold within the city of Philadelphia and townships in its surrounding counties.

By contrast, during the same period, the top real estate sales price in Pottstown PA Borough, immediately to the west was $120,000; Limerick PA Township, east, $458,463; New Hanover PA Township, northeast, $339,591; Upper Pottsgrove PA Township, west, $283,250; and in North Coventry PA Township, south, $390,000.

Across all of Montgomery County, the highest-priced property sold during the period went for $975,000, at 300 Hidden River Road, Lower Merion PA.

Related:

• What They Sold For, April 5-May 12, 2010
• What They Sold For, March 29-May 7, 2010
• What They Sold For, March 22-April 30, 2010
• What They Sold For, March 8-April 16, 2010
• What They Sold For, Feb. 8-March 24, 2010
• What They Sold For, Feb. 1-March 19 2010
• What They Sold For, Dec. 28, 2009-Feb. 5, 2010
• What They Sold For, Dec. 21, 2009-Jan. 29, 2010
• What They Sold For, Dec. 7, 2009-Jan. 15, 2010
• What They Sold For, Nov. 28, 2009-Jan. 8, 2010
• What They Sold For, Nov. 23-Dec. 31, 2009
• What They Sold For, Nov. 16-Dec. 25, 2009
• What They Sold For, Nov. 9-Dec. 18, 2009
• What They Sold For, Nov. 5-Dec. 9, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 26-Dec. 3, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 20-Nov. 27, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 15-Nov. 24, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 8-Nov. 18, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 7-Nov. 11, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 1-Nov. 4, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 26-28, 2009
• What They Sold For, Sept. 27-Oct. 23, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 12-16, 2009
• What They Sold For, Oct. 5-9, 2009
• What They Sold For, Sept. 29-Oct. 2, 2009
• What They Sold For, Sept. 14-18, 2009
• What They Sold For, Aug. 26-31, 2009
• What They Sold For, Aug. 20-25, 2009
• What They Sold For, Aug. 13-19, 2009
• What They Sold For, Aug. 5-12, 2009
• What They Sold For, July 29-Aug. 4, 2009
• What They Sold For, July 24-28, 2009
• What They Sold For, July 20-23, 2009
• What They Sold For, July 13-17, 2009
• What They Sold For, July 6-10, 2009
• What They Sold For, June 29-July 3, 2009
• What They Sold For, June 22-26, 2009
• What They Sold For, June 15-19, 2009
• What They Sold For, June 8-12, 2009
• What They Sold For, June 1-5, 2009

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

SANATOGA PA – Recent jottings from a reporter’s notebook:

The Rite Aid building gets a laugh, and maybe a thought too.

An Idea That Starts With A Joke

August is a slow month for governing in Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township. Members of the paid staff (Manager Rodney Hawthorne, for one) take vacation, and elected officials (Commissioners James Kaiser and Michael McGroarty, for two) run into conflicting commitments, and the Board of Commissioners’ agenda just isn’t very full.

So with a light workload, those who remained in municipal leadership during the board’s Aug. 2 (2010) meeting – President Jonathan Spadt, Vice President Bruce Foltz, Commissioner James Phillips, and Assistant Manager Alyson Elliott – were taking time to talk leisurely and publicly about township needs.

Foltz suggested it should list and promote vacant commercial buildings. There are too many now, he said, and as a township that prides itself as being business-friendly Lower Pottsgrove should also be proactive. He rattled off a list of vacancies: Hollywood Video, Ink Stop, Rite Aid, and several others.

Someone then cracked wise about how Foltz and his electrical contracting business could become a tenant in the Rite Aid store at East High Street and North Pleasantview Road. It got a laugh. Someone else thought bigger still and said, no, the township engineering firm Bursich Associates probably could annex and better use the Rite Aid space. Bursich President Scott Exley, who was in attendance, smiled and shook his head. “Maybe you know something I don’t,” he said. More laughter.

Eyes at the board table turned to Police Chief Michael Shade, seated on the east side of the municipal building conference room. “Hey,” a third voice said, “we could put the police department in there.”

Silence. Momentary, but silence nonetheless, followed by thoughtful laughter. It was meant, after all, to be a joke … but if you were a cartoonist you’d be frantically drawing brightly shining light bulbs over the heads of anyone in the room who was a decision-maker.

Lower Pottsgrove’s police department desperately needs more space, a fact well documented by a recent state study. Commissioners have talked for more than two years about how the township administration itself has outgrown its 2199 Buchert Rd., Sanatoga PA, headquarters. Could the Rite Aid building – with plenty of parking, in a prime and highly visible location, owned by a company that has more than its share of surplus properties and might be willing to cut a deal – solve two problems at once?

The discussion ended shortly afterward. There was no proposal made, no follow-up offered, not even an audible “hmmn.”

But as with all jokes, the late comedian George Burns often said, timing is everything.

Thanks For Her Assistance

Christina Kuklinski, a graduate of the former St. Pius X High School on North Keim Street in Lower Pottsgrove, is headed back to South Bend IN and the University of Notre Dame after completing a summer internship with the Tri-County Network in Pottstown. The network, of which The Post is a member, is a non-profit group that promotes improved health, social and environmental conditions in Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties.

Kuklinski spent recent months helping TCN with data collection, program support, and general office duties, and the folks there say her help was greatly appreciated. She’s a political science major entering her junior year.

Way To Go, ‘Bro

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Marc A. Zlomek, a son of Frederick M. Zlomek of Syracuse NY and the late Muriel D. Pyle Zlomek, and youngest brother of Post Managing Editor Joe Zlomek, was named Aug. 6 (2010) as one of the nation’s top five young military service lawyers by the Young Lawyers’ Division of the American Bar Association (ABA). He was presented with his award during the ABA’s conference at The Palace Hotel in San Francisco CA.

The honor is given to active duty officers under the age of 36, and “recognizes the dedication and excellence of young military attorneys in each of the five uniformed services,” according to the ABA.

Zlomek specializes in maritime law and the prosecution of ocean dumping. He is a graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London CT and received his law degree from Tulane University in New Orleans LA. He and his wife, Stefanie, live in Seattle WA.

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

The Limerick (PA) Post | The Pottstown (PA) Post | The Main Street Post

Published during the week just ended in The Sanatoga Post:

Saturday, Aug. 14

• Labor Holiday To Delay Town Trash Pick-Up
  With the Labor Day holiday approaching, Lower Pottsgrove wants to give its residents an advanced heads-up: garbage and yard waste pick-ups will be delayed by a day.
• Keep Healthy Next Week
  A weekly review of free or low-cost local seminars, support groups, screenings, tests and clinics to help you stay healthy and fit, sponsored or conducted by community health care organizations.
• Pottsgrove Marchers’ 2nd Car Wash Today
  Get the buggy cleaned and shiny, pay only $5 (a bargain), and help the Pottsgrove High School marching band at the same time.
• Also, In The Limerick Post
  • AAA Members Get Outlet Discounts Saturday
    Are you a Triple-A member? Do you like to shop? Do you like to get stuff you buy cheaper? If yes to all, welcome to the no-brainer of the day.
• Also, In The Pottstown Post
  • Girls Softball Travel Tryouts Today, Next Week
    A championship-winning girls’ softball program in Boyertown will conduct tryouts today, Sunday and next weekend for those interested in joining its 2011 travel team.
  • Pottstown man arrested in city check-forgery case
    The fugitive warrants division of the Berks County sheriff’s office on Friday arrested a man in his Pottstown apartment on forgery, theft and related charges. (This story is published by The Reading Eagle and is hosted on its website).
  • Possible Home Invasion Leads To Shooting In Pottstown
    Police in Pottstown are investigating a shooting that may have been the result of a home invasion Thursday night on North Charlotte Street. (This story is published by WFMZ-TV and is hosted on is website).
• Also, In The Main Street Post
  • Chester County Buys Record-Sharing Software In Pottstown
    A Pottstown software development firm that creates specialty applications for law enforcement agencies has won itself a new client, just across the county line here in Pennsylvania.
• Education Subsidy Could Help State Pension Plans
  Senate Republicans are looking at extra education funding from the federal government to address the state’s public pension crisis. (This story is published by The Pennsylvania Independent and hosted at its website).
• Federal Funds For Regional Road Projects Drying Up
  A Montgomery County planning official thinks future highway tolling, if approved, won’t be limited to U.S. Route 422. It may well apply to all state and federally maintained roads. (This story is published by The Lansdale PA Reporter and is hosted on its website).

Friday, Aug. 13

• Pottsgrove Bus Schedules Delayed; Video Reminder Issued
  Anxious about when and where your child will be picked up to be bused to school? Hold on; Pottsgrove School District schedules should be ready next week. Be advised, though: riders are under video monitoring.
• Pottsgrove Singer At Six Flags For Talent Show Finals
  (With Video) Pottsgrove High School graduate Kendal Conrad is among the finalists in a talent competition conducted by WCAU-TV in Philadelphia.
• Also, In The Limerick Post
  • Julia Produces With Royersford Produce
    (With Video) Renninger’s Farm Market in Royersford PA provides the primary ingredients, and Julia Zion offers the preparation, in a series of three cooking videos hosted on the YouTube channel called Foodaholics101.
• Also, In The Main Street Post
  • Pottstown Exec Re-Elected To Marketing Board
    The head of WordTech, on the borough’s Circle Of Progress, earns a new term as a director of the Philadelphia Direct Marketing Association.
  • Nevada Insurer Promotes S-F Grad To Senior VP
    A former Royersford PA resident continues to make his mark in information technology, with another promotion in leadership at a Reno NV-based provider of small business insurance coverages.
  • Jersey Consultant Assists Collegeville Merchants
    A New Jersey-headquartered consulting firm that specializes in helping downtown economies grow has been hired to work its magic in Collegeville PA.

Thursday, Aug. 12

• From Pottstown East, Dozens Competing In 4-H Fair
  From Lower Pottsgrove, Limerick and the borough, they’ll bring their best pies and breads, their largest and freshest-looking vegetables, and their finest bred animals for a chance to win a blue ribbon. Decades after its start, Montgomery County’s 4-H Fair remains relevant … and free!
• Stuff To Do This Weekend
  Besides the 4-H Fair, there’s the Goshenhoppen Folk Festival in Upper Frederick, a Dr. Drill fitness camp in Pottstown, and a Pottsgrove Marching Band car wash fund-raiser at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary.
• Snowmobile Driver Certification Set For October
  It’s too early for most of us to even think about snow, but not for teens just itching to drive out of the garage and into the white stuff. They must be certified under state law; this class is tailored for them.
• Watching The Eagles Fly At Lehigh
  How good (or bad) does the football team actually look for the season ahead? There’s nothing like an at-the-training-camp report (or five, actually) offered in video form by a Montgomery County resident.
• Schools Get Funding Windfall In Rendell Plan
  School districts in Pennsylvania would receive a total $580 million boost in their budgets this year under a plan proposed Wednesday morning (Aug. 12, 2010) by Gov. Ed Rendell. (This story is published by The Pennsylvania Independent and is hosted on its website).

Wednesday, Aug. 11

• 192 Local Charities Risk Losing Tax Exemptions, IRS Says
  Its Pennsylvania list includes one group with a Sanatoga mailing address, four with “Pottsgrove” affiliations, and 49 from Pottstown. If they don’t file appropriate paperwork by Oct. 15, they’ve got significant problems.
• The IRS List Of Local Affected Charitable Groups
  Maybe you’re a member or supporter of one or more of these organizations. If so, you’ll help it or them by letting someone know they should be talking to professional advisers about the IRS demands.

Tuesday, Aug. 10

• Above The Boardwalk, Life Never Seen In Sanatoga
  (With Video) Viewed from a vacationer’s entertaining, 140-foot-high perch above a Jersey shore city, life assumes a perspective rarely offered within the confines of Lower Pottsgrove … and maybe that’s for the better.
• School Districts’ Plans Open Chamber Breakfast
  How do local school districts hope to help students prepare for the work force? The TriCounty Area Chamber of Commerce poses that question next month to six superintendents, including Pottsgrove’s Dr. Bradley Landis.
• A Mesa Encore From Sanatoga Park
  (With Video) The country band that played during Sunday’s Sanatoga Park concert offers a smoking hot rendition of Miranda Lambert’s hit, “Kerosene.”
• Big Bopper Speaks. Go To Sunnybrook, He Says
  Sanatoga’s entertainment and conference venue hosts an adult sock hop Friday night. Wouldn’t want to miss that, wouldja?
• What Post Readers Are Saying
  The Post invites readers to add their thoughtful comments to its stories. Lately:
  
  • About the 422 Diner
    An amazingly quick resolution to problems with the now demolished restaurant prompts others to ask, “How do we get similar results?” in Pottstown and elsewhere in Lower Pottsgrove.
  • About the East High Street bridge
    If PennDOT balks on giving Lower Pottsgrove commissioners a progress update, one commenter growls, hold its feet (or something else) to the fire.

Monday, Aug. 9

• What They Sold For
  A review of top prices paid for real estate in Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township and its surrounding municipalities.
• Diner Soon To Be An Eyesore-No-More
  Boy, that was fast. Less than a week after Lower Pottsgrove commissioners heard complaints about the appearance of the fire-scarred 422 Diner, the place was torn down. Only rubble yet to be removed remains.
• Turning The Dial On Sanatoga’s Wayback Machine
  Changes being made this week to the exterior of the Sanatoga Corp. building on East High Street give Lower Pottsgrove residents a glimpse back into the late 1950s. That’s when the firm was known as Sanatoga Radio Company.
• Band, Audience Alike Enjoyed Themselves In Sanatoga
  (With Video) What was she like, that girl with the tattoo of Texas covering her entire body? You had to hold onto Dallas to find out, the country band Mesa joked, during Sunday’s “Concert In The Park” in Sanatoga.
• Commissioners Endorse Watershed Conservancy Plan
  A portion of Lower Pottsgrove is included in the Perkiomen Watershed, and the township already complies with many of the plan’s recommendations to preserve or improve natural water quality. There was little discussion.

Sunday, Aug. 8

• The Post Week In Review
  For Aug. 1-7, 2010

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

SANATOGA PA – Because Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township’s trash hauler, J.P. Mascaro and Sons, will observe the Labor Day holiday (Sept. 4-6, 2010; Saturday through Monday), the first garbage pick-up of September will be held Sept. 7 (Tuesday), the township announced this week on its website.

• This event has been added to The Post calendar.

Leaf and yard waste collection for the month will occur on the same day, the township reported.

Those taking advantage of leaf collection should not put leaf bags at curbside until the night before the scheduled pick-up. Persons with more than 10 such bags are asked to call the township in advance, at 610-323-0436, so Mascaro crews can be notified.

Trash collection normally is scheduled on Mondays. Leaf collection normally occurs only on the first Monday of the month.

Photo from Clipart.com

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

SANATOGA PA – Health care news for western Montgomery County residents (and anyone else!), for Aug. 15 (2010) and beyond.

• These events have been added to The Post calendar.

Sunday, Aug. 15

A peer-led meeting of Resolve, the National Infertility Association support group, is scheduled to be held weekly on Sundays beginning at 2 p.m., sponsored by Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 610-917-0006.

Monday, Aug. 16

A blood drive is scheduled by the Miller-Keystone Blood Center for Aug. 16 (2010; Monday) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Limerick Family Care, 296 W. Ridge Pike, Limerick PA. Appointments are required to donate blood. For more information or to make an appointment call Miller-Keystone at 610-926-6060.

Basic Life Support (BLS) re-certification training for health care providers will be conducted Aug. 16 (2010; Monday) in 30-minute appointments from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Suite 300 of Medical Office Building II at Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. A fee of $35 will be charged. Participants must have completed the online portion of BLS training, for a separate fee cost, before registering for this session. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1288.

Ready for the big event.

A three-week series of birth prep classes for new and expectant parents is scheduled to begin Aug. 16 (2010; Monday) from 7-9 p.m. in Suite 300 of Medical Office Building II at Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. Subsequent dates will be announced to participants. A fee of $85 per couple will be charged. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1288.

Tuesday, Aug. 17

A free breast pumping class for new and expectant mothers is scheduled to be held Aug. 17 (2010; Tuesday) from 7-9 p.m. in Suite 300 of Medical Office Building II at Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1288.

Wednesday, Aug. 18

A grief support group meeting conducted by the Pottstown YMCA will be held Wednesday (Aug. 18, 2010) at 6:30 p.m. in the Freedom Valley YMCA branch at Adams and Jackson streets, Pottstown PA. Those in need of grief support and counseling are welcome to attend. Group meetings are scheduled on the first and third Wednesdays of every month.

Thursday, Aug. 19

Project Prevention, a community service of Phoenixville Hospital that offers blood pressure screenings, diabetes education and health-related referrals through an on-site nurse and case manager, will be held Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the First United Church of Christ, 145 Chestnut St., Spring City PA.

Project Prevention, a community service of Phoenixville Hospital that offers blood pressure screenings, diabetes education and health-related referrals through an on-site nurse and case manager, will be held Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 10 a.m. to Noon at The Bard Center, 410 Washington St., Royersford PA.

Blood pressure screenings will be conducted by staff members from Pottstown Memorial Medical Center on Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 1-3 p.m. at Wal-Mart, Route 100, Bechtelsville PA.

An informational seminar about weight-loss surgery will be held Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday), and on the third Thursday of every month, from 6-7:30 p.m. in the third floor conference center of Medical Office Building II at Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1975.

A free Zumba demonstration night, open to the public, will be held Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 6–7:30 pm. at the Pottstown YMCA, 724 N Adams St., Pottstown PA. Meet the instructors for the Y’s fall Zumba classes, and try the workout that’s more like a party. Bring a water bottle and towel, and comfortable clothes. Refreshments and raffles will be included. The program is geared for those age 14 and older. Advance registration is preferred; for more information or to register, call Lynn Seponski at 610-323-7300, Ext. 13.

The Alzheimer’s Association’s Monthly Support Group meets Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 6-7:30 p.m., and the third Thursday of every month at the same time, in Chestnut Knoll Assisted Living, 120 W. 5th St., Boyertown PA. It offers an opportunity to meet and share with other caregivers experiencing similar issues. The facility provides free respite care for loved ones in a secured area during the meeting. For more information, call 610-473-8066.

A meeting of the Man-To-Man Prostate Cancer Education and Support Group will be held Aug. 19 (2010; Thursday) from 7-8:30 p.m. in the Phoenixville Hospital Cancer Center, Phoenixville PA. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1800.

Friday, Aug. 20

Pottstown Memorial Medical Center community education nurse Pat Eltz will discuss “The Seven Deadly Sins of Living Alone” on Aug. 20 (2010; Friday) beginning at 11 a.m. in the classrooms at the Chesmont Office Building, Armand Hammer Boulevard, Pottstown PA, as part of the hospital Senior Circle’s “Lunch ‘N Learn” series. For more information or to make a reservation, call 610-327-7699.

Is your child safe in that car seat? Be sure. Learn Aug. 20 (2010; Friday) from a certified car seat technician how to properly install a child’s car seat. An appointment is required; to make one, call 610-327-7145. The service is sponsored by Pottstown Memorial Medical Center.

Sunday, Aug. 22

A peer-led meeting of Resolve, the National Infertility Association support group, is scheduled to be held weekly on Sundays beginning at 2 p.m., sponsored by Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 610-917-0006.

Wednesday, Aug. 25

A free meeting of the Post-Partum Adjustment Group, scheduled for the fourth Wednesday of every month, will be held Aug. 25 (2010; Wednesday) from 6:30-8 p.m. in Suite 300 of Medical Office Building II at Phoenixville Hospital, 140 Nutt Rd., Phoenixville PA. Registration is required. For more information or to register, call 610-983-1288.

Photo from Clipart.com

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

POTTSTOWN PA – A car wash to benefit the Pottsgrove High School marching band will be held today (Saturday, Aug. 14, 2010) from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School, 1329 Buchert Rd., Pottstown PA. A donation of $5 per car is requested.

• This event has been added to The Post calendar.

Photo from Clipart.com

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS

POTTSTOWN PA – The bus schedules are coming. Pottsgrove School District bus schedules for the 2010-2011 school year really are coming, district Business Administrator David Nester promises … they’re just not ready yet.

Soon to be rolling, with video cameras on.

Once the buses roll, though, parents also should be aware their students will be on the district’s version of Candid Camera.

A volume of instant messages, Tweets, e-mails and search engine hits that have flooded The Post during the past two weeks give strong indication parents are anxious to know when and where district buses, piloted by CMD Transportation Services of Pottstown, will pick up their children as schools open later this month. Last year’s schedules were available by Aug. 7.

Personnel transitions have created a slight delay, but “we are hoping to have them posted next week,” Nester said of the schedules Thursday afternoon (Aug. 12, 2010) in an e-mail reply to a Post inquiry. “It’s taking a bit longer to get them done this year,” Nester explained.

As it did last year, The Post will offer online links as soon as available to all Pottsgrove schools’ busing schedules – for Lower Pottsgrove Elementary, Ringing Rocks (now at the former St. Pius X High School on North Keim Street), and West Pottsgrove, and the middle and high schools – as well as those for services provided by the district to Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Coventry Christian Academy, St. Aloysius, and West-Mont Christian Academy.

When students are aboard district buses they will be electronically monitored, Nester also advised, in a memo dated Wednesday (Aug. 11) and posted on the district website.

The policy is not new, simply re-stated. Most district buses were equipped several years ago with cameras that record both video and audio, Nester’s memo said, and all newly purchased  buses now come with cameras too. “We are notifying you that your children may be videotaped during their bus rides to and from school,” he wrote to parents on the district’s behalf.

“These tapes are only viewed if there is an issue that occurs on the bus that administration deems important enough to investigate,” Nester wrote.

Photo from Jimston Journal via StockXchange

Sign up to get The Sanatoga Post delivered free daily by e-mail. Share this article.
See our galleries for photos that appear in The Post. Got news for us? E-mail The Post.
Find The Posts on Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In, Technorati, Flickr, YouTube, and RSS