Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
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Homes in Cove townships in Blair County are poised to be connected to middle-mile fiber infrastructure by 2026. This announcement comes as part of a nearly $2.5 million project funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), jointly undertaken by Allegheny Broadband Inc. (ABI) and Crowsnest Broadband. Dwayne Zimmerman, owner and founder of Crowsnest, said that the federal government allocated $200 million in ARPA funds for Pennsylvania. Following this allocation, the state invited applications...
Fourth grade students from schools across Bedford County including those from Northern Bedford County Elementary attended the Bedford Chamber of Commerce’s Touch-a-Truck event at the Bedford County Airport on Thursday, April 18. Jenny Delong of Bun Air which is in charge of all the flight operations at the Bedford County Airport said they host events like the Touch-A-Truck event to help the Bedford County Chamber of Commerce. This event has been at the airport for the last three years, and b...
The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners on April 15 approved acquisitions that would add nearly 310 acres to state game lands. That involves the purchase of four properties. They are: • Roughly 20 acres in Catherine Township, Blair County, adjacent to State Game Lands 166. This acquisition connects two existing game lands tracts. • Roughly 67 acres in Snyder Township, Blair County, that’s an indenture to State Game Lands 278 and connects two parcels of the game lands. • Roughly 200 acres in Rockland and Cranberry townships in Venango Co...
Southern Cove Power Reunion held Plow Days on Saturday April 20. Despite the weather being a little cold folks came out for the event. The event got underway early, before 8 a.m. Numerous tractors were seen plowing the fields and spectators watched the process. Craft vendors were permitted to set up free of charge and they were busy getting their tables and goods ready for display. Items such as natural products, homemade candy apples, homemade place mats and tumblers were just a few. The newly...
Explore Altoona, the official destination marketing organization for Blair County, has released its “2022 Economic Impact of Travel and Tourism in PA” report. The report shows that tourism in Blair County generated $371 million in direct visitor spending, a nearly 14 percent increase from 2021 and less than 1 percent below 2019’s pre-pandemic, all-time high of $374.4 million. If it were not for this amount of outside dollars in the form of leisure, business and event travel, each Blair County household would need to spend an additional $7,18...
Lisa Litzenberger, a dedicated employee of McDonald’s in Roaring Spring, recently received the “Outstanding Women of Excellence” award from the company. The award was to acknowledge and celebrate women who made significant contributions in their respective roles. “It was humbling — I cried and my mom cried. You are just not used to getting that type of recognition, “ Litzenberger said. On the day she received the award, she was given flowers, a gift card, a monetary award, and a celebratory...
Dairy farmers and industry representatives can learn about value-added dairy businesses by attending two “Women Rooted in Agriculture” events hosted by Penn State Extension in May. The first event, “Women Rooted in Agriculture: Goot Essa Cheese Tour,” will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 2 at 351 Wise Road, Howard, Centre County. Goot Essa is operated by Amish dairy farmer John Esh and his family. Attendees can tour Goot Essa’s cheese-making facility and cheese caves and sample handcrafted European-style cheeses made from cow, sheep and...
The Blair County Chamber of Commerce Leadership Blair County Youth (LBCY) program will graduate 24 local students at a ceremony on May 8 at the Port Sky Café at Penn State Altoona. Cove-area residents are among the graduates. LBCY is a Blair County Chamber of Commerce program open to high school sophomores, focusing on servant leadership. The youth program is formatted similarly to the chamber’s adult leadership program. LBCY has been used as a model for leadership youth programs throughout Pennsylvania and the tri-state region. The LBCY cu...
A new thrift store has opened in New Enterprise at 3440 Brumbaugh Road. The new store, which is owned by Louise Martin and Maranda Brown, opened in March. Martin said she has always loved thrift store shopping and gets a thrill just going through everything on sale. She is a wife and a mother and is able to bring her child to the shop next to home to make this happen. Unwanted items may be dropped off at anytime. The hours of the store are Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and...
“There has been a significant increase in numbers,” Superintendent Lisa Murgas told the Williamsburg Community School Board during Tuesday night’s meeting as the budget for Vo-Tech was presented. Superintendent Murgas explained there was a cap on the number of students allowed to attend the Greater Altoona Career and Technology Center years ago, and since that cap has been lifted, the numbers have steadily increased. Superintendent Murgas presented that in the years of 2021-23, about 60 stude...
By NATALIE GORSUCH Williamsburg Correspondent Character, scholarship, service and leadership – all pillars of the National Honor Society and the headline of the Williamsburg School District’s annual National Honor Society banquet, Monday evening, April 22. Following a dinner at the Elementary school cafeteria, the standing-room only crowd took to the auditorium for the annual program. A welcome by NHS Advisor Kelly Over greeted the crowd, and then NHS Vice President Ayla Hileman introduced Sup...
The Roaring Spring community united to bring the UNTO humanitarian aid program to the area. More than 200 volunteers from various denominations congregated at the Roaring Spring Arch on Saturday, April 6, to package 45,000 meals destined for food-insecure regions globally. “It is a whole community effort,” Pastor John Nothwang of Christ Church and member of the Ministerium said. On Friday evening, trucks with thousands of pounds of rice and beans showed up at the Arch that were then unl...
A fire damaged a two-story duplex on Wednesday, April 10, in the afternoon in Williamsburg. Deputy Fire Chief Steve Lane of Williamsburg Volunteer Fire Department said a neighbor called in the incident, and when his crew first arrived on scene the whole back of the house was on fire at 821 W. Second St. The homeowner, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was outside when he heard the fan in the attic pop and then saw flames coming out of the window at about 1:30 p.m. Deputy Chief Lane said...
Martinsburg Borough recently installed electronic radar speed signs at West Allegheny, East Allegheny, and South Market streets. Martinsburg Police Chief Kerry Hoover said the signs can tell police how fast traffic is going and the times that speeding tends to happen. The signs show motorists driving towards the sign how fast they are going and will signal the driver to slow down when their speed gets too high. Chief Hoover said the signs can detect the speed of vehicles going both ways and not...
Northern Bedford County School District Superintendent Todd Beatty gave a 2024-25 preliminary budget presentation at the April 9 Northern Bedford School District Board of School Directors meeting. Beatty proposed a 3.65 percent tax increase for the district, which falls just between the minimum of 0.5 percent and the state-set maximum allowed of 7.3 percent. This represents an increase to the median household of $45 a year in taxes. It does not count homestead program money that the district may be eligible for. Supplies, wages, health...
Pennsylvania Farm Link is currently offering free land-linking database memberships until April 30, 2024, thanks to a database sponsor, Horizon Farm Credit. The $100 value waiver includes a profile on our database, notifications for potential matches, and an optional one-time social media promotion of your profile. In 2023 alone, there were 110 potential matches with six confirmed completed transactions. The purpose of the land-linking database is to provide a space for beginning farmers and current landowners to showcase their purchase/lease...
Horse-and-carriage rides around part of historic Martinsburg were offered on April 14 by The Carriage Barn at Homestead Manor and Restored Grounds. The Barn at Homestead Manor of Martinsburg and Green Roof Acres of Hollidaysburg are both venues available for weddings, meetings, events and retreats....
After completing a recent Google search, I discovered there are a number of people known for statements concerning history repeating itself. The adage that I found that best fits the story you are about to read is the quote, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana in his 1905 book, The Life of Reason, deserves credit for this thought-provoking quote. A cool, wet, dewy morning I was on my way to a doctor’s appointment one morning about 20 years ago, and before I left I took our dog out to do her bus...
During the regular April meeting of the Spring Cove School District Board of Directors, Cheyenne Dickson was named Martinsburg Elementary Principal for the 2023-24 school year. Her annual compensation will be $85,000 with a start date of May 13. Dickson has been the assistant principal at Central High School for the past three years. Prior to coming to Spring Cove School District, she taught fourth- and fifth-grade classes at Bellwood Antis Elementary for seven years. She also served as an...
Shaylea Gates, a local cosmetologist who was employed at Serenity Hair Salon in Woodbury, has opened her own spa in Bedford, at 126 East Pitt St. Bel Cielo Hair and Nail Spa is the chosen name which was named in honor of her daughter Sky. The name means “beautiful sky” in Italian. Gates specializes in nail design, pedicures, hair coloring and styling. As a child she always had an interest in serving others and making them feel beautiful, she said. Gates attended The Salon Professional Academy be...
Speeders from the North American Railcar Operators Association made a stop at the Roaring Station around noon on Saturday, April 13, during their visit to the area. They met at the Hollidaysburg railroad station and went through Brooks Mills on the rail line that runs to Claysburg. When they reached Claysburg, they turned the cars around to return to Hollidaysburg. From there, they headed to the Cove, stopping at Roaring Spring for lunch before traveling to Bean Hill in Martinsburg. After that,...
The Blair County Dog Park Association is beginning its 13th season with a lot of reason to celebrate. The dog park, which is located off Agway Road in North Woodbury Township, offers 10.6 acres of scenic, rural land. The association, a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization, was recently able to purchase the 10.6 acres of land where the dog park is located. After leasing the land for 12 years, the parcel was offered to the association for purchase. Through a fund-raising endeavor, the park raised the...
Aaron Andrews who works for Hollidaysburg Ambulance Emergency Medical Service (EMS) as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) taught 15 people on Sunday, April 7, the basics of CPR and how to use an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED). Paramedics assess the patient’s condition at the scene and work to keep them stable while transporting them to the hospital. EMTs are paramedics who are required to complete more extensive training and are therefore, qualified to perform more advanced p...
The Bedford County Players will be performing Neil Simon’s “Barefoot in the Park” April 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28 at the Bedford County Playhouse located in Centerville, PA. Friday and Saturday evening performances begin at 7:30PM and Sunday matinees begin at 3:00PM. Tickets can be reserved by calling 814-623-7555 or you can purchase them online via our website at bedfordcountyplayers.org. “Barefoot in the Park” is a production of the Samuel French Group. Synopsis: Paul and Corie Bratter are newlyweds in every sense of the word. He’s a st...
My wife and I recently returned from an anniversary trip to the Gulf Coast of Florida. We had a great time together in the sun and wished we could have extended our four-day trip for another month or two. But real life awaited us back home. While I could tell you some details of our trip, I want to focus on my reflections from the back of the airplane. We flew from Washington to Tampa on an economy airline. The price was right, but the conditions were less than ideal. The city traffic in both places reminded me that I’m thankful to live in B...
“You’re going broke,” Catharine Township Auditor Daryl Cole told the township supervisors during last Thursday evening’s meeting, as he presented the annual audit report. Cole said over the last few years, the township has been losing money yearly – more than $10,000 per year. Cole then offered specifics from the audit report, such as Visa charges that were paid without receipts later being obtained, and the number of unnecessary late fees and interest charges on the township’s credit card. Cole suggested a treasurer backup, as no one besides...
“I just want the young people of our town, when they see the sign – that it could be them up there representing Williamsburg all around the world; for them – the sky is the limit,” former Williamsburg Mayor Bill Brantner said of the new sign coming to Williamsburg that features prominent Williamsburg residents. Brantner served as Mayor from 2004-08, and has served as a tour manager for musical artist Ricky Lee for the last thirteen years. “When I was traveling with him, I’d see all these signs...
Williamsburg students enjoying the circus....
Superintendent Dr. Betsy Baker reviewed the Spring Cove School District finance committee meeting presentation for the 2024-25 school year budget, given by Business Manager Steven Foor at the April Board of Directors Committee of the Whole meeting. Dr. Baker discussed the challenges facing the district financially, particularly the cost of cyber charter schools. Spring Cove will face a $200,000 increase in cyber charter costs for the 2024-25 school year. Baker said, “Although the maximum a...
After retiring from working in education all of his life, Chuck Kensinger, 74, of Martinsburg has taken up hiking as a new hobby with a goal of trekking the entire Mid State Trail in Pennsylvania. The Mid State Trail is 331.6 miles and often called the “wildest trail” because of the varied terrain, Kensingner said. “I enjoy setting goals,” he said, about what he liked about hiking. His friend Bob Shinskie, 68, a retired school administrator from Spring Mills, Pa., near State College, and he...
For Martinsburg Borough residents only, a cleanup day is set for Saturday, April 27, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. The location is the Martinsburg Borough garage, 371 South Nicodemus Street. This event provides an opportunity for borough residents to get rid of hard-to-dispose of items that trash haulers will not take during normal pickup. The following types of items will be accepted free of charge: Air conditioners, batteries (car, truck, motorcycle), BBQ grills, bicycles, computers, computer monitors, copiers, dehumidifiers, dishwashers, doors,...
Shane Ritchey of Martinsburg took this photo of the eclipse on Monday, April 8, from his residence. The total solar eclipse crossed North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the Sun. Because of the path the eclipse took across the Earth, viewers in Pennsylvania did not see the Sun entirely blocked. According to NASA, after Monday’s total solar eclipse, the n...
Woodbury Borough council held its monthly meeting April 1 at the Woodbury Community Center at 7 p.m. Councilmember Tim Wentz and Mayor Jordan Pabon were absent. One community resident was in attendance. After the pledge of allegiance was recited, the meeting was called to order by President Shawn Claycomb. The community resident in attendance questioned why the mayor was not present again. Barb Wilt, secretary, stated that Pabon had told her he may be late. But he did not show up at this meeting and is frequently absent. Although Pabon was...
CORRECTION The caption for a photo which appeared on Page A-6 of the April 4, 2024, edition of the Herald contained incorrect information. The photo caption should have read: Hundreds of children took part in the First Annual Easter Egg Hunt Friday evening at Memorial Park. The event was organized by the park and the Rotary with 400 children hunting for 8,000 eggs with some containing a winning ticket number for electronic prizes. The photo was by Gary M. Baranec Editor’s Note: We want to get i...
On March 23, Circle K Gifts of Main Street, Woodbury, held its first craft show. Twenty-three vendors participated in the craft show. Althea Kelly, an artist from Woodbury, offered hand-sewn flags featuring John Deere and other brands. She also sells potholders. Althea said that she has been doing this for 20 years. Jennifer Stiffler was selling PZ fragrances. These are scented meltable sprinkles made from soybeans grown in the U.S. They are used in plug-in air fresheners instead of using wax cubes. Multiple scents are available from fruit...
A long discussion was held at the April regular monthly supervisors’ meeting for North Woodbury Township in regard to making a decision on new salt storage bins. The bid from Garman Brothers Construction was given for a 4,000-square-foot. storage bin of $427,000, but for a smaller 2,400-square-foot bin, the price came in at $375,000. Supervisor J.D. Donaldson said for the $52,000 difference, the township would be losing a great amount of storage area. He didn’t think this was a good choice. The bid was more than the grant money which the tow...
On April 2, the monthly meeting of the South Woodbury Township Board of Supervisors meeting took place at the township building at 9 a.m. The township office will be closed on April 22-26 for vacation. Also, on April 23, the township building will be a polling place for the Primary Election. After the secretary’s and treasurer’s reports, bids were opened for the 2024 road projects. New Enterprise Stone and Lime won the project with a bid of $65,392. The PennDOT Annual Transportation Meeting will be held on April 9 at 10:30 a.m. at the Sna...
Editor’s Note: Author Alissa Walker is a sophomore at Mount Aloysius College and is a middle-level education major with a concentration in history. She is from Williamsburg and graduated from Williamsburg Junior/Senior High School in 2022. At the Mount, she enjoys giving tours as a student ambassador and volunteering with clubs and organizations on campus. She submitted this essay to the Herald, which is proud to publish it. The health benefits from animals to humans can be felt throughout all ages, and with our increasing age of population, t...
Becoming an organ donor takes little time and can save more than one life in the process. April is the National Donate for Life Month and to celebrate, Conemaugh Nason Medical Center held a flag-raising ceremony Tuesday, April 2, in connection to the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE). The hospital has been supporting the cause since 2016, though CORE was founded in 2006. Since its inception, over 50,000 flags have been raised across the United States. “Today, Nason is one of the t...
The Jaffa Shrine’s 84th Annual Circus is taking place from April 10-14 at the Jaffa Shrine Center in Altoona. Tickets are available now and are selling fast. For ticket purchases and more information, visit www.jaffashriners.org/circus or contact the Jaffa Shrine Box Office at (814) 944-4043. The Jaffa Shrine is dedicated to serving its community and supporting charitable causes, including Shriners Hospitals for Children. By attending the Jaffa Shrine Circus, people are able to contribute to a worthy cause. “The 84th iteration of the JAFFA Shr...
Gary Brumbaugh has been in the fireworks industry for over 30 years doing both professional shows and having a retail store for the last seven years in Royer just outside of Williamsburg. “I have always enjoyed doing the professional shows — since we opened the store, every year we do better,” he said. Consumer fireworks were legalized in 2017, the Brumbaugh Fireworks opened in 2018. The store started out as just one building and there was no sprinkler system at the time, which meant they could...
On Saturday, April 6, the Martinsburg Booster Association conducted its annual PennDOT Adopt-A-Highway cleanup between Martinsburg and Fredericksburg. Helping the Boosters were Boy Scouts from Martinsburg Troop 358. Shown are (from left): Scouts Alex Neuder, Daniel Longwell, Jace King, Brandon Reynolds, and leaders Ted Reynolds and Paul Longwell. Boosters participating in the trash pickup were Jim Dell. Luanne Eckenrode, Earl Springer, Jason Dick, Rebekah Dick, Homer Shriner, Ken Ake, Ed...
The Southern Cove Power Reunion met on Thursday, April 4 at 6 p.m. More than 35 members attended the meeting and were enthusiastic about the group’s upcoming events. The secretary and treasurer report were read and accepted as read. A discussion took place on the Spring Plow Day and Tractor Show which is on April 20 with the rain date being April 27. The show will start about 9 a.m. and plowing demonstrations will take place. There will also be a Tractor Parade with the Tractor Pull starting at 4 p.m. Weigh-in is at 3 p.m. All size tractors a...
John Bush was raised in Martinsburg and graduated from Central High in 1961. He spent most of his adult life in the Pacific Northwest. He has many memories as a boy in the 1950s that give some insight to the people and culture of Martinsburg in the 1950s. John likes to tell stories and over the years he has repeated the stories of his youth many times. His belief is that those years in Martinsburg influenced him all of his life. Some of the stories are historical in nature, some are colorful, and some are personal. He wishes that you enjoy...
In 2023, Pennsylvania had 2,560 municipalities, according to data from the Governor’s Center for Local Government Services. Sixty-four percent of these boroughs, townships, and cities are rural, and 36 percent are urban. In rural Pennsylvania, there is one municipal government for every 1,765 residents, and in urban Pennsylvania, there is one municipality for every 11,079 residents. During the last 78 years, the number of municipalities in Pennsylvania has been remarkably stable. According to t...
1 Corinthians 15:1-11 ere your story and the story of our savior intertwine? In this letter to the people at Corinth, Paul is nothing but honest. He sets before them the story of Jesus as it was handed down to him. He emphasizes his unworthiness as he mentions his background as a persecutor of the church. He knows how greatly he has been changed by the grace of God. What we read in these verses is a beautiful model of a life that has been transformed. It’s a human story intertwined with the grace of God: who he is by what God has done for h...
Local granges serve as a center of rural life in many agricultural communities. People who live outside such communities may be unfamiliar with granges, including what they are. The most basic definition of a grange is an outlying farm or land with a manor building on the property. When first developed in 12th century Britain, granges were properties that may have been owned by a lord, who chose to live on the property or leased it to others. Other granges were held by the church, mainly by monasteries. The grange definition and system was...
“This is the time of the year where things are really starting to pick up and get exciting for the library,” Williamsburg Public Library Head Librarian Roane Lytle said. “We are gearing up for a lot of new and old activities for the community.” First, the library is planning to bring back one of their honored traditions with the Local Author Series. “It’s something we had back before COVID, and we’ve done it little by little during the summer. It’s nice to get it back to a month of some exciting local authors,” Lytle said. The first part of...
Williamsburg Borough Chief of Police Rowdy Kagarise announced during last Monday evening’s borough council meeting that an intelligence operation snagged three drug dealers in the Williamsburg area. Chief Kagarise said that $3,000 worth of methamphetamine was taken off the streets, and three persons were in custody for drug charges. “It’s taken a long time,” Chief Kagarise told borough council members. “I couldn’t have done it without my team of officers.” Chief Kagarise praised both police officers, Dave Flaig and Adam Hauser. “Thank you for a...
Following the acceptance of Ed Clark’s resignation letter as supervisor during last Thursday evening’s April Woodbury Township meeting, Secretary Kelsie Lego announced that there was one letter of interest. However, that interested person is a state employee, and supervisors were not sure if they can be both a state employee and a township supervisor. Supervisors and Solicitor Aimee Willett said they would look into the matter and tabled discussion until next meeting. Ed Clark was hired as a full-time roadworker. Following his 90-day probation...
