8/13/08

Blossburg News & Views
By Cheryl Whitney Boinske

The Blossburg V.I.B.E. community garden team turned an empty lot across from the Blossburg Fire Hall on Main Street into a thriving garden this growing season and the harvest is beginning. V.I.B.E. President Tonya McNamara led the effort to create a garden with expert guidance from Anne Fisher-LoPinto of Liberty and Diane Stehman of Arnot and lots of help from many community members.The garden consists of 19 individual 4' by 4' and 4' by 8' plots and four large community plots with potatoes and squash to rejuvenate the soil. "The idea of a community garden has been floating around for a couple of years," McNamara said. "This year it all came together. The Borough of Blossburg allowed us to use the empty lot located in a flood zone and the Blossburg Municipal Authority provided access to water." The goal of the garden is to provide access to land for planting for those who might not have it, as well as a supportive environment to learn about gardening, McNamara said. It has the additional benefit of using an unproductive lot of land near the borough business district. For more information on this and other V.I.B.E. projects please visit blossburg.org.

The first day of school is August 25th. There will be no school on September 1st due to the Labor Day holiday.

Practice will begin Monday, August 11th. Varsity -- 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM, Lunch -- 11:00 - noon, Varsity and JV -- noon - 2:30 PM. As of August 20th through the end of the season: Varsity -- 3:30 PM - 6:00 PM, JV -- 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Friday practices will be joint for all volleyball players -- 3:30 PM - 6:00 PM

New 2008/09 school meal prices: Elementary Breakfast: $1.00, Lunch:$1.90, milk:.50. High School: Breakfast: $1.00, Lunch:$2.10, milk: .50 and Adult Meals: $3.30.

Emergency school closing information: The decision to close schools or conduct a late start or early dismissal due to inclement weather or unforeseen emergencies will be made by the Superintendent. Delayed Starts: 2 hours—students arrive at 10:10 a.m. School breakfast will be served. Early Dismissals: The decision to have an early dismissal will be made by 10:00 a.m. with a dismissal time generally of 1:00 p.m. School lunch will be served. School Closings: No school for students, teachers, paraprofessionals, office or cafeteria personnel. The school day will be made up as per the school district calendar . Bus Routes: On days when certain routes are too hazardous to drive, the administration will respect the judgment of the driver who may choose not to traverse a route. The bus driver will notify the students involved.

Blossburg Trivia: As of 2007, Blossburg's population is 1,459 people. Since 2000, it has had a population growth of -1.42 percent.

The median home cost in Blossburg is $149,600. Home appreciation the last year has been 5.40 percent.

Compared to the rest of the country, Blossburg's cost of living is 22.16% Lower than the U.S. average.

Blossburg public schools spend $6,197 per student. The average school expenditure in the U.S. is $6,058. There are about 13 students per teacher in Blossburg.

The unemployment rate in Blossburg is 4.40 percent(U.S. avg. is 4.60%). Recent job growth is Negative. Blossburg jobs have Decreased by 1.87 percent.

34.54% of the people in Blossburg, PA are religious, meaning they affiliate with a religion. 7.50% are Catholic; 22.64% are Protestant; 0.44% are LDS; 3.95% are another Christian faith; 0.00% in Blossburg, PA are Jewish; 0.01% are an eastern faith; 0.00% affilite with Islam.

30.94% of the people in Blossburg, PA are registered as Democrats. 68.40% are registered Republican. Remaining are independent: 0.65%.

REMINDERS:

A food pantry is held the third Monday each month from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at First United Methodist Church of Blossburg. For more information, contact Betty Johnson at (570) 638-2805.

T.O.P.S. (Take off Pounds Sensibly) meets every Monday at the First United Methodist Church of Blossburg. Weigh-in is at 5 p.m.

Blossburg BINGO! Every Monday bingo is held at St. Mary's Hall, 6:30 p.m.

Loretta Frost-Steffen; a Creative Memories Consultant holds scrapbooking classes every Tuesday night from 6pm to 10 pm. Call for more information: 570-404-4336

If you or your organizations have any birthdays, anniversaries, congratulations, sympathies, events, information or any questions for Blossburg News & Views, please contact Cheryl Whitney Boinske, (570) 638-3107 or news@blossburg.org.

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