About Westmoreland County, PA

What are the next steps for Donegal??

If you recall (or scroll down far enough) over the past few years there has been an out reach to the community to assist in improving the Rt 31 corridor. For branding purposes and as locals we refer to this Rt as the "Gateway to the Laurel Highlands."

This Tuesday (July 7) at the Donegal Community Center beginning at 7 p.m. a review will be offered from the suggestions obtained during the public meeting last December. Concepts of the corridor enhancements will be available for inspection. The proposed and greatly needed Visitor Center will also be a focus of the draft report.

HERE IS ONE MORE OPPROTUNITY FOR YOU TO VOICE YOUR THOUGHTS!! Please help to make Donegal a better place to live, work, play, and VISIT!! Attendees will be asked to list priorities including:

Development of a Visitor Center to include a community center, municipal services, historical exhibits, and entertainment space.

Adoption of Communtiy Design Guidelines

Improvements to Rt 31 that would improve efficiency and SAFETY

Development of a Park and Ride

Development of a community garden

This forum is being sponsored by The Pennsylvania Environmental Council. For more details contact Brad Clemenson 814-659-3465 or Sarah Harkcom 724-593-2818 Remember there are forces working together for tremendously promoting this area as a MUST VISIT area. Let's help put our best foot forward!!

See you there!

They are more commonly referred to as EAB. Why are we writing about them? Have you seen the billboards that say, "I promise not to move firewood?" They started appearing locally a few months back and made us wonder, "What's behind that unusual message?"

Shortly after that we started to notice purple hanging boxes in the trees. Turns out they are traps set only in Ash trees to determine if the EAB is here. In fact there's one on County Line road as you're headed up to Seven Springs on the right and several on Rt 31.

We owe all of this promotional marketing to the Emerald Ash Borer. In 2002 Michigan residents first identified this vibrant green beetle. Over 700 million dead trees later, (in Michigan ALONE) the fight to contain this pest wages on. Destroying Ash trees in twelve other states, Ontario, and Quebec, the EAB beetle has now been found in Westmoreland County.

Here's their MO. Adults lay their eggs on the Ash tree BARK from mid-May through mid August. Eggs hatch into larvae and tunnel into the tree. The larvae live UNDER the bark and create S-shaped paths. This stage is where the damage is done. Their feeding disrupts the water flow from the roots to the crown and within a year to four the tree is dead. THERE IS NO CURE.

Getting back to the billboards the beetles are transferred from one area to another by moving infected firewood. ALWAYS use LOCAL FIREWOOD to help stop the spread of the EAB. Ash trees have been popular for landscaping as they grow quickly and can be found throughout the grounds at BOTH Hidden Valley and Seven Springs. To identify an ash tree look at the leaves. This site shows the different types of Ash trees. If you begin to notice the crown of your trees thinning out take a closer look at your bark!! PLEASE DON'T MOVE FIREWOOD!

Don’t be surprised to see the paparazzi lurking about the resort this week! Tomorrow, Wednesday (June 24) will welcome Irlene Mandrell and her sisters, Barbara and Louise to our mountains! Specifically to Seven Springs newly finished shooting lodge for Irlene’s Irlenes Celebrity Shoot 2009. There are several registration catagories and prices.

Thursday is Kid’s Day with celebrities signing autographs. According to her web site, “competition is 200 rounds of Sporting Clays with side games including, 9mm pistol side event, Paintball Challenge, Wobble Trap, 5 Stand, Tomahawk Throw, 22 revolver, Gamo air rifle, Two man flush, Terrible teal, and the Cotton ball drop.”

Wag’s has been shooting and watching the new facility go up and took some pictures for you! He says it’s awesome! There’s seven thousand square feet in the timber framed lodge that takes advantage of geo-thermal heating. Look for private lessons, tournaments, corporate and non-profit events to be on the line up! Even if you are not a shooter you need to visit this lodge on top of the mountain and overlooking a lake. Check out the new restaurant hours for a most enjoyable visit.

Here’s a list of the celebs listed on Irlene’s web site as attending, “David Caruso, Emily Procter, Rex Linn, Lee Horsley, Frankie Anne, Alan Dysert, Leslie Easterbrook, Dan Wilcox, Steve Kanaly, James E. Partee, Jr., Branscombe Richmond, Charles Napier, Kevin Blake Weldon, Michael Gregory, Scott Shepherd, Tim Abell, Tracy Lawrence, Anne Lockhart, Zane Taylor, Brian Gates, Marshall Teague, Lindy Teague, Congressman Sam Graves, John Di Santi, Robert Guy Miranda, TJ Klay, Ray Kelly, Michael Stern, Lyle Omori, Chuck Stapel, Sherol L. Engel, Jeffrey L. Engel, Steve Scott, T Bubba, Michael Collins, Buck McNeely, Jack Allocco, Stacie Randall, Lu Parker, Mike Rogers, Congressman Bill Shuster, Jim Scoutten and many more ...”

Irlene’s site says, “In the past her shoot has supported Wish Upon a Star, Inc and the Boy Scouts of America.” There’s a charity auction with some very interesting offerings! Here’s to much success and wonderful weather!

143 Southwind $694,905

4807 Swiss Mtn $105,000

126 Southwind $525,584

9006 WoodRidge $325,000

2304 Swiss Mtn $225,000

124 Southwind $987,792

8064 MeadowRidge $200,000

Baggaley Elementary School Receives Over 13,500 Labels for Education^TM from Morella's Route 30 Shop-n-Save

By Christine Emmick

Over the last two years, the owners and patrons of Morella's Route 30 Shop-n-Save have donated over 39,500 Campbell's^® Labels for Education^TM to Latrobe area schools. The most recent donation was over 13,500 Labels for Education^TM certificates to a Latrobe area Elementary School. The students of Baggaley Elementary School in Latrobe happily received these at this month's PTA meeting from the owners, Craig and Lisa Morella, of the Latrobe area Shop-n-Save.

Campbell's Soup Labels for Education^TM program enables schools to get free school supplies and school equipment. With these certificates, the school can select anything from Crayola^® art supplies, Merriam-Webster's^® reference books and Math Blaster^® learning software, to playground equipment, to an overhead projector or a wireless PA system. The program also includes earning points for video projectors, iMac^® and Dell^® computers, flat panel TVs, educational games, science kits and models, microscopes and even an electronic scoreboard.

Members of the community joined their efforts by donating Labels for Education UPC codes from the products they use and dropping them off at the box located at the front of the service desk. Many Campbell's^® soup UPC codes qualify for the Labels for Education^TM program, and Labels for Education^TM points are also found on selected Spaghettios^®, Franco-American^®, Prego^®, Pepperidge Farm^® and Swanson^® products. Selected V8^® juice caps and certain Campbell's^® Foodservice products are even accepted. For more information on the program, visit www.labelsforeducation.com.

Look for Morella's on the web at www.rt30shopnsave.com where you'll find out more about their community events, including the What's Cooking at Morella's Route 30 Shop-n-Save radio show heard Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. on WCNS 1480. For more information about the Labels for Education^TM program, upcoming events, weekly specials or other sales promotions, contact the Morella's Route 30 Shop-n-Save at 724-532-3939.

Christine Emmick is a freelance foods and business writer based in the Pittsburgh area. You may contact Christine through her blog site at www.activerain.com/cemmick.