New Castle, PA

"In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous",

( Aristotle)

The fragrant floral gardens,

in a park like setting, that surrounds Mary Mother of Hope parish, welcomes it's visitors, to the awareness of beauty and tranquility. It is an oasis in the desert for mind and spirit, inside this church, as well as the parish gardens.

The planting, delicate care and nurturing of all the hundreds of flowers are joyfully done

by Richard and Ann Lukas. They have volunteered their time and their green thumbs for the last 4 years .

This year Rich said their focus was to change the land landscaping along the front entrance of the church.

Seven pick-up loads of dirt were removed and replaced with 4 1/2 tons of new top soil mixed with mushroom compost.

New young pachysandra plants and many flowering plants have been planted this year. It was decided to increase the perennials, due to the short period planting season.

Rich And Ann started their project on June 3. and still visit the gardens daily to water the flowers. Their first step in their yearly project was to plant the flowers around the rectory and fill the flower boxes.

Their plan was to give the plants an early start, so that when the " Mary Mother of Hope Summer Fest" occurred, the plants would be in full glory

Rich said, that Ann does the hedge clipping ,the edging and helps with the planting. Rich and Ann often work by street lights in the evening to get the job completed.

Rich has retired from his previous job and Ann works until 5:00 everyday, so the work had to be done in the evening, that gave them the opportunity to work on the project together

They never worked on Sunday and tried to juggle their planting time in-between church weddings, funerals, church events, and meetings.

.

.Mr. and Mrs. Lukas have always been actively involved with their church and they love every minute of it.

Love poured forth.................

..........evident in the beauty of the Majestic, Gothic, Roman Catholic , Mary Mother of Hope parish.

Thank you to the pastor, Rev. Victor Molka and Rich and Ann Lukas for showing us God’s beauty through Mary Mother of Hope parish and it's gardens.

The parish is located at 124 N Beaver Street, a few blocks from the center of town.

Visit the church web site at www.marymotherofhope.com

Rich and Ann also are into antiques and have a business called…Rich & Ann’s Past Timers and Bloomers

Union Township can be proud of it's beautiful Scotland Meadows Park In New Castle, Pennsylvania.

July 15 through July 20, Union Township's beautiful Scotland Meadows Park was the home of the

2008 Edition of the Western Pennsylvania Balloon Quest.

New Castle residents as well as out of town visitors attend this yearly event. The Union Township Fire Department host the festival every year. The main sponsor of this event is Mrozek Financial.

Twenty one balloons were involved this year and the traditional :" Nite Glow Event" was held Thursday night.

Seven of the Hot Air Balloon operators ignited their burners, while the balloons were anchored to the ground. The burners were ignited in sequence, inflating the hot air balloon and giving off a glow that lighted the night sky.

The event sponsored Hot Air Balloon rides, plenty of food vendors, craft vendors and Amusement rides for the kids.

I went to the park Sunday morning for the 6:30 AM launch, but it was canceled due to an earlier rain burst. In the pictures you will see the Union Middle and High School.
It sets at the top of a hill and the view from the school is Scotland Meadows Park..

While I was there at 6:30 this morning a dad and his young son was already taking baseball practice at the ball field at the park.

Well...... the hot air balloons are gone for another year and I missed the Sunday launch, but there is always next year.......of course weather permitting.

Partial view of Union High School

Come with me for a Sunday drive through downtown New Castle. I want to share with you what our hometown has to offer. When the welcome sign greets you, it is truly sincere. The residents are proud to claim New Castle as their own.

Our New Castle is going through a revitalization and with beautiful results. Our buildings stand stately, rich in history. The Lawrence County Seat of Government stands in prominence and majestically looks over the city, as it's row of American Flags remind us to be grateful that we live free in the hometown of our choice.

Our town has a complimentary mixture of the old and the new. The students of New Castle High School enjoy the benefits of a new high school in the northern part of the city. Since a runaway truck destroyed our previous fountain, in the middle of the diamond, a new impressive stone fountain found a new home.

A stop for lunch a Coney Island Hot Dog Shop is a must. When out of towner returns to New Castle, one of the first stops or at least before they leave, they eat at Coney Island. It is a required taste...BUT soon attainable. Not that I am boasting,' but New Castle is also the HOT DOG CAPITAL of America. We have other great hot dog shops in the city.

I would not be surprised if we became the pizza capital of America. Great pizza here. Pizza Joes is a local famous New Castle pizza, along with many other locals..All good pizza here!!!

One of the most beautiful areas of the city is the Zambelli Memorial Park in memorial to Mr Zambelli, The fireworks King. The park is a fitting tribute to one of our famous icons. It is a magnificent gift to the city from the Zambelli family.

You hear the negative so much anymore and the beauty and the positive often is overlooked. We need to be proud of our hometowns..I know I am I hope you enjoyed our Sunday drive.

our New Castle, Lawrence County zips are 16101,16105,16102,16103,16107,16108

Excitement and music filled the air as I drove through this beautiful Neshannock Township park in New Castle, Pa . on the 4 th of July.

The Neshannock township firemen were there treating young and old alike to a ride through the park on a dated open bed firetruck.

Pearson park boast of 105 acres of picnic areas, soccer and football fields, 3 baseball fields, 6 tennis courts, Children's playground, 2 sand volleyball courts, and of course walking trails through the park. The Hess Sports Complex is part of the park and offers indoor year round pool and ice skating.

There is plenty of excitement all summer. . Every day is a holiday here. It is just a summer favorite place to be. There is a " Summer Sunday Music Series" event at the Gazebo.

How wonderful it is to see family and friends enjoying each others company, all celebrating their freedom to do so on this Independence day.

I must say our little home town residents were very patriotic with their red white and blue's today. Hope you had a great holiday...from what I saw on my ride through the park ...They did!

The Peaceful

The Serene

Cascade Park in New Castle, Pa can be just a place to experience calming your mind. The one time bustling, favorite amusement park has now become a peaceful walk in the park or a intimate picnic at the picnic shelter near the stream. Many of the landmarks are new, the old carousel is gone but the beloved Italian lemon ice stand is still there and is open every day in the summer. The huge big band dance hall pavilion looms over the park and is still used for dances and other special events. Our Cascade PArk hold the

richness of tradition and the newness of serenity.

I wanted to post these few pictures of the park to show the sharp contrast of the Back to the 50's event and the natural beauty of the park