Wows & Scowls
Scowl: How is it possible that in Pennsylvania, 75 percent of personal care homes are operating with expired licenses, putting untold numbers of residents at potential risk? Department of Public Welfare Secretary Estelle Richman has proposed adding 30 retired workers as temporary, part-time inspectors and hiring a private company to aid the effort, with the goal of erasing the inspection backlog by the end of this year. Of the 1,190 homes with expired licenses, 600 haven’t been inspected by the state since new regulations went on the books two years ago. It’s sad when critical issues like this take a back seat to new, multi-million-dollar hockey arenas on the state’s priority list. Wow: She’s in the national spotlight again because of derisive comments about her team by talk show host Don Imus, but that current controversy shouldn’t detract from the stellar basketball coaching career of C. Vivian Stringer, who piloted her Rutgers University team to this year’s NCAA championship game. A former resident of Edenborn and a graduate of German Township High School, Stringer is one of the greatest success stories in Fayette County history. We’ll take her resume over Imus’ any day.
Wow: Brownsville Marine Products is seeking workers, period, and is willing to train anyone who walks through the door, provided they are willing to learn and show up for work on time. The barge maker needs welders and fabricators, and says it is capable of significantly boosting production if it can find or create capable workers. It might have a better chance of doing that once it adds a 401(k) retirement savings plan to its benefits package, which is in the works.
Wow: North Union Township supervisors plan to buy property for a planned recreation center for township residents. That’s a nice amenity for the community – and it shows that township supervisors are capable of doing much more than be responsible for road repairs and maintenance. They serve as the equivalent of a city’s mayor and borough council, and have the power to do many things if they choose. Like create a police department.
Wow: The white buffalo born last fall at Woodland Zoo in Farmington, a one in 10 million occurrence, will be blessed Saturday by a group of American Indians headed by a spiritual chief of the Lakota tribe. Such animals are sacred in Indian tradition. The 1 to 4 p.m. event is open to the public.
Wow: Newell Borough councilwoman Phyllis Newill plans to start rounding up cats to alleviate a growing problem, getting them spayed or neutered and adopting them out. The purpose of her plan is also rooted in nudging pet owners to start being more responsible. Kudos to the local veterinarian who’s agreed to perform the spayings and neuterings at no charge.
Wow: May 1 is the 74th annual Americanism Day parade in Uniontown. That’s an impressive streak. Try to attend.