Cheers & Jeers
Cheer: Congratulations to Mount Pleasant’s Dayton Pitzer and Jamison Poklembo, Bentworth’s Chris Vargo and Frazier’s Rune Lawrence for winning titles last Saturday at the WPIAL Class AA Individual Wrestling Championships. Cheers also to Elizabeth Forward’s Damon Michaels and Mount Pleasant’s Ian Fasano for winning silver medals, and Beth-Center’s Kyle McCollum, Tyler Debnar, Tyler Berish and Trevor Pettit, Elizabeth Forward’s Nicholas Murphy and Mount Pleasant’s Noah Gnibus for winning bronze medals.
Cheer: The students at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, once again knocked it out of the ballpark, raising $46,112 for Penn State’s annual IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon. Better known as THON, the event raises millions every year for Four Diamonds to fund pediatric cancer research. The charity also supports children and families fighting cancer. While the pandemic necessitated the event to be held virtually this year, the Fayette dancers ranked the highest across Penn State’s campuses for fundraising. It’s the 17th time participants at the campus have earned that distinction. Since 1998, the campus has raised a total of $1.44 million. As Chancellor Charles Patrick noted, “Their dedication truly demonstrates Penn State resilience and generosity.”
Cheer: Nursing students at Waynesburg University in Waynesburg and Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus in Lemont Furnace, have been helping to distribute COVID-19 vaccines. While it’s a great learning tool for them, it’s also a wonderful way to add to the army of health care workers who are administering doses of the potentially life-saving vaccine. We have to imagine many got into that field out of a desire to help people; this is quite an incredible way to see that dream realized.
Cheer: Superintendents of the Greene County school districts deserve kudos for their efforts in and dedication to ensuring students are receiving a quality education during these uncertain times. During a recent meeting with Brian Jackson (West Greene), Kevin Monaghan (Central Greene), Fred Morecraft (Carmichaels Area), Joseph Orr (Jefferson-Morgan) and Rich Pekar (Southeastern Greene) – as well as with Mark Krupa, director of the Greene County Career and Technology Center – it was very obvious that these leaders have been working tirelessly and diligently with their respective administrative staff, teachers and students in doing whatever possible to navigate uncharted waters stemming from seemingly insurmountable obstacles caused mostly by the COVID-19 pandemic. The superintendents discussed many different initiatives that have been implemented which focus on improving virtual learning, charter and cyber-schooling, ensuring free meals and emphasizing the safety and well-being of all students. They should be commended for doing whatever they possibly can to prioritize their students’ educations and continuing to adapt, even as safety and education guidelines may change in the blink of an eye.