Keystone College Establishes VST Headquarters Keystone College is going above and beyond in its efforts to serve our nation’s veterans. The college is now the East Coast headquarters for Veterans Stand Together (VST), a national non-profit organization dedicated to providing a wide-range of critical services to people who have served our nation so well. VST will maintain a presence at Keystone’s Veterans Center in Alumni Hall on campus and plans to extend its outreach to the Northeastern Pennsylvania community. Based in Torrance, Cal., VST serves as a type of clearinghouse to help veterans obtain important services as they adjust to life outside of the military. “Military veterans have so many needs as they transition to civilian life but sometimes they don’t know where to turn to get answers to their questions,” said VST Chief Academic Officer Mark Treston, a 1993 Keystone College graduate. “Those needs are varied and are often unique to each individual. They could involve medical or psychological assistance, career training, educational advice, or a combination of all those and more. Our goal is to talk to each person and find out exactly what they are seeking, put them in contact with the right groups or organizations, and then work with them to see that their specific situation is addressed.” VST was created in 2020 at the height of COVID-19 pandemic by Mr. Treston, a veteran of the Israeli military, and the organization’s Executive Director George Casillas, a U.S. Marine veteran. Both men operate a security firm in California and have employees who are veterans. “We noticed several of them needed assistance in some way but really didn’t know where to go or who to speak with. Being former military members, George and I tried to provide our assistance and put them in contact with people or organizations that could help,” Mr. Treston said. “That’s how we began and we’ve continued to expand our outreach in the past couple of years.” Now, the affiliation with his alma mater will enable VST to expand its presence even further. “As a Keystone alumnus, I’m so thrilled to begin operations on campus. Keystone has a long and proud history of service to veterans dating back over 150 years,” Mr. Treston said. “We’re so proud to help veterans and their family members at Keystone and across the nation, anywhere and anytime we can. That’s our mission.” For more information on Veterans Stand Together, visit www.usavest.org. Members of the Keystone community may contact Veterans Outreach Coordinator Daron J. Hogan, SSgt/USMC Ret. at daron.hogan@keystone.edu. Founded in 1868, with a commitment to providing an education to Civil War veterans and their families, Keystone is home to the Elmer Hawk ’48 Veterans Center. The Veterans Center offers a comfortable and convenient meeting place for this special group of Keystone students who have given so much to their country. Students can meet with each other, complete their school assignments, or simply relax, read, visit with friends and family members, or watch television while waiting for their next class. Keystone was recently listed as one of a select group of colleges that is “Best for Vets” by Military Times Magazine, a national publication which serves veterans and active military members. In previous years, Keystone has also been listed as a top school for veterans by other national military and veterans publications. Recognized as one of the best educational values in Northeastern Pennsylvania, Keystone offers more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree options in liberal arts and science-based programs in business, communications, education, natural science, environmental science, and social sciences. Located 15 minutes from Scranton, Pa. and two hours from New York City and Philadelphia, Keystone is known for small class sizes and individual attention focused on student success through internships, research, and community involvement.
Crystal Windows Opens New Branch Office Award-winning manufacturer Crystal Window & Door Systems is moving its national expansion plans forward with a new branch office in Dallas, TX. Located near major highways at 454 West Mockingbird Lane in the West Dallas neighborhood of the city, the facility will include a sales showroom, warehouse space, and administrative offices. At over 5,600 sq. ft., this will be the largest of Crystal’s branch sales and distribution centers independent of a production facility. “In recent years, Crystal has supplied several projects in the region and with the Texas construction market booming, it makes sense for us to establish a presence here,” said Frank Ganninger, Central West Regional Manager. “This will allow Crystal to further develop relationships with the design and construction professionals here.” The Dallas branch office is undergoing renovation and fit-out and will be operational early next year.
Mohegan Pennsylvania Events Mohegan Pennsylvania Forever Motown Holiday Celebration Forever Motown will perform a holiday celebration inside Mohegan Pennsylvania’s Keystone Grand Ballroom on Sunday, December 4th at 4:00pm. This Friday at 10:00am, tickets for this all ages show will go on sale, starting at $25 via Ticketmaster.com. Tickets that are purchased at the Mohegan Sun Pocono Box Office, located at the Hotel Front Desk, will receive a complimentary voucher for $10 Free Slot Play! Experience Forever Motown with some holiday flare on one stage for one night at Mohegan Sun Pocono! A legendary collection of performers including G.C. Cameron, original lead singer of The Spinners, Glenn Leonard, former lead singer of The Temptations, and former members of The Marvelettes headline this trip down Motown memory lane. The group of nine all-star performers will bring all the soul to the Keystone Grand Ballroom for a full stage production that can’t be missed! To learn more about this show and to purchase tickets, visit mohegansunpocono.com Mohegan Pennsylvania to feature Halloween Costume Showdown Guests are in for a treat when a new Halloween bash hits Mohegan Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 29th from 8:00pm – 10:00pm inside The Hive Taphouse. The Haunt at the Hive will have its own Halloween costume party set to award cash prizes for the best costumes in different categories. The Haunt in the Hive will also feature the popular band, Screaming Broccolli, on the music stage. For entry into the costume party, guests must be 21+ and register on the Sky Bridge outside of The Hive Taphouse during the event. Contest winners will be announced at 11:00pm. There will be three categories; Scariest, Most Original and new this year, Best Couple or Group costume! The top prize for each category will check in at $300 in cash. From there, 2nd and 3rd place in each category will be awarded $200 and $100 respectively. It’s time for the most enthusiastic Halloween partiers in northeast PA to bring their A-game! The Haunt in the Hive will also feature a drink special, The Zombie – made with Vodka, Midori Lime, Blue Curacao and RumChata. In addition to a killer costume contest, the rockers by way of Staten Island, NY, Screaming Broccolli, will be on-hand providing live entertainment. Led by long-time front man Michael Laughlin, Screaming Broccolli has played across the northeast and east coast, and was named by SiLive.com “Best of Staten Island” for being the region’s best cover band. The band is known for having an incredible song catalog, playing everything from ‘The Chain Gang’ to The Chainsmokers. Visit facebook.com/screamingbroccolli for more info.
FNCB Donates to Lake Lehman School District FNCB Bank, locally based since 1910, is pleased to announce their latest project supporting the community with the donation of two multi-sport scoreboards at the brand-new Lake Lehman School District athletic fields. The new scoreboards can be used for baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse and field hockey. “The new athletic fields are a great asset to the Lake Lehman school district and community,” said Jerry Champi, FNCB Bank President and CEO. “The multi-sport scoreboards will not only benefit the Lake Lehman student athletes but will also help the district attract regional tournaments and tourism dollars to our area.” The scoreboard donations represent part of FNCB’s larger Community Caring initiative. Through outreach programs, donations and an employee volunteer network, FNCB is committed to helping the communities they serve.
PennState Scranton Offers Free Course Environmental Science (3 credit course BISC 003) In this course, we will explore the root causes of today’s environmental crisis and, in so doing, consider scientific, technological, sociological, psychological, and personal responses to what is, arguable, the most significant crisis in the history of our species. If you commit to fully engaging with this course, you can expect to:(1) Discover how questions can be powerful catalysts for learning; (2) Grow in your ability to see both yourself and Planet Earth from new and liberating perspectives; (3) Appreciate the power of critical thinking and personal reflection as a means to both personal and global transformation; and (4) Realize that you, should you choose, can play a significant role in the healing of our world. (Plans are to have at least one meeting be a field trip). This course is held on Tuesday evenings 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm on the Penn State Scranton campus from 1/17/2023 to 5/2/2023 plus an online component. Full Scholarships are available through the generosity of the DeNaples Family and the Keystone Sanitary Landfill Contact our Center for Business Development and Community Outreach for more information: scrantonoutreach@psu.edu or 570-963-2600
Johnson College Innovation and Creation Stem Program Scranton Intermediate and NativityMiguel School of Scranton students from Johnson College’s Innovation and Creation STEM afterschool programming joined a national celebration of afterschool programs called Lights On Afterschool on October 20, 2022. The sixth through eighth-grade students showed their support of the National Afterschool Alliance’s Lights On Afterschool event by participating in challenges that used littleBits electrical circuits to illuminate their projects. The first set of students used the littleBits to demonstrate Morse Code through lights. The second set of students participated in an architectural design and drafting challenge using Legos and littlBits circuitry to create structures that incorporated a lighting component. The projects encouraged them to communicate with each other while expanding their knowledge in both STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) and history. Through Johnson College’s Innovation and Creation STEM program, students are exposed to careers and fields they might not have previously known about. They are given the opportunity to engage in STEM-related learning in a way that promotes innovation, creation, problem-solving, and many other essential skills. Students complete projects using a variety of modern robotic, electronic, and engineering equipment that is provided to them by the College. Additionally, students learn about the steps they can take to expand their STEM education, including Johnson College’s Dual Enrollment and Industry Fast Track programs. Through these programs, students are eligible to earn college credits while they are attending high school. To learn more about Johnson College’s Innovation and Creation STEM programming, contact Tim Frank at (570) 702-8963 or tfrank@johnson.edu.
Scranton Cultural Center Receives Grant from SACF The Scranton Cultural Center at the Masonic Temple received a $5,000 Critical Needs Grant from the Scranton Area Community Foundation to assist with restroom upgrades. The Scranton Cultural Center houses 26 restrooms, eight of which were in great need of repair and refurbishment. To safely and efficiently serve the community, corrective measures were needed to ensure that bathrooms are accessible, safe and clean to both the public and the organization’s staff. Hosting hundreds of events per year and approximately 80,000 visitors, the SCCMT is highly utilized. The continued success of the SCCMT and its services depends heavily on the ongoing preservation and modernization of the building. That, along with challenges presented by COVID-19, it was vital to undertake hygiene upgrades for the protection of the public and staff.
Treasurer Garrity Announces Auction of Unclaimed Property Treasurer Stacy Garrity today announced that the next online auction of unclaimed property items from Treasury’s vault will take place tomorrow, October 26, and Friday, October 28. This auction includes fine jewelry, coins, currency and more. “This is a unique opportunity to highlight our unclaimed property program and get more people interested in finding what is theirs,” Garrity said. “We work diligently to locate the rightful owners of every piece of property that comes into our vault – and I encourage everyone to search for themselves at patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property. But, even though we have the largest working vault in the United States, there is limited space. So, from time to time, we have to auction some of the physical items we receive.” Pook & Pook, Inc., of Downingtown handles item appraisal and auctioneer services. Auction items can be previewed at pookandpook.com, which is also where interested bidders can register. More than 3,900 items from Treasury’s vault will be on the auction block over the two days, including: Multiple 1 ozt. fine gold South African Krugerrands;A Liberty Eagle 1 ozt. gold coin;Three U.S. $500 notes featuring President William McKinley;A 14K gold, diamond, and gemstone bracelet;A 10K gold necklace with a 14K University of North Carolina diamond-studded pendant;An Omega 18K gold wristwatch; andA custom Breitling stainless steel and black diamond wristwatch. Some items will be combined into Treasury-only lots. Items from other consignors will also be featured in the auctions but are never comingled with Treasury items. Items are kept in Treasury’s vault for at least three years before they head to auction. Those sold at auction are carefully tracked and documented. Treasury updates its unclaimed property records to reflect the proceeds from an item’s sale, so if a rightful owner one day comes forward the proceeds of the sale are available for them to claim. Treasury employees and immediate family members are prohibited from bidding in the auctions. Unclaimed property comes to Treasury in accordance with state law. Tangible property, like the items being auctioned, most often comes from abandoned safe deposit boxes, with other items coming from college dorms, nursing homes, or police evidence rooms. Unclaimed property also includes balances of forgotten bank accounts, uncashed checks, stocks, insurance policies and more. About one in ten Pennsylvanians is owed some of the more than $4 billion in unclaimed property being safeguarded by Treasury. The average value of a claim is $1,500.
Marywood University Presents “The Magic Flute” Marywood University’s Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance is collaborating with the School of Architecture in creating a full-scale production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The production marks only the second time in Marywood’s history that its students will perform a complete opera with orchestra. The stage director for The Magic Flute is A. Scott Parry, who is on the faculties of Manhattan School of Music and New York University and has directed productions at professional opera companies across the country, including New York City Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, Dallas Opera, Chicago Opera Theatre, Indianapolis Opera, and Pittsburgh Opera. The Music Director and Conductor is Rick Hoffenberg, D.M.A., co-chair of Marywood’s Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance. Marywood’s production of The Magic Flute is made possible in part by a grant from the Community Events Fund of the Scranton Area Community Foundation, which supports non-profit organizations hosting community events which add value to the overall community and enrich the lives of those in our area. Performances are free and open to the public and will be held in the Munley Theatre of the Sette LaVerghetta Center for Performing Arts on Saturday, November 12, at 7 p.m., and on Sunday, November 13, at 2 p.m. Additionally, there will be a compressed version of the opera performed for local middle school and high school students on Thursday, November 10, at 10 a.m.
