Only two days of March left…where’d the month go? Thankfully, it looks like spring’s here to stay.

Jordan Brown, the 12-year-old who shot his father’s pregnant fiancé last year, will stand trial as an adult after a Lawrence County Court hearing. Brown’s continued denial of the crime, along with the execution-style shooting, were factors in determining that he will be tried as an adult. If found guilty, Brown will most likely spend the rest of his life in jail with no possibility of parole.

It looks like Erie Coke will stay up and running. The Erie City Council says there’s nothing more they can do to shut down the plant, and the Department of Environmental Protection has given up on seeking an injunction to close the plant after deciding they don’t have a strong enough case. Erie Coke’s standing $6 million dollar fine for previous pollution violations will be discussed in a settlement hearing in federal court on Wednesday.

Dr. Stephen Chu, the U.S. Secretary of Energy, toured the local Seaway Manufacturing plant with Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper yesterday. The company, which specializes in energy efficient windows, benefits from recently passed energy tax credits. Chu praised these credits, saying they benefit both energy-aware companies and consumers.

Seventy students in the McDowell High School Orchestra are set to perform at the famed Carnegie Concert Hall on Saturday afternoon as part of the National Invitational Band and Orchestra Festival. They are one of 14 high schools throughout the nation invited to perform at the two-day event. A panel of four judges will evaluate the orchestra’s performance of five songs: the first movement of Schubert’s “Unfinished Symphony,” “Russian Sailor’s Dance” by Gliere, “Elegy” by Bottesini, the overture to Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” and “American Salute” by Morton Gould.

The Community Blood Bank is experiencing an unexpected drop in supply. The blood bank, 2646 Peach St., is open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with extended hours Tuesdays until 7:30 p.m. Please take a half hour of your time to donate; it will save a life.

Events

The Second Harvest Food Bank of NWPA is participating in the Feeding America Pound for Pound Challenge. Local residents pledge their weight-loss goals at www.pfpchallenge.com, and for every pound pledged General Mills and partners will donate 14 cents to Feeding America (up to a maximum of $800,000). Feeding America will then distribute the money to local food banks, based on the ZIP codes of consumers who take part. An easy way to help our local food bank!

For helping shedding those pledged pounds, check out these awareness walks:

A 5K walk to help fight pancreatic cancer will be held Sunday, June 20, 9 to 11 a.m., at Presque Isle State Park. To register or donate, visit www.Active.com, keyword “Pancreatic Cancer.”

The Western PA Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society Erie Branch will hold its Walk MS at Presque Isle State Park on Sunday, May 16. People can participate in Walk MS individually or as a team, and in 1-mile or 3-mile options. Volunteers are also needed to help at the event. For more information or to register, visit www.nationalMSsociety.org/PAX, call 464-2901 or send e-mail to colleen.szymczak@nmss.org.

The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation will hold its annual Take Steps Walk on Sunday, June 27, at Presque Isle State Park. For more information, visit www.cctakesteps.org or contact Jamie Rhoades at (412) 823-8272 or jrhoades@ccfa.org.

The American Shakespeare Company will perform “Romeo & Juliet” at Penn State Behrend’s Junker Center this Thursday, April 1^st at 7:30 pm. This non-traditional performance seeks to create a sense of community between the audience and actors; actors are surrounded by the audience on three sides, and perform with house lights on at all times – actors can see the audience, and the audience can see the actors. This inclusive arrangement recreates the festive sense of community experienced by Renaissance-era patrons of Shakespeare’s own Blackfriars in London. Admission is free and open to the public, so check it out.

Penn State Behrend will also host the annual Breastival/Testival Tuesday. Clever name. The event, sponsored by Hamot, is designed to raise awareness of both breast and testicle cancers. The Breastival/Testival will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at McGarvey Commons at the college’s Reed Union Building and is open to the public. The free event will include games, prizes and informational booths.