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Erie PA News and Events for Thursday February 7, 2008

Governor Rendell was in Erie yesterday to his economic stimulus plan, unveiled as part of his 2008-09 budget proposal. What Fast Eddie didn’t say was that Pennsylvania taxpayers and businesses will continue to be overly burdened with taxes much higher than the national average.
The Pennsylvania budget includes an increase in the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax for 2009 to 2.49 mills. The CSFT is a tax on business assets, which employers pay every year regardless of their earnings or losses. So if a company makes money, taxed at a rate second highest in the nation at 9.99 percent, the state takes even more. Back in 2003, Rendell raised the income tax on individuals to 3.07 percent from 2.8 percent.

The Erie PA area got crushed in the 2007 AG Edwards Nest Egg Index. In their third annual Nest Egg Index, they ranked the 500 top performing communities and the 50 states based on their residents’ personal savings and investing behavior. By measuring a dozen statistical factors - including participation in retirement savings plans, personal debt levels and home ownership - the Nest Egg Index shows the geographic regions where people are succeeding and facing difficulty with their nest eggs. Erie ranked 403 out of 500 with a rating of 96.95. Meadville was even worse coming in at number 407 (96.83). Warren was 286th (100.21).

The Sharron Herald reported that retired State Police Lieutenant Billy R Williams of Erie received a settlement of $67,500 in his racial discrimination lawsuit against the state.

Paul Thomas Hoffman is back in the chocolate business as the owner of owner of Paul Thomas Chocolates in Dahlonega, GA. After years at a high stress job at Pratt and Whitney Aircraft, Hoffman quit and attended the Retail Confectioners International Gus Pulakos Chocolate School at Gannon University in Erie, PA. He sold his Hoffman’s Chocolates business in 2001. It included a factory and seven retail stores.

Gannon University released a preview version of their homepage toolbar. For a month on the Gannon Webmaster Corner they took in suggestions from users what changes they would like to see to make their visits to the site more enjoyable. Simple and excellent idea that others should follow.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops announced that it is offering Catholics a variety of resources for Lent. The resource website includes several versions of the Stations of the Cross, including an audio version, and a new series of “radio retreats” led by bishops in English and Spanish. Erie Bishop Donald W Trautman did the radio retreat for the Second Sunday of Lent.

Healing Our Waters Coalition did an analysis of the President’s new budget and put together some materials about how it will affect Great Lakes programs to keep sewage, chemicals, and invasive species out of the water and protect wildlife.

Ian Enterline has joined the GlobalErie community. His blog, The People Demand It!, covers Erie politics and public safety.

The Edinboro men’s basketball team saw its nine-game winning streak come to an end on Wednesday night as California (PA) handed the Fighting Scots a 71-64 defeat at Hamer Hall. The loss dropped the Fighting Scots to 15-5 overall and out of a share of first place in the PSAC West at 5-1. The Vulcans are now 15-5 and 6-0, respectively. Edinboro entered the game ranked 25th in the NABC/Division II Coaches Poll and were second in the East Region, while Cal was seventh in the region.

The Allegheny men’s basketball team (10-10, 5-6 NCAC) put three players in double-figures and were led by a game-high 19 points from senior post Ben Torsney (Huntington, WVa/Huntington) as the Gators climbed back to the .500 mark on the season with a 74-55 victory over Oberlin (4-16, 3-8 NCAC) on Wednesday night.

Samantha Reimer scored 22 points, including a pair of clinching free throws with nine seconds remaining, to lead the Edinboro women’s basketball team to an improbable 70-65 win at California (PA) on Wednesday. The win boosted Edinboro to 12-8 overall and 2-4 in the PSAC West, while the Vulcans fell to 17-3 and 4-2, respectively.

Junior forward Stephanie Wolf (Pittsburgh, Pa/North Allegheny) scored a career-high 25 points as Allegheny (7-12, 4-6 NCAC) completed a season sweep of Hiram (3-15, 1-9 NCAC) with a 69-61 win on Tuesday night.

The 12th ranked Mercyhurst wrestling team made its home debut Wednesday evening and didn’t disappoint the home crowd, knocking off No 11 Ashland, 24-15.

The Gannon men’s basketball team (19-2) remained third for the second consecutive week in the latest NCAA Division II Great Lakes regional rankings released Wednesday afternoon. The regional rankings are important due to the fact that they represent how teams qualify for the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) and Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) post-season champions receive automatic bids. The top six remaining teams in the regional rankings receive at-large bids to the NCAA Great Lakes Regional. The NCAA Division II Tournament selection show is scheduled for Sunday, March 9. Gannon faces Hillsdale tonight. The women’s game starts at 5:30 pm with the men tipping off at 7:30 pm.

Penn State Behrend athletes picked up conference swimming and diving honors once again this week. Ben Strunk (Cogan Station/Williamsport) was tabbed the AMCC Men’s Swimmer of the Week, while teammate Steve Graves (McMurray/Peters Township) was named AMCC Men’s Diver of the Week for the week of February 4.

Penn State Behrend athletes swept the AMCC swimming and diving awards again this week. Danielle Palski (Harleysville/Souderton) was named AMCC Women’s Swimmer of the Week, while teammate Krystal Kovach (Pittsburgh/Chartiers Valley) received AMCC Women’s Diver of the Week honors for February 4.

Gannon University head football coach Jim Kiernan announced the addition of nine student-athletes to the Gannon program Wednesday afternoon. All nine student-athletes signed National Letters of Intent to continue their academic and athletic careers at Gannon in the fall of 2008. They are: Randy Bloom (Orchard Park NY High School), Preston Clements (Rochester East High School), Randy Colling (Pioneer NY High School), Carmen Lamancusa (Mathews OH High School), Jeffrey Long (Port Jervis High School), Aaron Roberson (St Peter Chanel OH High School), Matt Szczupakowski (Churchville-Chili NY High School), Evan Twombly (Baker NY High Schoo) and Josh Williams (Fort LeBoeuf High School).

The Mercyhurst College football team announced the signing of 12 high school players Wednesday on National Signing Day. They are: Serge Augustin (WT Woodson VA High School), Matt Cirel (Franklin PA High School), Christopher Clegg ( Hempfield Area PA High School), Rodney Dale (Elkhart IND Central High School), Bryant Kimball (Erie McDowell High School), David Long (Cloverleaf OH High School), TJ McCaster (New Castle PA High School), Jeff Pollard (Fairview PA High School), John Rice (Thomas W Harvey OH High School), Linnell Robinson (Union PA High School), Dreadless Stubbs (Kenston OH High School) and Ian Wild (Baldwin PA High School).

Lakeland High School in Suffolk, VA has hired Thomas Tedder as its new head football coach. For the past two years, Tedder has been the head coach at West Port High School in Ocala, Fla. Tedder played college football at Edinboro University in Pennsylvania in the 1990’s.

The Erie Playhouse production of Crowns will be performed Thu Feb 7 at 7:30 pm, Fri Feb 8 at 7:30 pm, Sat Feb 9 at 7:30 pm and Sun Feb 10 at 2 pm.

Darkwood Consort, the world’s only touring viola and bass clarinet duo, brings an impressive repertoire spanning 10 centuries of music to its February performance at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. Darkwood’s concert takes place at noon on Thursday, February 7, in the McGarvey Commons of the college’s Reed Union Building. The performance is sponsored by Music at Noon: The Logan Series and admission is FREE to the public.

The Erie Chamber Orchestra will hold their annual “Guess the Composer” concert with the Orchestra Ensemble on Friday, February 8 at 7;30 pm at Mary, Seat of Wisdom Chapel, 512 Peach St in Erie.

All An Act Productions presents Ray Cooney’s classic farce “Funny Money” at their space in Columbus Square on Friday February 8 and running , Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm through March 1 (no show Friday Feb 15) and Sundays at 4 pm February 10, 17, and March 2.

The 14th annual Sarah Backstrom Memorial Women’s and Girl’s Hockey Tournament will be held in Erie February 8-10, 2008. Admission is FREE to all games. About 1,000 young ladies plus family and friends will be in town for the weekend. Hotel rooms will be hard to come by and expect delays at restaurants. Who was Sarah Backstrom? She was a feisty red headed defensewoman who gave all off her love of the game and passion to play it to the Erie Lady Lions. Sarah fought every battle to the end, with passion and determination. The Erie Lady Lions lost Sarah to Leukemia but have never lost her spirit.

The Mercyhurst Dancers will present the 10th edition of their “Raw Edges” series of concerts of student choreography on Feb 9 and 10. The annual dance concert is a showcase for the Mercyhurst Dance Department and is the culmination of the work of Choreography II and III classes taught by dance faculty members Mark Santillano and Tauna Hunter, respectively. “Raw Edges X” will be presented Saturday, Feb 9, at 2 and 7 pm and Sunday, Feb 10, at 2 pm in the Mary D’Angelo Performing Arts Center on the Mercyhurst campus. Tickets are: Adults, $15; Seniors/Students, $12.50; Youth under 15, $5; Mercyhurst Students, $1, President’s Cardholders, $7.50. They can be purchased at the door or by calling 824-3000. Each performance will include an intermission chat during which some of the young choreographers will speak about their new works and answer questions from the audience.

The Chautauqua-Lake Erie Wine Trail Wine and Chocolate Weekend will take place 10 am to 5 pm, Feb 9-10. Tickets, which can be purchased online or by phone, are $21 a person. Too late - SOLD OUT.

The 6th annual “Spirit Against Cancer” Dance and Cheerleading Competition is scheduled for February 9 at 10 am in the Junker Center. “Spirit Against Cancer” was created in memory of Becky Hubler Decker. Her commitment to the community included serving as dance coach at Penn State Behrend, cheerleading coach at Edinboro University, she was captain of the Invaderettes dance team, and a member of the Buffalo Bills (Jills) dance team. All proceeds from this special event will benefit the American Cancer Society. For more information, please contact Assistant to the Director of Athletics, Stacy Pondo at (814) 898-6240 or by email at slp15@psu.edu.

The public is invited to join the Allegheny College community for the college’s annual soul food dinner at 5 pm on Sunday, Feb 10 in Schultz Dining Hall. Tickets are $5. The dinner is one of the highlights of the college’s Black Heritage Month celebration, which is sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Black Culture. This year’s dinner will feature home-cooked catfish, fried chicken, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese, homemade corn bread, baked beans and a variety of other dishes. Vegetarian options will also be available. Tickets will be sold all this week in the Campus Center lobby from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm. Tickets will also be sold at the door starting at 4 pm on Sunday if space is available.

The 41-year-old Expo Erie is set to become a technology summit of industrial leaders. The Technology Council of Northwest PA has partnered with the Erie Engineering Societies Council (EESC) to host the first Great Lakes Industrial Technology Summit on February 12 and 13 of 2008. The two day summit will feature regional products, address workforce development, innovation, technology and other competitive advantages for industry in the PA Great Lakes Region. Technology Council CEO, Perry Wood said, “The direction change in the Summit is part of the Council’s strategy to create an Advanced Manufacturing Network in northwest PA.” The Summit’s theme is Global Competitiveness and will host a series of speakers and special presentations on the topic. The term “advanced manufacturing” connotes a network of industry that embraces emerging technologies in order to tackle new markets, create efficiencies and innovate product lines.

Join The Ophelia Project for a Girls Night Out on February 15, 2007 from 5:30-8:30 pm at Grace Church. Girls in 6, 7 or 8th grade and the special woman in their lives are invited to a night out where they will learn how to keep their heart happy and healthy by promoting a positive self-image and discussing issues facing girls today, such as friendships, cliques and bullies. Participants will also be treated to a special self defense lesson from Rachel Cheeseman, owner of Street Smart Defense, a hip hop dance instruction and a healthy snack. The cost is $10 per couple and check-in starts at 5:15 pm. For more information and to register call The Ophelia Project office at (814) 456-5437. Grace Church is located at 7300 Grubb Road in McKean. The Ophelia Project is a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Erie, Pa. Recognized as a leader in assessing social conditions and advocating healthy, safe relationships, the organization partners with educational, civic and community leaders to educate and empower kids and adults across North America.

The Association of Program Members (APM) of General Electric Transportation in Erie PA announced that it will be sponsoring the 13th Annual Winter Wishes Benefit Gala for the Foundation of Western Pennsylvania on February 16, 2008. Each year, the members of APM reach out to the community to collect donations for the silent auctions, live auctions and raffles that are held at the event. They also solicit “table sponsors” from local businesses. As a table sponsor, the business’ name appears on the centerpiece showing their support for this wonderful event as well as in any promotional materials that they put together for the function. The money raised with the auctioned items donated by local businesses will help provide funding for Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes for children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. Community support of this event is recognition of the importance of this cause are greatly appreciated. Along with your assistance, GE will be able to make an impact on the day-to-day life of children whose lives are threatened.

Mark your calendars for Sunday, February 17 from 12:30-3:30 pm and/or 8-11 pm and get ready to “rock and bowl” with the Erie Playhouse Family at Eastway Lanes, 4110 Buffalo Road. The cost for a Family/Team (4 or 5 bowlers) for one session is $80. Individual bowlers are welcome - Adults $20 and $15 for children 12 and under. Teams registering by Feb 14 will recieve a $10 discount. The cost includes 3 games, shoes (no discount if you bring your own) and unlimited pop and pizza. A cash bar and additional food will be available. Contests and games of chance throughout each bowling session.

On January 28, 2008, asteroid 2007 TU24 came within 300,000 miles of Earth—a safe distance, but one that reminds us that ours is not the only chunk of rock hurtling around the sun. Nearly 1,000 potentially hazardous asteroids, or PHAs, orbit the sun in the vicinity of Earth; one, Apophis, will be the subject of the next Open House Night in Astronomy at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. Darren Williams, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at the college, will present the one-hour program “Asteroid Apophis: Will it Hit the Earth?” at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 21, in 101 Otto Behrend Science Building. His FREE lecture is intended for a non-technical audience and suitable for children at least 8 years of age; astronomical observing at the college’s Mehalso Observatory will follow, weather permitting.

The 2008 Erie Home and Garden Expo will be held February 21-24 at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center. Hours: Thursday 4-9 pm, Friday 2-9 pm, Sat 10 am - 8:30 pm and Sun 11 am to 5 pm.

On Friday, February 22, the Penn State Behrend RFID Center of Excellence and the RFID Project of the NWPA Technology Industry Partnership will host Eric Domski for a talk on Auto ID Technologies with SAP. Eric is the Auto ID Solution Director for SAP Labs. Eric will speak from 10-11am at the Research and Economic Development Center, Room 180 on the campus of Penn State Behrend in the new Black School of Business Auditorium. Although the talk with be centered around SAP, the concepts will also apply to other ERP and enterprise applications and will be a great source for solution ideas to anyone using, or considering use of AutoID. Eric will be available for questions after the talk. An early lunch is planned, so attendees must RSVP email Brian Zentis or call him at (814) 898-6704. This event counts as participation in the Technology Industry Partnership of Northwest PA, a partnership of the Technology Council, eBizITPA, Ben Franklin Partners CNP and Penn State Behrend’s RFID Center of Excellence. Why is that important? Participation allows your business access to grant dollars to offset training costs. The training dollars come from the PA Department of Labor and Industry in conjunction with the Workforce Investment Board of Northwest PA.

The 10th annual MECA Bar Stool Open will be held on Saturday February 23, 2008 in downtown Erie, PA. Entry fee is $100 per team of 4 golfers, $25 per person. Must be 21 years of age or older to participate. Click here to for the registration form.

Want a cure for the winter blahs? Got cabin fever? Come to the Community Board Game Night at Community United Church on Saturday Feb 23. Doors open at 7 pm, Games begin at 7:30 and end at 10 PM. Admission Donation: $2. Snacks and beverages will be provided. Under 18 years old must have guardian. This is an alcohol and smoke free event. Open to the public. We will play board games for groups such as Scruples, Pictionary, etc. Want to save on the admission? Bring grocery bags of empty recyclable aluminum beverage cans. For each bag, the admission will be reduced by 25 cents.

The American Heart Association’s 2008 Erie Heart Gala will take place 6 pm to Midnight on Feb 23 at the Ambassador Banquet and Conference Center in Erie, PA. In addition to providing an exciting night of glitz and glamour, the Heart Gala has become Erie Division’s largest fundraising event. Contributions received support cardiovascular research, professional and community education, and advocacy efforts. The affair also promotes the American Heart Association’s mission to reduce disability and death due to this nation’s leading cause of death….cardiovascular disease. The festivities will begin with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres at 6 pm, followed by dinner and dancing as well as both live and silent auctions. For info email Gina Klofft or call her at (814) 836-0013.

There will a fund raiser for Marine Sergeant Art Fuller on Saturday Feb 23 from 6 pm to 1 am at the North East Vet’s Club at 28 Vine Street in North East, PA. SGT Fuller suffered a stroke and is unable to return to work. The cost is $6 at the door which will cover food (chili, hot dogs and macaroni salad) from 6-9 pm. There will be a Chinese auction and cash bar available and the band Black Diamond will be playing from 9 pm - 1 am. SGT Fuller, an Iraq veteran, is from Corry Pa.

Documentary filmmaker Christopher Quinn and John Bul Dau, one of three Lost Boys of Sudan profiled in Quinn’s prize-winning feature film God Grew Tired of Us, will visit Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, in February as part of the college’s Speaker Series. Quinn and Dau will speak at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 28, in the Reed Union Building’s McGarvey Commons. Additionally, the film God Grew Tired of Us will be shown at 7 pm on Wednesday, February 27, in 117 Reed Union Building, and at noon on Friday, February 29, in the Samuel P “Pat” Black III Conference Center in the college’s Research and Economic Development Center. Admission to all three events is FREE and open to the public.

The 2008 Erie Outdoor Sport and Travel Expo will be held February 29 - March 2 at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center. Hours: Noon-9 pm Friday, 10 am-8 pm Saturday and 10 am-5 pm Sunday.

Erie CareerLink is hosting Crystal Reports Training in both introductory and advanced sessions on March 3-6. Info and Registration form. Crystal Reports is a business intelligence application used to design and generate reports from a wide range of data sources. Several other applications, such as Microsoft Visual Studio, bundle an OEM version of Crystal Reports as a general purpose reporting tool. Crystal Reports became THE report writer when Microsoft released it with Visual Basic.

Pennsylvania Sea Grant is sponsoring a FREE one and a half day workshop March 13-14 at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center in Erie. The workshop will provide an update and overview of current ballast water policy, legislation and research as it applies to the Great Lakes. Scientists, legal experts, legislators, industry personnel and agency staff will discuss the current state of ballast water policy, pending legislation, proposed ballast water treatment methods and evaluating the current risk of introduction and spread of AIS to Great Lakes ports by foreign and domestic ships. For Registration form email Karla Kaczmarek, or Marti Martz.

As the signature event for Young Erie Professionals (yep!), the Generation-E Leadership Awards recognize young professionals who are paving the way to the future of Erie, Pennsylvania. Yep! has honored 34 individuals over the past three years who not only have chosen to live, work, and play in the Erie area, but who have made a lasting impact on our region. The 2008 winners will be recognized the evening of Friday, March 28 at the Ambassador Banquet and Conference Center.

The GE (NYSE: GE) 2008 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held on April 23, 2008 in Erie, Pennsylvania at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center.

There will be a Rust Belt Bloggers Summit on July 11-12 in Erie. People from Youngstown, Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and other area cities will be attendance to discuss economic development issues in the region.

The Manufacturers’ Association and Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority annual Roar on the Shore motorcycle rally will be held July 17-20, 2008. While downtown Erie serves as the hub of the rally, related events take place throughout the city and region. Most notably, two outdoor concerts featuring major artists will be held Friday and Saturday, July 18 and 19, at Liberty Park along Presque Isle Bay.

Posted by Dennis at February 7, 2008 7:07 AM

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