Archives

In preparation for the Perry 200 Grand Patriotic Parade, scheduled for May 25, the employees of American Tinning & Galvanizing Co. invite the Erie public to join them in an Adopt-a-Highway cleanup of the route on May 11.  The cleanup will target West 12th Street between State Street and Weschler Avenue and a portion of West 11th Street.

The cleanup should begin at 9:30 a.m. and last two to three hours. Volunteers should meet at ATG, 552 W. 12th St.,  at 9 a.m., to get gloves, garbage bags and instructions.

Volunteers must be at least 8 years old, and adults must accompany children under 18.

Any person or group interested in volunteering should contact David Bertges at dbertges@galvanizeit.com or the front office at 456-7053.

Better Housing Erie, located at 226 E. 17^th St., is seeking mature, caring and responsible volunteers to assist with its children’s programs.

Currently, volunteers are needed from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Beginning in June, volunteers will be needed from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday to assist with the children’s summer program.

For more information, call 455-8379, or send e-mail to  lpontzer@ndcrealestate.com.

On Friday, April 26, Make-A-Wish of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia awarded Trevin Capela, 6, of Waterford, who has cystic fibrosis, a dream trip to Disney World with his family.

You can help make wishes like Trevin’s come true by donating your airline air miles to Make-A-Wish. And if you donate them by April 30, WWE superstar John Cena will match every mile donated, up to 4.5 million, and United Airlines will match every United MileagePlus award mile donated as well, up to 3 million miles.

Seventy-five percent of the wishes granted by Make-A-Wish, like Trevin’s, require air travel to fulfill them, and the Pennsylvania Make-A-Wish chapter is working to fill more than 525 travel wishes requiring 124 million air miles. Donated air miles are critical to the program.

Frequent fliers with air miles from Delta, US Airways or United can donate their air miles to Make-A-Wish through its Wishes in Flight program. Once donated, the miles never expire.

To donate miles or for more information, call (800) 676-9474 or log on to www.wishgreaterpa.org.

Do you have a gently used prom dress taking up space in your closet? Mercyhurst Preparatory High School is collecting dresses for a local organization that serves teens. The dresses will be donated to girls who otherwise would not be able to go to the dance because they cannot afford a dress.

Nancy Zimmerman, the Mercyhurst Community Service Coordinator, is coordinating the effort. You can deliver a dress or prom accessory to Mercyhurst Prep High School, 538 E. Grandview Boulevard, weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m., between now and May 5.

Dresses can be dropped off after May 5; they will be saved for later giveaways. For information, call Nancy at 824-3798.

Yukio, a 9-month-old Japanese bobtail shorthair, won several awards for his breed during the Cat Nation Fanciers 23rd Annual Cat Show in 2012. ANDY COLWELL/ERIE TIMES-NEWS

Have fun, see prize-winning cats strutting their stuff and help local animal rescue groups all at the same time by volunteering at this weekend’s 24th annual Cat Nation Fancier’s All-Breed Cat Show.

Orphan Angels Cat Sanctuary and Because You Care animal rescue organization still need a few more volunteers to help out at the show, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at JMC Arena, 423 W. 38th St.

Orphan Angels needs people to help staff the organization’s booth and share information about the shelter. If you’re interested in helping, call Eileen at 504-3246 to see what hours are available.

BYC needs a few people to work in the kitchen or at the basket raffle on Sunday. Shifts available are 8 to 11 a.m. or 2:30 to 5 p.m. in the kitchen or 8:45 to 11:30 a.m. at the basket raffle table. Call Ann Bucceri at 566-0323 if you can help out.

For those who are unable to volunteer but would like to attend the show, admission is $6, or $5 for students and senior citizens.  Receive $1 off the admission price by bringing a donation of cat food.

Metro-Erie Meals on Wheels is a volunteer-driven organization that delivers meals to home-bound senior citizens.

The organization is seeking volunteers who are able to commit to two hours each week, between 10 a.m. and noon, on the weekday of their choice. Volunteers will be reimbursed for the mileage they incur.

To learn more, call Wendy at 452-6930, Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., or visit the Erie Meals on Wheels website, http://mealsonwheelserie.org.

Spring means it’s time to spruce up Erie’s neighborhoods, and the United Way is leading an effort to mobilize as many as 4,000 volunteers to help clean up local nonprofit organizations between Saturday and April  28.

The weeklong event, known as Days of Caring, has more than 30 projects to choose from at various Erie locations. The projects are of all types and sizes, so there’s sure to be something that fits your schedule and your skill level. Volunteers are needed for activities ranging from general cleaning, such as removing trash and debris, to painting, gardening and making minor repairs. Much of the work will be outdoors, so be prepared for all types of weather.

One of the most popular events is the Presque Isle State Park cleanup, which takes place Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you want to help get the beaches ready for summer, just show up and register at the Rotary Pavilion between 9 and 11 a.m.

To find a schedule of Days of Caring cleanup events or to get involved, visit http://getconnected.unitedwayerie.org.

Voting is underway for the Salute to Senior Service competition, a national event sponsored by Home Instead Senior Care that recognizes senior citizen volunteers.

Members of the public are invited to vote once a day through April 30 for their favorite senior citizen volunteers, at least eight of whom are from the Erie area.

You can check out the full list of nominees at http://www.salutetoseniorservice.com/volunteer-contest/entries/, which includes the stories of all the amazing volunteers from across the country who were nominated by their peers and friends.

If you know someone who has been nominated, search for their first name and last initial (such as Sally K. or Ruth S., two of the nominees from Erie). If you want to see the entire list of nominees from Pennsylvania, simply type “Pennsylvania” in the search box.

A winner will be chosen from each state based on online voting. Each of those state winners will receive $500 for their favorite charities. A national winner will receive $5,000 to donate to his or her charity of choice.

Do you enjoy gardening and want to learn about native plants? The garden at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, 301 Peninsula Drive, is looking for volunteers to work in the gardens on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers can work one or both days, and are not required to work the entire shift.

No gardening experience is needed, although prospective volunteers are welcome to attend a training session on weeding the gardens today, Monday, 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. The event will include an introduction to the program, information about the threat that invasive species pose and presentations about plant identification, tools used and proper attire, along with a summary of past work.

Visit the Friends of the Tom Ridge Environmental Center’s website at www.friendsoftrec.org for garden photos and a schedule of garden events. For more information, contact Jen Salem, Volunteer Garden Coordinator at the center via e-mail at trecgarden@hotmail.com or call the Tom Ridge Environmental Center at 833-7424.

On Saturday, May 11, mail carriers across the country will do their part to Stamp Out Hunger by collecting food donations left at mailboxes along their routes. In the Erie region, the donations will go to Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania to help feed hungry families locally.

Second Harvest is seeking volunteers who are willing to be assigned a route to follow letter carriers and pick up the food donations and transport them to designated drop-off sites. Volunteers can work as individuals, families or in groups, such as Scout packs.

If you’re interested in helping out, or need more information, call Samantha, special events coordinator at Second Harvest,  at 459-3663, Ext. 108.