NEW BETHLEHEM - New Bethlehem Mayor Tom Seidle announced last week that he will resign his post effective Oct. 1.
Seidle, who has been mayor since 2002, said that due to "family responsibilities," he is moving from the borough and can no longer serve as mayor.
"I have enjoyed serving the citizens of New Bethlehem since 2002 as mayor and will continue to assist the Redbank Valley in any way possible in the future," Seidle wrote in a letter, the full text of which can be read on Page A-5.
Seidle, whose daughter Sara now serves as borough solicitor, previously operated Redbank Chevrolet in New Bethlehem and now manages Seidle Chevrolet in Clarion.

LAS VEGAS - Lots of women wear a variety of hats - mother, wife, sister, daughter, co-worker, boss, youth mentor and the list goes on.
Few however, don a football helmet.
But, one local lady found that the unique attire suits her very well.
So well, in fact, that, with only two seasons under her belt in the Women's Football Alliance, she's been named to the All-American team and is set to play this weekend in Las Vegas in the "Pro Bowl."
Michele Buzard - secretary of the New Bethlehem Police Department, New Bethlehem Borough council member, wife and mom of a teenage son - stumbled upon the fact that a ladies football league was forming an expansion team in Pittsburgh and grabbed ahold of a lifelong dream opportunity.

ALCOLA - "So far so good," Clarion County Fair president Mark Wyant said yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon as he took a short break from preparing the demolition derby field for last night's big event.
"If this weather holds out, tonight will be a big crowd," he said.
The weather has held out well so far for the fair, despite some rainy skies early Sunday. By mid-afternoon on that first day, the skies were sunny and have been since.
Fair organizers like the sun; it not only grows the crops that many at the fairgrounds rely on, but it also helps grow fair attendance.
Wyant said that Monday, the first full day at the fair, saw a good crowd, about the same as last year. The draft horse pulling event at the grandstand attracted a larger crowd than past years.
But not as large as was expected to attend last night's demolition derby, or the remaining nights at the fair.

RIMERSBURG - "Why didn't I ever think of that?"
That's a frequently heard comment when new products that appear so simple at first are introduced.
And, when Rimersburg's Bernie Schwab was attempting to find a product to keep huge plastic liners in place inside dumpsters, he first wondered why he couldn't easily locate an item online to buy.
Then it dawned on him: what he needed hadn't been invented yet.
That's what prompted Schwab to develop the "liner anchor," a tough but flexible clasp that will keep dumpster liners from moving around.

Bellaire, Ohio - When he was just a 12-year-old kid, Chris Abbondanza spent a week working a carnival game at the Westmoreland County Fair, giving away giant stuffed animals.
"I went home and told my mom I was going on the road with them," he laughed. "She made sure I knew right away that wasn't going to happen."
Neither of them could have imagined that the little boy - better known as "Abby" - would not only run off to county and state fairs some day, he would be headlining them.
The Clarion County Fair has hosted The Povertyneck Hillbillies twice for their feature act on country music night. Abbondanza was the band's lead singer and took to his own after the group broke up a couple years back.
He and former Povertyneck Hillbillies bass player Jeff Volek along with several newcomers, will take the stage for tomorrow night's (Thursday) 7:30 p.m. Clarion County Fair show at Redbank Valley Municipal Park in Alcola.

NEW BETHLEHEM - A $25,000 grant has been awarded to conduct a feasibility study of the new Redbank Valley Trail.
New Bethlehem Borough Council vice president Sandy Mateer said last week that the borough has received word that it will receive the grant from the Northwest Commission's Greenways Block Grant Program.
The borough teamed with the Allegheny Valley Land Trust, now owners of the former rail corridor which extends through New Bethlehem from Brookville to Lawsonham.
Mateer said that although trail organizers would love to get to work on improving the public trail for hiking and biking, the study must come first.
"You have to do the feasibility study before you can get construction grants," she explained, noting that the trail project is a large undertaking. "It's going to take a lot of money and can't be done overnight."

SOUTH BETHLEHEM - A local businessman failed to show up for a court hearing concerning unpaid bills on Monday - and, according to records at the office of District Judge Samuel R. Goldstrohm in Rural Valley, it's not the first time.
Rich Bish, owner of Bish Memorial Funeral Home in South Bethlehem, was to face civil charges filed by Clark Fenyus of Fenco Services Inc., of Monroeville, at 9 a.m. on July 26.
When he failed to appear before the judge, Goldstrohm awarded the plaintiff $888 in damages. Bish also has to pay $94.90 in associated fines and court costs.
Charges for nonpayment of bills were filed June 29 by Fenyus.
Court documents state that, "Rich Bish hired Fenco Services to transport the human remains of Kathy Brandtly, David Skinner, Ted Cobbett and Seneca Johnston," and apparently Bish hasn't paid what he owes to that company for its services from September 2009 through November 2009

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