Bradford Youth Network Sponsors Battle of the Bands

Members of Light the Shadow perform for the audience during Saturday's BYN Battle of the Bands. The event was hosted by the Bradford Youth Network and had over 60 students in attendance.
Photo courtesy of Youth for Christ
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Northern Alleghenies Officials Working On New Training Center

RIDGWAY, Pa. -- Six counties in the northern Alleghenies are coming together to work on a new training center.
Those counties are all part of the Northcentral Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission.
The counties include Elk, Cameron, McKean, Clearfield, Potter and Jefferson.
Officials are working on bringing a Precision Manufacturing Institute, or PMI, to the region.
Elk County officials said the center ......MORE
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Elk Visitor Center Under Construction

Construction has started at the Pennsylvania Wilds Elk Country Visitor Center, a public-private partnership between the state and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.DCNR has a 30-year partnership agreement with the foundation for construction and operation of an 8,400-square-foot green building that will include interpretive exhibits, wildlife trails, viewing blinds and parking for cars and buses. Pennsylvania's wild elk herd, the largest in the Northeast, attracts more than 75,000 visitors to the Pennsylvania Wilds each fall. For more on this story, go HERE.
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Tourism cuts will make Pennsylvanians suffer, says official

Thousands of jobs and small businesses in Pennsylvania will be lost if the Senate Republican’s proposed budget cut to tourism is passed, said a tourism official on Tuesday.
Senate Bill 850 proposes to cut tourism funding by up to 73 percent, an industry which employed over 600,000 Pennsylvanians in 2008.
Mickey Rowley, Department of Community and Economic Development Deputy Secretary of Tourism, said that if the Bill is enacted, ......MORE
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Wildlife in Emporium

Sometimes you don't have to travel far to see the wildlife of Cameron County! This bear (I guess about 200 pounds) entertained the residents of Emporium for awhile tonight. He was foraging for some tasty garbage and had quite a few town residents following him around. He finally exited the borough, last seen heading north above 7th street.

photos by Randy Frey

Here is the bruin strolling down main street

....and meandering across 5th and Vine

....neighborhood kids in hot pursuit

...and here he surprised us when he suddenly leapt in front of my car!

This, and more of Nelson's work, can be seen in full resolution HERE

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Ex-Emporium Woman Gets 30 Years For Exploiting 2-Year-Old

A former Emporium woman has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for sex crimes against her children that a judge said were so vile that he had to close his courtroom to the public during testimony.Angela Larkin, also known as Angela McCullen, pleaded guilty in 2005 to sexually exploiting children, admitting she sold sexually graphic images of her 2-year-old daughter on the Internet.U.S. Middle District Judge John E. Jones III called the case the ugliest of his legal career. For more on this story, go to the Williamsport Sun Gazette.
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More artwork from Nelson Haas

Youcan view this, and more, in full resolution, HERE

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GE unveils locomotive nearly 20 percent more fuel efficient

General Electric's transportation unit unveiled a new line of fuel efficient and low emissions locomotives on Monday offering them as an alternative to the "aging fleet," the company said.

GE's latest locomotives' price has not been disclosed but it is know the fleet is equipped with an alternating current motor which uses up to 17 percent less fuel and reduces emissions by approximately 70 percent, compared to the direct current motors used commonly by transportation firms, GE said.
GE is building the new locomotive at its Pennsylvania manufacturing plants in Erie and Grove City. The company said 600 of the latest locomotives can make the work of up to 800 older locomotives, a savings of 70 million gallons of fuel.
Last week, GE announced it will open a new factory in New York to manufacture high tech batteries including one based on sodium. The batteries, and othe products, will be used on GE's hybrid locomotive which will be commercialized in 2010.

Alexandria Bay and the Thousand Islands Vacation

Jeff and Stephanie Johnson recently spent some time up north, and graciously shared some photos and notes on the trip. Knowing my interest in Great Lakes shipping, I was very happy to receive the e-mail....though it would have been much better if they had just taken me along :)

"Randy, We took a trip to the St. Lawrence Seaway last week. Spent a couple days at Alexandria Bay and the Thousand Islands. Visited Boldt castle and took a boat tour of the Islands.Saw no freighters on the seaway there. We then went to Massena, NY . Spent an entire day geocaching and looking around near Eisenhower Lock and the power plant visitor center. Plenty of camping areas and picnic swimming spots. In 10 hours only two ships went through the locks.(sign of the economy) . We will be going to this area again ! Ended the trip by going through the Saranac Lake area. It was pretty empty this last week but I am sure it livens up in the summer. I have also discovered a web site that you can track ship movements all over the world http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/ We used to go to Canada and spend weekends at the Welland locks but currently I am reluctant to spend good money for a passport or passcard to get back into my country. " Jeff

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You can view this artwork in full resolution HERE

State Employees Expected to Work Without Pay in Budget Impasse

The budget deadline is more than six weeks away, but Governor Rendell has notified nearly 80,000 state workers Wednesday by e-mail that they will stop receiving paychecks if there's a budget impasse – but they should still show up for work."I know that delayed pay would present a significant financial challenge for many of you," the governor wrote. "I wanted to provide you with as much advance notice as possible so that you might begin planning for this potential disruption."The state workers would get back pay after the budget passes.The deadline to pass the budget is June 30, but no budget has been passed on time since Rendell became governor.

STIMULUS WATCH: Jobs, but not where needed most

By MATT APUZZO and BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE – 23 hours ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The billions in transportation stimulus dollars that President Barack Obama promoted as a way to create jobs shortchange counties that need the work the most, an Associated Press analysis has found.
The AP's review of more than 5,500 planned transportation projects nationwide is the most complete picture available of where states plan to spend the first wave of highway money. It reveals that states are planning to spend 50 percent more per person in areas with the lowest unemployment than in communities with the highest. The Transportation Department said it will attempt to replicate the AP's analysis as it continues pressing states to dole out money fairly.
One result among many: Elk County, Pa., isn't receiving any road money despite its 13.8 percent unemployment rate. Yet the military and college community of Riley County, Kan., with 3.4 percent unemployment, will benefit from about $56 million to build a highway, improve an intersection and restore a historic farmhouse.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the findings don't mean that the neediest communities will not benefit.
"Just because a road project is in one part of one county doesn't mean the benefits of those jobs created or the economic impact of that spending is simply isolated to that one area," he said.
Others responded to the analysis Monday with concerns about the way the administration has represented stimulus spending and its effect on areas hardest hit by unemployment.
"To some extent, I think the administration oversold the transportation aspect of this," said Jim Berard, spokesman for Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. "It was sold as the heart and soul of the package, and it really just isn't."
The AP reviewed $18.9 billion in projects. They account for about half of the money set aside for states and local governments to spend on roads, bridges and infrastructure in the stimulus plan.
The very promise that Obama made, to spend money quickly and create jobs, is locking out many struggling communities needing those jobs....read MORE

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2009 King and Queen

Congratulations to Kelsie Caton and Mike Jones, 2009 CC Prom Queen and King!

PROM photos have been updated and can be viewed at camconative.dotphoto.com

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