The McKean Co. Chapter of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees met April 24, at the United Methodist Church in Eldred with 43 in attendance. Following the Pledge of Allegiance, President Connie King welcomed everyone and thanked Charlotte Stoughton for arranging the meeting, decorating, and getting Top Of The Line Catering. A spring atmosphere with decorations was enjoyed by all.
The COLA was on everyone’s mind with the House of Representatives passing their part of the bill. There is a letter writing campaign for Sen. Cris Dush to encourage the COLA passing in the Senate soon. Francene Imbrogno, secretary, read the minutes of the last October 2023 meeting, which were approved. The treasurer’s report, given by Charlotte Stoughton, was accepted. In community service, Charlotte reminded everyone to let her know your total volunteer hours in the community. Retirees do a lot of volunteering in many aspects of the community. The Education Support Mini-grant goes to Smethport, and that is in the works. In membership, Connie King reported that we have 191 members with new member Rick Smith of Port Allegany introduced. Dues are still $5. The newsletter was sent to everyone in March with meeting information.
Social Service Memorial Honor Fund is in need of a Bradford person to send cards. Also, Bradford needs two volunteers to arrange a lunch meeting when it is their turn next April. Lynda Rook, outgoing chairperson, explained what the SSMHF does to help members in need. The committee for the five school districts was introduced; let them know if someone is in the hospital or nursing home.
A thank you note was read from the Portville Presbyterian Church Food Pantry. Randy McClain, head of Food Pantry, appreciated the many canned goods collected last October at our PASR meeting. Connie King reminded everyone that we will need a president for the 2025 and 2026 years, which are only four meetings. Three attendees reported on the Region 10 meeting in Wellsboro and held on April 18 with McKean as the host. The State President Mary K. Davis was the speaker and was well received.
The next PASR-McKean meeting will be Oct. 20, 2024, at the Port Allegany Veterans Memorial Building, Route 155, Port Allegany. Any retired school employee (teachers, librarians, nurses, admin., bus drivers, custodians, secretaries, etc.) can be a member of our organization. Contact a member to attend.
Following adjournment, the Yellow Rose Memorial Ceremony to remember and honor 15 members who passed away this last year was held. When their names were announced, memories of these deceased colleagues and friends were shared. Thank you to Ray Brzezinski as he did the 50/50 drawing and presented Polly Phillips as the winner.
Cindy and Dale Smith, owners and operators of Rock City Park, presented an interesting program on the history of the park, which was started in the 1890s. The Smiths took over in 2002 and talked about events held at the park. They brought many artifacts and kindly presented everyone with a complimentary pass. They were thanked for their very informative program and talked with many afterwards. Norm King gave the invocation, and a delicious lunch was served at noon.
