n McAdoo: The Penn Rod & Gun Club has set times and dates for work parties at the club grounds for 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. The purpose is to get the grounds and building ready for upcoming events, which include the annual first fish stocking scheduled for noon May 12. Some of the projects slated for the work parties include cleaning up the grounds, cleaning and setting up the building, completing the painting of the mechanical room, beginning preparations to pour concrete under the pavilion and cleaning and organizing the kitchen area and storage closet. Any member who has a rake and/or shovel is asked to bring them along. Food will be provided for the work party on Saturday. Anyone who would like to prepare food for the Sunday party should contact club Secretary Brian Kolbush at 570-956-3645.
n Millersburg: The Olewine Gallery exhibit "Olivia's Birds" is on display at the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art and will run through Sept. 15. It features the artwork and tells the story of 11-year-old artist and conservationist Olivia Bouler, according to Alexis Dow Campbell, the center's director of creative programming. The exhibit will be celebrated in a weekend of events on Friday and Saturday. In describing herself to the National Audubon Society, Bouler, who lives in Islip, N.Y., said she is "11 years old and willing to help" regarding the Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010. An aspiring ornithologist, Bouler said she cried when she heard about the spill and was determined to find a way to help the many birds of that region. "I am a decent drawer," she wrote, "and I was wondering if I could sell some bird paintings and give the profits to your organization." She has, according to Dow Campbell's press release, raised more than $200,000 for Gulf oil spill relief and inspired a host of national media attention, from outlets including CNN, The New York Times, the Disney Channel and "The Today Show." She has been recognized as the ASPCA's 2010 Kid of the Year, Audubon's 2011 Artist Inspiring Conservation and a 2011 Champion of Change by the White House, as well as by the United Nations and Auburn University. The Ned Smith center show is the first gallery exhibition of Olivia's work.
n Pottsville: The Pottsville Free Public Library recently acknowledged the following memorial donations: For Mary Jane Connell from Mr. and Mrs. Ben Leppard Jr.; for Ross C. Heffner from Pam and Bill Heffner; for Mary Ella Honicker from Mary Catherine, Jack and Dave Guzick; for Kay F. McCall from Mike and Marcia Smink; for Thomas E. McDonald III from Anna Helen and Thomas McDonald; for Louis Paparazo from Mike and Marcia Smink; for Robert K. Stoner from Mike and Marcia Smink; for M. Jean Towle from David and Charlanne Frantz, Dominic and Jacqueline Riotto.
n Shenandoah: The Greater Shenandoah Area Senior Citizens group sponsors trips to Mohegan Sun Casino the second Tuesday of the month and is planning a cruise Sept. 22-29, Donald E. Segal, a borough councilman and seniors member, recently reported during a meeting of the Greater Shenandoah Area Chamber of Commerce. Anyone interested in participating in the excursions should contact Segal or seniors President Dolores Miko, chamber Secretary Betty Ann Bugden said in her meeting report. The seniors' regular meetings are held the first Wednesday of the month at the 225 N. Market St. senior center and new members are welcome.
n Shenandoah: Shenandoah Valley High School students Nicolas Merva, Brandon Swantek, Shaina Graff, Rose Ulicny and Jordyn Kowalick attended the Greater Shenandoah Area Chamber of Commerce meeting and spoke about what they are doing and what they plan to do. They said a recent daffodil drive raised $2,400 for the American Cancer Society. They also said local students will participate in the Relay for Life on May 18 in Pottsville. The Shenandoah Rotary Club is sponsoring the downtown trash receptacle project. The Rotarians will sponsor another pet inoculation Saturday at the Rescue Hook and Ladder Company, Main and Coal streets. For Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, the Upper Schuylkill Band will perform at American Legion Memorial Garden in the 100 block of North Main Street, Bugden said in her report.