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News You Can Use

September 14, 2007

The 2007 All-American Dairy Show

The 2007Agriculture and antiquities will share the stage as part of the 43rd Annual All-American Dairy Show.  The Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center in Harrisburg will host the event from Saturday, September 15 through Thursday, September 20, 2007. 

A preview of the 10th Annual All-Dairy Antiques & Collectibles Show on Friday, September 14 from 2-7 p.m. will kick off the world's best all-dairy cattle exposition.  The show of museum pieces and private collections brings together a great blend of our dairy history and rural living artifacts.  Dairy memorabilia collectors and visitors will have the opportunity to buy, sell, trade, and learn. 

Along with the contests and award ceremonies, visitors are invited to an ice cream social and career night on Sunday, September 16.  You can access a schedule of events and plan your mid-September trip.

Staying overnight in the area?  Locate visitor information, including lodging options and the best in area dining and entertainment. 

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Week 

The Pennsylvania Department of Health is spreading the word about the dangers of mixing alcohol and pregnancy.  The consumption of any kind of alcoholic drink, including beer, wine, liquor, wine coolers, or mixed drinks, by pregnant mothers can hurt the baby.   

The Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Awareness campaign points out FASD is the nation's leading category of preventable developmental disabilities.  FASD affects 1 in 100 live births or as many as 40,000 infants each year.  It is the leading known preventable cause of mental retardation and birth defects.  Statistics reveal the following:

• An individual with fetal alcohol syndrome can incur a lifetime health cost of over $800,000. 
• In 2003, fetal alcohol syndrome cost the United States $5.4 billion, direct costs were $3.9 billion, while indirect costs added another $1.5 billion. 
• Children do not outgrow FASD.  The physical and behavioral problems can last for a lifetime. 
• FAS and FASD are found in all racial and socio-economic groups. 
• FAS and FASD are not genetic disorders.  Women with FAS or affected by FASD have healthy babies if they do not drink alcohol during their pregnancy. 

For more information on FASD Awareness Week, contact the Pennsylvania Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Programs at 717-783-8200.  Click here for more about FASD or here, or contact the Department of Health Healthy Baby Line at 800-986-BABY.  The National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome offers the facts and more.

Rail-Trail Ready for Autumn Hikers

One of the state's longest and most popular Rail-Trails just got even better.  In time for autumn hiking, a new 7-mile stretch of the Pine Creek Rail-Trail running through Tioga and Lycoming Counties is now open.  The new trail runs from Ansonia to the Junction of Routes 287 and 6.   

The fourth phase on the northern end of the Pine Creek Rail-Trail received $1.4 million, bringing the total investment in that area to $7.5 million.  The first phase opened in 1996 along an abandoned railroad bed running through the bottom of Pine Creek Gorge, also known as the Grand Canyon of PA.   

The trail is part of the PA Wilds, a 12-county area including Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter, Tioga, and Warren counties.  You will find 27 state parks, 1.5 million acres of state forest and game lands, the largest elk herd in the northeast U.S. and the darkest nighttime skies.   

Enjoy wildlife sightings including eagles, ospreys, coyotes, deer, wild turkeys, herons, river otters, and black bear while taking in the diverse plant life covering the landscape.  For details on Pine Creek and the Pine Creek Rail Trail Website provides a wealth of information to help you make the most of your trip.

Access information on more than 90 Pennsylvania Rail Trails or choose a trail or region and take the guess work out of planning your trip with links to contacts, local weather, photos, an interactive map, and a trail website filled with visitor's information.  Click here for general information on Rail-Trails.

Find a Flu Shot Clinic Near You  

The best defense against influenza is to get a flu shot each fall, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA).  October arrives in 2 weeks and the PDA is preparing the flu vaccination clinic locator webpage.   

Those 65 and older, young children and people with certain health conditions are considered at high risk for complications from the flu.  PDA recommends locating a convenient senior center or other community location offering a flu vaccine clinic.  A number of flu clinics also offer the pneumonia vaccination. 

The Flu Vaccination Clinic Locator allows you to search by county or zip and to select the maximum number of miles you wish to drive to reach a clinic.  Bookmark the website to search for a flu clinic as they are announced in the coming weeks.

National Senior Center Month 

Pennsylvania is joining the national campaign designating September as National Senior Center Month.  Across 67 Pennsylvania counties, more than 650 Senior Community Centers provide a variety of activities, programs, and services to enhance the lives of seniors.  More than 91,000 eligible persons eat meals at these centers, with more than 4.3 million meals served annually.   

Senior Centers provide opportunities for seniors to stay active and healthy through continued learning, sharing experiences, and remaining connected with friends and community members.  Locate a center near you.  Access helpful information from PA Senior Centers.  

Pennsylvania's Senior Centers receive funds from the PA Lottery to fund the state's 52 Area Agencies on Aging and more than 650 Senior Centers.  The Pennsylvania Lottery remains the only lottery in the nation that exclusively targets all of its proceeds to programs for older residents.  

In fiscal year 2006-2007, Lottery sales exceeded $3.07 billion; contributions to the Lottery Fund totaled more than $949 million.  Click here for more on Lottery Funded Benefit Programs.

State Game Land Tours 

Nature enthusiasts, hikers, and hunters interested in the ongoing habitat improvements on State Game Lands are invited to participate in tours scheduled for September 22 through October 21, 2007.  The tours offer the opportunity to see how the Game Commission spends hunting and furtaking license fees to acquire and manage these lands for wildlife. 

Wetlands restoration; nesting, cover and feed plantings; and, the production and distribution of bird, squirrel, and bat boxes are a few of the PGC's initiatives.  Seven and one-half million dollars were invested by the PGC during 2005-06.   

Tours are scheduled as follows: 

• Butler/Lawrence Counties: Saturday, Sept. 22, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m.
• Elk County: Sunday, Sept. 30, from 1-5 p.m., State Game Land 44
• Luzerne/Wyoming counties: Sunday, Oct. 7, State Game Land 57
• Bedford/Blair counties: Sunday, Oct. 14, from noon to 3 p.m., State Game Land 26
• Berks/Schuylkill counties: Sunday, Oct. 14, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., State Game Land 110
• Bradford County: Sunday, Oct. 14, from 10:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. (rain or shine)
• Dauphin/Lebanon/Schuylkill counties: Sunday, Oct. 14, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., State Game Land 211
• Elk/Clearfield counties: Sunday, Oct. 21, from 2 p.m. until 5:30 p.m., State Game Land 34

For details on the tours and recent habitat improvements.

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