KEYSTONE CLIPS Veterans slated to get diplomas

Three World War II veterans who left Hickory High School to go to war before graduating will get their diplomas in a ceremony at 9 a.m. Monday at the high school on North Hermitage Road.
Edward Krichko of Friendship Avenue, Youngstown; Howard Hobaugh of Buhl Farm Drive, Hermitage; and David Cusick of Mercer Avenue, Wheatland, will be guests of honor at the Veteran's Recognition and Commencement program.
School district personnel who are veterans or active members of the armed forces have been invited to participate, and all veterans and active members of the armed forces in the community are invited to attend as well.
Dry spell: Could the extended dry spell that has hit the Shenango Valley finally be over?
Statistics kept by the Shenango Valley Division of Consumers Pennsylvania Water Co. showed that precipitation (snow is converted to the equivalent amount of rainfall) totaled 2.81 inches in February, almost an inch more than normal for the month.
The total for the year so far is 4.69 inches, compared with the normal 4.18 inches for that period.
The Valley has a lot of catching up to do, however.
It got only 34.71 inches in all of 2001, more than 4.5 inches below normal for a year.
Seminar: The announcement of a seminar on courtroom savvy for elected officials left a few members of the Lawrence County Council of Governments chuckling.
COG Solicitor Jack Seltzer gave council members a rundown of upcoming seminars. After he talked about the courtroom savvy seminar, one member of the audience asked, "Who's the speaker? Traficant?"
Grants: Two Lawrence County communities are receiving recycling grants from the Department of Environmental Protection, announced state Rep. Chris Sainato of New Castle, D-9th.
Union Township and the city of New Castle will receive $3,716 and $10,354, respectively, from the DEP's Recycling Performance Grant Program, the amounts of which are based on each municipality's overall recycling rates and total tons recycled for the 2000 fiscal year.
Sainato said this program rewards Pennsylvania communities for their recycling efforts.
The statewide goal is to recycle 35 percent of all municipal waste by 2003, he said.
XCONTRIBUTORS: Harold Gwin, Vindicator Sharon Bureau, and Laure Cioffi, New Castle Bureau.