KEYSTONE CLIPS Vets group honors auxiliary's efforts

The Wheatland American Legion Auxiliary has been recognized for its generosity to military veterans in the region.
Sharing & amp; Caring Inc., a veterans/community group that provides programs to veterans, recently presented the auxiliary with a plaque honoring its contributions to the group's efforts. The auxiliary gives more money to the program than any other organization in the tri-state area, said Phil Shank, a member of Sharing & amp; Caring's operating committee. The auxiliary donates about $5,000 a year, he said.
Sharing & amp; Caring provides support to veterans in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia and each year sponsors a boat trip for about 1,000 veterans on the Gateway Clipper in Pittsburgh at a cost of about $100,000.
American Indian program
If you'd like to know who lived in western Pennsylvania before the arrival of the white man, Goddard State Park in northeastern Mercer County is offering a program on American Indians of Western Pennsylvania from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday.
The lifestyles and culture of the American Indians who lived in the region before Europeans arrived will be discussed.
The program will be at the environmental learning classroom at the park marina.
Honoring derby winner
Nicholas Sibeto found out what its like to be a hometown hero. The 12-year-old winner of the All-American Soap Box Derby was honored this week by New Castle City Council. Council President Rick DeBlasio gave the youngster a citation for his first-place finish in the Akron event. Nicholas was up against other soap-box racers from around the world during last month's event.
SRU building reopens
A 103-year-old building on the Slippery Rock University campus reopened last week. The two-story Paul and Carolyn Carruth Rizza Hall will serve as the home to the Office of International Studies and its department of cultures and modern languages.
There also is a student lounge, classrooms and a conference room. The massive renovation included reopening a long-closed, two-story, sky-lighted atrium, restoring the building's original woodwork and installation of state-of-the-art fiber-optics systems.
The work was funded by a $2.5 million gift from Ethel Carruth. The Houston woman donated the money honoring the teaching dedication of her son-in-law and daughter, Paul and Carolyn Carruth Rizza. They are professor emeriti at SRU, having served 52 years of combined service.
XCONTRIBUTORS: Harold Gwin, Vindicator Sharon Bureau, and Laure Cioffi, New Castle Bureau.