REGION

REGION
Bass Classic setfor next Saturday
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP -- Thirty-one fishing pros will be paired with 31 local amateurs in the seventh annual Youngstown/Mahoning Valley United Way Bass Classic next Saturday at Evans Lake. The event is presented by Whispering Pines Village and hosted by Aqua Ohio Inc.
Prizes will be awarded for total weight and big bass at a presentation starting at 1:30 p.m.
This year's tournament is expected to raise $15,000 for local programs and services supported by the United Way.
The Kids' Fish & amp; Fun event will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free fishing, activities and games are planned for children of all ages. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Anniversary event
LOWELLVILLE -- The Lowellville Rod & amp; Gun Club will celebrate its 70th anniversary with a banquet on June 24.
Carl Slagle will be master of ceremonies, and Rick Henninger, publisher of Fish & amp; Field Report magazine, will be the keynote speaker.
Public is invited. Tickets covering food and beverage are $20 each and may be obtained by calling John Rook at (330) 758-9351.
NRA Youth Sportsfestset for late July
LOWELLVILLE -- The fifth annual NRA Youth Sportsfest, sponsored by the Mahoning County Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs, will be July 22 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Lowellville Rod & amp; Gun Club, Quarry Road. Registration will be at 8:30 a.m.
Youths under 18 will be admitted free.
The event introduces youngsters to the fun and excitement of shooting and outdoor activities in a supervised, safe, positive and educational environment, rotated in small groups through all the following: .22 rifle shooting, air rifle shooting, archery, fishing, muzzleloader shooting, wildlife displays, trap shooting and canoeing.
Registration will be limited to the first 110 youths. A camp T-shirt will be given to each youth. A free lunch will be provided.
To register, call: Jim Denney (330) 545-4250 (days) or Dave Kuntz (330) 549-3158 (evenings).
Hooked on Fishing
STRUTHERS -- Mill Creek MetroParks will hold Hooked On Fishing: An Angler's Escape at Yellow Creek Park next Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
MetroParks police need children to bring their favorite pole and bait to help catch fish. Officers will present games, competitions, prizes and giveaways during.
For more information on this rain or shine event, call (330) 740-7106.
OHIO
Turkey harvest endswith slight increase
COLUMBUS -- Hunters checked 18,262 wild turkeys during Ohio's four-week, statewide spring turkey-hunting season that opened April 24 and ended May 21, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife.
The preliminary total represents nearly a 4 percent increase over last year's preliminary number of 17,542.
Ashtabula County led the state in the number of turkeys killed with 782. Counties with additional high harvest numbers were: Guernsey - 661; Harrison - 625; Meigs - 612; Tuscarawas - 570; Athens - 566; Coshocton - 551; Washington - 517; and Jackson - 493.
Local figures include: Mahoning - 203; Trumbull - 437; and Columbiana - 424.
NATION
Waterway Watch
With reports of increased threats of a terrorist attack on our shores, the United States Coast Guard is requesting the assistance of America's 70 million boaters and others, who work, play or live around our waterfronts, rivers, lakes and coastal areas to become part of our nation's first line of defense, called America's Waterway Watch (AWW).
America's Waterway Watch is an outreach program akin to neighborhood watch programs in many local communities but is focused strictly on marine-related areas.
Let's face it: With over 95,000 miles of shoreline, 300,000 square miles of waterways, 6,000 bridges, 360 ports of call and thousands of marinas, the U.S. Coast Guard simply cannot be everywhere at once. They need all the eyes and ears of those who frequent our waterways to be on the lookout for suspicious activities that might threaten homeland security.
The AWW program has a central phone number, (877) 249-2824, where the public can report suspicious activities. This information goes to the National Response Center located at U.S. Coast Guard headquarters, which is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.