Austintown briefs

Candlelight service at Local church

West Austintown United Methodist Church, 6749 Mahoning Ave., will celebrate “The Nativity of Our Lord” with a candlelight service Dec. 24 at 7 p.m.

The Rev. Dan Bryant, Mahoning Valley District Superintendent of the East Ohio Conference, will deliver the Christmas message.

Kerry Miller will provide harp music 30 minutes prior to the service.

Come see a live nativity

The Knights of Columbus, Council No. 3930 and the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish Community will host a live nativity scene with animals Sunday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in front of St. Joseph and Immaculate Heart of Mary School, 4490 Norquest Blvd.

Caroling will take place from 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. and food and refreshments will be provided by the Knights of Columbus.

Remember a lost pet

For the Dogs Rescue is accepting donations for its Holiday Pet Remembrance Trees.

For a minimum $5 donation, an ornament with a photo of your pet, past or present, will be placed on a tree at one of four locations.

Remembrance trees are on display at Home Savings, 32 State St. in Struthers, Family Video, 4385 Kirk Road in Austintown and Judy Conti Dance Studios in both Austintown at 1747 S. Raccoon Road and Boardman at 1393 Boardman-Canfield Road. For an order form, visit www.ForTheDogs.Petfinder.com, e-mail ForTheDogsTree@aim.com or visit a tree location.

Curves offers Silver Sneakers classes

Free Silver Sneakers classes are offered Monday through Saturday for eligible women over 65 at Curves in Austintown. The 30-minute classes are designed to improve strength, flexibility and overall health. For information, call 330-793-9802.

New site for shoe boxes

Tabernacle E.P. Church, 2432 S. Raccoon Road, is the new ‘Relay Center’ for Operation Christmas Child in the Austintown area.

Mulholland Hall, the church’s social hall, will be used to collect ‘Shoe Boxes.’ Call Sandy at 330-565-8057 or Linda at 330-360-2307 for details.

Put on a red scarf and run

The Nick Dubos Red Scarf Invitational 2.2-mile fun run and 1.1-mile run/walk is scheduled for Dec. 26 at Roosevelt Park, 351 Tenney Ave. in Campbell.

The entry fee is 6 to 12 cookies or a handful of leftover Christmas cookies or fruitcake. Canned goods to be donated to the Mahoning Valley Food Bank will also be accepted.

Lunch, coffee, cookies and drinks will follow after the race.

To make a reservation, e-mail marke919@msn.com or call Mark at 216-392-8935.

AARP meeting planned

The Austintown AARP, a group that has been serving the community for more than 20 years, is still going strong. The group meets on the second Tuesday of each month at Grace Lutheran Church. The organization is known for its bus tours and entertaining at nursing homes through its choir.

For more information, contact Harriett Jones at 330-792-3425.

Great food program offers affordable meals

Smith Corners United Methodist Church, 3000 S. Canfield-Niles Road, Austintown, is the local site for the Great Food For All program.

Each big value box costs $30 and comes complete and ready for pick-up.

The family variety box is available for $36. Cash, money order or cashier’s checks are accepted at the time the order is placed. No checks are accepted.

Credit cards are accepted with a $1 convenience fee.

Go to www.greatfoodforall.com, type in zip code 44515, and scroll down until Smith Corners UMC pops up. Then pick up the ordered food boxes at Smith Corners UMC.

For information, contact the church office at 330-799-9390.

Library closed for holiday

All public libraries in the Mahoning County system will be closed for the holidays Friday and Dec. 25, 31 and Jan. 1.

Senior fun days at Boardman Park

Seniors can gather for lunch and activities from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lariccia Family Community Center at Boardman Park on Thursday.

Cost is $1. Call Karen at 330-965-0482 or the park office at 330-726-8105 to RSVP.

Children can have cookies with Santa

Bring your children to Boardman Park Lariccia Family Community Center Monday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to bake cookies for Santa.

Children can make cut-out cookies, holiday waffles, decorating their masterpieces, crafts and more.

Tickets for the children can be purchased at the park office. Boardman residents pay $5. Nonresidents pay $7. Children under 3 are free. No tickets are sold at the door.

For information, visit www.boardmanpark.com, call the park office at 330-726-8107 or Karen at 330-965-0482 or become a fan of Boardman Park on Facebook.

Scholarship opportunity for Catholic women

The Catholic Collegiate Association is offering a $1,000 scholarship to be used in the academic year 2011/2012 at any college or university.

All applicants must be Catholic women in good standing with their university and they must provide a recent transcript showing a 3.0 GPA. Applicants must also have successfully completed one year of college and submit a letter of recommendation from their pastor and an adviser or professor.

A short essay describing the reasons why the applicant should be awarded the scholarship will also be required.

To obtain an application or additional information, call 330-726-8063 before Jan. 12 or call the YSU financial aid and scholarship office at 330-941-3504. The deadline for the scholarship application is March 23.

Mooney grad honored at Gannon University

A local student at Gannon University, Erie, Pa., was recently honored for his participation in the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine’s (LECOM) Research Day.

Gregory R. Delost, of Struthers, took second place for his poster presentation, “Holistic Approach to Combating Staphylococcus aureus through Photobiomodulation via Light-Emitting Diodes (405nm).”

Another Gannon student, Amanda E. Stolz, was a co-author in the project, which is being conducted with Troy Skwor, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology at Gannon, and includes collaborations with Janis Eells, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Delost is the son of Raymond M. and Maria E. Delost and is a graduate of Cardinal Mooney High School.

Railroad layout at local museum

The Western Reserve Modular Railroad Club is featuring its large modular layout at the National Packard Museum in Warren through Dec. 29.

Take the best drive in the park

Original drawings, vintage photos and equipment of Mill Creek Golf Course will be on display in the Melnik Musuem at Fellows Riverside Gardens through December.

Nature photography exhibit at Riverside

The annual Nature Photography Exhibit will be displayed at Mill Creek MetroParks Fellows Riverside Gardens in Weller Gallery Feb. 13 through March 20 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Deadline for entries is Jan. 23. Applications will be available for download at http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=9907335&msgid=59588&act=GE80&c=770900&destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.millcreekmetroparks.org”www.millcreekmetroparks.org in January. Call Ford Nature Center at 330-740-7107 for information.

Join a celebration of family, friends and life

Help support Karen Rohan in her fight against breast cancer Jan. 16 from noon to 5 p.m. at St. Maron’s Church Antioch Hall, 1555 S. Meridian Road, Youngstown.

She was diagnosed with large globular differential carcinoma in June 2010.

The benefit includes a spaghetti dinner, Chinese auction and 50/50 raffle.

The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for children under 10. Carry-out is available and tickets can be purchased in advance or at the door.

To donate for the Chinese auction, call Bill Rohan at 330-398-3232 or Nikki Martin at 330-652-6630.

Winter Celebration: Holiday Scent-sation

Visit Fellows Riverside Gardens at Mill Creek MetroParks for the holidays and be greeted by the scent of cedar, fir and cinnamon through Jan. 2, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The decorated trees and seasonal flowers throughout the Davis Center will display the “Holiday Scent-sation” theme. Make sure to see the Rainforest Room, stop by the Shop in the Gardens for unique holiday gift ideas and catch the view of Lake Glacier while dining in the Garden Caf .

Search Autumn’s leftovers

Fall is nearly over and lean months lie ahead for wildlife. Hike with Mill Creek MetroParks and for clues to what they may be eating Sunday at 2 p.m. Hikers meet at the Ford Nature Center for the moderately-difficult one and half-mile hike.

Explore the winter woods

Need a respite from the holiday rush? Join Bill Whitehouse on an exploration of the peaceful Hitchcock Woods at Mill Creek MetroParks Dec. 26 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Parking is available on Deerpath Drive. This 2-mile hike is moderately difficult.

Health and wellness walks offered

Join Mill Creek MetroParks for several walks throughout December. All walks start at 9 a.m.

Meet at the Golf Course overflow parking lot on West Golf Drive Dec. 29 for an easy 1 or 3-mile walk.

Do yoga in the gardens

Join yoga instructor Heidi Suraci at Mill Creek Parks Fellows Riverside Garden Tuesdays in December from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. for beginner classes and from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. for intermediate classes. All level classes are Thursday and Dec. 30, 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. Bring a mat and small blanket. Call Fellows Riverside Gardens at 330-740-7116 for information. The cost is $10 per class.

T’ai Chi step one in the gardens

Ease stress, improve health and increase vitality at Mill Creek Parks Fellows Riverside Garden with Marie Lew in warm-ups, breathing exercises and selected movements from a classic Chen T’ai Chi form Wednesdays in December from noon to 1 p.m. Call Fellows Riverside Gardens at 330-740-7116 for information.

The cost is $10 per class.

Preschool nature hour is for the birds

Preschoolers ages 3 through 5 and their families can liste to a winter story and create edible ornaments for the birds at Mill Creek MetroParks Ford Nature Center today at 10 a.m. Help decorate an evergreen tree and take an ornament home for the birds in your backyard. Preregister at Ford Nature Center by calling 330-740-7107.

Cost is $2 per child for residents and $3 per child for nonresidents.

View the wldlife art of John A. Ruthven

Wildlife artist John Ruthven paints what he knows and loves. Often called the modern day Audubon, Ruthven thoroughly studies his animal subjects and paints them in their habitats with technical detail. His work will be on display at Mill Creek MetroParks Davis Education and Visitor Center daily through Jan. 9 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.