Austintown briefs

Austintown resident magna cum laude

Nichola Yacovone, son of Lorraine and Jordan Yacovone, graduated magna cum laude from the University of Akron with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting. Yacovone, a resident of Austintown, is employed by the Smuckers Co. in Orville, Ohio.

Church to sell pierogies by the dozen

St. Anne Ukrainian Byzantine Catholic Church, located at 4310 Kirk Road, will be selling pierogies by the dozen every Friday for $5. To order, call 330-799-0084 Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to noon or Fridays 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Orders can be picked up Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Class of 1986 reunion

The Austinown Fitch High School Class of 1986 will hold its 25th Reunion Tailgate Party on Sept. 30 at the 2011 Homecoming Game at Fitch Stadium. The game will be followed by a social event at a local establishment to be announced later.

For more information, visit the Facebook group /www.facebook.com/groups/AFHS1986class/ or email afhs1986@zoominternet.net.

Practice for Michael Jackson’s Thriller

If you love Michael Jackson, love to dance or just love Halloween, this is event is for you! Dance practice for Michael Jackson’s Thriller will be every Tuesday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Petco in Boardman.

Local participants will join with dancers around the world, simultaneously performing the Thriller dance for charity on Oct. 29.

For more information visit http://ThrillTheWorldYoungstown.com.

Retrouvaille weekend

If your marriage has grown cold and uncaring, Retrouvaille (Help Our Marriage) has helped thousands of couples heal their marriages. The next program is Oct. 21 at Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center. There’s limited space, so please call early.

For confidential information on our Youngstown diocese program call 330-979-7787 or visit www.retrouvaille.org.

Mill Creek Chapter of ABWA meets Tuesday

The Mill Creek Chapter of ABWA will hold its meeting at A La Cart in Canfield on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The meeting will begin with a dinner of Swiss steak, twice-baked potato, green beans, salad and apple dumplings.

The cost is $16. The deadline for reservations is Thursday. Reserve your seat by calling Joan Lucansky at 330-755-8212 or Darlene Demjen at 330-755-9089 (except Wednesday evenings).

Fall fashion preview set

The Network Council of Mahoning Valley of ABWA will sponsor its 22nd annual Fall Fashion Preview on Sept. 25 at Mr. Anthony’s in Boardman. The doors will open at 12:30 p.m. and lunch will be at 2 p.m.

Cody of Shooting Start, Nashville, will be the entertainment for the evening. There will also be a raffle of a 32-inch flat screen TV, Split the Pot and a Chinese auction.

Tickets are available for $25 per person until Sept. 15 by calling Shirley Pappagallo at 330-207-9779.

Hospice volunteer class begins Monday

Hospice of the Valley’s new volunteer class begins Monday in the Hospice House conference room. Classes are from noon to 3 p.m. every Monday through Oct. 17. Volunteers will learn what Hospice of the Valley’s team of doctors, nurses, social workers and chaplains do for the patients and their family and how volunteers fit into that team.

Hospice volunteers serve in a variety of ways, including being companions for hospice patients at home or in nursing homes and helping at the Hospice House inpatient facility. New volunteers are needed.

For more information or to register, call 330-788-1992.

Hospice House is located at 9803 Sharrott Road, Poland, on the campus of The Assumption Village.

Local student graduates from Pitt

Austintown’s Lyndsie Haefke, daughter of Sandra Slusher and Bart Haefke, is graduating from University of Pittsburgh with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. She has been accepted into Case Western Reserve University as a graduate student in the biology department. Haefke is pursuing a career in biological research.

Mickey Schuster Scholarship dinner set

Bethel Lutheran Church, 425 Crestview Dr., Boardman will host its semiannual Mickey Schuster Scholarship Spaghetti Dinner on Sept. 24 from 4 to 7 p.m. Cost is $6.50 for adults and $3 for children under 12.

Tickets are available at the door or by calling the church office at 330-758-5745. The dinner includes salad, bread, pasta with meatballs, dessert and drink. Takeouts are available. All proceeds go to the Mickey Schuster Scholarship Fund and are distributed each year to college students at Bethel.

Free Healthways Silver Sneaker membership

Curves Austintown is offering free Healthways Silver Sneaker memberships. Eligible women can workout for free based on their participating Medicare Supplemental Insurance. For more information, call 330-793-9802.

Pancake breakfast helps animals

TNR of Warren and For the Dogs Animal Rescue will sponsor a pancake breakfast on Saturday from 8 to 11 a.m. at Packard Park Indoor Shelter House, 1703 Mahoning Ave. in Warren.

Cost is $7 per person for all-you-can-eat-pancakes served with sausage, milk, orange juice and coffee. Tickets are available in advance or at the door. In addition to the breakfast, tickets will be available for a 50/50 raffle and Chinese auction.

Both groups are nonprofit, volunteer-based and rely solely on donations and fundraisers. All proceeds from the event will continue to help TNR of Warren and for the Dogs save the dogs and cats of Trumbull and Mahoning counties.

For more information, call 330-330-8166, visit www.tnrofwarren.org or www.ForTheDogs.Petfinder.com or follow them on Facebook.

Win tickets to Disney show

Enter a contest to win four vouchers for the Oct. 28 performance of “Phineas and Ferb: The Best Live Tour Ever.” To enter, visit any branch of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, fill out an entry form and write a paragraph explaining why you like Phineas and Ferb. The contest runs Sept. 14- Oct. 14. Drawings will take place Oct. 15 at each branch. The library will notify winners.

Library helps toddlers become readers

The Austintown branch of Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County will host “Baby Brilliant: Tales and Talk” for 2 and 3-year-olds on Sept. 14, 21 and 28 at 10 a.m. The program includes developmentally-appropriate books, songs, rhymes, finger plays and other activities that will help toddlers become successful readers. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Library helps babies bond with books

The Austintown branch of Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County will host “ Baby Brilliant: Bonding with Babies and Books for Lapsitters” for children who are not walking independently on Sept. 15, 22 and 29 at 9:30 a.m. This event will be followed by “Baby Brilliant: Bonding with Babies and Books for Walkers” for children who are walking independently at 11 a.m.

Both programs include 20 minutes of language enrichment with rhymes, songs and stories, followed by free play time. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Austintown Senior Center book club

The Austintown Senior Center invites members of the community, 60 and older, to participate in a book club meeting once a month at the center. The club has recently read books such as “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini and “ Gone with the Wind” by Margaret Mitchell.

The center also hosts a general discussion group meeting every Friday at 10 a.m. The general discussion group covers topics including current affairs, travel through the United States and Europe and personal reminiscences of positive influence in our lives. For more information regarding these two groups, call 330-953-1416.

School board approves electrical contract

The Austintown school board voted Aug. 2 to award the early-site electrical work contract for the removal of rear portions of Watson Elementary and Frank Ohl Intermediate schools to B&J Electrical of Poland Inc. B&J submitted the lowest bid to the district at $30,229.

During the board’s retreat work session, it also approved a design-develop phase submission, which puts the district one step closer to being able to accept bids for construction on its new kindergarten- through-second-grade and third-through-fifth-grade buildings.

Library calls all travelers

The Austintown branch of Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County will host “Calling All Travelers” on Sept. 26 at 6:30 p.m. The program will include family entertainment featuring “Top Reader” awards, games, stories and treats.

Library hosts Family Night Capades

The Austintown branch of Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County will host “Family Night Capades” on Monday at 6:30 p.m. The event is for children of all ages and will include stories, music, science and games.

Library hosts Fun Times

The Austintown branch of Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County will host “Fun Times” for children 4 and 5 on Sept. 14, 21 and 28 at 11 a.m. The program will include developmentally-appropriate books, songs, rhymes, finger plays and other activities that will help children become successful readers. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Library contest runs all month

Each full week of September, the I Spy: Toy School Bus will make a stop somewhere in the children’s area of the library. If you find the bus, don’t move it. Tell the librarian where it is and receive a prize. This is for children of all ages.

Treasure in Your Trunk sale

Immaculate Heart of Mary will have a “Treasurers in Your Trunk Sale” sponsored by its Social Concerns Group today from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the church parking lot, 4500 Norquest Blvd., Austintown.

Vendor spaces are available for early registration at $10 and must be received by Sept. 8. Vendors may register for $15 the day of the sale. No refunds will be given for any reason. Take your own table (up to 8 feet) for setting up in front of your trunk. There will be a sale of homemade baked goods, food and beverages. A used book and media sale will take place in the Parish Center at the same time. For more information, or to obtain a registration form, call Dolly Anderson at 330-792-8355.

Free membership for military families

Curves Austintown is offering free six-month memberships to wives and teenage daughters of actively-deployed reservists and National Guard members.

Surviving wives and teenage daughters will also be offered six months free memberships.

Discounts to other immediate family members will also be offered, but documentation will be required.

Duzzny receives award

Austintown resident Walter Duzzny was awarded a 10-year service award pin from the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve State Chairman John Hopper during the annual Department of Defense sponsored meeting and awards dinner in Columbus.

Duzzny is a retired Army Reserve Colonel and former emergency management director. He serves as the public affairs officer for the East Region.

Host families needed for international students

Five international students coming to the Youngstown area this August through Educatius International and attending Ursuline High School are in need of families to host them.

Host families can be from anywhere in the area and have few requirements. The students need a bed, desk and dresser. The students also need a ride to Ursuline, which can be via school bus or by car. Host families provide the students with daily meals and give them a loving and caring environment.

Educatius offers a monthly stipend to offset additional costs. The international students are expected to pay for all their expenses outside of the house (school lunches, restaurants, movies, presents, prom expenses etc.). Having an international student is a great way to learn about the world around you and even share your own culture.

Anyone interested in hosting one of these international students can contact a local Educatius International Coordinator at 330-770-5714.

Grieve with friends

Honor and remember children who have passed away at Bereaved Parent of the USA-Mahoning County Chapter’s monthly meetings the third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at Park Vista of Youngstown, 1216 Fifth Ave.

For information, call Diane Hunter-Copeland at 330-770-2686.

Have family garden fun

Visit the Family Garden on fair weather Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays to dig, plant, water or read a book. The Friendly Garden Greeter at the Discovery Cart will tell about plants and will offer many free hands-on activities.

For information, call the gardens at 330-740-7116.