Poland Community Briefs

Have lunch with Santa Dec. 21

Austintown Bounce will host Lunch with Santa on Dec. 21 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Admission is $6 and includes a hot dog and drink.

Every child receives a free snowglobe. No discounts, passes or coupons will be accepted. Ausintown Bounce is located at 4317 Kirk Road in Austintown. For more information, call 330-793-JUMP.

Social connections field trip

Adults ages 18-25 are invited to join the Autism Society of Ohio on its seasonal field trip Dec. 19 at 6 p.m. at the Arms Family Museum, located at 648 Wick Ave. The group is invited for dinner, dessert and discussion about managing holiday expectations and stress at Roberto’s Italian Ristorante in Downtown Youngstown following the field trip. Admission is $6 for adults.

Preregistration is requested. To register, call 330-743-9184 or e-mail mahoningvalley@autismohio.org. ASO-MV hosts the group for 18-25 year-olds and adults 26 and older starting at 5:30 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday of every month for field trips or meetings at the Autism Society of Ohio Family Resource Center at the Ohio One Building in Downtown Youngstown.

These groups and their activities are appropriate for those verbal men and women with moderate to high-functioning autism. Membership is open and spaces are still available. A small membership fee will be assessed to cover the costs of the program.

Learn to Play Program sign ups

The Penguins, Ice Zone and the Phantoms have announced the addition of a second Little Penguins Learn to Play Program. Children interested can sign up at the Ice Zone from Dec. 20 until Jan. 6. The program costs $160 and it includes equipment as well as Saturday on-ice sessions. The 10 week on-ice program starts on Jan. 25 and it is limited to the first 25 skaters who sign up on a first come, first serve basis. For more information, contact the Ice Zone at 330-965-1423.

Ankle and Foot Care Centers’ shoe drive continues

Ankle and Foot Care Centers is accepting donations of new and nearly new shoes that will be distributed to local needy families by the Salvation Army.

Shoes can be dropped off at any of the practice’s 21 locations, including Austintown (1450 S. Canfield-Niles Road – Route 46), Boardman (1265 Boardman-Canfield Road or 8175 Market St.), Cornersburg (3507 Canfield Road) and Poland (3262 Center Road – Route 224). Shoes will be accepted through Jan. 3.

Acceptable shoes range from children’s sizes to adult, both men and women, and all types of shoes from athletic to dress to casual. Boots in children’s sizes are especially needed this time of year. For more information, visit www.ankleandfootcare.com.

Gamblers Anonymous to meet

Gamblers Anonymous, a 12-Step fellowship of compulsive gamblers who want to recover from their gambling addictions, will meet twice this week in the Youngstown-Warren area. A GA meeting will be offered Friday at Westminster Church, located at 119 Stadium Drive in Boardman and another will be offered Sunday at Christ Church Presbyterian, located at 3425 Hopkins Road in Cornersburg. Both meetings begin at 7:30 p.m. and are closed meetings. Only those suffering from gambling addictions are allowed to attend. Meetings usually last from 8:45-9:15 p.m. For more information, call 330-505-5060.

Local church to have Christmas Eve event

Prince of Peace Evangelical Lutheran, located at 2985 Center Road in Poland, will have a worship at 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve. The service will include a special children’s message, Holy Communion and candlelight. All are welcome. For more information, call 330-757-3272.

Local student earns nursing degree at Malone University

Maggie Conway of Poland earned the master of science in nursing degree from The Malone University School of Nursing and Health Sciences.

Memories of Christmas Past

Memories of Christmas Past opens Nov. 23 and runs through Jan. 5. Admission for the exhibit is $6 for adults, $5 for Senior Citizens and $4 for Children ages 3-18 (under 3 free). Hours for the museum are Tuesday-Sunday, 1-5 p.m. and Thursdays 1-8 p.m. The museum is closed on Mondays, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Day. Proceeds from the event help fund the educational and exhibit programs sponsored by the Mahoning Valley Historical Society. Sponsors of the event include the Anne Kilcawley Christman Foundation, The Frank and Pearl E. Gelbman Foundation, Charlotte Gelhaar, WFMJ, The Youngstown Vindicator, Denise DeBartolo York, Fred Martin Ford, Packer Thomas, Virginia Dineen, CR Electric, YPS Integrated Systems and V&D Painting.

Winter garden conservatory will be Dec. 7-Jan. 5

The D.D. and Velma Davis Education and Visitor Center at Fellows Riverside Gardens will be showcasing holiday color and festivities with floral displays and decorated trees in a special built conservatory starting Dec. 7 through Jan. 5 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Children can walk through the greenhouse and take a plant home. The Davis Center is closed on Mondays except Dec. 30 and Wednesdays, Dec. 25. and Jan. 1.

Winter nights in the gardens

Fellows Riverside Gardens will have extended evening hours Dec, 22 and 29 from 5-7 p.m. for the festivities of Winter Celebration. There will be cookies, hot cocoa and entertainment. Support the Second Harvest Food Bank with a donation of a non-perishable food item.

Winter nights dinners

The Garden Cafe will be offering its Prix Fixe Dinner again this year Dec. 22 and 29 starting at 5:30 p.m. by registration only. A holiday dinner will be provided after viewing the garden lights. To make a reservation or for more information, call 330-740-7074.

Sunny lesson

Children ages 3-5 are invited to Fellows Riverside Gardens Dec. 21 from 11 a.m. until noon to learn about how the sun warms the earth and makes plants grow. A sunny snack, story and sunshine art will be provided. Registration is required. There is a $6 fee; FFRG member $4. An adult must accompany each child. Only bring the participating children.

Nature’s holiday style

Children ages 6-12 are invited to Birch Hill Cabin on Dec. 21 from 10-11:30 a.m to create gifts, decorations and wrappings using natural materials. Pre-register at Ford Nature Center by Dec. 16. There is a $7 fee; $10 if unregistered. An adult must accompany each child. Only bring the participating children.

Natural holiday decorations

Children ages 6-11 are invited to Fellows Riverside Gardens Dec. 21 from 10-11:30 a.m. to decorate a holiday Norfolk Island pine tree with pine cones and berries and make ornaments from natural materials. Registration is required. There is a $15 fee; FFRG members $12. An adult must accompany each child. Only bring the participating children.

Glass by James Michael

Join Ohio artist James Michael and his students Nov. 15 through Jan. 12 in Weller Gallery at Fellows Riverside Gardens as they assimilate a variety of metals and alloys into clear and colored glass to produce freeform sculptures. Entrapped air bubbles produce abstract forms within the glass.

Let’s be friends

This exhibit in the Melnick museum, runs throughout December 2013 to celebrate the 25 anniversary of the Friends of Fellow Riverside Gardens.

Let’s be friends

This exhibit in the Melnick museum, runs throughout December 2013 to celebrate the 25 anniversary of the Friends of Fellow Riverside Gardens.

It’s a winter!

Celebrate the arrival of winter Dec. 22 at 2 p.m. with a hike through the rocks. Meet at Bears Den Cabin. Participants are invited to the Ford Nature Center after the hike for hot chocolate. Tricky footing on rocks. The hike has a moderate rating of three miles.

Calorie burner

Meet at Newport Wetlands Dec. 29 at 1:30 p,m, for the final hike of 2013. Burn up to 1,000 calories. The hike has a moderate-difficult rating of five miles.

Meet at Fellows Riverside Gardens Dec. 21 at 5:30 p.m. for a moderate hike of 1-2 miles.

Connect with your eReader

Bring your eReader to the Poland library Dec. 23 from 6-7 p.m. and learn how to download eBooks from the Library’s Digital Catalog on the website. Space is limited. Call 330-744-8636 and ask for the branch by name to register.

Trim a tree for December

Children of all ages are invited to join the Poland library throughout December during library hours to decorate an ornament for the all-seasons tree.

Join the Austintown library for developmentally-appropriate books, songs, rhymes, finger plays and other activities that will help your child (ages 2-3) become a successful reader every Thursday in December at 10 and 11 a.m. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Non-profit organizations can now sell admission buttons

First Night Youngstown is the premier New Year’s Eve event in downtown Youngstown. To be admitted into First Night entertainment venues during this New Year’s Eve event, attendees must purchase an admission button. Area non-profit organizations may sell admission buttons and keep a portion of the proceeds. The more the organization sells, the more it earns.

Organizations may begin selling now, and through Dec. 21. For more information, email infofirstnightyoungstown@netzero.net or call 330-744-9966.

Carlozzi Financial Services to host food and funds drive

Carlozzi Financial Services is again helping fill the shelves of the Second Harvest Food Bank. The public is invited to help feed hungry families this holiday season with donations of non-perishable food items or monetary donations, which can be dropped off at Carlozzi Financial Services, locates at 831 Southwestern Run, Suite 1 in Poland.

For information, visit www.CarlozziFinancialServices.com.