Austintown Community Briefs

December 27, 2013 at 12:00a.m.

ABWA to meet Jan. 14

The American Business Women’s Association, Mill Creek Chapter, will meet at 6 p.m. on Jan. 14 at Davidson’s Restaurant, located at 3636 Canfield Road in Canfield. Following dinner, guest speaker Erin Mellinger will present “Fitness and Nutrition Tips for a Healthier Lifestyle.” Mellinger is owner of Fitness Together in Canfield and Poland. Prospective members are invited to the chapter’s monthly meetings. Reservations for the next meeting are $17 per person and will be taken through Jan. 5 by calling Shirley Pappagallo at 330-270-9779 or Jackie Fischio at 330-788-6634.

DQ to host customer appreciation day

Join the Austintown Dairy Queen, located at 146 N, Canfield Niles Rd., or the Cornersburg Dairy Queen, located at 3555 S. Meridian Rd. Jan. 1 from 12-8 p.m. for customer appreciation day. Everything on the menu will be 1/2 off.

Support group to meet

The Mahoning Valley Fibromyalgia Support Group will meet on Jan. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at Bethel Lutheran Church, located at 425 Crestview Drive in Boardman. Senior care will be the topic for discussion and anyone with an interest in coping with a chronic, invisible condition is welcome. For mote information, call Alice at 330-509-3333 or Nancy at 330-758-8413.

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.

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.

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.

Library closings

All libraries in the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County system will be closed for New Year’s Day Jan. 1 and for Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 20.

Conversation salon

Join the Austintown library Jan. 2 at 6:30 p.m. for conversation about topics of interest. Sponsored by the Friends of PLYMC.

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.

Gamblers Anonymous to meet

Friends of the Austintown library

Dr. Donna DeBlasio, professor of history at YSU and director of the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor, will bring to life the history of industry and labor of the Mahoning Valley Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor Jan. 27 at 10 a.m. The Historical Center, located at 115 West Wood Street in Youngstown, provides an overview of the impact of the iron and steel industry on Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley. The museum offers a look into lives and times of the men and women who labored in the steel industry. There will be a brief friends meeting following the program.

Blood pressure check

The Salem Area Visiting Nurse Association will be having a free blood pressure check Jan. 28 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Blood drive

The Mahoning Chapter of the American Red Cross will be taking blood donations Jan. 25 from 10 a.m until 3 p.m. to help the community.

Page turners book club

Adults are invited to join the Austintown library Jan. 15 from 6-7 p.m. to hear what others have been reading and share what they have been reading.

Learn how to use the Kindle

Teens and adults are invited to brings their Kindles to the Austintown library Jan. 7 or 22 at 6 p.m. to learn how to download eBooks from the library’s digital catalog on the website. Bring your Amazon account and email information. Space is limited. Call 330-744-8636 and ask for the branch by name to register.

Learn how to use the Nook

Teens and adults are invited to bring their Nooks to the Austintown library Jan. 29 at 6 p.m. and learn how to download eBooks from the library’s digital catalog on the website. Bring your Adobe ID and email information. Space is limited. Call 330-744-8636 and ask for the branch by name to register.

Learn basic computer skills

Join the Austintown library Jan. 23 at 6 p.m. to learn basic computer skills. Space limited to three. Call 330-744-8636 and ask for the branch by name.

Teen advisory board (TAB) meeting

Teens in grades 7-12 are invited to join the Austintown library Jan. 4 at 3 p.m. to become a member of the Teen Advisory Board. Help out with library programs, decide what books to buy, discuss what you are currently reading and meet new people. Meetings will be the first Saturday of each month at 3 p.m.

Smart phone scavenger hunt

Children in grades 5 and up are invited to the Austintown library during library hours throughout January to bring their smart phones for a QR code scavenger hunt. Find and answer questions around the library and turn in the answer sheet for a prize.

Learn how to crochet

Adults and teens are invited to join the Austintown library Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. to learn how to crochet. Sign up by calling 330-744-8636 and ask for the Austintown Library to register for the hour long lesson. Bring a size G crochet hook with you and a ball of cotton yarn to make a dish cloth or four-ply yarn to make a scarf.

Rainbow loom bracelets

Children in grades 4 and up are invited to the Austintown library’s rainbow loom craft program Jan. 18 at 11:30 a.m. Each session is limited to the first 12 tweens and teens who sign up. Beginners will be walked through the single pattern bracelet, but templates will be provided for loomers with more experience. To register, call 330-744-8636 or sign up online at www.libraryvisit.org/programs.aspx. Rainbow loom kits contain small rubber bands and sharp points.

Sensory story time

Children of all ages are invited to join the Austintown library Jan. 11 at 2 p.m. for family story time with a sensory focus. This program is designed for children with different needs, including those with Autism, speech and language delays, cognitive impairments, ADHD and other special needs and challenges. There will be books, music and sensory stations with a schedule board and double visuals. Children must attend with an adult. Registration is required. Call 330-744-8636 and ask for the specific library.

Lego my library

Children ages 6 and up are invited to the Austintown library Jan. 8 at 6 p.m. to create lego designs. Legos will be provided.

Year of the Horse event

Children of all ages are invited to the Austintown library during library hours throughout January to try the Chinese zodiac word search. Ask the librarian what animal equates to the year of your birth and receive a hand stamp.

Grab and go craft event

Children of all ages are invited to join the Austintown library during library hours throughout January to make a craft to take home.

Gotta move storytime

Children ages 2-5 who are accompanied by an adult are invited to join the Austintown library every Thursday in January at 10 a.m. for a variety of musical and movement activities that stimulate brain development and motivate language learning. Act out stories and rhymes, sing and dance, talk and play.

Tales and talk for 2s and 3s

Join the Austintown library Jan. 8, 15, 22 and 29 at 10 a.m. for developmentally-appropriate books, songs, rhymes, finger play and other activities that will help your children, ages 2-3, become successful readers. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Fun time for 4s and 5s

Join the Austintown library Jan. 8, 15, 22 and 29 at 11:30 a.m. for developmentally-appropriate books, songs, rhymes, finger play and other activities that will help your children, ages 4-5, become successful readers. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Baby brilliant

Caregivers and their little ones, ages 6-23 months, are invited to join the Austintown library Jan. 7, 14, 21 and 28 at 10 a.m. for 20 minutes of language enrichment including rhymes, songs and stories, followed by time to play and socialize. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Lego Robotics advance

The Biohazard Robotics Team won the Gracious Professionalism award and the Sand Devils, another Austintown Robotics Team, won the Strategy and Innovation Award. The theme of the competition was Nature’s Fury. The teams were instructed to identify a natural disaster, a location in which this disaster is at risk and then devise a plan to help prepare for these situations. The teams had to give a presentation and participate in a questions and answers session with the judges. The teams’ robots also had to show off their abilities to complete missions and maneuver through obstacles. Biohazard team members include Jackson Belknap, Anthony Delbene, Michael Spear, Alex Giovannone, Jeremy Selby, Zachary Easton, Nathan Spalding and Isaac Robbins. The Sand Devils team members include Bryan Griffiths, Seth Welch, Joseph Jadue, Matthew Land, Rashaan Nelson and Liam Carver. The Biohazard team will be joining the Austintown Mad Scientists for the Jan. 11 District FLL Event at Austintown Middle School.

Teens for Jeans

Austintown Fitch High School’s Life Literature class room 112 is participating in the national campaign, Teens for Jeans. The public may drop off jean donations Dec. 18 at Fitch High School, located at 4560 Falcon Drive, or at the school’s Creative Arts Night Jan. 15. The drop box will also be located at Fitch and Austintown Middle School at all times between now and Jan. 15. For more information, contact Steve Ward at sward@austintownschools.org.

Winter garden conservatory 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.