AARP Tax Assistance

The AARP Tax Assistance Group from Lehighton will be responsible for the site in the West End. This site is in Gilbert at the Salem United Church of Christ on Monday and Thursday mornings, 9 a.m. to noon.If Pleasant Valley School District has a two-hour delay, the hours of operation will be 10 a.m. to noon.For more information, call 610-381-3821.The church is handicap accessible.Walk-ins are welcome.Lions board meetsThe Western Pocono Lions Club board of directors will meet at the Western Pocono Community Library at 7 p.m. All Lions are welcome.Weekly blood driveThe Western Pocono Community Library in Brodheadsville is the site for a weekly Miller-Keystone blood drive.The drive begins at noon.Band parents meetThe Pleasant Valley School District Band Parents will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday in the high school Band Room.Eastern StarMonroe Chapter 99, OES, will meet at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Masonic Center on Rimrock Drive.For more information, call 570-620-1132.Father/DaughterThe PTO at Pleasant Valley Elementary School will host a Father/Daughter dance this Friday. Next week it will be a Mother/Son dance.Guest speakerThe Rev. Ron Mrozinski will be visiting Our Lady Queen of Peace parish in Gilbert at all the Masses this weekend on behalf of Cross Catholic Outreach founded to create a meaningful link between parishes in America and the priests and nuns working in the church overseas in the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, Central and South America.Mrozinski is a priest in the Diocese of Saint George's in Grenada. He now lives in Lauderhill, Florida, and is also associate director of clergy and diocesan relations.Pocono GreyhoundPocono Greyhound Adoption will be holding a Meet & Greet at Tractor Supply Company, Route 209 in Brodheadsville, from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday.Visit

www.poconogreyhound.org or call 570-856-0377 to learn more about this event or about adopting a greyhound.Busy churchSalem-St. Paul's Lutheran Church on Trach Drive in Kresgeville will have a busy Sunday this week, beginning with a worship service at 8:15 a.m. followed by the Confirmation class at 9 a.m.; another worship service, with Sunday school, at 10:30; and a social hour at 11:30.At noon there will be the Sunday School Wild Spaghetti Lunch, and from 2 to 5 p.m. there will be sledding and ice cream at Jeff and Linda Hinton's home in Saylorsburg.On Sunday, the Fill the Can with Food outreach project for CACPAC, a Carbon County food pantry in Palmerton, continues.The church can be reached at 610-681-5191.Legion meetingsThe 927 Riders begin the week's meetings at the American Legion Post Home in Gilbert at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. The SAL meets at 6:30 p.m.On Monday it is the auxiliary meeting at 6 p.m.The Korean War Vets meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday.The Legion also holds a weekly bingo night on Mondays, beginning at 7 p.m. and a Wing Night on Thursday as well as a Shuffleboard League every Thursday during certain times of the year.For more information about the activities at the Legion, call 610-681-5838.UMW meetsThe next meeting of Efforts UMC's United Methodist Women will be Monday. Hostesses are Alma Middleton and Lucy Boomer. Devotions will be provided by Dawn Frances. The program will be enhanced living.For additional information, contact Dee Juris at 610-681-8217 or

deedlebug24@gmail.com, or Jan Decker at the church office, 570-629-1890.All Sports ClubThe Pleasant Valley All Sports Club will meet at 7 p.m. Monday in the high school library in Brodheadsville.Knit & CrochetZion Lutheran Church's Knit & Crochet group will meet from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday. Newcomers are welcome.Operation: Touch of HomeThe next meeting of Operation: Touch of Home will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The group meets at the American Legion Post Home in Gilbert.On Feb. 24, the group will be one of several entities at Pleasant Valley's Night of Unity held at the high school in Brodheadsville.Special programThe Chestnuthill Seniors, meeting at Zion Lutheran's Fellowship Hall in Brodheadsville, will have a special program at next week Wednesday's gathering.The timely topic is Healthy Hearts. It will be presented at 11 a.m.All programs are open to the public. For further information on any programs, call 570-420-3746If the schools are closed due to inclement weather, the senior centers will be closed also.The menu for the day is smothered pork chop.The Friday menu this week is Swiss steak.For meal reservations call 570-242-6770 one day in advance by 11 a.m.WEPOSC meetingsFriends of West End Park and Open Space Commission will meet at 6 p.m. Feb. 11 at the Chestnuthill Park Building in Brodheadsville, and the Commission will meet at 7 p.m. at the park building.Rescheduled WELL meetingWest End Little League has rescheduled its meeting to 7:15 p.m. Feb. 19. The group meets at the Chestnuthill Park Building in Brodheadsville.Helpful LeosThe Pleasant Valley Leo Club recently collected 417 coats. Some were given to students in the school district who were in need and the remainder were given to the Pleasant Valley Ecumenical Network's Community Service Center.The Leos also collected 4 pickup loads of food including canned goods, dry goods and frozen turkeys.Fleetwood scholarshipsThe West End Park and Open Space Commission will provide two $1,000 Dave Fleetwood Scholarships this year to recognize Pleasant Valley School District graduates who exemplify the outstanding attributes of the late David Fleetwood. Applications and guidelines are available from the guidance office or by request to

bkozen@weposc.org. All applications must be received by the West End Park and Open Space Commission by April 15.Show's date changeThe Western Pocono Lioness Club has had to change the date of its annual fashion show in 2015 from Sept. 27 to Sept. 20, due to the papal visit to Philadelphia on that Sunday.Editor's note: The Chestnuthill column is now the West End column and will include all the news from the West End of the Poconos. Please feel free to contact Adele Argot with your information.