Tamaqua news
Food safety
Penn State Extension Services will conduct a ServSafe course for anyone interested in becoming certified in food safety.Sessions will be held at the Schuylkill County AG Center in Pottsville, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 26 and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 3.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there are 48 million cases of food-borne illness in the United States every year. The majority of these are caused by poor food handling practices, such as time-temperature abuse, cross-contamination and poor personal hygiene.In addition to proper food handling basics, the Penn State Extension course will cover relevant topics such as pest control, proper storage, cleaning and sanitation and more.Food safety certifications will be presented after the class sessions and the successful completion of an exam.For more information, call 610-378-1327 or register online at
www.foodsafety.psu.edu. Choose ServSafe under "courses and workshops."Hunger walkThe Fourth Annual Tamaqua Community Hunger Walk will be held the weekend of May 7.The event continues to expand, with organizers planning an Empty Bowl Soup Dinner, a community concert, the walk and a post event celebration, including an ice cream social. Last year's event raised $6,300 and collected 83 boxes of food which were then donated to Tamaqua's three food pantries: Trinity United Church of Christ, the Tamaqua Salvation Army and Primitive Methodist Church.For more information, or to volunteer, call Paul Dodson at 570-668-0289.The event is sponsored by the Tamaqua Area Faith fellowship network, a nonprofit organization under the umbrella of the Tamaqua Area Community Partnership.West Penn LionsThe West Penn Lions Club meets the first and third Wednesdays of each month as they work toward helping others, both locally and nationally.Meetings are held at 6:30 p.m. in the West Penn Township Annex Building, located just off Route 309 on Municipal Road.The next meeting will be held April 19.For further information, call 570-386-2272.Zion LewistownPastor Jim Williams will officiate at the 10:30 a.m. worship service this Easter Sunday in Zion Church of Lewistown Valley. Sunday school will meet at 9:15 a.m.Pastor Williams will also officiate at an Easter sunrise service, at 6:20 a.m. at the Lewistown Valley Tabernacle.Pastor Eugene Eckroth will deliver the sermon at today's Maundy Thursday service, which will be held at 7:30 p.m.Contact Kathy Kunkel at 570-668-1250 or
kkunkel@tnonline.com. Contact the Times News at 800-443-0377 or