Soup orders due

Effort UMC’s soup sale for January offers New England clam chowder and beef barley.

Orders will be taken through today with a pickup date of Sunday. Sign-up forms are on the church’s Welcome Center.

Free dinner

Zion Lutheran, Brodheadsville, will host its free monthly community dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. today. The menu includes pulled pork with a roll, Coleslaw, roasted veggies, dessert and a snack.

League meeting

The West End Little League meeting, open to the community, is slated to take place tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at the Chestnuthill Township Park in Brodheadsville.

Men’s breakfast

Our Lady Queen of Peace Church hosts a Men’s Breakfast. This month’s will be at 8:30 a.m., Jan. 20.

Pizza pickup

For those folks who ordered pizza from McMichaels UMC, pizzas are to be picked up by 11 a.m. Saturday.

Bible sale

On Sunday, Our Lady Queen of Peace Church will host a Bible sale in the Atrium.

Scholastic Fair

The PVI School is set to be the site of an all-day Scholastic Fair on Monday.

Bingo Night

American Legion Post 927, Gilbert, will host Bingo Nite on Monday. Card sales begin at 6:30 p.m. Calling begins at 7 p.m.

There will be some specials.

The full kitchen will be available for food and drink purchases.

Republican Club

The West End Republican Club is slated to meet at 7 p.m., Tuesday, at Cherry’s Family Restaurant in Kresgeville.

Folks planning to eat or socialize before the meeting are encouraged to come an hour earlier.

Prayer service

On Jan. 25, Our Lady Queen of Peace Church will host The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity service at 10:30 a.m.

A lunch in McCawley Hall will follow the service.

Church staff needs

Effort UMC has learned its church treasurer will be moving on at the end of March.

All applications/resumes are to be sent to Mark Wells, SPR Chairman at: mark.wells2017@gmail.com by Jan. 30.

Our Lady Queen of Peace Church is in need of a part-time bilingual secretary from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, beginning ASAP.

Applications are in the parish office.

Effort Men meet

The Effort UMC Men’s Group will meet at 9 a.m. Saturday in the church kitchen.

PVEN stats

The Pleasant Valley Ecumenical Network has just released its annual report.

With community help the PVEN served almost 1,100 individuals in November.

At December’s end, the tally for the 6 components of the PVEN’s Outreach in 2023 included:

Food - 3,520 families with 1,306 individuals; Clothing-640 families with 2,080 individuals; Holiday Toy Program-170 children; Diaper Pantry-1,054 families; Menstrual Hygiene Pantry- 1,669 individuals; and Back to School Extravaganza-180 children.

Jewish Arbor Day

On Jan. 24, Temple Israel of the Poconos, Stroudsburg, will celebrate Jewish Arbor Day from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For the lunch menu and other information, call 570-421-8781.

Each Tuesday, Temple Israel host a Mah Jongg Club meeting.

Strombolis to order

The Youth Missions team at Effort UMC is again taking orders for strombolis for its upcoming Mission trip to Dinwiddie, VA. Flavors include: broccoli & cheese, pepperoni & cheese, and cheese steak.

Orders will be accepted until Jan. 29. Pickup will be Sunday, Feb 11.

For costs for any of the 3 kinds, call the church office at 570-629-1890.

Spaghetti dinner

Salem-St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, located at 138 Trach Rd. in Kresgeville, is having a takeout spaghetti dinner on Feb. 17. Dinner includes spaghetti with meatballs, salad w/celery seed dressing, garlic bread and dessert.

Call 570-688-5381 to order and for details no later than Feb. 4. Pickup at the church between 4 and 5:30 p.m., Feb. 17.

Maple Sugaring set

Monroe County Conservation District’s Kettle Creek Environmental Education Center announces Maple Sugaring Programs for schools, groups and Scouts.

Two-hour tours include stops at stations providing information on the history of maple sugaring, which dates back to the Native Americans, the evaporating process that is used today and provides the groups with the opportunity to tap a maple tree whose sap will be used in the maple syrup production. Also shown are methods of collecting maple sap, and finally, the cooking process that produces the sweet maple syrup.

Dates this year for organized groups (including students, scouts and any organization) have been set for Feb. 26 through March 8.

Call 570-629-3061 to schedule. There is a minimal cost per participant and scheduling is done on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Scout Programs may be scheduled during the public day programs on March 2 or March 9. Programs can be scheduled between 10 a.m.-3 p.m. and are open to any level of scouts and their families. The day will feature a tour of the Sugar bush including stops to learn about Native American and early pioneer methods of making maple syrup, the evaporator process and methods of identifying and tapping a maple tree.

Preregistration is required for one’s group to reserve a spot by Feb. 21, 2024.

Additional information may be obtained by calling 570-629-3061, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or by visiting the website at www.mcconservation.org for more programs being offered.

Think spring

From the Garden of Giving comes word that the Garden’s first day of the spring cleanup begins April 1. Cool weather seedlings will be ready to be placed into their respective beds.

Those who have some time can be a big help to the Garden, including in the Garden office.

Reach out to the Garden at 570-402-1282 or by email at: GardenofGiving@gmail.com for more information.

The farm is located at 2556 Rising Hill Dr., Saylorsburg, off Rt. 715 (the suburbs of McMichaels) To learn more visit the Garden on Facebook, or online at: www.theGardenofGiving.org

Contact Adele Argot at 717-933-4028 or arargot3@verizon.net or the Times News at 800-443-0377 or tneditor@tnonline.com.