Ten people died and 361 others were injured in 712 crashes investigated by the Pennsylvania State Police during the four-day Fourth of July holiday driving period, Commissioner Frank E. Pawlowski said today.

Seven of those killed were not wearing seat belts, Pawlowski said. He noted that 72 of the crashes were alcohol-related, including three of the fatal crashes.

During the holiday driving period that covered Friday, July 2, through Monday, July 5, troopers arrested 339 persons for driving under the influence, issued 7,877 speeding citations, cited 723 for failing to wear seatbelts, and issued 129 citations for not securing children in safety seats.

During last year’s Fourth of July holiday travel period, which covered only three days (July 3-5, 2009), nine people died and 206 others were injured in 447 crashes investigated by troopers, Pawlowski added.

The statistics include only those incidents investigated by state police and do not include data from incidents to which other law enforcement agencies responded.

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POTTSTOWN, PA – Limerick Generating Station is proud to once again sponsor the 2010 Exelon Nuclear Summer Concert Series in Lower Pottsgrove Township. The concert series runs through Aug. 15 at the Sanatoga Park Band Shell.

“Limerick Generating Station has been a friend to Lower Pottsgrove Township for many years and their continuing support of our summer concert series is a testament to their commitment to the local community,” said Township Manager Rod Hawthorne.

“At Exelon we know the important role that the performing arts and live music have in making our community a great place to live and work,” said Bill Maguire, Limerick site vice president. “We are pleased that we can continue to partner with Lower Pottsgrove Township to make these free musical performances possible.”

“This is another wonderful demonstration of the sense of community we all enjoy in Lower
Pottsgrove,” said Jon Spadt, president, Lower Pottsgrove Board of Commissioners.
The free musical performances, covering an array of genres, are held at Sanatoga Park, located at 200 South Sanatoga Road in Lower Pottsgrove. Listed below is the schedule of concerts for the 2010 Exelon Nuclear Summer Concert Series.

Sunday, June 27th, 6 PM – Bill Koss Combo
Sunday, July 11th, 6 PM – O’Such Rhythm and Music
Sunday, July 18th, 6 PM – Mango Men
Sunday, July 25th, 6 PM – Barbone Street Jazz Band
Sunday, August 1st, 6 PM – Flamin Dick and the Hot Rods
Sunday, August 8th, 6 PM – MESA
Sunday, August 15th, 6 PM – Pottsgrove Community Band

All concerts are weather permitting and the rain date is the following evening at 7 PM.
For more information about the Exelon Nuclear Summer Concert Series, visit www.lowerpottsgrove.org or call (610) 323-0436 x207.

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Exelon Corporation is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities. The company has one of the industry’s largest portfolios of electricity generation capacity, with a nationwide reach and strong positions in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Exelon distributes electricity to approximately 5.4 million customers in northern Illinois and southeastern Pennsylvania and natural gas to approximately 486,000 customers in the Philadelphia area. Exelon is headquartered in Chicago and trades on the NYSE under the ticker EXC.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission reports that at 12:01 a.m. Monday morning, June 21, it will make another dedicated “E-ZPass Only” lane available to E-ZPass customers exiting the Turnpike mainline (I-276) at the Willow Grove (Exit #343) Interchange. Lanes 5, 7 and 9 will now be “E-ZPass Only.”

Prior to the changes on June 21, there were two (2) “E-ZPass Only” and four (4)”Cash Only” lanes available. Turnpike officials hope to ease congestion at the toll plaza by adding the third “E-ZPass Only” lane and maintaining lanes 6, 8 and 10 for cash customers.

Starting this week (June 14-21) Turnpike travelers in the vicinity of the Willow Grove Interchange are being alerted to the new lane configurations via message boards or by tuning to the Turnpike’s Highway Advisory Radio (1640 AM).

Turnpike officials emphasized that motorists must pay close attention to the overhead signs when approaching the toll plaza. Cash-paying customers mistakenly entering an E-ZPass only lane should not attempt to stop, pull over or back up. A camera will photograph license plates of non-E-ZPass vehicles and a notice will be sent in the mail. When the notice arrives, motorists can appeal the violation by returning the accompanying form along with an explanation of what happened and their toll ticket and payment of the toll due.

If the Turnpike’s Highway Advisory Radio is activated, as indicated by yellow flashing lights, please tune to Radio 1640 AM for updates. Motorists can also get real-time Pa. Turnpike alerts by calling 866-976-8747 (TRIP). The toll-free, voice-activated TRIP line has frequent updates and provides targeted audio alerts for specific Turnpike sections.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike is committed to distributing complete and accurate travel information. Get Turnpike news releases, traffic bulletins and other information at www.paturnpike.com.

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The image to the left shows what Pottstown and surrounding would look like as of June 15, 2010 if it were centered on 19464.

An explosion on the BP operated Deepwater Horizon oil rig killed eleven crew members on April 20, 2010, sparking the greatest environmental disaster in United States history. In combination with the Texas City Refinery Explosion and the Prudohoe Bay Oil Spill, this marks the third serious incident involving BP in the United States in the last five years. Current estimates put the amount of oil being discharged from the broken well at above 1,050,000 US gallons per day! There are over 400 different species of animals living in the area affected by the spill. 330 sea turtles and 39 dolphins have been found dead within the spill area (NOAA). BP is operating oil skimmers and other cleanup tools to try to remove oil from the water and Louisiana is building oil containment berms to halt the spread of oil. Experts are uncertain what effect, if any, these efforts will have.

View what your town would look like here.

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Did you know you can use a Bycicle in Pottstown? There is a business in downtown Pottstown that has a program that allows local residents to borrow a bike.

The Pottstown Free Bike Share Program is located at:

Tri County Bicycles
256 East High St
(484) 941-6000

Ride the Schuylkill River Trail

Get out of the office and make use of the bicycle program as a team building exercise, Tour the Pottstown art galleries, visit the John Potts Mansion, bike the beautiful parks, enjoy lunch at a great restaurant, and get out in nature and enjoy the fresh air

Call today and arrange a guided tour: (484) 941-6000

A Preservation Pottstown Program

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Warm evenings, gentle breezes and the cool sounds of local musicians set the stage for Norristown Farm Park’s annual summer concert series.

The Montgomery County Commissioners and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania proudly announce the 8th Annual Summer Concert Series to be held at the Norristown Farm Park.

“Summer has always been the perfect time to gather with friends and family, and this year is no exception.  We invite you to come; spend an enjoyable Saturday evening at the Farm Park listening to the diverse sounds of area entertainers,” said Site Supervisor Kenneth Shellenberger.

This year’s line-up will feature N. Cameron Chandler along with several of the more popular acts from last year, and of course “Elvis”, portrayed by Dean Garofolo, a series regular since 2004, will make an appearance.

“We received a great deal of positive feedback from those attending last year’s events and we expect the same this year,” Shellenberger said.

The 2010 concert series begins Saturday, June 5th and will continue throughout the summer on select Saturday evenings, concluding on August 21st. Show times are from 6:00 pm until 7:30 pm (weather permitting).  In the event of inclement weather, Saturday’s show may be rescheduled for the following evening, (Sunday).  Should the weather be poor on both evenings, the concert may be rescheduled for a later date or cancelled entirely.

Concert Dates and Musicians:
June 5th N. Cameron Chandler – Pop, Jazz, Blues, 1940’s – 70’s Classics
June 19th Zydeco A Go-Go – New Orleans Style Jazz, Cajun and Zydeco
July 10th Melissa Martin and the Mighty Rhythm Kings – Swing
July 24th      Dean Garofolo – Elvis Classics
August 21st      The Flower Power Band – 60’s and 70’s Rock

All concerts are free.  Those attending are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, blankets and perhaps a picnic basket to partake in an evening meal while enjoying the music in this picturesque and tranquil setting.  Please note that alcoholic beverages are not permitted in the park, and that all park rules and regulations will be strictly enforced.

If you would like more information about this program or, if you and/or your band would like to be considered for an upcoming musical event, please contact the Norristown Farm Park at 610-270-0215 or visit us on the web at www.parks.montcopa.org.

Norristown Farm Park is owned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and is operated by the Montgomery County Department of Parks and Heritage Services.  The site is located at the intersection of Germantown Pike and North Wales Road and is open for passive recreation seven days a week from sunrise to sunset.

Montgomery County is dedicated to preserving this unique and valuable open space, providing passive recreation for the region, as well as the continuance of “normal” farming operations on the agricultural lands.

Contact:
Kenneth W. Shellenberger II, Park Supervisor
Norristown Farm Park
2500 Upper Farm Road
Norristown, Pa. 19403
Phone: 610-270-0215
E-mail: kshellen@montcopa.org

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The Pottstown Herald Newspaper announced today the acquisition of a top newspaper domain name for the Pottstown Area. On June 7, 2010 we secured PottstownNewspaper.com

This acquisition will allow us to capture more web traffic and type in traffic via Google, Yahoo, Bing and the other search engines. This will result in more people reading our stories, articles & news in the Pottstown, Pa area. When people search for news in the Pottstown area, one of the search terms they use is “Pottstown Newspaper” this domain will allow us to capitalize on that traffic.

Up until about 2 months ago the PottstownNewspaper.com domain name was pointing to the Pottstown Mercury website, but for some reason the domain expired and was made available to the general public.

John Henning, the owner of the Pottstown Herald Newspaper, said today that this is a wonderful addition to our newspaper domain name inventory and we expect to increase our readership coverage and traffic within just a few weeks.

With advertising rates of $149/mth, the Pottstown Herald Newspaper is the most affordable newspaper in Pottstown.

Henning is also the founder of the Town NewZ Community Newspaper system. Now with 9 online newspapers operated by 4 different owners, the Town NewZ system is creating a nationwide network of digital newspapers.

Henning is seeking owners for the PhoenixvilleTimes.com newspaper as well as the ReadingTribune.com newspaper. Interested parties should contact John at: 610-326-0182.

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Read more about the Town NewZ Community Newspaper system here.

Believing that we must recognize and encourage the impressive commitment of our high school students who most excel in and outside the classroom, Congressman Joe Sestak held his fourth-annual Congressional Scholar-Athlete Program Awards Ceremony. The program honors one male and one female senior student from local high schools which 7th District students attend who best exemplify the term “Scholar-Athlete.”  In the attached photograph, Joe is  pictured with the winners that attended the ceremony this past Sunday, May 23, 2010.

“I believe it is important to recognize the talents and hard work of students who excel equally in academics and sports,” said Congressman Sestak. “As you may know, one of the national security pillars I strongly support is Education. I know that my own experience balancing the demands of schoolwork and athletics helped to make me who I am,” said Joe. “As these students leave high school to start careers, go to college, or join the armed services, they are well prepared to meet the challenges of the real world.”

Seventy-six scholar-athletes and their families, coaches, teachers and friends joined Congressman Sestak at the event filling the auditorium at Delaware County Community Hall with over 200 people.

The local students recognized as Scholar-Athletes are listed below:

SPRING-FORD SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Matthew Dwyer of Collegeville
Varsity letter for Swimming; Swimming District Qualifier

Diana Michel of Collegeville
Cross Country and Track and Field; Cross Country All-Team

ACADEMY OF NOTRE DAME DE NAMUR
Ann Kelly of Newtown Square
Field Hockey and Indoor and Outdoor Track; All-State Indoor Track

ACADEMY PARK HIGH SCHOOL
Danté Mitchell of Folcroft
Football and Track and Field; Valedictorian

Erin Gallagher of Collingdale
Field Hockey, Track, and Lacrosse; 1st Team All Delaware Valley in Field Hockey

AGNES IRWIN SCHOOL
Alexis Caris of Aston
Varsity Volleyball and Softball; National Merit Finalist

ARCHBISHOP JOHN CARROLL HIGH SCHOOL
Emmett Filippelli of Devon
Varsity Soccer and Lacrosse; 1st Team All-Catholic

Aimee Gennaro of Havertown
Varsity Soccer and Lacrosse; 2nd Academic Honors

BISHOP SHANAHAN HIGH SCHOOL
Christopher Cusick of West Chester
Football and Track and Field; Captain Football

Mary Worrell of West Chester
Basketball; National Honor Society

CARDINAL O’HARA HIGH SCHOOL
Sean  Rafferty of Broomall
Soccer and Tennis; Varsity Letters in Soccer and Tennis

Madeline Hotz of Media
Softball, Cross Country, and Track; Varsity Letters in Softball and Cross Country

CFS, SCHOOL AT CHURCH FARM
Chad Pohlig of Lansdowne
Soccer, Baseball and Basketball; Varsity Starter in Soccer and Baseball

CHICHESTER HIGH SCHOOL
Amy Hultzapple of Boothwyn
Field Hockey and Lacrosse; All Delaware Valley Honors

Robert Power of Boothwyn
All-State Swimming Team; State Champ in Breststroke

CONESTOGA HIGH SCHOOL
Jeffrey Chu of Berwyn
Varsity Lacrosse, Squash, and Cross Country; National Merit Scholarship Qualifier

COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL-SACRED HEART
Katie Dempsey of Drexel Hill
Varsity Field Hockey and Lacrosse; Captain

DELAWARE VALLEY FRIENDS SCHOOL
Ryan Jahnle of Villanova
Tennis; MVP

FRIENDS CENTRAL SCHOOL
Marc Parker of Bryn Mawr
Varsity Soccer, swimming, and Track and Field; Captain of Soccer Team

Emily Brodsky of Bryn Mawr
Varsity Basketball, Lacrosse and Varsity Soccer; Captain- Basketball and Lacrosse

GARNET VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL
Andrew Weber of Garnet Valley
Football, Track and Field; Football All-Central League

Katelyn Loughery of Garnet Valley
Field Hockey, Ultimate Frisbee, Soccer; Ambassador Award

GERMANTOWN ACADEMY
Margot Wummer of Havertown
Water Polo and Swimming; Captain

GREAT VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL
Christopher Yake of Malvern
Track and Field; Captain

HAVERFORD HIGH SCHOOL
Edward  Donnelly of Ardmore
Cross Country and Track; National Merit Commended Scholar

Sarah Somers of Haverford
Cross Country, Swimming, and Track; National Merit Semi-Finalist

INTERBORO HIGH SCHOOL
Bob Mulholland of Glenolden
Varsity Football and Wrestling; Track and Field; Captain – Wrestling and Track

Kellie Medendorp of Prospect Park
Cross Country and Winter and Spring Track and Field; Cross Country Team MVP

KENNEDY-KENRICK CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL
Matthew Moloney of Norristown
Soccer, Baseball and Basketball; 1st Team All-Catholic

Angela Sortino of Eagleville
Volleyball, Basketball and Softball; Volleyball All-Catholic

MALVERN PREPARATORY SCHOOL
Wallace Spencer, Jr. of Boothwyn
Football, Winter and Spring Track; Indoor Track MVP

MARPLE NEWTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
Jeremy Hwang of Broomall
Swimming and Tennis; Team MVP

Kate Homa of Newtown Square
Soccer and Softball; Varsity Starter in Soccer and Softball

MERION MERCY ACADEMY
Laura Buongiorno of Newtown Square
Crew; Team Captain

MONSIGNOR BONNER HIGH SCHOOL
Michael Murphy of Glenolden
Football, Wrestling and Rugby; AP Scholar Award

Alexandra Topa of Drexel Hill
Soccer, Basketball, and Softball; 1st Academic Honors

NORRISTOWN HIGH SCHOOL
Brandon Bell of Norristown
Baseball and Basketball ; All Area American Legion 1st Teams

Shari Kluth of Jeffersonville
Varsity Softball; National Honor Society

OVERBROOK SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND
Jeffery Boudwin of Drexel Hill
Swimming, Wrestling, and Goal Ball; Varsity Letters in Swimming and Goal Ball

PENN WOOD HIGH SCHOOL
Richard Lion of Lansdowne
Football and Wrestling; Wrestling MVP

Terayah Overton of Lansdowne
Field Hockey and Lacrosse; 1st Team All Delaware Valley in Field Hockey

PENNCREST HIGH SCHOOL
Neil Campbell of Media
Cross Country and Track and Field; 1st Team All-County

Lauren Tusar of Media
Varsity Track and Field, Soccer; All-State Track and Field

RADNOR HIGH SCHOOL
Kelyn Freedman of Newtown Square
Varsity Cross Country, Basketball, and Lacrosse; All-League First Team

Jin Hwang of Bryn Mawr
Swimming, Golf and Crew; Class President

RIDLEY HIGH SCHOOL
Timothy Kirk of Secane
Wrestling; Featured in Sports Illustrated

Rebecca Donkin of Folsom
Field Hockay, Lacrosse and  Basketball; Field Hockey 1st Team All-Central

SPRINGFIELD HIGH SCHOOL
Alexander Furia of Morton
Winter and Spring Track; Member of Hi-Q

Morgan Russom of Springfield
Field Hockey, Track, Lacrosse, and Sailing; National Honor Society

ST. JOSEPH’S PREPARATORY SCHOOL
Stephen O’Hara of West Chester
Football and Lacrosse; Football 1st team All-Catholic

STRATH HAVEN HIGH SCHOOL
Richard Scott of Wallingford
Varsity Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track; State Qualifier in Cross Country

Katherine Loiselle of Wallingford
Cross Country and Track; Cross Country Captain

SUN VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL
Michael O’Malley of Aston
Ice Hockey, Baseball and Soccer; Citizenship Award

Danielle Volpe of Aston
Field Hockey and Lacrosse; 1st Team All-League in Field Hockey

THE BALDWIN SCHOOL
Noelle Niu of Swarthmore
Swimming and Soccer; Captain of Swim Team

THE EPISCOPAL ACADEMY
Kyle Brooman of Ardmore
Soccer, Wrestling and Baseball; Most career wins in school history

THE HAVERFORD SCHOOL
Robert Greco of Wayne
Varsity Squash; Captain of Squash team

THE SHIPLEY SCHOOL
Andrew White of Wayne
Squash and Baseball; Captain of Squash team

Jennifer Nichols of Newtown Square
Volleyball and Softball; National Merit Finalist

UPPER DARBY HIGH SCHOOL
Brendan Ryan of Upper Darby
Baseball and Golf; Rotary Student of the Month

Amanda McCann of Drexel Hill
Soccer, Softball and Swimming; Soccer team MVP

UPPER MERION AREA HIGH SCHOOL
Geoffrey Rushlau of King of Prussia
Cross Country, Track and Crew; Top Scholar

Kirtida Patel of King of Prussia
Tennis and Track; Captain of Tennis team

VALLEY FORGE MILITARY ACADEMY
Alexander Reeves of Swarthmore
Swimming and Rugby; Valedictorian

VILLA MARIA ACADEMY
Anna  Zarkoski of Trooper
Field Hockey and Basketball; Junior Olympics Alternate

WEST CHESTER BAYARD RUSTIN HIGH SCHOOL
Erik Shaw of Glen Mills
Wrestling and Cross Country; Wrestling Coaches Award

Lindsay Zajac of Thornton
Varsity Tennis; Coaches Award for Tennis

WEST CHESTER CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
Tres Ramirez of Glen Mills
Soccer, Basketball and Baseball; Outstanding Basketball Player of the Year

WESTTOWN SCHOOL
Madison McKee of Malvern
Varsity Tennis and Lacrosse; Dorm Prefect

Erich Sirinek of West Chester
Varsity Soccer, Baseball and Varsity Basketball; Captain of Soccer, Baseball, and Basketball teams

Joe Sestak was elected to Congress in 2006 after a distinguished 31-year career in the United States Navy, and he is honored to represent the Southeastern Pennsylvania district where he was born and raised. He is a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate seat from Pennsylvania.  During his Navy career, Joe attained the rank of 3-star Admiral, served in the White House as Director for Defense Policy on President Clinton’s National Security Council, served in the Pentagon as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, and led a series of operational commands at sea, culminating in command of the USS George Washington Aircraft Carrier Battle Group (30 ships, 100 aircraft, and 15,000 sailors/marines/aviators/SEALs) during combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. In our nation’s time of crisis in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, the Navy turned to Joe Sestak to serve as the first Director of “Deep Blue,” the Navy anti-terrorism unit formed in response to the attacks. Joe is the highest-ranking former military officer ever elected to either branch of Congress. He graduated second in his class from the U.S. Naval Academy and holds a Master’s in Public Administration and a PhD in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University. Joe lives in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, with his wife, Susan, and daughter, Alex, and proudly represents the 7th District, where his mother and many of his seven siblings still reside.

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Are you ready for the summer fun to begin? Then join us for the 2nd Annual “A Taste of the Valley Food Festival”. It’s the place to be for fantastic food, great live entertainment, and tons of fun.

Sunday, June 13th, 2010 – 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM

560 Royersford Rd.
Limerick, PA 19468

There will be a variety of foods from local restaurants. Last year’s winner of the “Top Ticket Selling” contest Ortino’s North Side takes on Texas Roadhouse, Outback Steakhouse and many more to try and retain their title. There will be live entertainment all day long, as well as arts and craft vendors from all over the east coast joining the event and of course, games and activities for the children.

Come see the West-Mont soccer coaches take the field in an epic soccer match and the 1st Annual Orange and Blue game will be kicked off by Philadelphia Eagle’s very own SWOOP!!!

For more information about the event visit www.PATasteOfTheValley.com

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