December 2010 - Vol. 5 / Issue 14
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Jeremy Fallt
Norwesco Council President Jeremy Fallt was recognized in the December 9 edition of The Herald of Everett, Washington, for his work with Page Ahead, a state non-profit that provides books to children and literacy resources for their families. Fallt visits Madison Elementary once a month to read, distribute books, and help with activities. Fallt, a network engineer with Frontier Communications, comes from a family where reading was part of growing up. He said it gave him confidence at school and fueled his desire to learn. He remembers seeing other kids at school struggle with what he considered easy reading. "I always loved to read as a little kid, so this really spoke to my heart," he said.
WJ Denver's Year End Meeting
WJ Denver Year End Meeting
On November 19, Pioneers, family, friends and community partners gathered at the Log Cabin in Holyoke, Mass., to celebrate the 87th Year End Meeting of the Wm. J. Denver Chapter. In support of the chapter's 100 Ways of Giving campaign, attendees were asked to bring hats, mittens and gloves which were distributed to local partner agencies. In addition, guests were given the opportunity to participate in three additional projects: creating canteen bags for service personnel, signing a holiday card with a few words of support, and tying a book on a Hug-a-Bear to make a Smart Bear. All of these items were given to our partner agencies, some of whom attended the meeting. President Chris Casino provided an overview presentation that consisted of pictures and videos, which board members took throughout the year with the flip video camera given to all the chapters by the Verizon Group VP. Capturing projects in this manner helps members to expand the mission using social media like YouTube and Facebook.
Shoe Deep in a Swamp
Park Cleaning
Every Monday beginning in April and ending the beginning of November, about a dozen volunteers from the South Bay Life Member Club cleaned up around a lake adjacent to Brady Park in Massapequa Park, Long Island, New York. Some members have been keeping this preserve clean for more than 20 years. They pull trash from tree groves, bonfire pits and swamps using long pointy sticks, rakes, bags and garden gloves. For their efforts, they were featured in the December 1 edition of the Massapequa Post. "Our volunteers are people who are enthused to keep their homeland clean and beautiful and want to set a good example for kids and adults," said Bob Roth, president of the South Bay Life Member Club.
Life Member Spotlight
Bob and Ruth Ostrander
The Life Member Spotlight is on... Bob and Ruth Ostrander of the Mountain Valley Empire Chapter

Bob Ostrander has been a Pioneer for 49 years. He was inducted into the Pioneer Hall of Fame in 1991. As a member of the Albany Life Member Club, he served as vice president, president and group rep. He has also chaired the Fellowship, Fundraiser, Membership, Education, Clown Troupe, and Old Timers Night committees. He also was a life member rep for two years.

Bob established the Pioneer Museum in Albany in the late 1980s. For years, he delivered flowers for the Cancer and Diabetes Associations. Bob and his partner, Ruth, worked many years at the Pioneer stores. Bob worked in the beginnings of the PAL Repairing Toys project and the installation of the "Lights in the Park."

When Bob retired in 1984, he and Ruth joined the Pioneer Clown Troupe. As "Overalls" and "Sunshine," they entertained hundreds of children and adults for more than 20 years. Bob specialized in magic and balloon sculpting and Ruth in face painting.

In 1955, Bob was instrumental in bringing the 911 Simulator project to schools throughout New York State and the New England area. Bob and Ruth worked together for 10 years educating children and adults on the proper use of 911.

Ruth was the Chapter Pioneer Partner for eight years and Albany Life Member Club Partner for 10 years. She chaired the Chapter Hug-A-Bear project for 17 years and Chapter Adopt-A-Stocking project for two years. She has been a group rep for five years. Ruth was adopted into the Pioneer Hall of Fame in 1995. Bob, at 87, and Ruth, at 84, still reside in their home in East Greenbush.
131 Dictionaries
Dictionary Distribution
On December 13, South Bay Life Member Club President Bob Roth, Mo Roth, Dominic and Dot Schiavone, Howie Ross, Joan McGuire, and Marge and Hank Koehler gave 131 dictionaries to the teachers and 3rd grade students of the Birch La School in Massapequa Park, Long Island, New York. The principal expressed great appreciation to the Pioneers. The South Bay Life Member Club is part of the Paumanok Chapter.
Learning Through the Holiday Season
Thinkfinity
With the holiday season in full swing, teachers seeking entertaining, innovative resources to bring the stories of Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanza to life can find dozens of free lesson plans, podcasts and more at Verizon Thinkfinity's new Holiday feature. Thinkfinity contains thousands of free, engaging educational resources that make learning fun. Lesson plans, in-class activities and homework help can be found quickly and searched by grade level, keyword or subject.

Among the resources available in the Verizon Thinkfinity Holiday 2010 section are:
· The Gift of Holiday Traditions: Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and Christmas. This resource from the National Endowment for the Humanities' EDSITEment will help students understand how numerous cultures contributed to popular holiday traditions.
· Let's Build a Snowman. In this lesson from the International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English's ReadWriteThink, students use fiction and nonfiction texts, the Internet and other resources to learn how animals survive the winter.
· Putting the Ice in Hockey. This lesson from the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Science NetLinks will help students understand how temperature affects the motion of molecules and thus plays an important role in whether matter is a solid, liquid or gas.
Exemplary Vendor Sales
Vendor Sales Table
We've noticed your professionalism, Paumanok Chapter! On a recent visit to the Zeckendorf Blvd. building on Long Island, Jayne Mayer of the Verizon Foundation observed how buyer friendly the Pioneer vendor display appeared. She was so impressed, she took a photo! There was also a side table containing pertinent literature including a Thinkfinity brochure, new member application and a few dictionaries as examples of where the proceeds are spent. Linda Steuerwald, Karen Hauser and Diane Carannante have worked wonders updating the vendor sales program.
Thank You For The Books
Sisters Academy
Dear Mary,

Special Greetings from Sisters Academy of Baltimore! I'm writing to thank you, all the other Pioneers, and the Verizon Foundation for the books for our students. We are very proud to say that our girls love to read here at Sisters Academy and these books are a real treat for them.

We are very happy to join with you in your commitment to literacy. It is truly a gift that we cannot / should not take for granted and this is what we try to share with the girls as well. Your Book'em project helps us renew our commitment and encourages us to continue to do what we do as educators - teach others to love to read!

Thanks again!
Sr. Debbie Liesen SSND
Principal of Sisters Academy of Baltimore

(Mary Weber is president of the Maryland Chapter.)

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