James' Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

A Miracle in Indiana, PA

By James

Now that the Miracle Field is built in Indiana, PA, many people in our community benefit.  The Miracle Field is a place for handicapped people to play baseball.  Nancy Helsel, came up with the idea to build the Miracle Field, she shares, “The first experience with the Miracle League field was in Cranberry. This field was built by Michael Sherry, my son. I knew from the first time I visited the Cranberry field I wanted to build one in Indiana.  When that time came I was fortunate to have another person also interested in building a field. We joined forces and started meeting with businesses, other groups, and individuals to raise the $600,000 to build the field.”   She also shared that, “The Miracle Field was built to provide individuals with special needs the opportunity to play baseball.  The YMCA of Indiana County runs the Miracle Field of Indiana County.”

The Miracle Field was built in the Spring of 2015.  The Miracle League field was built to give children and adults with disabilities a chance to play baseball on the field. Many of these children and adults have wanted to play baseball like others and now they have that chance.  

The YMCA of Indiana County runs the Miracle League of Indiana County.  YMCA staff members handle all of the players’ and volunteers’ registrations, assign teams, match Buddies to players, and run the games. The mission of the Miracle League of Indiana is to provide the opportunity for people with special needs a chance to experience playing baseball in an environment very similar to Little League.

“In the Spring of 2015, we had a four youth teams and two adult team. The individual with special needs on these teams were all given the opportunity to play baseball.  In addition, volunteers jor “buddies” have the opportunity to assist the players by protecting them, assisting in learning/playing (if needed) the game, demonstrating integrity and moral values and more.  Being a buddy can be very rewarding,” said Jennifer Villa a member of YMCA Board of Directors.  

  The Miracle Field is definitely benefiting our community by bringing the dream of playing baseball alive to those who otherwise would not have been able to play.  It is a miracle, right here in Indiana, PA!

Isabella's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

Representative Reed Helps Kids and Adults in Indiana, PA

By Isabella

 Representative Dave Reed  lives in Indiana, Pennsylvania.  He is one of Pennsylvania's state representatives. He is working on solving several big local problems in our community such as: kids using drugs and adults losing their jobs.  

Representative Reed thinks the biggest thing that has changed since he has become state representative is that, “A lot of companies have left and a lot have come. Also the roads have improved and restaurants have opened, tons of stores and shops have been added to the malls and stores.”  He also said that, “All types of new things are going on in Indiana: bike trails have developed, new companies have moved into town, and changes within the schools have been happening.”

Representative Reed thinks we have a nice environment here in Indiana, PA and that everything is well balanced with jobs, recreational complexes, and housing. He also thinks we have a lot of space and he thinks it's more suburban than country. Representative Reed really appreciates our space. He thinks we have really nice school districts and that they are better than some that he's seen around the state.

Representative Reed is a great representative for our state because he is helping the kids in our state by encouraging them not to use drugs.  He is also helping kids by working to get more money for the school districts in Pennsylvania.  Representative Reed  is helping adults get new jobs and helping them get money for their family and for their kids so they can have an education.

Representative Reed is a great role model for kids because he is helping our county and state. He is also a great role model because he is showing kids that he is making a difference in our community. He is also showing them they could do the same when they grow up by pushing themselves and setting goals.  Representative Reed is a great help to adults because he is helping them get money for their family.  Representative Reed is an excellent state representative and a great example for kids and adults.

Tristan's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

The Sheriff: Changing Our Community With A Drug Dog

By  Tristan

Sheriff Fyock wants to protect teens from illegal drugs in the small town of Indiana, PA.  The Sheriff's new drug dog, Bak, is helping him accomplish this goal.  Bak is a young dog.  He is black and brown.  Recently, Bak was at the Indiana Fair and people got to see him.

Sheriff Fyock wanted to be a sheriff so he could make improvements to the office.  One improvement is the use of dogs to help police officers do their jobs better.  Sheriff Fyock says if something doesn't seem right, Bak acts on his own.  However, Bak is not trained to patrol by himself he has to be with a human police officer.    

This is Sheriff Fyock’s first drug dog; his last two dogs were bomb dogs.  His first dog got cancer, the second dog was too aggressive, and now Bak is his third dog.  Bak detects many different kinds of illegal drugs: heroin, methadone, cocaine, and prescription drugs like oxycodone.   Sheriff Fyock says, “I personally trained with the dog.”  Both the sheriff and Bak learned throughout the training how to detect drugs through repetition.  

The dog lives in Sheriff Fyock’s basement in a cage, but he doesn’t stay there all the time.  Mrs. Fyock says,  “If Bob isn't here, Bak barks to protect me.”  Mrs. Fyock likes having Bak in her home because she says, “I like dogs.  He is fluffy and I like to cuddle him.”

Bak is a tool for Sheriff Fyock to help out teens by keeping them safe from illegal drugs.  Bak and Sheriff Fyock have helped the community by stopping the use of illegal drugs.

Victoria's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

Moving Around!!!

By Victoria

Have you ever wondered about switching schools, or what it would feel like to have to go to a different school than the one you were used to?  Well, if you went to the Indiana Area School District (IASD) elementary schools in the year of 2014-2015, you would know how it feels.  

Last year, 50% of the students were moved and 50% stayed at the same school.  All of the Pre K, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade students were moved either to East Pike or Ben Franklin, and all of the 4th and 5th graders were moved to either Horace Mann or Eisenhower.

They call all the moving around from school to school a district realignment.  The realignment in Indiana, PA happened in an effort to save money and because most of the class sizes were greater than they should have been.

Mr. Dale Kirsch, superintendent of IASD, shared the following about the reason for the realignment, “The primary reason for realignment of the elementary schools was financial.  We were not able to maintain class size guidelines or provide the level of academic support to students that we desired.”  

In response to the question, “Are you getting the results you had expected?” Mr. Kirsch replied, “I am most pleased that our class size guidelines are being met, the Math and Literacy coaches were added and the reduced travel for Reading Specialists and Learning Support teachers. ”

Not all students had to switch schools.  In some families, younger siblings had to move while their older brothers and sisters did not. According to one student, “I wasn’t so crazy about the idea of going to a different school, but after a while I realised that I liked change.”

Mr. Kirsch reported that the savings were not as much as they had expected because they had to add another bus which added about $20,000 to the annual budget.  They also had to hire another 4th grade teacher due to enrollment, but the teacher was only needed for one year.

Is Mr. Kirsch satisfied with the realignment?  His response:  “I preferred two schools with grades K to 2 and two schools with grades 3 to 5 instead of K-3 and 4-5, but we could not do that with the rooms available in the existing schools.”  Hopefully, the moving around is over for now.

Maura's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

Brian Jones: Giving a Place for Art to Grow

By Maura

In 2012, Brian Jones, a theater professor at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, opened The Artist's Hand Gallery in Indiana, PA.

“The Artist's Hand gives Indiana a beautiful space to meet with friends over coffee, a place to find beautiful art for their friends and themselves, and it has become the place for organizations to hold meetings and fundraisers.  Our motto is, Where Artists and Patrons meet, 732 Philadelphia Street. I guess that's what we do, provide a special place for people to meet,”said Sandy Trimble, the Artist's Hand’s manager and local fiber artist.  

Most of all, the Artist’s Hand is a place for artists to create and display their work.  The gallery has works of art created by over fifty artists on its’ walls and shelves including Sandy Trimble`s scarfs, and Richard Moore`s paintings and wooden angels.  Recently, Bernie Wilke, the mural artist whose creation is going on the side of the Indiana Theatre building on Carpenter Avenue, painted a lot of the mural on "mural cloth" in the studio.  

“I found out that there were many, many good visual artists in the area that didn't have many people to see their work, and that they needed a gallery. Artists reflect our world.  They help us see it better, and that's a great benefit.  Artists also make the world and our experience in it more beautiful.”  explained Brian Jones.

         Jones’ mother and father strongly supported his idea of being an artist.  His mother studied interior design and his father was an amateur painter who never really had a gallery to paint for.  This building is not only important to their memory and artists everywhere, but also to Mr. Jones's job.  A professor at a University needs to accomplish things that have a regional and national significance in order get tenure.  

After being promoted to Full Professor, Jones considered opening the art gallery that Indiana county's artists needed to grow, but couldn't afford the costs.  Shortly after, Mr. Jones's father past away, and Brian inherited a modest amount of money.

“I thought I should do something for that legacy--the gallery that everyone needed!” said Jones.   Brian Jones used the money inherited from his father, and more that he was able to raise, to give a place for art to grow in Indiana, PA.

   

Mohammad's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

 

Islamic Center of Indiana, PA

By Mohammad                                 

The Islamic center in Indiana was established in 2012, and it was hosted in a rented flimsy house located on West Pike Road. But in June 2014, it was moved to a newly  constructed building on 132 Philadelphia St. This building was constructed after an intense fundraising efforts by the congregation.

It is a non-profit organization that provides the muslim community with a place to fulfill their spiritual and cultural needs. Some members even consider this center as a home where they meet people who they call family in Indiana, especially those who live far from home.

This center has a worship hall where muslims perform their Friday Salat (physical prayer) and some other daily Salat on the rest of the week days such as morning, noon, afternoon, sunset, and evening prayers. Also, it has other halls such as the celebration halls and some classroom chambers. The classrooms there serves the Sunday school of Arabic language Quran memorization and Islamic studies.

However, the Islamic center does not exclusively serve the Muslim community. One of it is main missions is to build bridges between the wider Indiana communities. With the bridges that connect and bring all people to a better understanding of each other’s differences. For example, the Islamic center assigned some days for everybody in Indiana to fast a day in Ramadan and get invited to share the breakfasting with muslims.

A recent event happened last September 25 was Eid Al-Adha. It is the second celebration for Muslims during the Islamic year. Islamic Eids don’t always occur in the same dates because the Islamic  calendar is based on the lunar month that follows the moon cycle of every month. Muslims and their friend(s) and neighbor(s) gathered in the very early morning. They prayed and ate some traditional foods together such as Shakshukah, Mamul, and Baklava. Eid Al-Adha is celebrated to remember and commemorate Prophet Ibrahim’s (Abraham) trial by sacrificing an animal to the Lord such as a goat, lamb, or camel. Although it is not an obligation on everyone to do so.  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                     

                

                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

                                                                                                                                                                                  

                                                                                                                                                                                        

                                                                                                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                            

         

                                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                      

                                              

The Kabba

The Holy Quran

                                                                 

                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                                 

Lee's Feature News Article for Scholastic News Press Corps Application

Soccer Boosters Benefits Indiana, PA

By Lee

   Indiana Area Soccer Boosters has been providing kids in grades K-12 with a soccer program since 1979.

In Indiana, PA,  this fall soccer season we had over twenty-five teams involved in IASB, over thirty coaches, and about three hundred kids!

“Kids like to play soccer, hopefully because they think it is fun, and I think young kids like to compete.”says Daniel Lee, who has been coaching for seven years and coordinating the Pee-Wee teams for four years. Lots of people like to play soccer, in fact soccer is the most popular sport in the world.

Coach Dan Lee says, “I like to coach soccer because I like to spend time with other kids.”  Coach Todd Myers, who has been head coach of the Indiana Area Soccer Boosters for twenty years and just got his 200th win coaching, says “I like playing soccer because I like the pace of the game and I like the things you can do with a soccer ball that you can't do in other sports.”

Most of the coaches involved with IASB are very experienced such as Coach Todd Myers, Coach Matt Damit, Coach Daniel Lee, Coach Matt Mckelvey, and Coach Jay Thompson.

Unlike other sports, in soccer everyone gets to touch the ball which is good because no one is left out or unincluded. Spain, Italy, England, Czech Republic, and our recent World Cup winners Germany, are just some countries around the world that play soccer.  

“In the future, I see soccer in Indiana and IASB continuing to grow. Each year, I have seen more families and players enjoying the sport. Almost every family that I have met through soccer talks about how great the sport is and how great the organization. I see an exciting future for soccer in Indiana, and many successful seasons for future players.” says Coach Daniel Lee.

IASB and soccer in Indiana benefit our community in so many ways.  Players, coaches, and families enjoy the sport and the benefit of making lifelong friends thanks to this great organization. .