The Spark

On This Week's Edition of The Spark Weekly:

Sydney Roach of WPSU in State College, will discuss her story on legislation approved by the PA Senate, providing funding to create “safe exchange zones” for child custody exchanges and online marketplace sales. These zones will have video surveillance and be near a law enforcement office or in a public area. and Stephanie Sigafoos of LeighHighValleyNews.com will speak about one of her stories about a gas explosion.

Also, on the program.

Andrew Dalton is the Executive Director of the Adams County Historical Society and Beyond the Battle Museum. As a Gettysburg native, Dalton has always been drawn to history.

“We have a lot of people who are connected to Gettysburg through family history, whether their ancestors lived here or there are millions of Americans undoubtedly, who had an ancestor that fought at the Battle of Gettysburg. And so, connecting those people to Gettysburg is something that I really enjoy because, you know, I found my own connection early on.”

Andrew’s passion for history began as he grew up at what was once the Gettysburg Country Club. With a curious spirit, he soon learned about the story of what happened on that property before, during, and after the Battle of Gettysburg.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Fallingwater's listing the in the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. The State Museum of Pennsylvania has an exhibit honoring the place that held so much significance. According to Dr. Curt Miner, the Chief of Interpretation and Senior History Curator for the State Museum of Pennsylvania, the exhibit will be on display until January 5, 2025.

"One of the things that we did in the course of researching this project is come across what I think is an absolutely fascinating fact. I believe it would be, which is that falling water in surveys is often ranked as the most recognized private residence in the world. Let that sit in for a little bit in the world. This building, this house that was built by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1938 for Edgar J. Kaufmann, who was, by the way, a department store magnate from Pittsburgh, has been heralded as the most recognized and most famous private residence in the world. And where is it? It's in Pennsylvania. It's in the small town of Mill Run, which is in in Fayette County in southwestern Pennsylvania."

Dr. Miner also highlighted "A Place for All Exhibit. This exhibition tells the history of three integration efforts in Pennsylvania after World War II. These stories testify to the courage of those who sought to end racial segregation in all of its forms.

"The subtitle of that exhibit is "Three Stories of Integration in Pennsylvania." The  genesis of that exhibit actually goes back two decades. We had a curator on staff. His name was Eric Ledell Smith. He was a specialist in African-American history. And he came up with an idea for us and it presented to the curatorial staff and to the museum eventually. And he said, I think we need to tell the story of the civil rights movement in Pennsylvania. And his premise was that the  Civil Rights Movement is often thought to be the story that takes place in the American South. When you think of civil rights and the movement led by Martin Luther King and others, you think of places like Little Rock, Arkansas, Birmingham, Alabama, Greensboro, North Carolina. You don't think about places like Levittown, Pennsylvania, and Bucks County or Girard College in North Philadelphia, or the Highland Park swimming pool in Pittsburgh. And yet, Eric argued correctly, Those were all places where the struggle for racial equality in the north took place. It was simply the idea that racial discrimination, and segregation did not stop at the Mason-Dixon Line. It went North even in places like Pennsylvania."

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sydney Roach at WPSU in State College recently reported on legislation approved by the Pennsylvania Senate to provide funding to create safe exchange zones for child custody and online marketplace sales. She was drawn to report on this story because she does a lot of shopping on Facebook Marketplace.

“I just thought it would be something that would be of interest to a lot of people and especially whenever I discovered some of the story behind it. There was a woman killed in Jonestown a few years ago. And so, after that, Johnstown police put up a safe exchange zone to prevent more tragedies like that. So basically, what it is, is it's just like a parking spot or some sort of spot in public view. In this bill, they define that as either 100ft away from like a law enforcement agency or some sort of like public park or some sort of public place. So, it's in the public eye. And then there also has to be surveillance cameras. And there also has to be a sign saying that it's a safe exchange zone. So, it's a pretty easy thing for municipalities to do. And this bill would just it's grant funding to help more places incorporate that, like the one in Johnstown, “said Roach.

Stehpanie Sigafoos is with LeighValleynews.com. She just reported on  a local family channeling grief to mission to change college and university culture around the safety of off campus housing after 20-year-old Carly Grozier passed away as a result of injuries suffered in a gas explosion at her off campus home in West Virginia.

“Carly had three roommates. They rented an off-campus home, as most juniors do. And when they go to college in four-year environment and unfortunately, it sounds like there were problems right off, you know, right off the bat in terms of dealing with the landlord. There were issues related to the plumbing. There were issues that were certainly brought to the landlord's attention that, you know, kind of sparked this entire thing because they're alleging that the landlord hired an unlicensed contractor to do work on the bathroom. And they're saying he opened a gas valve and then left that gas valve open. And it unfortunately caused a massive gas leak. It caused the home to fill with three times the amount of gas that would typically be servicing the home over a number of days. And so, the home, you know, there was an explosion that was always when Carly lit a candle and she lit a candle because they were told that, in fact, it was not gas leaking, but it was water. It was the sewer that they were smelling. And the contractor said, I'll be back to fix it. And, you know, obviously that never took place because the explosion occurred, “said Sigafoos.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to the American Cancer Society, when breast cancer is detected early and is in the localized stage, the five-year relative survival rate is 99%. Dr. Mai Gandhi is a breast surgeon with UPMC. She agrees its important to get screened as early as possible.

“Treatment of breast cancer has come so far, and it's always amaze me every day how much things change by the month. The second reason that early detection of breast cancer is important is that it is less aggressive treatment potentially. So, if you have early detection sometimes can allow for less aggressive treatment options, meaning less expensive, less invasive surgery, fewer potential complications, fewer side effects from radiation or chemotherapy, or maybe skip chemotherapy altogether, “said Dr. Gandhi.

Sheri Murray is celebrating five years of being cancer free this October. She shared her story on how early detection saved her life.

“I had always been I was diagnosed at age 53, and I had always been receiving mammograms. And as Dr. Gandy had said about the changes and you guys had discussed the changes in alerting clients and patients to dense breast tissue. I was alerted early that I had a head or generously dense breast tissue. So, I knew that. And I stayed on the course far as doing my yearly mammograms because my grandmother on my mother's side, my mom's mom had breast cancer. My older sister Carlene was diagnosed with breast cancer. And then sure enough, I got it. And then a year after I received my diagnosis, my niece had also got it. And then my sister-in-law got it. So, breast cancer is prominent. And I. I think it's very important to know your body and know about changes, as Dr. Gandhi had suggested. You know, know, know when things are changing and speak to that.”

Listen to the podcast to hear more about early detection and Sheri's story with battling breast cancer.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A retired teacher donated $10,000 to the Gutherie Memorial Library after the Southwestern School Board decided to cut the $10,000 donation made to the library.

According to Lizzy Baldwin, former director of the Gutherie Memorial Library, it all happened after a decision to remove a book from a classroom library in a middle school.

“And so, you know, book banning, and censorship has been on the rise in the nation. You know, as a librarian, I'm well-tuned into that kind of news. And so, you know I, I saw that it started to happen in Hanover. And I, you know, as the public librarian who served that school district, they were in our service area. I decided that, you know, I should. You know, say something and, you know, advise against going down this road. Right. I'm so I sent a letter to the school board, and I basically said that. And I you know; censorship is an issue in my professional opinion. We need to be, you know, having viewpoints and books that show different experiences, from a, you know, a wide range of things to make good global citizens for our students. And so, you know, I want to be clear that, you know, I think you should keep these books, but if you don't, your students will be able to access them if they go through the Memorial Library, because that's what libraries are all about. They're about providing free and uncensored information. We're a neutral provider of free and uncensored information to the community. And so, I got a rather interesting response back from the school board president and I because I wasn't going to speak at the school board meeting, I just was going to send the letter and just kind of leave it as like where it was. And I said, you know, if you have any questions or whatever, please contact me. But then, like I said, I got the interesting response back. So, I went to the school board meeting, and I got up and I said, you know, I reiterated my point that, you know, libraries are about free and uncensored information. Much like Richard, I don't like bullies. And so, I also wanted to kind of stand up and say like, I'm not going to be bullied about this. This is the fundamental tenet of public librarianship. And I'll reiterate it for the community that any book that is removed from Southwest or School District per like a book ban issue, will be made available in the Gotham Memorial Library. And then, you know, the decision was made to discontinue our funding support. Over the years, school districts have given us a range between 5 and $15,000 every year, 2023. It was a so for an average of 10,020, 23 was 10,000 and they decided to discontinue their donation, “said Baldwin.

Richard Gallagher was upset by the decision. He did his student teaching in Southwestern High School and spent 32 years as a teacher in Maryland.

“I went to the board meeting and confronted them directly and, you know, just told them that this was pure intimidation on their part. They have an $83 million budget that they couldn't find $10,000 for the library, which is ludicrous. I stood up and confronted them directly because. They need you to hear it face to face. And of course, since the school board meetings are on YouTube. After the meeting. My wife posted the actual speech that I had written on her Facebook page, and I have many contacts and linked them to YouTube. And the response was overwhelmingly positive. As Lizzy said, you know, there are just so many people who are just upset by this. And one of the groups that I heard from several people were the Hanover for Progress Facebook group and the. The circumstances were. I didn't like what they were doing. They were trying to bully the library. And I hadn't met Lizzie yet. Quite frankly, I was surprised. I expected to see someone about 70 years old, but she's not quite there yet. So, I was very surprised to see a young woman like that stand up. But I happen to have the resources to be able to help. And I was more than willing to do that, to let the board know that censorship just doesn't work. You have to give exchange of ideas. The kids. Nobody forced these kids to read any of these books. It's not like it was on a course curriculum. These were library books. Kids signed up. Our schools have librarians who guide them. People to the appropriate section. For example, if you go into the Guthrie Library, they have the children's section, the teenage section and you know, everything else. So, it was purely voluntary on the student's part if you wanted to read the book. Parents should be supervising or at least checking on what their kids are reading anyhow. And the parents and the students agree to that. The student should read the book. Well, it's nobody else's business and I hate people who are trying to control. As I call them, the book 1984, if you remember from high school, the thought police and I hate I have no tolerance for the by police. So, I was able to do it and glad to help out. But listen, he's really the hero of the story here, “said Gallagher.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Dalton is the Executive Director of the Adams County Historical Society and Beyond the Battle Museum. As a Gettysburg native, Dalton has always been drawn to history.

“We have a lot of people who are connected to Gettysburg through family history, whether their ancestors lived here or there are millions of Americans undoubtedly, who had an ancestor that fought at the Battle of Gettysburg. And so, connecting those people to Gettysburg is something that I really enjoy because, you know, I found my own connection early on.”

Andrew’s passion for history began as he grew up at what was once the Gettysburg Country Club. With a curious spirit, he soon learned about the story of what happened on that property before, during, and after the Battle of Gettysburg.

“A 16 year old girl lived there and wrote an incredibly vivid account of her experiences during the battle. Her name was Amelia Harmon. And because this happened literally just a few hundred yards from where my modern-day house sat, I was just captivated by her, what happened to her? And that Confederate army burned her home during the battle she survived was basically sent out in the midst of all of it on the first day of the battle with her aunt to flee the scene as their house was left behind in flames. And so, she wrote this incredible account when she was an older woman in the early 1900s. And I really thought it hadn't seen enough tension. And so that's actually what drew me into the Adams County Historical Society at first, because these human-interest stories of civilians are often not given the attention that I think they deserve in the larger mixture of what people see and hear about when they come to Leesburg. So, I was just fascinated by her story turned into a book. But more importantly, it led me into this organization where, you know, I was able to, you know, uncover and learn many other stories of, you know, incredible heroism during and after the Battle of Gettysburg by our local community members. So just to put that into perspective, we have like 2000 people living in the town of Gettysburg at the time of the battle a little over 2000. And, you know, massive armies, hundreds of thousands of soldiers show up on their doorsteps, 50,000 plus casualties in three days. For a small town, it was just an unbelievable event that stayed with them for the rest of their lives. And so many of them wrote about it. We have hundreds of letters and diaries, and newspaper accounts left by these people. And that's really what got me hooked on learning more about Gettysburg and sharing those stories.

The Beyond the Battle Museum was named best new museum in the United States in 2023. The museum has 12 exhibits including a “Caught in the Crossfire” immersive experience. Dalton credits the community for their support of the museum.

“We rely on members and donors to do all that we do. And I really think history is just such an important and sometimes undervalued part of the community. You know, the identity of every community is. Tied to its history. And we're so fortunate in Gettysburg that we have not just local history, but national and even internationally significant history. And so we appreciate the support that comes to us. You can visit our website at npr.org. Or I think we just added Gettysburg history.org, if you want an easier link. But we are just so honored that people who have helped us make this dream come true for a new home, a new museum, a new space for us to preserve our collection. And, you know, we're preserving people's lives, you know, people, our ancestors, even, you know, parents and grandparents. If you think about it more closely, when they pass on, you know, people really treasure what's left. You know, a scrapbook or, you know, a personal item or a letter or a diary. And people cherish and hold on to these things and oftentimes pass them down for generations. And so, you know, we've become a permanent home once, you know, families have decided that they want something, you know, that might be even more lasting and guaranteed in terms of protecting that item. And so, we take about 100 donations every year. You know, it could range from an artifact to a grouping of letters or, you know, of a piece of furniture if there's a story attached to it, you know, that's important to someone in their life, in their legacy. You know, we want to make sure that that's protected. So we that's what we do with the support that we receive from the public. We invest that in keeping these stories and these people's legacies alive. And, you know, we're just grateful for the support we've received and hope that we'll continue to earn people's respect and trust and support in the future.”

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

October is Hispanic Heritage Month. Carlos Graupera is the CEO of Tec Centro Workforce Center and spent 50 years as the CEO of the Spanish American Civic Association. He joined The Spark to share the importance of highlighting Hispanic Heritage month.

“It is appropriate that Latinos and Latinos in Pennsylvania, because that's where we're at, that community is celebrated because it's roughly 8% of the state population. It is not an insignificant group of people, and it's continues to grow and it's making its presence in some very important urban areas. Allentown, Bethlehem. Redding, of course, Philadelphia, Lancaster and beyond. Those city centers are being revitalized by the influx of Latinos, setting up businesses, buying homes and really providing the energy so that these cities are able to rethink themselves.”

Tec Centro in Lancaster offers bilingual education and skill training in Lancaster. Throughout the month, the organization will highlight the impact of investing in diverse workforce development.

“We're busy training people day in and day out so that they can climb out of poverty. And that's important because among Latinos, the poverty rate is 32% compared to all Pennsylvanians, about 14%. So, we have a lot of work to do. And we try to train people as best we can so that they can, one at a time, overcome poverty, become part of the economic mainstream, become homeowners. And that's our celebration of the Hispanic Heritage Month. Just keep doing what we're doing over and over again.”

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The joro spider has been discovered in Bucks County, Pennsylvania in September. The Joro Spider is about four inches long according to Michael Skvarla, Assistant Research Professor of Arthropod Identification at Penn State University.

"They're kind of gray and green stripes. The males look. So that's the adult females. The males look a little bit different. They're much smaller and kind of a reddish, reddish brown color. And they're all weaver. So they build a large orb web and they sit in the middle of it. There's a similar species of related species in the same genus golden orb weavers or golden silk orb weavers that live in Florida, parts of southern Georgia, if I recall correctly. And they're similar in size and shape. They have a different color pattern to them, but they kind of do the same thing. They make a big web. They sit in that web. They don't really move from it. So draw spiders are similar, but differently colored and from a different part of the world, "said Skvarla.

Joro Spiders does have venom, however, Skavarla believes it is not medically important.

"They don't leave their web. And so to get bit, you have to physically go up to the web and touch or grab them. Most people aren't going to be doing that. If you do that. They're reluctant biters because most orb weavers are like, you have to really mess with them to get them to bite you. Most orb weaving spiders, if you pick it up in their web, they're going to curl their legs up and sit in your hand if you can make it bite you. The venom is weak because it's not evolved toward causing pain in mammals. It's evolved for subduing insect prey. And because of that, it doesn't elicit much of a pain response. It's maybe on par with a bee sting. There haven't been any reports of people having allergic reactions to it that. In theory could happen. People have allergic reactions to lots of things, but as far as we can tell, there's been no reports of that in their native range. So. Theoretically somebody might have an allergic reaction if they can make it bite them. But that is the only risk and it is a small one. So are they venomous? Yes. But does it matter? Not really. Not for people, at least, "said Skvarla.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The American Red Cross of Greater Pennsylvania is working to support states in need impacted by Hurricane Milton and Helene. According to Laura Burke, Executive Director of the American Red Cross Central Pa Chapter, says their work begins before the first drop of rain.

“Our work actually began before that first drop of rain. And then with our partners, we're helping we'll be helping for weeks and months to come. So we're right now sheltering thousands of people in emergency shelters. And we have over 2100 Red Crossers on the ground supporting our partners, making sure we're supporting those relief efforts, “said Burke.

PPL has been assisting by restoring power in those areas hit hard by the hurricanes. Dana Burns, the Communications Director for PPL says have crews on the ground for hurricane relief efforts.

“ We've had troop I had crews on the ground helping to restore power for Hurricane Mountain. We sent down over 60 people, electric line workers and support personnel, along with 40 contractor line workers to help Florida Power and Light and aid in their restoration efforts. And, you know, I think it's just it's a really important way that we all support each other and give back to the regions that are hardest hit by this weather, “said Burns.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ted Czech spent 25 years as a journalist before he left the industry in 2021. He just published a book, Saving the Beast:  A recovering reporter reflects on America’s broken media and how to fix it.

Czech got his official start in news in 1996 in Rhode Island.

“There's a guy that he was a millionaire, Ernie, and he wanted to start up a newspaper. And because he didn't like his hometown newspaper that had been there for so long. And so, he started this newspaper. And five and a half months later, they think tank. But I got a great amount of experience out of that. And I already have a degree in criminal justice. So, I was able to parlay that into this job as a crime reporter. And I was also in school for journalism at the time. And so, I took a leave of absence from the University of Rhode Island to take this full-time job. And then when it was over, I just went right back to school.”

Five years before leaving his career behind, he realizes a shift in the media.

 I saw a lot of people who were upset at the media, and they were frustrated with the media, and they were taking there, as I say in the book, they were taking their time and their money, and they were going elsewhere with it other than the mainstream media. That's why I felt compelled to write the book.”

Czech is hoping that readers feel informed and entertained when reading the book.

“it’s a tremendous profession to be in. It's a burden in some ways. But I say that people have the right to know, and journalists have a duty to report. Or maybe it's the other way. Journalists have a duty to report, and the public has a right to know. I think that's the way that I put it. And I came to that phrase because at some point, this was another reason why I left journalism and wrote the book.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.