Volume 16

Issue 2

September 2014

GCASR FALL 2014 NEWSLETTER

GREENE COUNTY CHAPTER

Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees GCASR website: http://www.pasr.org/chapters/Greene/GreeneCounty.html

OFFICERS

President Colleen Valosen

Pres-Elect

Secretary Joyce Fortney

Treasurer Sonja Boyles

Asst. Treas Margaret Cipcic

Past Pres. Patty Jones

COMMITTEES Legislative Joe Ayersman

L/PEC Attilia Shumaker

Membership Irene Jacobs

Com. Service Barbara Ruschak

MB&S Debbie Hildreth

SSMHF Alberta Jones

Retirement Plng Carol Bolz

Mikki Chesney

Public Rel Barb McMillen

Becci Watson

Educ. Sup Alice Souders

Resolutions Martha McMillen

RECREO Patty Jones

Nominating Patty Jones

By-laws Linda Madlock

PRESIDENT’S NOTES

Colleen Valosen, President

Summer is quickly coming to an

end, and the neighborhood kids have

started back to school. Remember those

worrisome days? There’s a lot to be said

for being retired and smiling as those

buses pass by! A significant bunch of

school retirees from Greene County

experienced that relaxed feeling for the

first time the week of August 25th, and

we are so happy for them. Some decided

to join our group after attending the New

Retirees Breakfast on September 4th, and

together with those who became

members as a result of our “Start the

Climb” membership campaign early this

year, GCASR is enjoying the effects of

the new energy they bring…welcome to

all of you!

Several of last year’s crop of retirees

exhibited that wonderful energy when

they accepted chairmanships as this year

began and are doing outstanding work.

Much cooperation and sharing of ideas

have made the transitions smooth. And

recently, Barbara Ruschak became the

new chairperson of the Community

Service committee, and much like the

others is taking the duties and

responsibilities in stride. We celebrate

the work of all our chairs and their

committees.

Speaking of celebrating…GCASR

celebrates 50 years as a charter member

of the Pennsylvania Association of

School Retirees this year! Our October

23rd luncheon meeting will focus on that

milestone, and it is my hope that many of

you will find it possible to attend. After

all, it’s taken the efforts and interest of

MANY to have made it this far. Come be

a part of it!

My thanks goes out to all of you who

have helped me keep this boat afloat this

year and I hope that we all continue to

feel satisfaction in “helping others in

need and in enjoying our retirement”.

Enough said.

Luncheon sponsored by

the West Greene School

District Retirees Eulah Mae McGillicuty will

entertain us at the October

luncheon.

For those of you who worked at

Central Greene School District, you

might remember Ramona Mills.

She is also a 1985 graduate of the

district. Ramona aka Eulah Mae

has been performing for some time

with a comedy routine not to be

missed. Ramona works at

McCracken Pharmacy – sooo –

many of us will recognize this

pleasant, beautiful person and be

surprised that she can transform

into Eulah Mae. Be sure to send in

your reservations; come enjoy

Eulah Mae – we all need to laugh

– and enjoy a tasty buffet catered

by Back Bay Catering.

GCASR will also be Celebrating

50 Years

Our fall luncheon will also be a

celebration of the 50 years that

GCASR has been chartered with

PASR. The retirees from West

Greene School District are hosting

the luncheon and have been doing

an extensive investigation into the

process of how we obtained our

charter, the school districts and

personnel 50 years ago and the

present state of each district. Come

see the pictures depicting our

history 50 years ago to the present;

hear the details of the process; and

appreciate the growth of our

chapter.

MEMBERSHIP REPORT Greene County ---------------- 249

With regret that we honor the

passing of Members: George

Misher and James Maize.

Please note: If you know of

anyone else who has passed away

and we have not reported that,

please tell your district’s

representative or one of the

chairpersons above.

We welcome new members

Janet Cunningham - Lifetime,

Melaney Dufalla - Lifetime,

Rebecca Garber, and William

Phillips.

The following Annual Members

became Lifetime Members:

Carol Bolz, Jean (Marjorie) Wise

and Jackie Young.

MILESTONE BIRTHDAYS

Frances Henrietta Inghram Gensler of Waynesburg,

who taught in Central Greene School District for more than 37

years, celebrated her 100th birthday on May 18th.

She was born in Ten Mile near Marianna, and was a 1932

graduate of Waynesburg High School and a 1936 graduate of

Waynesburg College. Mrs. Gensler was an elementary school

teacher and taught at the West Waynesburg and East Franklin

elementary schools.

She is a life member of First United Methodist Church of

Waynesburg. She was a youth Sunday school teacher for more

than 70 years and served as Sunday school superintendent, a

member of the church board and board of trustees. She is a

lifetime member of GCASR.

Her husband, Ray William Gensler, whom she married August

16, 1939, died Sept. 16, 1956.

She has a son, G. William Gensler; a granddaughter, Ann

Inghram Chess; and two great-granddaughters, Madeline

Elaine McCarty and Emily Claire McCarty, all of

Waynesburg.

Virginia Butcher Guthrie was born on July 6, 1914 in

Wind Ridge to David and Clara Gillispie Butcher. She

graduated from Richhill High School in 1932. In 1936 she

graduated from Waynesburg College with degrees in

Elementary and Secondary Education. She began teaching in a

one room school at Oak Ridge in Richhill Twp. in 1937 and

taught grades 1 – 8.

She married Nathan Guthrie. After the 1945 school year she

quit teaching as there was no maternity leave at that time. She

and Nathan began raising their family. In 1946 their daughter

Rosemary was born. In 1949 Kevin, their son, was born.

In 1957 she went back to teaching for West Greene School

District in a one room school near Rogersville called Johnson

School. She continued teaching for West Greene at the High

School where she taught Social Studies and Reading. She

developed the first Developmental Reading Lab for the

district. She loved working with the students and always took

pride in her work.

She retired in 1980 from West Greene School District. After

retiring she loved being called “Nanny” by her five

grandchildren. She shared her love of education with all of

them by playing dominoes to help them learn to count and add.

She also shared reading, music, planting flowers and playing

games with them. 6 great grand children delight her with their

love of learning and they also call her “Nanny”.

On July 6, 2014 she celebrated her 100th Birthday with family

and friends. She was delighted to receive over 156 cards.

Some of them were from former students and that did please

her!

Community Service

Barbara Ruschak

Volunteer Hours: Please keep track of volunteer

hours from June-June of each year. Perhaps a little

calendar designated for your hours would work.

Categories are listed on the PASR form (see next page).

It is important for us to show the community how active

our members are, which is definitely an impressive

contribution to Greene County and its citizens.

If filling the paperwork involved is something you just

can’t get to, please email your hours, call me @

724.833.5779, or I can call you! Documenting the

information is IMPORTANT.

Coupons/Phone Cards for Soldiers: Please save

those manufacturer coupons! One of our projects in

support of our soldiers and their families is to collect

coupons for their use. For quicker distribution, the

coupons need to be trimmed and categorized into

expiration date by month. Please send to Mary Byron

255 Henry Drive, North Huntington, PA 15642 or bring

them to our luncheon.

Memorial Fund Alberta Jones, SSMHF Chair

My committee continues to work diligently

keeping in contact with our members, especially

those who are ill and shut in. Cards have been sent

and numerous visits and phone calls made.

We regret to report the passing of a Jefferson-

Morgan retiree, George Misher and of Central

Greene retiree James Maize. In lieu of floral

tributes when a member passes, think about making

a donation in honor or memory of to the SSMHF.

These donations will help us to continue helping

our members in need.

Please continue to contact my committee members

when you hear of a member who is ill or

hospitalized.

Social Services Committee Members Chair Alberta Jones 724-451-8470

Carmichaels Laura Ann Cree 724-966-5373

Central Greene Miriam Wentzel 724-627-6584

Irene Jacobs 724-627-9425

Jefferson-Morgan Margaret Cipcic 724-883-4065

Southeastern Greene Margaret Kalis 724-943-3463

West Greene Rosemary Andrew 724-966-8653

COMMUNITY SERVICE SURVEY

To all GCASR members — Thank you for being a volunteer in our community!

PASR chapters are interested in documenting the hours of service that volunteer retirees contribute to their

local communities. In doing this, our volunteers show a positive picture of the activities of public school retirees

to the community at large. Please take a moment to complete this form, filling in the appropriate number of

hours PER YEAR that you volunteer. A summary of this information will be shared with AARP, NRTA, and

PASR headquarters.

EDUCATIONAL HRS/YR

Historical Association ........................._______

Library ................................................_______

School Board ....................................._______

Other ................................................._______

Total ..............................................._______

SOCIAL SERVICES

Boards/Committees ..........................._______

Cancer Society ..................................._______

Drug/Alcohol ......................................_______

Fire/Ambulance .................................._______

Fraternal Groups ................................_______

Hospital/Nursing Home ......................_______

Meals on Wheels ..............................._______

Office of the Aging ............................._______

Red Cross .........................................._______

Salvation Army ..................................._______

Service Organization .........................._______

Soup Kitchen/Food Bank ..................._______

Visitation/Nurturing ............................._______

Other .................................................._______

Total ..............................................._______

POLITICAL HRS/YR

Advocacy ........................................... _______

Boards/Commissions ........................ _______

Elections ............................................ _______

Other ................................................. _______

Total .............................................. _______

RELIGIOUS

Instruction (Adult) .............................. _______

Instruction (Youth) ............................. _______

Organization ...................................... _______

Visitation ............................................ _______

Other ................................................. _______

Total .............................................. _______

SERVICES TO YOUTH

Alliance with Youth ............................ _______

Classroom Volunteer ......................... _______

Head Start ......................................... _______

Latchkey Program ............................. _______

Literacy .............................................. _______

Scholarships ...................................... _______

School Volunteer ............................... _______

Sports ................................................ _______

Tutoring ............................................. _______

YMCA/YWCA .................................... _______

Other ................................................. _______

Total .............................................. _______

I have served in special leadership roles as follows:

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________ Total Hours Per Year / All Categories__________ Chapter__________________________

Phone Number_______________________________________________ Date__________________________________________

Name_____________________________________________ E-mail__________________________________________________

Please return this form to: Ms. Barb Ruschak, P.O. Box 53, Mt. Morris, PA 15349.

Please attach a sheet with additional information, if applicable. Rev. 5-12

RECREO

"Can’t miss Holiday Show!"

NOVEMBER 5, 2014

Hurry, Hurry!!! All reservations and Payments must be in to enjoy the Branson-Style Christmas show by

September 25, 2014. “Limited seats available” “If you wish to go on the Magic and A Branson

Christmas Trip, please reserve your seats immediately”.

The Ozark Jubilee presents LEGENDS OF COUNTRY MUSIC featuring Branson's funniest comedian and

world class fiddler, Doofus Doolittle. This dynamic all new show salutes the music of the great LEGENDS

OF COUNTRY MUSIC. The all-star cast of the Ozark Jubilee will have you on the edge of your seat as they

perform music from such greats as: George Jones, Merle Haggard, Hank Williams, Conway Twitty, Patsy

Cline, Tammy Wynette, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow and many more. You can expect some of the best Holiday

fiddle music you will hear anywhere. The Ozark Jubilee Band consists of some of the best musicians and

singers in the business today. So mark this very special show on your calendar as a must see show. BUT

before we even get to the Packard Music Hall for the show and lunch, we will stop at Soergel Orchards

At Soergel Orchards, we will be treated with a donut and coffee to enjoy as we view their bakery, grocery

store, gourmet shop and gift shop. Let’s not forget that after we have enjoyed Soergel’s Orchards; the

Ozark Jubilee at the Packard Music Hall; we then visit the Hippodrome Banquet Center for a magic show

while eating our dessert with coffee or tea!!!!!

COME TRAVEL WITH GCASR and FRIENDS!

CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION

Apparently, our efforts to help others don’t go

unnoticed as GCASR recently received a Certificate of

Appreciation on behalf of the Greene County Food

Security Partnership. It was presented at the April 15th

Food Hunger Summit which was attended by many

agencies concerned about the hunger problem in our

country and how Greene County is dealing with it. At

our Spring Luncheon Meeting, a display explaining

the Weekend Food Backpack Program in our local

schools was accompanied by a donation canister, and

those in attendance were very generous. This year’s

Fall Luncheon Meeting reservation (at the back of this

newsletter) affords the opportunity to donate to that

same program whether we’re going to attend the

luncheon or not. We appreciate our members who

represent us at the Greene Food Security Partnership

meetings and encourage everyone’s support. What a

great cause!

2014 GCASR Scholarship Presentation

Alice Souders attended the 43rd Annual Awards

Ceremony at Waynesburg Central High School to

present our 2014 scholarship to MacKenzie

Waychoff.Waychoff is the daughter of Brian and

Deborah Waychoff of Prosperity and has maintained a

4.0 grade-point average.She was a member of the

marching and concert bands, National Honor Society,

Students Against Drunk Driving, Academic League and

several more. In addition, she volunteers at the hospital

thrift store and is a preschool volunteer at her

church.Waychoff plans to attend Penn State

University.The Greene County Association of School

Retirees is made up of retirees from all careers associated

with public schools and includes retired teachers,

administrators, secretaries, aides, cooks and others. Each

year the GCASR provides a scholarship to a deserving

graduate who will be furthering his or her education

beyond high school. Scholarships are awarded to

students from each of the five Greene County school

districts and the Career and Technology Center on a

rotating basis.Souders pointed out the members of

GCASR do this through their personal donations, and

they believe there is no better way to contribute to their

communities than to encourage youth to advance their

educations. A Jefferson-Morgan senior student will be

the recipient of the 2015 scholarship in May.

Needed: President-Elect

It is time for someone to say “Hey, I can contribute to

this organization and help to promote the fun of

retirement while keeping acquaintances of old friends

and making new friends while serving as President

Elect”. The only way for GCASR to continue as a

viable organization if for someone to step up and take

the leadership role of the next president of this fine

chapter. We have had such success; in fact, we are the

most successful chapter of Region 7. Please consider

accepting this challenge by contacting Patty Jones at

724-499-5254 or mpjones@windstream.net

HOP Update If you participate in Pennsylvania Public School

Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) Health Options

Program and are interested in hearing updates for 2014-

2015, Mark F. Schafer (Health Administrator for

PSERS) will be at the Fayette County Association of

School Retiree's Fall Luncheon Meeting on September

25, 2014 at the Holiday Inn in Uniontown. Contact

Norma Uphold at (724) 430-0593 before September 18th

for more information.

We’re celebrating our 50th

anniversary as a

charter member of PASR…come join in!

GREENE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL RETIREES

2014 Fall Luncheon Meeting

Hosted by: West Greene School District Retirees

Date: Thursday, October 23, 2014

Where: First Church of the Nazarene

115 Deerfield Lane

Waynesburg, PA

Times: 11:00 AM Chapter Business

(for all members)

11:30 AM Program GCASR’s 50 Years

Noon Lunch

12:30 PM Entertainment

Menu: Roast beef, stuffed chicken breast

New potatoes, green beans, salad

Rolls/butter

50th

birthday cupcakes

Coffee, ice tea, and water

Cost: $16.00 per person

(New members and members 90 or older

are our guests!)

Save this top portion!

Please cut off this reservation section and send with your

check (payable to GCASR) by Oct. 16 to:

Sonja Boyles

148 W. High Street, Apt. 6

Waynesburg, PA 15370.

Lunch Reservations

Member(s) _______@ $16 each = _____________

Guest(s) _______@ $16 each = _____________

New Member _____ = ___Free______

Member (90 and over)_____ = ___Free______

My Scholarship Fund Donation* = _____________

My Weekend Backpack Donation* = _____________

TOTAL _____________

*Please note that contributions to the Scholarship Fund

and Weekend Backpack Program are not tax deductible.

Looking forward to seeing you there to help celebrate!

MAGIC & A BRANSON CHRISTMAS November 5, 2014

Total Cost $95 per person

Due September 25, 2014

Reservation Form

Name_______________________________________

Address_____________________________________

City________________________________________

State___________ Zip Code ___________________

Phone (Home)________________________________

Phone (Cell) _________________________________

E-mail ______________________________________

Make checks payable to GCASR:

Mail to: Patty Jones, 119 Sawmill Rd., Waynesburg, PA

15370

For any questions, please call 724-499-5254 or

mpjones@windstream.net

-------------------Cut here for Trip Reservation Form--------------------

Mark Your Calendar for GCASR 2014-15

Magic and A Branson Christmas RECREO Trip

November 5, 2014

Soergel Orchards

Packard Music Hall in Warren, OH

Hippodrome Banquet Center

Trip is filling up fast – send in your reservation!

Pittsburgh RECREO Trip

April 11, 2015

Phipps Conservatory

LaMont Restaurant

“Dirty Dancing”

GCASR Spring 2015 Luncheon

April 9, 2015

Hosted by: Carmichaels Area Retirees

Check the GCASR website often for updates!

http://www.pasr.org/chapters/Greene/GreeneCounty.

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