The local Ministerium organized a Clean Up Day for Conneautville on May 1. Fifteen people were organized to clean up the Lord Mason Park, the front of the Conneautville Cemetery and along Main Street.

Several home owners were working on their properties and made a noticeable difference in their sidewalk as well as the roadway debris left from winter. Each person doing their part in cleaning up the Borough makes the community a better place to live, work and grow.

Three weeks ago, the Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts donned brightly colored vests and dutifully picked up trash along Route 18 as a service project.

This past Saturday one group of enthusiastic young people were happily sweeping and shoveling debris and caught my eye as I drove through town. If we could capture the enthusiasm of our local scout troops and these young people and replicate it in the rest of us, our local municipalities would be the better for it.

Another plan currently being organized by the local Ministerium is a summer program in celebration of Conneaut Valley’s young people. This program has been in the planning stages for a year and in the hearts and minds of its organizers for much longer.

SUMMER EXPEDITION is a free program organized by local residents Sharon Thompkins, Aletha and Dave Samuels, Matt Rendulic, Brenda Budraitis and Greg Comp.

Fundraising from local churches and philanthropic organizations is in development and a lineup of fun activities has been created.

If you know the people on this organizational team, you know they are familiar with creative programming for local children because they all have “day jobs” benefiting young people on a regular basis.

You too can join in this effort to create a summer program for the Valley’s young people by contacting any of the organizers.

As a preliminary introduction SUMMER EXPEDITION will take place two days a week from June 26 through August 5 from 10:00 AM until 2:00 PM in Conneautville. If you attended the carnival at CV Elementary School this past Friday, you may have received more information. However, over the next month you will be wishing I had never heard of SUMMER EXPEDITION because I will be doing my part to get the word out about this program in celebration of young people in the Valley.

If you need a summer camp with longer hours, Rolling Fields offers a camp for kids, ages 6 – 14, weekdays 8:00 AM until 4:00 PM. Fees are $20.00 a day or $80 a week (5 days.)

Remember the Rolling Fields facility is an elder-centered community, but young people are a part of their community through their onsite child care facility.