COY’S MEMORIAL RODEO

A Rodeo will be held at Grange Fairgrounds to honor the memory of Coy Lutz and to fund the Coy Lutz Memorial Scholarship. Evening events kick-off at 7:30 on Sept. 22 and Sept. 23. There will be food vendors, merchandise booths, a silent auction and lots of rodeo activities. Tickets are available at coylutzrodeo.com.

Coy grew up in Howard, graduated from BEA and was attending University of Tennessee in Martin, Tennessee. Coy was hooked on “being a cowboy” from an early age traveling with his dad Doug to rodeos while Doug was a bull fighter (a rodeo clown). Coy was involved in 4-H and had a soft spot for animals. Coy competed in high school rodeo as a bull rider and was a state champ and also a four-time national qualifier. I remember one visit to Marsh Creek when he wore his championship belt buckle but was humble in his words about his accomplishments. After getting hurt on a bull, he switched to being a bareback horse rider and was really good at it. He got a full scholarship to UT and was making good grades and racking up the points in his competitions.

Coy’s last ride came on May 28, 2016 at the Cowtown Rodeo in New Jersey when he was bucked off and the horse’s hoof came down on his chest and he died at the age of 19. Coy’s memory lives on in our hearts and this rodeo event in Centre Hall will help to fund the Coy Lutz Memorial Scholarship for other young people to do what they love and fulfill their dreams of a college education.

WEEKEND EVENTS

Central Bald Eagle Fish & Game Club will offer a gun and cash drawing on September 23 at the old school house in Mount Eagle. The drawing will include a meal and additional raffles and runs from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 each and can be obtained at the door or call Leo Bomboy at 814-280-2961.

Centre Hall Fire Company will also have a Gun-Cash Drawing on Saturday at the American Legion in Centre Hall from noon-5 p.m. Tickets are $10 each and can be purchased from any fire company member. Prizes include cash, guns, crossbow packages and various hunting related items.

Nittany Valley Amish will be offering a fall benefit dinner on Saturday at the Hublersburg fire hall from noon to 7 p.m. Reserve your eating hour by calling Katie at 383-2008 or Carolyn at 814-349-4387. This is a wedding style, home-cooked Amish meal featuring main dinner foods and scrumptious desserts. Adult price is $18 with a $2 discount for those over age 65, $16 for children ages 11-17 and $5 for children ages 5-10. Walk-ins are welcome and take-outs are available.

Country Music Jam will be held on Sunday afternoon at the Howard fire hall from 2-6 p.m. Bring a snack to share and enjoy the afternoon of music. A donation basket passed to benefit the fire company.

Paul Mills passed away on September 12. Paul (and his late wife Midge) lived in Howard for many years. Paul started the Back Porch String Band with his musical friend Pete Lomison years ago. The group has grown since and blossomed into the locally known band that hosts the free monthly Country Music Jam that is held the fourth Sunday of each month at the fire hall.

CHEER CLUB

The Beech Creek/Blanchard Senior Cheer Club met on September 7 at the Friendship Community Center in Beech Creek. Gale Spangler said the table grace for the noon luncheon. There were 16 members present and one guest, Woodmen Life Representative Larry Butler.

Larry presented an American Flag to the FCC to replace the one that had gone missing. Larry read “The Story of the American Flag” for the group. Fay Confer expressed appreciation to Larry on behalf of the Cheer Club and FCC for his thoughtfulness in providing a new flag.

The group recited The Lord’s Prayer and the pledge to the flag. Devotions were read by Chaplain Judy Cain. Reports from the secretary and treasurer were read and accepted. The group sang Happy Birthday to Gale Spangler and Marilyn Ream.

A fund raiser, multi-purpose purse was won by Marilyn Ream and the door prize this month went to Charlotte Young. A Chinese auction was held.

Those 55+ and older are invited to the next luncheon meeting on October 5 at the FCC. Bring a covered dish to share and a wrapped item to use as a bingo prize. For those interested in more info or to join Senior Cheer Club call Jane at 570-962-2406.

MISSIONS TRIP

Yancy Sagastume, owner of Brother’s Pizza in Howard, was privileged to go on a mission’s trip to Honduras earlier this year. A short re-cap from Yancy about the trip is being provided for you here.

My high school friend, Daniel Melton, has been a missionary to San Luis, Honduras, for 12+ years. Part of what Dan does is to organize medical missions trips every year for the last 6-7 years. Last fall Daniel called and asked if I would be willing to go as a translator. I felt humbled, yet privileged, to be able to take part.

It was a great experience for me. It was rewarding to contribute to such an honorable cause and spiritually challenging at the same time. There were 26 in the group made up of doctors, nurses, translators and others. We were able to see somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,000 people while we were there. The way things were organized, when people came for medical attention the Gospel was shared with them while they waited to be seen by the medical staff. I’m confident we were a blessing to those we saw, and it was a blessing to feel we were helping as well.

At this point, Dan has asked me to be a part of the trip again next year; and, Lord willing, I plan to go again.

Thanks to others from the Howard community, Yancy was able to purchase small medical supplies to be used during the mission’s trip. As Yancy prepares for the next trip in the spring, hopefully he will let us know what small items we can help him collect as far as medical supplies (band-aids, gauze, anti-bacterial creams like Neosporin, etc) that they can use to treat people there.

LIONS CLUB NEWS

Lions Club Food Bank boxes were given to 139 families during the month of August. The next food bank distribution date will be on September 25 from 2-4 p.m. at the former Beech Creek Elementary School. The Food Bank dates were adjusted in September because of the Labor Day holiday. October distribution dates will return to normal and will be held on October 2 and 16.

Only 32 units of blood were collected at the August Blood Drive. More donors are needed! The next blood drive will be held on October 4 from 1:30 to 7 p.m. at the Howard fire hall.

Lions Bingo has resumed following the summer break. Lions Bingo will be held the second and fourth Thursday evenings at the BC fire company social hall. During the last bingo, bingo caller Randy Payton had everyone pause for a special moment of silence to honor the memory of three members — Lion Robert “Pat” Davy, Lion Ken Stine, and Lion Ron Kinley, all of whom had recently passed away. Each of these men made significant contributions of service during their Lionism careers. Our sympathy is expressed to their families.

Also at the last bingo we sang Happy Birthday to Fay Holt of Howard who celebrated her birthday on September 9. The next bingo date will be on September 28. Doors open at 5:30 with kitchen foods and snacks available. Bingo games start at 6:30. The Extreme Jackpot is at $500 already.

The Lions Club is still missing their chicken grilling grates and if anyone has information as to their whereabouts please let us know.

Lion members volunteered their time and hours to park cars during Grange Fair. There were 63 Lions and 8 helpers who provided a total of 1368 hours of parking cars as a fundraiser for the local club. The Lions Club will use these funds to support individuals and organizations in our local communities. The Lions recently made a donation to each the fire companies in our area.

UPCOMING EVENTS

A Saturday Morning Stroll will be on Sept. 30 with a two mile trek throughout Bald Eagle State Park. Walk begins at 9:30 and participants should dress for the weather, wear comfortable walking shoes and bring a bottle of water. Meet at the winter launch area.

Also on Sept. 30 there will be a Fall Float in a kayak at Sayers Dam. Participants must be 14 years or older and pre-registering is necessary. Meet at the park office. The float will be from 1-2:30. Bring your own kayak and launch permit or rent a park kayak for $5. To pre-register or for more information call the park at 814-625-9369.

A “Sisters Against Cancer” 5K Run/Walk will be held at West End Park in Howard on October 7. Participants and sponsors are needed to help raise awareness and funds to help those with breast and ovarian cancer. Registration is $30 and the Run/Walk begins at 10 a.m. To become a participant or a sponsor for the event contact Tina Lomison at 814-280-7333.

This event is held to honor the memory of four sisters — Faye Garis, Dottie Butts and twins Mary Lomison and Darlene Boone, who succumbed to this type of cancer. The 5K is also held to raise awareness for BRCA2, a hereditary cancer gene that causes higher rates of breast and ovarian cancer. Proceeds from the event will help others be tested for this gene and help with their treatments.

Pleasant Valley Ladies Aid will host their annual Harvest Day on October 7 at the Brotherhood Park in Little Marsh Creek. The event features homemade kettle soups, apple butter and baked goods. Eat-in and take-outs are available from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. The soup flavors this year will be ham and bean, chicken corn, and vegetable. Apple butter is also made fresh on-site and can be purchased by the pint or quart. Pre-orders for apple butter can be phoned to Mary Confer at 814-355-9580 or Phyllis Gilbert at 355-2268.

A Truckers 4 Hope Jamboree is planned for October 7-8 at the Clinton County Fairgrounds in Mill Hall to benefit Cystic Fibrosis. Jason Smith is in charge of bringing this event to our area and in addition to the 4X4 Truck and Tractor pulls there will be a kid’s pedal pull, a truck show and semi truck show and pulls. There will be live music, vendors, camping spots are available and it’s all family friendly for the weekend. Call Jason at 570-660-7281 to pre-register and for more information about this event.

Howard UMC is also planning a Fall Soup and Bake Sale on October 14. This will give those who work and aren’t able to attend the Thursday Soup Sales a chance to enjoy soup and fellowship. For more info about church events call Pastor Craig at the church office at 814-625-2362.

Howard Happenings is written and compiled by Tammy Coakley who can be reached by emailing to tammy@ioiofficeinc.com or by telephone at 814-625-2684.