​"So the Franklin Flyers Club represented Pennsylvania and the Franklin area very well (recently)." wrote Brian Smith letting us know of some great accomplishment of our talented local swimmers.

The Poseidon Championship Series are high level YMCA regional competitions where athletes get to test themselves atgainst other state and national level swimmers. The Franklin Flyers took tenth-place overall agains 18 teams. This was an impressive placing considering they only had 12 competitors.

Five podium place winners of the twelve is a pretty good percentage. Below are the listings and a link for the full results.

After last year’s successful hosting of the event, Franklin Moving Forward signed on to collaborate with the Barrow-Civic Theatre again to hold this year’s screening at 3 p.m. on January 27.
There will be one change from last year’s schedule.
​
“The pre-show expo will be at the Barrow. Doors will open at 1:30. The showing of the Fly Fishing Film Tour will be at 3 p.m. Then there will be an informal after-party at TrAils to Ales Brewery II after the showing,” said Chris Simms, chairman of Franklin Moving Forward.
​
The annual film tour is a traveling roadshow that includes the best fly fishing films in the world, according to the F3T website.

The F3T aims to create community, inspire, encourage and support conservation efforts. The event includes a live emcee, raffle and door prizes from premium sponsors and regional fishing supply vendors, and opportunities to talk with other fishermen.

The theatre will also be operating its concession stand throughout the event.

For Franklin, it means bringing in visitors during what has traditionally been a quiet time in the city’s normally busy events schedule. A move that Franklin Moving Forward hopes will build on last year’s success and attendance numbers. “Hopefully more people have cabin fever in January,” Simms said.

According to the national schedule listed by F3T online, the Franklin stop is the first opportunity for people to see the tour on the East Coast this year. 
​
“It brings a lot of people in from out of town. We draw people from Ohio, NY, the Mercer and Clarion areas,” Simms said of last year’s Franklin F3T event.

Franklin Moving Forward took the lead on bringing the tour to Franklin in 2023 and again this year as part of its overall efforts to support outdoor tourism and recreation.

“Franklin Moving Forward has a part of its mission to preserve and improve our outdoor experiences. The rivers, creeks, and woods. The film tour brings attention to that, while also operating as a fundraiser,” Simms.

The F3T was founded in 2006 and has run for 18 consecutive seasons predominantly in the US and Canada. In 2023, the F3T merged with the Rise Fly Fishing Film Festival which operates in Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France and Argentina.

The combined Fly Fishing Film Tour visits more than 14 countries, putting on more than 300 shows annually, making it the biggest community fly fishing event in the world.
​
Tickets are $12 for one, $20 for two, and free for ages 12 and under . They can be purchased online at flyfilmtour.myeventscenter.com or by calling the chamber.

Ten area schools including two from Venango County took part in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's annual Paint the Plow contest, which is a statewide initiative to partner with schools to  showcase the student's creative ways to get the message of winter driving safety out to the public.

School's in Forest, Mercer, Venango, and Warren painted 10 plows that will likely be in use this weekend.

The program started earlier this school year when PennDOT invited students in the northwest region to come up with a design and then paint it on the plow blade left at the school. PennDot gave the students the theme  “Seat belts are always in season”  as a prompt.
"The theme was chosen to remind motorists that seat belts save lives and should be worn year-round," the PennDOT press release said.

The two local schools that participated were Rocky Grove and Venango Catholic High Schools.
 Youngsville, Eisenhower, Commodore Perry, Mercer,  West Middlesexl, Tidioute Charter,  West Forest, and East Forest High Schools also participated. 
​
The public is invited to vote through an online survey posted on the PennDOT website at www.penndot.pa.gov/PaintthePlow. The voting form can be found by clicking on the county names within the table.  Additional Paint the Plow art programs were held throughout the state and the public may vote on their favorite from each participating district. Participation is limited to one vote per person per district. 

The plow in each district that receives the most votes between January 8 and January 15, 2024, will be deemed the “Fan Favorite” for that area. Along with the “Fan Favorite” award, the blades are also eligible for the “Judges’ Pick” honor that will be determined by PennDOT personnel.
 
The winner in each category will be announced in connection with Winter Driving Safety Awareness Week on January 21 to 27, 2024.  

They are also accepting submissions to be considered for the collection. The guidelines are: "Two-dimensional artwork that is representational of life in north-western Pennsylvania. This includes drawing, painting, photography, graphic design, and printmaking. Submissions may be refused if deemed inappropriate for a K-12 setting. Artists must be 18 years of age or older to submit work." The deadline to submit these pieces is Jan. 31

More information:  https://sites.google.com/students.fasd.k12.pa.us/fasdartcollection/home

To submit work click here: ​https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdbJ3V6OhIdwjgHZA2PT_rd0BUC77MvUCPtjJ7t_CMCj1CFBw/viewform?pli=1

​The selected art work will be revealed during the school's spring art show in May and installed before the end of the school year.

​The school's website lists the importance of this collection.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Will hold a public meeting from 6 to 7 p.m. on Thursday November 30 at the First United Methodist Church in Franklin. PennDOT will welcome input at the end of the meeting. No pre-registration is required.

The purpose of the meeting is to introduce the project and receive public input.

It is also an opportunity for the public to review and comment on the project’s potential effect upon the area.
Project documents will be made available in alternative languages or formats if requested. 

The project will include resurfacing, restoration, and rehabilitation of the existing pavement and roadway, intersection improvements and signal updates along Liberty Street and 15th Street from the intersection where Route 62 branches off in Sandycreek Township through downtown Franklin to 8th Street.
The project will also include minor intersection widening at 15th Street to help truck turning and intersection improvements at 12th Street reduce pedestrian crossing lengths and the angle of the bend at that intersection.

Work is expected to begin in 2026.
​
No detours are expected in connection with the project, but there will be lane restrictions and traffic controlled by flaggers.

The information on the Route 62/322 Improvement Project, including a comment form, will be posted online following the meeting. The page will remain active until December 14, 2023, and can be accessed by visiting the PennDOT District 1 website, www.penndot.pa.gov/District1.
​
Those unable to access the information online or attend the meeting may give feedback by contacting PennDOT Project Manager Stephen Schettler, PennDOT Project Manager at [email protected] or 814-678-7356.