Published: August 23, 2008 11:35 pm      

In brief: Arts center will close Friday because of golf tournament

SOMERSET – The Philip Dressler Center for the Arts, 214 S. Harrison Ave., will be closed on Friday because the organization’s second annual golf tournament benefiting the Dorothy Dressler Memorial Scholarship Fund will be held that day.

The tournament will be held at Somerset Country Club with registration beginning at 11:30 a.m.

The Dressler Center will reopen at noon Saturday.

Cambria commissioners will meet at food pantry

EBENSBURG – The Cambria County commissioners will hold their meeting Friday at the West End Food Pantry at

St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1344 Virginia Ave., Johnstown.

President Commissioner P.J. Stevens said that the commissioners decided to hold the meeting at a food pantry in order to promote more awareness of pantry needs.

Kids sought for PotatoFest contests

EBENSBURG – Young participants are being sought for the Miss Tater and

Mr. Tot contests that are part of the borough’s annual PotatoFest, which is scheduled for Sept. 27.

Children ages 1 to 7 as of PotatoFest are divided into two age groups for the competition, in which a panel of judges choose winners based on personality and overall appearance. Potato-themed costumes are encouraged, and all participants receive a contest T-shirt.

Awards are given to the top three winners in each age group.

Registration forms are available at www.potatofest.com, at borough offices, 300 W. High St., and from the contest sponsor, AmeriServ Financial in Ebensburg. The entry fee is $5 per child.

St. Francis institute will present health seminar

LORETTO – St. Francis University’s

DiSepio Institute for Rural Health and Wellness will present a seminar entitled “From Couch Potato to 5K Finisher in

8 Weeks” at 7 p.m. Sept. 4 in the John F. Kennedy Student Center on the Loretto campus.

The event is free to the public. Pre-registration is required by calling 472-2783 prior to Sept. 2.

For further information access the university’s Web site at www.francis.edu/DiSepioInstitute.htm.

2 IUP students return from 4,600-mile bike trek

INDIANA – Two university students have completed a 4,600-mile bicycle trek from western Pennsylvania to Alaska aimed at raising awareness about cancer.

Twenty-year-old Daniel Esten and

23-year-old Michael Frederick, both students at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, completed their journey in

79 days. They started their journey on

May 28 and reached Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 14. They biked between 70 miles and 80 miles each day.

On Tuesday, they returned to Indiana.

Esten and Frederick have had relatives impacted by cancer. They thought their trek could help raise awareness for the American Cancer Society.