Breaking News

Local Columns

Recipes from Bev’s Kitchen to help you cool off

Hello from the kitchen! Hope you are enjoying the summer weather. The old phrase, "When life throws you lemons you make lemonade," is just what I do on a hot June day. Along with coldcut sandwiches and a plate of deviled eggs. No need to heat up the oven for this meal. As a child, we had our own chickens, so there were lots of deviled eggs, pickled eggs, dippy eggs and chicken corn soup with eggs. Keep cool this summer and drink a lot of water. Reminds me of the days of drinking from the garden hose. We always had fresh cold water from the mountain. Good memories. Now, on to the ...

Recapping history of Mifflin Co Library

I receive many compliments about my library history columns. Thank you so much to all of you who let me know that you like my columns. I’ve been writing about library history for some time now, since April 2023. During this past year, I’ve learned a lot about how the library came to be and the various librarians and library locations. I thought I’d give you a recap. In 1731, Benjamin Franklin started the Library Company of Philadelphia. By paying a fee and annual dues, members had access to books, which were very expensive to buy. Franklin’s idea of a member library ...

Should adults read children’s books?

Genres are a strange construct. We create them for music and books, but do they place us at a disadvantage? When it comes to music, I’ve heard songs that sound more like rap or pop but are labeled country. How many listeners who do not prefer country will simply skip that song without even listening to it? How much do we miss out by placing labels on things? I see this happening with adults and children’s books. Children’s books have lessons for adults. Thanks to reading children’s books as an adult, I felt a jolt that transported me out of my jaded attitude. I started to ...

Three reasons to dress up for church

Does it matter how we dress when we enter the house of the Lord? Should we dress up a lot, a little, or even at all? I don’t think this question is given enough thought, even among pastors and church leaders. People often just wear what is comfortable or what is deemed acceptable in their local church. Half a century ago, it was a given that you “dressed up” for church. Corporate worship was the highpoint of the week and wearing your “Sunday best” was assumed. But in the 1970s and 80s, there was a shift in how people thought about Sunday dress. Many pastors were concerned ...

The legend of crow wings

I recently stumbled across a fascinating article that led me down an intriguing path of local Native American history. It began with a vivid description of life in the Juniata River Valley as a member of the Delaware tribe. My imagination quickly transported me back to the 1700s, where I could see the village and hear the children’s joyful squeals as they ran and played. I envisioned the women gathering food and preparing it over open fires, dressed in deerskin skirts and belts adorned with beads and porcupine quills. They were accessorized meticulously with deer antlers and wampum ...

‘Sibling rivalry’ between MCL, JCL

Happy summer, everyone. This is Memorial Day weekend. The library is closed today, Saturday, as well as Monday. The library will offer a summer reading program for all ages. It’s just that things are different this year due to library renovations at the Lewistown Library. Children’s activities will take place at the Kish Library in Belleville with other activities around Lewistown as scheduled. Miss Kelly is finalizing details as we speak and information will be available when you visit the library next. I know that renovations are interfering with normal everyday things at ...