The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources is emphasizing the need for certified foster families for older youth.  In West Virginia, nearly half of young people entering foster care are ages 9-17, but of the nearly 1,500 certified foster homes in West Virginia, only 25% of these homes reported a willingness to accept children ages 13 or older.  To learn more about foster care, visit Mission West Virginia at www.missionwv.org

An infant formula recalled over potential contamination made it to retailers in eight states, the US Food & Drug Administration announced this week.  Gerber Good Start SoothePro Powdered Infant Formula was voluntarily recalled in March, but the product was distributed to retailers in eight states, including West Virginia.  Consumers are urged to dispose of Gerber Good Start formula with “use by” dates between July 4 and July 12, 2024.  According to the company, no bacteria has been found in any product and no adverse reactions have been reported.

ACPS will hold graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2023 on Saturday, May 20, 2023. The Center for Career and Technical Education will hold its Certification Ceremony this evening, Thursday, May 18, 2023. The times and locations for each ceremony are as follows: · Career Center, May 18th, 6 p.m., Canal Place  · Mountain Ridge, May 20th, 9 a.m., Mountain Ridge Stadium or the gymnasium · Allegany, May 20th, 12 p.m., Allegany High School gymnasium  · Fort Hill, May 20th, 5 p.m., Greenway Avenue Stadium or the auditorium Contingency plans are in place to move Fort Hill and Mountain Ridge…

Deputy State Marshal II Adam Rounds has been selected as the Western Regional Office nominee for Deputy State Fire Marshal of the Year. Rounds was nominated by Master Deputy State Fire Marshal Ed Ernst, who was acting supervisor of the Western Region after Deputy Chief Mowbray was promoted to Chief Deputy in May 2022. Deputy Rounds will join five other Deputy State Fire Marshals from each of the agency's regional offices and the Bomb Squad next month at the Maryland State Firemans Convention in Ocean City for the "James C. Robertson, Deputy State Fire Marshal of the Year" award. "During…

DelGrosso Foods Inc., a family-owned producer of pasta sauce in Tipton Pennsylvania, has opened a new food processing plant that will double the company’s previous capacity and allow for the production of new food products. The installation of six large “retort” machines, which act as pressure vessels to ensure product stability and safety, will allow DelGrosso Foods to pack Alfredo sauces, cheese dips, and other items for a number of different brands and retailers. The new $60 Million+ facility will employ an additional fifty people and will operate in parallel with the “red sauce” plant, just five miles away in Tipton near DelGrosso…

The Bikes for the World Collection will take place on Saturday, May 20, 10 am-noon at Canal Place. Bring your old bikes and portable sewing machines. Bikes should be in repairable condition. A suggested $10 donation will help offset the cost of shipping the bikes. For more information, please call 301-606-4734.

The Allegany County Chamber of Commerce has announced that recruitment for the Leadership Allegany Class of 2024 has begun. Leadership Allegany is in its 26th year and serves as a program to help individuals obtain a deeper understanding of their community. For more information and to access the application, please click here: https://rb.gy/kqn7y

This weekend our State Fire Marshals, Fire Inspectors and Administrative members of the department in partnership with our local Fire/EMS Departments will be knocking on doors to help support our Statewide Maryland Community Risk Reduction Weekend, May 20-21, 2023.  As we enter this weekend over 40 Marylanders from across the state have lost their lives to fire and we are asking that we all come together to ensure that our homes are fire safe and have working smoke alarms installed to help safe guard and alert us when fire is present. You can contact our office for a smoke alarm…

U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) wrote to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas urging the Department to issue a new Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Sudan. TPS is designated for countries that are deemed unsafe for their citizens to return due to extraordinary circumstances such as war or natural disaster, allowing those countries’ nationals that are already in the U.S. to live and work here on a temporary basis. Sudan has an active TPS designation that is set to expire on October 19, 2023. In their letter, the Senators call on the Biden Administration…

First Lady Cathy Justice hosted Take a Paws to Read at the Governor’s Mansion today, highlighting the significance of reading and celebrating the role of therapy dogs. The event aimed to encourage students to pause and continue reading during the summer months, maintaining their reading skills. “Reading is so important for student success, and our Take a Paws to Read event demonstrated the enjoyment that reading can bring,” First Lady Justice said. “We want students to keep reading during the summer and discover the joy that books can bring.”     Third-grade students from Bridgeview Elementary in Kanawha County and Wayne Elementary…