SUNBURY SEXUAL ASSAULT OF CARETAKER

She was at his home to help and provide his daily living needs, a caretaker, when a Sunbury man allegedly sexually assaulted her in his home. Robert Weaver, 62, caused physical injury when he assault occurred, as reported by the Sunbury Police Department. Weaver, who is being held at the Northumberland County Prison in lieu of $200,000 monetary bail, was charged with multiple felonies. Weaver is scheduled to appear before Judge Michael Patrick Toomey on Aug. 10 for a preliminary hearing.

MONEY ALLEGEDLY STOLEN FROM CHURCH, USED FOR PERSONAL REASONS

A Sunbury couple, a Pastor and his wife, were alleged to have taken money from the church to pay for personal accounts. Gary Smith and his wife Cindy Smith, of the Calvary Tabernacle Church, allegedly appropriated nearly  $14,400 in church funds from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 of 2017 to pay for various personal items that included Sirius XM radio, a Peloton exercise bike, and a kayak. The couple was charged with multiple felonies and released after they posted $10,000 unsecured bail each. A status conference is scheduled for Sept. 3 with Judge Paige Rosini.

DEATH THREATS LANDED SUNBURY MAN IN JAIL

A Sunbury man allegedly threatened to kill a woman several times in July. Alan Englehardt, 72, allegedly kept multiple firearms in his home. And,  according to a witness, who visited the Sunbury Police Department and handed officers multiple pocket knives. The accuser  claimed she has feared for her life and unable to sleep.  Englehardt was taken into custody and given $100,000 monetary bail for his alleged actions at the end of July and is being held at the Northumberland County Prison as he awaits a preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 10.

NATIONAL HEALTH CENTER WEEK

The River Valley Health and Dental Center plans to celebrate National Health Center Week, this week. The celebration’s goal is to raise awareness and understanding of America’s Health Centers, according to SUN Gazette.  As part of the celebration, a special activity has been planned for Thursday, August 12 from 9 a.m. to noon for its celebration of children and their families. This year is River Valley Health & Dental’s 10th year as an independent community health center.

STEPPING OFF THE LEDGE FOR A CAUSE

A local fundraiser gives you the opportunity to rappel down the side of the 192-foot-tall Genetti Hotel. Participants first raise $1,000 with the Over the Edge Fundraiser, supporting the River Valley Regional YMCA, YWCA North Central PA and the Williamsport Area School District Education Foundation … these groups have been working together with the Over the Edge fundraiser for the past four years to raise money for local programs. To date, more than 100 people have rappelled down high-rise buildings in Williamsport. The event is to be held Sept. 25.

INDOOR MASKING RECOMMENDATION FOR LYCOMING COUNTY

Indoor masking, for the fully vaccinated and unvaccinated, is a recommendation for Lycoming County from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention— as of Thursday. Lycoming County recently passed the CDC threshold of “substantial transmission,” which means the weekly COVID-19 case rate is between 50 and 100 cases per 100,000 people according to the county COVID-19 Hub. According to a media source, this, coupled with the CDC’s claim that the Delta variant is the “predominant” strain in the U.S. now, leads to updated guidelines.

SOJOURNER TRUTH MINISTRIES OPENS HOME

After three years of planning, remodeling and prayer, Sojourner Truth’s House of Hope has begun accepting its first residents. The house, located next to Sojourner Truth Ministries, can house up to 12 people. But, they say the plan is to start slowly with three women initially. Before being accepted into the program, the potential residents will be assessed. Devotions are a daily requirement for those in the program as well as weekly church attendance, either in-person or virtually and meeting with a budget coach weekly. The length of time a resident stays in the program is around six months or longer.

CHANCE ALUMINUM CORP MOVING INTO JW ALUMINUM PLANT WITH PLANS OF HIRING 100 EMPLOYEES

Plans are to hire upwards of 100 employees to work in an aluminum distributor, as they are moving into a plant on Trenton Avenue in Williamsport. AA Metals Inc., with headquarters in Orlando, recently acquired the former JW Aluminum plant and it will operate under the name Chance Aluminum Corp. According to a media source, the owner expects to start operations as early as October. For the next 12 months the company plans to generate over $100 million revenue.

GEISINGER SETS PATIENT VISITATION RESTRICTIONS AND MASK REQUIREMENTS

Illustrating Geisinger’s commitment to protect the safety of patients, visitors and employees, changes involving visitation restriction are in place. As COVID-19 cases increase, Geisinger will reinstate visitation restrictions and continues to enforce mask requirements per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidelines, beginning today. Hospitalized patients and patients in the emergency room are permitted two visitors only. For outpatients, one visitor is permitted.. According to a media outlet, masks must be worn (regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status) by all patients, visitors and employees in all Geisinger buildings and facilities.

OPIOID DISASTER DECLARATION

Gov. Tom Wolf failed last week in a push to extend the state’s opioid disaster declaration, while prosecutors ramped up pressure to ensure drug companies can be punished for their role in the crisis. The governor pressed lawmakers last week to return from their summer recess to extend the disaster declaration, which is set to expire in less than three weeks. The declaration — which grants the state certain powers to deal with the years long opioid crisis — only lasts 21 days since voters approved strict limits on the governor’s emergency powers this year. More than 5,000 Pennsylvanians died from drug overdoses last year, according to preliminary data from Wolf’s office. That’s a significant increase from 2019 and the most deaths in a year since 2017.

DECOMMISSIONING OF THE UNIT 2 REACTOR AT THREE MILE ISLAND

The decommissioning of the Unit 2 reactor at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant is delaying demolition of the reactor’s two cooling towers, according to a media outlet.  Frank Helin, director of the demolition project  told the TMI-2 Community Advisory Panel that the towers will come down in 2022 instead of this fall. The decommissioner, TMI-2 Solutions, company plans to start removing what remains of TMI-2’s damaged core by mid-2022. It expects to complete the entire clean-up process by 2037. On its website, TMI-2 Solutions says it anticipates the project will cost $1.06 billion. It says the trust fund dedicated to the reactor’s decommissioning contains about $877 million, but that fund growth over time will provide enough money to cover the costs.