Upcoming Events
Nature Walk with Senator Williams
Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve,
Wednesday, September 6, 2023, 9 AM - 10 AM
Meet Senator Williams on September 6th for a morning ‘Birds and
More Nature Walk’ with the Audubon
Society of Western Pennsylvania at their
Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve. The short walk is free and you can
share issues that matter to you as we learn about the flora and fauna
on the Reserve.
Register for this event at
Audubon Society of Western PA (aswp.org) or call us at
412-364-0469 (Ross) or 724-224-2131 (Harrison). We hope to see you
there!
Investing in Women Event
Virtual or Kingsley Association,
Larimer, Thursday, September 7, 6 PM - 8 PM
Join Senator Williams, Rep.
La’Tasha Mayes, and Becky MacDicken from the Pennsylvania
Department of Banking & Securities for “Investing in
Women” on September 7th. This presentation will discuss the
unique financial obstacles facing women and provide a road map on
confidently managing banking, budgeting, credit and investing. It is
never too late for financial education!
Register for the event
with the QR code above or at Events
- Senator Lindsey Williams. If you have questions, please call us
at 412-364-0469 (Ross) or 724-224-2131 (Harrison).
Halloween Costume Drive with North Hills Community
Outreach
Ross or Harrison Township Offices of Senator Lindsey M.
Williams, September 1 - October 6, 2023.
We
are partnering with North
Hills Community Outreach next month to collect new or gently used
Halloween costumes for kids in the community. Get into the spooky
spirit early by finding the perfect costume for a child in need -
everything from scary to sweet will be accepted!
Bring
donated Halloween costumes between September 1st and October 6th to
one of our two district offices:
Ross Township Office
5000
McKnight Rd
Pittsburgh PA 15237
(412) 364-0469
Monday-Friday 9-5pm
Harrison Township Office
1826 Union
Ave.
Natrona Heights, PA 15065
(724) 224-2131
Monday-Thursday 9-5pm
North
Hills Community Outreach will distribute the costumes at their Coat
Shop, a free winter coat event held on October 14, 21 and 28.
Thank you in advance for your donations!
FREE Shredding Event and Halloween Costume Drive with
Representative Venkat
North Park-Oregon Shelter, Allison Park, Saturday,
September 9, 2023, 9 AM - 12 PM
Protect your
identity by shredding your sensitive paper documents at our upcoming
event with Rep.
Arvind Venkat on September 9th! We will also be collecting new and
gently used Halloween costumes for North
Hills Community Outreach to distribute to community children at
their free winter Coat
Shop in October. You can get rid of your clutter and make a child
smile in one trip!
This event is FREE and will be held at the
North Park-Oregon Shelter from 9 am – 12 pm (or until the truck
is full). Shredding will be performed on site and is limited to 2
boxes per vehicle. Only paper will be accepted and please remove all
metal fasteners other than staples. No books or binders,
please.
Community Wellness Initiative’s Wellness
Fair
Kingsley Association, Larimer, Saturday, September 9,
2023, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Join us at the Community
Wellness Initiative of Pittsburgh Wellness Fair at the Kingsley
Association on September 9th. The Wellness Fair is a great
opportunity to get health screenings, information on a wide range of
health and wellness topics, and even see a yoga or Tai Chi
demonstration. My staff will be there if you need assistance with
state services. Hope to see you there!
Good News
Small Business Fair
Last Tuesday was our 2nd Annual Small Business Fair! Attendees had
productive conversations about everything from starting a business to
finding the financing to expand one. We hold this event every year to
support local businesses because we know thriving communities need
thriving small businesses. Thank you to the Union
Project for providing such a beautiful and welcoming
space.
If you weren’t able to attend but wanted
to, call or email our office for a list of resource organizations to
help your small business: 412-364-0469 (Ross), or 724-224-2131
(Harrison),
[email protected].
East Deer
Summer Celebration
We had a beautiful sunny
day for East
Deer’s Summer Celebration last Saturday. Everyone enjoyed
the food, music, games, and information from organizations that serve
our region. I got to hear from residents and was even able to sneak in
a snuggle with this little pup! Thanks to everyone who works to make
this event a success every year and to all the organizations and
people that came out to support East Deer!
A Day in the Life of a State
Senator
Last week, Daniel Bauer shadowed
me for a day in my District Office to learn more about Pennsylvania
government and the Senate. Daniel joined me for constituent meetings
and discussions about the upcoming fall legislative sessions. I wish
him luck during his time at the University of Akron!
Marine Corp
League of Allegheny Valley Gets a New Roof
I
spent Monday evening with leadership, members, and future members of
Marine Corps League, Allegheny Valley Det. 827 for a meeting and
open house. It was an honor to work alongside this organization that
gives so much back to the community to help them secure funding for a
new roof. Thank you all for your service to our country and to our
community.
Legislation
Universal School Breakfasts
Reminder!
As students head back to school over
the next few weeks remember that breakfast is now FREE for ALL
STUDENTS!
With Governor Josh Shapiro signing
HB 611, this year’s General Appropriations bill, into law,
Universal School Breakfasts are here to stay. Knowing students will be
able to start every day ready to learn with a healthy breakfast is a
huge relief for families and schools. School meals are just as
essential to learning as textbooks and pencils– students
can’t learn when they’re hungry.
I look
forward to the next steps of codifying this cornerstone of food
security for students, by expanding the program to ensure that every
student has access to two healthy meals and eliminating school meal
debt. If you’d like to join this fight, you can add your name
here.
You can read more about Universal School Breakfasts
at Do
students get free breakfast in PA schools? Yes (goerie.com).
PA House
District 21 Special Election - Tuesday, September 19,
2023
There is currently a vacancy in the
State House for the 21st Legislative District in Allegheny County
caused by the resignation of Rep. Sara Innamorato. A Special Election
to fill her seat will be held on Tuesday, September 19, 2023, and we
want voters to have all the information they need to vote in this
election.
The 21st Legislative District includes all of Etna,
Millvale, Reserve, and Shaler, as well as portions of the City of
Pittsburgh (see list of neighborhoods above). Not sure if you're in
the 21st Legislative district? Check
your voter registration! And then check the precinct
list to see if you're included.
Voters will be able to
vote in-person at the polling place on September 19th or may vote by
absentee or mail-in ballot. Interested in the latter? You can apply
for an absentee or mail-in ballot using the state's online
application form.
Check your polling place with the
polling
place locator (use your mailing address, not your municipality
name). The Elections Division is in the process of confirming polling
places and this list may change.
Upcoming
Special Election Deadlines:
- Register to Vote -
Tuesday, September 5, 2023 (Elections Must Receive by 5 PM)
-
Apply for a Mail-In or Absentee Ballot - Tuesday, September 12, 2023
(Elections Must Receive by 5 PM)
- Return Voted Mail-In or
Absentee Ballot - Tuesday, September 19, 2023 (Elections Must Receive
by 8 PM)
Quick Links:
School Bus
Safety Review
With schools opening over the
coming weeks and school buses on the roads, it is the perfect time to
review Pennsylvania’s
School Bus Stopping Law:
- Motorists must stop at
least 10 feet away from school buses that have their red lights
flashing and red stop sign extended.
- Motorists must stop
when they are behind a bus, meeting the bus, or approaching an
intersection where a bus is stopped.
- Motorists following or
traveling alongside a school bus must also stop until the red lights
have stopped flashing, the stop sign is withdrawn, and all children
have reached safety.
- If physical barriers such as grassy
medians, guide rails, or concrete median barriers separate oncoming
traffic from the bus, motorists in the opposing lanes may proceed
without stopping.
- Do not proceed until all the children have
reached a place of safety.
The penalties for
Pennsylvania School Bus Stopping Law violations are severe and
include: five points on your driving record, a 60-day license
suspension, and a $250 fine.
For more information on
Pennsylvania’s School Bus Stopping Law, and tips for parents and
bus drivers go to School
Bus Safety (pa.gov).
Upcoming
PHEAA and PA Forward Student Loan Program Webinar
Events
If you are starting your higher
education journey this year or just want to start planning for the
future, you should consider attending one of the upcoming Pennsylvania
Higher Education (PHEAA) and PA
Forward Private Student Loan Program webinars below.
FINANCIAL AID TIMELINE-KNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN
TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2023, Noon-1:00 PM
(ET)
Follow Linda Pacewicz and Dan Wray of PHEAA as
they guide you along the exciting (and sometimes bumpy) road to an
affordable higher education. The journey will begin before high school
and end in the land of education loan repayment—or maybe even
education loan forgiveness. It’s never too early to start
preparing for a successful higher education experience. This 1-hour
presentation will provide the starting points and web resources for
effective research before, during, and after your student makes
postsecondary decisions.
DEEP DIVE INTO COVERING
THE GAP
THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 2023,
6:30-7:30 PM (ET)
It’s crunch
time. The semester bill I received from the school has a tight
deadline. The format of the bill looks different from the aid offer I
received a while back. Are there any costs I need to plan for that
aren’t showing up on the bill? And what happened to the Federal
Work-Study award? Will I need to borrow? If so, how much? What loan
programs are available? Join financial aid experts Linda Pacewicz and
Dan Wray of PHEAA for a 1-hour webinar where these questions will be
answered. Let’s take a deep dive into covering the gap.
Register for these webinars here: Financial
Aid Webinars (pheaa.org).
Allegheny County Association Library
Road Trip
You don't even need to leave the
county to go on the
Allegheny County Library Association's Library Road Trip!
Download a passport and get a stamp for each library you visit. There
are 45 libraries outside of the City of Pittsburgh, and each one has
something special to offer with various programs, materials, and
services.
Happy travels!
roadtrip
– Allegheny County Library Association
(aclalibraries.org)
O’Hara Collection for Maui Fire
Victims
If you're looking for a way to help
out the victims of the Maui fires, the Township
of O'Hara is collecting items for personal hygiene kits now
through September 1!
Free
Outdoor Soul Food Festival in Pittsburgh
Market Square and PPG Plaza,
Pittsburgh, September 1, 2, and 3, 11 AM - 9 PM
Join Stop
the Violence Pittsburgh downtown for their free Soul Food Festival
the first weekend in September. Kick off the fall season with great
food, music, and cultural activities in the heart of the
city!
For more information call 724-205-9376 or email [email protected].
Sharpsburg
Plans New Bike Share Program
Sharpsburg
Neighborhood Organization has partnered with Sharpsburg
Community Library to create the borough’s first bike sharing
program using former Healthy Ride bikes from Bike Share Pittsburgh.
The library will be lending bikes just like they lend books! The
program should be up and running in the next few weeks.
You
can read more about the plans for Sharpsburg’s bike sharing
program at New
bike sharing program coming to Sharpsburg | TribLIVE.com.
As always, please feel free to reach out with any
questions you may have by phone at 412-364-0469 (Ross
Office), 724-224-2131 (Harrison
Office) or by email at [email protected].
My staff will return your call/email within 24 hours
(Monday-Friday).
Senator Lindsey Williams
