Activities
PASR Community Chair Helen Rager (left) presented Deb Filson (right) and Harriet Yoder (not pictured) with Volunteer of the Year awards at the Nov. 6, 2025, meeting of the Mifflin County Chapter of the PA Association of School Retirees. The member having accrued the most volunteer hours in the past year is honored.
Mifflin County Chapter of PASR Participates in 28th Annual Day of Caring
By Bridgett Allen
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Sixteen members of the local chapter of PASR (PA Association of School Retirees) participated in the 28th Annual Day of Caring sponsored by the United Way of Mifflin-Juniata.
“It was a good turn-out,” said PASR Team leader Diane Bray who is herself a perennial volunteer for the Day. She explained that the Mifflin County Library and the United Way office were the beneficiaries of the School Retirees' efforts this year.
At the Library, first-time volunteer and avid library user Helen Lodanosky and her teammate Diane Bray were assigned to move books into the basement storage in preparation for the second phase of the library’s renovation. The books had to be taken off shelves, loaded onto carts in the exact order and replaced onto basement shelves – in order. “There were a lot, a lot, a lot of books!” said Bray. “A thousand!” speculated Lodanosky. Mary Barr, Sam Bray, Ron Thomas, Jake Wagner, Linda Will and Margy Zook also teamed up for book-relocation.
Meanwhile, at the United Way headquarters on East Third Street, almost nine hundred 2026 campaign kick-off letters were waiting to be processed. Judy Bryant, Rhonda Carolus, Paula Eckley, Joan Loewen, Karen Korona and Betsy Tressler were on hand to stuff, sort, and tabulate the number of letters going to each zip code.
Outside on theUnited Way grounds Sam Bray, Sheryl George, Gary Ishler and Margy Zook got down and dirty to weed, rake and generally spruce things up. Bray and Zook then did double duty at the library.
After the 8:30-11:30 a.m. shift, United Way and the Library, with the support of several sponsors provided lunch for the volunteers.
In summing up their thoughts about participating in the Day of Caring, Diane and Sam Bray both agreed saying, “It's a day for people to give back to non-profits and other organizations that make our area a better place to live for everybody.”
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