Laurels and barbs
Laurel: Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace is expanding production capacity at its Johnstown operation and is set to add 20 more employees. The company has agreed to a 10-year lease extension with options and is planning a $10 million investment for infrastructure improvements, tooling, fixtures and equipment upgrades. Heather Armentrout, company president and general manager, said the local employees and the company's healthy relationship with community partners and the public sector are key reasons for the expansion. "I've found the Johnstown workforce to be extremely resilient," she said.
Laurel: Circle of Support Child Advocacy Center will add a second location in October, expanding its reach into Bedford County, after it signed a lease deal with Alternative Community Resource Program to open up space inside ACRP's current Everett office. "Our new office location will provide a private and child-friendly location for Bedford County families to receive our specialized services in their own county," company officials said. The CAC serves approximately 75 child abuse victims and families in Bedford County each year.
Barb: Police departments in Cambria County this week made an urgent appeal for people to lock their car doors after a rash of car entries by thieves who took money, firearms, cellphones and other items. Thefts from unlocked vehicles are an ongoing crime in Richland Township, police Capt. Rick Pollino said, calling it "a crime of opportunity." Thieves wander the streets under the cover of darkness, trying to open car doors and storage sheds, moving on if the doors are locked. Stolen firearms are a particular concern for local police, who say they can be exchanged for drugs and used to commit crimes.
Laurel: Greater Johnstown and Forest Hills high school students came together Tuesday to chat, eat pizza, play games and further collaborate on how they can improve the culture in both school districts. "I think it's a really great experience to meet other students ... and bounce ideas off of them as well," Greater Johnstown senior Gretchen Miller said. Members of Greater Johnstown's anti-bullying and suicide awareness group, Aevidum, met with their sister organization at Forest Hills, Never Alone. Tuesday's gathering at Forest Hills High School in Sidman continued the work the two clubs started at the beginning of the school year, when they walked in unity onto the field before the Forest Hills-Greater Johnstown football game on Aug. 23.
Laurel: The Shade Creek Watershed Association on Saturday will celebrate its 25th anniversary and the return of aquatic life to Dark Shade Creek. The waterway that runs through Cairnbrook and Central City was acid-orange and lifeless when the organization formed in the early 1990s, but restoration efforts have raised its pH level to a healthy 6.5 today.
Laurel: Johnstown native Brody George scored his first goal as a member of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program's Under-17 squad on home ice Wednesday. He also had an assist, three shots on goal and a plus-1 rating in an 8-5 exhibition win over the North American Hockey League's Johnstown Tomahawks at 1st Summit Arena Cambria County War Memorial. "It's an amazing opportunity to be able to play here and play against my home team at this age," the 16-year-old said. "I'm very blessed." Adding to the special night, George's cousin Kase Kamzik played for the Tomahawks as an affiliated signee, and Westmont Hilltop graduate Ian Amaranto started as the Tomahawks goaltender.
