(Story & Photo by Matt Drzik)

With temperatures & wind chills in Beaver County and around Western Pennsylvania dropping to single digits and negative numbers, the need to stay warm is essential. Thankfully, those who are struggling to find such a place of their own have options within Beaver County.

Marie Timpano of The Cornerstone of Beaver County joined Matt Drzik on A.M. Beaver County to discuss the available warming centers in Beaver County over the cold weekend and throughout the winter season, including the Cornerstone building on 7th Avenue in Beaver Falls and four additional locations in Beaver Falls, Rochester, and New Brighton. Hours of operation and further details can be seen by clicking here.

Due to COVID, the warming centers are asking that those who stay inside be masked at all times; the Cornerstone in particular have masks available for those who are not equipped with one.

Timpano also mentioned that those who are looking for clothes and other resources to deal with the cold weather, or those who know of someone in that situation, are asked to call the 24-hour Homeless Hotline at 724-494-0726.

To watch the full interview with Marie Timpano, click on the Facebook feed below!

With the cold overnights starting to become more frequent at the end of January, Marie Timpano of the Cornerstone of Beaver County will join Matt Drzik following the 8:30 news on Friday’s show to talk about the warming centers in Beaver County; of which the Cornerstone is one of them.

Also, Friday night hoops, Thursday night hockey, and the latest news and stories from the area. Frank Sparks kicks things off with news at 6:30 Friday morning on A.M. Beaver County.

On Thursday’s A.M. Beaver County, we’re talking about the Penguins returning home for the first time in two weeks, and the situation involving snow removal as brought up at Wednesday’s work session at the courthouse.

All that and more with Matt Drzik and Frank Sparks beginning at 6:30 on A.M. Beaver County.

On the Wednesday edition of A.M. Beaver County, the reasons that Jake Guentzel will join Tristan Jarry at the All-Star game, the reasons that concerts and events are playing it safe, and a preview of Wednesday night’s Coaches Corner.

Matt Drzik and Frank Sparks get your morning started with news at 6:30 on Beaver County Radio.

Recovering from the snow, the Penguins in Vegas, and the latest scores and updates in sports. Frank Sparks has the news and kicks things off with Matt Drzik at 6:30 tomorrow on A.M. Beaver County.

(Published by Matt Drzik)

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

That quote, from the legendary civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., is the theme for the upcoming MLK Day celebration being held by the Midland Women’s Civic Club. It is a virtual event being livestreamed at 1:00 PM on January 17 by the Lincoln Park Performing Arts center via their Facebook and YouTube pages.

Stephanie Pennington of the MWCC joined Matt Drzik to preview the event on the January 14 edition of A.M. Beaver County, which is underwritten by Lincoln Learning Solutions. Pennington spoke about the importance of the message being shared by all participants, along with the charitable donation drive being held in concurrence with the MLK Day event that are benefiting the Women’s Shelter of Beaver County and the Center Food Bank.

To listen to the full interview, click on the player below!

(Published by Matt Drzik)

“This is the worst I’ve seen since I’ve been a fireman.”

The “worst”, as described by Patterson Township fire chief Phil Graeser, is the number of volunteer firefighters giving their service at departments such as Patterson Township and throughout Beaver County. Graeser sat down with Matt Drzik on the January 5 edition of A.M. Beaver County to discuss why these numbers are down, and he said that the reason behind the declines are simple if unfortunate.

“Being a volunteer fireman has very few benefits,” Graeser said. “It’s a volunteer thing, and nobody has the spare time to do those sorts of things.”

Graeser calls the situation “close to dire” when it comes to running out of volunteer staff, and that it will take “a few big steps” in order to restore it. Elements that could help in that realm could be financial help, education outreach, and possible incentives for firefighters who choose to join.

But despite the dour situation, Graeser still feels that the positive from helping out is worth it all. “There may not be many benefits, but the feeling you get in your heart and in your soul when you go somewhere and you cut somebody out of a car or have done CPR, or put a fire out or rescue someone…that makes my day for a month. I feel good inside, and every fireman I know feels the same way.”

To watch the full conversation with Phil and Matt, click on the Facebook feed below.

Phil Graeser  Fire Chief for the Patterson Township Fire Department will talk with Matt Drzik about the recent shortages of volunteer firefighters, why the shortages came to be, and what can be done to remedy the situation. The interview will take place following the 8:30 news on Wednesday.

(Published by Matt Drzik)

“New year, new me.”

That phrase, being uttered by several thousand Americans per year, is usually paired with the desire to lose weight and become a “new” person. But as Chris Cosky stated on A.M. Beaver County, “with such a big change comes many, many little changes that aren’t thought out…and if you don’t have that blueprint, you quit.”

Cosky, the owner & operator of B-Well Nation in Patterson Township, joined Matt Drzik to debunk the supercharged nature of “new year, new me” and instead focus on starting small and building up a regular, consistent, and positively reinforced exercise training and daily routines. She also talked about the crucial element of finding motivation and balancing the workload in order to maintain a regular routine.

“You have to have that backup plan,” Coski said. “No matter how passionate you feel today or you felt last week into the new year…you’re going to have that moment where you look at that treadmill or weight set and say ‘I don’t feel like that today.’ So what’s the plan when you don’t feel it? That’s what we need to focus on.”

B-Well Nation is located on the corner of Darlington Road and 6th Street in Patterson Township, and they are on Facebook along with other social media platforms.

To watch the full interview with Chris and Matt, click on the Facebook feed below!