By staff reports, December 2, 2008

Last updated: Tuesday, December 2, 2008 9:43 AM EST

Hard times are hitting Carlisle Area Health & Wellness Foundation too, according to executive director Bets Clever, who reported that the value of CAHWF’s trusts is down 20 to 30 percent.

But, Clever said, the foundation is doing what it can to keep those fluctuations from having a devastating effect on the community agencies that benefit from its grants.

“We do a three-year rolling average, looking back,” Clever said of what she described as the foundation’s conservative fiscal strategies. In the past, she said, the foundation has then taken that evened-out number from its trust and allotted 4 to 6 percent of that per year for grants. A similar policy applies to the other trust that benefits the foundation, she said.

“When the market was going crazy, people were saying, ‘Why aren’t we giving out more money?’” Clever said. The answer comes in years like this one, she said, when that previous prudence helps even out the bumps in the financial markets.

Along with the rest of this story from Sentinel reporter Heather Stauffer, here's what else to look for in today’s print and on-line editions:

Hunters get a jump on deer season

Harold Brenizer used to get out at daybreak and stay in the woods until dark during deer season.

It was about shooting the biggest deer — just bagging a deer period — that motivated him in his younger days.

Today, the 68-year-old Carlisle resident said it’s simply about being in nature.

“I just enjoy getting out in the woods,” he said Monday, as he unpacked his gear and ventured out around noon in South Middleton Township to continue a hunting tradition that began for him at the age of 16.

State game officials predicted that between 850,000 and 900,000 hunters would take part in the first day of the state’s annual two-week firearm deer season.

“I try to get out every year,” Brenizer said. “If the weather is decent for me, I get out.”

A few miles away on Pennsylvania State Game Land No. 305 in Boiling Springs, a family of three hunters were getting ready to call it a day after failing to come across any whitetails.

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Carlisle tackles Elm Street planning

It could be months before Carlisle Borough has a state-funded program in place to revitalize residential neighborhoods around its downtown commercial core.

The borough has yet to advertise the position of Elm Street manager which would fall under the auspices of the Downtown Carlisle Association.

The new hire can only take place after details are worked out on how to transition DCA into an agency under borough government, said Judy Shunk, outgoing president of the Downtown Neighborhood Connection.

DNC is a board of local residents, business owners and property owners organized to run an Elm Street program for the borough.

Elm Street is a state program administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development to provide assistance and resources to communities working to improve the vitality of older neighborhoods.

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South Middleton tot battles leukemia

In less than a month, life has changed dramatically for the Beltz family of South Middleton Township.

On Nov. 1, their 19-month-old son Xander, was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Since then, the family has spent weeks at the hospital and when they are home, no longer can family and friends just drop by to visit. They must call first and then they must be healthy enough to visit.

Upon arrival, guests of Dave and Dava Beltz must wipe their hands with anti-bacterial wipes to limit Xander’s exposure to germs. “Anything could be lethal,” Dava explained.

Xander’s 8-year-old sister has had to temporarily move in with her grandparents to prevent her brother from being exposed to certain germs.

Despite the new challenges, the Beltz’s outlook on life has actually improved over the past month.

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Morning Update

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