Recreation

The Borough of Berwick has several parks throughout the Borough. Test Track Park is the most nature-oriented park out of all of them, located along the beautiful Susquehanna River, where you can walk through trails, fish along the bank, launch a boat, and enjoy the beauties of nature just outside of town. There are plans to develop several parts of Test Track. The Borough is currently pursuing a grant to update its boating facility. In addition, the park includes soccer fields and the local Little League will be installing numerous baseball and softball fields in the upcoming years. Ber Vaughn Park is by far the most popular park in the Berwick area. The 26.15 acre park was donated to the Borough by the Vaughn family many years ago. The park is located just outside of the Borough in Briar Creek Borough, however, it is owned and operated by the Borough of Berwick. The park includes three baseball and softball fields where both Little League and the Adult Softball leagues play throughout the Summer. In addition, the park includes tennis courts, a volleyball court, playground equipment, and many 100 year old trees that make the setting of the park absolutely beautiful. The park also includes a rustic picnic setting, that includes 9 pavilions that citizens throughout the area use for picnics, family reunions, wedding receptions, birthday parties, and any number of family gatherings. Lastly, the park includes the area’s largest outdoor swimming pool, which includes a main pool, a baby pool, and an intermediate pool where families can go and cool off during the summer months. The Borough also houses several other parks throughout town. The Arbor Street Park is a park with playground equipment located in the north end of town where kids can go when their big brother is playing a High School Baseball game, as it is located adjacent from the North Berwick Baseball Field. Sponsler’s Park is located in the center of town between LaSalle Street and Monroe Street. This park is a great place for kids to play on playground equipment and enjoy a nice summer day. Vine Street Park is located in the heart of a residential district where neighborhood kids can go and enjoy themselves. Louis D. Stevens Park in Park Place Village is another residential neighborhood park where neighborhood kids and families can enjoy a nice afternoon. Lastly, the Borough recently developed a vacant lot in the heart of the downtown, formally known as the Manetta Lot.  The park is named after the hotel that once stood on the ground of the park, the St. Charles Hotel.  St. Charles Park was funded by $200,000 in grant monies from the Federal Highway Commission to serve as an entryway into the Borough.  The park houses a large clock, decorative street lights, benches, and beautiful landscaping which allows visitors to sit in the park and look over the river or watch the busy life of the downtown.

Sponsler Park Survey Results

Tom Grbenick, SEDA-COG, in conjunction with Professor Carl Milofsky of Bucknell University, recently sent out a survey to gauge citizens of the Monroe, Washington, and LaSalle Streets, feelings about Sponsler Park and how to improve it. On July 21, 2009, SEDA-COG held a community-wide event to gather information from the citizens and to put those ideas down on paper in the form of conceptual drawings. This project was part of the Elm Street Project. The results of the survey are as follows:               Number of Respondents: 100               What events would like to see there?                         66—Musical Entertainment                         51—Supervised Play                         42—Basketball Leagues                         41—Block Parties                         38—Market Place                         33—Camps for Children                         29—Garage Sales                         21—Adult Daycare               Safety concerns (i.e. smoking/drug deals)             Park needs better lighting and seating             Only 33 of the respondents felt safe in the park all the time               What new equipment would you like to see?                         81—Tables & seating                         74—Playground Equipment                         72—Lighting                         64—More attractive                         48—Crime Watch Program                         39—Sidewalks                                    37—Conflict Management Programs

YMCA Healthy Kids Day and Opening Day of Little Leagure Crowd Ber Vaughn Park

The 3rd Saturday of the year is always a busy day in Berwick.  Normally, it is the first day of trout fishing season.  However, in Berwick, it is a much larger day than just trout fishing.  Those of us that are trout fishermen may think this is impossible, however, there is so much going on in Berwick on this Saturday that many residents pass up the first day of trout for the festivities that go on throughout the community. The Berwick Area United Way hosts the Day of Caring every year on this Saturday.  This is a day of volunteerism for people throughout the community.  The volunteers work on assigned projects throughout the community.  A group of 7 volunteers helped plant grass at the new Municipal Building.  Another group worked at different churches, while others did clean-up projects in other areas of town.  This year, there were approximately 100 volunteers for the Day of Caring. On the other side of town, the beautiful 26-acre Ber Vaughn Park was filled to its limit with families and baseball players.  The Berwick YMCA hosts Healthy Kids Day each year at Ber Vaughn.  Check out the photos below, as this event consistently turns out several hundred kids and families each year.  This year was no different, despite the mid-40's temperatures.  At the same time, the day served as the official opening day of Berwick Little League, as there were games going on at all three fields throughout the day.  What a wonderful and busy day in Berwick!  We are truly blessed to have organizations and participation like this in our community!

Town Trail Project

Susquehanna Economic Development Association-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) is in the process of completing an analysis of implementing a trail project that connects the downtown of Berwick with other outdoor areas, such as the River Front Park at Test Track, the PPL Riverlands, and Briar Creek Lake. The project would include street renovations in the downtown, construction of the trail system from the downtown to Test Track Park, and implementing Safe-Routes-to-School ideas around Orange Street Elementary.

100th Run For the Diamonds - Thanksgiving Day 2009

On Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2009, the 100th Annual Run For the Diamonds race was held.  The event marked a record number of entrants, with several thousand runners and walkers entering the event.  Even more fans showed up to support their friends and family in the race.  The race, which is one of the oldest marathons in Pennsylvania, has only gone 1 year in the last 101 years without being ran.  The 9-mile race covers all terrains from long stretches of flat land to long stretches of hills.  The Berwick Marathon Association works hard every year to ensure that a successful event occurs.  Awards for winning the race are actually in the form of diamonds from local jewelers.  Winners include the overall race winners, age bracket winners, and team winners.  Check out the Berwick Marathon Association and more details on the Race for the Diamonds by clicking here. The Run For the Diamonds is one of Berwick's richest and proudest traditions.  Each year the community supports this great event on Thanksgiving Day.  The Borough is truly proud of the job that the Berwick Marathon Association does each and every year for our community.

2009 Santa Parade Draws Large Crowds

On a day when most people go shopping, the citizens of Berwick crowded the streets to watch the 2009 Santa Parade, which included the Berwick High School Band, multiple floats, fire trucks, cub scouts, the United Way, and a variety of other local organizations, marching down the streets of our community.  At the end of the parade, Santa himself graced everyone with his presence, marking Black Firday the beginning of the Christmas holiday season.  Thousands of citizens lined the streets to catch a glimpse of their family members and friends marching down the road...or perhaps to catch all the candy that was being thrown their way.  It was a beautiful day to start the holiday season in Berwick.

Pennsylvania Outdoor Life Films in Berwick

WNEP Pennsylvania Outdoor Life recently filmed a show at the Berwick Borough Boat Launch, located at the Test Track Riverfront Park, one of the most beautiful areas in all of northeastern Pennsylvania.  The show, which airs every Sunday at 6:30pm on WNEP TV 16, is an outdoorsman's dream in the area, featuring hunting, fishing, and all types of outdoor activities in northeastern and central Pennsylvania.  The show's producer, WNEP newsman Don Jacobs, and his partner, Ken Hunter, brought their cameraman to Berwick and spent a day fishing with members of the Columbia County Bassmasters Association.  In addition, Don Jacobs spent a considerable amount of time speaking with Borough Manager Shane Pepe regarding a grant application for a new boat launch area. The men met at 6:00am and began their trek into the Susquehanna River shortly after.  In total, the group caught more than 100 bass and 2 very large musky.  The film crew videotaped the entire event.  Upon completing their fishing expedition, the group was treated to a free lunch, donated by several of the local Berwick Area businesses.  After everything was completed, filming was done, and the group was beginning to dispurse, Ken Hunter wanted to go back into the river to continue fishing.  Members of the group spent the entire day relaxing and enjoying the beauty of the Susquehanna with the local celebrity.  The show aired on September 14th on WNEP.  You can click on this link to see the show via the WNEP Website:  http://www.wnep.com/Global/category.asp?C=21511&nav=menu158_4_2.  With the help of Pennsylvania Outdoor Life, and a great response from the community, the Borough of Berwick is hopeful to make the dream of building a much needed boat launch a reality.  Until then, go enjoy our beautiful park, which show beautiful views of the Susquehanna River and the nature along it.  You won't be disappointed! Once again, many thanks to Pennsylvania Outdoor Life for the great help they gave the Borough of Berwick and promoting our wonderful community.

Joe Snedecker Brings GO JOE XI to Berwick!

Popular WNEP Meteorologist Joe Snedecker arrived in Berwick on Wednesday, July 23rd at 1:00PM in an effort to raise funds for his annual Go Joe bicycle run.  Joe rode his bicycle throughout Pennsylvania for the 11th straight year in hopes of raising money for the Saint Joseph's Center (http://www.stjosephscenter.org).  The Saint Joseph's Center is a non-profit hospital based out of Scranton, PA, specializing in treating  patients with severe mental and physical handicaps.  Joe raised about $200,000 this year for the event.  St. Joseph's raised approximately $550,000 through Joe's efforts as well as the telethon put on by WNEP at the Marywood University campus. We are proud to announce that the citizens and businesses of the Berwick Area raised $10,000 for the Go Joe event!  Although Joe was an hour late showing up at City Hall due to heavy rains and larger than expected hill climbs, over 550 citizens of the Berwick Area stuck around to greet Joe in his arrival.  Joe started his tour by departing from Lock Haven on July 21st and rode from town to town until he finished his tour on July 26th at Marywood University, where the Saint Joseph's Festival was held.   This is Joe's 11th year on the tour, as he had raised over $1 million in previous years.  You can go to www.wnep.com to see a video of Joe in Berwick. Many thanks go out to all of the individuals and organizations that assisted our Borough Manager in planning and preparing for the Go Joe event.  Borough intern David Grey spent many hours soliciting donations and planning for the event.  Additionally, Holly Morrison from the Berwick Area School District, and her daughter Abby, raised thousands of dollars through the School District's teachers, staff, and organizations.   The Berwick Area Community Action Team worked very hard to pull of this event with only 3 weeks notice.  The team consisted of representatives from Berwick Borough, the BIDA, Chamber of Commerce, Salem Township, Briar Creek Borough, United Way, Lions Club, Berwick Area School District, PPL, American Red Cross, and several community citizens including the Stroup family.  The Lions Club stepped up to the plate and took a lead role for the event as well.  The Chamber of Commerce helped get a gift basket together for Joe.  Additionally, they partnered with the School District in soliciting businesses for donations.  Briar Creek Borough also solicited businesses and Salem Township took the lead on the baked goods in conjunction with the BASD staff.  Salem Township officials also helped a great deal in donating supplies.  The Berwick Offray also raised over $2,000 for the fundraiser.  All Occasion Rentals donated a large tent to us and Backyard Bouncin' donated games as well as a cotton candy machine.  Wise Potato Chips donated over 10 cases of chips for the event.  We sold hot dogs, hamburgers, sno cones, subway sandwiches which were donated by Subway, baked goods, soda and water (partially donated by Pepsi).  We had employees donating time, money, and supplies to us as well.  Moreover, the fire department was wonderful in their fundraising efforts as well as volunteering their time to bring Joe across the bridge.  We received very large donations from several sources as well as small donations from individuals.  Every penny matters for this great cause.  However, even more importantly, the people of our community were fantastic in showing their support for this. Thank you to all of those who helped and showed up to support Joe in this wonderful cause.  It truly was a great community event for the Berwick Area!