TOP ARTIST CHOSEN Julia Chung is this year’s recipient of the Mt. Lebanon Partnership’s $1,000 Artists’ Market scholarship, awarded to a Mt. Lebanon High School graduate who is pursuing a degree in art.

Chung was the winner of a design challenge earlier this year for the National Pediatric Cancer Monument, sponsored by a Mt. Lebanon family in honor of first-grader Jacob Senediak, who was taken by cancer after undergoing radiation and several experimental treatments.

One of the pieces Chung submitted for the contest, The Musicbox Angel and Her Moon & Stars, was inspired by the upheaval she experienced while moving to a new home in response to the need for her grandmother, who suffered a stroke, to live with the family.

Chung will be attending the Carnegie Mellon University School of Design in the fall.

EXPANDED CRB Mt. Lebanon’s Community Relations Board (CRB) is growing. The already busy citizens’ board—which selects the Community Service Award, runs the Mt. Lebanon Residents Academy and mediates disputes between neighbors—just added four additional at-large members and two members based on their wards. The Mt. Lebanon Commission recently carefully studied and voted on new diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and appointed the additional CRB members to help undertake the expanded programming. The CRB will prioritize these approved initiatives and help to staff new programming for Mt. Lebanon with additional citizen volunteers.

The six new members are: Terry Timm, Geron Oakley, Adam Flango, Stephanie Fedro-Byrom, Noah Evans and Livia Macedo

Existing members are: Catherine Schilken (chair), Margaret Izzo (co-chair), Marissa Escajeda, Leah Lahoda and Pam Hansen.

The CRB looks forward to adding additional volunteers to fulfill its mission to provide a welcoming and sharing community for diverse perspectives and experiences.

@ the Library 

BEACH BOOK SEASON Oceans of Possibilities is the theme of this year’s summer reading club at Mt. Lebanon Public Library. The clubs—one for kids, one for teens and one for adults—kicked off in June and will continue through August 8.

Kids earn points by reading and participating in library learning activities. Earn 20 points and get a free book and coupons for free stuff. Then read more, complete book bingo cards and get raffle tickets for even more free stuff through August 28.

The teen program is open to everyone entering sixth through 12th grade. Each time you stop in the library, visit the children’s or teen reference desk for a check-in prize (one prize per week).  Use the Beanstack app to log your reading.  After you have read for 10 hours, you are eligible to receive a free YA book. Also, logging your reading, attending library events and completing some challenges on Beanstack will increase your chances for $25 gift cards from local businesses.

Adults can register for the program and stop by the adult reference desk to pick up a summer reading tote bag, reading journal and Read the Stacks challenge. The library has four challenges: Delicious Adventures, A Glimpse of the Past, Magical Destinations, and Small Press Surprises. The library will award weekly prize winners from all adult summer reading registrants.

Find out all about Mt. Lebanon Public Library’s Summer Reading Programs on the library’s summer reading webpage.