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1. Keeneys to Bring Homegrown Vegetables to Wellsboro Growers Market For First Time This Thursday, July 23
2. Stage Fright to Perform Free Concert This Friday, July 24
3. Totally Ninja Raccoons Hunt To End Thursday, July 30; Ninja Party is Postponed
4. Well Armed Woman Shooting Chapter, Tioga County, Pa. to Hold Meeting on Thursday, July 30
5. Cole Band to Perform Free Outdoor Concert on Friday, July 31

Diane Eaton
dianetn@ptd.net
(570) 724-3800

KEENEYS TO BRING HOMEGROWN VEGETABLES TO WELLSBORO GROWERS MARKET FOR FIRST TIME THIS THURSDAY, JULY 23

Cheryl and Gary Keeney of the Keeney Farm at 12303 Route 287 in Middlebury Township will bring cucumbers, green string beans and possibly new potatoes, summer squash and onions to the Wellsboro Growers Market this Thursday, July 23.

“This is the first time Cheryl and I will be at the market this season,” Gary said. “We plan to be there every Thursday through Oct. 8 but what we bring depends on the weather. If it is hot and dry, it will take longer for things to grow. If it’s too hot, the strawberry blossoms won’t produce fruit.”

The Wellsboro Growers Market is held on Thursdays from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on the front lawn of the First Presbyterian Church at 130 Main Street in Wellsboro, weather permitting. “Gradually, we’ll bring more produce every week and by September and October will have a big assortment, including pumpkins and winter squash,” said Gary.

“For the past three years, we couldn’t start planting early. This year, not only did we get a lot of rain and late snows making the ground too wet for planting but also had a late frost in May.”

Now growing on the Keeney farm are red, blue and Yukon gold potatoes; tomatoes for slicing, canning and three varieties of paste tomatoes; green, yellow, purple and dragon tongue string beans; summer and winter squash; okra; cabbage; cauliflower; broccoli; onions; carrots; beets; sweet and hot peppers; cantaloupe; watermelon; strawberries; and pumpkins.

“We like to experiment and try something different. “This year we are growing ‘yard-long string beans’ at a customer’s suggestion and two types of ornamental popcorn,” said Gary.

“Our biggest experimenting disappointment was sweet potatoes. We grew them under plastic, which created the extra heat they needed but also made a perfect home for mice. The mice got more sweet potatoes than we did,” Gary chuckled.

“We grow everything in soil on the farm,” Gary said. We have a plastic-sided high tunnel where we grow tomatoes, carrots, onions, peppers and strawberries. Unfortunately, the rabbits think we are growing salad for them.” The high tunnel relies on heat generated by the sun not on an artificial heat source like a greenhouse and the produce is planted in the ground not in pots or other artificial growing mediums, he explained.

“All of our other produce is grown on different parcels of land.” Electric fence is used to keep deer out. “We had a bear that took the top off a pumpkin and hollowed it out into a punch bowl,” Gary said. Birds and other animals create problems, too. “That’s just part of the challenge of life on a farm. As a friend once told me, ‘If it was easy, everybody would be doing it’,” said Gary.

“Between us, Cheryl and I have six children, 25 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. My son and his wife and many of our grandchildren help.”

The farm has been in the Keeney family since Israel Parshall Keeney purchased the original 50-acre tract in the late 1700s. “It has been passed down from father to son ever since. I’m the 10th generation Keeney to farm this land,” Gary said.

The original farmhouse sat on high ground above Crooked Creek. In the 1970s, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers purchased the farmhouse, dairy barns, and 235 acres of our land for the Tioga-Hammond Dam project. The farm had included 500 acres. Today, it’s 265 acres, including woodlands.

“This was a dairy farm when I was growing up,” said Gary. “I was graduating from high school when the Army Corps purchased the land and my father and uncle had to sell their cows so I ended up taking jobs off the farm. From the 1970s until their death, they raised beef cows and crops on the farm. I helped them when I could. I transitioned into running the farm about 15 years ago. The beef herd was sold after my father and uncle’s health failed. I retired from Cornell Brothers in the fall of 2017,” he said.

“Cheryl and I enjoy growing produce on the farm. It takes a lot of work and is certainly not something you do because you’re going to get rich at it. We consider our customers our friends.”

At the Wellsboro market, customers are asked to wear face coverings and practice social distancing. Vendors interested in participating are asked to call Thomas Putnam at (570) 439-2000 or email him at wellsborogrowersmarket@gmail.com.

Photo by John Eaton
Gary and Cheryl Keeney are shown standing among their tomato plants growing up poles and lines in their plastic-sided high tunnel.

STAGE FRIGHT TO PERFORM FREE CONCERT THIS FRIDAY, JULY 24

This Friday, July 24, at 6:30 p.m., Stage Fright will perform songs written and played by “The Band,” including their three biggest hits – “Weight” (1968), “Up On Cripple Creek” (1969) and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” (1969) along with some of their under-appreciated gems.

The is the fifth concert in the series of free concerts being held on the outdoor stage on the Central Avenue side of the Deane Center for the Performing Arts building at 104 Main Street in Wellsboro.

From 1968 to 1975, the Canadian-American group was one of the most popular and influential rock bands in the world, according to Bruce Eder who wrote about them in an article published in the “All-Music Guide.”

Members of Stage Fright are Joe Callahan of Wellsboro on guitar; Sean Monroe of Horseheads, New York on bass guitar; Mike Watkins of Addison, New York on piano, organ, accordion, mandolin and fiddle; and Mike Nickerson of Corning, New York on percussion. The four share vocals and do a lot of harmonies. Watkins, Nickerson and Callahan grew up in Tioga County, Pa.

Joining them for this performance are Josh Sperrick of Corning, N.Y., a member of the band Hilltop Revelry; Karin Knaus, who starred in Hamilton-Gibson’s 2019 production of “Mamma Mia”; and Wellsboro’s own Brandon Lusk.

For this concert, bring lawn chairs and sit on the grass in front of the outdoor stage or on Central Avenue, which will be closed to traffic between Main Street and the Warehouse Theatre to provide space for social distancing. Donations are appreciated.

Call the Deane Center at (570) 724-6220, email office@deanecenter.com or visit deanecenter.com for more information about this concert and others.

TOTALLY NINJA RACCOONS HUNT TO END THURSDAY, JULY 30; NINJA PARTY IS POSTPONED

To be eligible for prizes, those who have been searching for the Totally Ninja Raccoons in 22 Wellsboro area businesses during the month of July must turn in their passports no later than 6 p.m. Thursday, July 30 at From My Shelf Books & Gifts at 7 East Avenue in Wellsboro.

For each business where participants of all ages find the Ninja Raccoons and get their passports signed, their names will be placed on tickets representing each ‘find” and put in the prize jar. “The more places participants find the raccoons, the more chances they have to win,” said Kasey Coolidge, bookstore manager, organizer of this year’s hunt.

“We will draw the names of the prize winners on Saturday, Aug. 1 and call them to let them know what they won,” Kasey said. “Participants need not be present to win,” she added. Prizes donated by participating businesses, include gift certificates and other items, a variety of books and Wellsboro Chamber bucks.

“The Ninja Party, planned for 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the bookstore on Aug. 1, is postponed until we can find a place to hold it,” said Kasey.

The Ninja Raccoons are hiding now through 6 p.m. on July 30 in the following 22 Wellsboro area businesses: Café 1905 and a second location on the first floor at Dunham’s Department Store at 45 Main Street; Wild Asaph Outfitters at 71 Main Street; C.S. Sports at 81 Main Street; Peggy’s Candies & Gifts at 82 Main Street; In My Shoes at 85 Main Street; Garrison’s Men’s & Ladies Shop at 89-91 Main Street; Tioga Office Products at 96 East Avenue; Moore’s Sports Center at 36 Plaza Lane in the Route 6 Wellsboro Plaza; Highland Chocolates Factory at 11724 Route 6, Charleston Township; The Farmer’s Daughters at 11719 Route 6, Charleston Township; Karen’s Country Store at 15 Main Street; Tony’s Italian Cuisine at 3 Main Street; Wellsboro House Restaurant & Brewery at 34 Charleston Street; The Frog Hut at 132 Tioga Street; Pag-Omar Farms Market & Restaurant at 222 Butler Road, Delmar Township; The Native Bagel at 1 Central Avenue; CBJ Collective Gift Shop and Piano Studio at 152 Main Street (formerly the West End Market Cafe); The Yellow Basket & Ice Cream Shop at 2744 Route 660 (on the way to the Canyon); Omi Of The Canyon gift shop and food at 4181 Route 660, near Leonard Harrison State Park; Wellsboro Mini Mall at 5 East Avenue, Suite 101; Krout’s Creations and More at 5 East Avenue, Suite 102; and host: From My Shelf Books & Gifts at 7 East Avenue.

For more information, call the bookstore at (570) 724-5793.

Photo by John Eaton
Kevin Coolidge, owner of From My Shelf Books & Gifts, presents Tate Cougill, 12, and his sister Stella, 8½, of Greenfield, Indiana with their Totally Ninja Raccoon pins for turning in their free passports after visiting 10 or more Wellsboro area stores. Tate has taken part in all eight of the bookstore hunts held in July every year since 2013, according to their grandmother Shirley Fort (not shown).

WELL ARMED WOMAN SHOOTING CHAPTER, TIOGA COUNTY, PA TO MEET THURSDAY, JULY 30

The Well Armed Woman Shooting Chapter, Tioga County, Pa. will meet at 6 p.m. on Thursday, July 30 outdoors at the Mill Cove Shooting Range in the Mill Cove Environmental Area at 3036 Mill Creek Road, Mansfield, Pa. The group’s regular July 16 meeting date was changed to July 30 due to a scheduling conflict.

The July 30 meeting will open at 6 p.m. with a discussion about the NRA Marksmanship Qualification Program and be followed by shooting practice from 6:30 p.m. to dusk. The group is following CDC and Pennsylvania COVID-19 protocols. Marilyn Jones and Pat Butts are chapter co-leaders.

New member applications will be available. Any woman, 18 or older from any county or state who is interested in joining this Well Armed Woman chapter is welcome to attend any meeting. Those who join can be a beginner or novice with absolutely no experience in handling a gun to those who are skilled and experienced shooters. The fee is $50 per year.

Women who don’t own a firearm and want more information before making a purchase or want to find out about joining the chapter are invited to contact Jones at (570) 549-2794 or jones_mk@yahoo.com.

COLE BAND TO PERFORM FREE OUTDOOR CONCERT ON FRIDAY, JULY 31

At 6 p.m. on Friday, July 31, the six-member Cole Band will perform country and rock and roll music during a free concert on the outdoor stage at the Deane Center for the Performing Arts at 104 Main Street in Wellsboro.

The Cole Band will perform original rock and roll songs written or co-written by Pat Cole as well as hits by American country singers such as Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith, Rodney Atkins and country duo Montgomery Gentry and by American rock bands, such as Poison and Credence Clearwater Revival. Among the cover tunes they will perform are “Hillbilly Shoes,” “Proud Mary” and ” If You’re Going Through Hell.”

A Mansfield native, Pat describes himself as “a singer-songwriter with a guitar.” During the past 20 years, he has been recognized for his work as a rock and roll and country songwriter and performer.

Pat and his son Cody have performed together as a duo as well as in the Cole Band.

The latest iteration of the Cole Band includes Pat Cole as lead singer, Rob Garrison singing harmony and playing keyboard, and Cody Cole playing electric guitar. Garrison had first performed music with Cody in 2013; then with both Cody and Pat; and beginning in 2015 as a member of the Cole Band. The Coles and Garrison are all from the Mansfield area.

New to the band this year are: Nick Best on electric bass guitar; Ian North on saxophone and Cole Ramsey on drums. Best and Norton are from Montrose, Pa. and Ramsey is from Todd, Pa.

“I remember the first time I saw the Cole Band perform was in 2011 at Yorkholo Brewing Company and Eatery in Mansfield. It was a packed show,” said Garrison. “The free concert on July 31 will be our first performance together with Nick, Ian and Cole and their first show as members of the Cole Band,” he added.

For this concert, bring lawn chairs and sit on the grass in front of the outdoor stage or on Central Avenue, which will be closed to traffic between Main Street and the Warehouse Theatre to provide space for social distancing.

The Deane Center is hosting a series of free concerts on its outdoor stage featuring local and regional musicians. This is the sixth concert in the series. All donations are appreciated.

Other upcoming concerts include: A jam session at 6 p.m. on Aug. 7; Scatter The Knickers, an Irish band, on Friday, Aug. 14 at 6:30 p.m.; the Vineyard Band at 6 p.m. on Aug. 21; Like A Hurricane, a Neil Young & Crazy Horse tribute band at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 28; and Dave Brown & The Dishonest Fiddlers at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 4.
For more information about this concert and the others, call the Deane Center at (570) 724-6220, email office@deanecenter.com or visit deanecenter.com.

Photo provided
Members of the Cole Band are: (shown, from left to right) Pat Cole, Rob Garrison, Ian Norton, Nick Best, Cole Ramsey and Cody Cole.