Fwd: Briefing Sessions on Real Estate Taxes in Allegheny County - Session Date Change 3/19 to 3/22!

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Benjamin Hemmings" <hemmings@forbesfunds.org>
Date: Mar 8, 2013 2:40 PM
Subject: Briefing Sessions on Real Estate Taxes in Allegheny County - Session Date Change 3/19 to 3/22!
To: "Mark" <mark@rauterkus.com>
Cc:

Use this area to offer a short teaser of your email's content. Text here will show in the preview area of some email clients. Is this email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. Briefing Sessions for Real Estate Taxes in Allegheny County To Our Friends in Allegheny County,   As many of you may know 2,800 letters were mailed to organizations designated tax-exempt as Institutions of Purely Public Charity requesting information related to how the organization meets the criteria for tax exemption. The triennial review of all tax-exempt property in the County, pursuant to Ordinance 49-07, is underway. Each organization will be required to submit a cover sheet and review application within 60 days. Failure to do so may result in the loss of the tax-exempt status. Accordingly to previously-published reports, Allegheny County distributed the letters to all owners of tax-exempt property  demanding verification that the land is, indeed, being used for tax-exempt purposes.  If your organization owns tax-exempt property in the County, you may have likely received a letter for each such parcel.  We encourage you not to panic. We understand that you may want to engage counsel; but, before you do so, take advantage of the briefing sessions being held by the Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership.  We're organizing meetings with the County's solicitor so that you can hear directly from him what you need to do. Also, we're preparing instructions that will guide you through the five-step HUP test so that you can explain to the County the charitable uses and purposes for the properties your organization owns.  We can't provide you legal advice but we can offer some guidance. To that end, we have scheduled two optional briefing dates:   - Thursday, March 14, 9:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. - Cardinal's Great Hall in O'Connor Hall at St. Paul Seminary, 2900 Noblestown Road, Crafton, PA 15205. To register for this session, please click here. - Friday, March 22, 2:30 p.m.-4:00 p.m. - Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, 5738 Forbes Ave  Pittsburgh, PA 15217. (*Please note, this is a reschedule from Tuesday, March 19) To register for this session, please click here.   Please email Benjamin Hemmings at hemmings@forbesfunds.org. Please feel free to invite your colleagues and Board members. Regards, The GPNP Advisory Board Register Today for the 2013 Nonprofit Summit! To download a Summit Agenda, please click here! Is your organization a member of the Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership (GPNP)? Having a GPNP membership enables you to attend the 2013 Nonprofit Summit on May 23, 2013 at discounted rate of $125 ($225 for non-members). Click here to register/renew your 2013 GPNP Membership to take advantage of this discounted rate along with the many other member benefits provided by the GPNP! Contact Benjamin Hemmings with any questions.  follow on Twitter | friend on Facebook | forward to a friend  Copyright © 2013 The Forbes Funds, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because your contact information is on record at the Forbes Funds. Our mailing address is: The Forbes Funds 5 PPG Place Suite 250 Pittsburgh, PA 15222 Add us to your address book  unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences

Fwd: Volunteer at 2013 Constellation Senior Players Championship for The First Tee

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Marc Field <tftpittsburgh@clubmailer.memfirst.net>

                                                                             

Dear Friends of The First Tee of Pittsburgh:

The Constellation Senior Players Championship is returning to Fox Chapel Golf Club June 24th thru June 30th, 2013. The First Tee of Pittsburgh will be marshaling the tenth hole this year and we will need at least 30 volunteers, partners and friends to be inside the ropes with the top senior players in this Champions Tour major tournament. We are a primary beneficiary of their charitable donation and we are excited to have them back in Pittsburgh and want to support this major golf event.

Volunteers are asked to register and purchase their own uniforms for $65 and you will receive admission all week, an extra weekly pass and lunch on the days you work. 

If you are interested in volunteering for the event, and helping to support The First Tee of Pittsburgh, you can volunteer online at www.volunteers.cspgolf.com. Please remember to designate The First Tee of Pittsburgh as the club affiliation in the field provided on the application.

In order to assess staffing needs and facilitate scheduling, we ask that you please complete the registration process by April 1st. (Please also think to invite your spouse, neighbors, golfing buddies, and friends to join you.  It it great fun to be inside the ropes, you'll get additional access and passes and well as a great volunteer party. . . and your support really helps The First Tee of Pittsburgh provide our programs to children throughout our region.)

For more information please contact our First Tee co-captains - Jeff Schlegel (412) 600-1075,schlegel@fnb-corp.com or Bruce Stephen (412) 979-3205, bmichaelstephen@gmail.com 

-- 
Marc Field
The First Tee of Pittsburgh
5370 Schenley Drive
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
mfield@thefirstteepittsburgh.org 
www.thefirstteepittsburgh.org 
412-682-2403
412-682-2405 (fax)

The mission of TFTP is To impact the lives of young people by providing educational programs that build character, instill life-enhancing values and promote healthy choices through the game of golf.

The First Tee of Pittsburgh is a United Way Donor Choice Agency.  You may direct your United Way contribution to #1436656.  Please consider the environment before printing this email. 

South Side Parking, coverage in the P-G

The root problem is that those that live here rejected the permit parking petitions, and we defeated the process. Meetings unfolded. Huge objections came to light. We who said "No thanks," won. It was dead. 

Then a few weeks later, the permit parking paperwork arrived in our mailboxes from city planning offices. The citizens got hoodwinked. There is no way we wanted it, and we still got it. The process sucked. Our city council person did not help one bit. 

Parking has always been a big issue, but there was no consensus and it was tweekeked and killed fully. They lied. We were suckers. Coming back from the dead is not just an Easter thing.. ..... 

--
--
Ta.
 
 
Mark Rauterkus       Mark.Rauterkus@gmail.com    
PPS Summer Dreamers' Swim and Water Polo Camp Head Coach
Pittsburgh Combined Water Polo Team

http://Rauterkus.blogspot.com
http://FixPA.wikia.com
http://CLOH.wikia.com
412 298 3432 = cell

PPS School Boards - and a long-winded invite to a meeting for March 11

Meeting called for 6:30 to 9 pm on Monday, March 11, 2013, at U-Prep to talk about PPS School Board Candidates and Races.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Yinzercation <comment-reply@wordpress.com>

YinzerThing posted: "Pittsburgh's school board is about to get a major shake up. Four of its eleven spots are open this year, and several districts have multiple candidates. Because of the nature of city politics, many of these seats are likely to be decided in the May primar" New post on Yinzercation School Boards Matter by YinzerThing Pittsburgh's school board is about to get a major shake up. Four of its eleven spots are open this year, and several districts have multiple candidates. Because of the nature of city politics, many of these seats are likely to be decided in the May primary, so we just have a couple months to get to know those who are running. Making this election cycle more confusing, the city has just re-drawn school board lines, moving entire neighborhoods into new districts. [See Post-Gazette, 11-12-12 for list of changes.] And the new map does not align with other political boundaries such as those for city council, state representatives, or even school catchment areas. But these are extremely important races and it's worth taking a minute to make sure you know which district you are in. New board members will be making crucial decisions about school closings. (And we know for sure Pittsburgh will see more devastating loss of neighborhood schools in the next couple years.) Board members also sign-off on accepting grant money from foundations and approve contracts with consulting firms. [Remember "PPS: Planning a Privatization Scheme?"] And they approve new charter schools, which are frequently opened to replace the public schools that just closed. In fact, charter schools and the use of high-stakes-testing for teacher evaluation are two of the hottest school board issues across the country right now. In Los Angeles, mayor Antonio Villaraigosa tried to take over the school board in 2006 as several other large cities have done (called "mayoral control," this has been a key strategy to remove power from democratically elected school boards, allowing for swift imposition of the corporate-reform agenda, especially school closure). When his attempt failed, Mayor Villaraigosa switched to backing school board members who support corporate-style reforms. He solicited donations from New York's billionaire mayor Michael Bloomberg, who gave a whopping $1 million, and from Michelle Rhee, whose StudentsFirst group gave another $250,000. [New York Times, 3-4-12] We need to seriously question why these wealthy individuals and astro-turf groups are dumping millions into the Los Angeles school board races. The good news this morning is that it appears all those dollars did not work: with returns now in, it looks like school board member Steve Zimmer, a moderate who dared to question privatization, has retained his seat against an opponent who was backed by the mayor, Bloomberg, and Rhee, as well as the Los Angeles Times editorial board and billionaires Eli Broad (of the Broad Foundation that trains school superintendents) and media mogul Rupert Murdoch. [DianeRavitch, LA Upset] That's a major victory for public education advocates in California – and a lesson for us in Pennsylvania. School board elections matter. They matter a lot. And one of the benefits of being in Pittsburgh, say, and not Los Angeles, is that – at least so far – we don't have ultra-wealthy outsiders tromping in with their dollars and agendas, trying to trounce on our democratic process. So please do your part and get to know your local candidates. Here's the perfect chance to ask questions and learn where your future school board members stand on privatization, school closures, charter reform, high-stakes-testing, and sticking up for adequate state funding: at 6:30 pm on Monday, March 11, 2013, PIIN will host a town hall meeting with all the school board candidates at University Prep 6-12 at Milliones, in the Hill District (3117 Centre Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15219). In advance of this town hall, Yinzercation has been working with a coalition of education partners to develop a vision statement for Pittsburgh public schools, including a pledge for school board members. Members of the coalition include PIIN, the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, Action United, OnePittsburgh, and A+Schools. We want school board members who are more than just fiscal watchdogs in these challenging financial times. With the district scheduled to run out of money in 2015, it will be too easy to let budgets drive decision-making. In other words, we need school board members with vision, who are: Careful policy makers and objective evaluators of data and research-based reforms Wise stewards of public school resources Promoters of public education as a public good Fearless advocates for restoring adequate State funding for our schools Advocates for enhanced revenues and fair executors of the school board taxing authority to ensure that everyone pays their fair share. Committed to achieving equity by supporting teachers, parents, students and community members in developing school specific plans to implement the District's Equity Plan. Real partners with all stakeholders to set the highest professional standards and nurture collaboration across our school system Leaders who engage parents, educators, administrators, and community members in authentic, ongoing dialogue that improves our school and enriches our democracy Committed to implementing community driven solutions that come from real engagement and collaboration between parents, students, educators, administrators and community not outside consulting firms. This is some of the language we have been working on. What do you think? Please come to the town hall on Monday and get this crucial conversation going. Keep the grassroots in our elections so there's no room for the billionaire corporate-reformers to play with Pittsburgh's school board. Comment    See all comments    Like Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser:  http://yinzercation.wordpress.com/2013/03/06/school-boards-matter/

Fwd: Lend a Hand, Save a Life in PA!

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Melissa Brown, American Heart Association" <paadv@heart.org>
Date: Mar 4, 2013 3:49 PM
Subject: Lend a Hand, Save a Life in PA!
To: <mark@rauterkus.com>
Cc:

Help Us Train and Educate 250,000 Pennsylvanians in CPR Dear Mark: In January 2013 we kicked off the first ever Lend a Hand, Save a Life CPR Challenge, a statewide campaign that seeks to educate Pennsylvanians on how to respond to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), a leading killer of Americans. The campaign runs through May 26, 2013 and we need your help to spread the word about this challenge!  For more information, please visit www.heart.org/lendahandsavealife. This campaign is a call to action to EMS providers, health educators, and community leaders to teach the general public about sudden cardiac arrest and train as many people as possible across the Commonwealth in the basic principles of CPR.  Collaborative partners include: American Heart Association, Pennsylvania Bureau of EMS and Pennsylvania HeartRescue Project. Together, our aim is to reach 250,000 people by the end of EMS Week (May 26, 2013), and we challenge you to help us reach this goal.  Please forward this e- mail to any CPR Trainers you know so that they can register events online at www.heart.org/lendahandsavealife to track the number of people trained and the date and location of the training. Numbers will be reflected on the website so the public can track progress, and prizes will be distributed at an awards ceremony at the close of the campaign to the top participating training groups. Thank you for your commitment to improving health care in our Commonwealth, and to saving the lives of its citizens! Jennifer Ebersole, PA Government Relations Director American Heart Association Melissa Brown, Grassroots Director American Heart Association Click here to unsubscribe.

 

City council debate for Hill District

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Hill District Consensus Group" <hdcg@wildapricot.org>
Date: Mar 4, 2013 3:11 PM
Subject: Mar 4, 2013 - HDCG News & Events
To: "Mark Rauterkus" <mark@rauterkus.com>
Cc:

Hill District Consensus Group News & Events March 4, 2013 HDCG Monthly Membership Meeting The Hill District Consensus Group holds a monthly membership meeting on the second Friday of every month.  Friday, March 8th, 2013 10:00AM - 12:00PM Hillman Auditorium, Kaufmann Center The Consensus Group welcomes all  members, Hill residents, and all folks interested in the well-being of the neighborhood.  Hope to see you there!   \ District 6 Candidates Forum   Friday, April 12th 6:00PM - 8:00PM Kaufmann Center, Hillman Auditorium, 1825 Centre Avenue     The Consensus Group is organizing a District 6 Candidates Forum ahead of the upcoming primaries. Candidates will have the opportunity to connect with constituents and communicate their positions on issues important to the community. At the same time, it gives residents a chance to ask questions and get to know the candidates. What issues do YOU care about? What problems or opportunities do you want your City Council-person to address? Bring your questions to the next Consensus Group meeting for a chance to have them included in the forum discussion. Stay tuned for more details!  Next sd   Upcoming Events  dsad Clean Green Hill Meeting Wednesday, March 6, 2013 6:00PM Hill House Conference Rm A, 1835 Centre Ave Clean Green Hill will be holding a meeting to discuss plans for the upcoming Spring. Clean Green Hill is a local, volunteer-driven organization that works to clean up and green up the Hill District. The group organizes residents and other volunteers to clean up and beautify the neighborhood. Want to learn more? Attend this meeting and see how YOU can get involved! Event Details   Medicaid Expansion Hearing Friday, March 8th, 2013 10:00AM - 12:00PM Wyndham University Center (formerly Holiday Inn University Center) 100 Lytton Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Senator Jim Ferlo & Senator Vincent Hughes and the Senate Democratic Appropriations Committee invite you to attend a hearing on: Medicaid Expansion Pennsylvania has the opportunity to make a decision that will: Provide access to health insurance to a half million Pennsylvanians. Infuse 4 billion federal dollars into Pennsylvania's budget. Create an estimated 285,000 jobs over 10 years. Relieve hospitals from $1 billion in uncompensated care costs. Reduce burden on counties that currently provide insurance coverage for inmates and for mental health services. Event Details   HDCG Monthly Meeting Friday, March 8, 2013 10:00AM - 12:00PM Hillman Auditorium, Kaufmann Center, Hill House The Hill District Consensus Group holds a monthly membership meeting on the second Friday of every month. Wish to attend? The Consensus Group welcomes all members, Hill residents, and all folks interested in the well-being of the neighborhood. Hope to see you there! Event Details    ddddddddd  dadddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd Button name   News Headlines   Addison Will Start Construction Summer 2013 KBK Enterprises KBK Enterprises has released a newsletter featuring the upcoming Addison Terrace Redevelopment project: "The design of the 186 units for Addison Phase 1 was approved by the City of Pittsburgh Fall 2012. We are anxiously working towards finalizing the project and look forward to starting construction spring 2013. The project has recently been accelerated due to a decision to reduce the amount of tax credits involved with the development. 734 units will be redeveloped into a 400 unit community and completed by 2017. 260 apartments will be constructed on the Addison Terrace site. The other 140 will be built nearby. Some will be subsidized, while others will go for market rents. The project's total cost is expected to approximately be $180 million." Read Article   Portrayal and Perception: African American Men & Boys WQED "The multiple-part series explores how the media portrays African American males and how society views them as a result. The episodes also report on people and organizations working to spotlight positive rather than negative images." Funding for Portrayal & Perception is made possible by the Heinz Endowments Read Article   Lottery losers: Despite increase in lottery revenue, PA seniors get fewer community services PublicSource PA "When Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane ruled that Gov. Tom Corbett's contract for private management of the state lottery was illegal, proponents of privatization shot back that Kane's decision meant a loss of an additional $50 million for senior services. Advocates said that having a private company running the lottery would increase receipts and eliminate growing waiting lists for senior services, which, by law, are supported by a percentage of lottery funds." Read Article   What We Lose When Kids Can't Play in Their Own Streets The Atlantic Cities "Opening the streets to children means closing them to cars, and that's why these events are precisely that – special events, rather than common practices. When it comes to who has priority when accessing our roads, we now take it as a given in our society that cars are king. But when you watch the video on Playing Out's site, you start to wonder why we tolerate the conditions we live under so meekly." Read Article   An Island Where There Is a Standard Shelterforce "Deryl McCray was about 12 years old when he realized he didn't like the way his uncle cut his hair. So he did something about it. "I figured if he let me use clippers I'd probably do a better job than he did," he says. His uncle let him give it a try, and McCray promptly put his uncle out of the family hair-cutting business. "I did a good job," he says. "My brothers saw it and they wanted my uncle to stop cutting their hair, and eventually my uncles saw it and they let me cut their hair, and then it became a venture from that day, where I became like the little community barber." After finishing high school in Washington state, McCray enlisted in the Army, became a paratrooper, and served in the Gulf War. After he'd served four years, it was a woman who lured him to Albany, N.Y. His wife had ties to the area, so McCray made the move. But the job opportunities he looked into didn't pan out." Read Article   1,000 Stories Project Duquesne University "Hill House Association is again working with students from Duquesne University to gather narratives for our 1,000 Stories Project. Each semester we pick a different theme to concentrate on. This time we are seeking food-related stories. Recipes. Favorite meals. Recollections about dinner conversations. What food meant to your family. The stories will be read at a community event in April, placed on our website and shared with Leslie Ansley, who was commissioned to do the artwork for the new Shop 'N Save grocery store." Read Article   Request for Proposals: 2013 Pittsburgh Summer Youth Employment Program City of Pittsburgh  "The City of Pittsburgh's Department of Personnel & Civil Service Commission announces the issuing of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the 2013 Pittsburgh Summer Youth Employment Program.  Proposals are sought from organizations to create, organize and manage summer work experiences for youth, ages 14-21, in either Conservation Work, or Internships in business environments." Read Article   States Take Sides As Court Revisits Voting Rights Act NPR "The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments next week in a case that tests the constitutionality of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the law considered the most effective civil rights statute in American history. At issue is whether a key provision of the statute has outlived its usefulness. A staggering 49 friend of the court briefs have been filed, among them briefs from 11 states urging the court to either strike down or uphold the law. What is intriguing is that some of the states now arguing against the law were not troubled by its provisions just four years ago, the last time it was before the court." Read Article         Copyright © 2012 Hill District Consensus Group. All rights reserved. Contact email: info@hdcg.org You are receiving this message because you opted in at http://www.hdcg.org/         Facebook   Twitter Unsubscribe

Fwd: LaCec Sainti mentioned you on Facebook

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Facebook" <notification+ooo62909@facebookmail.com>
Date: Mar 3, 2013 9:58 PM
Subject: LaCec Sainti mentioned you on Facebook
To: "Mark Rauterkus" <mark@rauterkus.com>
Cc:

facebook LaCec Sainti mentioned you in a comment. LaCec wrote: "Mark Rauterkus is right is the sense that it is being used as a flag for freedom by people who are really fighting for it. Bruce Poinsette is right too because there are many things to say about how some people benifited from, not stealing, but copying elements of African-American culture. BUT at the same time, African-American culture is world-wide. It was with Jazz, with Rock n' Roll and now is with hip hop. The stealers are those who make MONEY out of copying. The idiots are those who mock the culture because they are racists. And the rest are people who respect it because, as with every other art, they incorporate it in their own art, or their own expression of something. That is very human." Reply to this email to comment on this link. See Comment This message was sent to mark@rauterkus.com. If you don't want to receive these emails from Facebook in the future, please unsubscribe. Facebook, Inc., Attention: Department 415, PO Box 10005, Palo Alto, CA 94303

Schenley SOLD

Many citizens gave great effort to save Schenley's building as an educational asset for city students. This was a noble fight. The public district used all its might and loads of misinformation to insure its eventual liquidation. 

Now, I fear, it is safe to say that the only things left to do is watch, wait, wag fingers and say, "We told you so." 

The deed to the building is almost gone from the clutches of its public trustees. 

Fingers wag at Mark Roosevelt, Patrick Dowd (former PPS board member who greased the pathway to closing the school) and all other politicians who did nothing, little or mowed down the grass-roots opposition.

Eventually the building will be filled with student housing.

Perhaps there will be a tweet or media story about the first resident to the Schenley Dorm who also uses some Pittsburgh Promise funds to pay for college. Perhaps the ownership of the building will flip from PMC. Perhaps historic tax credits will come too -- or a TIF like "development deal" tied to another project bundled with this rehab. Perhaps the union workers will get an elevator job and taxpayers get the shaft. 

Let's live to fight another day.

Sold! 

Wag on the ready.

Fwd: [wplug] Hacks and Hackers

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Elwin Green
Date: Saturday, March 2, 2013
Subject: [wplug] Hacks and Hackers
To: wplug@wplug.org


Hi,

Long-time, long-absent WPLUG'er here. I am writing to introduce you to
Hacks and Hackers. Who are they? Their website
says<http://hackshackers.com/about/>
:

"Hacks/Hackers is a rapidly expanding international grassroots journalism
organization with dozens of chapters (and counting) and thousands of
members across four continents (and counting). Our mission is to create a
network of journalists ("hacks") and technologists ("hackers") who rethink
the future of news and information."

As a hack (former reporter for the Post-Gazette, now running my own
community news website) with a strong interest in hackery, and especially
the possibilities of hacking journalism, I would like join with a hacker or
two to start a Hacks/Hackers chapter in Pittsburgh.

If interested, please drop me a line. Thanks!

Elwin Green
Publisher, Homewood Nation <http://www.homewoodnation.com/>
Twitter: @homewoodnation
Facebook: Homewood Nation <http://www.facebook.com/homewoodnation>

Personal blog: ReVisions: Bekitemba's GUT<http://bekitembasgut.blogspot.com/>
Personal Twitter: @elwin15208
_______________________________________________
wplug mailing list
wplug@wplug.org
http://www.wplug.org/mailman/listinfo/wplug



--
--
Ta.
 
 
Mark Rauterkus       Mark.Rauterkus@gmail.com    
PPS Summer Dreamers' Swim and Water Polo Camp Head Coach
Pittsburgh Combined Water Polo Team

http://Rauterkus.blogspot.com
http://FixPA.wikia.com
http://CLOH.wikia.com
412 298 3432 = cell

Fwd: PaYouthandGov just uploaded a video

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "YouTube" <noreply@youtube.com>
Date: Mar 2, 2013 3:13 PM
Subject: PaYouthandGov just uploaded a video
To: "Mark Rauterkus" <mark.rauterkus@gmail.com>
Cc:

PaYouthandGov has uploaded Changes in the 2012-2013 Youth and Government Senate. Changes in the 2012-2013 Youth and Government Senate by PaYouthandGov An explanation of the changes in the Pennsylvania Youth and Government Senate for the 2013 Model Convention You were sent this email because you chose to receive updates about new videos uploaded by PaYouthandGov. If you don't want these updates anymore, you can change your preferences by visiting the subscription manager. ©2013 YouTube, LLC 901 Cherry Ave, San Bruno, CA 94066