Lenten service

The Tamaqua ministerium will sponsor a series of free Community Lenten services leading up to Easter.The first service will be held March 16 at Bethany Evangelical Congregational Church, 223 E. Broad St. The services will begin at noon and will be followed by light luncheons.Other services and locations will be: March 23, Primitive Methodist Church, 57 Hunter St.; March 30, First United Methodist Church, 124 W. Broad St.; April 6, St. Jerome's Catholic Church, 266 W. Broad St.; and April 13, Tamaqua Salvation Army, 105 W. Broad St.A Community Good Friday service will be held April 22, at noon, at Trinity United Church of Christ, 22 Lafayette St. This service will not be followed by a luncheon.Tax exemptionsThe Tamaqua Area School District is accepting Assessed Occupation Tax exemption applications for the 2011-2012 school year. This will cover the 2011 calendar year. This year's forms are blue.Retired persons and housewives with no earned income, who have previously been exempted, do not need to file again unless their status has changed and they are now earning income. Also, those who are disabled or at least 75 years of age, who have been specifically notified of their exemption by the district, need not file an application.Students who reach the age of 18 by June 30, 2011, will be responsible for paying the tax unless exempt by application.Requests for exemption must be filed with the district by March 1, 2011. Application forms are available at the following locations: school district administration building; local tax collectors' offices; the Tamaqua Public Library; Tamaqua Borough Hall; local post offices; and all local bank branches.SS. Peter and PaulAsh Wednesday services will be held during the 8 a.m. Mass and following Stations of the Cross in SS. Peter and Paul Catholic Church on March 9. Adult Choir rehearsals will resume on Ash Wednesday, at 7:30 p.m.Stations of the Cross will be held Wednesdays, at 7 p.m., during Lent. Also during Lent, confessions will be heard Wednesdays from 6-7 p.m. and Saturdays, from 4-5 p.m., in conjunction with a holy hour that will include Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.The Holy Name Society will meet at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 10. The meeting will be preceded by a Mass.Zion LewistownThe Rev. Sunny Stock will officiate at the 10:45 a.m. worship service Sunday in Zion Church in the Lewistown Valley. The service will include communion. Sunday school classes will be held at 9:30 a.m.The Youth Group will meet this Friday, from 7-10 p.m., at the youth building at Christ Church, McKeansburg.The Consistory will meet Monday at 7 p.m.Fitness for Friends, a community exercise class, meets Mondays and Thursdays, 6-7 p.m., in the social hall.St. Jerome'sA member of the Belarus Convent of St. Elisabeth the New Martyr will provide a presentation on the history and service of the convent community on March 15, following the 8 a.m. Mass in St. Jerome's Catholic Church. The Christian Orthodox Sisterhood is located in the Republic of Belarus, in the central part of Europe.The Sisters provide care for mentally challenged children and adults hospitalized in the Belarus National Mental Hospital. Recently, their missionary work has grown to include former drug/alcohol addicts through workshops held on the convent grounds. The results of the workshops will be on display and made available to the public.