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NEWS Holiday treats baked from scratch delivered to police agencies and organizations By Kate Day Sager FOSTER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — When Foster Township Police Chief Tom Munn arrived at his station after handling a couple of motor vehicle accidents, he was pleasantly surprised to receive homemade holiday cookies and pastries from Lena Wankel, a senior with the Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School. Wankel of Duke Center is also a National Honor Society student and baked the cookies from scratch in order to earn service hours with the NHS. “Some students chose to tutor, others chose to Photo by Kate Day Sager volunteer,” Wankel said. Foster Township Police Chief Tom Munn, at left, looks over homemade cookies and pastries made by Lena “My mom (Stephanie Wankel, at right, who wanted to give back to the department. Lathrop) gave me the brilliant and creative “So in the season than they may realize. given the police dehopes that her donations idea of doing something of giving, I wanted to Getting the chance to partment holiday treats will also shed positive a bit different, ‘sweeter’ give them containers deliver these containers and fruit baskets, but light on the online if you will. I decided to of homemade baked and seeing the (reciphe liked the fact that schooling community. pick six businesses or goods,” Wankel exients’) reactions is so Wankel baked all of the “Many people believe organizations to give plained. “Everything much better than any items from scratch. that it costs too much back to this holiday in these containers are gift I could ever receive. “Those cookies smell money, the quality of season.” baked from scratch. Along with the baked good,” Munn said while education is lower comWankel noted that The idea behind this goods I have handwritexamining the plastic pared to what the child throughout the year, the is to bring a smile to ten a personal card to container of baked would receive in public businesses or organizatheir face and hopefuleach business thanking goods. or private schooling, the tions she selected have ly make them realize them for their service.” “The (police officers) student doesn’t receive done many good deeds that what they do is Munn said other will love it.” any interaction with one for the community. making a bigger impact groups and entities have Wankel said she another, and so much
more,” Wankel said. “When it’s quite actually the polar opposite. I started online schooling when I fell very ill my sophomore year and was able to get the treatment and care I needed. Since joining (online schooling) I have been able to focus on my health more, spend more time focusing on my academics, pursue classes and topics that I’m actually interested in and spend time with the people who love and support me.” Wankel said she has met some of her closest friends through online schooling and the NHS. “And while we may be miles apart, I hold them close to my heart,” she said. “Thanks to online schooling, I have been able to blossom into the person I have longed to be.” Wankel said she also delivered baked goods to the YWCA Bradford Victims Resource Center; Bradford Travel Service; Lewis Runbased State Police; University of Pittsburgh at Bradford’s Enrollment Services; and State Farm Insurance.
McKean County man works as dog handler in the U.S. Navy By Ruth Bogdan Master-at-Arms 3rd Class James Lingerfelter has found a way to combine a love of animals and an interest in law enforcement in a job that takes him around the world. Lingerfelter is a dog handler with the U.S. Navy. He is currently stationed in Italy, but from there he can be deployed with his canine to support missions in places across Europe or in Asia or Africa. A 2015 Kane Area High School graduate, Lingenfelter enlisted in the U.S. Navy in August 2015. “I wanted to use the Navy as a stepping stone to get into the Pennsylvania State Police,” a goal which Lingenfelter said is still his ambition. He enlisted to be a master-atarms — military police — in the U.S. Navy. “For me, I always liked dogs and animals in general,” said Lingenfelter, who is an outdoorsman who enjoys pastimes such as hunting and fishing. He learned to hunt with dogs when he was growing up and finds that the drive hunting dogs have is the same that military dogs have. “It’s just one big game for them,” he said. The dog that Lingenfelter is currently working with is a 3-year-old German shepherd named Vicki that has been with the U.S. Navy in Italy since February 2016. “This was her first com-
mand,” he noted. One big misconception he encounters is that military dogs follow their handlers, but that is not the case, Lingenfelter said. He explained that when he leaves NSA Naples, Vicki will stay there, and he will be paired with a new dog at his next assignment. The military canines are trained to find various substances, a task which can also be used for deterrence purposes, he said, explaining that when people see one of the dogs at work, it “keeps them on their toes.” Lt. Commander Lenaya Rotklein, a public relations professional with the U.S. Navy, explained that military working dogs (MWD) receive special training for different tasks that can include drug detection, finding explosives and even finding humans. Lingenfelter said he is proud to serve the nation and explained that what makes him really proud is being able to do things that most people wouldn’t, especially the work he does with the military working dogs. He is a “protector” — part of a group that is “putting ourselves in harm’s way so other people don’t have to.” In his role as a dog handler, his team looks for potential dangers before sending others in to the front line. Being a dog handler is a different specialization than he was in when he first enlisted.
U.S. Navy photo U.S. Navy Master-at-Arms 3rd Class James LingerfelterLingenfelter is shown with Vicki. Lingenfelter went to boot camp in October 2015, then after boot camp went to Texas for technical school, where he learned his job as a master-at-arms. He graduated from technical school that December and reported to Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain at
the beginning of 2016. He stayed at NSA Bahrain for two years doing antiterrorism and force protection, then reported to NSA Naples in February 2018. He spent a year doing law enforcement and force protection. At the beginning of 2019, “I started volunteer-
ing in my off-duty hours going into the kennels.” During that time, Lingenfelter was “getting to know the military dog system better” and “prove myself to the handlers that were my mentors.” In June, he was sent for a handler’s course in Texas. He graduated in
August and reported back to Italy. “I’m still feeling it out and I’m loving every bit of it because it’s so brand new to me,” Lingenfelter said. Lingenfelter may be traveling the world now, but he still has strong ties to the local area. His mother and father, Donna and Philip Lingenfelter, live in Kane, and his wife, Taylor, lives in Bradford. His mother was originally from Shinglehouse and his father from Emporium. “We moved to Kane when I was about 5 years old,” he said. Being away from rural Pennsylvania for a year at a time makes him more aware of his love for the area when he visits. “It’s such a beautiful place that we live in,” Lingenfelter said. Being home also reminds him why his work in the military is so important: “We do the things that we do in order so that we can have that at home.” Lingenfelter noted he was “big into football” when he was in high school, serving as a starter for three years, a defensive MVP in District 9 his senior year, an all-star player in 2013 and 2014. He played in the Big 30 All-Star Charities Classic football game in 2015 and was a defensive MVP for the Big 30 team. He wrestled and played baseball in Kane, too.