10 1 15 centre county gazette

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GAZETTE THE CENTRE COUNTY

www.CentreCountyGazette.com

Hitting the ice

With the season approaching, the Penn State men’s hockey team held its annual media day recently. Head coach Guy Gadowsky has high expectations for the Nittany Lions in 2015-16./Page 29

October 1-7, 2015

Volume 7, Issue 39

FREE COPY

Operation Backbone plays vital role for veterans Shaner, Pegula partner to ensure success of mission By CHRIS MORELLI editor@centrecountygazette.com

Submitted photo

MAN ON A MISSION: Mike Sformo, CEO and founder of Operation Backbone, left, poses for a photo with former United State Sen. Rick Santorum during a trip to Washington, D.C.

STATE COLLEGE — Mike Sformo is a man on a mission. Around three years ago, Sformo was lifting weights when he injured his back. He went to the emergency room, was treated and given a bill for $127. He went to the Veterans Affairs hospital in Washington, D.C., where he was refused help with the bill. It was that simple moment that inspired him to create Operation Backbone. “My first thought was, what if you don’t have any money or insurance? Or, what if you live really far away (from a VA hospital) and your husband was really hurt? What are you supposed to do?” Sformo asked. “The answer was, ‘Don’t know.’ I said, ‘I’m going to stop what I’m doing and I’m going to change the way medicine is done for U.S. military veterans around the world.’”

What Sformo, the founder and CEO of Operation Backbone, has been able to accomplish is nothing short of amazing. Once he had the mission, he needed backing. He went right to the top, enlisting the help of Terry Pegula, owner of the National Hockey League’s Buffalo Sabres and Lance Shaner, CEO of Shaner Corporation in State College. There is much more to Operation Backbone than paying bills. According to Sformo, it is about helping military veterans and their families overcome crippling injuries and the drug addiction and depression that sometimes come with them. “I was shocked at how little I actually knew. I was surprised and overwhelmed. As a Navy veteran, I was stunned to see how many men, women

and their families live in complete silence. It was stunning, the amounts of narcotics, alcohol, guns, fights and violence, all because of these severe injuries. “There was nowhere for them to go. I was overwhelmed. I was shaken by it because I didn’t realize the severity of the problems that are out there,” Sformo said. The mission statement of Operation Backbone is pretty simple. According to Sformo, Operation Backbone was created to provide the most advanced brain and spine surgical treatments in the world for soldiers. However, the heart and soul of Operation Backbone Operation Backbone, Page 8

Local Catholics make trip to Philadelphia to see pope By ALEXA LEWIS news@centrecountygazette.com

PHILADELPHIA — About 175 members of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown didn’t want Pope Francis to be a little more than 200 miles away — they wanted to be right there in front of him. That’s why they traveled as a group to see him during his visit to Philadelphia on Sept. 26 and 27 for the World Meeting of Families, the world’s largest Catholic gathering of families.

“We know that the pope will probably never come to Pennsylvania again, so this is really a historic moment for our diocese here in Altoona-Johnstown. To be this close and not to come, why would we want to do that?” said Tony DeGol, the diocese’s communications manager who coordinated the group pilgrimage. DeGol, along with other diocesan colleagues, began planning the trip in the winter after Mark Bartchak, the diocese’s Pope, Page 7

TIM WEIGHT/For the Gazette

OPEN FOR BUSINESS: The Bellefonte Sports Academy at The Rink will hold its grand opening Oct. 4 through Oct. 6.

Bellefonte Sports Academy prepares to open its doors By CHRIS MORELLI editor@centrecountygazette.com

HALEY NELSON/For the Gazette

PAPAL VISIT: Pope Francis waves to the crowd during his recent trip to Philadelphia. Many members of the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese made the trip to Philadelphia to see the pope. Opinion ............................ 9 Health & Wellness ..... 10, 11

Community ............... 13-17 Medical Viewpoints ....... 18

Gazette Gameday ...... 19-22 Guns & Hunting ............. 23

MINGOVILLE — The vision is complete. Walk through the doors of the old Hecla Park Skating Center in Mingoville and what you see may surprise you. The old lifeless roller skating rink has been converted into a state-of-the-art multi-sport facility. There are batting cages, pitching lanes for baseball and softball, golf simulators and exercise equipment. Sports ......................... 24-30 Around & In Town .... 32-34

The Bellefonte Sports Academy at the Rink is ready for business. Business partners Rich Rogers and Scott Smith are excited for the grand opening, which will be held over a three-day period beginning on Sunday, Oct. 4. “It has really come together,” Rogers said. “We have really worked hard at our design. We tried to make it user-friendly to make our athletes better. We don’t want Academy, Page 8

What’s Happening .... 34, 35 Puzzles ............................ 36

Business ..................... 37, 38 Classified ........................ 39


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