Since the beginning of our learned existence, we have gathered outdoors and grown food for our necessary subsistence. Today, with the urgency of now, we got to get ourselves back to the garden for a better way of life.  We must restore our God-given clean air, clean water and healthy soil, which are the basic needs of life.
Since the pandemic of 2020, we were advised to get outdoors more, but we have done very little more for our great outdoors, in terms of a safer and more beneficial environment.
Since April of 2020, FANS 4 HELP (my new nonprofit, for Health, Environment, Learning and Play), has been designing, building and teaching about raised bed gardens and safety barriers, to anyone interested in our regional area.  I have written (3) LSA grant requests, (2) Remake Learning Grant requests, (1) Pittsburgh Foundation Grant requests and a proposal at the request of my hometown council for an American Rescue Act Plan grant.
However, none of my grant writing efforts were successfully approved, due to little interest or help from people in charge of chambers of commerce, political parties, larger nonprofits, local schools or councils.  Some of these questionable stewards of our children's futures, seem to be more interested in "pay for play" or their own personal and collective interests, with our taxpayer funds.
This I know to be true, from my extensive experience as a PA Child Care Health and Safety Inspector, US Certified Playground Safety Inspector, PA Playground Safety Trainer, Playground Safety Expert Witness, PA Recreation Therapist and PA Child Care Specialist.
Unfortunately, "it is not what you know, it's what you can prove."  Rest assured though, for I will not rest until we all have a safer, healthier, equitable, just and fair environment for more fun, learning and play and especially for our children's future.
This day will come.  Please join FANS 4 HELP (for free) at www.fansofplay.com  Just go to - Sign-Up & Join FANS 4 HELP.
Thank you, Dennis Smiddle - Founder and Executive Director of FANS 4 HELP

​A Tale of Two Open Public Meetings from FANS 4 HELP
On April 26, 2022, there were two open public meetings scheduled at the same times in Canonsburg PA.  These were a Canonsburg Council Workshop meeting at 6:30 PM and a rescheduled Canon McMillan School Board meeting at 7:00 PM.  As a wannabe engaged citizen, I wanted to attend both meetings, but I couldn't and I had to make a choice. 
The Canonsburg Council Workshop, was the 4th meeting in a series that started on Jan. 31, 2022 and was originally billed as a way to engage with the Canonsburg council for ideas or suggestions on how to spend the ($990,000) American Rescue Plan Act funding.  I attended three of the meetings and submitted a few written proposals to renovate a playground in the east end of town and to build my original raised bed garden/safety barrier designs around the town of Canonsburg, like at the Senior Center or in the parks.  So, I decided to attend this 4th and possibly last workshop meeting.
The earlier workshop meetings were announced and got a fairly good citizen turnout for concerns, mostly about parking problems and possible solutions in Canonsburg.  This last meeting wasn't publicly announced by the council and there were only two of us non-council citizens.  Also, invited guests of the council were Senator Bartolotta, her chief of staff, and the president of Penn Strategies, a grant writing firm from Harrisburg, contracted by the Canonsburg council.
Although the council office reported that no agenda or minutes were being done for the workshop meetings, they did produce a "summary of possible spending" and a "wish list for grant projects." 
 As the main speaker of the meeting, the Penn Strategies president did state that grants for playgrounds are very beneficial and have a great success rate for approval in all communities.  Senator Bartolotta suggested applying for a variety of grants and reported that her office receives many requests for park and community amenities such as, benches with dedication plaques. 
 My proposals were not on either of the Canonsburg council's lists, so I congratulated the Penn Strategies president, offered my extensive knowledge and experience as a former U.S. Certified Playground Safety Inspector and PA Child Care Health and Safety Inspector with over 2500 playground safety inspections, and then I left for the Canon McMillan School Board meeting.
I arrived at the school board meeting around 8 PM, just in time to hear some kind words of appreciation for a resigned school board member, Mike Caporizzo, and the introduction speeches of three excellent candidates offering to fill the vacant school board position. 
 Unfortunately, like the Canonsburg council meetings, there is little to share publicly, since there is little compliance with the intent or essence of the Sunshine Act.  The meetings are not videotaped by the council or the school district, for citizens who are unable to attend in-person.  The meeting minutes, if published at all, are difficult to access and usually void of any timely and meaningful content.  If a taxpayer-paid solicitor is present, they seem to be disengaged or engaged in limiting the citizen's time and opportunity to express their concerns.  Also, there seems to be a disengagement between the these important meetings and the reporting by the local Observer-Reporter newspaper.
Finally for now, and with the hopes for a more transparent, informed and engaging community, I would like to share a good definition of a community.  A community, is a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share a government, share needs and interests, and perceives itself as a district in some respect from the larger society within which it exists.
What's in your community?

​Think Spring and Rethink Learning and Play.
Some Observer-Reporter articles are so good and important, they need to be republished. The following article, is one of those.
Nonprofit to rethink playground space
By Katie Anderson July 31, 2020 Publication: Observer-Reporter (Washington, PA) 
Dennis Smiddle, owner of a playground maintenance company, Fans of Play, recently started a nonprofit called Fans 4 Help.
The nonprofit, which advocates for more natural and open playground spaces, will seek grants to fund the design and installation of those types of playgrounds in school districts and community parks.

"One of the best ways for children to learn is through play," Smiddle said. "There's a mindset that play is all about playground equipment, but that's structured play – it can only really do what it was designed to do. There's a lot more to play than swinging, sliding and climbing."

According to Smiddle, a retired state inspector of child care facilities and playgrounds, children need access to playtime in more natural environments, "where kids can get outside in open spaces and make up their own games and use their imagination."

Especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, more open spaces on playgrounds make more sense, Smiddle said. He said traditional playgrounds with slides and swings and climbing areas are difficult to maintain and keep sanitized.

"Every playground has a capacity," he said. "It's very difficult to social distance on a playground."

The nonprofit will offer design services, consultations and playground products that meet the mission of his company, like raised-bed gardens, sandboxes and balance beams. In the name of the nonprofit, "FANS" stands for Fitness, Art, Nature and Science, while "HELP" stands for Health, Environment, Learning and Play, 

"It's more of an empowering concept," he said. "People can design their own playgrounds, where you don't have to rely on these big playground companies."

Smiddle said school districts and municipalities typically purchase playground equipment through catalogs because "it's easy," and because people don't realize other options are available. However, he said the concepts he uses are safer for children, more cost effective and they "reduce liability."

"I'm hoping to get funding and build awareness so that communities can start to change the playground mindset to a more natural concept to help protect children and provide more beneficial playground opportunities for learning and play," he said.
Observer-Reporter (Washington, PA)

Be the best that you can be.
As JFK said three generations (60 years) ago, “For of those to whom much is given much is required.” And as the Bible [Luke 12:48] said 20 centuries (2000 years) ago, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”
However in today's world, schools and community decision-makers are being given large sums of monies for school safety plans, for health and safety plans, and for economic relief plans, with little to no oversight and transparency requirements on how the money is spent. 
So, everybody needs to know that you have a right to know and an obligation to care about what is right, just, equitable, fair and ethical. More so and more than ever before, there needs to be more oversight and more transparency on how these monies are being spent for our collective well-being.
Today, due to this current pandemic, everybody is essentially on the honor system, so please honor our essential workers, essential services, and our environment.
If you think about this, some of our most essential and most important rights, are our rights for clean air, clean water and clean soil. These are the essential cornerstones to all life on earth. In fact, air pollution significantly harms the quality of our soil and water resources, causing significant harm to the health and well-being of all of us, and especially to the health and well-being of our children.
So, we need to pull our range of resources and expertise to help expect the best practices and results for what may be a once in a lifetime funding opportunity.
I believe we should not just expect the best, we should take some action and responsibility to help ensure that things are done right, just, fair, equitably, transparently, and ethically. There is no place in our political system or our ecosystem for ethnocentrism ( def. - "thinking one's own group's ways are superior to others" or "judging other groups as inferior to one's own)."
Thank you and stay safe,
Dennis Smiddle - Executive Director of FANS 4 HELP (a new 2020 nonprofit).

​With the 2022 Winter Olympics due to begin this February 4th, other countries are being warned by China, to not criticize their human rights and foreign policies. Com'on China, are you talking to America? Are you talking to US? Cause if you are, please be advised, "We don't need you're stinkin' warnings." Don't tell us what not to say about some of your "bat-shit crazy" policies. Plus, we know not to "yell fire in a crowded theater or crowded country and most of us know not to "fan the flames" of a pandemic from any origin.
Also, criticism can be both negative and constructive. Constructive criticism can be given with a compassionate and helpful attitude, where as, destructive criticism can be given with an insulting and harmful attitude.
Besides, we will always have our globally recognized Special Olympics and our Senior Olympics everywhere and every year.
Thank you,
Dennis Smiddle Proud Father of Veronica Smiddle - a Director of Special Olympics in Southern California and proud 5-time Gold Medalist in various SWPA Senior Games.

The past two years have been very trying and difficult times for all of us, and I'm sure we'll all agree that we need a "new lease on life", especially for the children, the most vulnerable and the most essential workers involved in these pandemic times.
The origin and meaning of the phrase, "a new lease on life" dates back to the early 1800s; and it referred to recovering from an illness and getting a fresh start with renewed enjoyment, enthusiasm, and appreciation for one's life. Epidemics that were probably influenza in their nature, have been reported throughout recorded history. Four major influenza epidemics were recorded between 1830 and 1848. The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, the deadliest in history, infected an estimated 500 million people worldwide—about one-third of the planet’s population.
Unfortunately, today's pandemic and potentially future pandemics will still have some of the same serious consequences, but at the same time we are all better prepared to fight these viruses with the same tried and true health and safety methods, plus with some new and scientifically proven safeguards.
Therefore, we all need to keep up our guards for this long and tough fight, with proper handwashing, sanitizing, social distancing, masking, personal protective equipment, ventilation and vaccines, to help protect ourselves, the children, the most vulnerable and the most essential workers in this battle that is everybody's business.
Finally, to help win all tough fights and battles, we need to know our opponents strength​s and plans of attack. In the case of these pandemics, their battle plan is viral and respiratory, with it's deadliest attacks on our lungs, that will weaken the rest of our body's functions. As a result, the best offenses and defenses we have against this pandemic, are to provide clean, fresh and healthy air to our lungs, while protecting our lungs from any harmful viral and respiratory attacks, including radon, methane, mold and carbon monoxide.
Com'on America, let's keep up the good fight together and never give-up the fight forever, where we live, work, learn, play, eat and sleep.
Thank you,
Dennis Smiddle - Founder of FANS 4 HELP and PA State Representative with The Citizens For Radioactive Radon Reduction (CR3)