The Parkesburg Consortium of Community Leaders will present its first community engagement event on Thursday, April 20, at 6:30 p.m. at the Keystone Valley Fire Department (KVFD), 329 W. First Ave., Parkesburg. The community is invited to learn about the organizations and businesses in the Parkesburg area and get details about upcoming events. Information about volunteer opportunities will also be available.

"The purpose of the event is to get the community more involved in the committees that already exist in the borough," said Tina O'Connor, who is a member of the consortium as well as the Parkesburg Action Committee (PAC). "Anyone in the surrounding area is welcome to attend."

Organizations that will participate include the Parkesburg Historic Commission, KVFD, Parkesburg Lions Club, PAC, Parkesburg Free Library, the Parkesburg POINT youth center, the Parkesburg VFW, Parkesburg Parks and Recreation Commission and the Octorara Area Food Cupboard.

Also represented at the event will be the Borough of Parkesburg; the Parkesburg Churches Community Outreach (PCCO), which provides assistance to local individuals and families in need; and Everybody Plays! The latter group is a community organization that is looking to renovate the playground at Minch Park so that it is accessible to children of all abilities.

Light refreshments will be provided, and attendees will be able to visit with the organizations, which will have tables set up around the fire company. "We will have flyers listing our events," said O'Connor, "(and) we will have sign-up sheets (for prospective volunteers)."

Everybody Plays! will provide information about its upcoming designer bag and tool bingo on Saturday, April 22, at the Parkesburg VFW, 406 W. Fourth Ave. Doors will open at 3:30 p.m., and bingo will start at 4 p.m. A link to order tickets is available by searching for "Everybody Plays" on Facebook.

PAC's next event will be a spring cleanup on April 22 at 9 a.m. Volunteers, who will meet at Parkesburg's Minch Park, will help clean up trash, plant flowers and work on small beautification projects. Those who are unable to volunteer that day may donate soil or flowers or make a financial donation to purchase supplies. Individuals may contact O'Connor at experiencepositivetherapy@gmail.com for more details.

The borough will provide information about its upcoming community yard sale on Saturday, April 29.

"(We encourage those) who ever wondered how to get involved, want to know what's going on in the community or learn about upcoming events to attend," said O'Connor. "Also, those who are new to the community (are invited) to check out what Parkesburg Borough has to offer."

O'Connor said that the consortium is a new organization made up of community service organizations in the area, all of which will be represented at the event on April 20. For more information, contact O'Connor at the previously mentioned email address.