Commissioners proclaim May as Community Action Month, honor STEP Inc. on 60th anniversary

Lycoming County commissioners on Thursday read a proclamation naming May 2026 Community Action Month and offered special recognition to STEP, Inc. for 60 years of serving residents in Lycoming and Clinton counties.

"STEP is people helping people," Rochelle Abbot, president and CEO of the Lycoming-Clinton County Commission for Community Action, STEP, Inc., told the board. Abbot outlined STEP's 34 programs, saying they serve young children, older adults and vulnerable families and include Head Start, the early learning resource center, office of aging services, housing and navigation services and transportation.

Abbot thanked the commissioners for longstanding support and said STEP will mark the anniversary with a "Step Through the Decades" fundraising event on May 30 at All Birds; she told the board the organization has raised $75,000 toward that event. "It is a moment to pause, reflect, and feel proud of what we have built together through the decades," Abbot said.

Commissioners and attendees praised STEP's staff and monthly outcome reports; the board invited STEP staff forward for a photo with the proclamation. The board then moved on to routine business.

The proclamation cites STEP's focus on direct, efficient programs and local partnerships that, it says, help families move toward economic independence and reduce reliance on government assistance. The board urged citizens to congratulate STEP on its 60th anniversary and to continue supporting its work.

The board will not take additional formal action related to the proclamation; STEP's fundraising event is scheduled for May 30.