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2005 Press Release

Contact:
Neil Cotiaux, FHLBank of Pittsburgh: 412-288-2851; cell: 412-335-9488
Angela Mazur, Norwin Middle School, 724-861-3010

JASON SHIRLEY WINS LOCAL 'BLUEPRINT COMMUNITIES' ESSAY CONTEST: NORWIN MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT IN RUNNING FOR REGIONAL GRAND PRIZE

PITTSBURGH, PA, December 1, 2005 — Jason Shirley, a seventh-grade student at Norwin Middle School, is celebrating his winning entry in the just-completed Blueprint Communities essay contest.

Irwin is one of 22 Pennsylvania communities chosen by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh (FHLBank) to receive comprehensive training, technical assistance and funding opportunities for hometown revitalization. Gov. Ed Rendell officially kicked off the initiative at a ceremony at the State Capitol last August. Since then, a local team composed of community leaders has participated in workshops designed to help them develop a comprehensive, long-term community vision, specific revitalization plans including sources of funding, and a timeline for putting concrete plans for positive community change into action.

As part of the local introduction of Blueprint Communities, students in grades 6-8 were invited to take part in an essay contest that asked this question: "A 'blueprint' is a plan for the best way to build something — a car, a house, a career, a future. What would be your blueprint making your community a better place to live?"

A total of 245 entries of 500 words or less were received from 17 Blueprint Communities. The essays were evaluated by an independent panel of one dozen graduate students in English at the University of Pittsburgh using the Pennsylvania Writing Assessment Domain Scoring Guide, which considers the writer's focus, content, organization, style and conventions such as grammar, spelling and usage. Of all entries submitted by students in Irwin, Shirley's was judged the best. The complete essay may be read on the Irwin page of www.blueprintcommunities.com.

Shirley receives a $100 check from the FHLBank, a poster suitable for display at Norwin Middle School and a T-shirt proclaiming him the winner. As the local community essay winner, Shirley is also eligible for the West Division Grand Prize of $500, to be awarded at the final Blueprint Communities workshop hosted by the FHLBank in December.

"The members of our local Blueprint Communities team are exceedingly proud of Jason," said Bob Michaud of Irwin Bank & Trust Company, the team leader. "The winning entry displayed considerable thought, excellent use of language and strong community spirit. It's bound to be an inspiration to many other members of our community who are interested in making Irwin a better place to live and work."

Final Blueprint Communities workshops will be held over the next several weeks. Workshop trainers will assist team members in completing their examination of leadership skills, strategic planning methods and organizational capacity building to assist them in getting local revitalization plans off the ground.

Pennsylvania's 22 Blueprint Communities are: Berwick, Callowhill (Reading), Hamburg, Kennett Square–East Linden, Lebanon–Northwest, Norris Square, Tamaqua and Tioga (eastern); and Aliquippa, Brownsville, Canonsburg, Carnegie, Connellsville, Etna, Hazelwood, Irwin, Larimer, McKeesport, New Kensington, Uniontown, Waynesburg and Wilkinsburg (western).

"We're delighted at the tremendous participation by local students in our just-completed essay contest," stated John J. Bendel, director of Community Investment at the FHLBank. "Our hope is that programs like this will continue to build momentum for Blueprint Communities, involving young people and their families in support of the initiative and providing a strong foundation for the implementation of practical, achievable revitalization efforts by local leaders."

Funding partners for the Blueprint Communities initiative include Pennsylvania Rural LISC, PNC Bank, Sovereign Bank and the FHLBank of Pittsburgh.

Program partners include the Governor's Office of Housing and Community Revitalization, Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, Philadelphia Neighborhood Development Collaborative, Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development, University of Pittsburgh–Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, U.S.D.A. Rural Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and the Heartland Center for Leadership Development.

The FHLBank of Pittsburgh, with assets of $76 billion, serves nearly 340 financial institution members in Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. It is one of twelve FHLBanks, all private cooperatively owned banks that provide wholesale housing finance, community lending and correspondent banking services to member banks, savings and loan institutions, credit unions and insurance companies.

For additional information on Blueprint Communities, visit www.blueprintcommunities.com.