Cheers to more than 250 volunteers who helped make a success of the recent United Way of Butler County's 18th Week of Caring. Butler Rotary Club is a cosponsor.

Kathleen Treme, the United Way's labor liaison and Week of Caring organizer, said the volunteers worked at 13 projects. Many of the projects involved helping nonprofit charities and community organizations get ready for winter.

Beneficiaries of the volunteer efforts included the Preston and Sawmill Run parks in Butler Township. Nearly 90 volunteers from UAW 3303, Northwest Savings Bank, CW Howard Insurance, Linde LLC, Peoples TWP, UWUA 242, and AGR spent different parts of the week at the two parks, building a new bridge, clearing trails and cleaning buildings.

Dave Zarnick, a township supervisor and leading organizer of the efforts, praised the volunteers. “They get done what would've taken us a year to complete,” he said.

For the United Way and its member agencies, the volunteer hours are like money in the bank — about $45,000 worth of donated labor.

More importantly, their efforts sustain what should be an infectious sentiment: that pride of ownership in a community compels its people to take care of it.

Butler County is our home. We should celebrate homegrown volunteer efforts to maintain, improve and beautify our home.

Their scheme was to get $20 worth of vengeance. But it went awry, and now Jason Roberts and Matthew Wolfe are jailed on bond of $50,000 apiece.City police accuse Roberts, 27, and Wolfe, 30, both of Butler, with trying to burn a city apartment last weekend on West Jefferson Street.The two men set fire to the apartment door because the woman who lived there owed Roberts $20, according to the criminal complaints. But the noise of their 3:15 a.m. attack awoke their intended victim and her boyfriend, who put out the flames with an extinguisher while the woman called firefighters and police.It didn't take long for police to discover someone had bought $2 worth of gasoline from the A-Plus Sunoco station nearby about a half-hour earlier. A security camera recorded the gas purchase by one of the suspects.Confronted with the evidence against them, both men admitted they had splashed gas on the apartment door and ignited it, police said.It's an open-and-shut case, with multiple witnesses and a motive.However, there's one question not yet considered: What if their scheme had succeeded? What if fire had destroyed the 15-unit apartment building or killed one or more residents? Surely that wasn't their intent, but a structure fire doesn't stop itself once it gets going.Now both men face charges of arson, conspiracy and risking catastrophe. Lucky for them their arson scheme backfired; if it hadn't, they might have been charged with homicide.

Cheers to the Paul Laurence Dunbar Community Center for launching a new after-school snack program for Butler middle school and high school students. Cheers also to those who provide financial support: the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, the United Way of Butler County, the state Department of Education and private donors.Cafe on the Hill provides a free snack for students walking home after school.The cafe — it’s actually more of a roadside stand at this point — is on Fairground Hill Road, just down the hill from the intermediate and high schools.For now, it operates from 2:45 to 4 p.m. every other Wednesday, says Kate Donnelly, executive director of the Dunbar Community Center. This past Wednesday, the stand gave away pepperoni rolls, brownies, fruit, milk and other drinks at no charge.The hours and menu could expand later, Donnelly says, once the stand has a regular clientele.Most importantly, the cafe helps publicize the Dunbar Center, which provides students a safe, convenient place to congregate after school. Dunbar already operates food, homework and activities programs at Center Avenue and Broad Street elementary schools in the city.Providing nutrition and a safe after-school environment. Engaging young people in constructive activities. We can’t think of a more noble or more important pursuit. The Dunbar Community Center and its financial supporters merit the community’s gratitude — and continued support.