The 2008 Bethel Park High School varsity football team went undefeated in the regular season, won its first WPIAL championship and was state runner-up for the PIAA title.

For nearly all of these student-athletes, their journey toward excellence began with Bethel Park Junior Football, an all-volunteer, nearly 50-year-old program committed to success on and off the field.

"It is life after high school that we set our sights upon: preparing the young athletes for long-term achievement by teaching the value of discipline and hard work, and helping them develop a work ethic," said Jim Gastgeb, director of the 1st Annual Rev'em Up for Kids.

The car cruise will be held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday at the South Park Fairgrounds on Corrigan Drive. The event includes food and music.

All proceeds benefit the program for which 320 Bethel Park youths ages 6 to 13, are registered for the season starting in August. The goal is to raise money to install, with the municipality, synthetic turf at the Park Avenue field where most games are played.

For more, call 412-831-6800, ext. 730, or visit www.revemupforkids.com,

For those who want to extend their Fourth of July feelings past Independence Day, local producer Jude Pohl has the perfect solution. At the Crowne Plaza Cabaret Dinner Theatre in Bethel Park, he will stage a patriotic program, "Celebrate America." This musical salute to our great nation -- a blend of Americana, country and patriotic music -- runs for three performances July 10, 11 and 18.

The hotel is at 164 Fort Couch Road, directly across from South Hills Village Mall. Performances begin at 8 p.m., with dinner served at 6:30. The dinner-theater package is $38, $36 for seniors, and includes tax and tip.

For more, call 724-746-1178.

There are, gulp, 172 days left until Christmas.

For those organized, forward-thinking people who already are thinking about holiday shopping, the Chartiers-Houston Community Library is holding a series of Christmas in July crafts-making sessions.

The classes are 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, July 15-29. Crafts include washcloth snowmen, snowy balloon ornaments and a clothespin card holder wreath.

A $5 registration fee is due two days in advance of each class. For more, call 724-745-4300.

Enjoy a picnic on beautiful Canonsburg Lake and do good work at the same time. A festive picnic to benefit the restoration of the lake will be held from noon to 7 p.m. Saturday, July 18 on the grassy area beyond the parking lot on McDowell Lane.

There will be games and food, but also look for the Family Fishing Program, hosted by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Also, the Peters Township Fire Department will have a fire truck on display.

Sponsors are the Giant Oaks Garden Club and the Canonsburg Lake Restoration & Improvement Committee. All proceeds go to the matching funds requirement for the Army Corps of Engineers project.