Quantcast
Channel: News from republicanherald.com
Viewing all 30310 articles
Browse latest View live

Pine Grove approves budget with no tax increase

$
0
0

PINE GROVE — The borough council approved a $1,056,262 General Fund Budget for 2020, which does not require an increase in taxes.

The millage rate will remain at 14. Other taxes include 15 mills on each dollar of assessed valuation on occupations which will all be assessed at $350 or $5.25, a $5 per capita, $52 local services, 1% earned income and a 1% realty transfer tax.

The council also approved a Water Fund Budget of $968,278.

Ron Aungst made his annual visit to the December council meeting, which he has been doing for at least 10 to 15 years.

He explained his visit began one year when he discovered the borough was “pretty” broke. There really wasn’t enough money to light the lights that had been hung on the poles on Tulpehocken and Pottsville streets. He said he decided to keep the lights burning and made a donation. He has been doing that ever since.

The last few years, grandchildren have attended with him. This year, two granddaughters were split up with one giving a check to council President Tom Fickinger and the other giving a like amount to Mayor Will Shiffer.

The amount of the donation has changed over the years and this year’s checks were each $400. Fickinger is to use that check to help pay the electric bill for the street lighting, while the mayor’s check is for the police department, to be spent on something for the kids or to help purchase vests for the officers if needed.

Loretta Ottinger of RER Energy Group, Reading, a solar energy developer, attended her second council meeting to review what had taken place since her first meeting when the borough indicated an interest.

She explained a 1 1/2- to 2-acre cleared flat piece of ground is needed for the solar panels, which she said was located and the borough owns it. Any excess electricity that was made would go to PPL, which they would purchase from the borough at a reduced price. The project would be in operation for 15 years before the borough would see any benefit.

Shiffer distributed a flier listing the dimensions and capacities, plus the engines of two different pickup trucks, one of which he felt the borough should purchase for the police department. Both are Fords. The Interceptor (Explorer) is listed at $42,988 and the Responder (F150) at $42,000. Both can be purchased through the COSTAR program.

Fickinger agreed another police car was needed and a new one should be purchased

Shiffer said the borough has the money to buy one and the police officers deserve to have it. However, Leroy Bates and Len Clark both disagreed, while the other three council members offered no opinion.

After some additional discussion, it was agreed that those against the new one should research purchasing a used one and bring the information to the Jan. 9 meeting.

Shiffer said the “Quality of Life” program has been, for the most part, successful this year. He said he had talked with the owner of 72-74 S. Tulpehocken St., who he said had been taking care of his tickets, as well as the bank in the back of the property until recently.

The biggest problem is 76 High St. The owner, he said, doesn’t live in the area and is difficult to contact.

Logan Zimmerman, 16, was in attendance to request permission to build a pavilion near the swimming pool concession stand, one large enough to hold three or four picnic tables. He questioned whether the council, with the help of the community, would fund his Eagle Scout Project.

Zimmerman worked at the pool this past summer and is a member of Pine Grove Troop 611.

An ordinance was approved to make public parking available for those who qualify for handicapped parking. The ordinance describes how a handicapped person applies for the yearly parking meter permit that costs $108, but allows free parking throughout the entire year.

Only one bid was received for emergency snow removal on the borough’s main streets. Arthur “Pat” Aungst sent in a list of equipment that could be used for the work, which included the hourly rate to be charged for each piece including the operator.


Many suffer from holiday sadness

$
0
0

It’s supposed to be “the most wonderful time of the year” and a season to be jolly.

But behind the glittering Christmas decorations, holiday parties and gift exchanges, some folks are sad.

“The holidays may bring out emotions and feelings in a lot of people,” said Joe Mulé, chief operations officer and a psychologist with Northeast Counseling Services. “People have lost family members and loved ones over the years and they are grieving because they are remembering the good times.”

They might feel lonely. They might feel that they’ve failed because they can’t afford expensive gifts. It’s a time of year for self introspection — and some feel that they’ll never measure up.

“With all the parties and gatherings comes a lot of stress. You feel you have to put on a happy face when in reality you don’t have one,” Mulé said.

Mulé said depression diagnoses rise by about 5% during the holidays.

“There is a normal range of depression,” Mulé said. “We all get depressed. It is about how it affects your life. We don’t want to diagnose someone if it is a normal process, if they are sad by the death of a loved one, for example.”

Depression symptoms vary and often include severe feelings of sadness. Some have sleep disturbances and get too much or too little sleep. Depressed people’s appetites may increase or decrease. They typically withdraw from social situations. Others’ depression makes them irritable and grumpy.

Some even develop suicidal thoughts.

“If you are not eating or sleeping and your job is in jeopardy — it can get very serious — so you should make an appointment with a provider of your choice,” Mulé said.

In the United States, between 16 million and 17 million people — or about 7% of the population — are depressed.

At times, people need to take antidepressants.

“Medication is only part of the answer,” Mulé said. “It is recommended that people have meetings with therapists so they can talk about their feelings.”

Mulé also suggested reaching out to friends they haven’t talked to in a while. They also might want to volunteer at a soup kitchen or help an elderly neighbor. If they’re worried about purchasing Christmas gifts on a small budget, they might consider making something.

Little things, he said, can improve feelings.

“Self care is so important. Eat right. Sleep right. Try not to use excessive alcohol — initially it makes you feel good but it is actually a central nervous system depressant,” he said.

Contact the writer: jwhalen@standardspea­ker.com; 570-501-3592

Criminal court, Dec. 22, 2019

$
0
0

POTTSVILLE — Six separate criminal incidents led a Schuylkill County judge this month to sentence an Eldred Township woman to serve more than a year behind state prison bars.

Beverly Ann Masser, 59, of Pitman, must serve 20 to 42 months in a state correctional institution, President Judge William E. Baldwin decided on Dec. 13.

Baldwin also sentenced Masser to pay costs, $1,500 in fines, $100 to the Substance Abuse Education Fund, $300 to the Criminal Justice Enhancement Account and $446.92 restitution, perform 10 hours community service and undergo a mental health evaluation.

Masser pleaded guilty to five charges of retail theft and one each of driving under the influence and driving under suspension-DUI related. Prosecutors withdrew one count each of receiving stolen property, careless driving, operating vehicle without required financial responsibility and suspended vehicle registration.

State police at Schuylkill Haven alleged Masser was DUI on Aug. 20, 2017, and committed thefts on Nov. 17, 2018, Jan. 5, Jan. 10 and Jan. 11. Pottsville police charged her with committing the fifth theft on Jan. 4.

Also in the county court, Judge Cyrus Palmer Dolbin on Tuesday sentenced Ricky A. Keys Jr., 37, of Halifax, to time served to six months in prison with immediate parole, plus 12 months additional probation. Keys also must pay costs, a $1,000 fine, $200 in SAEF payments and a $50 CJEA payment.

“Do you understand the sentence?” Dolbin asked Keys.

“Yes,” Keys answered.

A jury found Keys guilty on Aug. 30 in a one-day trial of DUI and possession of a controlled substance. Pottsville police alleged Keys was DUI and possessed methamphetamine and marijuana in his car on May 16, 2018, in the middle of the intersection of North Fourth and West Arch streets in the city.

In a Monday case, Baldwin revoked the intermediate punishment program placement of Nicole L. Kressler, 35, of Pottsville, and sentenced her to serve four to 12 months in prison.

Kressler originally pleaded guilty on Nov. 21, 2018, to possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. At that time, Baldwin placed her in the intermediate punishment program for 24 months, and also sentenced her to pay costs, a $100 SAEF payment, a $50 CJEA payment, a $50 bench warrant fee and $113 restitution to the state police crime laboratory in Bethlehem.

Mahanoy City police charged Kressler with possessing drugs and paraphernalia on Nov. 13, 2016, in the borough.

Also on Dec. 13, Judge James P. Goodman sentenced Patrick T. Gaffney Jr., 54, of Lykens, to serve 10 to 24 months in a state correctional institution, pay costs and a $50 CJEA payment, and undergo a mental health evaluation. Goodman made the sentence effective at 9 a.m. Dec. 27.

Gaffney pleaded no contest to two counts of simple assault and one of terroristic threats, with prosecutors withdrawing a charge of harassment.

Pottsville police charged Gaffney with committing his crimes on Jan. 29 in the city.

By pleading no contest, Gaffney did not admit committing the crimes, but offered no defense to them, acknowledged prosecutors could produce sufficient evidence to prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and agreed to be sentenced as if he had pleaded or been found guilty.

In another recent case, Judge Jacqueline L. Russell sentenced Tina M. Withelder, 52, of Saint Clair, to serve two to six months in prison and pay costs, a $1,000 fine, a $100 SAEF payment, a $50 bench warrant fee and $60 restitution to Lehigh Valley Health Network.

Russell had found Withelder guilty on June 10 in a nonjury trial of DUI. Pottsville police had alleged Withelder was DUI on March 19, 2018, in the city.

Contact the writer: pbortner@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6014

Tamaqua Salvation Army holds food, gift distribution

$
0
0

TAMAQUA — Families in need arrived at the Salvation Army on Wednesday to pick up all the makings for a holiday dinner. Those with children also received gifts to put under the Christmas tree.

Hundreds will benefit from the distribution, and Salvation Army Capt. John Luby said it’s all because of the community.

“It’s not the Salvation Army. The credit doesn’t go to us. It is the people helping other people. That’s what community is about,” he said. “As far as generosity, all I can say is, ‘Wow!’ ”

While donations vary in size, many come in through the Salvation Army’s annual Red Kettle Campaign. The pennies, nickels and dimes tossed into kettles by shoppers can add up, Luby said.

“What we raise stays here,” Luby said, referring to the greater Tamaqua area. The same goes for kettle campaigns conducted by the Pottsville and Hazleton corps — donations collected there stay there.

Tamaqua headquarters has kettle campaign bell ringers everyday except Sunday at the Hometown Walmart. They’ve also been at the Hometown Farmers Market on Wednesdays and will be there again Monday.

The campaign typically starts the day after Thanksgiving and ends Dec. 24. The late Thanksgiving holiday meant that there is nearly a full week of activity unavailable for collections.

“We are a victim as it were of the calendar. We have fewer days on which we can stand (collect) by national agreement,” Luby said.

“Any decrease in holiday revenue has a direct impact on our many social service programs that serve as a lifeline to individuals and families in need,” said Lt. Col. Larry Ashcraft, divisional commander. “Every gift helps The Salvation Army provide hope and consolation to the neediest among us.”

Luby said that the local corps would need “a Christmas miracle” to meet last year’s total.

“But we’re holding our own,” he said.

It seemed so at the corps’ gymnasium, where folks arrived to receive food and toys. Toys were provided to 183 children through the Army’s Angel Tree program and the Marine Corps Toys for Tots.

“We have bags and bags of stuff,” Luby said.

New this year are special gifts for teenagers.

“The way that Angel Tree was set up when we got here was that toys and presents are for newborn through the age of 12,” said Luby, who was appointed to Tamaqua with his wife, Maj. Gayle Luby, in the summer. “So for the kids ages 13 to 17, it was like, ‘Sorry, Charlie.’ ”

The Lubys knew that older children wouldn’t likely find any gifts under their trees and started a program to provide them with a special present.

“They don’t know about it yet,” Luby said earlier this week.

Also new is an “Adopt a Family” program. Officials knew that many who had applied for food assistance were in dire straits.

Area corporations and churches stepped forward, saying that employees wanted to “adopt” the families.

“These plant workers are reaching into their own pockets to help,” Luby said.

Credit card donations may be made securely by visiting salvationarmypa.org or through Apple Pay and Google Pay at the Kettles.

Contact the writer: jwhalen@standardspeaker.com; 570-501-3592

Force behind efforts to treat drug addiction

$
0
0

When state Rep. Gene DiGirolamo took office in 1995, one of the first visitors at the Capitol was Deb Beck. She wanted to discuss drug and alcohol treatment. DiGirolamo, a Republican from Bucks County, politely listened, filed away her card and moved on to his next meeting.

Nearly a year later, he found himself hunting through his office desk for that card: His eldest son had relapsed in his heroin addiction and DiGirolamo knew he needed to get him help, fast. DiGirolamo called Beck, who within days helped his son get back into a treatment center in Bensalem.

“Deb and I started to talk every day after that,” said DiGirolamo, now chair of the House Human Services Committee, which handles addiction-related legislation. “And we continue to do that 25 years later.”

Beck, 69, is a formidable power player in Harrisburg, influencing the state’s response to a drug addiction epidemic that has led to thousands of deaths and spawned a multimillion dollar treatment industry. She’s been in the field since 1971, and whenever lawmakers want to draft addiction-related laws, or need to get a loved one into treatment, they go to her.

Now — with the state pumping huge sums of taxpayer money into treatment for opioid addiction and paying greater attention to how best to reverse the deadly trend — some are questioning if Beck is using her sway to help patients or the businesses providing care.

In particular, her advocacy for long-term residential care for those suffering from opioid addiction has prompted concerns that she’s pushing an outdated treatment model over approaches that medical professionals say are far more effective.

“I used to think of Deb Beck as someone who advocates for addicted patients,” said Frederic Baurer, president of the Pennsylvania Society of Addiction Medicine and a practicing doctor at a treatment facility in Philadelphia. “Perhaps that was naive of me.”

Earnings top $220,000

Since 1986, Beck has headed the nonprofit Drug and Alcohol Service Providers Organization of Pennsylvania. Tax records show Beck is the group’s only paid member, earning more than $220,000 in each of the past three years. Beck is also the group’s only registered lobbyist, spending about $100,000 a year in lobbying expenses in Harrisburg.

Beck declined to provide a list of all of the organization’s members, so it’s hard to know whose interests she represents as a lobbyist.

She said the group includes a cross section of the addiction field, ranging from more than 300 drug and alcohol treatment providers — outpatient clinics and long-term residential facilities — to prevention and education advocates. Others in the field, however, said the group is primarily focused on the business interests of long-term, abstinence-focused treatment facilities, and that has become a point of conflict.

For decades, extended residential treatment was the bedrock of addiction care. In recent years, though, public health officials have turned to medication-assisted treatment as the best bet to stem the opioid crisis. Studies in the US and around the world have shown this approach, which combines medication and therapy, can reduce relapses and overdoses more effectively than counseling alone.

Yet Beck’s group has been reluctant to embrace it.

“Her organization represents the interests of the rehab industry,” Baurer said, “and in recent years these interests have often clashed with best practices for patient care.”

Medication-assisted treatment doesn’t require someone to be admitted to a hospital or spend weeks at a residential facility, making it less disruptive to their life. Jennifer Smith, secretary of the state Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, said research on the treatment’s benefits is clear.

“The fact that at this point in time (Beck’s group) is still dragging their heels in embracing it, leads me to believe there is more to the story,” Smith said. “There’s some other reason they can’t accept this is what the science shows.”

Beck said she’s not opposed to that kind of treatment, and several facilities represented by her organization offer it. But, she said, too often it’s delivered without proper counseling. And since the medication used is most effective in treating opioid addiction, it doesn’t help the many people who use other drugs or multiple drugs at the same time, Beck said.

“People always want a quick fix, and they like treatments that are new and shiny,” she said. “But without the meat and potatoes of a full continuum of care, it’s not going to work.”

‘Unbridled control’

Questions of Beck’s influence in Harrisburg have lingered for years.

In June 2016, Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati wrote a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf complaining that Beck’s group wielded “unbridled control” over the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.

The agency, which was previously an office under the Department of Health, was created in 2012, in large part due to Beck’s advocacy. DiGirolamo sponsored the bill creating the department, but “it was [Beck’s] idea,” he said, and “she was absolutely the person who helped me put the bill together.”

The idea was to have a department that could focus solely on addiction and elevate its importance, DiGirolamo said. (DiGirolamo was recently elected a Bucks County commissioner and will be leaving the House in January.)

In his letter, Scarnati argued that Beck’s group used its influence over the department to funnel funding toward long-term residential treatment centers. Gary Tennis, the drug and alcohol secretary at the time, refuted the claim.

Seven months later, The Reading Eagle reported that Tennis directed a prospective employee to interview with Beck in order to land the job.

In an interview with Spotlight PA, Tennis said the decision to hire the applicant was made well before the meeting and he suggested meeting Beck only as a way to prepare for the job.

“I would never have a lobbyist interview and check somebody out,” he said, “and I don’t think Deb would do it even if I asked her.”

Beck’s supporters say allegations of her having undue power come from people who are jealous of her access.

“If people say she has too much influence, then they’re not doing their jobs,” said George Kenney, former Republican chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee from 2002 to 2008. “She’s too good at what she does? Is that what they’re saying?”

Beck commands deep respect in Harrisburg, in part, because she’s been in the field for decades, long before most people cared about addiction, Kenney said.

“Even today if a legislator calls me with a (drug or alcohol) issue, I tell them to call Deb Beck,” Kenney said. “No one jumps out as being in the same space as her.”

Nobody is all right

Beck arrived in Harrisburg in the ’70s, just a few years out of college, and began working to get homeless individuals into rehab.

One winter day, she found an inebriated man wrapped in a blanket under a bridge. He had soiled himself, and the urine had frozen his blanket to the sidewalk. As Beck and her colleagues tried to free the man from his frozen predicament, he started yelling, “Leave me alone. I’m all right.”

Beck said she started laughing, the sound echoing under the bridge.

“If that isn’t the human condition,” she recalled thinking. “We think we’re all right when we’re not. None of us are.”

For that man and many others Beck treated in those days, long-term stays in rehab facilities is what worked to get them sober. Even today, while medications are available to treat opioid use disorder on an outpatient basis, public health officials agree that long-term residential care is the best option for those addicted to certain drugs, like methamphetamine and cocaine.

That’s why Beck says it’s crucial to keep fighting for residential treatment, a battle she first began in 1980.

Learning the Capitol

Although the patients in Beck’s rehab program were typically homeless, she learned that for the majority, addiction started while they were employed and living at home. They didn’t get treatment at that early stage, though, because insurers didn’t cover it.

Frustrated by that fact, Beck took her complaints to newly elected state Rep. Peter Wambach, a Democrat representing Dauphin County.

“Debbie knew her subject and had a hell of a desire to do something,” Wambach recalled of that first meeting. “She just didn’t know how to do it.”

The two became an instant team. Beck educated Wambach on addiction as a disease and how it would save insurers money to treat it upfront. Wambach taught her the ins and outs of politics.

For the next six years, Wambach introduced a bill every session requiring insurers to cover treatment for alcoholism. And each year Beck visited lawmakers to advocate for the bill.

Many days she waited in the hallways with a paper bag full of research studies only to be turned away. Some lawmakers mistook her for the Planned Parenthood lobbyist, she said, one of the only other women at the Capitol at that time.

Beck was undeterred. She just had to adjust her approach.

Her standard pitch at the time ended with the line: “Addiction is an always fatal illness if left unchecked.” If that’s the case, one lawmaker said, the problem will take care of itself. Horrified, Beck quickly pivoted.

“Do you know how much it costs to kill one of these people?” she asked. It turned out focusing on dollars rather than emotion was sometimes more effective.

Trying to save lives

By 1986, Wambach, Beck and a handful of other advocates finally built enough support to pass a law requiring all group health insurance plans to provide treatment for alcoholism.

Three years later, the requirement was expanded to include all drug addiction treatment. And when insurers refused to comply, Beck was among the lead advocates who took the case to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, where the landmark legislation was upheld in 2009.

Because of those laws, an estimated 500,000 Pennsylvanians have received treatment, Wambach said.

Over the years, Beck’s lobbying style has never changed, he said. She always prefers catching legislators in the hallway to say hi and offer help rather than sending a calendar invite. She talks fast, uses animated hand gestures and doesn’t hesitate to say what she thinks. She still sends research studies to support her points — but now they are PDFs rather than printouts in a paper bag.

And she knows how to use the clout of the businesses she represents — including the number of people they employ in local legislative districts — to sway lawmakers.

Whenever one was reluctant to support certain legislation she was backing, Wambach said, Beck would reach out to the treatment providers in their district, as well as residents in recovery.

“All of a sudden before the vote, there were 10 calls in to that guy,” Wambach said.

Still, Beck insists she’s “a clinician, not a politician,” which is her oft-repeated refrain.

That’s why she finds it baffling that people think she has too much influence. If she had real power, Beck said, she would make sure insurers never deny addiction treatment and that people in addiction are sent to rehab more often than prison.

“If anything we don’t have enough influence,” Beck said. “We’re trying to save lives.”

(Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and PennLive/The Patriot-News. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter. Spotlight PA receives funding from nonprofit institutions and readers who are committed to investigative journalism that gets results. To learn about becoming a founding donor, go to spotlightpa.org.)

Correction, Dec. 22, 2019

$
0
0

Event not happening

An all-you-can-eat breakfast will not happen today at St. Nicholas Hall, Primrose, due to the holiday. The next breakfast will be Jan. 26. This information is incorrect in today’s edition.

Look for the Christmas star

$
0
0

One of the traditions of this most wonderful time of the year is to look for a morning “Christmas Star” in the east just before sunrise.

The trouble is that this time of year there aren’t any bright stars in that part of the early morning sky. The only one that comes close is the bright star Arcturus, but in the predawn sky it’s already pretty high up in the southeast, nearly overhead.

If there is a Christmas star in any given year, it’s usually not a star but rather a planet or a conjunction of planets. The original Christmas star sighted in the Bible could have very well been a supernatural event. Or it may have been an exploding star, otherwise known as a supernova that appeared as a very, very bright star for weeks, if not longer. It could have also been a bright conjunction of two or more planets. If it was a conjunction, it’s difficult to tell which ones may have produced the Christmas star since the exact year of Christ’s birth is uncertain.

I’m afraid the closest we can come to a Christmas “star” (or planet) in 2019 is the bright planet Venus. The problem is that Venus isn’t appearing in the morning twilight in the low eastern sky, but rather in the low western sky during evening twilight. You can’t miss Venus. It’s the brightest star-like object in that part of the sky. In fact, we have a little bonus this year in our celestial Christmas stocking. The new crescent moon and Venus will be putting on a nice show this coming Saturday night. The moon will be shining just below Venus in a wonderful holiday celestial hugging.

Another feature of the Venus-moon show is the phenomena of “Earthshine.” That’s when you see not only the sunlit crescent slice of the moon’s disk, but you can also see the rest of the disk as well, bathed in a soft grey light. That pale light on the moon is sunlight bouncing off the highly reflective Earth, and then onto the moon. Call it second-hand sunlight.

If you’ve been kind enough to be a regular reader of my column, you know that I love to point folks to what I think is the best sign of Christmas in the night sky. It’s called the Christmas Tree Cluster because that’s exactly what it looks like. You’ll need binoculars or a small telescope to see the miniature celestial Tannenbaum, and you’ll need to wait until after 8:30 p.m. or so to see it. That’s when it will be high enough above the Pottsville eastern horizon to get a good look at it.

The Christmas Tree Cluster resides in a very obscure constellation called Monoceros the Unicorn. Forget about trying to see this constellation. It’s just too faint and undefined. The best way to find the Christmas Tree Cluster is to use the bright and famous constellation Orion the Hunter, perched diagonally in the southeastern sky. Orion is the dominant constellation of winter with its three bright stars in a nearly perfect row that make up the belt of the mighty hunter.

On the upper left corner of Orion is Betelgeuse, a bright reddish star that marks the armpit of the hunter. On the upper right corner of Orion is Bellatrix, a star not quite as bright as Betelgeuse. Draw a line from Bellatrix to Betelgeuse and continue that line to the lower left about 10 degrees from Betelgeuse. Ten degrees is about the width of your fist at arm’s length. Scan that area with your binoculars or a telescope and you should eventually find the Christmas Tree Cluster. This is a great week to find it because there isn’t much moonlight in the sky.

Once you find the cluster, you’ll see that the 20 or so stars are arranged in the shape of a Christmas tree, but its brightest star is actually at the base of the tree. I truly hope this adds to your holiday spirit! If you look through binoculars the starry little tree will appear on its side, pointing to the right. In most telescopes, however, it will appear on its side, pointing to the left. That’s because the optics in most telescopes give you an inverted view of the heavens.

Merry Christmas!

(Lynch, an amateur astronomer and professional broadcast meteorologist, can be reached at mikewlynch@comcast.net)

Orwigsburg man reflects on end to 50 years playing Santa Claus

$
0
0

Dale Strouse is Christmas.

He’s always liked giving gifts more than receiving them. His Orwigsburg home looks like the set of “Meet Me in St. Louis,” a Victorian Christmas cottage of gas lamps, candles, snowmen and angels.

On his sofa, there’s a throw blanket of a boy and a bunny building a snowman in the woods. There’s a sign on his front door that reads “Attack cat on duty,” but Bailey is as much a gentle giant as his ruddy, white-haired owner.

In this little slice of the North Pole in Schuylkill County, Strouse, 75, doesn’t see much difference between himself and Santa Claus. And why would he? After all, he’s been playing St. Nick for the last 50 years.

“I live my life the same way,” he said. “I try to help people; that’s what Santa Claus is all about.”

The walls of Strouse’s living room are covered in antique photographs, family pictures and pastoral paintings of children frolicking with their animals. The paintings call Strouse’s earliest childhood Christmases to mind. He was born on a farm in Landingville, one of six children.

“We had a lot of family but not a lot of gifts,” he said. “My mom was an excellent cook so we were never short of food, especially baked goods.”

Strouse grew up with a religious mother who taught the word of Jesus and Santa in equal measure. He has fond memories of leaving cookies and milk out for Santa on Christmas Eve, the excitement of seeing what he left under the tree the next morning, and dinner with family. After graduating from high school in 1962, he joined the Army and spent two Christmases in Germany.

“We just had us,” he remembered. “We didn’t have a Santa Claus, of course.”

A new Santa

Strouse’s first Santa suit was a hand-me-down. In 1969, he was 25 and a member of the Orwigsburg Lions Club. That December, his friend didn’t feel like playing Santa anymore, so Strouse took over, giving the kids oranges, candy and popcorn balls.

“A lot of fun, that’s for sure,” he said. “Well, they are just starry-eyed and they are the same today as they were 50 years ago. They are just thrilled to see Santa.”

He started getting requests to play Santa at churches and fire companies around the county. It was around that time that he met his wife, Sandra Lee, an avid antique collector. She always kept Kris Kringle crisp, helping Strouse dress and picking out his new suit from Gombar’s in Saint Clair.

“She encouraged me to do it,” he said. “When I was first asked (to play Santa), she was thrilled. She’s a Santa person. She was a Christmas person.”

He joined the Orwigsburg Jaycees and played Santa for them until the age of 36, when he became what they call an “exhausted rooster.” They held a roast for him, and Sandra Lee’s aunt drew a caricature of him. The giant portrait, drawn when Strouse’s hair was still blonde, shows him in a Santa suit.

“I always felt from the day I started doing it that Santa Claus is supposed to be something special,” he said. “From the day I put that suit on I wanted to be something special.”

When people stopped and talked to him as he walked down the street dressed as Santa, he felt special. When he reminded adults of how magical Christmas was when they were children, he felt special. When parents thanked him, he felt special. When he put on the suit, he felt like Santa Claus.

“He does a very good job and he’s always very good with all the children and adults,” said Orwigsburg borough worker David Teter. “He’s been a great Santa for the community.”

“I look in the mirror and there I am,” Strouse said. “Even the adults, they like to say hi to Santa Claus. I was doing Santa for my son-in-law’s family this previous Sunday, and three young boys were out in the parking lot. I would say they didn’t believe in Santa Claus, and I said hi and I asked them if they were good.”

When he came outside, the three boys were waiting for him, asking for pictures with Santa.

“One thing I learned is how important it is to the children,” he said. “They were very excited about it and it hasn’t changed. Some of the children that came to me, they’re now retiring.”

A good Santa

So is Strouse himself retiring. He expects 2019 to be his last year playing Santa. After 50 years, having kids sitting on his lap is starting to hurt. He is beginning to lose his hearing, but since “Santa doesn’t wear hearing aids,” he never used them while performing.

“As Santa, I feel that I provided a service,” he said. “I know that there are other Santas who would take my place in a heartbeat, and will have to. I feel like I was doing my civic duty. When they needed a Santa Claus, they asked me to do it.”

Above all else, he wants to be remembered as a good Santa Claus.

After 50 years, Strouse has had generations of children sit on his lap. There are photos of him in basements, attics and albums in homes across Schuylkill County and beyond. He’s seen their wishes go from G.I. Joe to Pokemon. Lately, he doesn’t even recognize much of the technology they ask him for. He also noticed that while 7- and 8-year-olds used to be stalwart Santa believers, nowadays they tend to no longer believe. In 2018, his 7-year-old grandson Emmett started questioning. At the Deer Lake Fire Company Christmas party that year, Strouse reprised the role of Santa. Emmett pulled on Strouse’s beard and said, “I know it’s you, Grandpa.”

“I think kids can believe in Santa Claus until they figure out for themselves or someone tells him,” he said. “I don’t see anything wrong with it at all. That’s why I like to do it, I like to carry it on. I hope this continues for a long time … It’s exciting for them and it gives them something to strive for, to be good.”

To him, Santa means giving, and that is a message that both children and adults can learn from.

Even if the children were “deathly afraid” of Santa, Strouse encouraged parents to take the picture anyway. It would be a cherished memory someday. Some children asked Santa for their broken families to be reconciled. Others asked about “different illnesses they would like Santa Claus to assist in.”

“It’s very moving,” he said, to see such selflessness come from a child of 4 or 5. Those moments reminded him of just how much faith some children have in Santa.

‘It’s tough’

In September 2015, Sandra Lee died after a long illness. Even from bed, she inspected Strouse’s Santa suit. That Christmas, Strouse had to play the jolly old elf during one of the darkest periods of his life.

“It was tough,” he said. “But it was something I had done for so many years, it was just natural to do it. I missed her.”

To Strouse, Christmas has always been about family. When his children were little, they sat on his lap and had no idea they were talking to their dad.

“That was pretty good,” he said, smiling warmly.

“(Christmas) is a wonderful thing and is a big family thing. When my wife was alive, this thing was full of friends and family.” He gestured toward his dining room table.

Strouse walked down the stairs into his basement, home to a cabinet full of Sandra Lee’s Santa figurines, a doll in a wicker stroller and a wooden organ his wife used to play. There are paintings of Santa Claus on the walls and Santas hanging from the tall, thin Christmas tree. He walked into his basement closet and picked up a cardboard box. He untied the rope and there it was — his suit. He picked up his red suspenders and set them on a box of family photos — memories on top of memories. He then picked up the boots, the most difficult part of the outfit. They’re almost impossible to coordinate with the suit.

“The children don’t see some of that stuff,” Strouse said, “they see Santa Claus.”

They weren’t picky about whether he wore gloves, but he did, to cover up his large hands calloused by years of work.

“The fact that I’m giving it up, it’s tough,” he said. “I’m not giving it up totally, I’m going to keep the suit, as memories as much as anything. If I’m needed somewhere, I would do it.”

He laid down his hat.


Service offers solace, light on ‘Longest Night’

$
0
0

MAHANOY CITY — The Rev. Bridget Wagner, pastor of First United Methodist Church in this northern Schuylkill County borough, said Saturday that her congregation holds a special service on the winter solstice to remind people that not everyone is happy at this time of year.

“It’s a service for anyone who’s lost someone,” Wagner said at the 45-minute rite that around 15 people attended. “The season’s not always holly and jolly as we think it is.”

That sense of loss mingled with the customary joy of the Christmas season to produce an unusual service where holiday carols and serious Bible readings combined to bring both smiles and solemnity to those present.

Wagner said the service was the church’s second and its first with her as pastor. Its name, The Longest Night Service — A Service of Remembrance, refers to the date having the smallest amount of daylight and the largest amount of darkness of any in the Northern Hemisphere.

Christmas decorations, including a manger, poinsettias, two trees, garland, bows and wreaths, gave the intimate sanctuary a festive air even as that reminded people that the sadness they feel is a part of their holiday but does not necessarily have to dominate it.

“It’s also a way to look back on why we celebrate,” Wagner said.

The Rev. Richard Hazzard, pastor of Ss. Philip and James Anglican and Zion Primitive Methodist churches, both of Mount Carmel, said in his sermon that people who experience low moments at this time of year can find comfort in their faith in Jesus Christ.

“If we are grieving at this time ... remember, we are not grieving alone,” he said. “God is a God who heals.”

Furthermore, Hazzard said, God will continue to comfort everyone who needs it for as long as they need it, filling them with light, hope and love.

“God will brighten our lives just as the days get longer and brighter,” he said. “He comes to us in the darkest times of our lives.”

Helping to conduct the service, the Rev. Rose Marquardt, Wagner’s grandmother and pastor of Zion United Methodist Church, Aristes, Girardville United Methodist Church and Grace Evangelical Independent Church, Locustdale, said it can help people who are struggling at a time when most folks are celebrating.

“It’s a wonderful healing service,” she said. “It’s important to realize that when we think of the birth of the Christ child, born in a stable, surrounded by animals and shepherds. That’s what Christmas is all about. It’s not about tinsel and presents. It’s about loving and giving.”

Contact the writer: pbortner@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6014

Discover marvels of Mother India’s neighborhoods

$
0
0

Why is that young man in a track suit, who looks like he’s running for his life, being chased down the street by a middle-aged woman in a sari?

“Did you see that tray of fake watches he was carrying?” my guide Ashok said. “He just tried to sell them in no-man’s land.”

No-man’s land? And in India, no less?

I am at the northeast tip of this kaleidoscopic nation in the capital city of Imphal, state of Manipur, and that “no-man’s land” is actually the world’s largest women-only market.

Its official name is “Ima Keithal” which translates loosely to “Mother’s Market” since mothers are the only ones licensed to operate the stalls. The market has been in operation for anywhere from one to five centuries, depending on who you ask.

But the fact remains that it is open from dawn to dusk, seven days a week, and has more than 5,000 women managing the inside-outside marketplace that contains just about every product imaginable — including watches, both real and knock-offs.

Men are perfectly welcome to shop there, or just hang out, but forbidden by city law to actually set up shop, as the young man in the track suit quickly discovered.

“That’s the hottest market in Manipur,” Ashok said. “I remember a couple of times when men went in there disguised in women’s wigs and saris to sell their goods. But sooner or later they were exposed. They did some jail time for that.”

Ima Keithal is spread over dozens of city blocks, just a stone’s throw from the Imphal Polo Grounds where the sport was invented in the 14th century B.C. by diety kings and remains a popular attraction to this day with many international polo championships taking place in Imphal.

Fast jump forward: A couple of centuries later, according to popular legend, the Ima Keithal market was born in the 16th century during what was known as “Lallup-Kaba,” a forced labor system that sent men to cultivate faraway lands and fight wars.

The women remained in the villages, working the fields and selling their produce at the market. Over the next few hundred years, laws were enacted giving women the sole rights to operate the various shops. Today, it is not uncommon to see four generations of women working a single enterprise.

We spent our opening afternoon walking Ima Keithal and came away with one large conclusion: Women can be tougher to bargain with than men.

The next morning we drove to Loktak Lake, famous for its “phumdis,” floating mats of vegetation, soil and organic matter that can grow to several square miles in size. Basically, these “phumdis” have become floating islands, large enough to support a variety of animal and bird life. A few brave fishermen have even set up makeshift shelters, never knowing where they’ll wake up the next morning.

And so, the Polo Grounds, where kings play, Ima Keithal, where women rule, and Loktak Lake, where houses float, were my first surprises after setting foot in this tucked-away part of India close to the Bangladesh and Burma borders.

I came to Imphal to attend a travel show called the International Tourism Mart, an annual event to promote tourism in eight “Sister States” in northeast India — Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.

India tourism refers to this region as its “Final Frontier,” although I’ve heard that same description designated to several other regions.

The Sister States have more than 200 ethnic groups and share borders at one point or another with Tibet, China, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Bhutan.

Beginning in Manipur and ending in Meghalaya we visited five of the states via regional airlines, in vans bumping along dirt roads and once by foot for a couple of miles to a remote village with no roads in or out.

Sikkim

You may need a special permit to visit this area, in addition to an Indian visa, but permits can be easily obtained near the border. The capital city of Gangkok is a laid-back town with houses spilling down the Himalayas. Mount Kanchenjunga, third highest peak in the world, dominates the landscape. Imbued with mysticism, Sikkim is obscured by thick forests and guarded with a cavalcade of “holy peaks.” An eco-tourism haven, it is home to more than 4,000 species of plants, almost all of them rare.

Assam

With a population exceeding 35 million, Assam is the largest Sister State and home to the one-horned rhinoceros, its state symbol. These creatures, both beautiful and ugly at once, were almost extinct in 1900. A crusade followed to protect the animals and today there are about 2,500 one-horned rhinoceros at Kaziranga National Park in central Assam. The capital city of Guwahati, population nearing 7 million, sits on the mighty Brahmaputra, one of the four largest rivers in the world. Assam’s tea estates, established by the British, produce more than half of India’s tea.

Tripura

The second smallest state in India, Tripura is practically surrounded by Bangladesh, clinging to “Mother India” by a tiny strip of land. Once a separate kingdom, Tripura joined India in 1949. Of its 4.5 million inhabitants, one-third are members of hill tribes. We visited one tribe of about 500 people called the Riang. They live simple lives — go to sleep at dark, awake at sunrise and work the terraced hillside gardens during the day. Tripura’s main structural attraction is Neermahal, a fairytale palace — literally a water palace — smack in the middle of a lake. It was once the summer residence of a maharaja.

Meghalaya

Our final stop was Meghalaya near the Bangladesh border, where 75 percent of its 3.5 million residents are Christian. And while Imphal has its unique women-only market, Meghalaya takes it one step further. Women pretty much call all the shots.

Wives own the land and children take the mother’s surname and inherit the property. Men simply put on a brave face and claim they’re in charge.

“What can we do,” my guide Rau said with a smile. “blame the missionaries?”

From the capital city of Shillong, we drove to a few hill tribe villages. The signs on the trucks on the narrow, twisting roads appealed to Jesus rather than Shiva for good luck.

Meghalaya is known for its unique living root bridges and we visited one of them at Mawlynnong Village. It was an odd experience. Old mangled trees on each side of the river have their roots intertwined over the river. The roots then become your bridge, with a few wooden planks tossed over them for more secure footing.

At lunch on the day of our departure, a tourism official asked if we had visited “Whistling Village.” We hadn’t.

He told us the village, Kongthong, is about 75 miles from Shillong, which translates to a four-hour drive over the twisting dirt roads. There are about 700 members of a hill tribe living in the village, and for the most part, they chirp and tweet like birds rather than talk like humans.

Each person’s name is a bird sound, along with the usual small talk like “Good morning,” “How are you?” or “What’s for lunch?” They also have a tribal language to fill in the rest of the blanks.

Which led me to wonder, this must definitely confuse the birds. Was that a mating call or just village gossip?

(Dominick A. Merle, is co-founder of the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association, can be reached at dmerle@videotron.ca)

Authorities seek woman who failed to appear in court

$
0
0

Schuylkill County District Attorney Michael A. O’Pake and the Schuylkill County detectives are asking for the public’s help in finding a woman who failed to appear for her sentencing hearing earlier this year.

Detectives said Shandra Detweiler, 43, failed to appear at Schuylkill County Courthouse on Oct. 4 for a sentencing hearing before President Judge William E. Baldwin.

The original charges against Detweiler were felony possession with intent to manufacture or deliver a controlled substance, felony selling a non-controlled substance representing it as a controlled substance and misdemeanor offenses of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Detweiler is described as being white, about 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing about 235 pounds.

She has a last known address of 447 Thrush Drive, Manheim, detectives said.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Detweiler or any other fugitive in Schuylkill County is asked to call the district attorney’s office at 570-628-1350 or Schuylkill County Tip Line at 570-624-3988.

Information can also be emailed to dadd@co.schuylkill.pa.us.

In addition, detectives said anyone who may see or come in contact with Detweiler should to call the Schuylkill County Communications Center or their local police department immediately.

All information received will remain confidential.

A list of Schuylkill County bench warrants is available on the Schuylkill County website at www.co.schuylkill.pa.us.

Contact the writer: fandruscavage@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6013

Around the region, Dec. 22, 2019

$
0
0

Elizabethville

The Lykens Valley Children’s Museum, 33 S. Market St., is getting ready to celebrate the New Year with a party that will kick off at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, with special STEM and art activities plus all of the museum’s winter-themed, hands-on exhibits. At 3 p.m., there will be a countdown to New Year’s with a ball drop and balloon drop. The party will end at 4 p.m. All are welcome. The event is made possible thanks to Giant and Mid Penn of Halifax. For more information, call 570-809-6379 or go online to lykensvalleychildrensmuseum.com.

Orwigsburg

The American Red Cross has said there is an “urgent need” for people to donate blood, especially during the holiday season. A Red Cross blood drive is set for 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, at Masonic Lodge No. 138, 1000 E. Market St. People 17 and older (16 with parental consent), weighing at least 110 pounds and in general good health are urged to donate blood. Walk-ins are welcome; to make an appointment, call 800-733-2767.

Pottsville

The West End Fire Company, 1217 W. Market St., is accepting advance orders for cheesesteak-and-fries dinners to be served from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3. To order, call 570-622-5770.

Pottsville

Diakon Living and Learning, 118 S. Centre St., has a host of activities, classes, workshops and creative initiatives on its agenda. For more information regarding costs and types of sessions, call Susan Long at 570-624-3018 or email her at longs@diakon.org. More information also is available online at www.diakon.org/community-services/Living-Learning-After-50.

Saint Clair

The Saint Clair Lions Cub sponsors bingo games on Monday evenings at the club quarters, McCord Avenue. Doors open at 4 p.m. and games begin at 6 p.m. All are welcome. People who need rides should call 570-429-9939 before 3 p.m. on game days.

Schuylkill Haven

The Schuylkill Haven Senior Citizens group meets at 6:30 p.m. the second and fourth Mondays of the month at the Senior/Neighborhood Center, 340 Haven St., and always accepts donations for the local food pantry. For more information, call 570-385-5323.

Shenandoah

In line with a borough ordinance, residents must clear their sidewalks, providing a 36-inch wide path, within 24 hours of an accumulating snow or ice event. Also, residents may not throw snow onto streets, a practice that is prohibited by the ordinance. People who do not adhere to the requirements can face penalties.

Tamaqua

The borough has regulations regarding snow removal. Property owners are required to maintain a clear path, at least 3 feet wide, on sidewalks. Snow and ice must be removed from the pathways within 24 hours of the end of a snowstorm. Snow, ice and other material may not be thrown onto streets. Fines of $25 and up may be imposed on anyone caught throwing snow or ice into the street, or who fails to maintain a snow-free pathway. People who plow snow from in front of homes and businesses must remove any piles of snow they create. Anyone piling snow in the street or parking areas could be cited. Residents are asked to refrain from piling snow near fire hydrants or on top of storm drains and are encouraged to clear snow from such areas. For more information, call 570-668-3444 or 570-668-0300.

Tamaqua

A free “Healthy Steps for Older Adults” fall-prevention workshop will be offered from 1 to 3 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17, Wednesday, Feb. 19, and Friday, Feb. 21 at the Tamaqua YMCA, 1201 E. Broad St., the former Jamesway Plaza. Those interested should register before Wednesday, Feb. 12, by calling 570-624-3017. Healthy Steps for Older Adults is an “evidence-based program for people 50 years and older to help reduce the risk of falls,” according to a release. Diakon Community Services manages Pennsylvania’s Health and Wellness Program in Schuylkill County under a contract with the Schuylkill County Office of Senior Services with funding from the state Department of Aging.

Scranton native leading national tour of SpongeBob musical

$
0
0

As the early sunlight illuminated a young Lorenzo Pugliese’s room in his Green Ridge home, he often would open his window and exclaim, “Good morning, world, and all who inhabit it.”

The Scranton native had first heard the line while watching SpongeBob Squarepants greet his undersea cartoon world with the same sentiment during an episode from the show’s third season.

Pugliese still welcomes the world with this same motto, but this time, it’s in the lead role in the national tour of “The SpongeBob Musical.” Pugliese said the phrase as the opening line to greet sold-out crowds across the country, and the opportunity to play the character on stage makes for a truly meaningful gift.

“SpongeBob is one of those iconic characters that really resonates with people, and being able to bring this character across the country and spread that joy, it’s a dream come true,” Pugliese said.

Growing up in Scranton, Pugliese was a sports kid who loved baseball, yet his father insisted that he take piano lessons. When his piano teacher asked him to audition for a play, Green Ridge Community Youth Theatre’s production of “High School Musical,” Pugliese landed the lead role. Soon, the story of the sports kid falling in love with theater played out both on stage and in Pugliese’s life. At 11, he knew theater was for him.

“The feeling that I got from being on stage was super intoxicating and enticing. ... I knew it was something I would be doing for a long time,” he said.

Pugliese continued his involvement with local theater, performing more shows with Green Ridge Community Youth Theatre, Act Out Theatre Group and his alma mater, Scranton High School. After graduation, he set off to Philadelphia to study musical theater at University of the Arts.

In March of this year, “The SpongeBob Musical” announced an open casting call for its national tour, having just closed on Broadway in September 2018 after critical acclaim and multiple Tony Award nominations (and one win). In the midst of his final college semester, Pugliese decided to travel to New York City to audition. Although friends received callbacks from the show not long afterward, Pugliese heard nothing.

Two weeks after his original audition, though, he finally got a callback, and by the end of the audition process, Pugliese had ventured between the two cities numerous times. The fateful call came just one week after his college graduation in May — he was going to lead the show’s national tour as SpongeBob Squarepants.

Before each show, Pugliese takes an hour to do his usual warm-up routine, which involves vocal exercises and stretching along with a bit of cardio. Right before the curtain opens, he goes around to the cast and wishes everyone a good show, making sure he visits each member in the same order every time, much like an old baseball superstition, he said.

While Pugliese was disappointed that the tour does not stop in Scranton, he said the Philadelphia stint likely will rank among the most meaningful for him (it concluded its run there at the Forrest Theatre on Dec. 15). He expected to reminisce on his days as a student with some old friends.

“I’m going to meet up with my girlfriend and a lot of friends, and do some of the things we used to do when we were in college. ... It will be like one big reunion,” said Pugliese, who also performed with the show in Philadelphia’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Since Pugliese landed the tour gig so shortly after his college graduation, he did not have the opportunity to move into his own place, but he intends to head to either New York City or Los Angeles eventually.

For those aspiring to become professional theater actors, Pugliese stressed that persistence and work ethic are essential traits to possess.

“You need to work your butt off and get used to rejection, but trust that things will work out and trust that if you work hard, it will pay off,” he said.

By the time “The SpongeBob Musical” national tour ends, Pugliese will have performed in nearly 300 shows. Yet with every stage he performs on, Pugliese never forgets the influence of his hometown.

“All of the things I did (in Scranton) provided the basis for what I’m doing now. ... There’s always a part of Scranton’s arts community inside of me, and that influences me in every show that I do,” he said.

Contact the writer: ecollins@timesshamro­ck.com; 570-348-9127

Trial date remains set for Murphy’s alleged killer

$
0
0

POTTSVILLE — The trial of the New Orleans woman who allegedly murdered Pottsville businessman Patrick J. Murphy in February in her hometown still is scheduled to begin next month, although the date is not set in stone, a spokesman for prosecutors said last week.

Megan Hall, 26, formerly of Tennessee, will go on trial Jan. 7, 2020, Ken Daley, a spokesman for Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon A. Cannizzaro Jr., said Thursday.

However, Daley said that date is “fluid” and could be changed as late as Jan. 6.

Hall faces charges of second-degree murder, armed robbery and obstruction of justice in a homicide investigation. Daley said she remains in the Orleans Justice Center jail, where she is being held in lieu of $750,000 bond pending trial.

Ad hoc Judge Dennis J. Waldron will preside over the case, which is expected to last three or four days, Daley said.

Prosecutors alleged Hall stabbed Murphy, the owner of Murphy Jewelers, one of Schuylkill County’s oldest family businesses, three times, once in the neck and twice in the abdomen, in the early morning hours of Feb. 28 in a room at the Empress Hotel, 1317 Ursuline Ave., in the Treme section of New Orleans. A housekeeper discovered Murphy’s body at 11:41 a.m. in a room registered to Hall, according to prosecutors.

Video surveillance cameras showed Murphy and Hall at 2:10 a.m. arriving at the hotel together, prosecutors said. Hall was seen leaving the hotel room alone and briskly walking out the front door at 3:42 a.m., believed to be leaving with some of Murphy’s possessions, and no one else was seen entering or leaving the room until the housekeeper eight hours later, according to prosecutors.

Hall faces a mandatory life sentence if convicted of second-degree murder, with a sentence of 10 to 99 years in prison, the maximum for armed robbery, and up to 40 years behind bars for obstruction of justice in a homicide investigation. The life sentence would include no chance of parole, Daley said.

Assistant District Attorney Sarah Hawkins is the lead prosecutor in the case. Daley said a second assistant district attorney will be selected to help Dawkins. John Fuller, New Orleans, is representing Hall.

Murphy and his family have operated Murphy Jewelers at the same 115 W. Market St. site in Pottsville since 1913. In recent years, Murphy expanded the business, adding locations in Hamburg, Berks County, and Center Valley, Lehigh County.

Contact the writer: pbortner@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6014

Megan Hall

· Age: 26

· Residence: New Orleans, formerly of Tennessee

· Charges: Second-degree murder, armed robbery and obstruction of justice in a homicide investigation

Shenandoah council approves 2020 budget with no hike

$
0
0

SHENANDOAH — The new year will greet borough residents with no increase in property taxes and fees with Thursday’s formal budget adoption by the borough council.

The council held its regular monthly meeting a few days later than usual in order to allow the public to review the spending plan at borough hall after its tentative adoption on Dec. 9.

The 2020 budget plan was approved with a 5-0 vote from President Leo Pietkiewicz, John Thomas, Gordon Slater, John “J.P” Dombrosky and Katie Catizone. Absent was Rosanne Mychak and Robert Mychak. Catizone motioned for adoption, with Slater offering the second.

The budget also includes no increases in sewer and trash collection fees.

The formal budget totaling $3,587,593 keeps the real estate tax at 27 mills, with each mill bringing in $32,100 in tax revenue. The proposed budget is $5,808 lower than the 2019 budget of $3,593,401.

The taxable real estate (assessed valuation) for 2020 is $33,259,570, but with county-held properties in the borough of $2,554,765 removed from the total, the adjusted total is $30,704,805.

The $3,587,593 budgeted revenues for 2020 ($3,593,401 in 2019) include the following:

• General Fund — $2,109,000 ($2,095,625 in 2019).

• Sewer Revenue Fund — $1,272,500 ($1,272,250 in 2019)

• Highway Aid Fund — $206,093 ($225,526 in 2019).

Total budgeted expenditures in 2020 are $3,571,366:

• General Fund — $2,108,165 ($2,094,140 in 2019).

• Sewer Revenue Fund — $1,264,750 ($1,251,700 in 2019).

• Highway Aid Fund — $206,093 ($225,526 in 2019).

The council also adopted a resolution establishing the real estate tax at the current rate of 27 mills.

In a related action, the council approved a tax anticipation note with First National Bank for $60,000 at the interest rate of 2.56%. The TAN is used to fund operational expenses at the beginning of the year until tax revenues are received, which usually begins in March or April.

In his monthly report, Mayor Andrew Szczyglak thanked donors to the police department for its annual candy distribution to children in the borough.

“I’d like to thank all the businesses and all people related to the Santa candy drive that the Shenandoah Police Department had this year,” Szczyglak said. “They were able to hand out treats to children on Black Friday (after the Skydiving Santa event) and they also went to the elementary schools and also the day care centers. It was all through the generosity of the businesses and people from Shenandoah who donated to that.”

Szczyglak congratulated borough Chief of Police George Carado for being named “Officer of the Year” by the Fraternal Order of Police North Schuylkill Lodge 25 on Dec. 17. Carado has served as the borough police chief since 2013.

Szczyglak also congratulated Carado, his team, and law enforcement from other municipalities, county, state and federal authorities for the recent raid in the borough that netted for four on drug warrants.

Slater spoke about the recent winter weather and about getting sidewalks cleared.

“I just want to remind the public that after this last storm, there are a lot of sidewalks that were not cleared,” Slater said. “They’re supposed to be cleared right after a snowstorm. Also keep in mind if there’s freezing rain, put some ice melt down to help elderly people walk to stores or whatever. Those sidewalks were pretty icy.”

Slater praised the borough streets employees during and after the storm.

“The borough workers were out early and did a pretty good job clearing the roads and getting them salted,” he said.

In other business, the council approved a proposal for professional engineering services from Alfred Benesch & Co. for the Girard Park Phase II project. The borough was awarded a $50,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for necessary upgrades to the park, which is located at the north side of the borough. The borough is also committing $20,000 of its Community Development Block Grant funds as a match.

According to Benesch, the improvements will include construction of stormwater management measures, installation of playground equipment with required safety surfacing, Americans with Disabilities access, landscaping, project sign and other related site improvements.

The proposal totals $10,800, which includes $6,800 for engineering design, and an estimated $4,000 for contract/construction administration. The DCNR grant covers up to $10,000 in engineering expenses.

The borough council accepted the retirement notice from Shenandoah Sewer Authority employee Dale Shoup, effective Tuesday, Dec. 31.

“I thank Dale for his years of service and his knowledge and help at the 40-year-old sewer plant,” Pietkiewicz said.

Downtown Shenandoah Inc. Executive Director Mary Luscavage sent a letter requesting a letter of support from the borough to be included in its application for a state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant to help fund the organization’s planned innovation center. The borough council voted to approve the support letter. Pietkiewicz said the letter does not obligate the borough for any funds.

Luscavage also asked for a letter of support in its efforts to extend its Main Street program designation with the state for another five years. She said DSI is the only designated Main Street program in the county for the last five years.

Contact the writer: jusalis@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6023


Reading, Blue Mountain & Northern expands marketing group

$
0
0

Reading, Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad is expanding its coal marketing department next year.

The company, based in Port Clinton, announced last week that Jim Cerulli is taking on the role of vice president-coal marketing Wednesday, Jan. 1. He joins Bill Clark, senior vice president coal marketing, Mike Sharadin, assistant vice president-equipment, and the customer service staff who handle all the railroad’s business under vice president customer service Susan Ludwig.

According to a statement from the railroad, Cerulli will take the lead on dealing with the coal shippers along the RBM&N’s system. He will manage the coal service network, car supply for the shippers, relations with the shippers and development of additional on-line coal facilities.

Clark will focus on growing the business with an emphasis on domestic steel mills. Clark will also take the lead on relations with other railroads, primarily Norfolk Southern. Sharadin will be responsible for all railcar-related matters, making sure that the fleet of coal cars is kept in good operating condition and available for use by railroad customers.

“Coal has been the backbone of Reading & Northern from the day I purchased the coal lines from Conrail 19 years ago,” said Andy Muller Jr., CEO/owner of RBM&N. “Thanks to the efforts of Bill and our team we are now positioned to enjoy significant growth in the coal business. Once again we are showing RBM&N is the road of anthracite.”

Wayne Michel, RBM&N’s president praised Clark.

“Since Bill Clark joined our team we have been able to make great inroads into the domestic steel industry. Today we are positioned for substantial growth. In order to accomplish that growth we needed more resources. While Bill focuses his efforts on working with the steel mills and other users of Pennsylvania anthracite, Jim will focus on making sure we do everything needed to help the anthracite producers get their coal to market.”

Clark, Cerulli and Sharadin will report to Michel.

Bill Clark has a long career in the transportation industry. He worked for regional railroads as well as 14 years at Norfolk Southern, working in its coal marketing and operations groups. He left NS for PPL as director of coal logistics; managing a large coal fleet to PPL’s power plants in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Montana.

According to the company, since he joined RBM&N three years ago, coal revenue has doubled and its business to steel mills has grown significantly.

Jim Cerulli joined RBM&N in 2015 in the transportation department as operations administrator. He was soon promoted to director of operations and most recently assistant vice president operations planning. Before joining RBM&N, Cerulli was a high school history teacher. He graduated from Misericordia University.

Mike Sharadin joined RBM&N in 1996 and has had a number of positions during his tenure, having served in the operations, maintenance of way and marketing departments. He graduated from Muhlenberg College with a degree in business administration.

Around the region, Dec. 23, 2019

$
0
0

Cressona

A New Year’s Day bingo is set for 1 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan 1, at Good Will Hose Company, 34 S. Sillyman St. Doors will open at 11 a.m.; admission is $30. There will be 20 games with pots of $100 per game and the last game, $1,000. There will also be door prizes and a pork-and-sauerkraut or meatloaf dinner.

Cressona

Bethany Christian Fellowship, 102 Front St., will have a takeout-only Bethany Missions homemade soup sale from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18. The cost is $6 per quart and the variety will include potato bacon, vegetable, meatball vegetable, ham and bean and chicken noodle. For more information, call 570-385-0609.

Fountain Springs

Over the past several weeks, North Schuylkill High School students from Honors Geometry, Honors Algebra 2, Honors Pre-Calculus and autoCad have been working on a STEM project that included researching, calculating, sketching, designing and building boats made out of four sheets of cardboard and four rolls of duct tape, according to a release from Jim Gross, athletic director. On Friday, Jan. 3, the students will participate in the third annual Dutch Kitchen Kup Regatta in the high school’s Don Bricker Natatorium. The boat race will start at the beginning of third period, about 9:20 a.m., and go through the fourth period. This year’s regatta will consist of 10 races. For more information, email jgross@northschuylkill.net or kstone@northschuylkill.net.

Orwigsburg

The Orwigsburg Public Library, 216 W. Independence St., will host “Stranger Things Fandom Event. Party Like It’s 1985” from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17. The cost is $1 and tickets must be bought in advance. The event will include trivia and participants are welcome to dress in character costumes or ’80s attire. For tickets or more information, call 570-366-1638 or go online to www.orwisgburglibrary.org.

Pottsville

The American Red Cross has said there is an “urgent need” for people to donate blood, especially during the holiday season. A Red Cross blood drive is set for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 27, at the mall office in Fairlane Village, 7211 Route 61 North. People 17 and older (16 with parental consent), weighing at least 110 pounds and in general good health are urged to donate blood. Walk-ins are welcome; to make an appointment, call 800-733-2767.

Schuylkill Haven

A Schuylkill Benefiting THON pick-a-ticket auction will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 31, at Penn State Schuylkill campus. A pick-a-ticket auction will also be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1 at First United Church of Christ, Route 61 adjacent to the campus. For more information, email Jodi Hoy at hoyusedcars@yahoo.com. THON, the Penn State Panhellenic Dance Marathon, the largest student-run philanthropic event in the world, annually raises money to fight pediatric cancer.

Schuylkill Haven

The Rainbow Hose Company’s January agenda includes: Taco Tuesdays from 4 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7, 14, 21 and 28; wings from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 11; breakfasts from 7 a.m. to noon Sunday, Jan. 12 and 26; a Chinese auction Friday, Jan. 31 with a shop and drop from 4 to 8 p.m. For more information, contact Jennifer Michael, the company’s public relations coordinator, by emailing jen@lorisangels.com.

Shenandoah

People have a chance to clean out their closets and at the same time support Trinity Academy in the Father Walter J. Ciszek Education Center, Cherry and Chestnut streets, the lone Catholic pre-K to eighth-grade school for northern Schuylkill County. People will be able to recycle items including shirts, pants, hats, towels, belts, outerwear, scarves, linens, bedding and shoes, according to a bulletin announcement. Pillows cannot be recycled. An indoor cart is in the cafeteria to accept the items, which will ultimately be sent to areas in North, Central and South America. Trinity Academy will receive a check after the items are weighed and the cart emptied. “We are excited about this outreach project to make textile recycling convenient as well as providing an opportunity to help those less fortunate than ourselves,” school officials said in the announcement. For more information, call the school at 570-462-3927.

Prison staff boosts seniors’ Christmas spirits

$
0
0

Staff members at State Correctional Institution/Mahanoy, Frackville, are helping senior citizens at a West Mahanoy Township residential facility celebrate Christmas more happily than otherwise might be possible.

The fourth annual Santa for Seniors Drive collected numerous gifts during December for residents of Ridgeview Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center, Shenandoah Heights. More than 100 people received the gifts, which center personnel distributed Friday at the facility’s annual Christmas party.

Gifts included blankets, crossword puzzle books, socks, stationery items and toiletries.

Jackie Yanchulis, a clerk typist 2 at SCI/Mahanoy, started the program in order to help residents at the center. Intended recipients include those whose family members are absent from their lives.

Yanchulis and Kim Minarchick, a registered nurse specialist, delivered the gifts to the center on Dec. 13.

No one from either the prison or the center was available Friday for comment on the program.

Contact the writer: pbortner@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6014

Criminal court, Dec. 23, 2019

$
0
0

POTTSVILLE — A Pottsville man remains in prison awaiting sentencing after a Schuylkill County judge on Friday removed him from the intermediate punishment program.

Brandon K. Mohl, 31, violated the rules of the program by committing a new crime, Judge James P. Goodman ruled.

Goodman did not immediately sentence Mohl, saying he would do so in approximately three weeks. After the hearing, Mohl returned to prison, where he will remain until Goodman sentences him.

Mohl originally pleaded guilty on Aug. 17, 2016, to driving under the influence and failure to keep right. Prosecutors withdrew a charge of driving unregistered vehicle.

At that time, Goodman placed Mohl in the intermediate punishment program for five years, and also sentenced him to pay costs, $1,525 in fines, $100 to the Substance Abuse Education Fund and $60 restitution to Lehigh Valley Health Network.

Pottsville police had alleged Mohl was DUI on Feb. 17, 2015, in the city.

Also recently in the county court, Floyd R. Wilson, 31, of Lansford, pleaded guilty to DUI and driving under suspension. Prosecutors withdrew a charge of careless driving.

President Judge William E. Baldwin accepted the plea and sentenced Wilson to spend 48 hours to six months in prison, pay costs, $800 in fines, a $100 SAEF payment and $50 to the Criminal Justice Enhancement Account, and perform 10 hours community service.

Coaldale police charged Wilson with DUI with a suspended license on Feb. 17 in the borough.

In another recent county case, Lucy A. Dejesus-Nieves, 26, of West Hazleton, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, with the prosecutor withdrawing a charge of hindering apprehension. Goodman sentenced her to pay costs and a $300 fine.

State police at Hazleton had charged Dejesus-Nieves with being disorderly on Sept. 6.

Also in a recent county case, Judge Cyrus Palmer Dolbin revoked the probation and parole of Zachary Bensinger, 22, of Pottsville, remanded him to prison, where he must remain until Jan. 16, 2020, before applying for reparole and could stay until Oct. 12, 2020.

Bensinger originally pleaded guilty on Aug. 1 to simple assault and recklessly endangering another person, with prosecutors withdrawing a charge of harassment.

On Aug. 16, Dolbin sentenced Bensinger to serve 13 days to 12 months in prison, and 12 concurrent months on probation, and pay costs, a $50 CJEA payment and a $50 bench warrant fee.

Pottsville police alleged Bensinger committed his assault on July 28, 2018, in the city.

In another recent county case, Goodman sentenced Brenda G. Brennan, 35, of Shenandoah, to serve 72 hours to six months in prison and pay costs, $1,093 in fines, a $100 SAEF payment and a $50 CJEA payment.

Goodman had found Brennan guilty on Oct. 29 in a nonjury trial of DUI and speeding. Shenandoah police alleged Brennan was under the influence of drugs when she drove 54 mph in a 25 mph zone on May 29, 2018, in the borough.

Two thefts in July from the same store resulted recently in a Pottsville man being sentenced by a Schuylkill County judge to spend time behind state prison bars.

Allen C. Schrader III, must serve 18 to 36 months in a state correctional institution, Baldwin ruled.

Baldwin also sentenced Schrader to pay costs, $100 to the CJEA and $1,254.96 restitution to Walmart, and submit a DNA sample to law enforcement authorities.

Schrader pleaded guilty to two separate charges of retail theft, with prosecutors withdrawing two counts of receiving stolen property.

Rush Township police filed both charges against Schrader, alleging in one case that he stole $210.86 in merchandise on July 15 from the Walmart Supercenter in Hometown, and in the other case that he stole $1,044.10 in merchandise on July 19 from the same store.

Schrader already has started serving his sentence at SCI/Camp Hill.

Also in the county court, Joshua A. Phillips, 34, of Ashland, pleaded guilty recently to possession of a controlled substance, with prosecutors withdrawing a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia. Baldwin sentenced him to serve six to 24 months in a state correctional institution concurrent with his current sentence and pay costs, $100 to the SAEF and a $50 CJEA payment.

Girardville police alleged Phillips possessed drugs on April 9, 2018, in the borough.

Baldwin also recently sentenced Rodney C. Hogue, 31, of Atlas, to serve one to 12 months in prison and pay costs and a $50 CJEA payment.

Hogue had pleaded guilty on Oct. 15 to theft, with prosecutors withdrawing an additional count of theft and two counts of receiving stolen property. Ashland police had charged Hogue with committing the theft on Dec. 20, 2018, in the borough.

In another recent county case, Judge Charles M. Miller revoked the probation of Corinne Wensel, 32, of Auburn, and sentenced her to serve four to 12 months in prison, plus two years consecutive probation.

Wensel, who admitted violating the terms of her probation, originally pleaded guilty on Sept. 11, 2018, to theft, with prosecutors withdrawing a charge of receiving stolen property. On Sept. 18, 2018, Miller placed her on probation for two years, and also sentenced her to pay costs and a $50 CJEA payment.

Schuylkill Haven borough police had charged Wensel with committing her theft on Dec. 20, 2016, in the borough.

Also in the county court, Christopher J. Serina Jr., 39, of Tamaqua, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a controlled substance in one case and one of possession of drug paraphernalia in a second. Prosecutors withdrew a second count of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Baldwin accepted the plea and sentenced Serina to time served to 12 months in prison with immediate parole, plus 12 months consecutive probation, and pay costs, $200 in SAEF payments, $100 in CJEA payments and $302 restitution to the state police crime laboratory in Bethlehem.

Tamaqua police filed both sets of charges against Serina, alleging he possessed drugs on May 18 and paraphernalia on July 25, in each case in the borough.

In another recent county case, Judge James P. Goodman revoked the probation of Kathy D. Tonkin, 24, of New Ringgold, but deferred sentencing pending action on Tonkin’s application to enter the Schuylkill County Drug Treatment Court program.

Tonkin originally pleaded guilty on Nov. 29, 2017, to two counts of possession of a controlled substance and one of possession of drug paraphernalia. At that time, Goodman sentenced her to 23 days to 12 months in prison and 12 months concurrent probation and pay costs, a $100 SAEF payment, a $50 CJEA payment and $239 restitution to the state police crime laboratory in Bethlehem.

Tamaqua police charged Tonkin with possessing drugs and paraphernalia on Feb. 27, 2017, in the borough.

Contact the writer: pbortner@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6014

Hundreds drawn to first Santa Workshop Experience

$
0
0

FOUNTAIN SPRINGS — The response to North Schuylkill’s first Santa’s Workshop Experience on Sunday afternoon was phenomenal in drawing hundreds of children and adults for lots of holiday fun.

The event was held inside and outside the high school, using the parking lot and the cafeteria, which was transformed into Kris Kringle’s happy toy factory.

The cafeteria was decked out in holiday decorations and Christmas music played to make it a festive holiday location. The cafeteria doors opened at 1 p.m., with the lobby filled with people waiting to enter. Parents could take their child’s photos while they waited in front of a Christmas tree next to a cutout of The Grinch and live characters from the “Frozen” films.

Making plush toys played a major role for the afternoon. Elves assisted children with stuffing the toys that ranged from Santa, reindeer, snowman, a husky dog, elf and others.

Members of the school’s Students Against Destructive Decisions and Teens Against Tobacco ran the event with their adviser, Melanie Fowler, a district English teacher.

Getting the opportunity to make the plush toy involved preregistering so there would be enough toys available for all, along with choosing what type the child wanted. Tables were set up with boxes filled with the kits in bags that were marked with the name of the child and his or her selection of toy.

“The child takes the animal out of the bag with a separate bag with stuffing,” said seventh-grader Ciara Longenberger of Ashland, a TAT member, said. “They put the stuffing inside the animal, you zip it closed and you won’t be able to open it up again.”

Children could decorate cookies, and adults and children loved the gourmet hot chocolate bar, complete with mini-marshmallows and whipped cream and choices of adding chocolate, white and peppermint chips and salted caramel.

Admission and activities

The event in the cafeteria was open to anyone with a $5 admission charge and the children could visit multiple locations for different activities. One station gave a child the opportunity to make a Christmas ornament. Another, run by the Ringtown Area Library, had librarian Tanya Savitsky read stories and children could work on a craft. A letter station along one wall allowed children to write a letter to Santa and place it in a special mailbox.

And, of course, on hand for the Christmas fun were Santa and Mrs. Claus, some of their elves and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Boys and girls could sit on Santa’s lap to get their photo taken.

The parking lot’s main attraction was two reindeer brought in from the Spruce Run Farm Reindeer, Bloomsburg. There were lines of people to have photos taken with the beautiful animals for a fee. Professional photos were taken by Whitenight Studios, Berwick.

In the lot were tents where children and adults could take their own photos for free in front of backdrops depicting The Grinch and The Peanuts gang.

Enthusiastic response

Fowler came up with the idea and then worked with her club members to get everything organized. This is her first year as SADD/TAT adviser.

“We had about 300 bear orders and sold $1,000 in pre-sale tickets (at $5 each),” Fowler said before the event began. “We expect probably 2,000 people here today once we get rolling at 1 o’clock. We had people show up at 11 a.m.”

The stuffed toy kits were purchased online from The Zoo Factory.

Walking through the crowd was Superintendent Dr. Robert Ackell and his family, who expressed his happiness that the first such event was a hit.

“This is great. This is exciting for our community. The kids love it. It has great family-oriented activities,” Ackell said. “Everything is going as planned and I’m glad to see this great turnout a few days before Christmas. It can only grow bigger.”

Fowler thanked the Ashland and Frackville Subway locations for donating 750 cookies.

“We’re not expecting to make a profit. Everything we’re doing is to make back the money we spent,” Fowler said. “We’re just interested in doing something nice for the community.”

Contact the writer: jusalis@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6023

Viewing all 30310 articles
Browse latest View live


<script src="https://jsc.adskeeper.com/r/s/rssing.com.1596347.js" async> </script>