On Saturday, I visited @brightpathbrewing for the 6th annual East Side Jim Thorpe Bar O’ Crawl, a St. Patrick’s Day themed event that raises money for local charities in Carbon County, including the 70th annual Special Needs Fishing Derby. A great event for great causes!
On Saturday, I visited @brightpathbrewing for the 6th annual East Side Jim Thorpe Bar O’ Crawl, a St. Patrick’s Day themed event that raises money for local charities in Carbon County, including the 70th annual Special Needs Fishing Derby. A great event for great causes!
Thank you to everyone who attended today’s scam seminar at the Church of Saint Patrick Parish Center in White Haven, hosted by Rep. Jamie Walsh and me. David Shallcross, the Director of the Senior Protection Unit of the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, provided a thorough overview of how to avoid falling prey to the latest scams targeting seniors.
The most important takeaway: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
While in White Haven, I reviewed the work ongoing at the I-80 bridges over the Lehigh River just outside the borough. This huge project will completely replace the bridges, which are more than 50 years old and deteriorating, and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2028.
Thank you to everyone who attended today’s scam seminar at the Church of Saint Patrick Parish Center in White Haven, hosted by Rep. Jamie Walsh and me. David Shallcross, the Director of the Senior Protection Unit of the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, provided a thorough overview of how to avoid falling prey to the latest scams targeting seniors.
The most important takeaway: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
While in White Haven, I reviewed the work ongoing at the I-80 bridges over the Lehigh River just outside the borough. This huge project will completely replace the bridges, which are more than 50 years old and deteriorating, and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2028.
I was invited to read to two classrooms in Hazleton today as part of Read Across America. My first stop was at the Heights Terrace Elementary/Middle School with @repbresnahan, @repwatropa, Mayor Jeff Cusat and many other special guests, where I read to a fourth-grade class. Then, I visited Luzerne County Head Start nearby where I read Oh, the Places You’ll Go, by Dr. Seuss, to a class of pre-school students ages 3-5.
Read Across America is an annual celebration of the importance of literacy, reminding us that strong reading skills strengthen our minds and teach us more about the world. Thank you to both schools for inviting me to join you this morning!
I was invited to read to two classrooms in Hazleton today as part of Read Across America. My first stop was at the Heights Terrace Elementary/Middle School with @repbresnahan, @repwatropa, Mayor Jeff Cusat and many other special guests, where I read to a fourth-grade class. Then, I visited Luzerne County Head Start nearby where I read Oh, the Places You’ll Go, by Dr. Seuss, to a class of pre-school students ages 3-5.
Read Across America is an annual celebration of the importance of literacy, reminding us that strong reading skills strengthen our minds and teach us more about the world. Thank you to both schools for inviting me to join you this morning!
How can we recruit more firefighters?
Thank you to the more than 75 volunteer firefighters and school administrators who joined Rep. Tim Twardzik, @repwatropa, and me at our seminar about new strategies to recruit volunteer firefighters at the Columbia Hose Company last night.
Many of our local volunteer companies are facing severe shortages of firefighters. According to the United State Fire Administration, the number of volunteer firefighters has dropped from 60,000 to less than 38,000.
We heard from Eric Frantz, a volunteer firefighter who has successfully developed a high-school firefighting club, and Tracie Young-Brungard, the Administrator of Recruitment & Retention for the Office of State Fire Commissioner, who shared the variety of services the agency can offer the companies.
If you were not able to attend last night and would like to learn more about the strategies we discussed, please do not hesitate to contact my Mahanoy City office at 570-773-0891.
How can we recruit more firefighters?
Thank you to the more than 75 volunteer firefighters and school administrators who joined Rep. Tim Twardzik, @repwatropa, and me at our seminar about new strategies to recruit volunteer firefighters at the Columbia Hose Company last night.
Many of our local volunteer companies are facing severe shortages of firefighters. According to the United State Fire Administration, the number of volunteer firefighters has dropped from 60,000 to less than 38,000.
We heard from Eric Frantz, a volunteer firefighter who has successfully developed a high-school firefighting club, and Tracie Young-Brungard, the Administrator of Recruitment & Retention for the Office of State Fire Commissioner, who shared the variety of services the agency can offer the companies.
If you were not able to attend last night and would like to learn more about the strategies we discussed, please do not hesitate to contact my Mahanoy City office at 570-773-0891.
I visited the northernmost township of the 29th district yesterday for a legislative lunch with parents and teachers at Bear Creek Community Charter School. Thanks to all who attended our bipartisan discussion about the most critical issues facing public schools across Pennsylvania.
This school, established in 2004, now includes a new academic wing, opened in 2024, serving 606 students in Luzerne, Lackawanna, and Monroe Counties.
The key to their success, to quote from their presentation: “Parents, along with staff, are important stakeholders in the success of our students and the future of our school. Parents of Bear Creek Community Charter School are expected to actively participate.”
Joining me from Luzerne County: Rep. Jamie Walsh, @reppashinski, and @repryncavage, as well as Rep. Bryan Cutler, the Republican Chair of the House Education Committee from Lancaster County.
I visited the northernmost township of the 29th district yesterday for a legislative lunch with parents and teachers at Bear Creek Community Charter School. Thanks to all who attended our bipartisan discussion about the most critical issues facing public schools across Pennsylvania.
This school, established in 2004, now includes a new academic wing, opened in 2024, serving 606 students in Luzerne, Lackawanna, and Monroe Counties.
The key to their success, to quote from their presentation: “Parents, along with staff, are important stakeholders in the success of our students and the future of our school. Parents of Bear Creek Community Charter School are expected to actively participate.”
Joining me from Luzerne County: Rep. Jamie Walsh, @reppashinski, and @repryncavage, as well as Rep. Bryan Cutler, the Republican Chair of the House Education Committee from Lancaster County.
93 years ago this week, my great-grandfather, Roger Howells, lost his job as a “fire boss” when the mine he worked in the New Philadelphia area closed during the Great Depression.
I display the pink skip – note that it’s really pink!! – he received in my capitol office, as a reminder of the backbreaking and dangerous labor that our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents performed to feed our families. So many of our ancestors faced and overcame significant hardships here in Carbon, Luzerne, and Schuylkill counties during the decline of the anthracite coal industry.
93 years ago this week, my great-grandfather, Roger Howells, lost his job as a “fire boss” when the mine he worked in the New Philadelphia area closed during the Great Depression.
I display the pink skip – note that it’s really pink!! – he received in my capitol office, as a reminder of the backbreaking and dangerous labor that our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents performed to feed our families. So many of our ancestors faced and overcame significant hardships here in Carbon, Luzerne, and Schuylkill counties during the decline of the anthracite coal industry.
I visited The Farm Store yesterday – downtown Pottsville’s newest farm-to-table grocery store.
Founded by Angela and Josiah Meck, this new grocery store is now open, providing the community with fresh food sourced from local farms from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.
Angela and Josiah won the first ever IGNITE Schuylkill competition, an event created by the @schuylkillchamber to give local entrepreneurs the chance to grow their business and compete for funding. It’s exciting to see the ideas presented during this competition become reality! Joining me was Savas Logothetides from the Pottsville Area Development Corporation.
I visited The Farm Store yesterday – downtown Pottsville’s newest farm-to-table grocery store.
Founded by Angela and Josiah Meck, this new grocery store is now open, providing the community with fresh food sourced from local farms from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.
Angela and Josiah won the first ever IGNITE Schuylkill competition, an event created by the @schuylkillchamber to give local entrepreneurs the chance to grow their business and compete for funding. It’s exciting to see the ideas presented during this competition become reality! Joining me was Savas Logothetides from the Pottsville Area Development Corporation.
Last night, almost 6000 people from Carbon, Luzerne, and Schuylkill counties joined me for a telephone town hall.
I asked everyone on the call to weigh in on whether they support legislation by @senatorlisabaker, Senator Judy Ward, and me to strip former President Biden’s name from a Scranton-area highway. Our bill will restore its name to the Central Scranton Expressway. 69% percent of those voting supported renaming the President Biden Expressway.
Many people throughout our region were outraged after the former president commuted the sentence of a key figure in the “Kids for Cash” scandal during his final days in office. For the families affected by these crimes, President Biden’s decision was VERY painful. I hope to see quick action on this important legislation for northeast Pennsylvania.
Last night’s meeting was the first of eight town halls I’ll sponsor in the next few months—both via telephone and in person, designed to review the good, the bad, and the really ugly of how our state government operates. Stay tuned for more details!
Last night, almost 6000 people from Carbon, Luzerne, and Schuylkill counties joined me for a telephone town hall.
I asked everyone on the call to weigh in on whether they support legislation by @senatorlisabaker, Senator Judy Ward, and me to strip former President Biden’s name from a Scranton-area highway. Our bill will restore its name to the Central Scranton Expressway. 69% percent of those voting supported renaming the President Biden Expressway.
Many people throughout our region were outraged after the former president commuted the sentence of a key figure in the “Kids for Cash” scandal during his final days in office. For the families affected by these crimes, President Biden’s decision was VERY painful. I hope to see quick action on this important legislation for northeast Pennsylvania.
Last night’s meeting was the first of eight town halls I’ll sponsor in the next few months—both via telephone and in person, designed to review the good, the bad, and the really ugly of how our state government operates. Stay tuned for more details!