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In this Update:
Connecting Seniors with Services in Carbon County
Wednesday’s Senior Expo in Carbon County was a huge success! Thank you to the 1000+ who joined us AND the many volunteers who made the day possible.
When I became the state senator for Carbon County three years ago, I was asked to join Rep. Doyle Heffley in sponsoring this event that assists SO many local seniors year after year.
And this year, I even made a new four-legged friend, Ruby! Welcoming Temple Dental Students to Tamaqua
Rep. Jamie Barton and I recently joined the Tamaqua Area Chamber of Commerce to welcome students at the Temple Dental Education Center and Clinic in downtown Tamaqua. Eighteen local businesses and organizations partnered to provide the new students with gifts to encourage the dental students to explore Tamaqua and the surrounding region. Read more here. In another effort to address rural health care, Tamaqua native and Misericordia University student Alexis Bowman is collecting donations for a “dental goodie bag” drive she is organizing. She’s collecting basic dental necessities including toothbrushes, dental floss, toothpaste and mouthwash, and plans to distribute them to Volunteers in Medicine Wilkes-Barre, Mom-n-PA, Women in Crisis (Pottsville), Child Development, the Salvation Army and any others who need dental supplies. They will then be given to families in need in Schuylkill, Carbon, and Luzerne counties. Drop off locations include Rep. Barton’s Tamaqua Office and Hope & Coffee. Thank you for your efforts, Alexis! Breathing New Life into Downtown Pottsville
I was recently invited to attend a ribbon cutting celebrating the revitalization of 18 properties on Mauch Chunk Street in Pottsville, across the street from the Lehigh Valley Hospital—Schuylkill campus.
Developed by Matthew Pezon, the project represents more than $2.1 million in private investment, transforming an entire block of blighted and decaying properties into 12 revitalized single-family homes and eight apartments.
With new jobs continuing to come to our region, the demand for affordable, quality housing continues to grow. Investments like this are helping create much-needed new housing opportunities and breathe new life into Pottsville and our region. Cleaning Up Abandoned Mines in East Norwegian Township
Rep. Tim Twardzik and I were recently invited to tour an ongoing reclamation project at long-abandoned mines in East Norwegian Township near Saint Clair, spearheaded by the Schuylkill Conservation District. This effort received a $220,000 state grant through the Nonpoint Source Management Program, which supports projects to restore impaired waterways statewide.
Growing up near abandoned coal pits in Tamaqua’s east end, and as a sponsor of PA’s “Growing Greener” funding law to help projects just like this, I’ve seen firsthand the damage left behind by long-gone mining operations—and the incredible progress we’ve made since. This project will help design a new mine drainage treatment for the abandoned Pine Forest Shaft and help clean the Upper Schuylkill River. While existing mining companies are responsible to reclaim their properties, many other abandoned sites remain across PA. Projects like this help to restore our land and protect our natural resources for future generations, so that our grandchildren and their children will only see the accounts of devastated landscapes in their history books, rather than from the windows of their homes. Around the District
Congratulations to Pottsville’s newest business, the Golden Kettle, which offers build your own mac and cheese along with sandwiches, specialty coffee, and drinks. The new restaurant is located at Alvernia University’s Pottsville CollegeTowne, directly in front of the recently opened Schuylkill YMCA Gymnastics Center, both of which now serve hundreds of students and local youth thanks to private donations and grants which I secured with Rep. Tim Twardzik and Congressman Dan Meuser. This new venture is a result of the Launch Pottsville Business Competition, which is successfully lifting up new entrepreneurs, creating jobs, and breathing new life into the downtown. Congratulations to Stephen Smith and his team on their grand opening! Thank you for inviting me to join you and for choosing Schuylkill County!
Congratulations to this year’s Tamaqua Chamber Award winners! This year’s recipients include:
Thank you all for all you do for the Tamaqua area
Seth Hubler from my office recently attended Rep. JoAnne Stehr’s Annual Women Veteran’s Dinner at the Friedensburg Country Restaurant. The event brought together female veterans from across the region for a night of fellowship and appreciation for their service. To all veterans—THANK YOU for your service!
Rufus Batman Argall enjoyed his first trip to Nuremberg for the Annual Nuremberg Celebration Car Show, where he was warmly welcomed. The Nuremberg Celebration Committee is a volunteer-led organization that sponsors a two-day event every Labor Day to celebrate the local community. The group has also sponsored many improvements at the North Union Township Park, including a new gazebo and landscaping improvements. Beth and I (and Rufus, of course) offered our congratulations to the organizers on a successful event!
I was recently invited to the premiere of “The Secrets Beneath Hazleton,” a documentary directed by Tim Novotney and produced by WVIA. The 30-minute film takes viewers beneath the City of Hazleton, exploring a sprawling network of more than 150 miles of abandoned mine shafts, underground workshops, hospitals, and more. It was fascinating to learn more about this hidden part of Hazleton’s history and the stories that remain beneath our feet. The program also highlighted the Lattimer Massacre, where 19 immigrant anthracite miners were tragically killed on September 10, 1897. The documentary will premiere on WVIA on Sunday, September 21 at 7:00 p.m. Make sure to tune in! Even more interesting: These underground tunnels could be a part of Hazleton’s future, as well as its past. At Hazleton Mayor Jeff Cusat’s invitation, I will soon meet with him and Rep. Dane Watro to explore the possibility of a future underground museum, restaurant, and shops. As they say in the business… stay tuned! Expanding Higher Education Opportunities
Higher education is getting closer to home—and that’s a big win for our region! I was recently invited to serve as a panelist at the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce’s Higher Education Summit, where we discussed expanding opportunities and making college more affordable. I highlighted the progress happening right here in our backyard:
These investments are doing more than expanding educational opportunities. They’re economic engines preparing the next generation of nurses, dentists, business leaders, educators, and other professionals—right here at home! Focusing on Our Local Communities: East Side’s Eric Siglin
Welcome to the latest edition of “Focusing on our Local Communities,” where we interview, on a bipartisan basis, a key local leader in one of the 102 municipalities that I represent in Carbon, Schuylkill, and Luzerne counties. This week, we focus on East Side Borough Mayor Eric Siglin. Siglin, a non‑partisan official, grew up in northeast Ohio before moving to East Side in 2019. His family roots run deep in the small Carbon County borough—his father was born there and graduated from the former White Haven School. Siglin earned his master’s degree in management information systems from Bowling Green University in 1985 and has worked in the IT field ever since. He was first elected mayor through a write‑in campaign after neighbors encouraged him to step into the role. “My neighbors all told me that they were going to write me in for the position and that’s how I was elected to office the first time around. Every community I’ve lived in, I have had an active role in some way or another,” said Siglin. “I think it’s really important to get involved especially in Pennsylvania where governing at the local level is so important. It’s where people have a strong say.” Since moving to the area, Siglin has been deeply involved in both East Side and the nearby White Haven community. He is a member of the Greater White Haven Area Chamber of Commerce, an elder at the White Haven Presbyterian Church, and an active participant in the White Haven Ministerium, which oversees the White Haven Food Pantry and community lunch program. Together with borough council, Siglin is working on several projects aimed at improving recreation and strengthening local infrastructure. “We were able to get a state grant to renovate our playground that was damaged a few times over the years because of severe weather,” added Siglin. “UGI is coming in and modernizing the gas main and gas lines, so we’re working on logistics there to make sure everything runs smoothly. Centre Street was recently damaged from a severe storm, so we’re working to repair that, and I just had a very productive meeting with PennDOT, Rep. Heffley’s office and Sen. Argall’s office to help with traffic calming along State Route 940 in the borough.” Remembering the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, 25 Years Later
Today, twenty-five years later, we remember and honor the lives of those who perished on September 11, 2001. We remember and honor those who died in the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington DC, and those heroes aboard Flight 93 which crashed in Shanksville, PA. We remember and honor our first responders who charged into the carnage to save as many lives as they could – police, firefighters, and EMS. We remember that even in our darkest days, we as Americans can come together because our shared beliefs of freedom, liberty, and justice cannot be taken away from us. Many of us knew people who endured the terror of that day. For me, it was a member of my college’s soccer team. We will never forget. Quote of the Week
“Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shattered steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.” – President George W. Bush |
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