Kids and Family Festival, 6/25/11

The Kids and Family Festival is coming to Patriots' Square, June 25 2011! See here for more information:

Nanticoke 6/25/11 NEPA Cycling Event Promotions

2011 Nanticoke city-wide yard sale - Saturday, June 4

From the Nanticoke City website:

(2011) City Wide Yard Sale

Saturday June 4th 8am to 2PM. Rain date Sunday June 5th. Maps and a list of sellers can be picked up Saturday morning at City Hall, 15 E. Ridge St. Nanticoke.

If anyone is interested in participating call 735-2800 to leave your address. Deadline to register is June 1st by noon.

Here's a link to the yard sale flyer.

St. Mary's Church Bazaar

The Parish Festival for Our Lady of Czestochowa, Nanticoke, a.k.a. Saint Mary's, will be held this Friday and Saturday, August 7 and 8, 2009, at the Holy Child Grove in Sheatown (directions, sort of; these are to Guardian Elder Care, a nursing home located in front of the grove.)

I could really just repost my entry about this from last year. Here is an excerpt:

Saint Mary's Parish Festival, or Church Bazaar, or "Picnic" (to use the more genteel term) used to be a thing of legend. For years these were held in the parking lot behind the church and school and were three-day events, starting Friday night and wrapping up Sunday night. Sounds of polkas could be heard for blocks around, and the smell of frying food permeated the area for days. Beer flowed like water, parked cars clogged the streets in the neighborhood, and young punks rubbed elbows with the elderly. Yet somehow, I never remember any fights or other disturbances.

This will be the very last St. Mary's Church Bazaar. Ever. St. Mary's Church will be closing in a few months...technically. It will continue to function as a "secondary worship site" for as long as it so pleases His Excellency Bishop Martino of Scranton, with whom all ultimate authority for the direction of the Roman Catholic Church in the Diocese of Scranton rests. The primary worship site will be the building currently known as Holy Trinity Church, which features inadequate ventilation, inadequate handicapped access, and a parking lot which can comfortably fit about twenty cars - twice that many if the cars are parked so the ones that are parked in marked spaces are blocked in by the ones that are parked on every other square inch of asphalt.

I don't know when the technical "closing" of Holy Trinity will be held. Nor do I know when the actual closings of St. Joseph's, St. Stanislaus, and Holy Family will take place. (The parishioners of Holy Family, located several miles from Holy Trinity, have formally appealed their closure to the Vatican. ) Once upon a time, not long ago, each of these parishes as well as all the already-closed parishes in Nanticoke held individual church bazaars. Some were larger, some were smaller, but all were well-attended by people from throughout the city regardless of parish affiliation, and all turned a profit (as far as I know.) With all of these parishes consolidated into one, how many church bazaars will have to be held to equal the combined revenue of all of the consolidated parishes' bazaars? And if there is to be only one, how long will it have to run to bring in that sort of money?

And how will His Excellency the Bishop of Scranton react when he sees that the money coming in to his office from his cut of the church bazaars in Nanticoke has dropped drastically since consolidation?

Nanticoke churches in the news

Erin Moody of the Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice wrote an article on The Stained Glass Project that featured several of my photos, including one on the top banner of the front page!

Erin Moody: Framing Stained Glass Snapshots - Wilkes-Barre Citizens' Voice, November 24, 2008


Meanwhile, in other Nanticoke church news...

Nanticoke church will open its doors to Goth community with service

St. George's Episcopal Church is the cool little building described here. According to the article, the Goth service will be held this Saturday, November 29, though I am unclear on the time.

St. Mary's Parish Festival this weekend, August 1 & 2

The Parish Festival for Our Lady of Czestochowa, Nanticoke, a.k.a. Saint Mary's, will be held this Friday and Saturday, August 1 and 2, 2008, at the Holy Child Grove in Sheatown (directions, sort of; these are to Guardian Elder Care, a nursing home located in front of the grove.)

Saint Mary's Parish Festival, or Church Bazaar, or "Picnic" (to use the more genteel term) used to be a thing of legend. For years these were held in the parking lot behind the church and school and were three-day events, starting Friday night and wrapping up Sunday night. Sounds of polkas could be heard for blocks around, and the smell of frying food permeated the area for days. Beer flowed like water, parked cars clogged the streets in the neighborhood, and young punks rubbed elbows with the elderly. Yet somehow, I never remember any fights or other disturbances.

2005 is the last year St, Mary's had a traditional Church Bazaar. November 2005 was the first time we had a Fall Festival, an indoor mini-festival. We didn't have a Church Bazaar or Fall Festival in 2006, but we did have a "Spring Fling" in 2007. There was no Church Bazaar in 2007. I don't recall if we had a Fall Festival in 2007, and there was no Spring Fling this year. But this year we are having a Parish Festival. It may be our last.

Parish consolidation continues throughout the Scranton Diocese, and St. Mary's is one of the parishes shortlisted for closure. It's not set in stone yet, though. But in any case, please come to the St. Mary's Parish Festival this weekend. It may be the last one, ever.

Nanticoke Musicfest 2008, June 6, 7, and 8

From the official website:

Party In The Park

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

June 6th, 7th, and 8th, 2008

Party hours and information:

Friday - June 6th

From Harrisburg, Pa.- Brad Crum as "Elvis"

5pm to 8pm

Meets

From Philadelphia, Pa. -"Shattered" a "Rolling Stones" tribute band

8pm to 10pm

Saturday - June 7th

From Pittsburgh, Pa. - Lee Alverson's tribute to "Elton John/Billy Joel"

5pm to 7pm

and dance to

"The Original Starfires with Eddie Day"

7pm to 11pm

Sunday - June 8th

Dance to the oldies with "The Cadillacs"

3pm to 6pm

Get ready to PARTY with "M-80"

6pm to 9pm

Come party in the park with us and win prizes at our hula hoop and jitterbug contest, and bring your appetite for our pierogie eating contest!

Featuring: Rides, games, Pat Ward (Magician extrodinaire and all around balloon guy), refreshments and fun for the whole family.

Sponsored by The City of Nanticoke.

Where: Patriot Park - Broad and Market Sts., Nanticoke, Pa.

~ Free admission ~

Nanticoke City-Wide Yard Sale Part 2, Saturday October 6

Nanticoke will be having another citywide Yard Sale this Saturday, October 6 from 9 AM to 3 PM. Check out the (very spiffy) Citywide Yard Sale webpage on the official City of Nanticoke website. Here is the text of that page:

The Civic Pride Committee is planning another citywide yard sale for fall, but this one has a twist — it’s also a treasure hunt.

Sharpen that brain of yours and you might be $25 richer during the yard sale, which is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 6.

Also, the Salvation Army will have a truck by the old Nanticoke/West Nanticoke bridge where the Street Department used to be to take your useable or recyclable items from 3pm to 5pm that day.

Committee member J.D. Verazin, who brainstormed the idea, said that it will feature clues to street names in the town. For example: Where do people wear 10-gallon hats and pointy boots? Where do baseball players play?

If you figured “west” and “green,” then you’d be one step closer. Now you just have to visit a yard sale on West Green Street, and if you purchase an item that’s marked, you win one of six $25 prizes.

“Every year we’ll be coming up with something new like this treasure hunt to keep it exciting,” Verazin said. “The event keeps growing from last year.”

The first citywide yard sale was held during one weekend last summer, and the second was held in the beginning of this summer. Verazin said the committee decided to split the single event into one summer and one fall event. For this year’s summer event, Verazin said, about 280 residents signed up.

“It was great for Nanticoke,” he said. “We had people walking around 2 hours before the yard sale was scheduled to begin.”

This year Verazin is expecting a higher number of people to sign up for the fall and is asking residents of the Honey Pot and Hanover sections to call 735-2800 to register for October’s event. The address of everyone who registers will be printed onto a map that will be offered at Patriot Park on Oct. 6.

“This event brings a lot of people into Nanticoke,” Verazin said. “People from as far as Shickshinny were here, and it was great for local businesses.”

Larry Karnes, owner of Larry’s Pizzeria on the corner of Church and College streets, said tables were set in the back parking lot to satisfy the customers during this summer’s sale.

“We were selling anything that we had ready and it was going,” Karnes said. “People were walking around town hours before (the yard sale) started.”

And for residents participating in the sale, Verazin said it’s a perfect opportunity to lose the extra summer stuff and get ready for winter.

“It’s also great for the extra cash,” he said. “One lady made $350 selling only dollar items, so that tells you something.”

Karnes said he’s going to prepare more for October’s event, due to running low on everything during the summer sale. He recommends other businesses also better prepare.

“This is a great impact on Nanticoke,” Karnes said, who’s also a city fire officer. “I’ve never seen so many positive people come through Nanticoke on one day.”

Local merchants are encouraged to plan special promotions or sidewalk sales to coincide with the event.

Unfortunately, I will be working that day, so some other enterprising soul will have to take the initiative to sell soda and water to thirsty yard sale shoppers. Come to Nanticoke this Saturday and see what everyone has to offer!

School's Back in Session August 28

Classes will begin in the Greater Nanticoke Area next Tuesday, August 28. This means police will be out in force, ticketing people who exceed the 15 mph School Zone speed limit on Kosciuszko Street (which normally has a speed limit of just 25 mph, anyway.)

Students at Luzerne County Community College should be aware that police preferentially ticket vehicles heading south on Kosciuszko Street, towards L.C.C.C. While reasons for this are unclear - students driving towards the High School also exceed the speed limit on a regular basis, both at the beginning of the school day and after school lets out in the afternoon, when many of them also show off by stunt driving through the streets surrounding the school - there has been some speculation that it is connected to the fact that while most of the students attending the John S. Fine High School probably have relatives, or friends, or relatives of friends or friends of relatives who have city connections who would be able to get a speeding ticket overturned, most L.C.C.C. students are from outside of Nanticoke and do not.

On a related note, it seems unlikely that the construction on Kosciuszko and Main will be completed by August 28, so expect some congestion as a result of that. L.C.C.C. students should plan accordingly, allowing extra time to reach the school or considering an alternate route along Middle Road (exit 2 off of Route 29, heading west.) Note that Middle Road is a long, narrow, winding road through a residential area, and also has speed limits which are sometimes strictly enforced.

One last point: the street sign indicating "Kosciuszko Street" has been removed as part of the construction project, so incoming students may be confused as to where they should turn to get on this road. It is the north-south road that intersects with Main Street at the traffic light on the east side of Nanticoke. Just to make things more confusing, where the street continues north of Main Street for 50 feet towards the river, it is actually called "Jefkin Street" - and that sign is in place.

Pope John Paul II school library sale, September 8 - 10

The recent realignment of Catholic schools throughout the Diocese of Scranton has left many closed schools in its wake. One of those is Pope John Paul II school, located on the corner of Church and Hanover Streets, next to Holy Trinity Church. (This is the former Holy Trinity school building, but it was PJP II for at least the last 25 years, perhaps 27.)

There are many books that were a part of the Pope John Paul II school library that will not be being transferred to the new, central Catholic school for the region. These books are being put up for sale to the public.

The sale will be held at the former Pope John Paul II school at the corner of Hanover and Church streets in Nanticoke. The days of the sale will be:

Saturday, September 8, 3 PM to 6 PM
Sunday, September 9, 9 AM to 1 PM
Monday, September 10, 12 PM to 3 PM

Prices will be $0.10 - $0.25 for softcover books and $0.50 - $1.00 for hardcovers.

South Valley Heritage Days, August 8-11 2007

In an earlier post I mentioned the "Nanticoke Heritage Days". Turns out I was wrong - these are the South Valley Heritage Days, going on on Lower Broadway in Nanticoke.

Here are the details, from an article in today's Times-Leader:

WHAT: South Valley Heritage Days
WHEN: Wednesday-Saturday
WHERE: Nanticoke Fairgrounds, Lower Broadway
NOTES: Admission is free. Food, crafts and games will be featured.
INFO: 735-6990

Music will be provided nightly, from 6 to 10, and will include:

Wednesday: Polka band Jolly Joe and the Bavarians
Thursday: Local recording band 40 Lb. Head
Friday: Oz Band
Saturday: John Stanky, from 3:30-5:30 p.m., followed by X Country at 6 p.m. during Bike Night.

Special events each night:

Wednesday:
Heritage Days festivities kick off at 5 p.m. Wednesday when officials tap a keg of root beer.

Minivan shuttle service will pick up residents from the three senior citizen high-rise towers in Nanticoke hourly on Wednesday during the polka-themed night. Glen Lyon residents can be picked up at 5 p.m. at the senior citizen center with a return trip at 9 p.m.

Thursday:
Children may have their pictures taken while sitting in a race car Thursday during the motorsports-themed night.

The Danko race team from the Giants Despair Hillclimb in Wilkes-Barre Township will make an appearance, and antique, restored and stock cars will be featured.

Friday:
Fire departments throughout the county have been invited to participate in a 6 p.m. parade on Friday during Fireman’s Night.

Saturday:
Motorcyclists will leave from Nanticoke High School on Kosciuszko Street at 2 p.m. Saturday on a course through Back Mountain, Glen Lyon, Wilkes-Barre, Hanover Township and Nanticoke.

Potato pancake eating contest at 4 p.m. Saturday.

National Night Out in Nanticoke, August 7 2007

Nanticoke will take part in the crime prevention event National Night Out on Tuesday, August 7 starting at 4:00 PM. Events will take place at the St. John's Picnic Grounds on Front Street in the Hanover Section of Nanticoke (click here for directions).

From the Times Leader website:
With talks by Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas and the Nanticoke Police Department, food and beverages, music by OZ, face painting and games.
Phone: 570-735-3659

Nanticoke Heritage Days, August 8 - 11

NOTE: This event is actually the South Valley Heritage Days. Please see this post for more derails.

I am still looking for information on this event, which I just learned about by way of a sign on a bench at the bottom of Kosciuszko Street. All I know is that it will feature The Oz Band on Friday, and John Stanky possibly every day.

If anyone has any more information on the Nanticoke Heritage Days, please post it as a comment. Thanks!

Cabbage Roll 2007 is this weekend!

Rock 107 DJs Daniels and Webster will be broadcasting live from Lower Broadway in Nanticoke (just outside of Honeypot, near the Weis Market complex) this Friday, July 27 to support this weekend's Honey Pot Fire Company #6 Cabbage Roll! From the latest bulletin from the Cabbage Roll 2007 MySpace site:

Live broadcast from the Cabbage Roll Festival Lower Broadway Nanticoke, a 6am to 10 am Friday July 27th features Daniels and Webster from ROCK 107 FM Guest appearances from The NEPA Miners; Coal City Rollers; Pioneer Dance Team "The Hottest Ticket in Town”, Gentlemen’s Club 10 girls, Diamond City Rollers and more. Come and join in the fun and wake up to the dawning of the Cabbage Roll. Music is great and IT'S FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And from the previous bulletin:

Cabbage Roll 07

Friday July 27, 2007 5-11PM
Saturday July 28, 2007 Noon -11PM

Lower Broadway Fairgrounds Nanticoke, Pa

Music - Rides - Fireworks - Bike Show - Arts and Crafts Fair

Friday

Fireworks; Rides; Food; Games; Motorcycle Show, Arts and Craft Show and of course 40 lb Head; Beyond Fallen (Melissa Records Artists)

Special Cabbage Roll Challenge Match
NEPA Miners Pro Football Team (with Cheerleaders)
- Versus -
Coal City Rollers (Flat Track Female Roller Derby Team)
Special Referee: WWF Legend King Kong Bundy

Saturday

Arts and Craft Fair; Rides; Food; Games

Music by: RSO and Jolly Joe

Cabbage Roll on Cabbage Hill, Honey Pot with DJ Iceman 2-6 PM;
W-B Pioneers and Dance Team, Coal City Rollers and the NEPA Miners and Mystery Guests

Directions

From Harrisburg, Pa.
Take ramp onto I-81 NORTH toward HAZLETON/ALLENTOWN - go 97.3 mi
Take exit #164/PA-29 onto SOUTH CROSS VALLEY EXPY toward NANTICOKE - go 4.3 mi
Take exit #3 toward NANTICOKE - go 0.3 mi
Turn Left on SANS SOUCI PKY - go 0.4 mi
Continue on E MAIN ST - go 0.8 mi
Turn Right on N WALNUT ST - go 0.2 mi
Continue on ACCESS RD - go 0.0 mi
Arrive at ACCESS RD, NANTICOKE

From Binghamton, NY
Bear Right onto I-81 SOUTH toward NEW YORK/SCRANTON - go 51.6 mi
Take exit #194/PENNSYLVANIA TURNPIKE onto I-476 SOUTH - go 16.1 mi
Take exit #115 onto PA-315 SOUTH - go 1.5 mi
Bear Right onto I-81 SOUTH - go 10.4 mi
Take exit #164/PA-29 onto SOUTH CROSS VALLEY EXPY toward
NANTICOKE - go 4.1 mi
Take exit #3 toward NANTICOKE - go 0.3 mi
Turn Left on SANS SOUCI PKY - go 0.4 mi
Continue on E MAIN ST - go 0.8 mi
Turn Right on N WALNUT ST - go 0.2 mi
Continue on ACCESS RD - go 0.0 mi
Arrive at ACCESS RD, NANTICOKE

From Stroudsburg, Pa
Turn Right onto I-80 WEST - go 45.5 mi
Take exit #260B onto I-81
NORTH toward WILKES-BARRE - go 13.5 mi
Take exit #164/PA-29 onto SOUTH CROSS VALLEY EXPY toward NANTICOKE - go 4.3 mi
Take exit #3 toward NANTICOKE - go 0.3 mi
Turn Left on SANS SOUCI PKY - go 0.4 mi
Continue on E MAIN ST - go 0.8 mi
Turn Right on N WALNUT ST - go 0.2 mi
Continue on ACCESS RD - go 0.0 mi
Arrive at ACCESS RD, NANTICOKE

From Williamsport, Pa
Starting in WILLIAMSPORT, PA on MARKET ST go toward CHURCH ST - go 1.1 mi
Bear Left on MONTGOMERY RD[US-15] - go 0.6 mi
Continue to follow US-15 SOUTH - go 15.3 mi
Take the I-80 EAST exit toward BLOOMSBURG - go 30.5 mi
Take exit #241B onto US-11 EAST toward BERWICK - go 25.9 mi
Turn Right on LOWER BROADWAY ST - go 0.6 mi
Turn Right on ACCESS RD - go 0.0 mi
Arrive at ACCESS RD, NANTICOKE

Lots of stuff that is free:
Music, fireworks,meeting King Kong Bundy,Coal City Rollers,NEPA Miners, W-B Pioneers, enter the bike show, and watch the greatest sport in the World: Cabbage Rolling!

Hang with us Friday morning with Daniels and Webster
Rock 107 Legends at the Fairgrounds 6-10AM

Go to the official Cabbage Roll 2007 website for more details!

The Great Nanticoke Yard Sale is this Saturday, July 14!

This Saturday, anyone driving through Nanticoke will be greeted with a strange sight: yard sale after yard sale, as Nanticoke holds what is now being billed as "The Great Nanticoke Yard Sale Part II A"! (Part II B will be held sometime in September.) Come to Nanticoke this Saturday and see what the people of this city have to offer!

For more information, go here:
http://www.nanticokecity.com/yardsale.htm

Upcoming events

Upcoming events in and around Nanticoke:

Holy Trinity Church Annual Homecoming Festival, Friday July 6 and Saturday, July 7, 5:00 PM - Midnight on the grounds of Holy Child Church, Sheatown
(Saturday Outdoor Mass, 4:00 PM at Holy Child Grove)
- Entertainment by X-Country (Friday) and 40 Lb. Head (Saturday)
- Homemade Polish Foods, Games, Refreshments
- Stop in at the Holy Child Orphanage to browse their final "Flea Market" - Fill a bag for $2.00
- Flowers and plants donated by A&J Florist will be available to buy

Cabbage Roll 2007 T-shirts on sale Saturday, July 7, noon - 6:00 PM, Honey Pot Fire House, 13 Honey Pot Street, Nanticoke
- All sizes adult and children's, $10 each
- See their official website for more information

Greater Nanticoke Area Drug Task Force golf tournament July 9, 2007 at the Wyoming Valley Country Club
- Format is Captain & Crew
- Cost per foursome is $340.00
- For tournament information call Ken Malin at 814-9002 or Jim Samselski at 574-8111

City-wide Yard Sale, Saturday, July 14
Maps will be available at Patriots' Square on the day of the event, or just come to town and drive around from sale to sale!

Cabbage Roll 2007, July 27 and 28
See their official website for more information!