Phil Gianficaro
General Assignment ReporterA native of northeastern Pennsylvania, I've been a journalist for more than four decades. I've reported on events like the pope's visit and the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, local appearances by Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, covered the Flyers in the Stanley Cup finals, and the Eagles in the playoffs. However, the stories that have touched me most involve ordinary folks in our community. A 12-year-old boy getting the better of cancer; Holocaust survivors sharing horror stories they know the world needs to hear again and again; a little girl from Bucks County who grew up to become Miss America. These are the stories I'm committed to finding and sharing with our readers. About me: Married with a son and a daughter in college. Golf when I can. Morning coffee's a must; Favorite quote from my late mother: "There are givers and takers in this world, which do you want to be?" Contact me at PhilG@lehighvalleynews.com or 267-222-0540.
-
The former Whitehall Township Police Department station has been vacant for three years and costing the township money as it seeks a buyer. -
On July 1, the YMCA of Bucks and Hunterdon counties will merge with the Greater Valley YMCA in Pen Argyl to form the River Crossing YMCA.
-
Downed trees and power outages were the result of a powerful storm that pounded the Lehigh Valley on Wednesday night.
-
B Social, a state-of-the-art, multi-entertainment center and event venue, will hold its grand opening on July 15 at Saucon Square shopping center on Route 378 in Lower Saucon Township.
-
The Lehigh Valley ranks as the eighth-highest industrial market in the U.S., it was disclosed at a Lehigh Valley Planning Commission roundtable meeting on Friday.
-
US Rep. Susan Wild, D-7th District, and USDA Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small visited the Greater Valley YMCA in Pen Argyl on Thursday for the kickoff of its Summer Nutrition Program.
-
The City of Allentown held a Juneteenth Block Party celebration at Center Square on Tuesday, commemorating the last bastion of slavery in the U.S. in 1865.
-
A continuance was granted for the sixth time this year to Paxos Group real estate company for a hearing before the Whitehall Township Zoning Hearing Board on charges it has violated a zoning ordinance prohibiting the renting or leasing of condominiums as apartments on Arey Lane.
-
The Lehigh County funded Mid-Atlantic Rehabilitation Services, or MARS, opened a new substance abuse-related treatment center in Allentown on Friday.The FORT program (Families Obtaining Recovery Together) will join the slate of treatment options offered, making this groundbreaking program available to more Lehigh County residents free of charge.
-
On Sunday morning, the Zion’s Reformed United Church of Christ in Allentown will hold its reopening worship service for the first time since it closed in 2022.
-
The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission's comprehensive planning committee on Tuesday reviewed plans for several area projects, including development of the former Allentown State Hospital site.
-
Lehigh University hosted a DEI and global education expert, Amer F. Ahmed, Ph.D., at an International Education Week event on Monday.
-
A Veterans Day panel discussion was held at ArtsQuest Center on Friday night. Among the four panelists was Artimus Pyle, former drummer for the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd who served with the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War.
-
The Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce annual meeting attracted about 1,000 at Wind Creek Event Center Thursday afternoon.The event brought together members of the business community — colleagues, customers and competitors — to celebrate their collective mission of making the region a better place to work and live.
-
Brian C. McGoldrick, 42, of Glenside, on Tuesday received a sentence of 5-to-19 years in state prison in the death of Catherine Ann Neelon in a September 2022 head-on collision.
-
Hundreds visited Holy Infancy Church in South Bethlehem on Tuesday to pay homage to the relic of St. Jude, which is making a North American tour. The Apostle’s arm was removed from a tomb at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome years ago and bone fragments were placed in a wood reliquary carved in the shape of an arm imparting a blessing.
-
U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, D-Lehigh Valley, hosted a roundtable discussion on the child care crisis at Bethlehem YMCA on Tuesday.
-
After 40 years with the Boys & Girls Club of Allentown, CEO Deb Fries-Jackson is retiring. The Allentown native and former school teacher was instrumental in the merger of the local Girls Club and Boys Club in 2002.
-
The Lehigh County District Attorney's Office on Monday announced the recovery of more than $115,000 to a Salisbury Township man who was scammed during an online real estate transaction earlier this year.
-
When word went out from a Bethlehem church ministry that it needed a clothes dryer for its pay-as-you-can community cafe, its prayers were answered by the generosity of a fellow city church.
-
The Allentown School District held Unity Day events at its 15 elementary schools on Wednesday. The message at each focused on bullying prevention, as October is National Bullying Prevention Month.
-
Several sightings of black bears have been reported recently in residential areas of Bethlehem Township. Despite the animal not typically being aggressive toward humans, the Pennsylvania Game Commission advises not to approach or entice a black bear.
