Brian Kochis

Wanted by: Scranton office, state Board of Probation and Parole.

Fugitive since: May 17.

Wanted for: Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and disorderly conduct. Sentenced to 10 months to three years of incarceration. Paroled May 13.

Description: White male, 29 years old, 6 feet 4 inches tall, 220 pounds, blue eyes, brown hair.

Contact: Agent Brian Rikli, 570-614-7287 or 800-932-4857.

Matthew Drogan

Wanted by: Scranton office, state Board of Probation and Parole.

Fugitive since: April 3.

Wanted for: Theft by deception (two counts), receiving stolen property, bad checks, possession of drug paraphernalia. Sentenced to two years, three months to 10 years of incarceration. Paroled March 13, 2016.

Description: White man, 30 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 175 pounds, red/auburn hair, blue eyes.

Contact: Agent Sean Graham, 570-614-7283 or 800-932-4857.

Lisa Setzer

Wanted by: Scranton office, state Board of Probation and Parole.

Fugitive since: Feb. 9.

Wanted for: Theft of movable property. Sentenced to six months, 22 days to two years of incarceration. Paroled Feb. 25, 2016.

Description: White woman, 35 years old, 5 feet 2 inches tall, 145 pounds, brown hair, brown eyes.

Contact: Agent Bill Brennan, 570-614-7237 or 800-932-4857.

Brandell Simon

Wanted by: Scranton office, state Board of Probation and Parole.

Fugitive since: July 29, 2015.

Wanted for: Possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance (cocaine). Sentenced to nine months to three years of incarceration. Paroled July 27, 2015.

Description: Black man, 29 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 150 pounds, black hair, brown eyes.

Contact: Agent Joe Harte, 570-614-7247 or 800-932-4857.

Edwin Torres

Wanted by: Scranton office, state Board of Probation and Parole.

Fugitive since: March 3.

Wanted for: Burglary. Sentenced to four years to 10 years, four months of incarceration. Paroled Aug. 27.

Description: Hispanic man, 39 years old, 5 feet 6 inches tall, 185 pounds, bald, brown eyes.

Contact: Agent Joe Harte, 570-614-7247 or 800-932-4857.

Zameron Zrudlo has a good right arm for a 5-year-old boy, hitting the dunk tank target with his third throw and dumping the adult volunteer into the tub below.

“It was cold water!” an excited Zameron said afterward.

The dunk tank was just one of many activities for kids at the second annual Miracles at Geisinger Mount Pleasant Family Festival at the clinic in Scranton.

Zameron and his 5-year-old friend Madison Grandville got to meet several of their favorite superheroes, including Batman (played by Geisinger physician Anthony Wylie, D.O.).

The event raised money for the Children’s Miracle Network at Geisinger, a nonprofit organization that supports pediatric services, equipment and programs throughout the Geisinger Health System.

Funds raised by the organization have helped Geisinger do things like provide state-of-the-art pediatric care, pay for children with illnesses like cancer and spina bifida to attend specialized summer camps and provide health education to the community.

To raise money, the organizers of the event auctioned gift baskets, welcomed Scranton firefighters and a firetruck, and provided games for the kids.

“It’s all about the kids having fun,” said Jennifer Mitchko, a licensed practical nurse and the clinic supervisor at Geisinger Mount Pleasant, who oversaw the event.

Contact the writer:

pcameron@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5365;

@pcameronTT on Twitter

To donate to or volunteer for the Children’s Miracle Network at Geisinger, call 1-800-322-5437 or go to their website at www.geisinger.org/sites/cmn.

Marywood University held its 99th annual commencement ceremony Saturday at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre Twp.

The university’s four colleges — the Reap College of Education and Human Development, the Insalaco College of Creative and Performing Arts, the College of Health and Human Services, and the Munley College of Liberal Arts and Sciences — as well as its School of Architecture and the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, conferred more than 900 degrees to undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students.

Social work, business administration and physician assistant were the top graduate level degree-granting programs. Nursing, psychology and architecture were the top undergraduate level degree-granting programs.

“The graduates ... have distinguished themselves in scholarship and service,” said Sister Mary Persico, I.H.M., Ed.D., president of Marywood University. “They bring creativity, dignity and humanity to a world waiting for the skills they have developed here, and for the integrity that is reflected in all that they do. We will miss them and we are better for having known them.”

The principal speaker at Saturday’s ceremony was Dunmore native Jill Dougherty, CNN foreign correspondent and former Moscow bureau chief, distinguished visiting practitioner at the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy and Governance, and a global fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C.

CENTER FOR

INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES

DOCTORAL DEGREES

Erin Ann Dunleavy, Scranton; Meagan Julia Mielczarek, Madison Twp.; Katherine J. Stefanelli, Clarks Summit.; Theresa Ann Tulaney, Covington Twp.

REAP COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

MASTER’S DEGREES

Saif Mohammad Alqhtaani, Dunmore; Hind Ahmed Alshahrani, Scranton; Jared Arzie, Dickson City; Amanda Nicole Battle, Jermyn; Claudia T. Bayly, Waymart; Archita Bhalotia, Scranton; Martin James Bifano Jr., Simpson; Ashley Bognatz, Carbondale; Morgan Catherine Brady, Archbald; Paul J. Brojack, Lawton; Brianna Marie Buonomo, Carbondale; Caitlin Burke, Wilkes-Barre; Ashley Cady, Kingsley; Santina Renee Cilento, Newfoundland; Kelly Ann Clark, Springville; Christina Connors, Scranton; Courtney Erin Conway, Mountain Top; John Anthony Craunakis, Tobyhanna; Christian M. Crinella, Archbald; Sarah Lynn Davis, Archbald; Bridget Jane Defalco, Freeland; Kaitlin Mara Dommermuth, Avoca; Doreen Suzanne Dougherty, Shavertown; Samantha Lynn Froio, Dickson City.; Kara M. Furman, Exeter; Andrea Genello, Scranton; Melissa Marie Gericke, Scranton; Molly Annette Jones, Scranton; Rachel Kester, Larksville; Brittany Ann Lehman, Kingston; Joel Lesh, Lake Ariel; Susan Katz Levin, South Abington Twp.; Jessica Lynn Lunger, Lawton; Briana Luppino, Scranton; Alyssa Rose McCarthy, Scranton; Helen T. McMinn, Clarks Summit; Joseph J. McTague, Scranton; Tiffany Aslinn Meek, Scranton; Savanna Michelle Mojtahedi, Scranton; Lauren Gail Monahan, South Abington Twp.; Megan Morrell, Moscow; Casey Annessa Mrykalo, South Abington Twp.; Natalie Murphy, Honesdale; Katelyn Marie Murray, Moscow; Christina E. Muthard, Moosic; Mark Phillip Oressey, Scranton; Melissa Jane Przewlocki, Mountain Top; Melissa Ann Ring, Dunmore; Amanda Marie Rosemergy, Hawley; Gina Rossitto, Lords Valley; Danielle Rozelle, Scranton; Jennifer Shebby Saslo, Factoryville; Rebecca Ann Siegfried, Newfoundland; Katy Allison Sulla, West Pittston; Marisa Troiani, Dickson City.; Samantha Woodard, Nanticoke; Jonathan R. Woytach, Duryea; Jessica Brianne Zaborny, Exeter.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Ashley Akers, South Abington Township; Emily Ann Banfield, Pocono Lake; Jason Edward Bartolomei, Scranton; Kaitlin Amanda Carr, Eynon; Brittany Ann Cole, Jermyn; Caroline Louise Drob, Scranton; Joe Ducas, Scranton; Erin Marie Duffy, Scranton; Ciarra Falzone, Dickson City; Patrick John Houlihan, Jessup; Tawny Husosky, Old Forge; Allison Olivia Krupski, Scranton; Martha Laytos, Scranton; Julia Catherine Lettieri, Scranton; Jessica Raine Moser, Scranton; Courtney Theresa Nolan, Archbald; Amanda L. Paci, Dallas; Nicole Lynn Rabecs, Dunmore; Abby L. Reid, Moscow; Nicole Ashley Roberts, Old Forge; Elizabeth Ann Roy, Canadensis; Bryon Allen Scholl, Scranton; Morgan Smith, Hanover Twp.; Shannon Ann Thomas, Lakeville; Mary Elizabeth Ware, Scranton.

INSALACO COLLEGE

OF CREATIVE AND PERFORMING ARTS

MASTER’S DEGREES

Honar Ameen Ali, Scranton; Razaz Sami Khawandanah, Scranton; Linda Frances Learn, Tunkhannock; Tracey R. Stanley, Meshoppen; Brandon N. Trainer, Dunmore.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Corrynn Noel Brown, Scranton; Zachary Matthew Bruzgo, Scranton; Kyle Patrick Clouse, Shohola; Haley Theresa Colarusso, Old Forge; Rebecca Darling, Dallas; Anne Duncan, Dunmore; Alexander Eiden, Scranton; John Walter Ferraro, Dickson City; Megan Eileen Gallik, Honesdale; Liza Gillette, Dunmore; Rachel A. Hines, Tunkhannock; Amanda Maureen Hirschler, Factoryville; Emma Lengyel, Scranton; Margaret Mary Makowski, Greenfield; Brian Alexander Kasperowski, Dickson City; Ty Mah, Honesdale; Darian Mosluk, Tunkhannock; Erin Murphy, Dickson City; Haley O’Brien, Scranton; Maura Elizabeth Olek, Moscow; Joshua Joseph Pavlico, Dallas; Courtnie Paige Perri, Dunmore; Kristen Gabriella Pietryka, Old Forge; Ali Najib Sidiki, Scranton; Emily Spory, Scranton; Irene Torresani, Scranton; Kelsey Brown Van Horn, Tunkhannock.

COLLEGE OF HEALTH

AND HUMAN SERVICES

MASTER’S DEGREES

Hadeel Hashim Almairfi, Scranton; Christina Lynn Anderson, Scranton; Vinnette E. Anderson, Tobyhanna; Ohoud Basoudan, Dunmore; Stephanie Virginia Bryant, Equinunk; Courtney Elizabeth Clark, Waverly Twp.; Chelsea Taylor Collins, Throop; Jessica Cupano, Larksville; Kelsi E. Curran, Dickson City; Olivia Susan Damweber, Scranton; Ligia E. Delorme, Saylorsburg; Erin P. Devine, South Abington Twp.; Dawn Dimaria, Forty Fort; Meganne Ditzler, Scranton; Miki E. Drutchal, Clarks Summit; Vanessa Durland, Meshoppen; Anna Elkin-Wren, Forty Fort; Meghan Fisch, Scranton; Tristan A. Groover, Mayfield; Mariah Marie Hachan, Carbondale; Samantha Jones, Scranton; Kevin Karimi, Scranton; Marisol Mantilla, Blakeslee.; Kimberly A. Marcyoniak, Dickson City; Elizabeth M. McDonald, Scranton; William P. Miller, Taylor; Holly J. Morgan, Taylor; Taylor E. Ott, Taylor; Chantal F. Rich, Scranton; Joy Richardson, Effort; James A. Scacchitti, Dunmore; Colette Sharpley, Moosic; Stacie M. Smith, Scranton; Katherine M. Szymanski, Honesdale; Kelly Grace Vermeeren, Olyphant; Ida Margaret Vigo, Bushkill; Michele M. Wadud, Hawley; Erica Elizabeth Yerke, Clarks Summit; Nicole Marie Zaleski, Scott Twp.; and Emily S. Zaprazny, Mountain Top.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Lilian M. Applegate, Carbondale; Najia Azizi, Scranton; Brianne G. Bianco, Union Dale; Holly Maria Blum, Milansville; Michael Edward Boylan, Scranton; Kerry Cantreva, Scott Twp.; Kathryn H. Conahan, Ashley; Leah Faith Cornejo, Scranton; Caitlyn Marie Cunningham, Edwardsville; Kristina M. Grennon, Lake Ariel; Christina Marie Hernandez, Dickson City; Jocelyn Arrena Hillman, Scranton; Ayana Ismailova, Greentown; Cassandra Jarrow, Archbald; Michael Joyce, Scranton; Alexis Kirsch, Scranton; Christopher Kovaleski, Avoca; Jamie Lee LaPointe, Scranton; Adam T. Larsen, Cresco; Victoria E. Lee, Old Forge; Ashly N. Lenzer, Gouldsboro; Charity Kaeni Manundu, Wilkes-Barre; Alyssa R. Marmo, Old Forge; Adrian McClendon, Clarks Summit,; Rebecca A. Melliand, Dickson City.; Vinelys D. Mendez, Tobyhanna,; Maura Christine Merli, Blakely; Victoria Meyers, Lake Ariel; James Moore, Simpson; Gina Maria Morgese, Carbondale; Maureen B. Royce, Bushkill; Jordan N. Schantz, Scranton; Natalie Shifler, Carbondale; Matthew J. Staback, Blakely; Nicholas John Strenkoski, Taylor; Danielle A. Terranella, Olyphant; Nicole J. Trapper, Scranton; Dasha Tyson, Hawley; Natalie Marie Wasko, Scranton; Kaylyn Ann Wiestling, Jessup; Kara Cassandra Yurkanin, Jessup.

MUNLEY COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES

MASTER’S DEGREES

Lena Yousef Alameer, Scranton; Asrar Hassan Aldadi, Scranton; Samia Wesamh D. Alrabghi, Scranton; Abdulrahman Abdullah A. Alyahya, Dunmore; Maha Saad Alyami, Dunmore; Rajeen Afshin Amin, Clarks Summit; William David Bainbridge, Scranton; Brendan Dewitt Christopher Brown, Scranton; Brittany Ann Caffrey, Carbondale; Thomas S. Christopher, Honesdale; Macy Diana Decker, Dingmans Ferry; Randy Donato, Dunmore; Keerthivardhan Dontharaboina, Scranton; Roman Ealo Jr., Scott Twp.; Kayla Aurora Froese, Clifton Twp.; Jennifer Lynn Gerrity, Scranton; Aaron Joseph Ghent, Scranton; Brian Dean Goble Jr., Gibson; Jenna K. Guerra, Olyphant; Alelia Emilee Hall-Thompson, Scranton; Ryan John Kavulich, Scranton; Madiha Fayyaz Khan, Blakely; Molly MacDonald, Scranton; Christina M. Mace, Scranton; Siqi Mo, Scranton; Daniel Vincent Moderski, Exeter; Shwan M. Mohammed, Scranton; Bridget Moran, Scranton; Andrea O’Neill-Hoffman, Scranton; Brian Palma, Old Forge; Charles Alexander Parente, Duryea; Taral Patel, Dunmore; Patrick Joseph Ruane, Throop; Kelly Ann Shaffer, Dunmore; Batima Shagiyeva, Scranton; Kayla Marie Trygar, Dunmore; Ajay Vaidya, Scranton; Michalena Marie Vitucci, Throop; James Wansacz, Old Forge; Natalia Watson, Clarks Summit.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Marilyn Ruth Anderson, South Abington Twp.; Joshua Aulisio, Old Forge; Dominick J. Avvisato Jr., Old Forge; Catharine M. Brennan, Browndale; Joseph Gerald Chowanec, Dickson City; Heather Ann Cook, Union Dale; Steven C. Coyne, Scranton; Lindsey Marie Crean, Canadensis; Morgan E. Curran, Factoryville; Nadine Ann Davitt, Dickson City; Kyle J. Devereaux, Throop; Nolan M. Docherty, Scranton; Nicholas John Dragwa, Carbondale; Michael Sean Duffy, Scranton; Sarah Marie Duffy, Dunmore; Charles Engleman, Scranton; Olivia Lois Farrell, Archbald; Kelvin W. Fitzgerald Jr., Clarks Summit; Thomas A. Gaccione, Carbondale; Jonathon Gething, Olyphant; Elizabeth A. Gillow, Peckville; James T. Goetz, Hawley; Joseph R. Gorgol, Scranton; Tanya Lynn Harty, Lake Ariel; Rachel J. Higgins, Scranton; Kelsey Louise Janesko, Moosic; Sally Catherine Jellock, Lake Ariel; Corey Francis Xavier Joyce, Scranton; Casey Rae Kasisky, Falls; Melissa Lyn Keisling, Clarks Summit; Melanie A. Kobela, Mountain Top; Julianna Irene Kozuch, Jermyn; Colleen E. Kramer, Duryea; Paul M. Kraycer, Peckville; Eleyna Nicole Lamparter, Gouldsboro; Matthew Lawless, Dunmore; Maria Francesca Lawrence, Dunmore; Aubrey LeDonne, Dunmore; Jamie Marisa Linde, Olyphant; Jessie Katrina Linde, Olyphant; Bruce Lindemuth, Scott Twp.; Justin M. Liu, Scranton; Nicole Meshko, Scranton.; Connor Miller, Scranton; Joseph Walter Munifo, Carbondale; Brandon Joseph Murray, Dunmore; Courtney Grace Murray, Dunmore; Bozhidar S. Neshkov, South Abington Twp.; Lauren E. Notchick, Honesdale; Carly Noelle Odynsky, Milford; Kerri Ann Orr, Moscow; Patrick Michael Padula Jr., Dunmore; Krupa Patel, Scranton; Payal Patel, Scranton; Tobias Clayton Percario, Hallstead; Megan Lynn Phillips, White Haven; Daniel Luis Piette, Lake Ariel; Nicole Anne Pizzola, Dunmore; Michael Steven Plate, Hawley; Aaron James Riley, Scranton; Christopher Romeo, Olyphant; Gabriella Rossi, Archbald; Sarah Gabrielle Rotell, Archbald; Umidjon Saifur Rahman, Scranton; Danni J. Scribani, Scranton; Cory A. Stewart, Clarks Summit; Kayla Nicole Strausser, Gouldsboro; Ryan Swanson, Thompson; Skyler Justin Swope, Dunmore; Dawn Leanne Talley, Lake Ariel; Nicole Elizabeth Tanana, Olyphant.; Nathan Benjamin Terelmes, Dunmore; Michael Thomas, Scott Twp.; Frederick Francis Tolerico III, Carbondale; Taryn Nicole Tolerico, Scranton; Jason T. Trahan, Plains Twp., Keith John Valinski, Blakely; Brandi Elizabeth Vispi, Peckville; Matthew D. Weiler, Nicholson; William Adam Paul Weiss IV, Harding

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

MASTER’S DEGREES

Caitlin M. Denny, New Milford; Danielle Marie Di Leone, Saylorsburg; Amanda Marie Reesey, Scranton; Emily Jane Scappatura, Dalton; and Zimu Zhang, Scranton.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Joseph John Amendola, Dupont; Sophia Margaret Assaf-Bautista, Scranton; Thomas E. Carolan, Moscow; Domenico William Granci, Clarks Summit; Kurt Garrett Kimsey, Montrose; Andrew Dylan Mitchell, Scranton; Brian T. Mlodzienski, Avoca; David Olivetti Jr., Dunmore; Emily Elizabeth Pieshefski, Olyphant; Robert W. Trapper, Scranton; and Nicholas Vincent Zaino, Duryea.

Marywood University’s commencement also included January 2017 graduates, who participated in the May 2017 ceremony. Area graduates include

CENTER FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES

DOCTORAL DEGREES

Joanne Marie Bohrman, Tobyhanna; Kelly Carroll, Forty Fort; James Anthony Feuerstein, Pocono Lake; Lisa Imbriaco, Clarks Summit; Helene C. Strutko, Harveys Lake.

REAP COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

MASTER’S DEGREES

Alexander Levi Barbolish, Nicholson; Alicia Marie Bognatz, Carbondale; Molly Catherine Chafin, Dunmore; Kathleen N. Childs, Hazle Twp.; Katie Michelle Chowanec, Dickson City; Nicole Mary Nunbar, Old Forge; Katherine Herbster, Scranton; Natalie N. Lucas, Archbald; Christine Brianna Matis, Scranton; Heather Lynne McDonald, Wyoming; Mackenzie Morcom, Clifford Twp.; Brittney Catherine Morse, Factoryville; Kayla Marie Prompovitch, Dickson City; Jason Edwin Vogt, Prompton; and Jennifer Fay Washicosky, Moscow.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Kristy Ambrosecchia, Scranton; Ashley Buckley, Taylor; Cassie Marie Caldwell, Mountain Top; Kaethe Christelle Fajardo, Archbald; Ashley Garrido, Saylorsburg; Katherine Grow, Clarks Summit; Rebecca Elizabeth Icker, Scranton; Vanessa C. Latorre, Peckville; Jamielynn Little, Scranton; Brianna Maher, Scranton; Leanne Jennifer McManus, Wilkes-Barre; Brittany M. Odell, Honesdale; Deanna Ramdeo, Scotrun; Victoria Angelina Rinaldi, Throop; Mary Elizabeth Swift, Clarks Summit; Collin Widdick, Taylor; Ryan James Widenor, Peckville.

INSALACO COLLEGE OF CREATIVE AND PERFORMING ARTS

MASTER’S DEGREES

Zachary Michael Graham, Clarks Summit.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Amber Elizabeth Baab, Mountain Top; Cory Callejas, Archbald; McKensie Lynn Curnow, Greenfield Twp.; Alicia Marie Kulick, Spring Brook Twp.; Deanna Maria Szabo, Hunlock Creek; and Zachary Lee Yahn, Clarks Summit.

COLLEGE OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

MASTER’S DEGREES

Amani Layth Alsagheer, Scranton; Abrar S. Anbralii, Scranton; Vanessa G. De Jesus, Eynon; Peter Jason Ligi, Mayfield; Kyle Ryan Thomas, Drums.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Sarah Blackwell, Jermyn; Shannon M. Evarts, Scranton; John A. Novack, Tunkhannock; Troy Prescott, Avoca; Shamara Quinonez, Wilkes-Barre; Maria Ashley Temples, Gouldsboro; Samuel Walker, Clarks Green; Elisabeth G. Wilson, Scranton.

MUNLEY COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES

MASTER’S DEGREES

Naif Obaid Alotaibi, Scranton; Anwaar Anbrali, Scranton; Karissa M. Cawley, Dunmore; Ryan DeRose, Dickson City; Stephen Mark Eberle II, Factoryville; Randall Matthew Ettinger, Scranton; Khushbu G. Patel, Scranton; Suthar Aditi Prakashkumar, Scranton; James Wansacz, Old Forge; Haoran Xie, Scranton; Thomas Steven Yanochko, Blakely.

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Rajeen Afshin Amin, Clarks Summit; Mark W. Beezup, Old Forge; Joy Cathleen Uy Brennan, Dunmore; Kaleb W. Davis, Lake Ariel; Kelly Fagan, Moscow; Heather Lynn Goyne, Ashley; Peter Inirio, Scranton; Paul K. Kremsner, Milford; Michael A. Lawrence, Archbald; Robert I. Lewis, Covington Twp.; Gabriel Frank Morrison, Scranton; Prachi J. Pathak, Scranton; Michael Reviello, Taylor; Farhanaz Shurmach, Scranton; Brandi Elizabeth Vispi, Blakely; Mary Elizabeth Vispi, Blakely.

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

Renee Schlittler, Moscow; Gregory A. Goldstein, Scranton.

Judge Michael Barrasse sentenced the following defendants recently in Lackawanna County Court:

• Matthew J. Totten Jr., 30, Dunmore, to 1½ to three years in state prison, two years of probation and $1,753.39 in restitution for receiving stolen property.

• Michelle Smith, 33, 961 Aberdeen Road, Madison Twp., to eight to 18 months in county jail and 18 months of probation for escape.

• Jason Allan Fulton, 38, homeless, to 22 months to five years in state prison and two years of probation for forgery, possession of drug paraphernalia and delivery of a controlled substance.

• Malkolm Zachary Blackshear, 24, 2 Connell St., Old Forge, to 13 to nearly four years in state prison and one year of probation for resisting arrest and accidents involving death or personal injury.

• Gerard Michael Valonis Jr., 42, Dickson City, to 2½ to five years in state prison and a $1,500 fine for DUI — second offense, tier three.

• Ashley Luchansky, 30, Taylor, to two years of court supervision and three years of probation for possession with intent to deliver.

• Brian Barney, 25, Houtzdale, to 25 months to five years in state prison and three years of probation for resisting arrest, false ID to authorities and receiving stolen property.

• Gerard Flynn, 41, 25 Kennedy Blvd., Taylor, to four years of court supervision and a $1,500 fine for DUI — second offense.

• Patrick John Cawley, 25, Scranton, to one to five years in state prison and a $1,500 fine for DUI — second offense.

• Robert Lynch, 62, 904 W. Market St., Scranton, to three years of court supervision including three months house arrest for possession of a controlled substance followed by one year of probation for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Judge Margaret Bisignani Moyle sentenced:

• Shawn Taylor, 28, Bronx, New York, to one to three years in state prison for conspiracy to commit possession with intent to deliver.

• Suffian Abdullah Johnson, 28, Scranton, to four days (time served) in county jail for harassment.

• Charles J. Merrifield Jr., 36, Scranton, to one to five years in state prison for aggravated assault.

• Ibrahim Sharif, 21, 22 S. Hancock St., Wilkes-Barre, to six months to three years in state prison and two years of probation for possession with intent to deliver, reckless endangerment and fleeing.

• Tyler Baress, 516 N. Rebecca Ave., Scranton, to one year, six months to 23 months in Lackawanna County Prison for theft from a motor vehicle and firearm not to be carried followed by one year of probation for loitering and prowling at night.

• Jason Bryan, 316 Ferdinand St., Scranton, to three years probation for theft by unlawful taking.

Judge Vito Geroulo sentenced:

• Tabitha S. Bidgood, 27, 135 E. Main St., Plymouth, to two to five years in state prison and one year of probation for tampering with evidence and possession with intent to deliver.

• Darrin O’Connell, 19, 1122 Ash St., Scranton, to one year of probation for disorderly conduct.

• Michael Durkin, 53, 6 Ferguson Place, Dunmore, to two years of probation for receiving stolen property and theft by unlawful taking.

• Michael Alan Ramos, 27, Dunmore, to about two to four years in state prison and $367 in restitution for robbery and possession of a small amount of marijuana.

• Noel Anthony Maldonado, 28, 474 Madison St., Wilkes-Barre, to 14 days (time served) to 18 months in county jail for possession with intent to deliver.

• Justin Williams, 24, 300 New York St., Scranton, to six months of court supervision including three days of house arrest and a $1,000 fine for DUI — tier three, first offense.

• Cary Tidwell, 52, Rear 344 Maple St., Scranton, to nine to 23 months in county jail and $7,000 in restitution for criminal mischief and reckless endangerment.

• Sean Gryczko, 30, 602 W. Grace St., Old Forge, to three to 23 months in state prison for criminal trespass.

• Gary Hoover, 51, Old Forge, to three to six months in county jail and a $500 fine for DUI — first offense, tier two.

• Gamel S. McFarland, 23, 539 Linden St., Scranton, to about three to seven years in state prison for possession

with intent to deliver and criminal use of a communication facility.

• Edward John Pryor, 40, 123 W. Morton St., Old Forge, to six months of probation and a $300 fine for DUI — tier one, first offense.

• Rachael Marie Glahn, 36, 876 Lower Mill City Road, Dalton, to three years of court supervision including two months of house arrest for acquire controlled substance by fraud.

• David Smith, 34, 333 Elm St., Scranton, to six months to two years in state prison for retail theft followed by three months of probation for harassment.

• Rahmel Wigfall, 32, 513 Schultz Court, Rm 4, Scranton, to 21 to 48 months in state prison for possession with intent to deliver followed by two years of probation for reckless endangerment.

• Gary Hoover, 51, 7 Connell St., Old Forge, to three to six months in county prison for DUI followed by six months of probation for possession of drug paraphernalia.

1. The University of Scranton’s $14 million athletics campus in South Scranton will be named after ...

A. The school’s longest-serving president, the Rev. Joseph Panuska, S.J.

B. Scranton Mayor Bill

Courtright.

C. The school’s 25th president, the Rev. Kevin P. Quinn, S.J.

D. Times-Tribune columnist Chris Kelly.

2. What will the summer be like in Northeast Pennsylvania, according to AccuWeather’s long-range forecast for June, July and August?

A. Wetter and cooler than last summer.

B. Hotter than normal, with temperatures in the 90s through most of July and August.

C. Cool and dry, with autumn-like temperatures as early as July.

D. Humid and stormy, with more thunderstorms than normal.

3. Which local Veterans of Foreign Wars post is celebrating its 100th anniversary later this year?

A. Shopa-Davey VFW Post 6082.

B. Theodore J. Wint VFW Post 25.

C. John J. Michaels VFW Post 5207.

D. Jessup VFW Post 5544.

4. Performances by a group of dancers called Chinelos, based in Scranton, are keeping alive traditions of their native ...

A. Peru.

B. Boliva.

C. Spain.

D. Mexico.

5. Which of the following did Dunmore Elementary Center fourth-graders use as part of special lessons put on by staffers with the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit?

A. Drones and iPads.

B. Dodgeballs and tennis rackets.

C. Chalk and paint.

D. Graphing calculators and pens.

6. According to police, why did a Scranton man spit at Geisinger Community Medical Center staff and punch a security guard in the head earlier this month?

A. He was angry he could not visit a sick relative.

B. He was upset he couldn’t smoke in his hospital room.

C. He accused a doctor of withholding medication.

D. He could not find the exit.

7. How will the Everhart Museum fund planned renovations that will make more space for updated displays and art education?

A. A capital campaign to raise $1 million from private donors.

B. It will auction off several donated minor works by famous painters, including Picasso and Rothko.

C. A $220,000 state grant.

D. It will hold a series of “Paint ’n’ Sip” nights.

8. The Lackawanna County commissioners are considering purchasing a medical office building on Wyoming Avenue for what?

A. New location for Central Court

B. Backup 911 center

C. A new county park

D. Extra parking for the Lackawanna County Prison

9. Recently opened restaurant Patti’s Pitas is relocating to what town?

A. Scranton

B. Moosic

C. Wilkes-Barre

D. Pittston

10. Jermyn Borough Council is expected to approve a measure asking Lackawanna County commissioners:

A. To perform a countywide tax reassessment.

B. To rename the county Jermyn.

C. To lower county taxes for seniors.

D. To take over maintenance of borough roads.

Answers:

1. C; 2. A; 3. B; 4. D; 5. A; 6. B; 7. C; 8. A; 9. D; 10. A

MOOSIC — Dozens hobbled into the lounge at PNC Field with canes and walkers, some with loved ones holding their elbows.

About 80 sat to hear a surgeon pitch a solution to their mobility woes.

Dr. Tom Meade, orthopedic surgery chairman with Lehigh Valley-based Coordinated Health, laid out his health system’s model for outpatient knee replacement on a cool March evening.

The procedure, Meade said, uses progressive pain management without opioid painkillers and often gets patients walking on their artificial joints just hours after surgery.

“We’ve always tried to do things that got patients up quicker with less pain,” Meade said. “Comparatively, I think we’ve done a lot better than some of the bigger hospitals.”

Coordinated Health has been staking territory in Northeast Pennsylvania since 2015, when it opened its northernmost office in Pittston.

Greg Ogden, 56, of Scranton, sought out Meade at the recommendation of his wife, a nurse.

He’s a supervisor with Middleswarth potato chips now, but he spent more than two decades crouching hundreds of times a week delivering potato chips to grocery stores, convenience stores and restaurants.

“In the chip business, you’re always on your knees,” he said. “You’re always up and down on hardwood and tile floors. I did that for 20-some years.”

The repetition eventually wrecked his knees.

On Feb. 29, 2016, Meade performed the surgery in Allentown, and Ogden was home by 2 p.m., he said.

Pain increased as the drugs wore off, but he was able to walk up and down the stairs that day. Two weeks later, Ogden was back to work.

By April, he was golfing with his league again and that year helped his team win their tournament, he said.

Founded in 1987, the physician-owned health system arrives as a contender to the region’s established health networks, with potential to scoop up patients in an region already flush with hospitals and spur competition to provide better care.

“Pennsylvania is considered over-bedded, from an acute care view, so I think there’s lots of room to try and consolidate,” said Dennis Shea, a Penn State health policy and administration professor.

The trick is synthesizing the three provider types — for profit, nonprofit and physician owned — which all deliver care differently.

For comparison’s sake, Coordinated Health has specialty hospitals and outpatient centers, where its doctors, who share ownership of the system, focus mostly on orthopedic medicine, women’s health and cardiac care.

In August, Coordinated broke ground for a 42,000-square-foot campus in Hazle Twp., its 17th facility, expected to open later this year.

There, doctors will perform joint replacement surgery, as well as offer women’s and heart health and imaging services.

At its Pittston clinic, it offers rehabilitation and patient consultations among other typical outpatient services.

Commonwealth Health, the northeast’s largest health system, is for-profit and beholden to shareholders.

Spokeswoman Renita Fennick said Coordinated Health’s claim to narcotic-free, same-day joint replacement is nothing new.

“We offer same-day joint replacement surgery and opioid-free surgery, providing those options are the most appropriate and responsible for that patient’s treatment plan,” she said in an email. “We always place the patient’s safety and comfort above expediency.”

Geisinger, a nonprofit, provides broad acute care services and has its own insurance plan.

Dr. Michael Suk, an orthopedic surgeon and Geisinger’s chief physician officer suggested the thrust shouldn’t be so much on the operating room, but on the patient’s condition leading up to a fall or eventual need for joint replacement.

As the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a key driver in health care policy matters, pushes providers to consider the value of their health care rather than the volume, Suk said a large entity like Geisinger has more leverage to offer patients preventive care.

“What’s the cost savings we could do from preventing the surgical episode in the first place?” he said. “And that’s, like, a really odd thing for a surgeon to say, right?”

An October 2016 report in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons said general hospitals have not seen patient numbers drop amid the rise of physician-owned surgical hospitals, which suggests Coordinated’s arrival to the area won’t encroach on the other hospitals’ business.

“Our baby boomers are moving toward not just maturity, but getting to the point where they’re hitting the 65 and older group,” Suk said, suggesting an aging population will create stronger demand for orthopedic medicine. “It’s natural to assume that body parts will begin to wear out and bones will get thinner as we age.”

Health groups and independent providers have seen that trend and are trying to capitalize on it.

Research shows that physician-owned hospitals spurred competition, and hospitals streamlined to improve their care while cutting costs and growing more profitable.

“The whole object here … is how do we provide higher quality at lower cost with good accessibility?” said Daniel West, a University of Scranton health care administration professor.

“I’ve always been a very strong believer in competition. It always improves quality because you have to look around at what your neighbors are doing and do it better,” he said.

Smaller, physician-owned systems can focus on fewer specialties, then capture a patient segment by gaining credit for exceptional quality, Shea said.

But when it comes to tackling bigger things, like complicated cases that mean patients have to step down through less intense levels of care before re-entering the community, or even social issues that make communities sicker, physician-owned systems have less leverage.

“These organizations focus less on those issues in comparison to a big health system or even a community hospital,” he said.

Contact the writer: joconnell@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9131; @jon_oc on Twitter.

Judge Raymond Hamill sentenced the following defen-

dants recently in Wayne County Court:

• David Christopher Adelar, 32, of Randolph, New Jersey, to 27 days to six months in county jail, 50 hours of community service and a $300 fine for DUI.

• Kira Florentine Boswell, 24, of Birdsboro, to one month to one year in county jail for possession of a controlled substance — methamphetamine.

PITTSTON TWP. — The fueling station that Ross Finlan helped bring to Pittston Twp. is the only place the public can buy compressed natural gas, or CNG, for their vehicles in Luzerne County.

That will change when the Luzerne County Transportation Authority offers the fuel to the public. A partnership between the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and Trillium Transportation Fuels LLC will see CNG stations at 29 transit stations across the state. Trillium will build and operate the stations.

Some of the stations will be open to the public, including LCTA’s. The construction of that public station is delayed while the LCTA considers building a new facility in downtown Wilkes-Barre.

Although the company Finlan works for — U.S. Gain — isn’t involved in the LCTA project, he said it will be good for the entire industry.

“We’re all kind of in this together,” said Finlan, the business development manager for U.S. Gain. “Maybe you’re bidding against each other, but at the same time every site that opens is really good for the industry.”

When U.S. Gain sets up a compressed natural gas fueling station, it contracts with an anchor tenant before building so it has a reliable customer. More fueling stations mean the infrastructure is in place to support more potential customers.

The U.S. Gain site in Pittston Twp. and a public station at LT Verrastro in Scranton will be joined by stations at LCTA’s new headquarters and at the headquarters for the County of Lackawanna Transit System.

Although anyone is allowed to use the stations, future customers will probably be those with fleets of vehicles.

The vehicles can be hard to find in the Wyoming Valley.

For example, MotorWorld, in Plains Twp. and Wilkes-Barre doesn’t sell any vehicles that use the fuel.

“I’m not even sure if it’s an option,” said President Rick Osick. “Many of the manufacturers offer the natural gas trucks, like step vans, transit buses, school buses. They’re the kind of vehicles that right now (are) using that type of technology and we don’t sell that product.”

The Wilkes-Barre Truck Center also doesn’t carry CNG vehicles now. It’s been about three or four years since the center sold a vehicle that runs on natural gas, said Service Manager Adam Miller.

“I think (gasoline prices) would have to take the sharp upward turn they’ve taken in the past,” he said. “Another $2 jump to where it was affecting everybody’s bottom line instantly, as opposed to something they could adjust for over time. I think they’d be willing to do anything they could to save money.”

Nevertheless, some CNG vehicles are traveling on the streets of Northeast Pennsylvania now.

For example, Pennsylvania American Water has 35 vehicles across the state that use the fuel, including more than two dozen in Scranton, said spokeswoman Susan Turcmanovich. They fill up at the U.S. Gain station in Pittston Twp.

More fueling stations could help the fleet by expanding its range.

When the company first bought the trucks, it shipped them to a facility in Harrisburg, and filled them up at a fueling station in York en route to Northeast Pennsylvania.

“There was nothing else for fuel until we got them up here,” said supervisor Mark Baloh.

Right now, he sends CNG vehicles from the garage in Scranton to the southern part of the his service area because they can stop at the fueling station in Pittston Twp. as they travel on Interstate 81. It takes a truck about five minutes to fill up, then it’s back on the road.

The vehicles carry employees in a cabin and gear in a truck bed, just like the vehicles that use diesel. In between that cabin and truck bed, however, is a large metal box. It holds the tanks that carry CNG.

In Scranton, about half of the fleet that work crews use run on natural gas. At other Pennsylvania American Water sites, CNG vehicles are a smaller portion of the work fleet, Turcmanovich said.

The company received grants from the state Department of Environmental Protection to fund purchases, and its still evaluating how much money it has saved, she said.

Three types of vehicles

There are three types of natural gas vehicles, according to the U.S. Department of Energy:

•Dedicated vehicles: These run only on natural gas.

•Bi-fuel: Vehicles with two separate fuel systems. They can run on either natural gas or gasoline.

•Dual fuel: These vehicles have fuel systems that run on natural gas, and use diesel fuel for ignition assistance. They are traditionally limited to heavy-duty applications, such as large trucks.

1,000 stations

available

There are nearly 1,000 public natural fueling stations in the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Visit afdc.energy.gov/fuels/natural_gas_locations.html to view an online map of natural gas fueling stations, including those in Northeast Pennsylvania.

Carbondale

The Coal Cracker Cruisers Car Club will host its next cruise early next month.

Slated for Friday, June 2, at Advance Auto Parts, 161 Brooklyn St., the event will feature music, food, trophies, door prizes and a 50/50 raffle.

The cruise — which will afford attendees the opportunity to see some unique and vintage rides — runs from 6 to 9 p.m.

For information on the cruise or the club, call 570-876-4034.

— JEFF HORVATH

jhorvath@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9141; @jhorvathTT on Twitter

Jessup

The Jessup 21st Century Association will host its 21st annual wine tasting this afternoon at Station Park.

From 1 to 4 p.m., all are invited to enjoy an afternoon of wine and food. The association will serve risotto, porketta, cannoli, sausage and peppers, pizza, steak, cheese and homemade sweets.

Sarah Marie and Joseph Barrese will provide entertainment, and the Brotherhood of Jessup Winemakers will be on hand, serving samples of homemade wines. Donations will be taken at the gate.

— STAFF REPORT

yesdesk@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9121; @YesDeskTT on Twitter

Mayfield

Applications for tennis lessons to be conducted in July at the Anna L. McCarthy Playground are available at the Municipal Building, 739 Penn Ave.

The entire course, which includes instruction and use of equipment, costs $15. Weather permitting, lessons are scheduled Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 to 10:30 a.m. beginning July 6 and continuing through July 25.

The program, sponsored by the Lackawanna County Parks and Recreation Department, is open to anyone from ages 8 to 16. Registration may be completed online at lackawannacounty.org.

— JEFF HORVATH

jhorvath@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9141; @jhorvathTT on Twitter

Scranton

The eighth annual “Swingin’ On Vine” block party benefit for Albright Memorial Library is scheduled from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, library representatives announced at the Lackawanna County commissioners meeting Wednesday.

Organizers will shut down the 500 block of Vine Street for the festivities for people age 21 and up, which will include food from area restaurants, cocktails, live music, raffles and other entertainment.

Vocalist Tara Michel, who has performed with notable artists such as John Legend and Lauryn Hill, will be a special guest for the event and perform with Paul LaBelle and the Exact Change.

Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door. All proceeds benefit library programs and services.

“Please come party with the library,” librarian Justine Yeager said. “Show your library love. It’s all for a good cause.”

— KYLE WIND

kwind@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9100 x5181;

@kwindTT on Twitter

■

City council on Thursday took the following actions:

n Introduced three separate, similar ordinances to advance reconstruction of the West Lackawanna Avenue Bridge over a rail line, the Elm Street bridge over the Lackawanna River, and a North Main Avenue bridge over Leggetts Creek.

The ordinances to authorize acquisition of rights of way are procedural steps in a plan by the city and state Department of Transportation to reconstruct the old bridges. Council voted 5-0 — with President Joe Wechsler, Tim Perry, Pat Rogan, Wayne Evans and Bill Gaughan all in favor — to introduce each ordinance from the administration of Mayor Bill Courtright. In March, the city authorized cost-sharing and responsibility agreements with PennDOT regarding that agency doing the work. Of the $17.4 million total cost estimate for all three bridges, the city would fund 5 percent, or $870,000, and the state and federal governments would fund 15 and 80 percent, respectively, officials have said. The projects would develop in stages. After design, construction won’t start for at least several years, officials had said.

n Introduced a resolution for the city to accept a donation of $3,799 from Amos Towers Management Enterprises for the Fire Department. It will use the donation to buy a “quick deploy portable attack gun” to rapidly direct large water streams on structure fires, Deputy Fire Chief Al Lucas said in a letter to council informing it of the donation. Amos Towers Apartments gave the funds in recognition of the Fire Department’s contribution to the health and safety of city residents, including the 97 families at Amos Towers, according to a donation letter from the apartment management firm’s president, Louis Danzico, and on behalf of apartment board President Margie Shapiro.

n Introduced a resolution for the city to apply to the state Department of Environmental Protection for technical assistance worth up to $7,500, to evaluate a refuse/recycling program.

— JIM LOCKWOOD

jlockwood@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9100 x5189;

@jlockwoodTT on Twitter

■

Walkers and drivers can both contribute to a cause at McDade Park next month.

The Car Lover’s 12th Annual Car Show is slated for Sunday, June 11. Gates open at 9 a.m. and organizers ask that all cars must be registered by noon. It costs $10 to enter the show, and there is no preregistration. Car owners must register the day of the event.

Awards will be given to the top 30 cars, plus Best of Show. Awards will be presented at 3 p.m. Food and beverages will also be sold, and there will be music by DJ Tony and Take 3. The show usually draws between 150 and 200 cars, said JoAnn Spalnick of Jermyn, who has organized the event for years.

“It’s a nice event,” Spalnick said.

Registration for the Walk Two Miles In My Shoes runs from noon to 1 p.m., when the walk steps off. Registration is $10.

Kim Tambeau is the coordinator for the walk, Spalnick said.

Proceeds from both events go toward research into reflex sympathetic dystrophy, also known as complex regional pain syndrome, a chronic neurological disease that affects millions of people around the world. For information on the walk and the car show, call 570-876-4034.

— CLAYTON OVER

cover@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9100 x5363;

@ClaytonOver on Twitter

AROUND THE TOWNS appears each Sunday, spotlighting the people and events in your neighborhoods. If you have an idea for an Around the Towns note, contact the writer for your town, or the Yes!Desk at 348-9121 or yesdesk@timesshamrock.com.

Sam Henning attended the Susquehanna Breakdown Music Festival last year and came back this year for a favorite band and the food.

“I came here for Cabinet (the band) and Gouda Boys (a food vendor),” said Henning, of Blairstown, New Jersey.

Both exceeded her expectations, Henning said, while finishing the last tangy strands of a “Stephen King” sandwich stuffed with beef brisket, garlic-butter-poached Maine lobster and mac-and-cheese Gouda sauce.

Along with spotlighting local band Cabinet, the Susquehanna Breakdown Music Festival featured several other folk, bluegrass, Americana and alt-rock groups.

Other acts on the two-stage bill included Keller Williams, Greensky Bluegrass, the Wood Brothers, Billy Strings, Moneynotes, Dishonest Fiddlers and Graham Mazer.

As in the past, the fifth Susquehanna Breakdown festival offered two days of camping and vendors, on Friday and Saturday. Festival organizers were anticipating the largest crowd yet of almost 4,000. Saturday night’s offerings drew a big turnout.

Henning attended both days of the festival and stayed in a local hotel overnight. Many other festivalgoers camped overnight on the pavilion grounds, where their tents formed a colorful sea of domes on the upper lawn.

Jodi Scott of Albany, New York, a vendor with the nonprofit Eden’s Rose Foundation, likes the breakdown festival because she feels it’s family friendly.

“It’s the only one I like to bring my kids to,” Scott said, as her 9-month-old son, Kahlo Sheldon, sat in a red Radio Flyer wagon.

It was Bradley Kingsley’s first time at the festival. A fan of bluegrass, the resident of Pocono Lake in Monroe County came to hear the Wood Brothers. “It’s a great mix of people and great music,” Kingsley said.

Contact the writer:

jlockwood@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9100 x5185;

@jlockwoodTT on Twitter

Throop Legion to

decorate graves

Members of the Herbert Clark Post 180 Throop American Legion to place new flags on all veterans’ graves at St. John’s, St. Mary’s and Holy Family cemeteries, Tuesday, 5:30 p.m. starting at St. Mary’s on Sanderson Street. In case of rain, cemeteries will be decorated Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

Flag burning set

in Carbondale

Carbondale American Legion Post 221 and local Boy Scout troops flag-burning ceremony, Saturday, 11 a.m., post, Hospital Street; drop off old flags for proper disposal in the collection barrel at the post.

Jessup post

to gather flags

American Legion Michael Steiner Post 411 and Jessup Boy Scout Troop 34 will collect faded, worn and torn American flags, post flag box, 508 Church St., to be properly retired with honor at a flag-burning ceremony in June at the Marine Corps League, Alder Street, Scranton.

Scholarship

aid available

DAV Chapter 11, Dickson City, will offer a $500 scholarship to disabled veterans in need of higher education. Applicants must reside between Dickson City and the Simpson area. Write to: DAV Scholarship Committee, 901 Enterprise St., Dickson City.

Veterans care

workshop slated

Free workshop for professionals, “Understanding veterans issues and best practices of care for veterans,” Wednesday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; registration, 7:30 a.m.; Gino Merli Veterans Center; sponsored by Aseracare Hospice Foundation; 570-586-4573.

Legion Post 327 elects officers

At a recent meeting, Raymond Henry American Legion Post 327, Olyphant, elected the following officers: James J. Palermo, commander; Paul Yakamovich, senior vice commander; Vincent Marcoonis, junior vice commander; Bob Bartosh, adjutant and liaison officer; Jeff Hinders, finance officer; Stephen Klem, service officer; Steve Grassetti, chaplain; John Sereditch, judge advocate; Steve Gagglio, sergeant-at-arms; and Larry Boyarsky, historian.

Memorial Day

services

ABINGTONS

VFW Abington Memorial Post 7069, Memorial Day services, May 29: Abington Hills Ceme­tery, Morgan Highway, 8:30 a.m.; South Abington Mem­orial Park at the tank off Shady Lane Road, 9; Clarks Green Ceme­tery, 9:30; Hickory Grove Ceme­tery, Miller Road, 10; parade starts at 11, forms at Clarks Summit Elementary Center, Grove Street, proceeds on South State Street to Winola Road ending at post home, 402 Winola Road, Clarks Summit; memorial service at post immediately follows.

CARBONDALE

Flag placement on veterans’ graves, Saturday; meet at Mem­orial Park, 8:45 a.m. Flag burning ceremony, Boy Scout Troop 8, American Legion, Hospital Street, following the flag placement, 11:30 a.m.

Memorial Day parade and ceremony, May 29, marchers meet at Ben Franklin Apartments, 10:15 a.m.; parade, 10:45; ceremony, Memorial Park, 11:15; principal speaker, Dominick Nati, retired lieutenant colonel; musical selection by the Carbondale Area High School Band.

COVINGTON TWP.

VFW Post 5207, Covington Twp., Memorial Day schedule: Flags at Fairview, Thursday, 9 a.m.; Poppies at Bill’s Market, Saturday and May 28, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.; Memorial Day services, May 29, Post service, post home, 9:15 a.m., ceremony, 9:45 a.m., John Michaels’ grave­site, St. Catherine’s Ceme­tery; Fairview Cemetery servi­ces, 11 a.m., and Covington Twp. services, 1 p.m.

DUPONT

Veterans services sponsored by VFW Post 4909 and Amvets Post 189, meet at VFW, Main Street, 8 a.m., service at Polish National Cemetery, 8:30, followed by a service at Sacred Heart Cemetery.

Parade participants assemble, 10 a.m., VFW parking lot, Grant Street; parade, 10:30.

Memorial service, Dupont Mem­orial lawn, 11 a.m.; Michael Shambora, principal speaker; refreshments afterward for children, Dupont Hose Company’ for adults, VFW post.

HOLLISTERVILLE

Memorial Day service, Hollis­ter­ville Cemetery, Route 590, May 29, 11:30 a.m., conducted by VFW Thomas A. Snook Post; speaker, Rev. Jeffrey L. Rarich, pastor of Slem Community Church, Hamlin.

MOOSIC

American Legion Posts 604 and 568, joint services May 29, 9 a.m., St. Mary of Czesto­chowa Cemetery, 9:30, St. Joseph Cemetery; 10:30, Post 604 headquarters, 309 Spring St., Moosic.

MONTROSE

Parade, May 29, 10 a.m., sponsored by VFW Post 5642; service on the borough green, 11.

OLD FORGE

Old Forge Memorial Day parade, sponsored by American Legion Post 513 and VFW Post 3954, May 29, 10 a.m., Main and Miles streets; participants assemble, 9:30; ceremony at Old Forge Cemetery afterward.

SCRANTON

Memorial Day services, including participation by VFW Post 25, May 29, 11 a.m., Nay Aug Park.

Memorial Day services, Ameri­can Legion Post 207, May 29, SS. Peter and Paul Cemetery chapel, Rundle Street, after 10 a.m. Mass.

SIMPSON

Walter Paciga Post 4712, Mem­orial Day remembrance, May 29, 9 a.m.; guest speaker, Lt. Cmdr. Jessica Carter, executive officer, U.S. Naval Observ­atory 292; refreshments afterward.

Meetings

POST 665

Dickson City American Legion Post 665, June 4, post basement: board of directors for Post 665 Association, 12:30 p.m.; 665 Association meeting, 1:30; and membership meeting, 2:30, agenda: election of officers and update of events.

POST 5209

VFW Post 5209, today, post home, 1849 Bloom Ave., Scran­ton, home association, 12:30 p.m., officers, 1.

POST 3451

Rabiega-Gorgol VFW Post 3451, today, 4:30 p.m., 606 Alder St., Scranton.

Merli Center

Today: Keurig coffee, 8:30 a.m.; morning visits, 8:45; Eucharistic ministry visits, 9:15; Lenoxville Band, 2 p.m.

Monday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; Bible study visits, 9:30; Bob Hughes miner’s tale, 10:15; Vincenzo’s dine-in, 12:15 p.m.; bingo by the Stone family, 2; senior fitness, 3; root beer floats, 7.

Tuesday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; bingo social, 10:15; choir practice, 1:45; Catholic service, 3; Western movie, 7.

Wednesday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; Wal-Mart trip, 9:30; horse races, 2 p.m.

Thursday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; chapel, 10; arts and crafts, 10:15; Mohegan Sun casino trip; 12:15 p.m.; karaoke with beverages 2; senior fitness, 3; hee haw night, 7.

Friday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; ring toss, 10:15; bingo by Marine Corp League, 2 p.m.; senior fitness, 3.

Saturday: Morning visits, 8:45 a.m.; America’s National Parks, 10:15; pizza and movie, 2 p.m.

VETERANS NEWS should be submitted no later than Monday before publication to

veterans@timesshamrock.com; or YES!desk, The Times-Tribune, 149 Penn Ave., Scranton, PA 18503.

Lackawanna College awarded more than 370 associate degrees and certificates to students from 15 states during its 123rd commencement Saturday in the college’s Student Union in downtown Scranton.

Liberal studies major Georisell Vazquez was the class representative. While at Lackawanna, she helped her fellow students foster an appreciation of the arts as the founder of the college’s Creative Arts Club while maintaining a 3.9 GPA. A Scranton native and 2008 graduate of Scranton High School, Vazquez completed her studies at Lackawanna in December 2016. She is currently studying illustration at Marywood University. In her address, Vazquez encouraged her classmates to pursue their dreams, no matter their age, to become who they want to be.

Lackawanna College Vice President for Student Affairs Suellen Musewicz was awarded the Silver Seeley Distinguished Service Medal. The medal is given to an individual who has performed outstanding service to the Lackawanna College community and is regarded as one of the college’s highest honors. Musewicz received the award in recognition of her decades of employment at Lackawanna.

Students at Saturday’s ceremony were awarded a wide range of degrees from communication arts and vascular technology to hospitality management and physical therapist assistant.

ASSOCIATE IN APPLIED SCIENCE

ACCOUNTING

Linda Canfield, Jackson; Anne Coleman, Gouldsboro; William Ira Craven, Scranton; Richard Joseph Benjamin Fallon, Scranton; Mykenna Hickey, Honesdale; Rachel Barri Junker, Tafton; Sara G. Kellerman, Honesdale; Pasquale Joseph Mandarano, Dunmore; Kimberlee Anne Morgan, Waymart; Chaitanya Prakashchandra Patel, Scranton; Michael Joseph Quinn, Madison Twp.; Andrew Soulinhavong, Scranton; Olivia Jean Suhr, Lakeville; Connor Thomas Sullivan, Clarks Summit; Riley Patrick Terysen, Damascus; Barbara Giovanna Verrastro, Scott Twp.; Erika Christina Diana Vogel, Scranton; Melissa Wilkins, Hawley.

SURGICAL TECHNOLOGY

Samanthia A. Wood, Hughestown.

ASSOCIATE IN ARTS

COMMUNICATION ARTS

Matthew Peter Demeo, Gouldsboro; Reynaldo Antonio Germosen, Scranton; Brian Joseph Jones, Scranton; Andrew John Verzilli, Scranton; and Margaret Kirwin Zaleski, Scranton.

ASSOCIATE IN SCIENCE

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Sagar V. Amin, Scranton; Melissa Birch, Scranton; Garett Mackenzie Button, Clarks Green; Levi Michael Caster, Taylor; Esmeralda Castillo, Scranton; Carol Chinsoon, Newfoundland; Elizabeth Nicole Durren, Scranton; Nicholas Stephen Gasper, Jessup; Richard Anthony Goodall, Moscow; Mykenna Hickey, Honesdale; Amy Lee Hubbard, Scranton; Jerinson Inoa, Scranton; Rachel Barri Junker, Tafton; Michael John Kearney, Factoryville; Cooper Carlson Knipmeyer, Scranton; Barbara Kosiara, Scranton; Taylor Elizabeth Maloney, Scranton; Joshua Andrew Murphy, Scranton; Ann Marie Omerza, Scranton; Michael Joseph Quinn, Madison Twp.; Lindsey Marie Reed, Lake Ariel; Ashley Marie Reidenbach, Scranton; Kodi Michael Robinson, Honesdale; Jackisha Santiago, Scranton; George R Spotts, Throop; Olivia Jean Suhr, Lakeville; Logan Thomas Zavada, Forty Fort.

BUSINESS STUDIES

Mauricio Chavez, Scranton; Nicholas Anthony Ciambriello, Greenfield; Emily Maria Duffy, Blakely; Elaina V. Eisenhower, Dickson City; Kaylee Marie Griffith, Roaring Brook Twp.; Elyssa A. Hercules, Scranton; Zachary Lopatka, Exeter; Morgan Leeann McNear, Scranton; Thomas Swinick, Dunmore; David Andrew Tuohig, Dalton.

CARDIAC SONOGRAPHY

Kristen Alayne Dowd, Scranton; Cassandra Corinn Haduck, Duryea; Sarah Colleen Ruane, Scranton; McKenzie Runco, Olyphant; Mariah Leigh Runco, Olyphant; Casey Lee Weatherly, Milford; Lin Zhu, Dunmore.

COMPUTER INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Anthony Charles Grill, Scranton; Sardar Shahzeb Khan, Dunmore; Kevin H. Patel, Scranton; Keyur D. Patel, Scranton; Ulysses Jose Ramos, Scranton; Michael Wassef, Tobyhanna.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Megan Catherine Durkin, Scranton; Aubrey Rachel Fick, Scranton; Chiara Lyn Reha, Olyphant.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE — COUNSELING

Nina K. Breuer, Greeley; Kaitlin Rose Gardier, Dunmore; Jason David Lester, Honesdale; Clifford James Powell, Scranton; Tara Jo Pozza, Clifton Twp.; Krystle Dolores Sankus, Scranton; Jordan John Tratthen, Scott Twp.; Kristie Marie Valera, Scranton.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE — POLICE OR SECURITY

Thomas David Ahlers, Greentown; Jonathan Altamirano, Scranton; Madison R. Barcola, Old Forge; Mathew Bryant, Archbald; Brian Cummings, Scranton; Colin M. Davis, Scranton; Shane Rogan Edwards, Spring Brook Twp.; Michael Charles Freethy, Lakeville; Mollie Kristine Grimm, Scranton; Kayla Brittany Komar, Honesdale; Benjamin Thomas Krochta, Rowland; Brandon Michael Kujawski, Dunmore; Michael Allen McLaughlin, Scranton; Jessica Lynn Morales, Bushkill; Kimberly Lynn Ogden, Scranton; Vanessa Luiza Olivera, Scranton; Taylor Ann Reidenbach, Scranton; Chelsea Reyes, Archbald; Robert J. Seprish, Dunmore; Matthew Thomas Tolan, Scranton; Travis D. Troiani, Peckville; Michael Villa, Scranton.

CULINARY ARTS

Jeremy Robert Bell, Blakely; Helen Frances Botens-Allen, Plains Twp.; James W. Butler, Brackney; Elizabeth Matthias, Scranton; Jessie Lynn Raynis, Dingmans Ferry; Nia Sade Scott, Scranton.

DIAGNOSTIC MEDICAL

SONOGRAPHY

Stephanie Tatiana Bortree, Blakely; Alyssa Kate Dikeman, Clarks Summit; Kimberly Elizabeth Jones, Old Forge; Danielle Marie Martin, Scranton; Danielle N. Neira, Bartonsville; Andini Sagita, Scranton.

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Sallena Ann Camp, Scranton; Robin Marie Caswell, Spring Brook Twp.; Jessica Leigh Cerra, Scranton; Abigail Kathryn Craig, Clarks Summit; Melissa Rose Evans, Scranton; MacKenzie Carlon Jeffrey, Hawley; Anne Mara Keib, Clarks Summit; Gabriella Jacquelynne Martin, Hawley; Morgan Leeann McNear, Scranton; Kassidy Marie Puckett, Scranton.

EDUCATION

Zachary Maximilian Blau, Tafton; Alan Robert Michener, Tyler Hill; Alexa Nikole Mihalik, Lords Valley.

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES

Nichol Lucier, Clarks Summit.

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

Kurk Ramkissoon, Lackawaxen; Elizabeth Margaret Sarazine, Lackawaxen.

HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT

Emily Suzanne Bunnell, Honesdale; Adam Zachary Gooler, Scranton; Diwash Khadka, Scranton; Kathleen Ann Murphy, Beach Lake; Elana Mari Roman, Old Forge; Jazmyn Cecilia Santiago, Scranton.

HUMAN SERVICES

Angela Marie Barretta, Hawley; Nina K. Breuer, Greeley; David Paul Carbo, Waymart; Krystal Dawn Chase, Honesdale; LaSeana Alicia-Lillie Colvin, Scranton; Maria Altagracia DeJesus Carrasco, Hazleton; Mia McKensie Esgro, Carbondale; Aubrey Rachel Fick, Scranton; Kaitlin Rose Gardier, Dunmore; Julian M. Gonzalez, Scranton; James Hammond, Scranton; Dawn Marie Hernandez, Scranton; Cassandra Hunter, Springville; Chelsea Jablonski, Scranton; Katie Knight, Forest City; Jessica Lynn Morales, Bushkill; Tziporah Moskowitz, Blakely; Courtney Lynne Peck, Honesdale; John Ryan Pehanich, Scranton; Louis J. Pereyra, Lake Ariel; Tyler John Purnell, Scranton; Rochelle Rodriguez, Scranton; Michele Marie Ryerson, Carbondale; Shannon Nicolette Seminario, Honesdale; Chris William Shute, Scranton; Jason P. Snyder, Scranton; Melinda Ann Tanzini, Forest City; Mark P. Undercoffler, Scranton; Leila Willis, Scranton.

LIBERAL STUDIES

Al Husayn Al Mukhtar Abu Bakr, Dunmore; Alexia Mariah Anderson, Scranton; Cassandra Arcaro, Dickson City; Mollie Racheal Bayly, Waymart; Maritza Serena Belle, Tobyhanna; Taylor Elizabeth Bolsar, Jessup; Stephanie D. Bove, Greentown; David Burge, Old Forge; Carlos A. Castro, Scranton; Barbara Anne DeMeglio, Honesdale; Marissa M. Diehl, Damascus; Lindsey Kathleen Dippre, Scranton; Robert William Donovan, Old Forge; Matthew Troy Gregory, Hawley; Alexandra Christine Hindelly, Lake Ariel; Jaleel Howard, Scranton; Ashley N. Keating, Tafton; Efe Evren Koch, South Abington Twp.; Alyssa Marie Mack, Jermyn; Jordon Tyler Mason, Kingston; Alexandra Amy Mizok, Scranton; Bianca Catherine Montes, Clarks Summit; Jared Joseph O’Hearn, Scranton; Tiarra Nicole Paduck, Carbondale; Elisabeth Jamison Padula, Dunmore; Rachel Lee Passarelli, Eynon; Paige Autumn Pliss, Taylor; Shannon Margaret Regan, Dunmore; Maggie L. Richter, Honesdale; Nicole Elyse Schnitzler, Blakely; Shane Micheal Schuback, Old Forge; Kelly Ann Snyder, Dallas; Sarah Rose Spadoni, Exeter; Marcelias Robert Javon Sutton, La Grange; Travis D. Troiani, Blakely; Georisell Vazquez, Scranton; Julius Warnero, Scranton.

NATURAL GAS COMPRESSION

TECHNOLOGY

Christian Robert Cerberville, Dickson City; Willard H. Cobb, Thompson; Alex Michael Evanitsky, Preston Park; Nicholas Jaggars, Moscow; Richard Stanley Kordish, Greenfield Twp.; Dalton Dean Robyn LaCoe, Clarks Summit; Adam Nicholas MacDonald, Susquehanna; Joe Murray, South Abington Twp.; Bryan Thomas Owens, Clifford Twp.; Justin Henry Paglianite, Avoca; Tyler Scott Phillips, Susquehanna; Brad Lewis Sherman, Susquehanna; Zachary Shnipes, Archbald.

PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Bethany Lynn Millard, South Gibson; Kyrston Lee Swingle, Montrose.

PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS MEASUREMENT

Justin Keith Andrews, Archbald; Thomas Andrew Johnson, Nicholson; Mark Daniel Marble, New Milford; Patrick Solomon, Archbald; Baley Lee Sutton, Taylor; Anthony Micheal Trent, Stillwater.

PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS TECHNOLOGY

Julie Bidwell, Duryea; Tyler Michael Buck, Berwick; Kory William Callum, Factoryville; Kyle Dunay, Hunlock Creek; Zachary Raul Gutierrez, Kresgeville; Jordan Tyler Hoffman, Equinunk; Nikita Vitalievich Maryasov, Scranton; Adam M. Mason, Hop Bottom; James McNally, Scranton; Kyle Robert Prelewicz, Wapwallopen; Sidney Joseph Richards, Covington Twp.; Sully M. Rutledge, Damascus; Patrick Solomon, Archbald; Baley Lee Sutton, Taylor; Kyrston Lee Swingle, Montrose; Mark Vincent Zappe, Thompson; Constance Jean Zebrowski Chisek, Thompson.

PHYSICAL THERAPIST ASSISTANT

Robert M. Bartolacci, Brodheadsville; Jacquelyn Hannah Byrd, Honesdale; Sofia Grace Byron, Honesdale; Kiera Lynn Deitz, Madison Twp.; Sarah Elizabeth Flannery, Shavertown; Maureen Krapf, Scranton; Emily Jean Reynolds, Greentown; Kassandra Lynn Rivenburg, Dingmans Ferry; Jacob J. Romanuski, Pittston; Taylor Nicole Ruziecki, Greentown; Randy Taylor, Scott Twp.; Marissa Vogue, Pittston Twp.

PRE-ALLIED HEALTH

Neera Acharya, Scranton; Sabrena Ajodha, Scranton; Monica Mineshbhai Patel, Scranton.

SPORT MANAGEMENT

Darrell Anton Cintron, Moosic; Lauren Nicole Leppo, Dunmore; Mackenzie Rose McAndrew, Scranton.

VASCULAR TECHNOLOGY

Colleen Marie Devine, South Abington Twp.; Michael Lawrence Foley, South Abington Twp.; Max Golden Hildebrand, Scranton; Lyndsey Anneliese Jensen, Hawley; Aundreia Lambert, Scranton; Amanda Ogozaly, Carbondale; Brianna Susan Sell, Jefferson Twp.

CERTIFICATES

PARAMEDIC

Shaun Thomas Kline, Honesdale; Brandon Thorngren, Lake Ariel.

SCRANTON — Firefighters quickly extinguished a fire Saturday that damaged a camper vehicle parked in a backyard and used for storage, authorities said.

The fire about 4 p.m. in the 800 block of Hitchcock Court sent a plume of dark smoke above the Hill Section.

The camper, a Winnebago-type vehicle, was parked in a backyard of a home on Quincy Avenue, between East Gibson and Myrtle streets.

The owner told authorities the camper had not been run in years, said Acting Assistant Fire Chief Roger Rogalewicz.

The cause of the fire remains undetermined and under investigation, he said. No one was hurt during the incident, he said.

- JIM LOCKWOOD

The father-son canoeing tandem of Dan and Dan Sullivan were the first paddlers to reach the finish line Saturday at the 30th annual RiverFest. But they beat everyone else in their heat by launching last, noting where the other racers got stuck on shallow spots and maneuvering around.

“That’s the strategy,” the younger Sullivan, 33, said with a chuckle after pulling their boat ashore at Sweeney’s Beach in the Pine Brook section of Scranton.

The nonprofit Lackawanna River Corridor Association postponed the event last weekend due to rainy weather and a dangerously fast current on the river. The environmental organization, led by Executive Director Bernie McGurl, has been instrumental in rehabilitating the Lackawanna River from an industrial dumping moat to an award-winning trout stream. RiverFest offers the community an opportunity to celebrate the Lackawanna Valley and the river that runs through it, the organization said.

“It’s the lifeblood of our area,” said Casey Malone, a board member. “This river, if we don’t take care of it and we let it go on its own course and let the erosion happen, it’s going to affect the ecosystem around here. Honestly, to take part in this is to do it for our kids, because the next generation is going to need this.”

The event was hosted at Sweeney’s Beach, a public river access site owned by the city, which the association recently reclaimed and cleaned up.

The Canoe-A-Thon in which the Sullivans raced consisted of about 60 vessels, fewer than in past years because of the postponement, Malone guessed.

The event also included vendors selling wares like hula hoops and cheesesteaks, as well as live music from Common Threads, the Pat Marcinko Band and Mountain Sky Orchestra.

Kayla DiDonna of Carbondale and her mother, Michelle Joerger of New York City, and Rob Thomson of West Scranton, each decorated their kayaks for a regatta.

DiDonna’s kayak featured a summer theme, Joerger’s was a floating campsite, and Thomson’s had a patriotic display.

Thomson, who kayaks on the Delaware River and at the lake at Lackawanna State Park, had not paddled on the Lackawanna River before. Attending RiverFest was an eye-opener for him.

“This is going to open up opportunities for me,” Thomson said. “Now I want to go up north (on the Lackawanna River) and come down.”

Contact the writer:

pcameron@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5365;

@pcameronTT on Twitter

How to help

To volunteer or to support the nonprofit Lackawanna River Corridor Association with a membership, consult the website at www.lrca.org.

Canoe-A-Thon top finishers

FROM BLAKELY (8-mile route)

Two-man vessels

Edwardo and Benny Paz: 1:16:29

Youth

Caroline and Santin Burak: 1:29:10

Male/female

David Stull and Jessica Johnson: 1:59:08

Adult/youth

Ron Aniska and Cassid Rhodes-Aniska: 1:23:37

Male kayak

David Burak: 1:29:17

Female kayak

Georgeanne Paz: 1:15:39

FROM ARCHBALD (12-mile route)

Two-man vessels

John Bogdanovicz and Andrew Phillips: 2:52:44

Male kayak

Andrew Augustine: 1:38:51

SCRANTON — A man hanged himself from the treehouse at Nay Aug Park on Friday afternoon, police said.

A 23-year-old man, unknown address, was found hanging from the treehouse by park patrons about 4:30 p.m., Scranton Police Sgt. Rich Ianuzzo said.

City police and firefighters responded, but the man was dead by the time the emergency crews arrived, Ianuzzo said.

— PETER CAMERON

WILKES-BARRE — No serious incidents were reported during an appearance by controversial rap artist Uncle Murda at Ali Baba Liquor Lounge late Friday night, according to city police Chief Marcella Lendacky.

“It was uneventful,” Lendacky said Saturday. “The patrons were respectful. We didn’t have any problems.”

Uncle Murda attracted media attention for his rap song “Hands Up,” which protests the killing of black men by police officers. The song’s lyrics include, “For Mike Brown and Sean Bell, a cop got to get killed.”

In the song’s official video, Uncle Murda and another rapper point guns at the head of a man in a New York Police Department uniform.

Police were prepared to respond if needed to the South Main Street club, but no serious problems arose, Lendacky said.

— ERIC MARK

Church readies

for fundraiser

The “Feast of the Chicken” is coming to Clarks Green United Methodist Church for its 38th year.

Mike Pacyna will serve as the chairman and chief organizer of the church’s main fundraiser, which helps to finance programs and maintain the building. Jim Corselius and Warren Watkins are in charge of the “pit crew,” and Dave Jones is organizing the kitchen helpers. Bill Fiore will beresponsible for the crew serving barbecued chicken, baked potato, cole slaw, baked beans, a pickle and roll, while John Crounse solicits the desserts, including cakes, brownies and cookies.

The barbecue is June 3 from noon to 6 p.m. on the church grounds; tickets for the eat-in or takeout dinner will be available at the door or from any church member; cost is $10 for adults and $5 for children under 13 years old.

Waverly Waddle winners announced

The winners of the Waverly Waddle 5K run/walk who pounded the pavement to honor the mothers and caregivers of the Waverly Community House on May 13, Mother’s Day weekend, include Tiffany Leventhal, overall female runner; Sandy Davidock, overall female walker; Alan Brink, overall male runner; and Micah Cohen, overall male walker.

In the female age categories, winners include Emma Horsley, first place, Maia Arcangelo, second place, and Carly Schofield, third place, in the under 15 category; Ashley Shamus, first place; Alla Wilson, second place, and Peanie Columbo, third place in the ages 16 to 29 race; Kerry Zawadski, first place, Marlene Schofield, second place, and Terri Policare, third place, in the ages 30 to 49 category; Carole Hamersly, first place, Theresa Schollsser, second place, and Lisa Somers, third place. in the 50+ race.

In the male age categories, winners include Michael Bennici, first place; Sutton Lisk, second place, and Bradley Ames, third place, in the under 15 race; Christopher Newell, first place, and Austin Burkey, second place, in ages 16 to 29; Roger Kidd, first place, Jesse Edwards, second place, and Paul Keeler, third place. in the 30 to 49 category; and Frank Yanko, first place; Ed Lipski, second place; and David Hamersley, third place, in the 50+ category.

Cheryl Farrell and Emily Karam co-chaired the event, while Scranton Running Co. provided the timing.

For the complete list of runners, walkers and their times, visit scrantonrun

ning.com.

Super students

Leah Walsh of Scranton, a junior political science student at of East Stroudsburg University, presented research in April at the International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Science Studies at Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts.

Walsh presented “Women in Politics: Fox News Influence on Viewers’ Perception of Hillary Clinton.” Using public opinion data and personal interviews, her research examined if the media’s characterization of women in politics impacts viewers’ perceptions of female candidates. She also targeted younger viewers of Fox News to determine whether the network’s coverage of Clinton influenced their perception or opinion of her, according to the university. ... Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine Master of Biomedical Sciences students, including Ariana Kim of Scranton; Brian Nguyen of Scranton; Corey Suraci of Clarks Summit; and Stephanie Tilberry of Taylor were inducted into the Alpha Epsilon Lambda Honor Society on May 6. The society, founded in 1990, recognizes the academic and leadership accomplishments of graduate and professional school students. The students must have a GPA placing them in the top 35 percent of campus graduate students and a record of leadership and service to graduate students or graduate student organizations, according to the college.

Lackawanna County’s next district attorney will have plenty of courtroom experience, but one clear difference separates the two contenders seeking the office.

The Republican candidate, former county First Assistant District Attorney Eugene M. Talerico Jr., has almost 25 years of experience in criminal prosecution.

The Democratic candidate, attorney Mark Powell, has none, though he does have more than 25 years as a lawyer.

Powell will have to overcome that and history if he hopes to defeat Talerico in the Nov. 7 general election.

Talerico, 49, of Old Forge, defeated incumbent District Attorney Shane Scanlon in the Republican primary election Tuesday. Powell, 52, of Moosic, was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.

Prosecutorial experience repeatedly has favored Republicans since the 1969 election for district attorney, the one that started the 48-year streak of Republicans holding the office. In the seven contested district attorney races after 1969, voters in the overwhelmingly Democratic county have gone for Republicans with more experience as prosecutors.

The only Democratic candidate with substantial prosecution experience from 1973 on was attorney Lawrence J. Moran Sr., an assistant district attorney for five years under Republican District Attorney Ernie Preate. He ran against Preate in 1985. With 14 years of prosecutorial experience by then and eight as district attorney, Preate trounced him.

“People vote for people that are perceived to be tough on crime and the Republican Party has successfully held the seat from 1969 to the present,” said John Davies, a Democrat and longtime observer of local politics. “And, people vote more independently now than they did 40 years ago.”

In other words, Powell cannot count on the 2-to-1 Democratic voter registration majority to propel him into office either.

During the primary campaign, Powell bought billboards and other advertising proclaiming himself “Tough on Crime.”

“I’m certainly tough,” Powell said. “I think folks are looking for a fresh look at that office. The reality is I’ve prosecuted thousands of civil cases. I’m in courtrooms every day. I have more trial experience examining and cross-examining witnesses. So I believe the citizens of Lackawanna County will evaluate my total experience, 27 years of practice, my education, my certifications and be confident in the fact that I’m ready to lead that office.”

The last lawyer with no experience as a prosecutor to win the office was attorney Paul Mazzoni, who, coincidentally, started the Republican streak by defeating Democratic attorney Robert W. Munley in 1969. Ironically, Munley was a prosecutor. He was an assistant district attorney under Joseph Cimino, the last Democratic district attorney, who left office in January 1970.

Mazzoni, who then regularly practiced criminal defense law, had something in common with Powell now.

“I had a lot of experience in the courtroom,” he said. “The courtroom experience is a key thing.”

Mazzoni also had a bit of recent history working for him — a controversy over the 1967 commissioner election. Republican County Commissioner Charles Harte and his running mate, Sam Cali, earned enough votes in voting machines to both win election, but absentee ballots uncounted on Election Day led to Cali’s defeat and new terms for Democratic commissioners Patrick Mellody and Ed Zipay.

Republicans suspected fraud and the state attorney general’s office investigated over Cimino’s objection. No one was prosecuted for voter fraud, but Republicans felt cheated. Mazzoni said he ran for district attorney on a platform of cleaning up voter fraud.

No one claimed voter fraud in the latest primary election, but it had some controversy. Republican District Attorney Shane Scanlon criticized Talerico’s failure to bring Joseph Olecki, a man accused of attempted murder, to trial on time, which led to dismissal of the case. Powell hinted he might use that, too.

“I think Scanlon has done a pretty thorough job exploiting some of the issues that people should be concerned about,” Powell said. “I’m going to outwork my opponent and I’m going to meet as many folks as I can so they can make an educated decision.”

Talerico, whose years as a prosecutor include 16 years as the office’s top administrator, made it clear his experience will remain front and center in his campaign.

“I think when you look at the races for DA, experience historically has been a key component,” Talerico said. “And, it makes sense. You certainly want someone who has an understanding of the job … It’s not merely a coincidence that that happens. I think it’s logic and common sense.”

District attorneys serve four-year terms. The salary this year is $175,573.

Contact the writer: bkrawczeniuk@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9147; @BorysBlogTT on Twitter

The greeting of the visiting hierarchs with moleben, or service of intercession, to the Hawaiian Myrrh-Streaming Iveron Icon of the Most Holy Mother of God will begin the 113th Memorial Day pilgrimage to St. Tikhon’s Monastery.

Friday’s events at the Wayne County monastery kick off a weekend of services, including the 75th annual St. Tikhon’s Seminary commencement, and a full schedule of services on Memorial Day.

“The Miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, which continues to weep myrrh, will be the main icon present for veneration throughout the pilgrimage,” monastery spokesman the Rev. John Kowalczyk said in a press release. “Pilgrims from around the country who have a special devotion to this Miraculous Icon will be present, and local pilgrims from our area are also encouraged to attend.”

He expects 3,000 to 5,000 participants.

The official opening of the pilgrimage, at 3:30 p.m. Friday, will be followed by vespers and matins in the monastery church and dinner in the monastery dining hall.

Pilgrims will have the opportunity to venerate the Miraculous Hawaiian Icon of the Mother of God and be anointed with the myrrh on Memorial Day, Monday, May 29, at 2:30 p.m.

Bishop Thomas Joseph of the Diocese of Charleston, Oakland, and the Mid-Atlantic of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, will speak and receive a Doctor of Divinity degree during the 75th annual St. Tikhon’s Seminary commencement at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Seminary Banquet is Saturday at the Hilton Scranton and Conference Center.

Additional services are planned throughout the weekend, including a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on Sunday at 9 a.m. at the monastery church.

At 7:30 p.m. Sunday, the Chamber Choir of St. Tikhon’s Monastery will perform the liturgical music of Tchaikovsky at St. Stephen’s Pro-Cathedral in Wilkes-Barre.

Metropolitan Tikhon, archbishop of Washington, D.C., and metropolitan of America and Canada, will preside. Among those assisting will be Archbishop Michael of New York and New Jersey and Archbishop Mark of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania. They will also concelebrate on Memorial Day at a 10 a.m. service at the Bell Tower.

The Very Rev. John Perich, historian and curator of St. Tikhon’s Monastery Museum, will give tours over the weekend of the monastery’s icon collection. St. Tikhon’s bookstore, which has one of the largest selections of Eastern Orthodox books, religious and sacred items, will be open throughout the weekend. Other vendors also will be on hand. Ethnic foods and religious goods will be sold.

St. Tikhon’s Monastery is at 175 St. Tikhon’s Road, Waymart (South Canaan Twp). The Rev. Archimandrite Sergius is the abbot.

Tickets for the Saturday night seminary commencement banquet at the Hilton Scranton can be obtained by calling the seminary, 570-561-1818. Tickets for Sunday’s Chamber Choir performance in Wilkes-Barre can be purchased by calling 888-454-6678. For details on the pilgrimage, call Kowalczyk at 570-876-1241.

113th Memorial Day pilgrimage

to St. Tikhon’s Monastery

FRIDAY, MAY 26

3:30 p.m.: 113th Pilgrimage opens.

3:45: Greeting of the hierarchs at the Monastery Archway, moleben to the Iveron Hawaiian Icon of the Mother of God.

4: Vespers and matins, monastery church.

Dinner: Monastery dining hall.

SATURDAY, MAY 27

9 a.m.: Hierarchical Divine Liturgy.

Meal: Dining hall.

1 p.m.: 75th annual academic commencement of St. Tikhon’s Theological Seminary.

4: Resurrection Vigil, monastery church.

Dinner: Dining hall.

SUNDAY, MAY 28

9 a.m.: Hierarchical Divine Liturgy.

Meal: Dining hall.

4 p.m.: Vespers and matins, monastery church.

MONDAY, MAY 29

7:30 a.m.: Divine Liturgy, monastery church.

10: Hierarchical Divine Liturgy

Noon: Veterans Panihida memorial service, All Saints Bell Tower.

1:30 p.m.: Akathist to St. Alexis Toth, monastery church.

2:30: Moleben to the Most Holy Theotokos, anointing of the sick, infirm and all pilgrims, monastery bell tower.

4: Vespers and matins, monastery church.