Honoring Ira - June 11th

Ira F. Smith, originally of Kistler's Valley, Lehigh County and now of Allentown, will be honored at the Hokendaqua American Legion on Friday, June 11th at 6:30.

Many of the patriotic organizations of the Lehigh Valley will converge on Legion Post #739 for this event.  Please join Ira's family and support one of our "Greatest Generation."  I will be delivering remarks celebrating Ira's service to our country.

You can also bring your tired, worn and torn flags and give them a proper disposal.

Ira was wounded at the Battle of the Bulge at St. Vith and wounded again due to the American bombing of the warehouse he was being held at by the Germans.  He served the remainder of the war as a prisoner in Germany's Stalag 11.

This is the 14th Annual Flag Disposal Ceremony at the Legion Post.  The public is invited and refreshments will be available afterward.

You can learn more about Ira by reading my Blog post from March 31, 2010.

Packerton Yard & President Reagan

What ever possessed the artist to fling his creativity onto the wall of the Packerton Yard building back in the 1990s?
Whomever created such a skilled piece, to give of one's own energy, is such a resplendent gift, given freely to the countless, the nameless. To tuck such an interesting work, into a vacant, cold, open building boggles my mind. Someone saw a canvas, felt an expression, and anonymously gave of themself. Though it is gone, it is a gift I still appreciate today.


















Our county commissioners have pinned hopes of an economic revival at this site, tearing down the last standing building of this historic place, the last visible evidence of our railroad's heyday. These pictures are all that remain, the portrait now lost in the rubble, a reversed mosiac.


A few people have had some sneaking suspicions to the mystery aritist. The leads I have checked into, namely Manny DaCosta of Jim Thorpe and Joe Bauer of Lehighton have turned out to be unsubstantiated hopes. Though Manny, always the character, gave his reply using his best Foster Brooks shtick.


Can anyone shed some light onto this artistic mystery?