25
s
t en
c
S erving
the mid valley
&
upper
lackawanna
What’s going on with your favorite student Page 7
Community Calendar
Plan some fun for the family this weekend Page 14
CONTAGIOUS
SMILE HEALTHY TEETH TE NE
PATI W WELCENTS OME M ost Insu Accepterances d.
Dr. Anthony
MAIN STREET, ARCHBALD • 570-876-6722 DECARLIDENTISTRY.COM
thevalleyadvantage.com
Two long-running gatherings start next week
Around Town
School News
July 8, 2016
A Pair of Summer Festivals
ON THE INSIDE The latest happenings in our area Page 2
valley
by Christopher Cornell ADVANTAGE EDITOR
Summer has unmistakably arrived in the Lackawanna Valley, and along with hot weather and hazy afternoons, summer also brings the return of long-running annual festivals. Starting next week and into the weekend, the upper valley will feature two. First up is the Corn and Clam Slam, held annually by the William Walker Hose Co. on the firehouse grounds at 803 Penn Ave. in Mayfield. This year it runs Wednesday through Saturday, July 13-16. The event will feature homemade food, drinks, games and raffles. Food will be available starting at 5 p.m., and entertainment will begin at 8 p.m. each night. Admission is free. The entertainment on Wednesday will Jigsaw Johnny; on Thursday, Black Tie Stereo; on Friday, The Jeffrey James Band; and on Saturday there will be a firefighter’s parade at 7 p.m.; followed by music from Far From Fancy. Visit cornnclamslam.com for more information. Another long-standing summertime event also begins next week: the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, now in its 89th year. It will be held Thursday through Saturday, June 1416, on the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel School grounds on Farview Street in Carbondale. Festivities will get underway at 5 p.m. each night. No alcoholic beverages will be served or allowed on the festival grounds. One new feature this year, according to festival organizer Faith Ann Liuzzo, will be traditional Italian food. “Homemade meatballs, eggplant parm, tripe, porketta and sopressata are some of the offerings,” she said, “along with traditional picnic foods. The cannoli this year are going to be from Brooklyn, New York.” Entertainment on Thursday night will be a martial arts demonstration by the students of the Red Dragon Karate school, followed by music from The Poets. On Friday night there will be a performance
TS_CNG/ADVANTAGE/PAGES [A01] | 07/07/16
09:55 | CORNELLCHR
Our Lady of Mount Carmel parishioners will make their annual procession next weekend. Among those taking part last year were Tom Gatto, Cody Killhullen, Pat Cassaro, Frank Cassaro, Sarah Gillott, Gabrielle Giordano, Joe Cassaro, Jay Pollits, Rev. John O’Bell, Joe Lee, Jordan Mellow and Monsignor Larry Tressler.
by Lynettes Twirlerettes, then music by XpoZure, followed by fireworks at dusk — a feature the festival has not had for many years, organizers said. On Saturday night, there will be a performance by the students of Faith Ann Liuzzo’s School for the Performing Arts followed by music from Mystic Ruler. Liuzzo said the planning for this year’s festival was a bit compressed. “The planning for the next year usually started right after the current festival, but this year we had a change in chairmanship and we didn’t get started until March,” she said. “Finding out what needed to be done took extra time. We had a general knowledge of what food or game went in which stand, but as far as equipment and things like that, it was all new.” The good news was that there were lots of volunteers, and many hands made light work. “A years worth of non-use of the grounds left us with what we thought would take three
nights to spruce up. It turned into a two-hour job with 22 great workers. The cooperation we had from our parishioners was really unbelievable,” Liuzzo said. The weekend ends on a more solemn note on Sunday, July 17, when the annual procession through the streets of West Carbondale with the statue Our Lady of Mount Carmel will take place, with a few changes from previous years. “The procession always started at 1 p.m., but this year we will be stepping off right after the 10 a.m. Mass,” explained Liuzzo. “It usually took five to six hours, but this year we are shortening the route and hope to finish by 3 to 3:30 p.m. with a benediction at the church.” Such processions are held by Roman Catholics worldwide around this date. “Our Lady of Mount Carmel” is the title given to the Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order.