Good Shepherd Rehabilitation • March 31, 2026

Regaining Movement While Never Losing Humor

Imagine losing all motion in your body, even your eyelids. When you can finally open your eyes, two months have passed and you're in a different state. Would your sense of humor survive? In my first patient story for Good Shepherd Rehabilitation, I interviewed a couple who, when faced with a devastating bout of Guillain-Barré syndrome, never lost their ability to laugh.

The Express-Times • February 2, 2025

Farewell, old friend

After 169 years, The Easton Express-Times finally ended its print edition. For the last run, I was back as a freelancer to eulogize my old paper. This was personal. This was where I spent countless nights getting the final headlines to print; where I covered presidents and pandemics, elections and festivals, storms and stories; where I met my wife. The result — over a century and a half of local news in 4,000 words — became the centerpiece of the special section sending off this record of local history as it became history itself.

WeFightFentanyl.org • August 1, 2024

Listen. It’s time to talk about fentanyl.

The We Fight Fentanyl campaign seeks to combat the stigma and pervasiveness of addiction in three counties of the Pennsylvania Poconos. I contributed as a writer to the blog, newsletter and social media posts for about six months in 2024.

Lehighvalleylive.com • December 16, 2023

Bethlehem’s Christmas tree toss is weird, wonderful — and worth embarrassing yourself

A tale of tannenbaum-throwing redemption adds to the annals of the Christmas City's oddest tradition.

Lehighvalleylive.com • November 27, 2023

Night at the Roxy

The story of superstar Billy Joel’s first headlining gig could have happened anywhere, but it happened here — in a small theater in a small town, thanks to a small radio station with an unusual format. The various threads that came together 50 years ago are explored in this long-form story assembled through several lengthy interviews. I handled this project from the top down: writing, photography and digital layout.

Lehighvalleylive.com • November 5, 2023

Cooper’s hawk who? New names for American birds will affect 23 seen in Lehigh Valley

When it was announced that all North American bird species directly named for people would be renamed, I quickly sought out local experts to explain what this would mean for birders in our region, and get their (varying) opinions. This was a quick turnaround on a somewhat wonky — but impassioned — topic.

Lehighvalleylive.com • October 14, 2023

‘Ring of fire’ solar eclipse: No sun, no problem. Da Vinci center still brings the wonder.

A cloudy day didn’t stop this eclipse party, which included an interview with future NASA chief Jared Isaacman.

Lehighvalleylive.com • October 13, 2023

Reveling in weirdness in N.J. town where original ‘Friday the 13th’ filmed

A Friday the 13th adventure in Blairstown, New Jersey, where the original “Friday the 13th” was filmed. Hockey-masked, machete-wielding men roam as horror fans renew wedding vows in what has practically become a holiday for this small town. You just have to be there, so I went.

Lehighvalleylive.com • September 14, 2023

You didn’t notice, but the Lehigh Valley just had an earthquake

The earthquake wasn’t the kind that usually generates headlines. It barely even generated a wobble. But it's representative of the geologic forces happening under our feet all the time.

lehighvalleylive • September 4, 2023

Bethlehem reclaiming relic of its greatest Civil War hero, by collector and coincidence

To find out how a Civil War relic was returning home after many decades, I had to track down one of the collectors involved for an interview. The result is a fascinating glimpse into history and the people who pursue it.

Lehighvalleylive.com • August 3, 2023

Musikfest 40 for 40: Stories from four decades of the Lehigh Valley’s biggest event

This ambitious project — 40 separate stories — required copious research through generations of archival methods, cataloging relevant headlines, story selection, writing and graphic design, planning and scheduling. The results are compiled here in the introductory post. My personal favorite is the protector of the Chicken Lady.

Lehighvalleylive.com • April 30, 2023

The end of Steel

On the 20th anniversary of Bethlehem Steel's sale, four interviewees tell their tales of individual realization that the industrial titan was doomed.

Lehighvalleylive.com • April 2, 2023

Vintage baseball at Burnside Plantation shows game is constant, the rules are not

Scenes of Civil War-era baseball on a spring day.

lehighvalleylive • January 29, 2023

Good sh*t! Bees are making dark, smoky honey out of spotted lanternfly excrement.

Huh. Spotted lanternflies, while invasive and dangerous to trees and agriculture, can still serve a purpose. (And I love this headline.)

Lehighvalleylive.com • January 17, 2023

New Lehigh Valley SpaceFest will ‘bring space down to Earth’ when it lands in Easton this spring

What does it take to put on a space-themed festival? I spoke with two ambitious NASA Solar System Ambassadors to find out how they got SpaceFest off the ground, so to speak.

Lehighvalleylive.com • January 16, 2023

Lehigh Valley Then

My ongoing almanac-style series for lehighvalleylive.com recalls local historical headlines from 10, 20, 25, 50 and 100 years ago. Researched the old-fashioned way (with microfilm in the library), featured articles typically focus on famous people or events — the things that make readers go, "Oh yeah, I remember that!"

Lehighvalleylive.com • September 25, 2022

Billy Joel’s ‘Allentown’ at 40: Tough times and hard feelings from folks still livin’ here

Billy Joel has been singing about Allentown (about Bethlehem, really) for 40 years. But how do the people living here then and now feel about that? Interviews with union steelworkers, historians, mayors and local economic cheerleaders come together in this in-their-own-words style recounting of a song that captured a snapshot of hard times, for better and for worse.

lehighvalleylive • April 29, 2022

Delaware Water Gap park proposal opposed amid questions on boundaries, hunting and history

The Delaware Water Gap is a majestic sight. But would the national recreation area be as stunning with another name? A push to redesignate it into a full-fledged national park meets strong opposition — and dredges up a painful history. Both sides seem as far apart as the gap itself in this complicated fight.

nj.com • November 15, 2021

Don’t drink the water: Neighborhood thirsts for answers about chemicals in their wells

2022 NEW JERSEY PRESS ASSOCIATION AWARD WINNER: PFAS-contaminated wells were slowly being identified in a New Jersey neighborhood, but no one was talking about how extensive the problem really was. I went door to door to find out what neighbors were experiencing, and pressed the issue with local and state officials.

lehighvalleylive • October 19, 2021

Moving the Appalachian Trail: How volunteers finished a local job long in the making

It takes a lot to move the Appalachian Trail. I spent one recent Saturday on a walk in the woods with these trailblazing volunteers, documenting with words and photos their mission to reroute the AT.