Happy Saint Patrick’s Day weekend!
I always felt a kinship with the Irish because my paternal great grandparents, whom I had never met, were born in County Cork, Ireland.
They moved to Georgetown in the late 1800s to find work in the coal mines. My Dad said they called it “Shantytown.” My grandmother, Agnes Ward Youngblood, had a slight Irish brogue when she spoke.
We used to visit my father’s uncle, Cornelius, the oldest of all the siblings, whom you would swear he was born in Ireland. He had so many wonderful stories and a wonderful sense of humor.
One time, when we were leaving his spotless home, he asked my brother and I if we have ever been in a shanty before. I thought he was going to take us somewhere. We had no idea that that the home that him and his lovely wife Mary lived in for nearly 50 years was a coal miner’s home and it took them years and years to pay off.
The home is still there. I do check on it once in a while. Down the street, at the original Ward homestead, where my Dad was born, I check on that too.
Well, make a memory and enjoy your weekend, even if you’re not Irish.
St. Patrick’s Day dinner
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with the Youth/Community Committee, which is hosting a dinner from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday, March 17 at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Elks Lodge 109, 39 Evans St., Pringle.
On the menu will be shepherd’s pie or ham and cabbage, $10. Eat in or take out.
The event benefits youth and community.
At the event, there will also be 50/50 tickets, with 15 tickets for $5 and a basket raffle with 25 tickets for $10, which benefits Lodge improvements.
Sons of American Legion to meet
The Sons of the American Legion, Squadron 644 of Swoyersville will meet at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 19, at the post home. All members are urged to attend.
The 2025 membership dues are still being accepted. Lenten dinners and Mother’s Day Breakfast will be discussed, along with other upcoming events. Commander Thomas Walsh will preside.
For further squadron updates, visit Sons of the American Legion Squadron 644 on Facebook.
Hoyt Library events
New virtual author events have been announced by the Hoyt Library.
Step into Spring and join us virtually for intertwining sweeping narratives of ambition, courage, and desire that asks what price each woman is willing to pay to see their work live on, even if it means they will be forgotten, with author Jodi Picoult’s newest novel “By Any Other Name” at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 2. Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 29 novels. Register now for a conversation about the challenges of having one’s life work live on, even if it meant the forfeiture of authorship at https://libraryc.org/hoytlibrary.
Join in virtually as Smithsonian Horticulturist Matthew Fleming guides us through the secret world of trees as revealed in “The Tree Book: The Stories, Science, and History of Trees,” a guide to the giants of the plant world at 2 p.m. Tuesday, April 8. Trees occur naturally thoughout the world and have been a part of human history for as long as humans have existed. The Tree Book reveals the anatomy, behaviors, and beauty of these incredible plants and habitats in detail from anceint oaks, great redwoods, lush banyans and imposing kapoks.
Matthew Fleming has been a horticulturalist at the Smithsonian Gardens Greenhouse Facility in Suitland, Maryland since 2010. He manages three greenhouses with nearly a thousand tropical specimens that are displayed throughout the Smithsonian gardens and landscapes along the National Mall during the warmer months. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Penn State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences where he studied Horticulture and Landscape Contracting.
Register to learn about the beautiful world of trees at https://libraryc.org/hoytlibrary.
![U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan has announced he’s holding a “Telephone Town Hall” on Facebook at 5:30 p.m. March 25. “Excited to announce we will be holding a town hall on March 25! I’m looking forward to hearing from the folks of Pennsylvania’s Eighth Congressional District on the issues that matter most to them,” posts on Facebook and X said. “You called, We answered … Tune in on facebook!” a photo from the posts added. The post on Facebook has generated hundreds of replies and comments, many critical that the freshman Republican congressman from Dallas Twp. has not had an in-person […]](https://www.citizensvoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/CVC-L-BRESNAHAN031525-01.jpg?w=506 "U.S. Rep. Rob Bresnahan has announced he’s holding a “Telephone Town Hall” on Facebook at 5:30 p.m. March 25. “Excited to announce we will be holding a town hall on March 25! I’m looking forward to hearing from the folks of Pennsylvania’s Eighth Congressional District on the issues that matter most to them,” posts on Facebook and X said. “You called, We answered … Tune in on facebook!” a photo from the posts added. The post on Facebook has generated hundreds of replies and comments, many critical that the freshman Republican congressman from Dallas Twp. has not had an in-person […]")
![Candidate forum scheduled The Republican Party of Luzerne County is conducting a Republican County Council Candidate Forum 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. April 10 at the LCCC Educational Conference Center, Building 10, 916 Conference Way, Nanticoke. This is a forum for the public to attend and ask questions of the Republican candidates that will be […]](https://www.citizensvoice.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/TMC-L-polarization.jpg?w=525 "Candidate forum scheduled The Republican Party of Luzerne County is conducting a Republican County Council Candidate Forum 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. April 10 at the LCCC Educational Conference Center, Building 10, 916 Conference Way, Nanticoke. This is a forum for the public to attend and ask questions of the Republican candidates that will be […]")