COPLAY COMMUNITY DAYS 2013

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                     THURSDAY AUGUST 22ND 

              THRU SUNDAY AUGUST 25TH, 2013

YES FOLKS, IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN IN AUGUST
AND COMMUNITY DAYS CHAIRMAN STEVE BURKER 
AND HIS STAFF ARE HARD AT WORK WITH THE 
PLANNING AND ORGANIZING OF THE 2013 COPLAY
COMMUNITY DAYS FOUR DAY FESTIVAL.  THERE 
WILL BE AN ABUNDANCE OF MUSICAL ENTER-
TAINMENT, FOOD AND REFRESHMENTS TO WHET
EVERYONES APPETITE AND AMUSEMENT RIDES 
FOR THE YOUNG FOLK.  STEVE MADE THE STATE-
MENT THAT HE DOESN'T WANT TO MAKE IT BIGGER, 
BUT BETTER.  HOW CAN YOU IMPROVE ON 
PERFECTION? LEAVE IT TO STEVE AND THE GOOD 
LORD ABOVE, AND THE REST OF THE COMMITTEE, 
THEY WILL DO IT.

THE FOOD PREPARED BY LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS

IS ALWAYS THE BEST THERE IS TO OFFER AND THE

REVENUES GENERATED FUEL THEIR GROUPS BUT

ALSO PROVIDES SOME OF THE MONIES TO THE 

COMMUNITY DAYS COMMITTEE, WHO IS IN THE 

PROCESS OF USING LAST YEARS FUNDS TO UPGRADE

THE FACILITY.  A NEW, LARGER STAGE IS UNDER 

CONSTRUCTION, THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM IS BEING

IMPROVED, A NEW SOUND SYSTEM WILL BE IN PLACE

AND WILL BE ABLE TO BE HEARD THROUGHOUT 

THE PARKWAY AS NEEDED, NEW LIGHTS TO BETTER 

ILLUMINATE THE AREA ARE BEING INSTALLED. 

THESE LIGHTS ARE BEING DONATED BY THE 

AMERICAN CLUB OF COPLAY. 

THE MUSIC ALIGNMENT IS SECOND TO NONE 

AND HAS SOMETHING TO INTEREST ALL AGES. 

YOU DECIDE WHAT YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO 

AND PICK YOUR DATE.  BETTER YET, GO EVERY

DAY AND ENJOY IT ALL. 

SPECIAL NOTE:

THE FESTIVAL OPENS ON THURSDAY AUG. 22ND,

BUT BASICALLY IT WILL BE THE AMUSEMENT 

RIDE AREA IN OPERATION ONLY. THE FULL 

FOOD VENDORS ETC. WILL BE IN FULL SWING

STARTING WITH FRIDAY AUG. 23RD. THIS YEAR, 

THE RIDES WILL BE LOCATED ON THE UPPER 

PARKING LOT AND ON GROUNDS WHERE THE 

PAVILION IS LOCATED.  SAFETY CONCERNS

WITH CROSSING TO SAYLOR FIELD HAVE BEEN

ADDRESSED AND COULD BE CHANGED NEXT

YEAR IF NECESSARY.

UP UNTIL THIS POINT OF THE BALL GAME

WE HAVE BEEN HITTING SINGLES, DOUBLES 

AND TRIPLES. THEY ALL CONTRIBUTE TO 

WINNING THE GAME.  REMEMBER PLEASE, 

STEVE  BURKER STATED THAT HE DIDN'T

WANT IT BIGGER. HE WANTED IT BETTER.

SO, HE DELIVERED HIS PITCH AND NOW WE

HAVE A HOME RUN!!!

STEVE ANNOUNCED  A NEW ADDITION IS:

THE EMMAUS RUN INN AND IRT 5K LOOP RUN,
AND KIDS RUN.

PRIZES WILL BE AWARDED TO PARTICIPANTS.

5K LOOP RUN WILL TAKE PLACE AT 5:00PM,

SATURDAY AUGUST 25TH. IT HAS TO BE A 

HOME RUN CONSIDERING THE FOLKS THAT

ARE NAMED IN THE TITLE.  WE ALL KNOW

WHAT A COOPERATIVE EFFORT HAS BEEN 

PUT TOGETHER OVER THE YEARS BY THE

MEMBERS OF THE IRT WHICH INVOLVES 

THREE SEPARATE COMMUNITIES, COPLAY,

WHITEHALL AND NORTH WHITEHALL. I 

HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFETIME WITNESSED

A GROUP SO DIVERSE, YET ALL FOR ONE.

ADD TO THAT MIX THE PROPRIETOR OF

THE EMMAUS RUN INN.  CHRIS SCHMIDT

IS A RESIDENT OF STILES AND TOTALLY

INVOLVED AS AN OFFICER AND ACTIVE

MEMBER OF COPLAY SPORTS.  I MET HIM

PERSONALLY ONLY ONCE, ABOUT ELEVEN

MONTHS AGO AND HE WENT OUT OF HIS 

WAY TO ACCOMMODATE ANN AND ME AT

THE COPLAY SPORTS COMPLEX. I HAVE 

NOT HAD CONTACT WITH HIM , BUT

SINCE THAT TIME I HAVE BECOME AWARE 

OF HIS ROOTS AND THEY ARE IMPECCABLE.

THAT'S A WHOLE NOTHER STORY. SHOW

UP AND SUPPORT THE OVERALL EFFORT OF

ALL THE PEOPLE INVOLVED WITH COPLAY

COMMUNITY DAYS. I WOULD BE REMISS IF
I DIDN'T MENTION THAT OUR (COPLAY'S)
JOE BUNDRA HAS BEEN INVOLVED WITH IRT
SINCE THE LATE 90'S AND DAVE ROYER IS AN 
ALTERNATE FROM COPLAY. NO BIG SPLASH, 
JUST TOTAL PARTICIPATION ON BEHALF OF
THE CLOSEST THING TO UTOPIA, COPLAY.

LET ME MENTION THAT THIS FESTIVAL HAD
STAN REINHARD, JR., AL RECKER AND
FORMER MAYOR JOSEPHINE SHEMANSKI
INVOLVED AT ITS' OUTSET. THANKS TO ALL
OF THEM ALSO.

PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO BECOME AWARE

OF ALL OF THE SPONSORS OF THE FESTIVAL

AND PATRONIZE THEM.  IT WILL BE OUR WAY.

YOURS AND OURS, OF THANKING THEM AND

ASSURING THEIR CONTINUED PARTICIPATION

YEAR AFTER YEAR. ALSO, A THANK YOU TO

COPLAY BOROUGH COUNCIL FOR ALLOWING

THE UTILIZATION OF THE COPLAY PUBLIC

WORKS EMPLOYEES WHEN AVAILABLE.

THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO THE SUCCESS OF

COPLAY COMMUNITY DAYS  IS INVALUABLE.

AGAIN, KUDOS TO CHAIRMAN STEVE BURKER 

AND HIS COMMITTEE WHO WORK TIRELESSLY

TO MAKE THIS THE MOST SUCCESSFUL END OF

THE SUMMER SEASON FESTIVAL. ALSO, SAY 

A PRAYER FOR GOOD WEATHER AGAIN.

COME AND BE FESTIVE IN THE SHADOW OF THE

COPLAY CEMENT KILNS, A LOCAL AND NATIONAL

TREASURE.  SHARE THE MEMORIES OF ALL THE

FAITHFUL COPLAY CEMENT WORKERS OF THE 

YESTERYEAR.  THIS FESTIVAL BECAME A

REALITY WHEN DR. MAHLON HELLERICH, WHO

WAS AFFILIATED WITH THE LEHIGH COUNTY

HISTORICAL SOCIETY, SOUGHT A WAY TO BRING 

RECOGNITION TO THE NOW DEFUNCT COPLAY

SAYLOR PORTLAND CEMENT MUSEUM. 

DAVID O. SAYLOR WAS THE GENTLEMAN WHO

INTRODUCED THE MANUFACTURE OF PORTLAND

CEMENT IN AMERICA. THE FIRST CEMENT ROAD

IN THE COUNTRY WAS  A PART OF NORTH 2ND ST.

HERE IN COPLAY.

GOD BLESS,

FRANK AND ANN DICKMAN

A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

OF THIS BLOG.

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