IHOP Restaurants is celebrating its 15^th annual IHOP National Pancake Day on Tuesday, Feb. 25 in support of Children’s Miracle Network at Geisinger.

Guests visiting participating IHOP locations can receive one FREE short stack of buttermilk pancakes from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. In addition, IHOP is giving guests a chance to win free pancakes for life and other prizes during the National Pancake Day event. Guests can scan the QR code on the table tent to see if they are an instant winner and enter their email address for a chance to win pancakes for life.

During National Pancake Day, servers or volunteers will ask guests for donations to support Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital. Locations participating for Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital include Lake Ariel, White Haven, Wilkes-Barre and State College.

Visit one of these great locations and flip it forward for kids on National Pancake Day.

Elmyra V. Encarnacion, M.D., a board-certified neurologist, has joined Geisinger, practicing at Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton, Geisinger Neurology on West Olive Street in Scranton, and Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Wilkes-Barre.

Dr. Encarnacion earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. She obtained her medical degree at St. Georges University Medical School in Grenada. She completed an internship in internal medicine at St. Luke’s Hospital, an affiliate of Columbia University Medical School, in New York City, a residency in neurology at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago, and fellowships in movement disorders at University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa and the Experimental Therapeutics Branch of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Dr. Encarnacion’s clinical interests are Parkinson’s disease, other parkinsonian syndromes, tremor, Huntington’s disease, chorea, ataxia, gait disturbance, myoclonus/jerks, tics, tardive syndromes and restless leg syndrome.

She is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and is an active member of the American Academy of Neurology and Movement Disorders Society.

To make an appointment with Dr. Encarnacion, please call 800-275-6401.

The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders have announced their 2020 theme nights with sights set on fun at PNC Field this year. The new season opens on April 9 at home against Buffalo and the RailRiders have added a bevy of theme nights and special guest appearances to their already announced daily promotional schedule, bobbleheads and fireworks dates.

On Tuesday, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre announced 13 fireworks dates for the 2020 regular season. Fireworks begin on Opening Night after the final out. Starting June 12, fireworks will follow every Friday and Saturday night home game this year. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will once again play at home on July 4, playing host to the Pawtucket Red Sox, with an extended fireworks show to follow the holiday game.

No RailRiders season would be complete without our rivals battling it out at PNC Field. Purchase a three-game Pinstripe Plan to see Scranton/Wilkes-Barre take on Lehigh Valley in the IronRail Series on April 16, August 8 and September 4. The Big Apple Plan nets I-81 Series games against the Syracuse Mets on April 25, May 30 and June 25. Each rivalry series plan is only $33 for a field reserved seat.

Faith and Family Day is April 25 at 4:05 PM when the RailRiders take on the Syracuse Mets. Spend a late Saturday afternoon at the ballpark with friends and family for some fun and fellowship.

STEM School Days return on May 7 and 21 with a 10:35 AM first pitch. Students from across the region will pack PNC Field for these two day dates with a variety of activities around the park. For the third straight season, local students will also participate in a pre-game trebuchet competition.

Over Memorial Day weekend, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will wear their military jerseys twice; Saturday, May 23 and Monday, May 25. The team will wear these uniforms again on July 4 and these commemorative jerseys will be autographed and auctioned that night.

Tuesday, June 9, marks the first of five Copa de la Diversión games this season. The RailRiders will also become the Vejigantes on July 21 and August 7-9, paying tribute to this region’s growing Latinx culture.

As we all know, there ain’t no party like a RailRiders party ‘cause a RailRiders part don’t
stop. The Office Night is June 12 and actor Brian Baumgartner, aka Kevin Malone from accounting, will make a special guest appearance. Details on an exclusive VIP Meet & Greet will be released in March. Join us as we welcome Brian back to
Scranton… What? The Electric City. Scranton… What? The Electric City. Scranton… What? What?

June 13 is Youth Baseball and Softball Night. Group packages are available now to bring your team or league to
the ballpark.

On June 14, Peppa Pig and her brother George will be at PNC Field for a special appearance. Children of all
ages will have the chance to see these beloved characters in person during a Sunday Family FunDay.

The first of our 2020 Bobblehead Series will be given away on June 27 when we honor our Legends Racers. Mickey Mantle and Thurman Munson start their own jaunt for the first 2,500 fans prior to a game against the Rochester Red Wings.

In addition to each fireworks shows during the 2020 regular season, each night of the Keystone Mid Summer Classic, presented by Norwegian Cruise Line, on July 14 and 15 will conclude with fireworks. Ticket bundles cover all the action each day Tuesday and Wednesday, including the Triple-A All-Star Game presented by the
Lackawanna County Visitors Bureau, and are available now on www.swbrailriders.com.

The RailRiders annual Camp Day game is Thursday, July 23, with a 12:05 PM first pitch. RailRiders University players will watch the team take on Norfolk alongside fellow summer campers from across NEPA.

As “The Captain” enters the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the RailRiders will honor Derek Jeter during the last weekend in July. On Friday, July 24, the team will wear throwback cardinal vests in homage to Jeter’s time with the RailRiders in 2015, adorned with a patch honoring one of baseball’s new legends, and the jerseys will be auctioned off following the last strike. July 25 is our Derek Jeter Bobblehead giveaway, leading up to his Cooperstown induction.

The Gleyber Torres emojihead giveaway is set for August 8. This budding star has everyone because he has been nothing but since his MLB debut in 2018.

On August 21, the RailRiders will have what is believed to be Minor League Baseball’s first-ever “Players Night.” Like their MLB brethren, the team will wear custom jerseys to be auctioned off, but with one catch. The players themselves will design these jerseys, so you will get a true one-of-a-kind classic (ok… it’s 30-of-a-kind with the full roster).

The Legends Race Bobblehead Series crosses the finish on August 23 as Joe DiMaggio and Billy Martin head for home.

Red Titan Ryan and Combo Panda from Ryan’s World will be at the ballpark on August 23 for another Geisinger Sunday Family FunDay. These costumed YouTube characters will be available for photos with fans throughout the game.

Additional theme nights will be announced the week of February 24. All promotions and game times remain subject to change.

For more information season ticket memberships, mini-plans plans or the Keystone Mid Summer Classic, call the RailRiders front office at (570) 969-BALL or visit swbrailriders.com.

Lackawanna College earned the 2020-2021 Military Friendly® School designation by VIQTORY, which has been evaluating schools for this ranking for 10 years.
Each year, the list of Military Friendly® Schools is provided to service members and their families to aid them in selecting the best college, university or trade school to receive the education and training needed to pursue a civilian career. More than 1,000 schools participated in the 2020-2021 survey, with 625 schools earning the designation.
“As a veteran myself, I’m proud to have Lackawanna College once again recognized as a Military Friendly school,” said Mark Volk, Lackawanna College President. “We take seriously our responsibility to provide veterans with a quality education that helps them to achieve their dreams and goals for this next chapter of their lives.”

Being designated as Military Friendly® means that Lackawanna College shows a commitment to creating sustainable civilian opportunities for veterans. The College has developed several academic and social support programs to make the process of navigating the college experience easier and ensuring that veteran students meet all requirements set out in the most recent GI Bill® of benefits. “I am proud to be working with our student veterans on a day-to-day basis,” said Catherine Fox, Student Life Coordinator and Veterans Advisor. “They are a tight-knit group of hard-working individuals who strive in helping each other reach their goals, which are achievable through resources provided to them at Lackawanna College.”

Data for the Military Friendly® designation is acquired from public data sources, proprietary data from the Military Friendly® survey and personal data from surveys from veterans. All determinations are made by VIQTORY with input from the Military Friendly® Advisory Council of independent leaders in the higher education and military recruitment community. The 2020-2021 Military Friendly® Schools list will be published in the May issue of G.I. Jobs magazine. The list can also be found at www.militaryfriendly.com For more information about Lackawanna’s commitment to attracting and supporting military students, visit the Lackawanna College website at http://www.lackawanna.edu/admissions/veterans/.

Patrick C. Kilduff, DO, MPT, has been named Medical Director for Hospice of the Sacred Heart. Dr. Kilduff has been a hospice physician at Hospice of the Sacred Heart since 2008 and will assume the role of Medical Director on February 10, 2020.

“We’re thrilled that Dr. Kilduff, who has a long and commendable history with Hospice of the Sacred Heart, will be taking on the role of Medical Director. His patient-centered and mission-focused approach will serve our patients, families and staff very well,” said Diane Baldi, CEO, Hospice of the Sacred Heart.

Dr. Kilduff has been a private practice physician at InterMountain Medical Group, Shavertown, since 2007. During his time at InterMountain, he served as a board member, member of the Medical Executive Committee WVHCS, Chairman of the Department of Medicine WVHCS, and Chief of Internal Medicine.

From 2007 to 2009, he served as a Physician Consultant dealing with physician level appeals against Medicare recovery audit contractors, applying Medicare local coverage determinations as a patient advocate.  He was a physical therapist at Wyoming Valley Health Care System, Wilkes-Barre. Dr. Kilduff was an internal medicine resident at Mercy Suburban Hospital, Norristown, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Kilduff received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology with a minor in Biochemistry from East Stroudsburg University, a Master of Physical Therapy from Hahnemann University, Philadelphia, and a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Bala Cynwyd.

He is a current member of the American Osteopathic Association and the Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association. He is a Fellow of the American Osteopathic Board of Internal Medicine and earned a Certificate of Added Qualification in Hospice and Palliative Care Medicine through the American Board of Osteopathic Internal Medicine.

Dr. Kilduff is very proud of being voted Times Leader Readers’ Choice Award for Best Family Doctor 2016 through 2019, Citizens’ Voice Readers’ Choice Award for Best Family Doctor 2017 through 2019 and Dallas Post Best of the Back Mountain Best Family Doctor 2010 through 2019.

“Dreams do come true… Hospice of the Sacred Heart has granted me an opportunity to take care of patients and their families at their most vulnerable, emotional and spiritual times. This work touches me at the deepest portion of my soul. It lights the fire that fuels my passion in Medicine, to help, to guide and to comfort another human as they complete their life’s journey,” said Patrick C. Kilduff, DO, MPT, Medical Director, Hospice of the Sacred Heart.

Marywood University will hold a Health and Wellness Discovery Day for high school students on Thursday, March 26, 2020. Registration begins at 8 a.m. in the Latour Room at the Nazareth Student Center. The program runs from 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m., and is free and open to high school students, grades 9-12, who are interested in pursuing degrees in the Health and Wellness fields. To register, visit www.marywood.edu/hwday/ by March 16.

The event will include a meet and greet, admissions information, and an overview of professions, along with two break-out sessions, which will include hands-on activities with the departments of the participants’ choosing, including: Nursing, Pre-Physician Assistant, Art Therapy, Biology, Pre-Medical, Pre-Dental, Pre-Veterinary, Biotechnology, Music Therapy, Medical Laboratory Science, Social Work, Athletic Training, Communication Sciences and Disorders, Exercise Science, Health Services Administration, Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Nutrition, Nutrition and Dietetics, Physician Assistant Studies, Psychology, Psychology/Clinical Practices, Respiratory Therapy, School Counseling, Speech-Language Pathology, Sports Nutrition and Exercise Science, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and Psy.D. Following the break-out sessions, lunch will be provided to all participants, and the program will conclude with a wrap-up session, where winners of the basket raffle will be announced.

In response to an increase in requests for a support group specific to those who have experienced the loss of a child, Hospice of the Sacred Heart will offer a free of charge six-week bereavement series. The series is support-based and education-based.

“The Monica Project” is named in memory of Monica Patel, a beautiful eight-year-old girl who passed away in 2015 under the care of Hospice of the Sacred Heart. “This bereavement series is being offered to parents and grandparents who have experienced the loss of a child of any age and under any circumstance. The need is great and we are not aware of any support group like this in the area,” said Diane Baldi, CEO, Hospice of the Sacred Heart.

“The Monica Project” is available to families of Hospice of the Sacred Heart patients and is also open to the community. The group will meet six consecutive Wednesdays, 6 to 7:30 PM, on April 15, 22, 29, May 6, 13 and 20 at the Hospice of the Sacred Heart Center for Education, 340 Montage Mountain Road in Moosic. To register, please call 570-344-9027.

Author Anand Prahlad, Ph.D., will discuss his award-winning memoir, “The Secret Life of a Black Aspie,” and his life growing up black with undiagnosed autism during a free lecture at Misericordia University on Tuesday, March 17 at 7 p.m. in Huntzinger and Alden Trust Rooms 218-219 of Sandy and Marlene Insalaco Hall. A book signing will follow.

Prahlad’s lecture, “Autism and the Hierarchy of Senses: A Lecture and Reading,” is sponsored by the Medical and Health Humanities Program, the Soyka Fund for the Humanities and the Autism Center at Misericordia University. Prahlad’s Permafrost Prize-winning book offers a journey that takes readers from his beginnings of being born on a former plantation in rural Virginia, across the United States and through historic moments in American culture, as seen through the eyes of an Aspie – a person with Asperger’s syndrome. Undiagnosed as a child, he did not speak for the first four years of his life.

The book’s narrative “reveals the mind of a deeply sensitive being whose perspective defies convention and whose experiences of autism, race and gender defy definition,” according to Prahlad’s website.

“Rooted in black folklore and cultural ambience, ‘The Secret Life of a Black Aspie,’ can at moments inspire and delight, evoke empathy, and deepen our understanding of the liminal realms and marginal spaces of human existence,” the author’s website added. “Along the way he sleeps on the beach, performs in a reggae band, writes poetry, follows a guru, teaches inner-city children, becomes a father, earns a doctorate, survives an earthquake, and finds love.”

Prahlad has published two books of poems, Hear My Story and Other Poems,” and “As Good as Mango.” In addition, he has published poems and creative nonfiction in literary journals, such as “Fifth Wednesday,” “Water-Stone Review,” “Copper Nickle,” “Pleiades,” “The Chariton Review” and “Natural Bridge.” He recently completed a new collection of poetry, “Hijra,” which focuses on black third-gender identity.

Prahlad is a folklorist and a fellow in the American Folklore Society. He has published critical articles and books on black folklore and proverbs, including “Reggae Wisdom: Proverbs in Jamaican Music and African American Proverbs in Context.” He edited the three-volume set, “The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Folklore,” and the one-volume, “The Greenwood Student Encyclopedia of African American Folklore.”

In addition, Dr. Prahlad is a songwriter and musician who plays multiple instruments, including the mbira from the Shona people of Zimbabwe. He released an original blues CD, “Hover Near,” in 2008, and is working on a second CD. He is a cofounder of the Chiyedza Mbira Ensemble, which has performed throughout the United States with internationally renowned artists, including Musekiwa Chingodza.

Prahlad holds an M.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the director of creative writing at the University of Missouri, where he teaches folklore, film, creative writing and disability studies, and has earned numerous major teaching awards.

The Autism Center at Misericordia University is the regional hub for the Autism Collaborative Centers of Excellence, and is dedicated to helping connect people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and their families with services and supports in the region. Services offered include the Autism Lifelong Learning Program and the Summer Transition Experience for Students with Autism. The center holds a Summer Sensory Social Camp, an Autism Distinguished Speaker Series, sensory friendly haircut sessions, and special swim lessons and art activities specifically designed for children and adults with autism. For more information about the variety of programs offered, please go to www.misericordia.edu/autism or follow the center on Facebook at Autism Center at Misericordia.

For additional information about the lecture, please contact Amanda Caleb, Ph.D., director of the Medical and Health Humanities Program, who holds a joint appointment as associate professor of English and Medical and Health Humanities, at acaleb@misericordia.edu or 570-674-8113.

For more information about the Medical and Health Humanities Program at Misericordia University visit www.misericordia.edu/medicalhumanities