Five employees, each with 25 years of service, were recently recognized by The Honesdale National Bank.  The employees are Vicky Bryant, Roger Dirlam, Rebecca Gotthardt, Paul Meagher and Linda Miller.

Imagine a group of men and women coming together and creating a family– at Summit Pointe that is exactly what happened.

For Tom Smith, property manager, Summit Pointe is all about building a sense of community.  From hosting events like “Yappy Hour” and “Sweet Treats,” to community members exercising together, it is hard not to feel a part of something special.

“We recently went through a rebranding, and we are really focused on engaging the residents,” he said. “Last month was resident appreciation month and we had a new event every week to celebrate our residents.”

Summit Pointe regularly hosts community-building events and activities. With new additions like a stair challenge and a bark park, there is always something to do on site.  For residents who wish to venture off site, its convenient location means that a wide variety of places to go and things to do are always close by.

With nearly 400 residents, Summit Pointe boasts a diverse community of adults, children and even pets. Residents can sign both short-term and long-term leases and apartments range in size from one- to three-bedrooms. Morgan Properties took over Summit Pointe in 2007, although the property has existed since 1968.

According to Mr. Smith, the diversity of residents helps keep the community alive and thriving.

“We always have extra basketballs in the office, and we usually have the fridge stocked with popsicles, and we always provide coloring books and sidewalk chalk, so everyone can have fun,” he said. “For the dogs, we always try to have treats for when they stop by on their walks. We want to engage our community and we try to go out of our way to achieve that goal.”

Leadership Lackawanna, the region’s premier community leadership development organization, presented awards to several individuals and organizations during its recent 35^th Anniversary Celebration. Award recipients are pictured, from left: Gene Munley, Prudential, Lifetime Leadership Award; Alana Roberts, PPL, Alumni Leader of the Year Award; Julie Bialkowski, Penn State Scranton, Class Leader of the Year Award; and State Senator John Blake, Legacy Award.

Leadership Lackawanna Project Impact Exceeds $44,000

This year’s Leadership Lackawanna Core Program graduates recently completed four service projects that raised more than $44,000 in cash and in-kind donations.

As part of the 10-month curriculum, Core Program participants collaborate with local non-profit organizations to complete various projects that impact the community, address a need and result in a tangible end product.

“Ultimately, the purpose of our projects is leadership and community engagement,” said Nicole A. Morristell, director, Leadership Lackawanna. “The outcomes, as indicated by the accomplishments of the Class of 2018, have proven this. I am thrilled about the impact our projects have had on our region. Raising more than $44,000 that stays local is something to be proud of.”

The projects are:

• Anthracite Heritage Museum: In honor of 250 years of anthracite coal mining in the United States, the Leadership team helped the community to rediscover the Anthracite Heritage Museum. This project had two main goals – to celebrate the museum’s unique history and culture and to increase patronship – and consisted of an event and the creation of a recognition/sponsorship sculpture.
• Lackawanna Heritage Valley: The group developed a “Founder’s Day” event that celebrated local heritage. This free, family-friendly community event was held at the Olive Street Trailhead along the Downtown Scranton Riverwalk on Saturday, April 28, and contained various exhibits, activities and performances, like historically relevant song and dance from a local theater group.
• Nay Aug Park, City of Scranton: Located in Nay Aug Park, the Pavilion, formerly known as the Everhart or Marmie Pavilion, was built in 1897. It is among the first buildings erected in the park. The team revitalized and refurbished the pavilion and completed various landscaping tasks.
• The Farmhouse Sanctuary: Founded in 2016, this farmed animal rescue and rehabilitation sanctuary asked Leadership Lackawanna to replace a small bridge and enhance their walking trails, as well as create a meditation area on the property.

Fresh Faces
Kristin Rutkowski
Lilac Meadows
Old Forge, PA
http://www.facebook.com/lilacmeadows
Member Since 2017

What inspired you to open Lilac Meadows?
I’ve always loved photography, and I discovered that I love taking pictures of other people.  That inspired me to learn as much as I could about the field.  I started taking workshops and learning about photo editing to hone my skills. Once I did that, I was inspired to share my love with others and that led me to open Lilac Meadows. My business allows me to share my passion with others.

What do you like about doing business locally?
I did not grow up in this area; I moved here in 2012.  My husband grew up here and has connections to the area. What I love most about doing business locally, is that now I am making connections, too.  I’m meeting new people that I wouldn’t have met if I hadn’t opened my business.  By doing so, it inspires me to want to do more business in the area.

Why did you decide to join the Chamber?
I decided to join the Chamber because of the connections and networking opportunities it provides.  I grew up watching my stepfather doing things with the community through our local Chamber.  I love how much good the Chamber does for the community.

What makes Center City Print different from other similar businesses?
My business partner, Kurt Effertz, and I created Center City Print with the vision of helping people like us. Print is the first impression people see of your business and we always try to make it convenient for our customers. We come in early and stay late to help make sure our customers always have what they need, even in a pinch, for a great price. We offer a full variety of items and we also have a digital marketing division that handles websites. Our newest offering is online digital marketing, which has been effective for our clients who are looking to grow their businesses and expand their customer base.

What are some of the specialized services you provide?

Everyone looks for quality, price and time and we hit all three major points. We are constantly upgrading our machines and are always looking for ways to make sure our customers look great at an affordable price. We can deliver or drop ship nationwide. As far as the digital side, we remove all the mystery behind websites and how they can be more effective.

You recently opened another location in Kingston—how else has your business expanded and grown since its opening?
Since opening in 2012, we have always sought to offer great customer service. We try to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to our customers’ needs. We even expanded to offering more printed apparel through our sister store in DuBois, Downtown Imprints. We hope that in the next year or two we can expand our offerings to the Stroudsburg, Hazleton, Bloomsburg and Lewisburg markets. We are excited to meet more great people and help these communities the way we do in Scranton.

What are some of the benefits of using a local printer?
Local printers are essential to any community. We stay involved in as many activities and community events as possible. Non-profit organizations receive a heavy discount from us. When you call either of our locations, you are speaking to a real person who lives in the same community you do. We keep everything made in the USA and are constantly reinvesting in our area. We donate more than $12,000 a year to community-based organizations to try to help them out as well.

How has the Chamber helped your business grow?

​The chamber has been and will always be an asset to us and our community. Someone from the Chamber is always reaching out to check in and see how we are doing. We love to work with other Chamber members on their print and digital needs. We offer an automatic 10 percent off all orders to Chamber members as long as they mention it to us. There are even some great special projects we’ve gotten to do for Chamber events!

Peculiar Culinary Company: 5 years

McLane PA: 10 years

The Chamber recently welcomed Michael Friedl, a trade commissioner with the Austrian Trade Commission.

The Chamber celebrated its first “Chamber Day” of the summer at Montage Mountain.