The Color Guard from the U.S. Marines led the way for the West Pittston-Exeter Memorial Day Parade in 2025.
Callaio file photo | For Sunday Dispatch
WEST PITTSTON — The annual West Pittston/Exeter Memorial Day Parade will take place on Monday, May 25, with the parade stepping off at 11:30 a.m. at the corner of Linden St. and Wyoming Ave., with parade line-up beginning at 11 a.m.
The parade will head south on Route 11, ending at the Wyoming Area Catholic School, followed by a short service held in the school’s gymnasium with special guest speaker, Fr. Paul McDonnell, along with musical selections.
Fr. Paul, a native of West Pittston, is a 1982 graduate of Wyoming Area High School.
Upon graduation, he entered the Oblates of St. Joseph Seminary, Laflin, to begin studies for the Priesthood.
After completing studies at King’s College, he went to Rome, Italy, for five years for spiritual and academic formation in theology.
He returned home and was ordained a priest on August 10, 1991, at St. Anthony’s Church, Exeter. Over the past 35 years, Fr. Paul has served in various roles of responsibility, including as pastor, vocation director, and provincial superior, in both Greater Pittston and Santa Cruz, California. Currently,
Fr. Paul is pastor at Divine Mercy Parish in the Minooka section of Scranton, director of the Oblates of St. Joseph Seminary, Laflin, and a member of the leadership team of the USA Province of the Oblates of St. Joseph, and serves on the Priests’ Council of the Diocese of Scranton.
Ron Gitkos, commander of the West Pittston American Legion 542, and 1st Lt. Jeffrey DePrimo ask that everyone is welcome to join in the service and that you also display your American Flag during the remainder of the month of May to honor military Veterans.
For further information, contact Gitkos at 570-466-1232.
