He’s on his way! Santa will be arriving tonight to the delight of thousands of children in Greater Pittston as we celebrate Christmas 2023.

I also know there are 1,525 children that are going to be the recipients of the efforts of the Greater Pittston Santa Squad (GPSS) in all they did to help those families that needed a booster in getting presents for their children.

Each child, with the help of angel donators in acquiring five presents on a list from that child to fulfill their Christmas wishes.

For those doing the math, that is 7,625 presents to wake up to on Christmas day. That’s pretty amazing for an entity that started just six-years ago.

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GPSS latched on to something that even founder Tony Marranca didn’t even believe a few years down the line, not only would they be able to hand out over 7,600 toys, but to find a home for the nonprofit organization at the former Seton Catholic gymnasium.

Each year GPSS outgrew the temporary home they found, year-after-year, until Father Elston of St. John the Evangelist Church decided to rent the space to GPSS, not just for the Christmas season, but a full 12 months out of the year.

Over the last six years, GPSS has gained strength amongst their own all-volunteer team, the trust of the community, and the organization gained through trial and error to making them a rising star in Greater Pittston.

It doesn’t surprise me on the response Greater Pittston has given GPSS. When you are talking about children or the sick or the elderly, Greater Pittstonians are second to none.

We saw the response and backing when Paint the Planet Pink (PPP), formerly Paint Pittston Pink, received and catapulted them into the position of approximately 10 years into their campaign of raising $900,000. 2024 should be an interesting year as they approach $1,000,000 raised for cancer research.

With a new logo and moniker for 2024, PPP is moving the biggest two events out of Pittston to gain a bigger audience, spread their word, and to refresh and reboot the organization.

There’s not doubt, sometimes things go stale and saturated and maybe organizers from PPP are feeling that way. I know Tony Marranca said things are going so well with GPSS, he wonders when that bubble will burst.

I know the feeling at PPP is excitement and to see what the new horizons will bring, especially moving some of the events to a different area. Founder Barbara Sciandra is looking forward to what the future will bring and knows expanding the footprint will be good for PPP.

Barbara said, “The research that we support here in Pennsylvania can impact the entire planet. Cancer knows no geographical boundaries and neither do we. So, we have evolved into Paint the Planet Pink.”

Rest assured, there is still a lot of PPP in the Pittston area.

PPP events in Greater Pittston for 2024 including the ever popular Purse Bingo (Sunday, Sept. 29) at St. Maria Goretti Banquet Hall; Paint PAZZO Pink (Monday, Sept. 30), Rt. 315, Jenkins Twp.; Paint the Red Mill (Friday, Oct. 4), Pittston; and the big awards presentation at Charley Trippi Stadium (Saturday, Sept. 28) at Pittston Area. There will be no lantern launch, but Barbara assured me there will be working on a new way to celebrate loved ones.

A new event outside of Pittston include a Pickleball Tournament at Birchwood Racquet Club at Clarks Summit (Sunday, Sept. 15) as well as the return of the 3rd Annual Paint the Green Pink golf tournament at Wilkes-Barre Municipal Golf Course, Wilkes-Barre (Friday, Aug. 16).

The 11th Annual Color Me Pink 5K and Gentlemen’s Dash will take place at the City of Scranton on Saturday, Sept. 21.

There may be one more event on their calendar, but details are yet to come.

This is a special time of the year, no doubt. It’s a happy time for all and we all feel the magic of Christmas all over again, year-after-year, in the eyes of children all over.

The weather has been extraordinary with moderate temperatures and the lack of snow certainly takes away from Christmas day.

There are always two aspects of Christmas, the one of happiness and joy, family and friends, the gift of giving, and of course Santa Claus. The second, and the main reason for the season is the birth of Christ for Christians all over the world.

Let’s not lose sight of the people today that are suffering from illness, depression, sadness, the end of life or the recent loss of life.

There will be no celebrating for those reasons listed and we have to keep those folks in our hearts and minds. For as uplifting as the holidays are, it’s not for so many.

We all know someone in a bad way and if you can help someone by doing something uplifting for him or her, maybe you can make a difference, even if it’s for one day.

Merry Christmas everyone and for those supporting this column and this paper, thank you.

Quote of the Week

“On Christmas Eve, billions of people all over the world are joining hearts and minds in a single thought: that in the midst of even the darkest night, the birth of something new, something perfect, and something miraculous is possible. Marianne Williamson

Thought of the Week

“Christmas gift suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service… To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect.” – Oren Arnold

Bumper Sticker

“We should try to hold on to the Christmas spirit, not just one day a year, but all 365.” – Mary Martin