Chairperson Janine Santoro filled in members of the Mayor’s South Side Task Force with updates from the mayor’s office at the June 27 hybrid meeting held in the NCC Fowler Center.

Santoro related that the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program will be accepting applications through Aug. 11. Funded by a state grant, LIHWAP is a temporary emergency program to help low-income families pay overdue water bills.

After receiving 162 responses, it was decided at a recent community meeting to extend the Sister City Survey at webuild.bethlehem-pa.gov. “We wanted to see if we could get a little more, sample-wise,” remarked Santoro. “We decided to do more outreach this month.”

She expressed appreciation to Bethlehem police officers William Rodriguez and Sean Landis for their community outreach work. Santoro congratulated Rodriguez for his Friend of HCLV award given to him recently at the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley’s Fiesta Ecuador.

There are still open positions at city hall, Santoro announced.

Lehigh University students Julie Wright and Isabelle Spirk introduced themselves and spoke about Lehigh’s Permaculture Park program. They are tasked with designing and building an educational, agricultural, and community gathering space.

Kate Jackson, a Lehigh assistant professor and resident, described the program she and student volunteers are working on to address trash issues.

Bethlehem Area School District Supervisor of Equity Initiatives Eric Fontanez discussed recent changes in district leadership. His colleague, Benita Draper, recently accepted a position as assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction for the Easton School District.

He reported that Fountain Hill ES partnered with a church to open a food pantry. Fontanez also mentioned the district’s Fit for Life program continues.

Attending remotely, Adrienne McNeil from Lehigh University said Mandela Fellows from Africa and students from the Iacocca Institute are enrolled in internships throughout the Lehigh Valley during the next six weeks. She asked that they be made to feel welcome as this is the first time many of them have traveled outside their home countries.

She announced a Community Expo for Aug. 28 and invited local businesses to participate and meet the incoming freshman class.

Also attending online, Helen Diaz introduced herself as the director of community relations at MARS-ATP. This is an outpatient drug and alcohol treatment facility located in Bethlehem. “MARS is currently expanding walk-in assessments,” she said as she announced they have expanded their case management services and are looking to expand their certified recovery specialist services as well.

The Mayor’s South Side Task Force regularly meets on the last Tuesday of the month. Santoro mentioned there will not be a meeting scheduled for July.