Greetings, my fellow Northampton residents. Might we be experiencing a realistic start to spring 2025, putting to rest any further winterlike weather? Let’s hope so because I, for one, have quite a few springtime initiatives ready to go.

First and foremost, I want to thank the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce for naming me the 2025 Mayor of the Year! To my great surprise, I was awarded this prestigious honor at the annual Mayor and Municipal Officials Reception last Thursday. With more than 400 attendees, I was joined by several of our borough family members and my guest, the Honorable Judge Brian Panella, as state Rep. Zach Mako, R-183rd, presented me with the award.

To say I was shocked and humbled is an understatement. To be selected out of all the mayors in the five counties the GLVCC covers is truly an incredible honor, for which I’m eternally grateful. As I happily continue to serve as your mayor, know that I will fully live up to all this award represents, bringing more initiatives and community-minded spirit to this great town.

As a reminder, I’m now accepting applications for the Hometown Heroes project. I wish to compile one last collection of heroes so we can honor them this Memorial Day. Applications will be accepted until April 17, which will give me just enough time to get the editing, retouching and ordering completed so we can have them hanging by May 23. Please, do not hesitate.

Along with the fine assistance of Meaghan and Bernadette in the office, I look forward to spending a good part of these next few days at borough hall, ready to take your information and photos. Let’s get this done!

Next up on the springtime hits list is the ever-popular children’s Easter egg hunt. This dash for those colorful, candy-filled eggs will kick off 11 a.m. April 12 at Municipal Park, Smith Lane and Laubach Avenue.

After you collect your little ones, be sure to stop by the band shell, where we will have plenty of chocolate bunnies for each child. I understand the Easter Bunny will also be making an appearance, so have those cameras ready for your post-egg hunt photos.

Then, we head over to the Hokendauqua Creek for our next event, where our police department takes center stage. On April 19, they will host the annual fishing derby. Starting 8 a.m. and running until 4 p.m., the derby takes place along the creek, behind borough hall. From the results I’ve seen these past years, there’ll be some sizable fish ready to test your talents.

It’s a great start to the fishing season, with plenty of nice trout stocked just for this event. Along with the fishing, we have a bountiful, eclectic basket raffle held right there in the garage area, benefiting the police equipment fund.

Given the beautiful weather we’ve enjoyed these past years, it’s a great day to bring out the whole family to support our men in blue!

Now, on to the gardening. We all know Mother Nature has been toying with us here in 2025. First, we get the windiest year on record, then we’re blessed with beautiful, unseasonably warm days in between. All I know is I’m more than ready, along with our public works department, to get the rakes and shovels into the soil, cleaning and refurbishing our parks in time for spring planting.

Starting with Canal Street Park and the monarch butterfly waystations, I’m working with borough Manager Brian Welsko to formulate our plan of attack, to make the best use of our time, resources, plants and seed inventory. As our park encompasses 1.4 miles of the 165-mile Delaware & Lehigh Trail, my goal is to make that stretch “the most picturesque” 1.4 of the 165-mile trail.

We have the tools and technology to make it happen, and this year, we certainly will!

I also have a volunteer group ready to begin planting in the Center Street parking lot area, as an added bonus.

Speaking of our monarch butterfly gardens, this past Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at Holly DeFiore’s Eagle Scout Court of Honor. You see, Holly chose, as her Eagle Scout project, to build and maintain a monarch butterfly garden in Canal Street Park, and that she did. Joined by other local legislators and guests, this ceremony highlighted Holly’s overwhelming achievements on her road to becoming an Eagle Scout.

As a former Scout myself, I couldn’t be more impressed with this young woman’s drive and dedication. For now, with the initial construction complete, she’s adding more foliage and decor to enhance the site, located near the food bank.

Thank you, Holly, for your fine work, which will surely be enjoyed by many.

Along with Holly’s ceremony, I was honored to speak at the Eagle Scout Court of Honor for Coltyn Padgett a few weeks back. Coltyn’s achievements on his road to Eagle Scout are equally impressive, as are those of all the other Eagle Scouts I met at the two events.

I bring this up as a reminder that there are plenty of great young adults successfully making their way that we rarely hear about. To see all the merit badges and awards these Scouts earned is a testament to their fortitude, focus and resolve to grow toward earning such a lofty award as Eagle Scout. As one of the most universally recognized awards, it forever defines them as a person of strong character and leadership, unfazed by the hard work required to reach their goals.

These are the selfless youths our world sorely needs today. I wish both Holly and Coltyn all the best as they continue on their journeys.

So, for now, enjoy this arrival of spring, go out and plant something colorful, and I’ll look forward to seeing you as I bike around town.