My grandparents lived on Linden Street in Reading. My dad attended kindergarten through 12th grade and college all on North 13th Street. My parents had four kids, an energetic springer spaniel and a modest-sized home in Lincoln Park. So, we often hiked up Mount Penn and other local mountain trails.
The panoramic vistas from atop the Fire Tower, coupled with the Reading air shows in the 1960s and ’70s, were motivators for my 37-year career as an Air Force pilot and staff officer.
I salute the successful efforts of Pagoda-Skyline Inc. to reopen the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower for public climbs. Their work caught my eye thanks to a recent Reading Eagle article by Michelle Lynch.
I plan to make the drive back to Reading to relive memories of my Berks County youth by climbing the 156 steps up to the top this fall. I’m also eager to see the Pagoda’s ongoing restorations.
Reading’s Skyline Drive is deserving of multiple awards for a job well done.
David A. Hagginbothom
Williamsburg, Va.