Published April 28. 2026 12:37PM<\/p>\n
Four Bethlehem area residents were among 11 extraordinary individuals and one outstanding community group recognized by Northampton County at the annual Outstanding Senior Awards Ceremony on Thursday, April 23, 2026, at the Charles Chrin Community Center in Palmer Township. This annual celebration honors senior citizens whose leadership, service, and dedication have significantly elevated the Northampton County community.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese individuals make a significant difference every day in our communities,\u201d said County Executive Tara M. Zrinski. \u201cTheir efforts have reached every corner of this county \u2014 from mentoring young adults to cooking for dozens of people, from assisting Habitat for Humanity with homes, to supporting the mental health of our community members.\u201d<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s local honorees are:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Richard Elterich (Bethlehem) \u2014 He leverages his professional expertise and compassionate spirit to anchor his community through decades of dedicated volunteer service.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Mary Neher (Hellertown) \u2014 She is recognized for her extensive volunteer work and compassionate service across her community and in her personal life, notably providing in-home care for the elderly and leading local organizations.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Frank Chisesi (Bethlehem Township) \u2014 He has dedicated himself to extensive volunteer service, leadership in his church and community, and a 32 year career in the fire department, serving 12 years as Chief.<\/p>\n
\u2022 John Diacogiannis (Hanover Township) \u2014 His decades of dedicated service have profoundly shaped Hanover Township and the Lehigh Valley through responsible development, fiscal stability, and enhanced public safety.<\/p>\n
Other honorees are:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Attorney William Agnew (Nazareth Borough) \u2014 He has led the effort to \u201ckeep Bushkill Township rural\u201d by preserving its character against a proposed sewer line.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Mark Atwood (Lower Nazareth) \u2014 He has dedicated his life to \u201cpaying it forward\u201d through extensive service to his church and community, impacting many through his compassion and acts of kindness.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Breaking Bread Kitchen Crusaders (Bangor) \u2014 Since 2013, The (BBK) has been a quiet but powerful force of care in Bangor, serving over 200 meals monthly with amazing dedication and compassion.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Donald Eckhart (Walnutport) \u2014 He has profoundly impacted his community through decades of dedicated teaching, environmental stewardship, and active volunteerism.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Mary Ellen Ernie (Bushkill Township) \u2014 She is a pillar of her community, consistently dedicating her time and effort to serve others through her church and various volunteer roles.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Rev. Keven Fetterhoff (Cherryville) \u2014 He leads with compassion, providing essential aid and support services to families in need through his church initiatives.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Janice Frits (Easton) \u2014 She has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to service, actively contributing her time and recourses to her church and numerous community organizations since 2006.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Barbara Sandbrook (Nazareth) \u2014 A formal nurse, continues to dedicate herself to her community by leading volunteer groups, supporting literacy initiatives, and aiding those in need.<\/p>\n
The event celebrated the vital roles senior citizens play in building stronger, more compassionate communities. Each honoree\u2019s story reflects years, often decades of tireless, often unsung effort.<\/p>\n
For more information on the Outstanding Senior Awards of senior services in Northampton County, please contact the Northampton County Area Agency on Aging at 610-829-4540. Photos available upon request.<\/p>\n
Contributed article<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Published April 28. 2026 12:37PM Four Bethlehem area residents were among 11 extraordinary individuals and one outstanding community…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1834,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":["post-178462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=178462"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/178462\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1834"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=178462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=178462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=178462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}