Bill O’Boyle

Beyond the Byline: Small towns need help to stay alive

PLYMOUTH — Fast cars, busy streets, hometown pride.

That’s what I see when I look at the attached picture of Main Street, Plymouth, as it looked in 1966.

The photo is courtesy of Bob Schacht, another kid that grew up in Plymouth PA — the geographic center of our universe.

The photo shows so much. It captures the essence of small town USA, where you and I and almost everybody grew up. It shows bright lights of storefronts and busy sidewalks and vibrancy.

You can almost fee the hometown pride coming through the photo. And there was plenty of that back then.

So as I hop into the Way Back Machine for another ride back to those good old days, travel with me because your town was my town and vice versa.

Except on the gridiron or basketball court, or any athletic venue. That’s where we squared off and battled until the final horn went off.

And then we shook hands and went off to the dance or the pizza shop or back home.

In those years, Plymouth was really alive. Just like every other town in Wyoming Valley.

Not so much these days, what with this pandemic and all. But there are many more reasons for the loss of all those small downtowns and vibrant Main Streets throughout Wyoming Valley and far beyond.

The challenge today is how to deal with it so that towns can survive. Every town needs a tax base to pay their bills, to keep police protection, to pick up trash, to pave/repair streets, to move snow, to do all those things that make living in a small town possible.

But where is the money going to come from? Taxpayers can’t afford more taxes, what with today’s world of few raises in the workplace — not even enough to keep up with the cost of living — and a corporate mindset that sends the message that everyone should be happy just to have a job these days.

As our elected officials search for the answers, we turn our attention to my hometown of Plymouth. In 2002, Plymouth Alive was formed to try to help — and boy has Plymouth Alive helped.

Alexis Eroh, the new president of Plymouth Alive, recognizes the importance of continuing the annual Kielbasa Festival, which will be held for the 18th year on Aug. 12 and 13.

Eroh, 36, is a member of Plymouth Borough Council and she works as a contract manager at Partnerize in Forty Fort. Eroh is very bright and energetic. She has a sincere concern for her town and its future.

Eroh succeeds Terry Womelsdorf, who was president of Plymouth Alive for 17 years. He succeeded Ed Vnuk, who helped establish the organization. Jaynan Temarantz also stepped down, but she and Womelsdorf remain members of Plymouth Alive and will continue to volunteer for the group.

Eroh said she hopes to return the popular festival to its pre-pandemic form. The Kielbasa Festival was not held in 2020 due to the pandemic and last year it was scaled down a bit, Eroh said.

“We will continue to support the community,” Eroh said in a Times Leader story on Sunday. “We have and will continue to support the town’s fire and police departments, the Shawnee Indians mini football organization, the Plymouth Public Library and the Plymouth Historical Society, and more.”

And that’s why it’s so important to continue the Kielbasa Festival. In these days of dwindling state and federal support and the burden that is on taxpayers, events like the Kielbasa Festival are vital to the community. The organizations supported by the festival are vital to the health of the community. They all provide needed services to the town and its people.

Eroh told me that she and the members of Plymouth Alive want to continue the legacy of the Kielbasa Festival and its importance to the community.

“The Kielbasa Festival has become an institution for the town,” Eroh said. “And Plymouth Alive remains strong in the community.”

The Kielbasa Festival is a fun time that offers great food, crafts and fun for all who attend.

For two days, Plymouth really does come alive.

And the success of these events in towns everywhere are needed to keep small town living alive.