The Morning Call Podcast

Voice actress Lara Jill Miller recorded this COVID-19 safety PSA for the Allentown Health Bureau.

Voice actress Lara Jill Miller recorded this COVID-19 safety PSA for the Allentown Health Bureau.

Downtown Allentown looks a world different than it did less than a decade ago. When former City Hall reporter Emily Opilo started at The Morning Call 7 years ago, the PPL arena was a giant hole in the ground. Has the more than $1 billion of investment and decade of redevelopment made a difference in people's perceptions of Allentown and their desire to spend time downtown? The Morning Call conducted a scientific poll on the matter with Muhlenberg College, and The Morning Call Academy students unscientifically polled people on their lunch hour on Hamilton Street to find out. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

The opioid crisis seemed to take center stage in 2018. Officials held press conference after press conference, declared disaster declaration after declaration, handed out Narcan; the media produced special packages and profiles on the epidemic. What has happened since then? Turns out, quite a bit has changed, and quite a few new problems may be on the horizon. We brought together four experts to discuss. This is our breakdown of that conversation. READ: https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-opioid-roundtable-follow-up-one-year-later-20191201-cphsofs5ajajtn5r7ej35jmwkm-story.html

More than 300 actors, 22 makeup artists, seven haunted weekends. We went behind the scenes and into the "Crypt" where Dorney Park's Halloween Haunt gets made - scab blood, silicone prosthetics and all. The Haunt's final weekend runs Nov. 1-2. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Almost a year ago, the Allentown diocese, along with five other catholic dioceses in the state, announced they would set up compensation funds for the victims of sexual abuse by priests in the wake of the scathing Pennsylvania grand jury report. Officials said they’d pay for it by tapping available resources and selling diocese assets. Much of those assets include hundreds of millions of dollars of real estate, mostly untouched. Host Kayla Dwyer speaks with investigative reporter Emily Opilo about how she cataloged the diocese's holdings, why this matters outside of the victim's compensation fund, and what diocese leaders take issue with. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

The scene was catastrophic. The circumstances were tragic. But most of all, they were puzzling. Why would a 26-year-old man decide to detonate a car bomb to kill himself, a male passenger and his 2-year-old child? One year after the car explosion that rocked center city Allentown on a Saturday night in September, a team of Morning Call reporters spoke to the families of the victims -- Jacob and J.J. Schmoyer, and David Hallman -- and to federal agents. We know much more about the events leading up to Schmoyer's final act. Guests include Morning Call reporters Laurie Mason Schroeder and Manny Gamiz. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Morning Call Podcast host Kayla Dwyer has been invited back to the Great Allentown Fair Grape Stomp being held Sunday, Sept. 1, at 3:15 p.m. on Centennial Stage in Ag Hall. For this occasion, we're replaying an old favorite. You might think you know all there is to know about grape stomping -- it's something our ancestors did to make wine, and it lives on as a cultural spectacle at harvest festivals. But that's not the full story. This episode answers some key questions: Is it sanitary? Why grape stomp with feet at all, when wine presses have been around for thousands of years? Are there any wineries that still do it and then sell that wine? Special guests include Michela Centinari, an assistant professor of viticulture, and Molly Kelly, an enology educator, both at the Penn State Extension. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

LISTEN: The frantic initial emergency dispatches when shooting erupted around 4:30 p.m. Aug. 14 in the Nicetown neighborhood of Philadelphia, during which six police officers were hurt. The armed suspect surrendered after a nearly eight-hour standoff. Audio from Philadelphia Police Dispatch - Northwest via Broadcastify

When mass shootings occur, most eyes turn to Capitol Hill, where the same dead-end discussions about gun policy churn, at times with a slightly different spin. Meanwhile, in Bethlehem, close to a million people flocked, as they have for 36 years now, to Musikfest, a sprawling free music festival. After a weekend of deadly mass shootings, we explore two questions: How does Bethlehem keep Musikfest safe, and what has kept politicians from landing on successful legislation in response to these events? Guests include Morning Call reporters Laura Olson and Pamela Lehman. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Jeani Garcia can tell you where and when all 49 names on her t-shirt died due to violence in Allentown. As violence has gripped the streets in this particularly bloody summer, we turned to the mothers to see how they're helping each other, remembering their children and putting pressure on community leaders to act. Plus, Morning Call reporter Michelle Merlin tells us the circuitous route she took to try to figure out where a mother who suspects her child is involved in a gang can seek help. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Michael Davis' murder had nothing to do with who Michael was, but where he worked: a Verizon store in Forks Township. We covered the case and the trial that sent his killers to prison for life. In this episode, we learn who Michael Davis was. Special thanks to Russ and Noreen for sharing his story. Morning Call reporter Riley Yates and Assistant District Attorney Patty Mulqueen recount the details of the investigation. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Jonathan Wallace was up atop the blast furnaces of the former Bethlehem Steel plant for more than 21 hours, risking his own life and that of the first responders who ascended the hazardous hunks of metal to try to get him down. But authorities say he has a history of serious mental health issues, and suspect that they had a lot to do with the nearly day-long ordeal. If that’s the case, what’s the appropriate punishment? On The Morning Call Podcast this week, we explain what crisis negotiators did to get him down. Then, we look at what prosecutors are considering for his fate: mental health court. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer. Reporter Riley Yates contributed to production.

Four years ago this week, FBI agents swarmed Allentown City Hall for documents related to a then-unknown investigation into the city’s mayor, Ed Pawlowski. Today, Pawlowski is serving a 15-year prison sentence for federal corruption crimes. The lead investigator on the case, Scott Curtis, used to investigate mafia bosses in New York City. He rounded out his career with the Allentown corruption case. This week on the podcast, guest host Emily Opilo's interview with Curtis on the snags the case hit, the sheer manpower involved with making thousands of secret recordings, and how dangerously close the case was to being outed. Emily Opilo is The Morning Call's former Allentown City Hall reporter. Now she is on the investigations team.

Donating a kidney is a life-preserving procedure. Donating a uterus is a whole different story. On this week's episode, health reporter Binghui Huang explains why one local woman decided she wanted to go through this procedure to give another woman the ability to become pregnant. Plus, is there a potential for this to become as mainstream as in-vitro fertilization? The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.