The Morning Call Podcast

One of the Lehigh Valley's last known D-Day veterans arrived at Omaha Beach 75 years ago to find it covered with rows of bodies. Despite the carnage, he remembers most distinctly the human moments that occurred before and after, even with the Germans he fought against. For most of his adult life, Kenneth Happel didn't talk about these stories. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Is it just another fad, or America’s next favorite drinking game? For a game involving very sharp objects, axe throwing has a remarkable safety record. Even when paired with alcohol. Lately you’ve been seeing them pop up around the country. Where did it all begin? The answers on this week’s podcast. Guests: Kelly and Stuart Josberger -- Stumpy’s Hatchet House James Belisle -- Betty Borden’s House of Whacks Bob Shupp, Ryan Savage, Chuck Makatura -- Skeggy’s Axe House

"I root for games to end quickly enough so I can make deadline, and I root for a good story. I don’t care who wins." Banquets and halls of fame inductions are usually reserved for athletes and coaches. In April, about 250 members of the Lehigh Valley sports community packed a DeSales University hall to honor two journalists that have covered them for decades: Morning Call sports columnist Keith Groller, and Paul Reinhard, former sports editor who still freelances for The Morning Call. Though Keith has covered the Eagles and the Sixers and the Indy 500, his heart remains with high school varsity sports. On the podcast this week, he tells us why. (He's not retiring.) The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Picture the Manhattan treatment -- doormen, lobbies of marble, elevator operators -- and take out the bustling surrounding metro. Martin Tower, the former headquarters of Bethlehem Steel, was a scene plucked from an urban downtown and plopped into the flat suburbia of West Bethlehem. Or it was a giant symbol of corporate culture's "inward thinking" and the "deindustrialization of America." Now it’s a hollow shell, soon to be reduced to rubble. From start to finish, we remember the history of Martin Tower, including memories from a former chairman and a former employee. Special guests: Curtis “Hank” Barnette, former chairman and CEO of Bethlehem Steel Marian Hough, former administrative assistant Alicia Karner, director, Community and Economic Development in Bethlehem Nicole Mertz, Bethlehem City Hall reporter, The Morning Call

A policy that would allow teachers to volunteer to carry guns at Tamaqua Area School District was approved quietly by the school board, then garnered a loud community reaction. There were two lawsuits, and the school board suspended the policy pending the outcome of lower court decisions. Just as quietly, the policy is back on, by the interpretation of the school board president in the public comment section of a school-board meeting. Reporter Sarah Wojcik explains. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman has been stopping in every county to field public feedback on the possibility of legalizing recreational marijuana in the state. His "listening tour" is expected to wrap up in May. But while recreational marijuana remains criminal in the state, what happens when local municipalities try to decriminalize it? We explored this question when the Lehigh Valley's three cities had such proposals on the table last year. This episode originally ran May 7, 2018. Guests: Emily Opilo, former Allentown City Hall reporter for The Morning Call; Joshua Vaughn, cops and courts reporter at The Sentinel, a newspaper in Cumberland County that partially covers Harrisburg; and Jeff Riedy, executive director of the Lehigh Valley chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Robocalls today are a fact of life. Americans now receive an average of about 5 billion of them a month, according to YouMail, a robocall blocking service. From just 2017 to 2018 alone, we saw a nearly 60 percent jump overall. How did robocallers go from an occasional nuisance to an all-consuming scam? This week, a history of robocalling and a look at solutions being explored. Guests: Aaron Foss, founder, Nomorobo; David Holley, national correspondent, XConomy; Paul Muschick, columnist, The Morning Call

Angry over a dog dispute, a woman shot her 20-year-old neighbor in the torso. The 20-year-old grew up to marry and have a family, and the neighbor went to prison. Then she died at 33 years old, and the coroner ruled her manner of death a homicide. In this week's podcast, Morning Call reporter Pam Lehman explains how she discovered this uncanny story beneath piles and piles of paperwork at the coroner's office. Plus, what happens now to the shooter?

Picture an elevated track of one long tube connecting Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, a sleek capsule occasionally zooming through at speeds up to 700 miles an hour. It's no longer just Elon Musk picturing it. It's other private companies, it's governments around the world, and it's the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. On The Morning Call Podcast this week, The Morning Call's Road Warrior columnist explains what the commission is exploring, and how far along other government entities already are. Audio courtesy of Virgin Hyperloop One. Special guest: Barry Altman, head of the commission's Hyperloop Planning Study.

Holly Branagan was 17 years old, ready to graduate from Freedom High School in a couple months. The case is 40 years old. The evidence virtually unsalvageable. Her family entirely gone. But the mystery of it is nagging. What, after all this time, could we possibly learn about Holly Branagan’s murder that we didn’t know before? Former and current Bethlehem police, as well as Morning Call reporters Laurie and Pam, help tell the story of the Lehigh Valley's most infamous cold case. Read the story on our website at mcall.com/ The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Imagine being asked by a stranger to donate your kidney. Imagine that ask amplified to an audience of thousands or more. This week on The Morning Call Podcast, a look at what social media can do for people in need of live-saving organ donations. Special guests include Gerard Migliore, Scott Bedics and Morning Call reporter Binghui Huang.

When it comes to fastnachts, you either clamor over or have never heard of them. In Pennsylvania, the likelihood of having the former reaction is significantly higher. That’s because the Pennsylvania Dutch long ago coined Fastnacht Day -- very similar in concept to Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. Turns out, no matter where you are geographically, we all look forward to an excuse to indulge on this particular day. On this week's podcast, a history, and an obscenely large fastnacht-baking operation. Special guests include Thomas Gerhart, president of the Pennsylvania German Society, and Linda Gorr, president of the Ladies Auxiliary at Goodwill Fire Company in Trexlertown. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

A major bus company suddenly stops operating buses, with no warning whatsoever. Except for the years and years of financial trouble. This week on The Morning Call Podcast, the downfall of Bieber Transportation Group, the charter bus company with a 72-year-old history in the Lehigh Valley. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

Former Morning Call reporters and editors remember the night a chemical explosion at a fledgling company called Concept Sciences rattled the Lehigh Valley 20 years ago. An inside look into the newsroom at the time, and the following years of investigations. Special guests include Morning Call editor Christine Schiavo, former assistant city editor David Venditta, and former reporter Mike Frassinelli. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.

One year ago, on Valentine's Day, a former student walked into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and killed 17 people. It set off a wave of anger and activism among young people not even old enough to vote. And for young voters who turned out in droves to the 2018 mid-term elections, it was a reference point. Last year we spoke with two local students who participated in this surge of action. The group they started at school is still active. Here is a replay of that episode, which originally aired in March 2018, along with a short recap of what action schools have taken since then, courtesy of reporter Michelle Merlin. The Morning Call Podcast is a production of The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Kayla Dwyer is the host and producer.