Diocese of Scranton Announces Gradual Reopening of Parishes Amid Crisis

Posted on June 3, 2020 by The Dunmorean

In a video message to parishioners, Bishop Joseph C. Bambera announced details regarding the gradual reopening of additional parishes in the Diocese of Scranton.

Starting on Monday, June 1, parishes in Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming counties resumed in-person Masses.

On Monday, June 8, parishes in Lackawanna County will also be able to resume in-person Masses. The exact timetable for an individual parish to reopen will be the decision of its pastor with regard to preparedness, especially in regards to maintaining proper social distancing and sanitizing.

Mass attendance at all parishes will be limited to no more than 25-percent of a church’s seating capacity. Parishioners will be required to wear face masks and remain a proper social distance of at least six feet away from other individuals/families.

“For the last 10 weeks, I know many of our faithful parishioners have been longing to return to church, participate in Mass and receive the Holy Eucharist,” Bishop Bambera said. “The Diocese has been working hard to resume in-person worship in a safe, comfortable and reverent manner.”

Masses in four counties, Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan and Tioga counties, resumed on Monday, May 18. While initially limited to a capacity of 25 people, parishes in those four counties can now also increase their Mass capacity to no more than 25-percent of total church occupancy.

Additional guidance for all parishes includes:

Those who feel vulnerable because of their age or underlying medical conditions will be encouraged to stay home. •People who are feeling ill will be directed not to attend public Masses.
The Sunday Mass obligation remains suspended at this time.
Parishes are encouraged to continue live streaming Masses and a daily Mass will continue to be broadcast on CTV: Catholic Television of the Diocese of Scranton.
Pews will be marked off or designated in order to maintain proper social distancing guidelines.
Holy Communion will be distributed at the end of Mass. Parishioners are strongly advised to receive the Body of Christ in the hand. Distribution of the Precious Blood remains suspended at this time.

“As the doors of our parishes reopen, everyone has an important role to play. The safety of our faithful people, our clergy and our community is the most important factor guiding any decisions that are made,” Bishop Bambera added.

Bishop Bambera encourages the faithful to visit the Diocese of Scranton’s website for the latest news and information regarding the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

PennDot Extends Various Deadlines, Offers Safety Tips During Crisis

Posted on June 3, 2020 by The Dunmorean

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has announced that expiration dates for driver licenses, identification cards, and learner’s permits, will be extended for Pennsylvania residents in response to statewide COVID-19 mitigation efforts.

Effective May 27, 2020, expiration dates for driver licenses, photo ID cards and learner’s permits scheduled to expire from March 16, 2020 through June 30, 2020, have been extended until June 30, 2020. These extensions are in addition to those announced on April 30, which extended products with expiration dates up to May 31 to June 30.

A camera card is considered a driver’s license, so it is covered by the same terms and conditions extending other driver’s license products. Camera cards with expiration dates within this timeframe are also extended through June 30, 2020.

Additionally, limited services are available at some Driver License and Photo License Centers. For a list of open driver license and photo license centers and the services provided, as well as their hours of operation, please visit www.dmv.pa.gov.

Customers may continue to complete various transactions and access multiple resources online at www.dmv.pa.gov. Driver and vehicle online services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and include driver’s license, photo ID and vehicle registration renewals; driver-history services; changes of address; driver license and vehicle registration restoration letters; ability to pay driver license or vehicle insurance restoration fee; and driver license and photo ID duplicates. There are no additional fees for using online services.

PennDOT will continue to evaluate these processes and will communicate any changes with the public.

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As counties move into the yellow phase of reopening and “Stay at Home Orders” are adjusted, the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) and Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) remind drivers that traffic safety must be top of mind when behind the wheel.

“While social distancing is still encouraged, when you do travel please drive safely,” said Acting PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian. “We urge all Pennsylvanians to always wear their seat belts, adhere to speed limits, and never drive impaired or distracted.”

The agencies are partnering with municipal police departments and other state and local safety organizations as part of a statewide “Click It or Ticket” seat belt enforcement and education initiative through June 14. The national enforcement effort has been postponed to November 2020 due to COVID-19 mitigation efforts.

Pennsylvania law requires all occupants younger than 18 to wear a seat belt when riding in a vehicle, as well as every driver and front-seat passenger. Children under the age of two must be secured in a rear-facing car seat, and children under the age of four must be restrained in an approved child safety seat. Children must ride in a booster seat until their eighth birthday.

The public can check conditions on more than 40,000 roadway miles in Pennsylvania by visiting www.511PA.com. The service, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information, and access to more than 950 traffic cameras. Motorists can also see active construction projects at www.511PA.com.

According to state police data, the number of crashes and DUI arrests have fallen dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic that has kept more people at home and off the roads, but officials caution that those rates could creep back up as restrictions are lifted during the summer months.

“Even though we are all traveling less often, we still have the responsibility to do our part to keep Pennsylvania’s roads safe,” said Major Bruce Williams, director of the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Patrol. “The first step toward safer roads is a commitment to wearing a seatbelt and zero tolerance for impaired or distracted driving.”

Nationally, many states have reported alarming speed increases with the lower traffic volumes during “Stay at Home Orders.” PennDOT and PSP urge drivers to always follow the speed limit and drive safely. Buckle up for every trip, designate a sober driver, and never drive distracted.

PennDOT data shows that total traffic fatalities decreased to 1,059 in 2019, a new record low, from 1,190 in 2018. According to national data, over 90 percent of crashes are caused by driver behavior. For this reason, PennDOT focuses on data trends to drive enforcement and education improvements and invests approximately $18 million annually in federal grant funds statewide to support these behavioral safety programs.

More COVID-19 information is available at www.health.pa.gov. For more information, visit www.dmv.pa.gov or www.PennDOT.gov.

Dunmore Couple Shares COVID-19 Recovery Story

Posted on May 6, 2020 by The Dunmorean

NOTE: The Dunmorean invited Dunmorean Dawn McGurl to write an account of her experience, along with her husband, Brian, with the COVID-19 virus, which they were exposed to in early March in New York City.. The couple has made a full recovery.

Brian and Dawn McGurl are shown in a photo taken the night they were exposed to the COVID-19 in New York City.

By Dawn McGurl

The “luck of the Irish” was not with us in early March when my husband Brian McGurl and I traveled to NYC to attend the opening performance at Radio City Music Hall of the 25th Anniversary Tour of Riverdance. The show was spectacular, but the souvenir we brought back was not what we expected. Approximately five days later we both developed initial symptoms of COVID-19 and subsequently we both tested positive for the coronavirus.

We can trace where the exposure happened to an event we attended after the performance where the majority of those attending eventually became ill and tested positive for the virus.

While we were away, we realized we were in the epicenter of this virus that was about to explode in our country.

When we returned home, we immediately self-quarantined, because although we were healthy and, to our knowledge, had not been in direct contact with anyone with the disease, we had been to an area that appeared to be an upcoming hot spot. We canceled our family “Parade Day” party and hunkered down.

My husband Brian and I began to show signs of the virus about a week after exposure. The onset was rather mild for both of us. Actually we thought we were just being paranoid.

My symptoms were worse than Brian’s were. He had a low fever for a couple days and felt like he had a cold – runny nose, slight cough, sore throat. Initially I developed a severe headache with fever, severe chills, body aches as well as a dry cough.

Then I began to feel better and was fever free for three days and then “it came back”!

I redeveloped the fever and chills and lost my sense of taste and smell. We both have had some respiratory effects that have lingered for a few weeks now – tightness in the chest, fatigue and getting easily winded. The course of our virus journey lasted approximately five weeks. We are grateful that we were both able to fight this at home and consider ourselves fortunate when compared to others that have ended up in the hospital with much worse outcomes.

We are spending a good deal of our time at home praying for those who are sick and their families, praying for all the hospital workers, praying for those who are providing essential services at pharmacies, grocery stores, gas stations, banks, police, fire, public works and elsewhere. We cannot thank our personal doctors and healthcare providers enough for their care and concern throughout this event.

The McGurls are shown during a happy, healthy time before COVID-19 virus hit. Both have now fully recovered.

We debated making our personal information public. We did so in the hope that it would impress on our community and our friends how important it is to STAY HOME!

We know social distancing and staying home is a financial and personal hardship. I have lost all of my upcoming Costume Design contracts and Brian has had all of his band gigs canceled. We had a death in our family during this time and were not able to have a proper, normal funeral. We miss our children and friends too!

We have been asked for advice as to what we can tell people about the virus. The best advice I can give is prevention and preparation. This virus is incredibly contagious and spreads quickly. Anyone can get it.

Assume anytime you leave your home and enter a public place that someone probably has it. Wear a mask! Protect yourself and your family. Wash your hands. Sanitize. Social distance and be patient. Prepare yourself and your family in the event you do contract the virus.

Make sure to have a working thermometer, Tylenol, Gatorade or other electrolyte rich beverages, and household disinfectants to keep your home as clean as possible. Keep your lungs healthy now, exercise and eat well.

This too shall pass and you need to be alive to enjoy the future when “happy days are here again! “

We want to thank all of our family and friends for the cards, messages, gifts, meals, prayers and love and support during this difficult time.

We have both had follow up medical tests and are fully recovered. We plan to donate our plasma, if we have antibodies, in the hope of helping others fight this virus in the future. Our prayers will continue that we will soon see healthy and happier days! #DunmoreStrong