High school is winding down and college football has come to a close. College basketball has begun and high school basketball is right around the corner.
That can only mean that it is once again time for one of my favorite nights of the year and it has nothing to do with athletics. It is the night that I co-host the Dream Come True Telethon. Believe it or not (and I am a “not”), we will be doing the Telethon for the 30th year. I did not host in the early years, but I have been around for most.
The Dream Come True organization, in case you did not know, was founded in 1984 by Kostas Kalogeropoulos, a local businessman. The goal of the organization is simple – fulfill the dreams of children who are seriously, chronically, and terminally ill and reside in the greater Lehigh Valley area. Children are referred by family, friends, clergy, doctors, social workers, etc., and the dreams usually fall into three categories – trips, contact with celebrities, and special gifts (computers, shopping sprees, for example).
Scott Barr will be co-hosting again this year. We have spent this night together for many, many years and I would not want to work with anyone else. He handles the auction area and, boy, is he terrific! If you watch Home Shopping Network or any of the other television all-day shopping channels, just watch Scott do his thing during the four-hour night. He is as good as, if not better, than the professionals. Here are the specifics:
The TELETHON will take place live on Monday, December 7, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. RCN customers in the Lehigh Valley (Channel 4, 1004 in HD), Delaware County (Channel 8, 608 in HD), and Washington, DC (Channel 8) areas can watch live on RCN TV. A popular component of the telethon each year is the auction. This year, we will again utilize the on-line auction. The bidding began on Sunday, November 8, and ends Monday, December 7 at 8:00PM, so check it out!
CLICK HERE to bid on incredible auction items donated by your favorite networks!
Great auction items include:
- Apple Watch from TV One Network
- Autographed Mitchell Guitar signed by The Band Perry from Scripps Networks
- Autographed Copy of Outlander Series Book, “Written in My Own Heart’s Blood”, by author Diana Gabaldon from Starz
- Honora Black Pearl Necklace from QVC
- Grill and Chill Tailgating Kit from HBO
- And much more!
You can find all of the items by clicking on the following link:
http://www.biddingowl.com/Auction/home.cfm?auctionID=2691
You will find a variety of unique items donated by local businesses as well as our friends from the cable networks. If you want something really unique and not found in any store, tune us in and bid on the items. You will make Scott’s night and, more importantly, some child’s dream.
Ann Savkova, our excellent parade announcer, and Chris Michaels of “Sportstalk” fame will do many of the interviews with the children who have had their dreams fulfilled. They are a welcome addition to the team.
The important facts again are:
The Date: Monday, December 7
The Time: 6:00 – 9:00 PM
The Purpose: To fulfill as many hopes, dreams and fantasies for seriously, chronically,
and terminally ill children as possible
The Phone Number to Make a Donation: 1-800-749-8099
All proceeds from the online and on-air auctions go directly to Dream Come True.
Thank you, in advance, for your consideration and support! Your donation will help make a child’s dream come true!
ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)
- As if things were not bad enough with Philadelphia sports, Donovan McNabb who eventually became an admirable role model for the city’s youth and fans, reported for jail on November 30 to serve an 18-day sentence. He was arrested for DUI for the second time in Arizona. His first sentence was one day; this one longer.
- How about Whitehall’s Saquon Barkley? On Saturday, he broke the 32-year-old record for most rushing yards by a freshman in Penn State history when he carried for 103 yards against Michigan State. He broke the record of D J Dozier who was a first-round NFL draft pick.
- For the “love them or hate them”, the Thanksgiving weekend offered its share of polarizing games. The Eagles were blown away by Detroit; Dallas lost to Carolina; Penn State was blown out by Michigan State; and Notre Dame lost its chance to be in the BCS championship series by losing to Stanford. For you, is the cup half full or half empty?
- The second quarter of the Parkland vs. Wyoming Valley West game on Friday night had just about everything. First, Sean Judge of WVW intercepted a Parkland pass in the end zone and returned it 100 yards to tie the game at 14-14. That just made Parkland angry as they went on to score five more touchdowns in the quarter – a 15-yard run by QB Devante Cross; a 77-yard run by Cross; a 30-yard interception touchdown by defensive tackle Noel Brouse; a Cross to Kenny Yeboah 23-yard touchdown pass; and a Cross to Yeboah lateral to Zach Bross on the last play of the first half for 46 yards. At the half, the 14-14 game had turned into a 49-14 “mercy rule” game.
- The PIAA state quarterfinals are this coming weekend and we have our two local teams on RCN-TV. Saucon Valley will take on Selinsgrove on Friday night at 9:30pm and Parkland hits another District 12 nemesis in LaSalle College in Philadelphia at 1:00pm Saturday. If you can’t be there, we’ll take you there.
NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 11-5; OVERALL 107-69 (61%)
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