Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast

Advertisement Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! The Yoga Loft of Bethlehem is celebrating 20 years in South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Founded in 2006 by Jesse Thompson, the studio began as a third-floor yoga space in the former Cantelmi’s Hardware Building and has grown into a home for yoga, Pilates, teacher training, wellness, and community. Owner Rachel Abott, founder Jesse Thompson, longtime teachers, students, and members of The Yoga Loft community reflect on the studio’s beginnings, its evolution, and the relationships that have kept it going for two decades. From Rachel’s path from student to owner, to Jesse’s original vision, to the teachers and students who helped build the studio’s identity, this conversation celebrates the people who made The Yoga Loft what it is today. More information about The Yoga Loft of Bethlehem: https://theyogaloftofbethlehem.com/   Advertisement Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM QuoteAhead.com Wind Creek Event Center Michael Bernadyn of RE/MAX Real Estate Banko Beverage Company Email your news release to info@lehighvalleywithlovemedia.com Subscribe to our email list  

Advertisement Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! Mike McGrath is signing off from You Bet Your Garden on WDIY with a final episode that looks back on 30 years in public radio, a career rooted in organic gardening, and the kind of advice that made him a trusted voice for gardeners everywhere. In the interview, Mike reflects on his time as editor of Organic Gardening, his years on public radio, and how the show eventually found a home at WDIY. He also shares one last piece of classic Mike McGrath gardening advice: “No trends.” Build raised beds, use real soil, grow without poisons, and do not take advice from random people on the internet.   Advertisement The final episode of You Bet Your Garden is now available through WDIY. Listen and learn more at https://www.wdiy.org/show/you-bet-your-garden. Wishing Mike well and thanking him for decades of smart, funny, fiercely organic advice. Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM QuoteAhead.com Wind Creek Event Center Michael Bernadyn of RE/MAX Real Estate Banko Beverage Company Email your news release to info@lehighvalleywithlovemedia.com Subscribe to our email list  

Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! “People are social, and there’s not a whole lot of other opportunity to just go somewhere and socialize with all of your neighbors.” Lisa Surma Borick said it simply, and she’s right. Farmers markets are not just places to buy produce, baked goods, flowers, meats, soaps, coffee, mushrooms, or whatever else ends up in your bag on a Saturday morning. They are places where people see their neighbors. They are places where kids grow up knowing the vendors. They are places where customers do not just say they are going to buy something. They say they are going to see someone. We spoke with Lisa Surma Borick of the Nazareth Economic Development Commission and Nazareth Farmers Market, and Emily Roland, Farmers’ Market Manager with the Greater Easton Development Partnership and Easton Farmers’ Market, about why farmers markets still feel so important right now.   Easton Farmers’ Market has roots dating back to 1752 and is known as America’s oldest continuously operating open-air market. Nazareth Farmers Market was reestablished in 2010 and has grown into a weekly gathering place in the center of town. But the bigger story is not just history. It is what these markets do every week. Advertisement Emily talked about the work people do not always see: selecting vendors, balancing farmers with prepared food and specialty vendors, handling permits, road closures, parking, layouts, special events, and all the details that make a market feel easy for the people walking through it. Lisa talked about how markets create ownership. People say “my market.” They know the vendors by name. They bring their kids. They make the market part of their weekend rhythm. The conversation also gets into the phrase “buy fresh, buy local” and what it actually means. Supporting a farmers market helps local farms, small businesses, makers, bakers, and families. It keeps money closer to home. It also supports food access programs, including SNAP matching programs that help more people buy fresh food while also helping farmers bring in more income. As Emily said, “It’s so much more than buying.” That is why farmers markets matter more than ever. They are not just about food. They are about people, place, access, relationships, and community. GUESTS: Lisa Surma BorickNazareth Downtown ManagerNazareth Economic Development Commission / Nazareth Farmers Market Emily RolandFarmers’ Market ManagerGreater Easton Development Partnership / Easton Farmers’ Market WEBSITES: Nazareth Farmers Market:https://nazarethfarmersmarket.com Nazareth Economic Development Commission:https://nazarethpanow.com Easton Farmers’ Market:https://eastonfarmersmarket.com Greater Easton Development Partnership:https://eastonpartnership.org HOSTS: George WackerLehigh Valley with Love Media Jeff WarrenCo-host, Off The Record with Lehigh Valley with LoveNorthampton County CommissionerHost of The Philly Sports Table Advertisement Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM QuoteAhead.com Wind Creek Event Center Michael Bernadyn of RE/MAX Real Estate Banko Beverage Company Email your news release to info@lehighvalleywithlovemedia.com Subscribe to our email list  

Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! Girls on the Run has the word “run” right there in the name, but this program is about a lot more than running. On this episode of the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast, George Wacker is joined by his daughter Dahlia, a first-year Girls on the Run participant at her elementary school, for a conversation with Girls on the Run Lehigh Valley & Pocono Executive Director Liz Fones, coach Jennifer Leffler, and Laney, a program alumna who now gives back as a junior coach. Yes, there is running. Yes, the season ends with a 5K. But the real work happens during the practices, where trained coaches help participants build confidence, make friends, set goals, talk through emotions, and learn how to handle the kinds of social pressure that can show up early in elementary and middle school. Liz explains that the program gives girls tools at a critical age, especially as they begin thinking more about how they fit in, what others think of them, and how they see themselves. Jennifer, who has coached for many seasons, talks about helping girls navigate friendships, peer pressure, negative self-talk, and the simple but powerful idea of changing “I can’t do this” into “I can’t do this yet.” Laney shares how her own experience with Girls on the Run helped her meet new people, build a love of running, and eventually return to the program as a junior coach. She now runs cross-country and track in high school, and talks about how running gives her a way to deal with stress and reset when life feels overwhelming. Dahlia also shares what she has enjoyed as a first-year participant, including making new friends and getting to be part of something that gives girls a chance to try running in a supportive way. The episode also looks ahead to the Girls on the Run 5K Celebration at DeSales University on Sunday, May 17. The event brings together girls, coaches, families, running buddies, mascots, music, and plenty of cheering as participants complete the season together. Girls on the Run Lehigh Valley & Pocono serves communities across the region and is open to girls of all abilities. The organization also emphasizes that financial need should not stop a girl from participating, with scholarships and support available for families. Learn more about Girls on the Run Lehigh Valley & Pocono at: https://www.gotrlehighpocono.org/ Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM Wind Creek Event Center Michael Bernadyn of RE/MAX Real Estate Molly’s Irish Grille & Sports Pub Banko Beverage Company Advertisement Advertisement Email your news release to info@lehighvalleywithlovemedia.com Subscribe to our email list

Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! Become a partner or contact us On this special series of the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast, we sat down with candidates running for U.S. House in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District ahead of the May 19, 2026 primary. To keep this fair and useful, every candidate was asked the same core questions. Mark Pinsley is not included because he dropped out. We also reached out multiple times to Congressman Ryan McKenzie’s office and did not receive a response. In this episode, we speak with Lamont McClure, who says he recently completed his second term as Northampton County Executive and announced his run for Congress last February. He describes his candidacy as a response to what he calls growing national chaos, and he ties his platform to affordability, healthcare, and public safety. Campaign: https://mcclureforpa.com/ Day to day financial stressMcClure says the biggest day to day financial stress he hears about is housing affordability. He argues that tariffs are limiting the ability of home builders to build homes, which limits supply and contributes to rising costs and homelessness. He says national solutions should include incentivizing affordable housing builders so more housing gets built at every level of the market. He also argues that rolling back tariffs would help control affordability, saying tariffs have raised prices, raised taxes people pay, and are killing jobs. Healthcare and ACA premium tax creditsMcClure says he supports extending Affordable Care Act benefits, especially the premium tax credits, and says he supports making them permanent. He criticizes Congressman Ryan McKenzie’s actions around the tax credits, arguing McKenzie had opportunities to leverage his vote to secure an extension but did not. He frames his own approach as using his vote to make sure constituents are taken care of, and he links the ACA tax credits to the stability of small businesses and self employed people in the district. Immigration enforcement, legal pathways, and work authorizationMcClure says the country needs secure borders and says violent criminals who are in the country without documentation should be deported. He then focuses on what he describes as his record pushing back on ICE actions in Northampton County. He describes an incident where ICE arrested someone in a courthouse hallway, and says he researched the law and issued an executive order preventing ICE from making arrests in his courthouse. He says that policy remains in place under his successor. He also emphasizes that he has taken on MAGA aligned opponents electorally, and frames that as proof he can win in a politically mixed county. Warehouses and data centersAsked about warehouses and data centers and what makes a project worth it for the region, McClure points to his record combating warehouse proliferation in Northampton County. He cites land preservation work, including preserving 20,000 acres of farmland and 3,800 acres of open space, creating four new county parks, and preserving environmentally sensitive land that contains rare species. He also says he fought warehouse proliferation “to the tune of over twenty five million dollars” in Northampton County. He frames his approach as protecting a green future for the district. <p data-sta

Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! Become a partner or contact us We were lucky to catch up with Bethlehem native Daniel Roebuck while he’s back in town for the premiere of The Hail Mary. Written, directed by, and starring Roebuck, the film tells the story of a reluctant man pulled into coaching an all-boys Catholic football team and finding redemption along the way. For Lehigh Valley audiences, this one hits especially close to home. Scenes were filmed at Bethlehem Catholic High School, the Mary Immaculate Seminary in Northampton, and at the Bethlehem Area School District stadium, where game sequences were shot over eight nights, sometimes as late as 2 and 3 a.m. Real Bethlehem Catholic players, Liberty and Freedom band members, and local residents filled the stands. This weekend, you can see The Hail Mary at SteelStacks, The Roxy Theatre, and other regional theaters. There is also a special event at Hotel Bethlehem following a screening, including dinner and a behind-the-scenes conversation with Roebuck and the team. If you are from the Lehigh Valley, you will recognize faces, locations, and that unmistakable local energy on screen. Find showtimes and details at:https://www.achannelofpeace.org/ Get out there and support a film made here, with our people, telling our story. &nbsp; Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM Wind Creek Event Center Michael Bernadyn of RE/MAX Real Estate Molly&#8217;s Irish Grille &amp; Sports Pub Banko Beverage Company Advertisement Advertisement Email your news release to info@lehighvalleywithlovemedia.com Subscribe to our email list

Get More at LVwithLOVE.com! Become a partner or contact us On this special series of the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast, we sat down with candidates running for U.S. House in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District ahead of the May 19, 2026 primary. To keep this fair and useful, every candidate was asked the same core questions. Mark Pinsley is not included because he dropped out. We also reached out multiple times to Congressman Ryan McKenzie’s office and did not receive a response. In this episode, we speak with Lewis Shupe of Allentown. Campaign: https://realchange.us/ Why he is running and his first term goalShupe says a key goal is to harness the power of registered voters to help compose and promote legislative initiatives led by citizens. Day to day financial stressShupe points to food insecurity and says demand at food banks is rising, including among working people. He argues wages and cost of living are pushing more households toward needing help with basics. Healthcare and ACA premium tax creditsAsked about extending the ACA premium tax credits and making them permanent, Shupe focuses on restoring Medicare cuts he says were made in a major federal bill, and he says he would go further by supporting Medicare for All. Immigration enforcement, legal pathways, and work authorizationShupe argues that people already in the country should have a legal pathway to citizenship and says families should not be separated. He also claims recent border politics are being misrepresented and frames the issue as needing less drama and more workable solutions. Warehouses and data centersShupe responds to the region becoming “the land of warehouses” and data centers by describing tradeoffs. He says there are pluses and minuses to data centers and references a proposed facility in the western part of the region. His emphasis is on weighing local impacts rather than treating these projects as automatically good. HomelessnessAsked what the federal government can do about local homelessness, Shupe connects the issue to limited income and the gap between assistance and real costs. He references his own experience going on Social Security due to health issues and says that being on a limited income is not enough. Third place in the Lehigh ValleyWhen asked where he likes to spend time outside of work and home, Shupe points to Make Lehigh Valley! a &#8220;workshop for people who love to tinker.&#8221; Their members include engineers, woodworkers, programmers, artists, amateur radio enthusiasts, radio-controlled airplane flyers, and more. Check out their website https://makelehighvalley.com/ &nbsp; Sign up for our Newsletter! Thank you to our Partners! WDIY 88.1 FM Wind Creek Event Center <h2 style="