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WILKES-BARRE — Let’s talk about impact.

Specifically, let’s talk about the impact this newspaper has had on the community it serves for 117 years — now in its 118th year,

In the community, a strong pivot person or organization is vital — a business that can do it all, so to speak.

The Times Leader has been doing it all for this community for 117-plus years now — playing a pivotal role in the lives of every person, business and organization that has called Luzerne County home.

This newspaper has continued to report the news every day — to provide local, regional, state, national and international stories day after day to keep readers informed.

This is a critical role for the paper and the community — impactful, for sure.

As The Times Leader has continuously pivoted in its delivery of news to the public, it realizes the importance of providing all of its services to each and every reader as they experience their individual pivotal events of their lives.

The same with businesses and community organizations — all play vital roles to enrich and expand our community and to make living and working here all that more enjoyable.

An impactful role in something is one that is extremely important and affects the success of everything.

A newspaper depends on the people it serves and the community depends on the services provided by that newspaper. News, sports, community, social, opinion, politics, government, lifestyle, advertising — it’s all there every day.

The Times Leader has been doing that for 117 years.

That is impact.

At the center of impact are the stories — especially those that effect positive change in the community, the state, the nation and even the world.

We were asked to review our 2024 stories to see what delivered the most significant impact. Here’s three that I felt were the most impactful.

Paul Miller’s Law — June 2024

A few years ago, Eileen Woelkers Miller stood before hundreds of students at the Greater Nanticoke High School and told the story of how her life was forever changed on July 5, 2010, when her son, Paul Jr., was killed in a crash caused by a distracted driver.

It was a strong, emotional message — a message Mrs. Miller has delivered to thousands of students across Pennsylvania and the U.S.

As Miller bravely spoke to the students, she said that her son did everything right on July 5, 2010 — but the driver of the tractor-trailer traveling in the opposite direction did everything wrong.

Miller’s son, Paul, was driving his vehicle on Route 33 in Hamilton Township, when a southbound tractor-trailer crossed the center grass divider and traveled head-on into his car. At the time of the crash, the tractor trailer was being operated by a distracted driver.

Paul died from the injuries he suffered as a result of the crash — he was 21.

This year, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed Senate Bill 37 — known as Paul Miller’s Law — into law, prohibiting the use of hand-held devices while driving. This bipartisan legislation makes Pennsylvania the 29th state in the nation to ban distracted driving.

After years of advocating, Mrs. Miller accomplished her goal of honoring her son by getting the law enacted. But the battle to convince students and adults to refrain from driving distracted continues.

“These tragedies are preventable,” Miller says. “They are crashes, not accidents.”

That’s impact.

Aimee’s Story — May 2024

Aimee Kearney shared her story for one reason and one reason only — to prevent anyone from having to go through what she has gone through in her battle against colorectal cancer.

Aimee says don’t put off getting your regular testing done, such as routine blood work and a colonoscopy.

“If you won’t get screened for yourself, do it for your family. They want you to be healthy and make many more memories with them.”

Aimee, 45, lives in Mountain Top. She has two daughters — Sydney, 22, a student at Penn State University; and Mackenzie, 17, a student at Crestwood High School.

Aimee is daughter of Mayor George and Marianne Brown, Wilkes-Barre.

“I’m usually a very private person, but if I can help one person prevent what I have gone through recently it is worth every bit of vulnerability,” Aimee said.

Impact.

Tova Friedman — Holocaust Survivor — May 2024

On a Wednesday night in May at the Friedman Jewish Community Center, Tova Friedman, one of the youngest people to have survived the Holocaust, told about 350 in attendance about the evening when she arrived at Auschwitz.

Friedman said her mom always told her the truth.

“I asked my mom what the smell was and she pointed to the smoke coming out of tall stacks,” she said. “They were burning people.”

Friedman, 85, captivated the audience with her graphic account of her experience at Auschwitz and of her survival and her life over the past 80 years.

More than 150 members of Tova’s family were murdered.

Friedman detailed the horrific story of her time at Auschwitz through the eyes of a little girl. She said she is often asked how she and her parents and two aunts survived, and her only explanation is, ‘It must have been luck.’”

But as indelible as the tattoo on her left arm, so are Tova’s memories.

Impact.

That is what The Times Leader and its sister newspapers are all about.

Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.