Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast

We caught up with Lara Bly at Lara Bly Designs in South Bethlehem as she gets ready for her Fall/Winter 2026 Fashion Show at The Wilbur Mansion in Bethlehem on Friday, October 9.

Lara takes us inside her boutique and working design studio, where much of what you see on the racks is actually made right there.

Lara Bly Fall/Winter 2026 Fashion Show: Friday, October 9, 2026, at The Wilbur Mansion in Bethlehem.

Tickets and show information: LaraBly.com

Learn more about Lara Bly Designs: LaraBly.com

PRESENTED BY BANKO BEVERAGE CO.

Explore the community-built map of Halloween displays across the Lehigh Valley and check out the limited-edition It Came From the Lehigh River shirts created with Bethlehem artist Thymes Zup.

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Cathleen O’Malley is bringing Milkdrunk, her original one-woman show about childbirth, breastfeeding, motherhood and everything messy that comes with it, to Touchstone Theatre in Bethlehem October 7-10.

Cathleen joins George Wacker to talk about how her own experience giving birth became the starting point for Milkdrunk, and how documenting the strange, difficult and funny moments of early motherhood eventually turned into a theatrical show.

She describes Milkdrunk as a brutal comedy about breastfeeding, but the conversation goes well beyond that. Cathleen talks about using humor to explore some very raw territory, the taboos and expectations surrounding birth and motherhood, and why audiences who may not initially think the show is for them have connected with it.

The show premiered Off-Broadway at the United Solo Theatre Festival at Theater Row and has since been performed in Cleveland, Washington, D.C., and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Cathleen also talks about her history with Touchstone Theatre, what it means to return to Bethlehem with this show, and what she hopes audiences take away from Milkdrunk, including a little more curiosity about the caregivers in their own lives and the demands placed on them.

Milkdrunk: October 7-10, 2026, at Touchstone Theatre, 321 East 4th Street, Bethlehem, PA. Performances are Wednesday through Friday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m.

Tickets: Adults $35; students and seniors $25. Thursday’s performance is Pay-What-You-Will.

Get tickets and show information: Milkdrunk at Touchstone Theatre

Learn more about Cathleen O’Malley: cathleenomalley.com

PRESENTED BY BANKO BEVERAGE CO.

Explore the community-built map of Halloween displays across the Lehigh Valley and check out the limited-edition It Came From the Lehigh River shirts created with Bethlehem artist Thymes Zup.

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Anja Keister is bringing burlesque back to Northampton. After D20 Burlesque’s Valentine’s show sold out the Roxy earlier this year, the hometown performer and producer returns with D20 Burlesque’s Spooky Spectacular on Sunday, October 4.

Anja joins George Wacker again to talk about how that first Roxy show went and what surprised her about the crowd. People just old enough to attend showed up alongside older couples, longtime friends and guests in their eighties. She calls burlesque “an art form for the masses,” and seeing that range of people in her hometown made the return especially meaningful.

The Halloween show builds on what audiences enjoyed in February: burlesque alongside dance, pole performances and flow arts. Chicago performer Red Rum headlines, with Anja hosting and performing. The lineup also includes Caresse Deville, Rosa Darling, Miss Shuggenah, Pixie Styx, Sarah “Chillidawg” DeRemer, Jade Retrograde and Taylor Sweet.

Anja also talks about the handmade work behind burlesque, from costumes and choreography to producing a show. She and George discuss why horror and burlesque fit together so well: both know how to build anticipation and give an audience a memorable payoff.

D20 Burlesque’s Spooky Spectacular: Sunday, October 4, 2026, at the Roxy Theater, 2004 Main St., Northampton, PA. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show begins at 7 p.m. This is an 18+ event, and IDs will be checked.

Get tickets: D20 Burlesque’s Spooky Spectacular

Catch up: Listen to our first conversation with Anja Keister.

PRESENTED BY BANKO BEVERAGE CO.

Explore the community-built map of Halloween displays across the Lehigh Valley and check out the limited-edition It Came From the Lehigh River shirts created with Bethlehem artist Thymes Zup.

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Nathan Szydlow, creator of LV Crime Map, joins the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast to explain how he built a live incident map for police, fire and EMS dispatches across Lehigh and Northampton counties.

Szydlow has been programming since he was 12 and wanted to combine his software-development background with his interest in the Lehigh Valley. The idea for LV Crime Map began while he and his girlfriend were looking for an apartment and grew after he started seeing ambulances responding to incidents around their development.

LV Crime Map follows publicly available scanner feeds and uses AI to convert dispatch audio into text, identify locations and place incidents on an interactive map. The conversation covers how the technology works, how the automated map differs from local breaking-news pages and why AI-generated information can sometimes be incomplete or inaccurate.

LV Crime Map is an independent informational resource. It is not affiliated with law enforcement and is not an emergency notification system. Always call 911 during an emergency.

Explore LV Crime Map: LVCrimeMap.com

Download the app: iOS App Store | Google Play

PRESENTED BY BANKO BEVERAGE CO.

Explore the community-built map of Halloween displays across the Lehigh Valley and check out the limited-edition It Came From the Lehigh River shirts created with Bethlehem artist Thymes Zup.

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Kelsey Aikens, Director of Social Services for Battle Borne, joins the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast to discuss the housing gap facing women veterans in the Lehigh Valley.

Women veterans experiencing a housing crisis can find themselves caught between general shelters that may not understand veteran-specific needs and veteran programs that were not designed around women, children or families.

Kelsey discusses Battle Borne’s effort to expand transitional housing for women veterans and their families, her own experience returning from deployment during COVID, and how the organization connects veterans with housing, benefits, mental health care and other community resources.

Learn more: WeAreBattleBorne.com

Support the Bring Our Veterans Home initiative: Donate through Givebutter

PRESENTED BY BANKO BEVERAGE CO.

Explore the community-built map of Halloween displays across the Lehigh Valley and check out the limited-edition It Came From the Lehigh River shirts created with Bethlehem artist Thymes Zup.

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Dave Burgio, co-founder of Trifecta Credit Solutions in Allentown, joins the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast to talk about how credit connects to capital.

The conversation covers credit readiness, business funding, SBA loans, debt consolidation, creative finance, private real estate lending, and the mistakes people often make before applying for funding. Dave explains why credit is not just about removing negative items, why personal and business credit often work together, and why paying on time is still one of the simplest and most important things people can do.

This is a practical conversation for consumers, small business owners, and real estate investors who want to better understand how to get lender ready before they need the money.

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The Flint water crisis did not begin at the faucet. It grew out of economic decline, aging infrastructure and a system that removed local control from the people most affected by decisions about their water.

George Wacker talks with playwright Maura Haney and two-time Obie Award-winning director Lee Sunday Evans about The Poisoner, a neo-noir thriller inspired by Flint. Maura explains why the play takes place in the fictional Mack City, while Lee discusses theater’s ability to connect individual lives with larger structures of power.

They also discuss emergency management, the journalist at the center of the story, the production’s four-person cast, and the decision to tour seven industrial cities ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The conversation reaches the Lehigh Valley through growing questions about data centers, water use and who gets a voice when communities make decisions about essential resources.

The Poisoner begins its national tour at Touchstone Theatre in Bethlehem, September 17 through 19, 2026, at 8 p.m. The production runs 90 minutes without an intermission.

Tickets and Bethlehem performance information:

Production and national tour information:

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Thank you to our partners: Wind Creek Event Center, Michael Bernadyn with RE/MAX Real Estate, WDIY 88.1 FM, Banko Beverage and QuoteAhead.com.

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Moms mean business, and at The Mom Market, kids do too.

Founder Devika Knafo returns to the Lehigh Valley with Love Podcast as The Mom Market approaches its first anniversary. What began with 40 women supporting Devika’s vision has grown into a community platform that she says has supported more than 160 mom- and women-owned businesses.

Devika talks about creating space for women at every stage of business, from entrepreneurs developing their first idea to established owners opening brick-and-mortar locations. She also explains how her own postpartum experience inspired her to build the support system she wished she had.

The Mom Market’s Summer Glow event will include a dedicated Kids Market for young entrepreneurs ages 5–17. Parents can offer support, but the children will run their booths, speak with customers, and learn how to adjust in real time.

The Mom Market: Summer Glow

Kids Market registration:

Learn more about The Mom Market:

Hear Devika’s first appearance on the podcast:

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CeaseFirePA Lehigh Valley Organizer Maggie Hartmann joins George Wacker to discuss gun violence prevention in Allentown and the work continuing after the July 16 Allentown Gun Violence Prevention Forum.

Maggie talks about bringing elected officials, community organizations, law enforcement and residents together, including young people in decisions that affect them, addressing gaps in after-school support and building trusted partnerships within Allentown neighborhoods.

The conversation also covers school safety, secure firearm storage, House Bill 2244 and practical ways Lehigh Valley residents can support CeaseFirePA’s work.

Parent and Caregiver School Safety Survey:

Sign the Petition:

Learn more about CeaseFirePA:

Contact Maggie Hartmann:

This episode is brought to you by Wind Creek Event Center, Michael Bernadyn with RE/MAX Real Estate, WDIY 88.1 FM, Banko Beverage and QuoteAhead.com.

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Banko Beverage President Tony Gallo joins Lehigh Valley with Love at Musikfest to talk about the family business, its relationship with the festival and where the beverage industry is heading.

Banko supplies bars, restaurants and retailers across ten counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. Gallo discusses the importance of spending time with those local businesses, supporting smaller brands and growing Banko’s selection of non-alcoholic, sports and wellness drinks.

He also shares his own Musikfest traditions, including people-watching, waiting all week for Go Go Gadjet and trying as much festival food as possible. His advice for first-time visitors is simple: Start at Aw Shucks and figure it out from there.

Banko Beverage Company is a strong supporter of Lehigh Valley with Love. Follow Banko on Instagram for daily Musikfest ticket giveaways, behind-the-scenes videos and more throughout the year.

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