It is one thing to sit back in front of a computer monitor and write about something that has happened, and it is something entirely different to go out and see what has happened; to feel it and absorb it into memory and experience.

On Sunday afternoon, I traveled down to the riverfront to see what last week’s arson did to Bucky Boyle Park. When I got out of my rusty station wagon I didn’t immediately see anything different. I did a quick scan with my eyes to find the half melted playground with caution tape wrapped around it as was described in the Morning Call. I saw nothing. Nothing at all. Then, I noticed the fence. The angle of the low afternoon sun had reflected off of the metal in such a fashion that I did not see it at first glance.

Walking towards the fence I recalled visiting Bucky Boyle over the summer and seeing the splash park and the playground full of kids with their parents sitting on the surrounding benches watching them play. Despite the grotesque act committed here last week, Bucky Boyle was still full of people. The playgrounds left unburnt were full of kids. Two elderly gentlemen in motorized chairs sat near a bench by the pavilion discussing what I assumed were older times and a young couple sat, just next to the acrid smelling pit where a playground used to be, giggling, combing each others hair and kissing each other quickly.

Standing in the stink of arson, I was so glad to see these people enjoying the park as if nothing had happened. As if there was not a giant cage of fence around a sour hole in the ground. The jackasses who did this left nothing more than a sore that will heal with new construction. No sore was left on the community and that is something to be thankful for. It speaks to the true character of the good left in Allentown. The good that kept the park full of people on a warm November afternoon that sat in a park like people have sat since 1910 to simply relax, enjoy and appreciate.

Before I left Bucky Boyle on Sunday I sat in the old pavilion overlooking the Lehigh River and stared across the water into the increasingly bare trees on the other side. A man in a red kayak rowed in circles across the watery reflections of the houses of Adams Island. Occasionally I could smell that acrid remnant of arson and never have I felt such a contrast in a city park.

If anything has surprised me about this act and the ensuing media coverage is the lack of it. Of the people I have spoken to about this, I have garnered the reaction more than once, that this is just what happens. That this is part of the way things work. A suburban friend of mine said her playground, deep into the suburban hills between Allentown and Macungie is burned down regularly.

That does not legitimize this act nor does it allow for people to accept it as a normal occurrence and shrug it off like a morning chill. This story at Bucky Boyle Park is something worth mentioning, not to glorify the act of violence committed, but to shine a light on the reaction of the community; the community that I witnessed on Sunday afternoon loving the park like they always have. That’s the story that matters and is the story that will be left and retold for years, long after the playground is rebuilt and the sour smell has left the air.

(This is a commentary on the recent fire at Bucky Boyle Park, for the story and photos, click here)

Whoever is responsible for setting a playground on fire is real jackass. What happened yesterday in Bucky Boyle Park is despicable and wrong. Bucky Boyle Park is a very bright spot in an area of Allentown without a lot of them. Over the summer, during many visits to the park, I witnessed a park full of local kids enjoying the playground and the splash area. It’s a great thing to see.

Yesterday, some moron or morons, in an act of incredible disrespect and ignorance set this wonderful asset in downtown Allentown on fire. You can see in the photos on the Morning Call how half of the main area of playground equipment had simply melted into a burnt pile of plastic. What unbelievable people would do this?

Bucky Boyle park has a sad history of vandalism and this latest inane act is just purely ridiculous. I sincerely hope that the bums responsible for this are caught. If I were a judge, they would be sentenced to 200 hours of community service in the parks as well as tasked with raising the funds needed to cover the reconstruction of the playground they destroyed.

As a defender, lover, and fan of our parks, this arson disgusts and offends me. In the comment section on the Morning Call a proactive individual suggested sending donations to the Parks Department to help with rebuilding. I want to commend that person and encourage that activity.

What made that comment so different is that when some terrible and stupid thing like this happens, the typical reaction is quite the opposite. I imagine most people hear something like this and say to themselves “I’m not surprised” or “That’s Allentown for ya.” I want to remind any reader reacting that way, that in my opinion, the comment left on the Morning Call encouraging donations is Allentown for ya.

I hope this is easily and quickly fixed. Bucky Boyle is a needed space for downtown Allentown. It really is a wonderful place and the morons who started that fire should be made examples of.

I am excited and pleased to announce that on Saturday September 19th at 2:00, I will be organizing a litter pick up in Bucky Boyle Park.

We have had two walks and a picnic in our parks and it is time that we began to give back to the parks that have allowed our wonderful experiences.

I will be looking to get some latex gloves and trash bags donated and I am going to be creating a Facebook event page for this as well as attempting to get our local media outlets to give the event some coverage.

It is my belief that the time has come for Allentonians to step it up and really start becoming more actively involved in volunteer stewardship.
I will keep up to date with information regarding this event on here.

Get ready to get some gloves on and help clean up some litter readers. It is time we started making a difference.

Any questions? Ask Away

Much more to come…

In 1912 following the plans of Frank Koester, the construction of what was then called Riverfront Park took place. At that time, what is now called Bucky Boyle Park sat riverside in the middle of a thriving district of mixed industry. Over the years, the park has remained as the businesses around it disappeared. Today, the park is a rare bright spot around the disintegrating shadows of yesteryear.



A new playground and water park have been installed here. (Playgrounds did not look this cool or fun when I was a kid.)




On the (so hot your clothes are as wet with sweat as they would be if you jumped in the Lehigh) July afternoon I visited Bucky Boyle was full of kids enjoying that water park. Despite what appeared to be heavy usage, Bucky Boyle was devoid of litter and the park looked beautiful. It was certainly a contrast to the looming Neuweiler plant.

There are basketball courts and baseball diamonds down here and they are all in pristine shape.




In 1926, The Lions Club constructed the Pavilion that is still here. Great views of the river and of Adam’s Island are available inside:


Lehigh University has a boat house here with a dock that happens to be currently covered in poo.


Down by the river, there were a lot of ducks and geese. While I was standing there, three of four female Mallards swam up to me, reaffirming my status as chick magnet.



It was exceptional to stand in one of the oldest parks in Allentown and see how some renovations can really help Bucky Boyle become one of the nicest parks for families to visit in the city. Something I had yet to see in a park was the presence of the Park Patrol. I had no idea that unit even existed. I say here though that while Bucky Boyle is in as good of a condition as it is; a little farther down the river Canal Park is languishing in litter and misuse.

I must relay to you a personal story about Bucky Boyle park. When my brother and I were children we we’re either passing the park or in it, I don’t remember now but at some point I turned to my younger brother and said (for whatever reason) that it was his name and (for whatever reason) it stuck. My brother is still called Bucky to this day. If you ever see him or visit his blog feel free to address him as such.