NANTICOKE — From Australia and Japan to Chicago and Bloomsburg and many points in between, 86-year-old John “Stanky” Stankovic of Nanticoke is known as the leader of a polka band who started to play the accordion at age 9.

WILKES-BARRE — When the Fourth of July show ended in Kirby Park, Mayor George Brown heard the booms and saw the flares of fireworks in neighborhoods afterward as he drove home.

WILKES-BARRE TWP. — The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has begun an extensive project along Route 309 at the Blackman Plaza that is being done ‘to accommodate future post-development traffic volumes to not adversely impact traffic in the surrounding area.’

Luzerne County is nearing completion of an LED lighting conversion project that makes the North Cross Valley Expressway brighter while saving the county money, said county Engineer William McIntosh.

WILKES-BARRE — In a role-reversal Diamond City Sports is receiving help from the community after its clubhouse and field were vandalized earlier this week.

PLYMOUTH — In light of Sunday’s deadly house fire that claimed the life of a six-year-old girl, the community has banded together to offer love, support, and donations in response to the tragedy.

PLAINS TWP. — Plains was able to control two things Tuesday in its final District 16 Little League Major Baseball game against Mountain Top.

The Little League 8-10 softball championships were held Tuesday with teams from Pittston and Back Mountain claiming the crowns.

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Penguins are sticking with Casey DeSmith, signing the team’s No. 2 goaltender to a two-year contract extension on Tuesday that carries an average annual value of $1.8 million.

A rare Monday game presented an opportunity for the RailRiders to extend their best stretch of the season.