Welcome to May, Pennsylvania. And happy May Day. (More on that below).

Two things I learned Thursday while on assignment in the Lehigh Valley for my newsletter dedicated to highlighting the best in Pennsylvania pizza, Pizzavania (subscribe here, and feel free to tell all your pizza loving friends about it).

1. Apparently, I’ve been pronouncing Pen Argyl all wrong, with a hard ‘g.’ According to two locals I spoke with, Pen Ar-juhl, with a soft ‘g.’ The more you know.

2. Downtown Easton is absolutely charming. I’d somehow never been. I spent about an hour kicking around the neighborhood with my wife and our dogs. We ate some great pizza and had a couple beers outdoors, admired the architecture, and were stopped by a local who swore she recognized one of our dogs, which got us thinking, ‘Did he come up to Easton without us?’ Wouldn’t put it past him.

I’ll have a roundup of some great Lehigh Valley pizzerias for Pizzavania soon. If you’re craving pizza content in the meantime, I recently tried the pizza at Pennsylvania’s three convenience store giants—York-based Rutter’s, Altoona-based Sheetz, and Delaware County-based Wawa— so you don’t have to. You can find the results of my Pa. convenience store taste test in this story.

Patrick Berkery

Senior Newsletter Editor, The Keystone

We’re dealing with a lot right now in Pennsylvania, from the impact of data center expansion and ICE’s presence in our communities, to the rising costs of health care, gas, and just about everything else. With that in mind, we’d like to know: If you could ask any Pennsylvania elected official one question, what would it be?

More of your responses:

“If the fuel tax generates millions in revenue, why are our roads in such deplorable conditions? Just moved back to Pa. from Florida after being gone for 10+ years and the roads are still a mess.”

— Renee G., Chester County (Ed. note: here’s an explainer on what funding from Pa.’s gas tax pays for, like road maintenance).

“How do you plan to stop the proposed ICE detention centers from being developed by the Trump administration here in Pa., including closing the Moshannon Valley Detention Center already in use? Other communities, even in red states, have blocked them.”

— Beverly Rolfsmeyer, Philadelphia

“Why does Pa. not have a cost of living adjustment for worker’s compensation? To expect an injured worker to live on what was awarded at the time of injury is ludicrous.”

— Cindy Wanamaker, Exton

“Why aren’t you funding the Affordable Care Act/Pennie so Pa. residents can have affordable health insurance?”

— Dan, Erie

“Why do fracking companies have more rights than residents?”

— Martha W., Torbert

TELL US: If you could ask any Pennsylvania elected official one question, what would it be?

Celebrating May Day in Pa.

May Day rally outside of Philadelphia City Hall on May 1, 2025. (Sean Kitchen)

As I mentioned up top, Friday is May Day, aka International Workers Day, whose origins can be traced back to May 1866 in Chicago, when workers who normally logged 16-hour days went on strike fighting for the 8-hour workday, an event known as the Haymarket Affair. Our Sean Kitchen writes about it in the latest edition of his Keystone Labor Report newsletter.

In honor of May Day, I wanted to re-share this story from a few months ago highlighting 10 moments that shaped labor history in Pennsylvania—for better or worse.

Here’s how you can take action in Pa. on May Day

• In York, officials have announced a coordinated plan to close homeless encampments across the city by June 2. Get the details here.

• Nearly 200 employees will be laid off at a York County manufacturing plant next month. Find out more in this story.

• Winters have gotten shorter in every Pennsylvania county in the past seven decades, as below-freezing days are accounting for three or even four fewer weeks of each year in some places. Learn more about the weather trend.

• Erie’s notorious pizza bomber case will be featured in another true crime documentary show on Sunday. Learn about it here.

Finally…

The exit to Aliquippa off Interstate 376. (Creative Commons)

Last week’s NFL draft in Pittsburgh was a record-breaking success, attracting over 800,000 fans to the city.

Pittsburgh was a fitting site for the draft, seeing as so many NFL greats have emerged from the city and the surrounding area—the small Beaver County town of Aliquippa in particular.

Aliquippa has produced an extraordinary share of elite NFL talent, including four Pro Football Hall of Famers: Mike Ditka, Tony Dorsett, Ty Law, and Darrelle Revis.

Learn more about this tiny Pittsburgh suburb’s legacy of producing NFL stars in this story.