It has been a few decades since a Moose Lodge has existed in Lehighton.

On Saturday, a program for children run by Moose International was instituted in the town thanks to a member of the organization who called Lehighton his home more than 30 years ago.Fred Dragalin of Rutland, Vermont, a member of that city’s Moose Lodge No. 1122, presented Tommy Moose plush dolls to the Lehighton Police Department, Lehighton Fire Department and Lehighton Ambulance Association.The dolls are for children who are victims of traumatic incidents.The presentation program occurred in the meeting room of the Lehighton Fire Department.Dozens of the dolls were given to each department by Dragalin, who explained the Tommy Moose program and told why he chose Lehighton to be recipients.He said, “I wanted to give back to the community that was so good to me.”Also present was Tommy Hatcher of East Hartford, Connecticut, who founded the Tommy Moose program. It is named after Hatcher.Other Moose officials present were Phillip K. Febus of Sellersville, territory manager, and Ronald Murach of Tunkhannock, lodge development chairman for Pennsylvania.Receiving for each department was Chief of Police Brian Biechy for the police, Fire Chief Pat Mriss for the fire service, and Mike Smith, captain of the Lehighton Ambulance Association.About 25 people representing the various organizations were present.Dragalin said he lived in Lehighton from 1981 to 1983. When he lived here, he was a member of the fire department. He said of those years in Lehighton, “I had the best of almost three years of my life.”He said a year ago he contacted officer Matthew Bender of the Lehighton Police Department regarding bringing the Tommy Moose program locally. Bender put him in touch with Jerry Honchon, a member of the fire department, and a presentation event was coordinated.Hatcher said, “Tommy Moose is a friendly, playful, cuddly moose doll whose sole purpose is to bring comfort to children in times of stress, uncertainty or anxiety. He personifies one of the cornerstone tenants of the Loyal Order of Moose: caring for children.”He said that since 2002, over 100,000 Tommy Moose plush dolls have been donated to shelters, hospital and emergency workers, who in turn deliver them to children in need of some comfort when facing some of life’s biggest challenges.”He related that he was a native of Scranton, and that his grandfather was a foreman in the coal mines. One of the jobs his grandfather had was when a miner was killed while on duty, his grandfather had to visit “the widow on the front porch and (the wife and children) had 30 days to get out of that house.”That’s because many homes were owned by the mining companies.It’s stories like this which caused him to have compassion, especially for young children who face horrific dilemmas.It’s also why he joined the Moose, which helps widows and children obtain homes. Moose International also operates Mooseheart, a complex in Illinois for children who have no home or parents.Murach invited the police department to capitalize on another program they have which helps provide identity logs of children. The children are photographed, fingerprinted and have a brief set of information compiled, which is then put on a flash drive and given to the parent. The information is not stored in any computer, Murach said.