The Palmerton United Veterans Organization Memorial Day activities will begin with a parade at 10 a.m. Monday.

Mikaela Lawrence has been named Miss Poppy 2025, and Grayson Vlossak has been named Palmerton American Legion Mascot.

Mikaela, 11, is the daughter of Tristan and Rebecca Lawrence, and a fifth-grade student at Cetronia Elementary School.

Grayson, 8, is the son of Greg and Sarah Vlossak, and a second-grade student at Towamensing Elementary School.

Both Mikaela and Grayson are the grandchildren of Steve and Edwina Vlossak.

The children will each carry a wreath during the parade. One wreath will be placed at the memorial in the borough park, the other at the memorial near the borough hall on Delaware Avenue.

Mikaela and Grayson, along with Scouts, will be selling poppies after the parade and during the ceremonies following.

Money from the proceeds of the sale will go to the Palmerton American Legion and the Palmerton Veterans of Foreign Wars to be used for scholarships and the upkeep of the Veterans Memorial.

The parade will start at 10 a.m. in the 200 block of Delaware Avenue and proceed to Fifth Street, to Franklin Avenue, then down Franklin to Palmerton Borough Park, where services are held at 11 a.m. In case of rain, services will be held in the S.S. Palmer Middle School.

Magisterial District Judge William J. Kissner of Palmerton will be the featured speaker.

Born and raised in Palmerton, Kissner graduated from Palmerton Area High School and Kutztown University.

After college, he served with the City of Bethlehem Police Department from 1991-2011, obtaining the rank of detective/sergeant and receiving 17 letters of commendation.

He was a member of the FBI Lehigh Valley Violent Gang Task Force, awarded Pennsylvania Narcotics Officer of the Year in 2011, was a certified DARE instructor and a certified instructor for the International Police Mountain Bike Association, winning the International Team Biking Title in 2002. He was a 10-year member of the city’s Emergency Response Team (SWAT), serving two years as a team leader.

Kissner took office as the district judge in 2012, serving Palmerton and surrounding communities. He was unanimously elected by his peers to serve as president of the Special Court Judges Association of Pennsylvania in 2022, representing over 500 district judges.

In 2024, Kissner was appointed to the Judicial Conduct Board of Pennsylvania by Supreme Court Justice Christine Donahue, and currently serves as secretary for the board.

Locally, Kissner has served on the Carbon County Criminal Justice Advisory Board, Court Processing Committee and the Law Enforcement Treatment Initiative program.

He is a member of the Bo Tkach Foundation board of directors, which raises awareness of mental health issues among our youth, and a member of Lehighton Masonic Lodge, lifetime member of the Franklin Township Fire Company, member of the Palmerton Historical Society, the Kibler School House, Lehigh River Stocking Association and the St. Luke’s Hospital Carbon Campus board.

Kissner and his wife, Marlyn, have been married for 28 years. Marlyn Kissner is the vice president of membership and community relations with the Pocono Mountain Visitors Bureau.