The Lackawanna Historical Society Trustees

Michael Gilmartin
		Michael is a retired teacher from the Abington Heights School District. He currently works in a family- owned business, NADA & CO., in Scranton. As a community volunteer I work with the Scranton Cultural Center, Scranton Tomorrow/Main Street Project, EOTC, and The Society for the Preservation of the Tripp Family Homestead. Since being named an LHS trustee, I have done committee work in support of fundraising events including the Historic House Tour on the Hill, A Night at the Theatre, the Rocky Glen Park documentary, and Arts on Fire. At the present time I am serving as president of the board.

Donald J. Frederickson, Jr., Esquire
	Donald is an attorney and partner with Kobal & Frederickson, Moosic, PA. He serves as solicitor for LHS legal issues.

Laurie M. Cadden
Laurie M. Cadden graduated from West Scranton Senior High School before taking paralegal and real estate certification courses at Penn State University and studying banking and finance at Lackawanna College. She is the owner of Laurie Cadden Enterprises, LLC, is a realtor at ERA One Source Realty, and holds professional membership in the Greater Scranton Board of Realtors. Laurie is a local radio and television host with WILK radio and Electric City Television. She is a recipient of several community service awards and recently was listed as one of northeastern Pennsylvania’s Top 25 Women in Business. Laurie volunteers as a board member of Scranton Tomorrow, Friendship House, the Community Intervention Center, YMCA, the Lackawanna County Commission for Women, Society of Irish Women, Scranton Jazz Festival and Voluntary Action Center. She also is on the advisory board of Ballet Theatre of Scranton. Laurie's favorite local history topic is Women in Scranton.

Douglas Forrer, CPA
Douglas Forrer has served as a trustee of the LHS since 1997 and as treasurer since 1998. Born on Long Island, NY, he graduated from The University of Scranton in 1996 and decided to make northeastern Pennsylvania his home. In 2001 he opened his own accounting practice and continues in that profession today.

Dalida A. Walton
Dalida A. Walton is a resident of Clarks Green, PA. She is a graduate of The University of Scranton and the Leadership Lackawanna program. She is a member of a few local boards and has served as chairperson or co-chairperson of fundraising events in the community. She holds a finance and benefits position at Hospice of the Sacred Heart in Wilkes-Barre. Dalida has been on the LHS Board of Trustees for six years. She is responsible for the Reception Committee which provides refreshments for the Society's monthly programs at the Catlin House. In addition, Dalida has chaired or co-chaired plays performed as fundraisers for the Historical Society. Dalida has worked on PR for the Historic House Tour on the Hill and was on the MAP committee. Training programs: Girl Scouts of USA, American Cancer Society and PA Dept. of Aging. Additional Volunteer Activities: member, Lackawanna County Suicide Prevention & Awareness Task Force; volunteer, Electric Theatre Company.

William Conlogue

William Conlogue, who teaches English at Marywood University, serves the LHS as board secretary and as chair of the Publications Committee.


Martina Bacarella, AIA		Martina Bacarella is an AIA, and NCARB member, and is the founding principal of Martina Bacarella Architect, a firm she founded in Brooklyn, NY in 2001. She has lived and practiced in northeast Pennsylvania since 2004 and serves as the president of the board of the Architectural Heritage Association of NEPA, as a trustee of the Waverly Community House and as board member of the NEPA American Institute of Architects. Martina was born in Italy and immigrated to the United States when she was 6 years old. She grew up in Queens and Long Island, New York. Her father was a general contractor and mason by trade in Italy and New York and she worked for him writing his proposals when she was a teenager. She has lived in 3 of the 5 boroughs of New York City (Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn), and now lives in Northeastern Pennsylvania with her husband and 2 cats in a home that they restored. Martina is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Architecture, and she has a true appreciation and love for classical details, proportion and or-der and this informs her own approach to design and technical detailing. She has extensive experience specializing in historic preservation and high-end residential design that focuses on traditional and clas-sical detailing.

Sharon Burnham		Scranton native Sharon Burnham, a graduate of Central High School, earned a BS in Social Studies Education from the Pennsylvania State University and an MA in History from the University of Richmond. She was on the history faculty of Brightpoint Community College, Midlothian, Virginia, for nearly three decades. Upon retirement, Sharon moved back to Scranton and immediately began volunteering in a variety of capacities at the LHS. She quickly found a home among the organization’s staff and volunteers who are dedicated to uncovering and preserving Lackawanna’s fascinating and rich history. Sharon’s hobbies include researching local history, oral history, travel, hiking, photography and dog training.

Joe Cimini		Joe Cimini is a longtime member and trustee of the Lackawanna Historical Society, having served as the organization's president from 1989 until 1997. He has been on the faculty of The University of Scranton since 1980, where he is an associate professor of Sociology / Criminal Justice. A lawyer by training, Joe is a member of the bar and at one time was an Assistant United States Attorney and then served as a part-time federal magistrate judge. He graduated from The University of Scranton and received his law degree from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He was law clerk to Judge Edwin M. Kosik in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas. Mr. Cimini is a member of several railroad history organizations, including the National Railway Historical Society, and he has a particular interest in the history of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad here in northeastern Pennsylvania. As a trustee of the Lackawanna Historical Society, Joe has facilitated focus groups of the organization's volunteers and of its trustees in connection with the Museum Assessment Plan project. He also is a member of the MAP subcommittee on governance.
Joe Cimini

Marleen Cloutier		New Trustee 2026, Bio coming soon.

Jeffrey R. Kiefer		Jeffrey Kiefer, a Lackawanna county native, is a Senior Project Manager at Astriva LLC. He has been a member of the Lackawanna Historical Society since 2008 and was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2013. He is an active volunteer in many LHS committees and enthusiastically leads our volunteers in Holiday decorating each year!

		I began my education at Boston University and finished from The University of Scranton. I teach pre-school and kindergarten at a private Montessori school. My interest in history has been lifelong. I am new to the board and hope to learn a lot about the LHS. I also am looking forward to finding a spot where I can contribute best to the future and welfare of the organization.

Mary Jane Memolo, Emeritus		Member, Daughters of the American Revolution; president of the Catherine DeLacy Roche Tent Daughters of Union Veterans, and Red Hat Queen of the Rebellious Belles!! Member of the Executive Committee of the Dunmore Historical Society. Member of Marywood University’s Institute of Lifelong Learning Advisory Board.
Mary Jane Memolo, Emeritus

Leni Piasky		A retired State Farm employee, Leni has been volunteering since 2004, serving as a docent at the Catlin House and leading our downtown architectural walking tours and Halloween haunted walking tours around the city. She can often be found at the registration table for various events, or helping with the gardening at the Catlin House.

Ella S. Rayburn		Ella S. Rayburn is retired from the National Park Service where her most recent posting was curator at Steamtown National Historic Site from 1990 to 2004. She has been an active volunteer at the Society for over a decade, serving on the Board of Trustees as well as chairing the Collections Committee. As a volunteer, her major interest is in managing the collection, to oversee cataloging of all the objects owned by the society. Many volunteers help with bringing the collection under control and making it usable for researchers and for exhibiting. Ella also is on the board of the Lackawanna Heritage Valley Authority. In her spare time, she is writing a history of her church, the Trinity Congregation Church. Ella was named Volunteer of the Year for 2007.

William Rinaldi, Esq.		Attorney William J. Rinaldi graduated from the University of Scranton in 1985 with a B.S. in Accounting and History, Temple University School of Law in 1988 with a Juris Doctor, and in 1991 a Master of Laws in Taxation. He was admitted as a member of the bar of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in 1988. He is also a member of the U.S. Tax Court, 1991, U.S. Claims Court, 1991, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern Tier of the Middle District of Pennsylvania, 1992, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1998 . He is the owner of the Law Offices of William J. RInaldi and concentrates his practice on representing individuals and businesses in business matters, federal, state and local tax matters, real estate matters, financing, commercial litigation, defense litigation, loan workouts, bankruptcy, estate planning and business succession planning. He serves as a Part-tome Assistant District Attorney for Lackawanna County Pennsylvania and the Solicitor for the Borough of Old Forge, Pennsylvania. He is active in several charitable organizations as Director, Anthracite Heritage Museum and Furnace Associates, Scranton, PA., Director, Anthony J. Rinaldi, Jr. Foundation for Children with Cancer, Scranton, PA., Trustee, Lackawanna Historical Society, Scranton, PA.

Jack Shean, Esq.		Jack Shean is a fifth generation Scrantonian. Born and raised in the Hill Sec-tion, he started volunteering at the Catlin House when he was 10 years old. His volunteer work ultimately inspired him to author the book Scranton’s Hill Sec-tion when he was 17. Jack’s childhood love of local history was cultivated by late Historical Society President Alan Sweeney to whom Scranton’s Hill Section is dedicated. After graduating from Holy Cross High School, Jack attended and graduated from the Penn State Schreyer Honors College where he majored in philosophy, political science, and of course history. He then continued his education at the UCLA School of Law. Following law school, he returned home to Northeastern Pennsylvania to serve as a Judicial Law Clerk for the Honorable Malachy E. Mannion of the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Jack is now an associate at Fox Rothschild LLP, where he specializes in commercial litigation, labor and employment disputes, and criminal defense. In addi-tion to the Historical Society, Jack is a member of the Lackawanna Bar Association and volunteer with Lackawanna Pro Bono. He is honored to join the Historical Society’s Board of Trustees and excited to lead a new generation in celebrating their local history.

		Elaine is a realtor with Classic Properties and is very active as a volunteer throughout the community. She currently serves as Membership Committee chairperson and plays an active role in planning the Historic House Tour on the Hill and A Night at the Theatre.

Abby Walsh		New Trustee 2026, Bio coming soon.