The Westmoreland Club's Grand Hall

Since 1873, The Westmoreland Club in Downtown Wilkes-Barre has been a staple for events and gatherings in our area, but recently expanded their offerings with their purchase and renovation of the former First Baptist Church on South River Street- now known as the Grand Hall. Over the last few years, the Club has spent over 1.2 million dollars in upgrades to not only the interior, but also to the exterior of the buildings and the grounds.

Restorations began shortly after the purchase of the building, beginning with the replacement of sections of the roof in the sanctuary to repair identified leaks. During this phase, electrical upgrades were also made, the building’s masonry was restored, and the interior underwent a full restoration of its wooden flooring. In 2023, new restrooms and a wheelchair accessible entrance were added to the building, replacing the bathrooms in the basement of the Sanctuary. The security system of the building was upgraded to communicate with both the Fire and Police Departments of the City of Wilkes Barre.

In November 2024, the Club began an extensive exterior renovation that introduced a brand-new heating and cooling system, bringing air conditioning to the building for the first time. Once this project was completed, the entire area received new storm drains, upgraded exterior lighting, enhanced electrical service, and improved IT capabilities through the installation of fiber optic lines.  During this period, the building connecting the Sanctuary and the Rectory had a new roof installed. 

While this work was being completed, work was also done to the building’s exterior to beautify the overall appearance, leading to a complete overhaul of the land that was once the footprint of the former Jewish Community Center. The entire area, including the lot shared with the Osterhout Free Library, was fully repaved, had new fencing added, and landscaped to create a cohesive look.

These enhancements to the Grand Hall have transformed a once vacant area into a vibrant space that has become a premier venue to host member events, community-sponsored galas, and more- all while preserving a historic, irreplaceable building in Downtown Wilkes-Barre.

The Wright Center for Community Health

The Wright Center is a community health center in Wilkes-Barre committed to delivering affordable, high-quality, whole-person primary health services to people of all ages, regardless of their insurance status, ZIP code, or ability to pay. The Center brings a spectrum of health services under one roof; from dental, pediatric, geriatric, and family medicine to behavioral health, addiction and recovery care, and hepatitis C/infectious disease treatment. Patients can conveniently access comprehensive services in a single, easily accessible location. The location allows them to provide critical health services to an underserved population, and to ultimately improve health and wellness throughout Luzerne County and across Northeast Pennsylvania.

Recently, the Wright Center has transformed an empty, obsolete 34,460-square-foot former office building on North Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilkes-Barre into an intentionally designed community health center. The renovated center opened its doors to patients on January 9^th, 2023, and offers care Monday through Saturday. Since then, renovation work has created 35 exam rooms, 10 dental operatories, 28 behavioral therapy rooms, and 10 multipurpose rooms, which can be used for a variety of clinical needs. Additionally, the lobby and patient check-in areas were expanded, and a second, handicapped-accessible entrance was added. One of its most unique features is a life-size bronze statue of local philanthropist and attorney John P. Moses that occupies a prominent space in the building’s lobby, and whose name the Center will eventually bear. 

As for the future of the center, their current renovation project is focused on completing a 1,400-square-foot pharmacy, which will open as soon as January 2026, as well as an office and conference room space that’s open to community partners and for special events such as community clothing closets, food giveaways, health fairs, and more. The aim is for the building to be a place of healing for the community – providing a holistic healthcare model for those in need. 

WVIA

For nearly 60 years, WVIA has been a community treasure of entertaining and educational programming for the entire Wyoming Valley. Since they went on the air as channel 44 in 1966, WVIA has served all of Northeastern Pennsylvania from a modest headquarters in Jenkins Township. While the space was filled with history, it was becoming difficult to serve the needs of an evolving, innovative organization. Over the past year, the station’s headquarters underwent the largest transformation in its history, transforming their space into a headquarters that will provide them with the tools they will need for the coming decades and demonstrating a commitment to the future.

Despite being a new space, WVIA was careful to preserve the organization’s history- allowing those working and visiting the building to honor the station’s past while looking ahead to the future. 

Since its inception, WVIA has consistently served this community unconditionally. As a result of the dedicated work of their team and those who know their value to our community, they now have a space that will equip them to continue serving our region as we all have known for many years to come.  

Thank you to Geisinger for sponsoring these awards!  

Join us on Thursday, November 13th at Mohegan Pennsylvania for an evening of connection and to celebrate with our award recipients! Register on our events page here.