Hello, and welcome to Living In The Lehigh Valley, a health and wellness show for everyone.

I'm your host, Brittany Sweeney.

Coming up on this episode, Allentown just christened a new park, one that was years in the making.

Why it's unlike any other in the city.

Plus, looking for healthier or lighter options for dinner?

Whether you're dining out or staying home, there's a way.

And Covid shots for kids: vaccines for children five to eleven are here.

We'll speak to a pediatrician about what parents need to know.

But first, the new park in Allentown is already seeing heavy use.

The $1.5 million project has been on the drawing board for a few years now.

As you'll see at the new Jordan Skate Park, they're finally ready to roll.

- We're here today at the grand opening of the Jordan Skate Park in Allentown.

This is the second concrete skatepark here of this size.

The caliber of this skatepark is amazing.

So, seeing all these people here, seeing all the kids here, yeah, it's surreal.

- I definitely think it's something that was needed in the community, because all of us are out street-skating a lot.

I really like the park.

I think it's built really well.

Something for everyone here, for rollerbladers, skateboarders, bikers, scooters.

It's done really well.

- The design process of building the Jordan Skate Park was great, because we brought together a lot of skateboarders, a lot of BMXers, young and old, in the community together for public design meetings with Grindline Skateparks.

So our community was able to speak out and say, I want to see these features, I want to see a big bowl, I want to see these handrails, I want to see these stairs, these ledges.

It's a combination of everyone's feedback, and that's what we see here today, and it's exciting to finally have it open, ready to use.

When you come to the Jordan Skate Park, you're going to see things that are different than the other skateparks in the area.

One of the main things is you have a very big concrete bowl, which offers a much different type of terrain than we have anywhere else in the Lehigh Valley.

- My favorite feature is the downrail, the stair rail.

It's low, it's a nice, solid rail, good length.

Perfect.

- And then you also have traditional street obstacles like the handrails and the stairs and the ledges, which are the types of things that kids might get kicked out of public spaces for using.

So now there's a safe and legal place for them to practice their passion.

We run an after-school skateboard program through my business, Homebase Skateshop.

We call it Push Ahead, and we bring skateboard and helmets to different schools in the Lehigh Valley, teach the kids the basics of skateboarding, skateboarding safety and skateboarding etiquette.

So, today here in Allentown, we have new skateboards donated by our customers, and each kid that comes for their lesson will get to take home a skateboard and hopefully be empowered with the knowledge about how to use this brand-new skatepark safely.

- I think it's great for the kids.

My daughters loved it.

I know, growing up, we hoped that we were going to get one of these soon, so it's great to have the kids have one.

- People were having a lot of fun today.

Everyone's skating, getting along, playing music, good vibes all round.

One thing that I really hope is that they keep building onto this and they expand out, and hopefully this'll pave the way for more skate parks in the area.

- Just letting everyone know - families, skateboarders, BMXers - the park is open and ready for public use.

- The new skatepark was designed with input from local skateboarders.

The skatepark is just one of several improvements planned for Jordan Park, and with more on that now let's welcome Karen El-Chaar, Allentown's Parks and Recreation Director.

Karen, it's so nice to have you.

- Oh, it's a wonderful pleasure to be here.

- So, this has been in the works for a few years now, making this happen.

What went into bringing this all into fruition?

- Oh, gosh.

It's been about five years in the making, quite frankly.

Discussions began in 2016, and then community meetings with bicycle motocross people as well as skateboarding individuals to talk about what is it they were looking for in a skate park.

- Wonderful.

So, you said this is phase one.

There's other phases to this skate park, it's not complete yet, so tell us about the other phases.

- So, right now, phase one has one quarter of the park complete.

Phase two will then take up the remaining three quarters of the park, so we're going to have more bowls and more amenities in the park, more obstacles in the park.

We're also going to have some benches and fencing and a lot of nice landscaping, as well.

- Sure.

I was just going to ask what makes this park different than other parks in Allentown.

- We only have one other skatepark in Allentown.

It is Keck Park on the east side of town.

It's very nice, but it's also our very first one, so it's pretty basic.

I would almost categorize it as something now, in comparison, for beginners.

And it's got a few nice obstacles.

We added an obstacle last year, as well.

But if you want something more exciting and more adventurous, we think that the new skatepark that we have at Jordan Park will fit that bill.

- Sure.

So, Karen, what are the early reviews?

- Oh, gosh.

Very positive, so we're thrilled.

We had the first group of skateboarders plus BMX people on Saturday, and it was so popular we decided to leave the lights on at the skate park so when it got to dusk they still had lights.

And God knows, I think they probably went till 11 o'clock at night.

- That's great.

- Very positive.

- It gives them something to do, which is wonderful, to get out there, get some exercise and do something they love, as well.

As you mentioned, this is just phase one of the skatepark, and there's other projects planned at Jordan Park, including a greenway project.

Can you tell us a little bit about that?

- So, the Jordan Creek Greenway Trail is also a project that is long overdue.

In fact, I think that started in 2014.

And so we anticipate starting construction on that on December 1st of this year, 2021, and we anticipate that it should be complete by November of 2022, so we're anticipating it's only going to take a year for construction.

And it really will link up the downtown Allentown area with Jordan Park, but it also then makes Jordan Park plus the skatepark more of a destination park for people.

And it's an approximate 1.9-mile trail.

Part of it is off-road, but we brought, for safety and security reasons, some of the trail back onto the street so people would feel more comfortable.

- Some exciting stuff in the world of recreation in Allentown.

Karen El-Chaar, thank you so much for joining us.

- You're welcome.

Thanks for having me.

- You're welcome.

And did you know skateboarding is one of the most popular extreme sports on the planet?

Estimates show: Up next, there's no substitute for our own Grover Silcox, who is here now.

But, Grover, you're here with some alternatives to eating some food that you may want to eat a little bit healthier, whether you're at home or you're eating out, say at a diner.

Great to see you.

- That is correct, Brittany.

You know, if you're vegan or watching your calories or you have a special diet or whatever, and wondering what options you have when you go to your favorite diner or even at home, Billy Kounoupis, owner of Billy's Diner in Easton, has some suggestions.

- Great, so you're saying we can eat healthy even when we're going out?

- Absolutely.

- OK, I like the sound of this.

- Billy's Diner, like most really good diners, offer vegan and special dietary fare on the menu.

But don't be afraid to ask if you don't see what you need.

Visiting Billy Kounoupis, owner of Billy's Diner in Easton and Bethlehem, is always a revelation.

He showed us how they oblige patrons who are vegans or interested in lighter, healthier fare.

Also joining me is David Joachim, author and co-author of more than 30 cookbooks.

Dave brought along his award-winning Food Substitutions Bible and some great tips for changing up ingredients when cooking at home.

Dining out but eating healthy can pose a challenge at America's casual eateries.

- As a father of three and a person that's been serving the Lehigh Valley for over 20-some years, health is paramount, and there's nothing more important to us than our guests.

- Billy Kounoupis, owner of Billy's Downtown Diners in Easton and Bethlehem, tries to accommodate patrons looking for healthier or special options based on individual diets and tastes.

- If it's important to our customers, it's important to us.

Thanks to a lot of them having these demands, it has really helped us pick up our game and provide a lot more healthier options for our diners, whether it be items with egg whites... Everything is made fresh and to the order.

We make our own vegan pancake mix.

We use olive oils.

- We offer fresh fruits and fresh vegetables.

We have gluten-free options, gluten-free roll, we have some vegan options here.

We take allergies very seriously.

- Billy's "Vegan"esque Omelette serves as an alternative to their standard omelette.

Made with egg whites, the omelette includes fresh broccoli, fresh spinach, sauteed in fresh garlic and olive oil.

- And it's topped with our home-made basil pesto, which has garlic, Parmesan cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

And we saute all of our omelettes in olive oil.

We want to make sure it's cooked all the way through on all sides before we flip it.

It's a nice golden brown on each side.

And we top it with our goat cheese and our fresh roasted grape tomatoes, which are roasted in garlic, olive oil, a little salt and pepper.

And now we have a "Vegan"esque Omelette from Billy's Diner in Easton.

Order up!

- What about swapping ingredients when cooking at home?

To help answer that question, David Joachim, the author of 30 cookbooks, joined us with his Food Substitutions Bible.

- The Food Substitution Bible is my longest-running book.

It has more than 6,000 substitutions for ingredients, equipment, techniques, everything you can imagine, all organized from A to Z.

This book helps you make substitutions with confidence.

- The book also provides tips on how much of any ingredient to use and what adjustments to make.

- Even substituting something as simple as salt, depending on the type of salt you're using, it can make a difference.

- David offers two keys when substituting ingredients.

- Think about two things: the family that that ingredient is in.

So nuts, for instance: you're looking at a recipe with peanuts.

Well, this is in the nut family.

Is there another type of nut that I could substitute for that that would still work?

Number two, think about the function of that ingredient in the recipe.

If the function if purely flavor, it's not going to functionally alter the recipe.

- How about a milk substitute?

You could use almond milk, all kinds of plant-based milks these days.

Who knew you could milk an almond?!

- Is there a healthy substitute for whipped cream?

- Believe it or not, evaporated milk.

It is thick enough to whip, like whipped cream.

Keep it cold, whip it nice and quick, and it will whip up and hold air and get fluffy and creamy, very much like whipped cream, with a lot less calories.

- How about a plant-based cheese that is still, well, cheesy?

- That's a tough one, because casein is what melts and makes gooey mozzarella and other cheeses.

Miyoko's, which is a good brand of vegan plant-based cheeses, comes pretty close.

- What about an egg substitute?

- Eggs often perform an important function in baking, but you can find egg substitutes.

JUST Egg, for instance, is an egg substitute that is vegan.

Another great substitute, you can use the cooking water from chickpeas the same way that you would use egg whites or, when you're making mayonnaise, eggs.

That water is protein-rich enough to mimic the protein in an egg.

- David offers some better butter substitutes, as well.

- Looking to lower your calories, you can replace butter with oil in a lot of recipes.

Often you're using butter to saute onions or something like that.

Well, you can use olive oil, you can use vegetable oil, you can use sunflower oil, safflower oil.

They all have different qualities.

But depending on what you're substituting for, that will determine what the best substitute is.

- The reasons for substituting ingredients are as diverse as the ingredients themselves.

David just scratched the surface during our conversation.

For a deeper dive, check out The Food Substitutions Bible itself.

You know, gentlemen, I always say, when you're doing a food story, you should always end it with food.

Gentlemen, man your forks.

The lesson here is, don't be afraid to ask for something special on or off the menu at your local eatery or any restaurant, within reason, of course.

And folks cooking at home, David Joachim's Food Substitutions Bible has a ton of options.

It even has alternatives for swapping out certain utensils.

- Wow, that Bible really seems like a good resource to maybe throw in your bag when you're heading out.

- It really is.

Not only that, but the third edition is about to come out, so lots more options.

- Yeah, so really good information.

You're always keeping us on the healthy track, Grover Silcox, as always, thank you so much.

- Thanks, Britt.

- Well, more kids in the Lehigh Valley can now get vaccinated against Covid-19.

Lehigh Valley healthcare providers are administering the shots to children 5-11.

This comes after recommendations from the CDC that kids in that age group get the Pfizer vaccine.

- Vaccine clinic at St Luke's.

- Just like that.

- One, two, three.

Good.

- Elementary-aged kids can now get a Covid shot.

- This is our first patient who got his vaccine.

- I was excited to get my shot.

I was the first one at St Luke's, and also because I think I set a good role model for the other kids, and I don't want anybody to be scared about getting your shot.

August received his first dose the day St Luke's University Health Network began administering them to his age group.

- It really was quite emotional for me.

I remember when I got my own first Covid-19 vaccine.

I felt just overwhelmed with gratitude and being able to get protected, so for me to be able to offer that same experience to these children, who are so excited and their parents were so excited, to get that same level of protection was really memorable.

- The nine-year-old says he was excited to get vaccinated and help kids get back to doing activities they did before the pandemic.

- They will be able to do sleepovers, they can hang out with their friends, and they can be safe without having to wear a mask.

- His mom Kara says she took her son right away because he was eager and ready.

- I definitely discussed it with my son.

I think he has seen everything that I have gone through in my job as a doctor, and what's happened in the community.

I think he was really excited to be able to take part in getting the vaccine and play his part in keeping everybody safe.

- Keeping people safe during the pandemic, that is the goal, but what should parents know before injecting their children with a new vaccine?

I sat down with Dr Jennifer Janco, chair of pediatrics for St Luke's, to find out.

- This dose is a reduced dose compared to the dose that is given for persons 12 years of age and older.

It is the exact same vaccine with all the same components and ingredients, but at a reduced dosage.

- Dr Janco says the vaccines are necessary but knows parents have questions about the possibility of long-term side-effects.

- One of the biggest hesitancies that parents say is, well, how do I know there isn't going to be something that happens down the road, one year, five years, 10 years?

I don't know if parents realize, but with vaccines, long-term side-effects are within about the 6-8 week period after a vaccine is given.

So no vaccine that we give has side-effects that are seen months and months and years down the road, which is why, when we do give approval for a vaccine, we wait at least 6-8 weeks to look for any of those side-effects.

- She says kids are still at risk for short-term side-effects, generally within 24 hours of the vaccine, that could last 48 to 72 hours.

- Things like muscle aches, headache, possibly fever, but most of the studies have shown that we didn't even see as much of that than we did in the adult population, and a lot of that could be attributed to the fact that we are using a smaller dose on children, so if you do get a smaller dose that gives the right amount of antibody but you may see less side-effects by doing that.

- Ah, a sea monster!

- Mom Dena Glazer says she will get her six-year-old vaccinated.

- You're kind of damned if you do, damned if you don't.

If you don't get it, you risk your kid getting really, really sick.

Your kid gets the vaccine and you risk maybe there is a side effect.

And that seems to be a smaller percentage than getting really sick.

Glazer's friend, Charlotte, says she will do the same for her seven-year-old son, who is still learning virtually this semester.

- We are hoping that he will be able to get it in time so his immunity will be ready so that he can go next semester to school in person.

We weren't sure about the mask mandates, and my husband and I both work from home, so we just thought, we already did it, we know what we're doing, so we might as well just keep him home until we know for sure he can get vaccinated.

- She says she understands the hesitancy many parents are feeling right now.

- Somebody's putting something in your kid.

You don't know what it is.

I don't have the education to know what goes into it.

But I do know this.

I trust the people who have spent their entire lives studying it and are doing their best to come up with something that they feel can help end the pandemic.

- Both women are moms of two, with their younger children being under five.

Though a vaccine for children younger than five is still a ways off, both said they will vaccinate their younger ones as well.

- She will get it too.

At that point she will have been the only one in the family who is not, so I really wish she was turning five instead of four, because that would make it easier, just get them both done by winter.

Yeah, she will get it too.

I'm glad I don't have a baby, that would be more stressful, I think.

- In the meantime, Dr Janco says now is the time to get the 5-11 age group vaccinated so they are fully protected during the holiday season.

- It is a series of two vaccines separated by three weeks, and we know it takes about two weeks after your second dose to get to the point when you would be considered fully immunized or have antibody levels at a protective level.

So if you look at the calendar to where we are right now and fast forward about five weeks ahead, you have an opportunity to have your 5-11-year-olds fully vaccinated as we head into the big time for family gatherings or holiday or travel are any of those things.

- St Luke's, Lehigh Valley Health Network, and the Allentown and Bethlehem health bureaus are all administering Covid-19 vaccines to kids ages 5 to 11 by appointment only.

The health networks and bureaus have been distributing vaccines for months now, and so have community pharmacies, like Hartzell's Pharmacy in Catasauqua.

So I want to welcome now Vince Hartzell.

Welcome to our show, thank you so much for joining us.

- Thank you so much for having me.

- OK, so kids ages 5 to 11 now can get vaccinated, so what has it been like at your community pharmacy?

- We actually just started it last Friday.

We have a huge clinic this coming Thursday, we are doing a drive-through clinic at the Borough Building.

We have actually started to do it by partnering with local youth organizations and the local school district start.

What we have been finding is you have got to vaccinate kids differently than adults, so we are going to where the kids are to get them in an environment where they are more comfortable.

- Sure.

Are these clinics something you are going to be doing throughout the season, or is it a one and done kind of thing?

- We are going to be doing them throughout the season.

We will be posting them and having registrations online to kind of make things a little bit simpler for adults.

For example, last Friday we came to Bethlehem, there is a youth organization in Bethlehem that my daughter actually is involved in, and we went there and vaccinated about 25 kids.

We wanted to start slow.

But the thing is, kids, they need to feel comfortable, you have got to have a different presentation with them.

You have to use different verbiage with them.

You can't be like, OK, you are going to get your shot.

You say shot to a kid, it is going to be off-putting.

You say, OK, we're going to give you a little poke.

Is it going to hurt?

No, you are just going to feel a little pinch.

So your verbiage and your usage has got to be a little bit different.

- Sure, the approach is definitely different there.

Now, for parents who are maybe hesitant about their kids coming, what do you say to them?

- The big thing is, I think the thing that I have got is, you know, parents kind of saying, well, kids aren't really affected by Covid.

And that is not really true.

Kids can get Covid, they can transmit Covid to Grandma and Grandpa.

They can also become just as sick in hospital.

The main thing is, just like with the flu vaccine, we want to make sure that everyone is protected, we have good immunity, so we're not transmitting it through our community.

- Of course, when vaccinations first came out for adults, there was a really big push and even a wait time for people to get vaccinated.

Are you seeing the same kind of push and the need for kids to get vaccinated right away?

Are you seeing parents, maybe the demand, is the demand there for this kind of vaccine, for the 5 to 11-year-olds?

- I definitely am seeing some push.

There is differently not the vaccine scarcity that there was back in February and March and April.

It is a little bit easier to get it.

I know, at least in our area, there's pediatric offices that are getting the vaccine, as well as pharmacies, the health departments, both networks, so I think parents have a lot of options on where they want to go to get their vaccine.

If they are more comfortable taking their kid to a pharmacy where they know the pharmacist, they can do that.

If they want to go to the health department and go in to a larger clinic, they can do that.

In some cases, if they want to go to their pediatrician's office, that is an option on the table as well now.

I think there's a lot more providers that are making it easier for parents to get their kids vaccinated.

- Vince, you've been vaccinating kids 12 to 16 since May.

What has that been like?

How many people have you vaccinated in that age group?

- We haven't been a very big Pfizer provider.

We have been doing a ton of Moderna, so probably out of our 8,500 shots that we have done in the last nine months, about 200 of them have been 12 to 16-year-olds.

A lot of the parents that have been bringing them in have been doing it out of convenience and ease of access.

But we haven't seen as many pediatricians as we have adults.

We have been focusing more on the adults, and now with the booster shots out, that has been taking up a ton of time with my staff and I.

- Yeah, let's talk a little about that booster.

Who should be coming in right now to get that booster?

- So right now it is definitely those over 65, those that are in a setting such as assisted living, a skilled nursing facility, and those 18 and older that have an occupational risk of exposure to it as well, and those with comorbid conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, etc.

- And, sure, Pfizer was the first to come out with a booster.

Are you seeing the other companies come out with boosters as well?

- Pfizer has a booster now.

Moderna also has a booster right now.

Moderna's booster is a half dose, so Moderna's normal dose is 100 micrograms, the Moderna booster is 50 micrograms.

So it is still a higher dose than the Pfizer dose, because Pfizer is only 30.

But really all of them right now have booster doses.

We have seen some patients coming in and wanting to mix and match, maybe they got their first doses with Pfizer, and now they want a booster with Moderna.

We've had a lot of patients request a different vaccine or they can stay on the same vaccine, it is kind of up to patient choice at this point.

- Early on it was really hard for the smaller community pharmacies to get vaccinations.

Are you still seeing that?

Is that still an issue for you?

- Not at all.

That was probably about 4 to 6 weeks that it was rather difficult.

But right now I know a ton of pharmacies out there that have a ton of vaccine supply.

It is readily available for us to order, either directly from the CDC or the Department of Health, and I think a lot of healthcare providers around the Commonwealth have worked really well in making sure there is proper vaccine in the right places to give access and care to individuals that need it.

- You mentioned you recently did a clinic for the kids 5 to 11.

What were you hearing there from the parents?

- Oh, the parents were excited.

Mostly because we went to where they were.

It was during an activity event that they normally would have, so right after the activity they would come over.

Of course, we needed the parents there.

You can't vaccinate without parent consent.

So the parent/guardian was there.

My wife actually bought the hugest Pop It I have ever seen.

It had like 200 Pop Its on it.

The kids were a little nervous and we gave them the Pop It, we talked to them, we had stickers.

We made it like a fun event for them.

So those nerves went down really quickly.

- Keep them entertained, right?

- Exactly, exactly.

- And what were some of the questions the parents had?

- Mostly they were just making sure, is the pediatric dose, and what is the difference between this and the normal Pfizer dose?

So kind of just what I went over.

We talked about, this is a third of the dose of the normal Pfizer vaccine.

Went through about the side-effects are going to be the same as what an adult would feel, sore arm, some increased body temperature, a little bit of discomfort where the injection was given.

But those were most of the questions that we received.

- And are you hearing about any side-effects from the kids so far?

- No.

- No, you're not.

And what is the process if someone does want to get vaccinated or wants to get their child vaccinated?

Do they just come in and say, hey, I want one of those doses?

Or should they make an appointment?

- We do recommend making an appointment, only because we get slammed if they just walk in, and we need to have organized chaos.

So we ask them to register on our website.

We have an online registration system.

The best part is, if there is anyone that doesn't have access to a computer, they can call our pharmacy, we have a community health worker that will take all the appointment information over the phone for them as well.

- Great.

Vince Hartzell, from Hartzell's Pharmacy in Catasauqua, thank you so much for joining us.

- Thank you for having me.

- On the next episode of Living in the Lehigh Valley, they are cute and cuddly, but also a lifeline for those who cannot see.

We will explore the world of seeing-eye dogs, learning how they are trained and what they do once they are in service.

And that will do it for this episode of Living in the Lehigh Valley.

We hope you will join us next time.

I'm Brittany Sweeney, hoping you stay happy and healthy.