We're so close: Two generous local donors and Spotlight PA members, Jim Friedlich and Melissa Stern, have pledged $10,000 to encourage you to join them and make a gift to Spotlight PA before Dec. 31.
If you donate now, they will match your gift, dollar-for-dollar.
We have just $9,000 until we hit our goal.
As a reader, you know how important Spotlight PA’s coverage is to upholding democracy in our state. I hope those of you who are still on the fence will make a donation today to ensure this work continues.
Spotlight PA is in the final stretch of its most important membership drive of the year, and every dollar counts. Please give now.
Onwards together,
—Christopher Baxter, Editor in Chief
PRIMARY PROBLEM
NOTABLE / QUOTABLE
"As long as you keep the food good, people will keep coming."
Two generous local donors just extended our challenge. Jim Friedlich and Melissa Stern believe so strongly in Spotlight PA's mission, they've just pledged an additional $10,000 in matching dollars. That means they will match every dollar you give before Dec. 31. Contribute now.
» MAPPING POWER: Join us Thursday, Jan. 6 at noon EST for a free panel on the proposed state House and Senate maps, how they could shift political power, and their potential impact on Pennsylvanians. Register for the event here and submit your questions to events@spotlightpa.org.
📷 POST IT
Cranberry during an autumn day in Philadelphia. Thanks, Ben B. Can't wait to see Cranberry in the winter! Send us your gems, use #PAGems on Instagram, or tag us @spotlightpennsylvania.
SCHOOL VETO: Gov. Tom Wolf has vetoed a bill that would have required public schools to post online educational materials used in their classrooms, PennLive reports. “Under the guise of transparency, this legislation politicizes what is being taught in our public schools,” Wolf said.
MILITIA MEETING: Members of the Three Percenters militia, an anti-government extremist group, apparently held a recruitment meeting at a Lancaster restaurant. The eatery told LNP it "did not know anything about the group or their politics."
DROP OUT: PennAg Industries Association — which usually runs one of the biggest food stands at the annual Farm Show — has pulled out over COVID-19 concerns. The event, which begins Jan. 7, was virtual last year.
HOLIDAY HOME: A Harrisburg mom who was facing homelessness with her six kids after her rental was declared uninhabitable will now be able to buy her own place, thanks to community donations.
Unscramble and send your answer to scrambler@spotlightpa.org. We'll shout out winners here, and one each week will get some Spotlight PA swag.
G A O O N B T G
Wednesday's answer: Archaeopteryx
Congrats to our daily winners: Susan F., Neal W., Susan D., Don H., Bonnie R., Elaine C., Susan N.-Z., Eddy Z., Kim C., James B., David I., Bill S., Kimberly S., T. B., Michelle T., Bruce T., Joel S., Justus C., and John F.
Spotlight PA is an independent, non-partisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and WITF Public Media.
17 MINUTES: A Black man in Pittsburgh pleaded for help at least 13 times over 17 minutes after police stunned him with a Taser. No one came to Jim Rogers' aid, and he died the next day at a hospital. According to TribLIVE,
SCHOOL VETO: Gov. Tom Wolf has 
RISING BILLS: While the cost of electricity and natural gas in Pennsylvania has dropped, utility bills have not. The Post-Gazette finds that 
MILITIA MEETING: Members of the Three Percenters militia, an anti-government extremist group, apparently 
REP ROBBERY: U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D., Pa.) was