Sylvia F. Lawler

"> Sylvia F. Lawler
Sylvia Fenstermacher Lawler, a 42-year veteran writer and editor at The Morning Call and the Evening Chronicle, died early Monday, Oct. 23, 2006, in the hospice unit at Phoebe Home, Allentown, after a long and courageous battle with cancer. She was 72. She resided in Allentown with her husband James I. Lawler, with whom she celebrated 32 years of marriage on April 26. After graduating from Allentown High School in 1952, she signed on as a summer intern at The Evening Chronicle, now incorporated into The Morning Call. She earned a B.A. degree in English from Gettysburg College, graduating in 1956, and in 1957 joined the Chronicle as a full-time reporter. In 1961, she was named the Chronicles Womens Page Editor, making her the youngest editor at an American Daily newspaper at that time. In the late 1960s, Lawler foresaw the vast effect that the growing number of TV stations would have on its audience and convinced the newspapers editors to publish TV news coverage, program lists and related commentary. In September of 1971, she became the founding editor of TV Channel Choices, a weekly listings booklet in the Sunday Call-Chronicle, one of the first in the nation. After retiring from The Morning Call in 1999, she turned her lifelong interest in gourmet food and cooking into a second career, writing hundreds of columns for papers weekly Go Eat feature and becoming one of the newspapers most-respected restaurant reviewers. Lawler was active in the national, state and local Young Republicans (Y.R.), beginning as a student activist at Gettysburg. Her interest in politics was inspired by the long commitment to Allentown by her father, Dr. Samuel S. Fenstermacher, who served on City Council and the Allentown School District from 1938 to 1965. From the mid-1950s, Lawler was an energetic volunteer for the Y.R., becoming a national committeewoman. She served as a press correspondent for the Republican National Convention in 1960 and was a three-time delegate to Y.R. national conventions. She served as the Lehigh County Y.R. vice chair, was vice president of its Womens Council, and, in 1966, was elected vice chair of the Young Republicans of Pennsylvania, which was, as the Chronicle reported at the time, the highest post possible for a woman in the organization. After retiring from journalism, Lawler revived her interest in public service. A staunch supporter of women who wanted to get into politics regardless of their party affiliation, she served in a leadership in both Pamela Varkonys 1999 City Council campaign and 2001 mayoral primary bid. Lawler won her own election in 2002 to become a Republican committeeperson, receiving the second highest committeeperson vote count in the city. She was a founder and Advisory Committee member of the Power of Women networking group and a benefactor of the Academy of the Arts at Allen High School. Until recently, she was a member of the Phoebe Home Board of Trustees. Lawler had a life-long interest in animal welfare and served on the board of directors of Peaceable Kingdom Inc., which finds homes for unwanted animals. She was a supporter of the Heart Fund, the Civic Little Theatre, the Broadway Theatre performing group and the League of Crippled Children. Her artistic talents extended to knitting, needlepoint and crochet. Her pieces were sold by the Moravian Book Shop as well as the many charities she supported. She was predeceased by her father and her mother, Miriam Roehrig Fenstermacher. Survivors: Husband; niece, Stacey W. Ewing of Houston, Texas; several cousins, including Bruce Roehrig of Allentown, Doris Biondi of Oro Valley, Ariz., David Fenstermacher of Aiken, S.C., and Beverly McCarron of Bridgewater, N.J. Services: A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. on Nov. 1 at St. Johns Lutheran Church, 32 S. 5th St., Allentown. Burial services will be at the convenience of the family. Arrangements, J.S. Burkholder Funeral Home, Allentown. Contributions: In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to the Sylvia F. Fenstermacher Foundation for the Arts, 3525 Honeysuckle Rd., Bethlehem, PA 18014.