Lansford Alive will be honoring two borough residents with the Black Diamond Award at its annual Christmas dinner in December.

Retired Carbon County Emergency Management Agency Coordinator Mark Nalesnik and retired Lansford Police Chief Jack Soberick will be honored this year.

The dinner will be Dec. 13 at the Lansford American Legion Post 123 on West Ridge Street. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. with a cash bar followed by a dinner buffet at 6 p.m. with program during dinner.

The cost is $30 per person, and checks can be made payable to Lansford Alive and mailed to P.O. Box 172, Lansford, Pa. 18232-0172. People can also contact John Greybosh at Community Bank in Lansford for cash payments or by check.

Reservations are requested by Dec. 5.

Nalesnik retired as the county EMA coordinator in October after 22 years, and more than 45 years in service to the county.

He began serving his community as volunteer with the Nesquehoning Hose Co. and Ambulance Association, and became an emergency medical technician in 1975-76. He remains an active firefighter/EMT to this day.

Nalesnik’s service with the county began in 1978 as a deputy sheriff, and he also served as a deputy coroner for 20 years.

He has attained all three levels of PEMA’s Emergency Management Certification Program, and also has federal certification by the International Association of Emergency Managers as a certified emergency manager.

Nalesnik has served as an executive board member for the Northeast Pennsylvania Regional Counter Terrorism Task Force, and recently attended the National Homeland Security Conference in Miami Beach, Florida.

He is an emergency services training instructor and teaches courses at Bucks County Community College, Harrisburg Area Community College and Northampton Community College.

Nalesnik of Lansford, has been married to his wife, Jacqueline for 25 years, and has a daughter, Lena Marie.

Soberick retired as borough police chief in 2022, after 26 years in the Lansford Police Department. As chief, Soberick worked to foster relationships with other agencies and with the community.

He is a charter member of the state Office of the Attorney General/Carbon County Drug Task Force and maintains membership to this day.

Soberick, in addition to attaining bachelor’s degrees in education and psychology, earned certifications bomb scene/bomb threat management; post-blast investigator, use of force instructor/analyst; and is a senior level defensive tactics instructor, firearms instructor and advanced level crash investigator.

In 2004, Gov. Ed Rendell appointed Soberick as the Emergency Management local level coordinator, a position he continues to hold.

Soberick also served on the Carbon County Security Committee, working as part of a team to enhance security and law enforcement issues throughout the county.

Since retiring as police chief, Soberick has continued to serve in law enforcement, as county detective in the District Attorney’s Office, and has since been promoted to chief county detective.

Soberick responds to major crimes throughout the county, assists in complex investigations and supports attorney as they prepare for trial. He is also a member of Lansford Borough Council.

Soberick resides in Lansford with his wife, Mary, and is the father of daughter, Hannah, and stepfather of Frank, John and Camille.