Somehow, someway, she manages to juggle a career with being a wife and a mother to a 2-year-old son.

In her spare time, Lisa Hopstock Kulp answers the call to duty as a volunteer.

Kulp, of East Penn Township, volunteers with the Lehighton Area Heritage Alliance, Blue Mountain Classics Car Club, and the William Allen Arts Alliance.

Occasionally, she also does Christmas caroling with The Pale Moon Players and photographs their performances.

In the past, Kulp served on church council and also taught Sunday school at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Franklin Township; served on the board of directors of the Whitehall Area Chamber of Commerce; and for six years, was the official photographer for Two Rivers Roller Derby, an all-volunteer, all-women’s flat track roller derby league based in Bethlehem, which disbanded during the pandemic shutdown but one she said was her most thrilling volunteer position.

“I have been volunteering as long as I can remember,” Kulp said. “As a Girl Scout for 12 years, one of my earliest volunteering memories was going to the Lehighton Convalescent Home to play bingo with the residents. Most of them were always so appreciative and excited to win the prizes that we brought.”

Kulp serves as the assistant director of Community Music School Lehigh Valley & Berks, a 40-year-old nonprofit music education center on Hamilton Street in Allentown that provides private music lessons, group classes, and ensembles for all ages and abilities. The group provides over $60,000 annually in financial aid and scholarships for students in Allentown and beyond.

A 2000 graduate of Lehighton Area High School, Kulp said most of her volunteer involvement relates to her career in administration and communications - graphic design, photography, social media, and website/technology.

“I enjoy the work, and it is a great feeling to make someone else’s day just a little bit easier, and to spread the word about the good work that is happening,” she said.

Runs in the family

For Kulp, volunteerism is something that comes naturally - she grew up seeing family members do the same, “so it was ingrained in me at an early age.”

She said her mother’s father, Kenneth Kleckner, was active with the Franklin Township Fire Company as a volunteer firefighter and served on many committees. Engine 411 still bears his name.

Kulp’s mother, Donna Hopstock, volunteered with Girl Scouts. She said when her mother isn’t on grandma-duty, she serves on church council at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, and on the St. Matthew’s Preschool board.

Her father, Michael Hopstock, volunteered with Boy Scouts and sports teams growing up, and is active with Lehighton Legion Post 314 as the Service Officer, the treasurer of the Legion Riders, the Lehighton United Veterans Organization honor guard, Lehighton Masonic Lodge 621, and various groups of the Rajah Shrine.

“Now that I am a parent myself, we are fortunate to be able to continue to make volunteering a family event, she said.

Her husband, Robert Kulp III, introduced her to the heritage associating and the car club. “We continue to serve both groups together and our 2-year-old son, Ethan, has already experienced his share of events and committee meetings.”

Kulp shared what she considers to be her greatest achievement to date as a volunteer when in 2007, she was honored to be selected as the Whitehall Area Chamber of Commerce’s Person of the Year for volunteer service to the Whitehall community. In addition, in 2010, she was the youngest person ever elected to serve as president of the chamber board of directors.

“As a young professional, these experiences connected me with valuable mentors and taught me real-life lessons that have served me well in my career and other volunteer opportunities,” Kulp said. “While that was a great personal honor, I think the best is yet to come.”

Kulp said that since Lehighton’s Sesquicentennial in 2016, a small group of volunteers with the Lehighton Area Heritage Alliance have been working to find an accessible public space for a heritage center/museum.

Anyone interested in the history of the Lehighton area who would like to get involved may visit https://www.lehightonheritage.org/ for more information.

Kulp said volunteerism isn’t always all work and no play.

“It’s fun,” she said. “You get to meet new people, learn something new, and help make our community a more interesting and exciting place to live.”

Help is still needed.

“As much as I enjoy volunteering, we all need to be mindful of burnout, so its always great to have more help,” she said. “We are blessed to live in an area with so many active volunteer and service groups.”

The Lehighton Area Historical Society is seeking new members. The group is open to residents of the Lehighton Area School District, the borough and Franklin, Mahoning, and East Penn townships. For more information, visit https://www.lehightonheritage.org/.