Early planning for Catasauqua's Old Home Week (OHW) is progressing, with the formation of a number of committees. Area residents are encouraged to show their community pride by getting involved with a committee that interests them.

Old Home Week, a celebration of Catasauqua history with many reunions and fun activities, is set for two consecutive weekends in 2014: June 27-29 and July 4-6.

Dates for some of the events have been determined, and others are still in the works.

Steering committee members will include representatives from Catasauqua and North Catasauqua boroughs and OHW committee chairs, who will oversee the scheduling and finances and will coordinate plans with Historic Catasauqua Preservation Association (HCPA) and J4 and George Taylor House committees.

Scheduled so far are a Downtown Block Party and a 5k race on the first Saturday and an arts and crafts program and free pool day at Catasauqua Park & Playground the first Sunday.

Event organizer Debra Mellish said the second weekend will coincide with J4 weekend, hosted next year by the borough of North Catasauqua, and traditional July 4 activities at the George Taylor House in Catasauqua.

"Activities J4 weekend will be in conjunction with regularly scheduled annual and semiannual J4 events: reading of the Declaration of Independence on Friday at GTH, the J4 parade, fireworks, old-timers games and music, along with a mega-reunion to be held Saturday, the 5th, at the North Catty playground, and the semiannual HCPA house tour on Sunday, the 6th," she wrote in an email to interested community members.

She also said history and memorabilia will be on display at the library, as well as portable displays at the park events.

All events and committees are seeking additional members and, in some cases, committee chairs. According to Mellish, the committees currently forming, in addition to the steering committee, are:

History committee: Chair Martha Capwell Fox and Co-chair Janice Lathrop.

This committee will be planning walking tours, photo and video documentaries, historic guests, displays of memorabilia and histories of churches and community organizations. It will also coordinate with George Taylor House and Fuller property events and will plan an observance of the 174th anniversary of the Crane Iron Works.

Beautification committee: the chair will be a member of the Main Streets program.

This committee will design and build OHW and Crane Iron Works floats as well as festive arches across selected borough streets. It will also be responsible for planning welcome signs, street banners, bunting and flags and will coordinate an advance cleanup of town properties.

Mega-reunion committee: Chair Ben Ferenchak and Co-chair Cheryl Butler.

This committee will plan and coordinate reunions by decade for school and organization alumni as well as former residents. It will also plan a celebrity hall of fame and a community pot luck picnic.

Arts committee: Chair Emily Zacarda. This committee will plan arts, crafts and performances at the parks and the creation of an arts forge.

Entertainment and music committee: Chair and co-chair are needed.

This committee will coordinate events which may include river and towpath recreation, an antique car show, a horse show, concerts at the Catasauqua bandshell, bell-ringing, Night of Music concerts at churches, a performance by We Sing community chorus, events including performances by community and school bands, trolley and house tours, a Catty trivia contest or a bar crawl.

Operation committee: Chair and co-chair are needed. This committee will provide hands-on assistance to other committees to build floats, arches and displays and will assist with setup and take-down.

Athletic events committee: Chair, co-chair and members are needed.This committee will plan pool, court and ballgame and competitions. Events may include a bike race, Catty Woods demonstrations, a 5k walk, old-timer competitions in conjunction with the J4 committee and family games in conjunction with the entertainment committee.

Fundraising committee: Chair Sean McHugh and Co-chair Keith Shannon. This committee will create and sell merchandise, coordinate ticketed events and concessions, seek grants and sponsorships and handle pre-event fundraisers and souvenirs.

Publicity committee: Chair Kim Brubaker and Co-chair Jessica Kroope. This committee will plan marketing, website links and media, including social, print and TV. It will create Discover Lehigh Valley membership and rack cards and handle advertising and publicity.

The ability of each committee to fully implement the plans that were brainstormed at meetings this year may depend on the number of volunteers who join in, so anyone with an interest is encouraged to contact a committee member.