Hempfield townlively.com
APRIL 23, 2025
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL XLI • NO 3
auction promises Find your next adventure at Farmdale awesome items the PA Family Travel Fair BY GEORGE DEIBEL
The annual Farmdale Festival and Silent Auction will be held Friday, May 2. The festival will run from 4:30 to 8 p.m. outside in front of the school, which is located at 695 Prospect Road, Mount Joy. The auction will be held from 4:30 to 7 p.m. in the gym/ cafeteria. If it rains, the festival Jess Brandt (left) and Pam Swan are will be moved to the co-chairs of the Farmdale Faculty Parent gym/cafeteria, and the Association (FPA) silent auction. auction will be held in the LGI through sixth-grade students. “I think (the FPA is) really room on the second floor. The events, which are both important because it allows us open to the public, are sponsored to support our teachers and our by the Farmdale Faculty Parent families,” auction co-chair Jess Association (FPA), and all the Brandt said. “The FPA is kind proceeds are used for class field of like a bridge between the trips, classroom supplies, special families of Farmdale and the assemblies, library materials, teachers.” T he festival will feature and other educational programs and needs for kindergarten food vendors, face painting,
BY CAT SHANNON
See Farmdale pg 3
snakes and other reptiles,” Royal said. “Last year, he brought a baby crocodile. His show is very popular.” Mascots - including Echo the bat from Lincoln Caverns and Whisper Rocks as well as Johnny the Long John from Achenbach’s Pastries - will also roam the event and will be available for pictures. Royal initiated the idea for the PA Family Travel Fair in 2017 when she realized the wealth of vacation resources right in our state. “The state of PA markets to
BY GEORGE DEIBEL
H o m e f i e l d s C a r e Fa r m , 150 Letort Road, Millersville, will hold its annual Open Farm event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 27. “It’s the one day we open our farm and our grounds to the community and welcome anyone in the community to come and see what we do, learn about our mission, learn about opportunities to volunteer, and learn about the CSA (community-supported agriculture) that
we do,” said Dominique Didier, vice president of Homefields’ board of directors and the chairperson of events. “We make it a fun day.” Program coordinator Andrew Phillips and farm manager Tony Beers will lead tours of the certified organic farm at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 1:30 p.m. “We take you around the farm, explain what our farming practices are, how we treat the land, what types of crops we grow and how,” Phillips said. “You will get to see the full property and See Homefields pg 4
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Visitors enjoy a booth at last year’s PA Family Travel Fair.
will feature a four-night stay for four at the Penn Wells Lodge in Wellsboro, plus vouchers for covered wagon tours, gift cards to local businesses and spending money for the trip. Topaz Balloons will be on-site providing balloon ar t from 10 a.m. to noon, and face painting will be offered by Jain Falcon from 1 to 3 p.m. At noon, Clyde Peeling’s Reptiland will present an educational show. “(The Clyde Peeling’s representative) usually brings big
Homefields Care Farm will tell visitors about its mission
See Travel Fair pg 2
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“I
f you’re looking for a getaway that’s within driving distance of home, this is the perfect place to find it,” said Wendy Royal, organizer of the PA Family Travel Fair. “Come here and see what’s right in your backyard.” The PA Family Travel Fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 3, at Spooky Nook Sports Complex, 75 Champ Blvd., Manheim. The event will feature free entry and free parking. Organized by Where & When Pennsylvania, a free seasonal travel magazine, the PA Family Travel Fair will spotlight more than 50 vendors. “ We will have destination marketing organizations from all over the state,” Royal shared. “Probably the farthest one is VisitErie or Warren County, but we have representatives from across Pennsylvania, from no r t h e a s t Pe n n s y l va n i a to Bucks County and the Laurel Highlands.” Several of the vendors have participated in the fair since its inception in 2018, while others are new this year. “We have some historical railroads coming,” Royal remarked. “ We have amusement parks, museums and historic sites.” Many of the vendors will feature giveaways for items ranging from day passes to overnight trips. The grand prize children’s giveaway will be an eight pack of all-day passes to DelGrosso’s Amusement Park & L aguna Splash Water Park in Tipton. The grand prize giveaway, sponsored by Visit Potter-Tioga,