Hempfield townlively.com
NOVEMBER 27, 2024
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL XL • NO 34
I “ will give thanks to the Lord because of His righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.” Psalm 7:17
High school slates annual Holiday Shoppe BY ADRIAN ESCHENWALD
BY ADRIAN ESCHENWALD
Student entrepreneurs invite the community to browse unique items and holiday decorations at the Holiday Shoppe.
a learning support paraeducator at Hempfield High School. “I see the students enjoying the scale of this event. Showcasing their hard work to the community is also a big perk.” The profits from the students’ stands benefit extracurricular activities for their classes such as field trips and classroom events, in addition to teachers’ budgets for school supplies. Students also
use a portion of their sales profits to buy supplies for the next Holiday Shoppe. “Mini businesses really embrace the challenge to make a great product each year and have a successful day,” Jurgensen said. “A successful day isn’t just measured in product sales - success is measured in the smiles generated and skills enhanced during this event!”
Lancaster County has a long history of unique traditions and community-centered events. From annual celebrations such as Maize and Snitz Fest in Lampeter and East Petersburg’s Blues Festival to county-wide programs like the Miss Lancaster County pageant, every town contributes to the area’s distinct culture. Many annual traditions have withstood the test of time and continue to be held today, but some events, such as Spooknacht, have been lost to time. In 2024, few people have ever heard of Spooknacht. But prior to the 1970s, the annual event was highly anticipated by community members, and it involved every school in the county. According to archived photographs and clippings from old newspapers, Spooknacht took place every year around Halloween, and the event was organized by the former Lancaster Jaycees. One photograph from LancasterHistory’s archive, believed to have been taken during an event circa 1950, shows members of the Jaycees serving food See Spooknacht pg 3
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empfield High School, 200 Stanley Ave., Landisville, will hold its annual Holiday Shoppe on Wednesday, Dec. 4, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The event will feature a variety of student-run businesses, and it will serve as an opportunity for classes in the Hempfield School District to share their efforts with staff members and the greater community. During the event, the Franklin Gymnasium at the high school will be full of cash-only stands. Students will sell various goods at each stand, including wooden button ornaments, hand-painted decorative plates, holiday-themed mason jars, handwritten notecards, embroidered items, pet treats, customized picture frames and holiday gnomes, among many others. Representatives of the Hempfield Foundation will operate a giftwrapping station at the Holiday Shoppe, and gift wrappers will receive donations throughout the day. All donations will benefit the foundation’s Help Thy Neighbor Fund, a program that was introduced in 2009 to support families in the school district that are experiencing financial difficulty. Members of Hempfield Sisterhood will also offer giftwrapping at the Holiday
Shoppe. Hempfield Sisterhood is an after-school club that strives to empower young women in the Hempfield School District by organizing community events and spreading positive messages on social media. The annual Holiday Shoppe is a Hempfield High School tradition that began nine years ago. Ever y year, the event grows more popular in the community and features more student businesses than the previous Holiday Shoppe. Guests typically include other students and staff members in the school district and local residents, as well as many visitors who travel from beyond Lancaster County to shop for unique Christmas gifts. Twenty-two student businesses will participate in this year’s Holiday Shoppe. In September, students began preparing for the Holiday Shoppe by holding classroom meetings to discuss ideas for new products and review their sales numbers from last year. Once the inventor y was revised, the young entrepreneurs started collecting supplies and assembling their merchandise. “ The Holiday Shoppe is an opportunity for each student to use their individual strengths and skills to contribute to a project that benefits the whole class and community,” said Ann Jurgensen,
Spooknacht, a Lancaster County tradition lost to time