Manheim Central Look Inside
townlively.com
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL LXIV • NO 34
A place for little ones to play BY CATHY MOLITORIS
When Jennifer Placeway relocated to Manheim from the suburbs of Chicago, she noticed something was missing. The mother of three young children had been involved in a play group with other moms and kids in her old neighborhood, and she wanted to bring that community connection to her new home. Jennifer created Play Café, a free,
weekly play group for children from birth to age 5 with a parent or caregiver. The group meets on Thursdays from 9 to 11 a.m. at Manheim Grace Church, 333 E. High St. The next session will begin on Sept. 28. “We meet every week during the school year, with a few exceptions like around Christmastime,” Jennifer said. “We also meet once a month over the summer.” She describes Play Café as a very relaxed, easygoing gathering. “It’s See Play Café pg 4
Members of Lancaster County Women for Good with staff members and volunteers of Arch Street Center
Building connections and giving back BY CATHY MOLITORIS
reat things happen when women on a mission get together. Lancaster County Women for Good formed last year with the goal of raising money for local nonprofits. So far, the group has donated more than $23,000, with 284 women contributing to the effort. Most recently, the organization presented a check for $7,000 to Arch Street Center at Lancaster County Women for Good’s quarterly Gather & Grant meeting. Located in Lancaster, Arch Street Center provides support and services for adults living with mental illness. Lancaster County Women for Good began as an outreach of Grapevine, a social giving platform that brings people together for
“I love the idea of making philanthropy accessible to everyone.” leadership team of group host Joelle Terranova and event coordinators Susan Klapkin and Kirstin Knopp. Each local group sets its own fundraising parameters. For the Lancaster group, women are asked to commit to giving a minimum of $50 per quarter. In the weeks leading up to the group’s Gather & Grant meetings - which are
held in February, May, August and November - members may nominate a nonprofit they’d like to support. “The nonprofit can have a national or global reach, but it must serve our local community,” Horst explained. “It also must be a 501(c)(3) in good standing.” From the list of nominees, members vote for their favorites, and representatives from the top three choices are invited to come to a Gather & Grant meeting to give a presentation about their organization and answer any questions. The group then votes on the recipient of that quarter’s donation. As of now, the organization raises all of its funds through member donations, but Horst said organizers are looking into sponsorships and
Children enjoy the toys at Play Café.
Hope.Inspire.Love. to hold Freedom Walk BY JEFF FALK
Fundraisers couldn’t generate financial resources without generous donors, and nonprofits couldn’t perform their philanthropic work without fundraisers. Four months after presenting its Hope for Freedom Gala, Hope.Inspire.Love. will conduct the second of its two yearly fundraisers, Freedom Walk, on Saturday, Oct. 7, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Musser Park, 135 N. Lime St., Lancaster. Hope.Inspire.Love is in
its eighth year of battling human trafficking and sexual exploitation, and the event is designed to raise money for the fight against human trafficking and to raise the awareness of its effects. “Fundraising is vital. It’s the glue,” said Hope.Inspire.Love CEO and president Amy Thurston, who founded the organization with her husband, Steve. “Nonprofits rely on the community. We need their support financially. The survivors know the community is behind their healing, and we’re in the
See Connections pg 5
See Freedom Walk pg 8
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philanthropic work. “Grapevine initiated a bunch of groups in different areas of the country and from that point handed it over to local leadership,” said founding member Anna Horst. She’s joined by the local
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