Octorara townlively.com
NOVEMBER 6, 2024
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL XXXIV • NO 36
5K Walk/Run for Life to benefit Chester County Connect Care BY FRANCINE FULTON
Chester County Connect Care (CCCC), a nonprofit medical care pregnancy center, will present its annual 5K Run/Walk For Life on Saturday, Nov. 9, rain or
shine, at Hibernia County Park in Coatesville. In addition to running and walking activities, this year’s event will include a fun run/walk, a Pup Station for dogs and a new element this year, a Diaper Derby for toddlers. See Run for Life pg 3
Faith Dopirak is the new director of the Parkesburg Free Library.
Parkesburg Free Library welcomes new director
“I
t is a beautiful library. It is light and airy, and I could tell that it was a very community-oriented place just from when you first walk in,” said Faith Dopirak, the new director of Parkesburg Free Library when describing her first visit to the library, adding, “The staff was all very friendly.” Dopirak replaces long-time library director Tom Knecht, who retired in 2023. After interviewing with the library board, she was named director in August. “I was the children’s librarian at the Oxford Library until 2019. I was there for two years,” she explained. “In between there and
here, I was a stay-at-home mom for a few years.” A graduate of Avon Grove High School, Dopirak received a degree in fashion design and English from Albright College. She earned a master’s degree in library and information science from Clarion University, now known as PennWest Clarion. Dopirak said that she plans to continue the library’s successful programming and add new activities as well. The library currently offers a Chess Club on Tuesdays, with groups that meet at 12:30 p.m. and at 4:15 p.m.; Story Hour, which is offered on Wednesdays at 10 a.m.; Kids Craft & Story Time, offered on Thursdays at noon; a Mystery
Book Club, which meets on the third Monday of the month at 6:30 p.m.; and a knitting club, which meets on Wednesdays from 6 to 8 p.m. “There are really great programs here. The Chess Club is very well attended on Tuesdays, and we have a knitting group and a Mystery Book Club that has been well attended for many years,” said Dopirak. “I have started a new story time. There was already story time on Wednesdays that was put together in conjunction with the (Octorara) Primary Learning Center. I do the story time on Thursdays now. As a previous children’s librarian, I could jump right into the children’s programming.”
Inspiring stories The Factory plans fourth homecoming BY ANN MEAD ASH
“The Pequea Valley community is one that rallies together to care for one another,” shared Adam Nagle, executive director of The Factory Ministries. “As an organization, we’ve really centered on that energy.” Nagle is looking forward to celebrating that spirit of community care, which has been a focus of The Factory for three decades. “For the past 30 years now, we have been honing in and looking at the needs of (Pequea Valley
See New director pg 6
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BY FRANCINE FULTON
Participants in last year’s event brought their children, their dogs and babies in strollers.
residents) and seeing how we can best empower this incredible community to care for one another,” Nagle added. The fourth annual Homecoming Open House and Kickoff to the ExtraGive will be held at The Factory, 3293 Lincoln Highway East, Paradise, on Thursday, Nov. 21, from 5 to 8 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres, sponsored by Stoltzfus Meats. The evening will include games, prizes, selfguided tours, a silent auction, and an address by Peter Greer, CEO of HOPE International. See Factory homecoming pg 2
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