Pequea Valley SERVING OUR COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
DECEMBER 31, 2025
REACHING MORE THAN 7,160 HOMES
VOL LXII • NO 2
Home Is Where Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique Servant Stage’s Winter Heart Is Same Address, New Building Sports BY JEFF FALK
Are Heating Up!
BY FRANCINE FULTON
Catch the latest highlights from your local high school teams
fter closing in August due to storm damage, the Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique, a thrift shop operated by Humane Pennsylvania (Humane PA), has reopened in a different building at Humane PA’s Lancaster campus. Additionally, the store, which previously operated on a limited basis, is now open for business seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The store, which is located in the Lewin Adoption Center for Cats & Critters, is run by volunteers. A soft opening was held at the location on Dec. 7. “People who come to look at the cats will be directed to the thrift shop,” noted Karel Minor, president and CEO of Humane PA. “The nice thing is that because the shop is strictly volunteer-run and we were in a separate building, we were only open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Here, is it seven days a week because we are here for adoptions. Our staff can Karel Minor (left) and volunteer Cheryl Semple invite shoppers to visit the
at age 20. “I had the choice of working in dairy or carts, and I chose carts,” he said, noting that his job choice allowed him to interact more with customers. “I (collect) carts and help people put stuff in their carts and talk with them.” “I like working here and helping customers and making them happy,” he added. “Everybody See Matthew Peifer pg 4
See Servant Stage pg 2
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See Thrift Store pg 2 newly relocated Thrifty Kitty Thrift Boutique. Photo by Francine Fulton
PEQ
Store Staple: Matthew Peifer Celebrates 20 Years of Service With a Smile BY FRANCINE FULTON
Those who shop at Dutch-Way Market in Gap are sure to see the familiar face of Matthew Peifer of Christiana, who was recently honored for working at the store for 20 years. Peifer, whose main job duty is to collect shopping carts and assist customers, started at Dutch-Way
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Matthew Peifer
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JUNE 11, 2025
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL LXI • NO 25
“Swing!” Will Connect Audiences With Their Mojo BY JEFF FALK
Swing music. And the performers of Servant Stage. What possesses the power to “Swing originated in the 1920s bring a tap to your toes, to put and was popular in the 1930s and a bounce in your step, to bring a ’40s,” said Johnathan Bauer, who snap to your fingers? founded Servant Stage in 2013. See “Swing!” pg 8
Local residents watch birds during a recent East Lampeter Township recreation department activity.
Local Recreation Promotes Healthy Work-Life Balance CON
BY JEFF FALK
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ast Lampeter Township is 12 months into its grand recreation exper iment. Time for an update. While results have been mostly mixed, some positive and quantifiable progress has been realized. But much work remains in the new recreation department’s mission to get the word out and provide activities that appeal to a majority of East Lampeter Township residents. “I always feel like we can be doing more and reaching more people,” said Lisa Cleveland, who as recreation director makes up East Lampeter Township’s one-person
is not resting. Am I happy where we are in the time we got here? Yes. Do we have more work to do? Yes. The opportunities are endless, so there are always things that are going to be new.” Since officials made the commitment to provide recreational opportunities to the township’s citizens on May 28, 2024, by hiring Cleveland as recreation director, the newly formed East Lampeter Township Recreation Department has instituted a number of programs and activities, some of which have been well received. The department has provided community events like movie nights, a fall festival and an Easter egg hunt; youth events like
and a summer playground program; fitness and yoga programs; and educational programs like a bird walk and Exploring the Night Sky. This spring, the department introduced a community gardens program that allows individuals and families to rent plots of land at Community Park for growing vegetables, plants and flowers. Twelve of the 16 available plots are currently being utilized. The recreation department has also placed a strong emphasis on promoting and utilizing township facilities like Community Park, Flory Park, Lafayette-Tower Park and Gibbons Park at Nolt’s Mill, as well as fostering relationships with
Cast members perform a musical number from Servant Stage’s production of “Swing!”
LCWG Is Made Up of a Bunch of Do-Gooders BY JEFF FALK
Good is universal, timeless and objective. Because it mirrors God, good is good. The Lancaster County Women for Good (LCWG) group knows some things about the concept of doing good. It’s part of the all-volunteer organization’s mission, purpose and reason for existing. “We use that word a lot, ‘good,’” said Anna Horst, the chairperson of the five-member board that
in our name. I think it’s safe to say our connections and providing nonprofits with resources is part of the good we aim to do. I think there are a number of nonprofits in Lancaster County who have amazing missions. They’re real people trying to help real people. They are problems that a majority of us would agree need to be solved. Maybe we need to be more clear by what we mean by ‘good.’” LCWG, which does not operate from a physical office or building, conducts more than 15 member-
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Everybody deserves a place to call their own. Everybody needs a home. Servant Stage’s new home is also the nonprofit’s first. Not only are Servant Stage’s new digs a product of growth, the location is also a space where it can continue to grow. “It’s almost hard to put into words,” said Johnathan Bauer, the founder and executive director of Servant Stage. “It hits every once in a while. This is a home. Like, ‘Wow, this is for real.’ It hasn’t fully sunk in yet. There are a lot of firsts in this place that are really special.” Following 12 years of serving the Lancaster County community through theater and the performing arts, Servant Stage moved into its new headquarters at 1842 William Penn Way, Lancaster, in East Lampeter Township in October. Up until that point, Servant Stage had been doing the best it could with what it had, while the mission around it was flourishing. “It’s so nice to have our own space,” said Bauer. “It’s fun every day. It’s nice to be able to have a conversation and not have to reply to an email. Having no space for so many years, you get used to it. A lot of it was working from home. We were storing sets and props in basements, garages and barns. Efficiency is a huge part of what we do. We were doing so many shows that it wasn’t sustainable.” Servant Stage’s new home base is eight rooms and 8,500 square feet in size, 5,000 of which is dedicated to a workshop, warehouse and storage space and 3,500 of which is being used as offices and for conferences and meetings.
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