Columbia/Hellam/Wrightsville
October Is
Breast Cancer townlively.com
OCTOBER 18, 2023
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
Come out for the Columbia Halloween Parade
VOL LXIV • NO 34
Awareness Month
Fight Hunger Fall Fest will bring community together
BY CATHY MOLITORIS BY CATHY MOLITORIS
ohn Meshey has been involved in the Columbia community for more than 45 years, so it’s fitting that he’s the grand marshal of the 2023 Columbia Mardi Gras Halloween Parade. The parade will step off at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 26. John, a 1975 graduate of Columbia High School, recalled that he first became involved in the community when he entered a fundraiser to win a prize through the Jaycees when he was 21 years old. “I won one of the prizes, but instead of giving me the prize, they
J
Great things happen when we work together. That’s the message behind Fight Hunger Fall Fest, a collaboration between Wrightsville Presbyterian Church and Wrightsville for All. The event will be held at the
church, 205 N. Second St., Wrightsville, on Saturday, Nov. 4, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. “We’ll be blocking off Second Street between Locust and Walnut, and we’ll have lot of activities for the whole family,” said the Rev. Jesse North. See Fall Fest pg 4
paid my membership dues,” he noted. It was the first of many commitments John has made to Columbia over the decades. He’s been a member of the Columbia Lions Club for 10 years and currently serves as service chair. He’s also active with the Sunsnappers, Columbia Park Rangers and the Columbia Civil Service Commission, among other organizations. The father of two children and three grandchildren said giving back to his community has always been important to him. “Having children participate in different sporting events, I ended up coaching or selling concessions,” he said. “I have always wanted to be a part of all the community events happening Columbia. People appreciate it, and it’s nice when somebody comes up and says, ‘Thank you for doing this.’”
The Fight Hunger Fall Fest will feature lots of fun for the whole family.
Providing support for pregnancy loss Tammy and John Meshey
John will be joined in the parade by his wife, Tammy. He noted that he began participating in the parade as a child, recalling how he and some friends dressed up as Laurel and Hardy. His wife also participated in her youth, with her whole family creating a float annually based on the parade’s theme. This year’s parade has a theme of “Wide World of Sports” and will feature more than 50 units in five divisions. “We have a lot of local groups participating, like the Scouts and lots of school groups,”
John said. “We’ll have bands and floats.” Judges will circulate throughout the parade, reviewing entries to award cash prizes. “We have them walk through the parade so that way the spectators can see the groups performing anywhere along the parade route, not just at a judges’ stand at the end,” he explained. The parade is a true community event, he noted, drawing not only a large number of participants but a large crowd of spectactors as well.
BY CATHY MOLITORIS
The loss of a baby affects a family for a lifetime, and care and support are needed well beyond the immediate time of loss. People who provide that care, whether in a professional or personal capacity, can benefit from attending “A Journey of a Lifetime,” an in-person perinatal conference sponsored by Share of Lancaster. The conference will be held on Saturday, Oct. 28, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn, 26 E. Chestnut St.,
Lancaster. It will present information for people in the medical field as well as therapists and others who have touched the lives of families that have lost a baby. “It’s been a while since Share had an in-person conference like this one,” said Dr. Serena Wu, who is a maternal fetal medicine physician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the executive director of Share. “To have a conference that is pulling in nationally recognized speakers on this subject matter is unique.”
See Parade pg 3
See Support pg 2
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• Plums • Pears • Squash • Berries POSTMASTER: PLEASE DELIVER OCT. 18, 2023
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“It’s a fun time. There’s candy being thrown, and it’s just a fun opportunity to get out and enjoy yourself.”
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