Donegal townlively.com
JANUARY 26, 2022
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL LXII • NO 50
Gearing Up For Groundhog Day BY CATHY MOLITORIS
ount Joy Minnie is ready to reveal her weather prediction. The groundhog will unveil whether we’ll have six more weeks of winter or we’ll be treated to an early spring when she appears on Wednesday, Feb. 2, at the Rotary clock, at the intersection of Marietta Avenue and East Main Street in Mount Joy. The ceremony will begin at 7 a.m. Minnie’s handlers this year will be Carl Hackman, with First Citizens Community Bank, who is also adviser to the Mount Joy Chamber of Commerce, said Kerry Meyers, Chamber executive director. He’ll be joined by Greg Sallade of State Farm Insurance Agency. “This year, we’ll also have a guest handler, Eric Roering. He’s with Fontana Candle Company,” Meyers said. “Carl and Greg came up with the idea at our annual banquet of including a bid on being a guest handler, and Eric won.” The Groundhog Day festivities will include a reading, Meyers said, and then Roering will wake Minnie up and bring her out of her tree stump home. “The handlers will put their heads together with Minnie and determine her prediction,” Meyers said, noting that it’s all done in fun since Minnie is a stuffed animal.
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Night To Shine To Offer Prom Experience In 2014, the Tim Tebow Foundation began hosting Night to Shine, providing a prom night experience for people with special needs. At the time, Joell Ketcham’s son was graduating from high school. “He attended his school’s prom and the IU 13 prom, and I said to his aide, ‘We need to do something like this once people are out of school,’” Ketcham recalled. She reached out to the foundation and started the work to bring the program to Lancaster County. This year’s Night to Shine will be held in two parts. A Shine-Thru
BY ANN MEAD ASH
In the fall of 2021, Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) Good News Clubs went live again across Lancaster County and beyond. In the spring of 2022, in-person clubs are planned for elementary-age students in the school districts of Columbia, Conestoga Valley, ELANCO, Elizabethtown, Ephrata, Hempfield, Lampeter-Strasburg, Manheim Township, Penn Manor, Pequea Valley, Lancaster, Warwick, See Good News pg 8
David Smith enjoys Night to Shine.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Sportsmen Plan Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
BY CATHY MOLITORIS
CEF After-School Clubs Return To Lancaster County
See Prom pg 7
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 LCCTF Distributes Innovation Grants . . . . . . .5 Business Directory . . . . . .7 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . .9 House Of Worship . . . . . .12
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Good News!
A crazy hat contest will once again be a part of the activities as well, with Keystone Lawn Company sponsoring prizes for first, second and third places. “The winners will get Mount Joy Money,” Meyers said. “This is a gift certificate that they can use like cash at participating locations for services, lodging, shopping and dining.” Since 2009, more than $37,000 in Mount Joy Money has been sold, Meyers stated. “It’s a great way to keep the money local and support our local business community,” she said. The Walter S. Ebersole American Legion Post 185 will provide hot chocolate and coffee, and Voyage Mount Joy will serve doughnuts during the festivities. Mount Joy Minnie has been predicting the weather for more than a decade, Meyers remarked, adding that the festivities were started by Bob Myers, who owned the building where the Chamber is located at 62 E. Main St. “After he passed away, the Chamber picked up the tradition,” Meyers said. “Bob was all about fun things, and this is a nice way to continue that. It’s just a silly, fun community event.” In the case of inclement weather, the Groundhog Day celebration will be held under the portico at Northwest Bank, Mount Joy Minnie with (from left) Carl Hackman, Keystone Lawn Company owner Chris 101 E. Main St., Mount Joy. Neiles and Greg Sallade
