Greater Hershey Area ALSO SERVING HUMMELSTOWN AND MIDDLETOWN
townlively.com
OCTOBER 27, 2021
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
VOL XXXIV • NO 17
Hershey Lions Collect Eyeglasses During a recent monthly gathering, members of the Hershey Lions Club sorted over 1,000 used eyeglasses. This project is one facet of the Hershey Lions’ efforts to improve the lives of people with visual impairments. Glasses that are collected locally help people in need around the world. Hershey Lions Club president Steve Gallerizzo noted that Lions Clubs around the world also undertake initiatives to help prevent avoidable blindness. Besides collecting used eyeglasses, the Hershey Lions Club assists
The Cocoa Packs program was founded by Christine Drexler.
uninsured Derry Township residents with eye exams and eyeglasses. The club has also been a supporter of the Eye School presented annually by the Penn State Health Eye Center of the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Members of the Hershey Lions Club have also supported local eye screenings. Lions Clubs are groups of men, women and families that identify needs within the community and work together to fulfill those needs. For more information or to get involved, visit www.hersheylions.org.
Anna Rogers is an intern with Cocoa Packs.
Cocoa Packs Program Provides Food And More To Children In Need BY FRANCINE FULTON
n 2015, a food assistance program called Cocoa Packs was started by a local mother of five, Christine Drexler. She made sure that children in need in the Derry Township area went home weekly with a bag of food in their backpacks, which would sustain them through the weekend. The effort has evolved and grown into a nonprofit organization that today offers additional benefits to children enrolled in the Cocoa Packs program. These benefits include access to a clothing closet, a personal care closet and a lending library with computers and printers. Every child enrolled in Cocoa Packs also receives a brand-new coat each year, and parents are provided with gifts to give to their children during an annual holiday distribution. Food packed in the Cocoa Packs, such as canned goods, snacks, juice
“We are a food assistance program that also promotes physical and emotional wellness so that children are successful in the classroom.” “Our food rescue program partnership with Hershey Entertainment allows us the opportunity to take out a processed entree and put in fresh food,” Drexler said. “That partnership is tremendous. (This is food) that would have been wasted.”
Currently, the Cocoa Packs are distributed on Wednesdays at Spring Creek Church of the Brethren in Hershey. The Cocoa Packs program also maintains a secure office at Hershey Middle School and operates out of a warehouse at 1016 Old West Chocolate Ave., Hershey, where representatives also come to pick up Cocoa Packs for students. The community supports the efforts through its donations. “We are self-funded. We do not take federal or state money,” said Drexler. “We pride ourselves on the excellence of what we do.” In addition to financial support, the program is always looking for volunteers to help pack the boxes and work on distribution days. “We love to have volunteers and volunteer groups,” said Drexler, noting that volunteers can range in age from young children to seniors. “There is something for everyone to do. It is a collaboration of all ages and abilities.”
Hershey Lions Club members sorted used eyeglasses for distribution around the world.
Middletown Library Plans Book Sale Middletown Public Library, 20 N. Catherine St., Middletown, invites the community to its fall book sale. A preview sale will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 27, from 4 to 8 p.m. There is a fee to attend the preview sale. The book sale will be open to the public on Monday, Nov. 1, to Saturday, Nov. 13, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays; from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays; and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. From Nov. 1
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Community Bike Ride Scheduled . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 MARA To Offer Groove FIT Classes . . . . .3 Seven Sorrows To Host Oktoberfest . . . . . . . . . . . .4 House Of Worship . . . . . . .4 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . .9
See Middletown Library pg 3 R076468
See Cocoa Packs pg 4
Let us show you the difference a caring neighbor can make. Rothermel-Finkenbinder Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. Palmyra | 717-838-9211 Travis S. Finkenbinder, Supervisor
PRSRT STD ECRWSS U.S. Postage Paid Engle Printing Co
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and bottled water, is purchased by the organization in bulk. Thanks to a partnership with Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company, the Cocoa Packs also include fresh surplus food, which is “rescued” from the company’s dining outlets.
Miller-Finkenbinder Funeral Home & Crematory Elizabethtown | 717-367-1543 Thomas W. Ford, Supervisor
Fager-Finkenbinder Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. Middletown | 717-944-7413 Alana A. Ace, Supervisor