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Local events and community happenings in Berks County.
The 10th annual Guts & Glory Digestive and Wellness Expo will be held Sept. 23, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Penn State Berks. The expo was founded by the nonprofit organization My Gut Instinct and is sponsored by Penn State Berks, Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center, Penn State Health and Highmark.
The free event is intended for community members of all ages. More than 100 vendors will be in attendance, spanning all dimensions of health and wellness.
It includes a farmers market, educational booths, fresh, locally sourced food made by local chefs, fitness zones, yoga, massage, and wellness experts.
The 20-foot “MEGA Colon” exhibit provides visitors with an interactive, educational experience that highlights common health conditions.
Learn more at mygutinstict.org.
Candlelight vigil
A candlelight vigil is scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m. at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in City Park. It is sponsored by the POW/MIA Forget-Me-Nots and the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 131. The event marks National POW/MIA Recognition Day and the 35th anniversary of the Reading memorial.
Participants will remember those whose names are on the monument, recognize those who are still missing and unaccounted for from all wars and pay tribute to victims of Agent Orange exposure.
Hex sign bike ride
The Kutztown Folk Festival is holding a Dutch Hex Sign Bike Tour on Oct. 14 starting at 10 a.m. Participants will meet at the Pennsylvania German Cultural Heritage Center, 22 Luckenbill Road, Kutztown, at 9:45 to register.
Participants will receive a shirt, map and bottle of water. Riders may choose between a 21-mile route and a shorter excursion.
Buy tickets at kutztownfolkfestival.thundertix.com/.
Chicken sale
Friends of Mifflin Community Library is holding a Kauffman’s Chicken BBQ sale Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. or until sold out. Half-chicken, baked potato and applesauce for $12. Walgreens parking lot at corner of Lancaster Avenue and Museum Road, Cumru Township. Pre-sale tickets available at the library, 6 Philadelphia Ave., Shillington. Call 610-777-3911 for information.
Program on book bans
The League of Women Voters of Berks County is presenting a program on book bans Tuesday at 8 p.m. on BCTV.
Hosts are John Morgan and Chip Karasin of the Berks Intercultural Alliance. Guests include Kutztown High School and activist Joslyn Diffenbaugh, Gov. Mifflin School District librarian Kristin Brumbach, state Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El Ismail of Lancaster County and Jordan Busit of the Firefly Book Store in Kutztown.
Among the questions to be addressed: Is this book banning or making sure material is age-appropriate? Will book banning move from schools to public libraries? Who decides what is banned or age-inappropriate? Does not reading certain books help us better understand our world? Is there a difference between cancel culture on the left and book banning on the right.
BCTV broadcasts the LWVBC program on the second Tuesday of the month, repeating it on the following Friday at 2 p.m., the following Monday at 11 a.m. and the following Tuesday at 4 p.m. BCTV is streamed online at www.bctv.org, and programs are available for on-demand viewing on the BCTV YouTube channel.
Sinking Spring history
The Sinking Spring Area Historical Society meeting on Wednesday features Paul Miller and “Rails of the Lebanon Valley Railroad, Reading and Columbia Railroad and Heritage Park Project.”
The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Heritage Park Freight House. The program features a historic train ride in vintage photos for the park’s 45th anniversary.
The society also is holding an open house of the Heritage Park museum to celebrate its 45th anniversary. It is scheduled for Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. The site includes historic train station buildings and a collection of Sinking Spring, Spring Township and railroad history. There will be music by Phyllis Sands.
Both programs are free and open to the public. Call 610-678-4219 to learn more.
Supreme Court discussion
The Wyomissing Public Library is holding a discussion on the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Attorney Donald F. Smith will address the questions: “Why Do I Find the Current Supreme Court to be So Scary? Should you be Scared Too?” Smith is executive emeritus of the Berks County Bar Association and a well-versed speaker on constitutional issues.
He will discuss the court’s decisions in the 2022-23 term, the trends they represent and some of the cases on the docket for the new term, including congressional redistricting, payday lending and federal sentencing. He will offer his view on why some of the cases on the docket are very scary for all Americans.
The program is free and open to the public. Registration is requested; email ann@wyopublib.org or call 610-374-2385 to register. The library is located at 9 Reading Boulevard.
Reading Hospital Road Run
Registration is open for the Reading Hospital Road Run, hosted by The Friends of Reading Hospital. It is scheduled for Oct. 15 and includes a half marathon and 5K event.
Proceeds support the McGlinn Cancer Institute Patient Assistance Fund, which provides financial relief with non-medical expenses to cancer patients in need who are undergoing surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation treatment at the institute.
The race route goes through rolling terrain in neighborhoods and local parks surrounding Reading Hospital. The event is open to runners of all experience levels.
Registration for the 5K costs $32 through Sept. 18 and $38 after that. Half-marathon pricing is $75 through Sept. 18 and $85 thereafter.
To register or to donate to the Patient Assistance Fund, visit RHRoadRun.com.
Touch a Truck
Swamp Lutheran Church in Reinholds is sponsoring a Community Touch a Truck display on Sunday starting at 10 a.m. Admission is free.
More than 15 vehicles are expected, including firetrucks, ambulances, police cars, cranes and construction equipment. Visitors will have an opportunity to view the vehicles and speak with the operators. Children are invited to climb and explore the trucks.
There will be a scavenger hunt, and refreshments will be available for purchase. Proceeds will support a church youth group trip.
The church is located at 275 Swamp Church Road.
Herb society open house
PA Heartland Herb Society will host an open house at its Herbal Study Garden on Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Penn State Berks Janssen Center in Spring Township. There will be refreshments and crafts.
Hopewell talk
The Friends of Hopewell Furnace is hosting a talk by Justin B. Blement, historic site supervisors of Pottsgrove Manor, for a talk on the lives of African American ironworkers of the Potts family iron industry. The free program is scheduled for Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Visitor Center Theatre at Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, Union Township.
Labyrinth program
“Walking a Sacred Path” will be the program for the Contemplative Spirituality group meeting Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at St. John’s United Church of Christ, 257 W. Walnut St., Kutztown.
Psychologist Michele Wheat Dugan will discuss the spiritual and therapeutic benefits of labyrinth walking. Participants will be able to walk the nearby St. John’s labyrinth.
All are welcome, and there is no charge. Email hlserio@aol.com for more information.
Fiddle Fest
The Berks Fiddle Fest is scheduled for Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Bear Creek Mountain Resort in Longswamp Township. The event draws around 3,000 people from across the regioni for a day of music, fellowship and home-cooked food. Crafts and other products will be available for sale. There will be a children’s area with face painting, crafts, goat snuggling and mini highland cows.
Admission is $15 for guests ages 13 and above, and free for children under 12.
Music program at KU
Kutztown University’s Department of Music welcomes Hungarian pianist Janos Kery for a lecture-recital on the Hungarian Rhapsodies of composer/pianist Imre Szekely. The program is scheduled for Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in Schaeffer Auditorium.
The recital is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Daniel Immel at immel@kutztown.edu or at 610-683-1592.
Career expo
A state police Women’s Career Expo is scheduled for Sept. 30 from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Pennsylvania State Police Academy, 175 E. Hersheypark Drive, Hershey.
Women ages 18-39 will be given the opportunity to experience a day in the life as a state police cadet. It includes a workout with troopers, a swim in the training tank and the opportunity to ask questions to cadets.
RSVP to Sgt. Dawn Carpenter at dawncarpen@pa.gov.
Barn tour
The Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County and Historical Society of the Cocalico Valley are offering a Lancaster County barn tour. About 50 barns with historical, architectural and/or cultural significance have been identified for inclusion.
Tourgoers will purchase a keepsake tour book that includes a map pinpointing the barn locations.
Using the guidebook, people will be able to take the tour at their leisure over weeks, months, or even years. Barn interiors will not be open to the public as most are working buildings on private property, but all barns chosen are easily viewed from a public roadway. A few notable exceptions are those listed as public museums, restaurants or an environmental center.
An official launch will be held Oct. 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum. The event will feature guest speakers, tour book sales, sponsor book pick-ups and light refreshments. Tour books will be available to purchase online at www.hptrust.org and in person at locations across the county.
Local businesses are invited to offer their support by placing an ad in the tour book, and individuals may participate with sponsorships.
To learn more about the tour, visit www.hptrust.org or www.cocalicovalleyhs.org. For questions, please email Elaine Bowman at eb7243@dejazzd.com or Angela Stewart at stewarts@ptd.net.
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