The Spark

Wayne Harpster, owner of Harpster Farms in Huntingdon County, developed a friendship with the late President Jimmy Carter through their love of fly fishing. Harpster met Cater in 1978 at a Spruce Creek Rod and Gun Club member meet up.

“I didn't know he was coming.”

The former president arrived in his helicopter and landed on Harpster’s field. He offered to cut his fence so the president and first lady Rosalynn could get to the stream. However, the president did not allow him to do that.

“I had barbed wire that separated the field that turned to the area where he was going to go fishing because wheat pasture cattle at that time. And I don't want them to cut their boots. So, I wanted to cut the barbed wire so they wouldn't cut our fishing boats. And they wouldn't let me do that. And they just crawled over the wall’.”

When the day ended, Wayne was not sure that he’d see the president again, however his friendship lasted well over 40 years.

“I didn't know if I'd ever see him again. But 12. For the next year. The time came again. And our friendship began.”

Over the years, Harpster and Cater went on trips around the world that included Mexico and even China.

“We had a lot in common. And so, we become more than just friends. We become buddies. And of course, we would do a lot of things together. We would shoot groundhogs in the summertime.”

President Cater passed away at 100 years old died peacefully Sunday, Dec. 29, at his home in Plains, Georgia, surrounded by his family. He was 100, the longest-lived president in U.S. history.

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The Adams County Historical Society has recently announced it has assumed ownership and management of the iconic Shriver House Museum, located in downtown Gettysburg. Abbie Hoffman is the new Director of the Shriver House Museum and believes that this will help to tell the story from a civilian perspective of life during the Civil War era.

“The Shriver House Museum is dedicated to telling the civilian experience during the Battle of Gettysburg. And what the beauty of the museum is that we take visitors behind the scenes to take them into a home with the family behind the lines during the battle. And we help them view the battle from 1863 through the eyes of just one common family. So, it's kind of a chance for visitors to see things behind the scenes and walk as if a family would have walked.

Del and Nancie Gudmestad were the previous owners of the museum. Their journey began in 1984 when they moved to Gettysburg and opened its first Bed-and-Breakfast, the Old Appleford Inn. Realizing the lack of focus on the town’s 2,400 civilians during the battle, they sold the inn and pursued their dream of telling these stories. In 1996, they purchased the long-abandoned Shriver House and painstakingly restored it to its Civil War appearance.

According to Abbie, the Adams County Historical Society did not have much of a downtown Gettysburg presence. So, when they were approached by the Gudmestads about taking over, it was an opportunity they could not refuse.

“Having a downtown location was of huge interest to us beyond the fact of having this museum which fit perfectly into our mission and things that we're trying to continue on with. So, it was honestly, it was a perfect fit into what we were looking forward to. We weren't really expecting it, but at the same time we were very, very interested and happy to kind of see how that might fit into our plans of expansion over the historical society.”

The Shriver House Museum will reopen on March 1, 2025.

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Milton S. Hershey is a man who turned sweet dreams into a global legacy. Hershey was born in 1857 near Hershey according to Amy Zeigler, Senior Director of The Hershey Story Museum, Hershey Gardens, and Hershey Community Archives.

“He had two parents who were very different from each other, but he really seemed to get the best of both of them. So, his mother was a pretty strict Mennonite. She was very hard working, family focused. He went to school until he was 14, but she really wanted him to have an apprenticeship and learn a trade. His father was a dreamer. He changed jobs a lot. He always had big ideas to earn money and move the family around a lot, which was a bit unsettling.”

Hershey originally started making candy, years before he found success with milk chocolate. In 1876, he opened his own candy business in Philadelphia, however, his business would not last for long.

“He eventually went bankrupt. He traveled around the United States to different locations Chicago, Denver, New Orleans. And then he ended up in New York. And he started another candy business there. And he just couldn't sell enough to pay his bills. And he rented an extra kitchen space when he was in New York. And the rent kept going up and up and he just couldn't afford it. So, he had to declare bankruptcy a second time. And I think this is where his mother's sort of drive to never, never give in kicks in. He moved back to Lancaster, borrowed some money and started focusing on one type of candy, which was caramels, and started the Lancaster Caramel Company and got a huge order from a man in England. And that's kind of where things started to take off. So, he started that company in around 1886. By 1893 or 4, he had over 1300 people working for him.”

Listen to the podcast to hear more about the Milton S. Hershey story.

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Brightside Opportunities Center in Lancaster is changing lives with its innovative programs from fitness and wellness to education and youth initiatives. Sally Winchell, Wellness Director at Brightside, has been at the center for ten years. Winchell helped to design the layout of the fitness center.

“We have strength and conditioning. We have some Zumba classes. We have a senior pound class. I work with younger people with lifting weights, doing personal training all the way up through people that are in their 90s, “said Winchell.

Isiah Perry, Program Director at Brightside says the center offers nutrition programs as well.

“Through these nutrition programs that we're doing with seniors, but also for the kids. Sally came into Stem camp and did a whole day all about nutrition, how to read a food label. My kids, we call them food detectives. What to stay away from Red dye is terrible for you. Sugar in these sodas is three times your daily limit. We're uplifting them to make healthy choices so that they can live of, well, vibrant life, “said Perry.

Sometimes, participants can be a little hesitant when joining due to fear or self-doubt. However, Perry and Winchell work hard to build confidence among people in their fitness programs.

“Or some people believe, I want to do this by myself and get down to a certain level before I enter into a public space. And the educational programs, I see the same thing with the youth, where they are shy to explore educational activities outside of the classroom. And that can be with learning loss due to Covid, whether or not confidence in their abilities, whether that's math or reading. But really that self-doubt is something that we have to overcome by instilling a sense of community and giving them a purpose, “said Perry.

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Where the Nile Meets the Sea: Mystery of the Great Giza Sphinx is a fictional tale about two characters Geb and Luna. Local author, Andreja B. Gunjaric was a guest on The Spark to share more details about her debut book.

Ten percent of Where the Nile Meets the Sea royalties earned will be donated to Tree Aid, a international NGO supporting communities to tackle poverty and the climate crisis through the power of trees. Their project supports the Great Green Wall- an initiative to prevent the Sahara desert’s expansion by planting a wall of trees from Senegal to Sudan.

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For many, the new year means new fitness and wellness goals. Jesse Cracco is a certified personal trainer, functional nutrition coach, and behavior change specialist who works with women to naturally speed up their metabolisms so they can stop the dysfunctional yoyo diet cycle and learn to maintain fitness and health for the rest of their lives.

“So my background in school is in psych psychology and wanting to help people. So I went to school to eventually do a clinical psychology path, and I totally diverted and went this direction because I see nutrition and fitness as a way to proactively prevent disease and help mental health and anxiety and depression and all those things. So yeah, that's kind of my, my background wanting to help people and being able to prevent disease rather than deal with it once it comes and deal, “said Cracco.

Jill Harbarcuk has been a high-level nutrition coach and personal trainer for over eight years. She is a functional nutrition coach, PN, Level 2 Master Health Coach, and National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach but most importantly, she has a talent for understanding the deeper psychological needs of her clients, which has led to hundreds of success stories.

“Mine wasn't necessarily school related. When I was pregnant, I was on bed rest and gained a lot of weight. And one of the goals I set afterwards was to compete in a bodybuilding competition. And it just kind of spiraled into wanting to be a trainer and then coaching online. It's definitely evolved from a physique focus to now just to kind of add on to what Jesse said, just a health focus and being proactive about your health and just feeling good inside and out, really, “said Harbarcuk.

In this podcast episode, Jill and Jesse spoke with The Spark Host Asia Tabb and fitness trackers, body image, weight loss drugs, pricing of healthy food, and more. Listen to the podcast to hear more from this conversation.

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Our Braver Angels segment for the Month of January was about managing strong emotions and important relationships at the start of a new presidential administration. David Lapp, Co-founder of Braver Angels and Director of Citizens Commission on Immigration, and Rhona Myers, Braver Angels member, spoke about separating feelings about political leaders and people in our lives. They also shared what happens when two opposing sides no longer interact with one another as they want to associate with those who agree with them

also on the program;

The holidays are usually a time for socializing, celebrations, and cocktails. However, some people decide to bring in the new year by not indulging in alcohol at all by participating in Dry January. Dry January is a month where one refrains from drinking any alcohol as a personal challenge. According to Dr. Melissa Brown, UPMC Clinical Psychologist, society has played a role in the challenge of becoming more popular.

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The iconic strawberry drop in the City of Harrisburg was established in 1990 the same year that the Hilton opened.

“When the Hilton was finally built, and downtown Harrisburg was really on the rebound and Market Square had been completely redesigned. And the newer buildings there and so forth. So, Market Square was a destination to really want to go to and to be proud of, “said David Morrison, Executive Director of the Historic Harrisburg Association.

The late Mayor Reed decided this would be the perfect opportunity to promote the downtown area while bringing in the new year.

“They felt that a celebration in Market Square would be a good thing to do and that a strawberry for Strawberry Alley, which is what Strawberry Square is named for. It goes right through Market Square, “said Morrison.

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Residents in Lancaster were in for a treat on New Year’s Eve when the iconic red rose made its return after a small hiatus. The original rose made it’s debut in 1993 and its creator is Victor Capecce, Professor of Emeritus at Millersville University.  The idea of the rose rising was born out of the Lancaster County Artists Association.

“It was nearly eight feet in diameter. The base, the foundation based that I had created was actually two pieces of right inch plywood side by side.”

Listen to the podcast to hear Capecce’s story.

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Our Braver Angels segment for the Month of January was about managing strong emotions and important relationships at the start of a new presidential administration. David Lapp, Co-founder of Braver Angels and Director of Citizens Commission on Immigration, and Rhona Myers, Braver Angels member, spoke about separating feelings about political leaders and people in our lives. They also shared what happens when two opposing sides no longer interact with one another as they want to associate with those who agree with them.

Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.