Library program

Reck teaches eighth-grade language arts and has written young adult novels such as “Donuts and Other Proclamations of Love” and “A Short History of the Girl Next Door.” In July, the meetings will be hosted by Kayla Miller, an author and illustrator based in New York. Miller wrote and illustrated the graphic novel series “Click” and co-authored its spin-off series, “Besties.” The August meetings will feature Kwame

Ivery, an English teacher and author based in New Jersey.

Ivery released his first young adult novel, titled “The Problem With the Other Side,” in 2021 and has worked on various screenplays.

During the first meeting of each month, the guest authors will give a presentation to students and offer insight on their respective careers. After the presentation, the author will provide students with a creative prompt and spend the

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remainder of the meeting helping them write, draw or make comics based on the prompt. For the second meeting of the month, the guest authors will return to host a workshop and share their creative methods as the kids develop their own material.

“The guest authors will share their own work with students and ask for feedback. It’s a cool aspect to the program because these kids are the authors’ main audience and they want to know what they’re thinking,” said Lindsay Bandy, the program’s supervisor. “I work with the guest author for constructive feedback strategies, and they work with the students to make each other’s work better.” Bandy is also a published author who writes young adult historical fiction.

The Teen SummerZine program was introduced in 2021 as a way to creatively engage students over the summer while they are not in school. The program won the Best Practices Award from the Pennsylvania State Library Association and was held virtually for its first two years. This is the first year that the program will have in-person meetings and workshops for students. “We didn’t have any county-wide teen programs for the summer; many pro- grams are only tailored to younger kids,” Bandy said. “We wanted to do something to reach the older kids and help them to be creative over the summer break.” In December, the program’s participants will gather at the Manheim Township Public Library to celebrate the publication with cupcakes. For more information, visit https://tinyurl.com/teen summerzine.

Summer Music Series at Long’s Park is a Lancaster institution

BY JEFF FALK

They say that the best things in life are free. Maybe the only thing better is people sharing resources with others.

The Long’s Park AmphitheaterFoundation’s Summer Music Series is back bigger and better than ever. But as it has evolved into a major event in Lancaster County, the Summer Music Series has become more reliant on the financial support of local businesses and philanthropic organizations.

Long’s Park Amphitheater Foundation president Tom Ellis said that the popular events couldn’t be offered free to the public without that support. This year’s 13-concert Summer Music Series, which will be conducted every Sunday at 7:30 p.m. from June 4 to Aug. 27 at Long’s Park, 1441 Harrisburg Pike, Lancaster, is being backed by Citadel, Clark Associates,

Ephrata National Bank, Everence, the Hershey Company, Lancaster County Community Foundation and Woodstream.

“It’s a special event and businesses are allowing us to have this event,” said Ellis. “The series doesn’t happen without these sponsors. It’s not a nicety; it’s a necessity. They’ve really stepped up in an economy that doesn’t allow for this type of funding.”

“We curate music and art for everyone in the Lancaster community,” added Ellis. “Most of our audience is drawn from the city of Lancaster.”

If generous support has become a trademark of the Long’s Park Amphitheater Foundation’s Summer Music Series’ 61-year tradition, so has diversity. This summer’s music series, which features a wide variety of genres, from jazz to Irish, from blues to rock, from bluegrass to funk and soul, promises not to disappoint.

Traditionally, the Summer Music Series has drawn between 3,000 and 6,000 viewers for each 90-minute concert. That number usually balloons to 25,000 to 30,000 for its annual patriotic concert, which this year will be celebrated on July 2.

“It’s how summer begins,” said Ellis. “For people who grew up here, they’ll say, ‘I remember going to the Long’s Park Summer Music Series.’ I think this year’s lineup is one of the best we’ve had in years. Its diversity is curated for every audience. We want to make sure the music resonates with the citizens of Lancaster. We almost need to be fresh and new every year so people come back.”

The now-iconic Long’s Park Amphitheater was built in 1962, and the summer music simply followed. Over those years, the Summer Music

Series has introduced people to performers like Count Basie, Pat and Shirley Boone, The Smothers Brothers, Helen Reddy, The Spinners, Aretha Franklin, Arlo Guthrie, Roberta Flack and Kevin Bacon, many before they became household names.

“The musicians come to us after every event and tell us, ‘I hope you realize what you have here,’” said Ellis. “We don’t look for bands that create an on-stage performance through pyrotechnics and lighting. We want it to be pure art through music. We want to have artists who are true to their craft.”

For additional information about the Long’s Park Amphitheater Foundation’s Summer Music Series, including the schedule, go to www.longspark.org/summer -music-series-1.