Harrisburg Magazine April 2020

Gone Fishing The MindShark Seeing Double Searching for the One That Got Away

If He Could Read Your Mind

Two Cherries on Top

Plus. . .Chocolate Easter Eggs Served Sunny Side Up, Big 33’s Buddy Program and More!

b enchmark Media, LLC.

CONTENTS APRI L 2020

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April 2020 • Volume 26 No. 4 PRESIDENT/CEO Darwin Oordt Ext. 1001 doordt@benchmarkmediallc.com

INSIDE 4 "SIMPLY THE BEST"

HOW TO VOTE

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SEARCHING FOR THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

8 12 18

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IF HE COULD READ YOUR MIND TWO CHERRIES ON TOP BIG 33'S SPECIAL PROGRAM: PAIRING ATHLETES WITH BUDDIES INTERVIEW WITH DEE MARIE, OWNER OF YOGI-DOG CHOCOLATE EASTER EGGS SERVED SUNNY SIDE UP DOWN SIZING, DONE RIGHT TASTES OF DISTINCTION BARTENDER'S BEST

ON THE COVER

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS Danielle Carl Ext. 1002 dcarl@harrisburgmagazine.com DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS FINANCE Violetta Chlaifer Ext. 1000 vchlaifer@benchamarkmediallc.com EDITOR Jacqueline G. Goodwin, Ed.D. jgoodwin@harrisburgmagazine.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Laura Reich Ext. 1006 lreich@benchmarkmediallc.com DIRECTOR OF SALES AND MARKETING Chris Aloia Ext. 1003 caloia@benchmarkmediallc.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Jo Ann Shover Ext. 1004 jshover@benchmarkmediallc.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Julian Rosado jrosado@benchmarkmediallc.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Ross Burnett rburnett@harrisburgmagazine.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Charlie Wohlrab Jeff Falk Diane White McNaughton COVER PHOTO

Photo Courtesy of Ed Toyer

Gone Fishing The MindShark Seeing Double Searching for the One That Got Away

If He Could Read Your Mind

Two Cherries on Top

Plus. . .Chocolate Easter Eggs Served Sunny Side Up, Big 33’s Buddy Program and More!

Photo: Ed Toyer proudly displays his catch of the day. Photo courtesy of Ed Toyer.

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THE NOMINATIONS ARE NOW OVER. While thousands were nominated, only THE BEST had enough votes to make it to the next round.

VOTING BEGINS APRIL 15, 2020 AT 12:01 A.M. HERE'S HOW TO VOTE: 1. If you voted before, you need to find the link 3. For each category, scroll through the list until emailed to you to log in. the bottom to ensure you see all the entrants.

Entries are listed alphabetically. Most If you can't find the link, go to the voting categories have between 5 to 10 nominees. page and click on "Already registered" at the A few categories, where competition was top of the ballot. This will resend you the link. tough or votes were tied, may have more than 10.

If you haven't voted before, you will need to register. You can do this by entering your 4. Choose the nominee you think is the best, email address when prompted after voting. then click on the green "Vote" button next to Email address must be valid and belong to it. the person casting the vote to be considered 5. If you haven't registered or logged in, it will valid. Invalid votes will not be counted. ask for your email address at this time. Enter 2. To start, navigate to the category by it and complete the registration process. selecting on the group button, then the category from the drop-down menu.

6. If you make a mistake, just click on "Change Vote" to fix it.

THAT'S IT! YOU MAY ONLY VOTE ONE TIME PER CATEGORY.

VOTING ENDS AT 11:59 P.M. ON JUNE 15, 2020.

4 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Searching For The One That Got Away

By Jeff Falk • Photos Courtesy of Ed Toyer and Tom Whitmer

F

or some, fishing is a solitary pursuit. The feeling of being on the open water with fishing rod in hand and thoughts to oneself is almost spiritual in nature.

For others, fishing is a social activity. It can bring people together, enhance relationships or even provide a source of wholesome competition.

For Ed Toyer and Tom Whitmer, it is both. Fishing is a way to get away from it all and to enjoy the outdoors together.

Through their shared passion, Whitmer and Toyer have fostered a unique relationship – they’ve become fishing buddies. The two middleaged men live about a mile apart in Paxtang, but having one of the most enjoyable fisheries in the country right in their backyard has been an accelerant for their friendship.

“I would say it’s both a solitary and social activity,” says Whitmer, a computer technician and trainer. “We both have our moments when we need to be alone on the water. It’s just about being one with the water and being out on the water. It’s the escape. I’m at peace. It takes my mind away from everything else. It brings me to Ground Zero. I love being outside. I love nature.”

“When I fish with someone it’s much more enjoyable, and when you fish on the Susquehanna River, it’s much safer,” says Toyer, a psychologist. “Tom and I fish 12 months a year. When we’re out there, there’s a good bit of conversation going on, there’s an exchange of ideas.

We’re talking about a bunch of things. If you’re going to spend eight hours in a boat on a river with someone, you better have something to talk about.”

Both Toyer and Whitmer are serious fishermen. They each own boats, and they each compete in regional fishing tournaments.

When they go out together – about three or four times a month, depending upon conditions and the seasons of the year, for the last six years or so –their excursions can last anywhere from five to eight hours. Usually, they fish for small-mouth bass, but they also catch large-mouth bass, muskies, walleyes, catfish and the occasional carp.

Twice, Toyer has been honored as the Central Pennsylvania Bassmaster’s Angler of the Year.

“It’s both an intellectual and physical challenge,” says Toyer. “You have to take into consideration the conditions, the locations and

6 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

the time of the year. There are literally hundreds of variables. It’s always a challenge. It’s not physically demanding, but there’s a physical component to it. I’m also a competitive person.”

“When we’re out there, we catch up with our lives,” says Whitmer. “The only time we see each other is when we fish. We’re both into music, so we get caught up on concerts, or movies. We’re both very jovial. That’s why we get along so well. We both like to joke.”

Whitmer and Toyer originally met about six years ago through a common acquaintance, Whitmer’s wife, who worked in the same office as Toyer. Though they found that they had a lot in common, it was fishing from which their friendship blossomed.

“Ed is a good fisherman in that he’s steady and very consistent,” says Whitmer. “He has special lures he likes to throw, and he’s very good with where he likes to throw them. But he’s not afraid of new areas.

He’s not set in his patterns. He knows what works for him, but he’s not afraid to try new things.”

“I think ‘patient’ is the best way to describe Tom,” says Toyer. “He’s not complacent. We’re competitive against each other. During each trip, we have a competition for who catches the first fish, who catches the most fish, and who catches the biggest fish. You get a point for each one and we keep score. Tom is a very calculating fisherman. He’s very well prepared. When he hits the water, he has an idea of what he wants to do, where he wants to go, and how he wants to do it.”

Toyer and Whitmer do a vast majority of their angling on the Susquehanna River, one of the most picturesque, plentiful and enjoyable venues for their passion anywhere. Rarely aren’t the fish biting on the Mighty Susquehanna, but when they aren’t, the two aren’t above testing their skills at other local waterways or lakes.

“How lucky are we to have that fishery in our backyard?” asks Toyer. “People will drive hundreds of miles to get here, and it’s just

a couple of miles away for us. If the river is not fishable, we’ll go to a local lake, or we’ll just look for a change of pace. I prefer fishing in the river, simply because there’s more fish. It’s a better fishery.”

“We are absolutely some of the luckiest people in North America, just to have the quality of fishing that we have here,” adds Whitmer. “You don’t leave fish to find fish.

Why drive two hours, when you can drive 15 minutes to have a blast? But when you’re on the river, it’s a dangerous place. You can never relax.”

When novices think of fishing season, they think of spring and the April opening of trout season. But for experts like Whitmer and Toyer, fishing is a year-round pursuit.

“For most people, fishing is a seasonal sport,” says Toyer. “If the water is open, fish will bite. Spring is a great time of the year to fish, because that’s when you catch your biggest fish. Spring is the time of year when you catch the giant fish. In the fall, you can catch big numbers of fish. If I had to pick a season, it would be spring, because we’re super excited about getting out there.”

“I like winter fishing because of the challenge,” says Whitmer. “They’re barely moving, so to catch them at that time is pretty special. Even though it’s cold, it’s better than sitting inside. The spring is my favorite time of the year, because fish are at their largest. You tend to catch a lot more fish in the spring. Fall is a lot like spring, because they’re in feeding mode. They’re much more predictable, and it’s becoming much more comfortable to fish.”

Both Whitmer and Toyer had their love of fishing passed onto them by prior generations at a young age. For them, fishing is a lifetime pursuit, and they could not imagine their existences without it.

“Until I die,” says Whitmer, when asked how long he will continue to fish. “When I was six, my grandfather bought a house on a pond. Every Sunday I’d go there and catch bass and blue gills. My father and grandfather took annual trips to Canada to fish, and every year since 1969, I’ve taken a trip to Canada, because of them. It’s always been a part of me.”

“I’ve always been involved in fishing, since a very young age,” says Toyer. “When I retire, I want to buy a home on a lake, so every morning when I wake up I can walk out of the house and fish. I’ll fish until they tell me it’s not safe to do so, and then I’ll sit on the shore and fish from a chair.” 7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 7

If He Could Read Your Mind PRESENTING THE MINDSHARK, JOE CURCILLO

By Diane White McNaughton • Photo By Scott Church Photography

M

any a frustrated spouse has uttered this common refrain in the heat of a contentious exchange: “I’m not a mind reader!”

For local attorney, author and executive coach Joe Curcillo, that excuse just won’t fly.

When Curcillo takes the stage as The MindShark, his natural comedic talents and storytelling acumen combine with an enchanting dose of shock and awe.

Not only does he have the power to guess the number you picked between 1 and 100, the name of your favorite childhood pet, or where you plan to travel on your next vacation; he can also rekindle long-forgotten memories, raise funds for charity, help the anxious overcome fear, and inspire greatness, from entry-level employees on up to the executive suite.

Curcillo has been confounding audiences with his tricks of telepathy since 1995, attracting international acclaim as a mentalist, motivational speaker and master showman.

With his baritone voice, mane of thick black hair, and direct gaze, he clearly follows his own career advice to “talk in color.” His speech is peppered with witticisms, the names of celebrity friends, and insightful anecdotes and observations about the path to excellence.

Showmanship –whether in a courtroom or a darkened theater-has been in the cards for Curcillo since his early days as one of three boys, growing up in a two-parent Irish-Italian household in suburban Philadelphia. He began captivating small crowds as a party magician in his early 20s, working under the stage name “Joseph Anthony.” In 2010, a savvy Chicago-based branding expert quickly sized up this rare mind-reading trial lawyer, and dubbed him, “The Mind Shark.” (His website is www.theMindShark.com) After the curtain falls on the Mind Shark’s shows, audience members usually approach the stage and offer words of praise, like, “That was freaking amazing!” “Are you in my head right now?” and “Oh my God, you must be scary to live with!”

For daughters Olivia and Kaela, and his wife, Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Deb Essis Curcillo, what he does is far from eerie. In fact, his twentysomething daughters think it’s “hysterical,” Joe says. And beyond the humor is humanity.

From Attorney to Illusionist to Author

Mentalism is a natural encore act for Curcillo, who worked as a prosecutor for 12 years and a defense attorney for 22. As an attorney, his astute powers of observation enabled him to intuitively predict what jurors were thinking, what witnesses were going to say, and what direction opposing counsel would take.

He knows there are no do-overs in trials, so you have to get it right the first time. Ditto for life.

In the past decade, the West Hanover Twp. resident, part-time county solicitor, and former president of the Dauphin County Bar Association has criss-crossed the country performing and offering trainings. He has also done charity shows locally to benefit cystic fibrosis and child abuse prevention.

Even though motivational speaking, coaching and writing are not as simple as waving a magic wand, Curcillo wants his clients to discover new answers about themselves, and carve their own 8 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

JOE CURCILLO path to their dreams, powered by his core belief in “a unifying vision.” No cape, top hat, or white rabbit required.

He flies out to Las Vegas frequently--seven times last year alone (“I love Vegas but despise the Strip.”) He has also penned three books, designed to be read in one sitting on a four-hour plane flight, to share his message of mind over magic with a larger audience.

A Man of Many Talents

Curcillo’s metamorphosis from magician and attorney to Vegas showman and motivational speaker is not such a curious career U-turn for this true Renaissance man, who has held more than 30 eclectic jobs in his lifetime.

He paid his way through Temple University School of Law by putting on magic shows for children’s parties. He was self-taught, entertaining children in tony mansions along the moneyed Main Line. His magic act was not inspired by a pure love of the supernatural. He did it for the money. That pathway reflects his whole approach to just “doing” the tasks you have to do.

“If I make a decision, it has to be done,” he says.

After graduating from Archbishop Ryan in suburban Philadelphia, he earned an engineering degree at Temple before enrolling in law school.

He has also worked as a construction worker, iron worker, department store clerk, carpenter, guitarist in a rock band, and burgerflipper. He even inspected structural steel, but was afraid of heights, so he drew the line at 36 stories. He was one of the original performers at Creatures of the Night at ZooAmerica and performed live magic shows in the private picnic areas at Hersheypark in the 90's.

He is constantly reinventing himself, living out his own advice about attaining your dreams. His fast-reading books, available on Amazon, include the best-seller, “Getting to ‘Us’: Discover the Ability to Lead your Team to Any Result you Desire,” “What’s Your Freaking Point?: Maximize the Impact of Every Word You Speak” and a brief illustrated book called, “Don’t Be a Hamster: 30 Tips to Spark the Imagination of Busy People.”

Through word and deed, Curcillo encourages everyone to get off life’s hamster wheel. Inspired by his daughter’s escaped hamster,

who clearly had bigger goals for himself, Curcillo urges his cleints to stop running through life, eating, sleeping, and spinning, without ever dreaming big or trying something new.

One of Curcill's CEO clients, Annalisa Parent, CEO of Laurel Elite Books, describes Curcillo as “insightful, generous and to-thepoint.” She applauds his incomparable analytical ability and knack for making everyone feel like an old friend from the minute they sit down with him.

“He is definitely not cookie-cutter,” Parent says. "He eschews 'the hype' and the 'rah-ra'” type of executive coaching. “He is an incredible teacher and adviser.”

An Anti-Hamster Finds Harrisburg

Curcillo moved to Harrisburg in 1987, after launching his legal career in Clearfield County as an Assistant District Attorney. He decided to drive across the state to see where he wanted to put down permanent roots. He became spellbound by Harrisburg, thanks to current Judge John Cherry’s dad, who became his mentor.

“I picked Harrisburg. I’m here 100 percent by choice,” he says.

A friend encouraged him to become a mentalist, saying, “You know people better than anyone.”

Buoyed by his knowledge of human nature and behavior, he began studying magic books, psychology, and old carnival methods.

Marc Salem, a Philadelphia-born mentalist and mind-reader who has been featured on 60 Minutes and in the New York Times, became his mentor and remains one of his best friends.

Curcillo is modest about his success. “My show is about my audience, not me,” Curcillo says.

He enjoys witnessing how guessing an audience member’s childhood pet or dream vacation evokes vivid amemories. “That’s my favorite part,” he says.

While he does not employ mentalism in court, he demonstrated himself to be incredibly perceptive about the feelings of others in the courtroom, from the judge to the jurors.

One potential juror, for example, began crying every time Joe asked a question.

Curcillo called for a sidebar with the judge, expressing his concern that the man was an “empath,” an overly emotional person to whom facts don’t matter. He was spot-on.

“At that moment, my two worlds collided” when his legal career intersected with mind-reading.

Books to Train the Brain

His legal career inspired his second book, “What’s your Freakin’ Point?” which was originally titled “Performance on Trial.” The book was written to help professional entertainers break down a show into separate components, based upon the timeline of a jury trial. Curcillo found that making things believable in court is easily transferable to the stage.

Famed Israeli-British illusionist and psychic Uri Geller provided the book cover’s endorsement quote.

“Getting to ‘Us’” is Curcillo’s seminal work and his “attack on the business plan.” Curcillo finds ways to help entrepreneurs create a plan, unify people around it, innovate, and then execute, guided by a “unifying vision.”

He has sold 15,000 copies and received fan letters from all over the world, including Malaysia, where he just shipped 25 copies to their Board of Tourism.

Again, in creating a unified team, Curcillo emphasizes that it is not about “me,” but “us.”

Always poised and confident, he has given a TED talk on the mobilizing power of a unified vision as the final act for the Harrisburg-area TED talks in 2018, and was Master of Ceremonies in 2019.

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“Getting to ‘Us’” is Curcillo’s seminal work and his “attack on the business plan.” Curcillo finds ways to help entrepreneurs create a plan, unify people around it, innovate, and then execute, guided by a “unifying vision.”

His clients have included realtors, accountants, hotels, sports franchises and more. He has worked with famed fellow illusionists, soap opera stars and big-name TV producers.

He recalls a hotel owner-client of his who wanted to restore an aging building to its original glory.

The entire staff, from the housekeepers, front desk, and wait staff, to the bartenders, construction crew, and seamstresses, became excited about the vision.

The prior CEO “only wanted to get the hotel to tomorrow,” Curcillo recalls. The new owner had big dreams, and also gave employees the green light to implement them.

The maids, who felt like they were just changing sheets before, became spokespersons for the hotel.

With enthusiasm and top-to-bottom involvement, in two years, the hotel became a four-star resort.

Annalisa Parent is one of many people who says their life has changed dramatically because of Curcillo.

“I’ve had some major changes in my business during the last six months,” Parent says, “and Joe has stood by me, offering advice and guidance, as if it were his own business. He has been there for some major decisions and supports me with my goals. And, he has an uncanny ability to make me laugh when things go wrong.”

Curcillo is planning to translate that trademark humor into a fourth book, outlining the brass tacks of managing a unified vision.

“I don’t sleep. I’m constantly on,” he says.

When his wife and daughter travel to Paris soon, Joe will stay behind to work.

To him, his travels are not “travel,” it’s commuting to his offices across the country.

He’s too busy helping others to hop off the hamster wheel and travel outside their comfort zone.

“Whatever you’re doing, if your dreams seems attainable, they’re not big enough,” Curcillo says. 7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 11

TWO CHERRIES ON TOP

By Diane White McNaughton Photo By John Bivins Photography

Y

ou can be forgiven if you thought you were seeing double at the Dauphin County inaugural ceremony on Jan. 2 at the Hilton Harrisburg.

You may have glimpsed flowing black robes, shorn gray hair, and a touch of tanned scalp, and heard the sounds of a gruff but humorous jokester.

It was Judge Cherry. And…. it was Judge Cherry.

John F. Cherry, a judge on the Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas, was retained by the voters last November. His younger brother, Paul E., is a judge on the Clearfield County Court of Common Pleas, who was retained in 2013, to remain on the bench until at least 2023.

Put them together, and it’s like a double mirror.

John was first elected as a judge in November of 1999, and is now the county’s President Judge, Dauphin County’s 27th.

At this year’s inauguration for John, Paul administered the oath of office to his older brother. It was the least he could do, since John had sworn him in.

Who swore in who better? Who’s to judge?

And what in their DNA predestined two lookalike brothers to both become county judges? This may be a case of heredity and environment combining forces for the greater good, advancing liberty and justice for all, times two.

It all starts with yet a third Judge Cherry—their dad, the late John A. Cherry, who was their patriarch and role model, and who first donned the black robes more than 57 years ago.

“He was the greatest man I’ve ever known,” John says. “He never forgot where he came from.”

Reflecting upon his idyllic childhood in a close-knit railroad town in DuBois, he adds, “We were never rich. We were rich here,” he says, pointing to his heart. His dad won a Clearfield County judgeship by a landslide in 1963 even though he was not the endorsed candidate.

When Dauphin County’s “Judge John” was asked how he ascended to the bench, he recounts story after story—not about himself, but his dad.

Cherry is soft-spoken, as the roar of traffic on Market and Second Streets sometimes drowns out his recalled memories and grateful tributes. He holds an unlit cigar in his hand, and a Notre Dame mug rests proudly on his heavy wooden desk, piled high with documents and family photos. A call from his tailor interrupts to inform him that his two Notre Dame pants from his wife Camille (also an accomplished attorney) are now ready for pick-up. (“She got the A’s, I passed,” Cherry jokes.)

He himself did not attend Notre Dame, like fellow Judges Ed Marsico and Bill Tully, but he is a huge fan. He paraphrases Fighting Irish coach Lou Holtz: “The only way I was getting in to Notre Dame was as head coach or with a ticket.”

Instead, he majored in European History at Gannon University in Erie, where he focused on the Renaissance and Reformation. He is still close to his teachers, professors, and their families.

He often marvels that he is sitting where he is, and chalks it up to his extended family for their loving involvement in his upbringing, along with the judges who came before him.

He also extols the inspiration of so many now-retired and deceased judges: Judges Warren Morgan (“He ran the tightest courtroom ever,”) 12 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Judge John F. Cherry on the left and brother, Judge Paul E. Cherry, on the right.

Jack Dowling (“He taught me scholarship,”) Sebastian Natale (“He never forgot the common touch,”) Herb Schaffner (a veteran and a “man’s man,”) and Clarence Morrison (the grandson of sharecroppers who “defied all the odds of bigotry and hatred but never let it taint his approach.”)

A 1969 graduate of DuBois High School, John worked as a teacher, coach and high school administrator before deciding to go to The Dickinson School of Law. Over the course of his career, he was a Deputy District Attorney, District Attorney, Deputy Attorney General and an attorney at the private law firm of Goldberg, Katzman and Shipman. He was appointed district attorney in December of 1993 and elected for the first time in 1995.

Paul’s path is remarkably similar.

From Italy to America “It has to start in the beginning with my grandfather James Cherry, a teenage immigrant from Naples, Italy,” John says. His grandfather had no formal education; his hero was Teddy Roosevelt. His grandmother was Sicilian-born.

Cherry’s father John was one of 10 children, and the first to go to college. Cherry’s “Uncle Joe” was the oldest, and never married. Uncle Joe ran a successful gas station and paid for his family members to attend college, law school, dental and medical school.

“He was the most unselfish person I have ever met,” John says.

In the 1930s, “Uncle Joe” escorted his beloved mom to a spacious home, handed her the key, and said, “It’s yours, Mama.”

Money was not the only obstacle facing the Cherry family.

“Let there be no mincing of words. There was a great deal of bigotry in those days,” Cherry recalls. “They had to fight double to get what they earned.”

He learned to never criticize anyone based on their race, religion, or socioeconomic reality.

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 13

Cherry’s dad and five brothers all fought valiantly in World War II. His dad shuttered his law office and went to war. His father was in Nice when France was liberated; Uncle Ed, the Ardennes; Uncle George, the Battle of Midway; and Uncle Rock, a boxer, was in Guadalcanal in the South Pacific. Uncle Francis, Cherry’s godfather, and Uncle Skip were stateside.

Uncle Ed was wounded and awarded the Bronze Star. He lost most of his hearing and walked with a limp from his extensive war injuries but never complained, John recalls.

Uncle Ed became his dad’s law partner. He had once wanted to work in the brother’s gas station, but his brother wouldn’t permit it.

Uncle Joe insisted that Uncle Ed go to law school. It was teacher Miss Esther Marshall who predicted that John A. Cherry would be “a great man” someday.

A Clear Path in Clearfield County John remembers growing up in rural, small-town DuBois with fondness. “For a kid, it was paradise, but part of it was because of our families.”

Summers were filled with crowded family picnics, where bottomless plates of homemade pasta and other homemade delicacies were served up.

In his childhood home, with five boys in the house, John got up early, did his chores, ate breakfast, played ball, biked through his newspaper route, and played “kick the can” at night. Often brother Paul or Geno would come with him to deliver papers. During school, he always did homework.

Because five of his aunts and uncles were within a block of his home, he would often eat a second dinner at their homes.

Paul was younger, but is still known to bill himself as the “smarter and betterlooking Cherry.”

“I know it sounds like some old-fashioned movie, but it was,” John says.

“I owe so much to my parents but also to my aunts and uncles. Their front doors, refrigerator doors, and doors to their hearts were always open to me. What a gift it was.”

At the end of every semester in grade school, the Cherry family had the traditional reading of the report cards, with all the aunts, uncles and assorted other relatives close at hand. In a sea of 97s, a grade of 92 in arithmetic was cause for concern. He may still have gotten a quarter for his report card, but with it came an admonition to bring up that 92.

“I came from a teenage shoemaker with no education. I can’t forget that,” Cherry says.

“We owe everything to our grandparents and parents and aunts and uncles. They took an interest in everything we did.”

When Cherry ran track, six or seven uncles would be there at the meet.

14 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Dad always taught him: “It costs you nothing to be kind,” and “You are no better than anyone else.”

John identifies two saints in the family: the late Dickinson School of Law Dean Walter Harrison Hitchler, and elementary school teacher Miss Esther Marshall, who saw promise in all the Cherry children.

Today, Judge John and wife Camille have five grandchildren and 11 nieces and nephews. Their oldest son, John, is a lawyer and Lt. Colonel in the Marine Corps. Vincent is an ICU Nurse and clinical professor.

My Father, The Judge From a young age, Cherry’s dad would take him, the eldest son, to the law office with him.

His dad worked at the gas station for two years, then went to law school in 1933.

At school, the senior Cherry approached Dean Hitchler and explained that his brother Joe was putting him though school. He said he was one of 10 children and asked if he could scrub floors.

Not only did the Dean give him a job mopping floors, he offered the law student a room in his home.

Together, they would often go to the theater so the Dean could see which law students were going to the movies instead of studying.

“He saw all the promise (in my dad). He was a great evaluator of character.”

At the holidays, Cherry’s grandmom told his dad to invite the Dean for Christmas vacation.

Cherry was worried. The family was poor and lived above a shoe store, and he feared the Dean’s discovery of those realities.

The Dean wound up coming for a week at Christmastime and many, thereafter, and was moved by the heart-warming family dynamics.

He told Cherry to never be ashamed of where he came from: “This is a home—a real home that I never had.”

Judge John Cherry said he also remembers his father being sworn in as a judge 57 years ago.

He explains while he was peddling newspapers, he had posters of his father on the front and back of his bike as he did his part in the campaigning.

He also remembers that his father was never changed by his office.

“He was still the son of an immigrant boy who came here looking for success. He lived the principles he preached and taught us the same values,” he says.

Paul also carries on the family’s values. He is supported by wife Laurie, and daughters, Gina, Melissa, and Carla, and son, Nick. Paul says he wanted to be a judge since first grade.

He graduated from DuBois Central Christian High School, Gannon University in Erie and the Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle.

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 15

Prior to being elected judge in 2003, Paul served as Clearfield County’s district attorney for more than nine years and as a public defender for more than six years.

Dauphin County’s Judge John Cherry came to Dickinson in 1980. He taught and coached from 1973 to 1980.

“I’ve got to at least try. I wanted to be like Dad,” he says.

That legacy continues, as his nephew Nick is the 18th Cherry to enroll in law school, Nick being in his second year at Dickinson.

Judge John Today “When lawyers address you as ‘Your Honor,’ it isn’t just a title,” John says.

They are representing “real clients, real people and real problems, something they are probably thinking about day and night.

“They expect that you will listen to them with honor, be fair to both parties, make sure all parties have been heard, and then make a decision based upon the evidence.”

He tries to treat everyone with courtesy and kindness.

“Not everything is black and white… sometimes you have to blow the smoke away.”

Today’s modern-day Cherry family gatherings, populated by judges and lawyers, are not cerebral discussions of legal arguments and thorny cases.

He raves about Camille’s culinary skills.

And “My brother is quite a comedian,” Cherry says of Paul. “We have a good time.”

At work, “Dad taught us to treat all people fairly under the law,” he said adding that he “brought a firm hand to the courtroom.”

John remembers being a law clerk for thenDistrict Attorney and now Judge Richard 16 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Lewis and walking in front of the Courthouse statue, which reads: “God created the fountain of justice. Man must preserve its purity.”

He also quotes Pennsylvania’s founder William Penn: “Men who govern without God will soon be governed by tyrants.”

He does a gut check, not just every Sunday in the sacred silence of church, but every day, to make sure he is doing the right thing.

One of his signature lines is: “Not every case is the Lindbergh kidnapping.” Some lawyers make cases far more complex than they need to be, to the detriment of their clients, he notes.

Recently, Cherry served on a panel at Dickinson with other judges, and seemed to summarize his views on judicial service, lawyering and public service in one small session. He told first-year law students, “This isn’t TV. “You have a duty to act for the client. It is important to respect everyone, from entrylevel staff on up. “You need them all.”

Again that saying: “It costs you nothing to be kind.”

And for the push to be the best? As former Notre Dame Coach Lou Holtz said, “Those who know Notre Dame, no explanations are necessary. Those who don’t, no explanation will suffice.”

His mantra remains the philosophy shared by his dad and brothers: “God, family, country.”

His dad was the epitome of those values.

And him?

“I’m a work in progress.” 7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 17

Big 33's Special Program: Pairing Athletes With Buddies

By Jeff Falk • Photos By VSN Photography

F

rom modest beginnings in Hershey, the Big 33 Football Classic has evolved into the top high-school, all-star football game in the country. Through those years, the Big 33 has become more than just a game, it’s become a week-long event.

And of those festivities leading up to the game, nothing is more special or better received than the buddy program. The buddy program isn’t more important than the game itself, but it – more than anything – has come to represent what the Big 33 stands for.

The buddy program matches up high-school senior studentathletes from Pennsylvania and Maryland with local special needs kids – children afflicted with things like autism, down syndrome and cerebral palsy. When athletic football players, some of whom are staying away from home for the first time, are paired up with kids of similar age who are both mentally and physically challenged, something magical happens.

The 63rd annual Big 33 Football Classic will be played on Memorial Day, May 25 at Central Dauphin Middle School’s Landis Field, 4600 Locust Lane in Harrisburg.

“None of this would happen without the game,” says Garry Cathell, the Big 33’s Executive Director. “But if the game is 1A, then the buddy program is 1B. That’s how important it is. Over the years, it’s evolved.

It’s evolved with our game.

“It’s important for a lot of reasons,” adds Cathell. “It gives the buddies an opportunity to meet new people. Buddies look forward to the event every year. On the other hand, the player gets more out of it than I think the buddy does. They fall for the kids. They’re hugging them, holding their hands; it’s just so nice. Some of these kids are pretty handicapped. It’s genuine.”

There is no family that has been touched more by the Big 33’s buddy program than Hershey resident Summer Farmen’s, and specifically, her 19-year-old son Jackson, who is afflicted with cerebral palsy.

Over the years, Jackson has connected with eight different buddies from the program.

The Farmen family has also opened their home to host three 18 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

different players, and this year 16-year-old daughter Lucy Farmen will cheer at the game.

“Jackson is a boy,” says Farmen. “He is a 19-year-old kid. But these players are kids, too. They have struggles. We all have struggles. Often with kids like Jackson, their disability is seen before them. They’re seen as cerebral palsy boys, but they’re more than that. The players are seen as these boys consumed with football. But those players get to see that kids like Jackson are just kids too. They might not have had that close interaction with kids like Jackson before.

“It’s like a magical thing,” Farmen continues. “Being the mother of a special needs kid, our family is very appreciative. Sometimes Jackson drools, and one time one of his buddies started wiping Jackson’s mouth, and I started to cry. It breaks down stereotypes. People can look one way and act totally different. One of our buddies wasn’t used to being on his own, and then suddenly he was around people.”

“The Big 33 is more than a game,” says Cathell. “When we say that, we’re talking about the buddy program. It lasts a lifetime. You can’t play a game for a lifetime, but you can be a buddy for a lifetime.

“The idea originally came from (former Big 33 executive director) Mickey Minnich and (former Hershey High School football coach) Gump May in the early 80s,” continues Cathell. “Both were teachers and they dealt with special needs kids in their schools. I’m sure it started out slow. But it caught fire. It was something good and it made sense. It’s really grown over the years.”

Once paired up, the student-athletes and their buddies simply do the things that kids like to do-- chill and hang out, eat lunch, attend pep rallies, experience Hersheypark, take a few swings at batting cages, or go out to dinner together.

Ultimately for the Big 33 game, the football players and cheerleaders will have number-one fans rooting for them in the stands.

“The buddies get a lot out of this,” says Cathell. “But I think who gets the most out of it are the players and cheerleaders. They get a greater appreciation of what they have. First of all, they learn patience. All of these kids are really, really good athletes. They’re dealing with people

who don’t have the abilities they do.

“I’d say 80 percent of the athletes haven’t been around special-needs kids before,” Cathell adds. “You’ve got to focus on them.

I think the athletes develop a sense of understanding for the happiness these kids have, even though these kids have everything stacked against them. The special-needs kids are just as happy as they can be. They just appreciate the attention of the athletes.”

“At the beginning of the week, the players can’t even fathom what it takes to take care of Jackson,” says Farmen. “But at the end of the week, they realize it’s not a big deal.

It’s just having that brother figure. When you throw someone else in the mix, it’s something you can’t gain from school. You want him (Jackson) to have that. You want him to have that connection. Jackson is particular in who he responds to. It’s just new people in his circle.”

Following the conclusion of the game, the student-athletes and the special-needs kids physically go their separate ways. The players go off to college, and the special-needs kids return to their lives.

But many stay in touch, through talking on the phone or texting. Some players will even return to the Harrisburg area for special events of their buddies’ families, or host the families at college games that they are now competing in.

The Big 33’s buddy program has the ability to create life-long friendships.

“It’s a mutual thing,” says Farmen. “We open our homes to them. But they’re bringing so much to us and our family. It’s like they’re becoming a part of our family. It’s an intense situation that brings you together. It’s also a nice opportunity for them before they go away to school.

“They’re (the players) so thankful for being a part of the program,” continues Farmen.

“They know they’re impacting these kids.

It’s like a friendship they’re establishing. We get to know all of the players’ parents, and they’re so grateful as well.”

“Some of our buddies have been buddies since they were 11-years-old,” says Cathell.

“They’re like part of a player’s Big 33 family.

The players are sometimes invited to special events, and sometimes the buddies are invited to college games. They stay in contact over the holidays.

“Over the years, the buddy program has impacted thousands of lives,” adds Cathell.

“It’s grown and it’s branched out. There are some buddies who have even had siblings in the program. I can’t even tell you how appreciative the families are.” 7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 19

It’s all about a delicious, fresh, healthy yogurt treat that dogs truly enjoy Interview with Dee Marie, owner of Yogi-Dog

By Jacqueline G. Goodwin, Ed.D.•Photos By Kristen Kidd Photography

Harrisburg Magazine recently caught up with Dee Marie to find out more about Yogi-Dog, the first fresh yogurt food topper and treat for dogs. Here is what we found out about its origin and the product’s owner who resides in Mechanicsburg: Dee Marie, please tell our readers about yourself.

Prior to launching Yogi-Dog, my first profession was a pilot with a degree in aeronautics from a New England college, beginning a flying career as a flight instructor in New Jersey. I went on to fly as a regional airline pilot based in central Pennsylvania. I have been flying since I was 17 years old. Though born and raised in New Jersey, I have been in central Pennsylvania. for many years now and after back surgery many years ago, I chose to move on to a career in sales as a commercial realtor. It was there where I first met the yogurt food scientist who was making fresh yogurt in Mechanicsburg, and at that point in 2017 Yogi-Dog was created as the first fresh yogurt food topper and treat for dogs. (though humans can eat it too!)

How did you get the idea for Yogi-Dog? As a dog owner, it was a light bulb moment when one day I was working with a client as a commercial realtor and I noticed there was a missing product in the dog food industry. They were 20 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

making high quality yogurt and I discussed with the owner about making a yogurt for dogs. I’ve always been a huge doglover, one that considers my pups part of the family and know most owners feel that way about their dogs. Creating YogiDog was second nature as I am always looking to provide my dogs with healthy treats. And I've found that true for most dog owners who I'm meeting at all of our dog events that YogiDog participates in, which are many. I see how dog owners are looking for healthy food options for their dogs as they are for themselves. So it makes perfect sense that Yogi-Dog is growing in popularity as we continue to get the word out about this great new daily food topper for dogs.

When did you decide to go into business?

In August of 2017 I took my first tour of the yogurt plant in Mechanicsburg. It was then we decided to become business partners to create Yogi-Dog, the original yogurt for dogs.

At the beginning did you make Yogi-Dog at home? Tell our readers about this.

Yogi-Dog was created and has always been made in the Mechanicsburg yogurt plant by the food scientist and experienced food experts. From the first cup of Yogi-Dog I started feeding as a daily food topper to my dog Lexi and her sister Bee. They couldn’t get enough. It was an immediate hit

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 21

goal was to create a delicious, fresh, healthy yogurt treat that dogs would truly enjoy. Each cup of our yogurt contains eight live and active-culture and probiotics. Not only is this fresh, its all-natural yogurt is beneficial for a dog's digestion and is also human grade.

Where can out readers get Yogi-Dog in the Harrisburg area?

We always say for folks to check our website locations tab for the stores and location to find Yogi-Dog in central Pennsylvania.

We are in most Karns’ stores in the yogurt dairy aisles. And, always just ask someone working in the store if you can't find it. We are also in a couple smaller pet stores but just check our website locations tab for details on those locations. We are currently in the process of getting into larger pet stores and grocers across the country to become a national company. This is our big goal in the coming year.

What are the flavors?

Original, Peanut Butter Cream and Cheddar Cheese.

Congratulations on being named as Modern Dog Magazine's 2019 Editors Choice. Why do you think YogiDog received this award?

Yogi-Dog was recognized for its innovation. It's the first fresh, human-grade dog yogurt on the market with outstanding health benefits and that's something the magazine really admired. It is a huge honor to be acknowledged by such a prestigious publication in the pet space. There was also a deep appreciation for our creative social media feed and the positive relationship we have with our dedicated customers. We listen to their wants, needs and special requests and we deliver (but not to your house!). Our customers mean the world to us. We make sure they know how much we appreciate their love for their dogs and Yogi-Dog.

Is there anything else you want our readers to know about Yogi-Dog?

for them every day as a healthy treat off the spoon and on every meal. It was so nice to be able to give them something out of the normal dog food spectrum, especially knowing how high quality it is. I even eat it myself; it's high quality and actually tastes good. It's just fresh yogurt, with high quality milk from local family farms, no added sugar, low fat, lactose free and so many live and active cultures. I feel good when I am able to give such a tasty and healthy product to my dogs that was never available to them before.

Do you have dogs? Tell us about them.

Yes, I do! I have two lovable dogs, Lexi and Bree. Lexi is a 2-yearold Golden Retriever and her sister Bree is a 5-year-old German Shepherd. Lexi comes with us to many events for Yogi-Dog that we participate in on a regular basis. She's always a big hit!

Tell our readers about Yogi-Dog. What are the benefits?

I wanted to be able to feed my dogs a daily treat that is not only tasty, but also provides additional health benefits as well. My 22 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Our social media ambassador program has been such a wonder help for us spreading the word. Dog moms and dads from all over request to be a part of our program by sharing how much their pup means to them and why they would like to try YogiDog. Then, we send them a special Yogi-Dog package via mail filled with our swag and yogurt. They receive it, leave us an honest review, and share photos of their dog's taste testing Yogi-Dog for the first time. The pictures and words of positive affirmation are priceless!

Another program we’ve proudly launched is our Yogi-Dog rescue initiative. Through this initiative, we partner with local animal rescues by supplying them with cases of our Yogi-Dog yogurt free of charge. Why? because this is a luxury most rescues would otherwise not have access to. All dogs deserve a healthy treat. Any rescue can apply by emailing dee@Yogi-Dog.com and sharing why their rescue would like to be a part of our special program. We're continuously looking for more organizations to partner with to help spread the word of Yogi-Dog to all dogs across the country. 7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 23

Chocolate Easter Eggs Served Sunny Side Up Story and Photos by Diane White McNaughton

U

nder a spare rooftop cross splayed against cloudless blue skies soaring above Middletown, the sounds and smells of the Seven Sorrows BVM chocolate Easter egg volunteers rise up like a prayer.

There is quiet conversation, metal chairs sliding over tiled floors, the aroma of warming chocolate, and, most of all, laughter.

On this blindingly bright winter day, more than 30 church volunteers are ignoring the thermometer and thinking spring. Donning aprons, hairnets, hats, and sterile gloves, they join petite blonde dynamo Lisa Fortunato in manning their chosen station in the lowceilinged lower cafeteria of the school. They represent just a fraction of the 100 volunteers who work for four months straight to produce, deliver, take orders, and sell coveted chocolate Easter eggs at all weekend Masses.

Many have been egg volunteers from the start, more than 10 years ago.

They are part of the sweet squad that produces more than 81,000 homemade chocolate Easter eggs a year. They come, religiously, to roll, dip, bag, chat, taste, talk, lunch and laugh.

Working in small groups of both men and women, most are retirees who look forward to this camaraderie as much as the tiny tastes they can sneak when they run out of room on their silver tray and must wrestle with a dab of excess, just asking to be eaten. They hover with care over metal trays of white and brown ovals, lined up in tidy linear rows.

The volunteers not only love chocolate and the art of candy-making; they clearly love each other, and they are there to help their school and church.

“They are getting out. They have purpose,” says Fortunato, a mother of two teenage boys. “They are the heartbeat. They make friends. They come together.” Often, they eat lunch together. The candy-making becomes baked into their lives.

It is a tradition that has fallen by the wayside in many other churches, crushed by the demands of double-income families, and the easy availability of store-bought coconut and peanut butter eggs from the likes of Reese’s, Mounds, Russell Stover and Cadbury eggs. The volunteer candymakers may be rolling eggs in the shadow of Chocolate King Hershey’s, but mass-produced, store-bought eggs can’t hold a Lenten candle to homemade, handmade, handdipped eggs, they say. The Seven Sorrows eggs have more texture; they’re better… smoother, the workers say, as they struggle to capture the delicious difference in words.

So what does it take to make 81,000 eggs annually?

Besides the fluffy white powders and silky cocoacolored ingredients, Fortunato refers often to her "egg"ceptional volunteers.

And then there’s 4,800 pounds of 10X sugar; 4,320 pounds of chocolate; 6,000 pounds of peanut butter; 1,800 pounds of cream cheese; 870 pounds of butter and 24 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

margarine; 420 pounds of coconut; and 70 pounds of vanilla.

Fortunato says they use six football fields of aluminum foil to cover batter pans. If eggs are placed end-to-end, the egg line would stretch for four long miles—the distance from the State Capitol to Boscov’s in Camp Hill. They have outgrown their crockpots and Dutch ovens and are moving to acquire an industrial kitchen, equipped to handle the growing volume.

Defying the stereotype to “never trust a skinny cook,” Fortunato, the tiny candy coordinator with stylish blonde hair and dazzling white teeth, likened the egg-making process to the fight of the caterpillar to emerge from the cocoon as a butterfly. “It’s the ‘struggle’” of how we get there,” Fortunato wrote in a recent church bulletin.

The total eggs sold in 2019 earned the parish $80,787, and after deducting expenses of $26,605, the volunteers made a respectable profit of $54,182 in 2019.

In the first year, they sold “only” 6,000 eggs, netting a $4,000 profit.

It’s been an upward trajectory ever since.

The venture began when a neighboring church asked if their members could sell their chocolate eggs at the popular Seven Sorrows Lenten fish fry. Fortunato thought, “Why don’t we make our own?”

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 25

If eggs are placed end-to-end, the egg line would stretch for four long miles—the distance from the State Capitol to Boscov’s in Camp Hill.

The recipe is not Grandma’s, handed down from generation to generation. It’s Google’s, discovered through an online search and tweaked by seasoned tastetesters over the years.

There is a role for volunteers of all ages and abilities. If candy-making is not your forte’, you can help sell in the narthex of the church after Mass. You can help buy and lift those deadweight bags of powdered sugar, or deliver the delicately wrapped eggs to points of sale. You can donate jars of Jif. The invitation is open to everyone. It’s “bring a friend” and “no experience needed.”

The eggs are sold at Hershey and Middletown-area diners, restaurants, hair salons, pharmacies, and pizza shops.

The week before Palm Sunday, the final push, “is a killer,” says veteran volunteer Sue Dussinger, a retired nurse.

They are thankful that snow days have not slowed them down this season.

Their sales are a study in central Pennsylvania tastes: out of 80,787 eggs sold, 50,394 were peanut butter—clearly the fan favorite. Coconut came in second, with sales of 15,000, and butter cream, at about 10,000, followed by 5,000-plus for peppermint. In 2019, they sold about 12,000 eggs at the Friday Lenten fish fry alone.

More than 1,000 jars of Jif peanut butter have been donated this year alone.

Their eggs have even been sold as far as Florida, Guatemala, and Italy.

One buyer bought 303 eggs the other day. They ship well, and freeze well, the workers say.

One volunteer, Nancy, is legendary for her perfectionist streak. “They have to be just so,” she says succinctly. No splits in the chocolate or fork marks will pass her Quality Control.

Another volunteer is musician, author and college instructor Joe Trojcak, who says, “We have a crew of three to six who prepare the dipping area on Sunday mornings after the 8 a.m. Mass for Monday’s production days.”

They move pre-made batter from the walk-in fridge to the prep fridges. They also open hundreds of jars of peanut butter and get the chocolate and sugar into place.

26 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Trojcak also helps sell eggs before and after the 8 a.m. Mass.

“It tends to be steady before 7:55 a.m. and then there’s 10 minutes of absolute exciting activity right after Mass ends,” Trojcak adds.

He says one parishioner may be buying 50 eggs to resell at Harley Davidson, and the next might be a 10-year-old girl who shyly offers a dollar bill to buy just one peanut butter milk chocolate egg.

He says it takes four to six volunteers to set the table up with all the selections and keep up with the rush.

Trojcak has volunteered for three or four years. He watched the operation for years, and then Fortunato reached out for help with some heavy lifting for the Sunday set-ups and the 8 a.m. Mass sales.

“We have a fun group. It is fun to help it all come together. You just want to be part of the action. Part of the solution,” says Trojcak.

“The parishioners at Seven Sorrows who prepare, make and sell the eggs understand that this entire process of making and selling Easter Eggs is a labor of love that truly helps our parish financially. It also puts a smile on so many as they enjoy a tasty treat,” Trojcak adds.

“The eggs are special because they are made with fantastic ingredients. Plus, they are a nice big size. I often cut one egg into three sections. Better choice at my age. If I was 10, I could polish off three with a huge glass of milk. They really are that good!”

Seven Sorrows has many shifts: a morning, an afternoon and an evening.

The afternoon shift of all men is legendary for their speed, cranking out eggs like a well-oiled machine.

“They are dipping fools,” says volunteer Dussinger, who is known for running a “tight ship.”

There is friendly competition among shifts, and churches. If one shift cranks out 1,000 eggs in a few hours, it’s “game on,” for the others.

They come Monday through Thursday, beginning the first Monday after New Year’s. There’s no time for the postholiday blues. Easter is waiting. They’ve gotta make the candy.

Other churches also make Easter eggs.

St. Catherine Laboure Catholic Church on Derry Street has also entered the egg-making business.

Led by Paolina Stains-Miller, who hosts a Facebook page as Paolina’s Creations, volunteers meet in the basement of Leo Hall to make coconut and peanut butter eggs.

The volunteers began making the delicious confections in late January.

Paolina also makes custom candy for birthdays, sports championships and other events, so she brings her expertise to the recipe and the routine.

Their eggs are available in white, dark and milk chocolate, through April 3.

Zion Lutheran Church in the charming borough of Dauphin is another beloved egg-making fun factory.

They sold 9,000 eggs at the Front Street Diner in Susquehanna Township alone last year, which is sizable for a small congregation, says Bonnie Bechtel, a retired state employee who took over the egg brigade at Zion about two years ago.

As an older congregation, they make the eggs every Monday, and sell them at places such as Dauphin Pizza, Philadelphia Steaks and Hoagies in Camp Hill, and Hornung’s Tru-Valu on 29th Street in Harrisburg.

The church volunteers have made and sold Easter eggs for more than 20 years, selling about 38,000 eggs a year.

They offer white, milk and dark chocolate, and flavors that include peanut butter, coconut cream, double coconut, and butter cream.

Like Seven Sorrows, most of the workers are retirees. They show up every Monday at 6:30 a.m., with 25 to 30 people, both men and women. At Zion, volunteers range in age from 50 to 92.

In fact, two volunteers are 92 years old.

The story begins with the melting of the chocolate.

At 8 a.m., the egg-rollers come in, then at 10 a.m., the dipping commences.

Then after 11 a.m., they start bagging.

They work until 3 or 4 p.m.

Milk chocolate peanut butter eggs are by far the top seller and Bechtel’s personal favorite.

Calvary United Methodist Church, on Locust Lane in Lower Paxton Township, is another go-to source for homemade chocolate eggs. Volunteers made 16,000 eggs last year, and they still sell for a dollar an egg. According to Dottie HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 27

Bickel on Facebook, eggs are available in coconut and butter cream.

Back in Middletown, what impresses Fortunato the most is the dedication of the volunteers. One man carries oxygen, but the process allows him to sit while working at the long cafeteria tables.

Another woman moves cautiously with a walker. One elderly woman came out in an icestorm one year, falling and breaking her arm, but still she wanted to get in to make the eggs.

Bechtel agrees. We have a lot of fun and good fellowship, and we always make sure we have lunch available for them.

“They know what needs to be done and everybody has a great time working together.”

Yes, there’s fun, but they can also be all business when they need to be.

Why do the eggs sell like hotcakes when Reese’s are everywhere?

“Ours are so good and creamy, and they’re made with lots of love,” says Bechtel.

Calories expended for charity also seem like they shouldn’t count.

The egg proceeds are devoted to the operational funds of the Dauphin-area church.With the profits, they have bought appliances for the kitchen, a new stove, and a new fridge. It goes right into the church, Bechtel emphasizes.

They are also building a new parking lot so funds will go toward that cause.

The final day of egg-making before the Easter holiday is April 6.

Whether the eggs are made in northern Dauphin County or the county’s southernmost point, “There’s a lot of pride," Fortunato says. "They’re an inspiration.”

“It’s just an extraordinary thing.

Everyone can help. It doesn’t matter what age.”

One mom with three little children comes to contribute by washing the large bins.

For the candy-buyers, the candymakers, the businesses who sell them, and the church-goers eager to welcome the sunny warmth, brightness and promise of spring, Bechtel says, “It’s a blessing for all of us.” 7

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HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 29

Downsizing, Done Right

W

By Diane White McNaughton

hen my father’s bone cancer gripped his spine and caused a pride-robbing lower-body paralysis that morphed a simple set of stairs into Mount Everest, our regrets were as frequent as his falls.

Regrets about wasted time. Old grudges. Unfulfilled dreams. And that spacious four-bedroom house that should have been traded for assisted-living long ago. The “White House” was full of cherished memories of birthday parties and proms, weddings, and long-forgotten worries, but now my parents were drowning in space. And my dad was sinking fast.

For my 80-something parents, and so many newer empty-nesters, it’s an understatement to say: down-sizing is hard.

As recent downsizer, Pam Kotz of Susquehanna Twp. so aptly says, “Middle age is not for wimps.” Ditto for the advanced agers. The longer you wait to down-size, the harder it gets.

According to the U.S. Census, the average single family home has 2,600 square feet. In 1950, that number stood at 1,000 feet. And most families were much larger back then. It seems our “stuff” has accumulated as quickly as our square footage.

When my 82-year-old mom started packing up our family home by herself, we realized how a small corner of clutter can be like a gathering snowball. Why hadn’t we embraced the minimalist lifestyle long ago?

I vowed never to wait to downsize. My plan was to move before I was 30 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

“paralyzed” by arthritis and emotion, and my children were forced to wade through the detritus of my life.

Whether you decide to downsize because of age, health, finances, a need for lawn care and snow removal, or a dozen other reasons, local realtors, movers and organizational experts offer many ideas and organizations who can help pave the way for a more painless purge.

Kotz, a teacher and interior decorator, downsized from a home she and her husband Richard and their two children had lived in and loved for 22 years. Thanks to a quick house sale, they had less than two months to shrink their life’s possessions into a cozier ranch home.

She said her downsizing required a great deal of “emotional distancing,” along with “extensive purging” and a “certain ruthlessness.”

She joined realtors and organizational experts in offering these simple tips: • Convince yourself that the time is right. Don’t wait, and don’t look back. If you are thinking of downsizing, it’s probably time. And think ahead. Where will you be in 10 years? Will you be babysitting grandkids? Running a home business? Be in ill health? Be living by yourself? Let it guide your domestic cleansing.

• Keep it going. “Momentum is your friend,” Kotz says. Once you start the purge, don’t stop.

• Use clear poly bags to help you see what you are packing, moving or donating.

• Sort into not just piles, but generous spaces. Have a separate corner for things you want to donate, ditch, re-sell, re-gift, and keep.

Station empty cardboard boxes and plastic bins at the ready for each designation. You can donate with a happy heart to Salvation Army, Shining Light Thrift Shop, Goodwill, the Military Order of the Purple Heart (who comes to your curb for pickup), Habitat for Humanity Restore, Shalom House, and Silence of Mary House, to name just a few. I donated glitter glue, binders, magic markers, and other craft items to Caitlin’s Smiles, and unused school supplies to an inner-city school. You can also post items in good condition to sell on Facebook’s Dauphin County Online Yard Sale page. Another alternative: try to re-sell good-condition, stylish clothes at Wears Like New, a consignment shop that especially sweeps up designer labels and styles that are less than five years old. I handed down my formal timeless mahogany dining room set to my older daughter, who rejected many other keepsakes but embraced the set. Save your tax-deductible receipts, and relish in your paying it forward.

• If you have some valuable pieces of furniture, consider an auction house such as Cordier Auctions and Appraisals. Take photographs and measurements of your items, Kotz advises. Handle valuable antiques and pricier items separately and obtain a fair value for possible consignment.

• Secure a storage unit to house Christmas decorations, outdoor furniture, and other items you want to keep but are not using every day.

• Start the purge with one room at a time. I started with the basement—one box at a time, per week. I set an overstuffed box in a heavily traveled area of my home, one I walked by often. It lured me in and seemed far less daunting. Next step, the spare guest room and the top shelves in my kitchen. Bite-size tasks made down-sizing far less overwhelming. And progress spurred me on.

• Visualize your new space. Why keep furniture for four bedrooms if you will only have two? Someone will probably embrace your hulking, heavy furniture. You lighten your load and brighten someone else’s home.

• Don’t let emotion guide your “keep” pile. Berkshire Hathaway realtor Colleen Scollon lost a son when he was a young teen, which made downsizing a painful stroll down Memory Lane. Donating or throwing away meant giving away more parts of him. What helped her: she transformed some of his clothing into keepsake ornaments.

She also has a shoebox size of mementos for each of her children. If it doesn’t fit in the box, it doesn’t stay. She subscribes to the Marie 32 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

Kondo method: if it doesn’t spark joy, it goes. Same with painful legal documents in my basement, and black dresses that reminded me of heart-wrenching funerals.

• Rent a dumpster to execute the plan. And remember to put out one large item every week for free trash pick-up by Penn Waste.

Scavengers will often snatch it up before the trash collectors rumble up to your curb.

• Be brutal. Ask yourself: why do I need 20 scented candles? Six can openers? Fifty serving trays and spatulas? Especially if you are no longer hosting massive family dinners, give those pieces to someone who is.

• Examine your collections.

Ask yourself: does this still mean something to me? My daughter collected water globes and frogs; my son, baseball cards and beanie babies. If your hobby has passed, give it to a new enthusiast who will love them anew.

• Consider how years of storage robs items of beauty. I kept baby items for my grandchildren someday, but when my first grandchild was born, my daughter declined my cherished keepsakes. They smelled like a musty basement, had faded with time, and were often obsolete. I had also kept old papers. After 20 years of yellowing, they were long-overdue for the recycling bin. I re-evaluated all of it and scanned a special few. I was not going to move dog-eared papers to a brand-new, dust-free setting.

• Remind yourself: for most of your stuff, you didn’t remember you had it, and you will never miss it.

• Take old tech gear, wires, computers, VCRs, TVs, game systems, and more to the Dauphin County E-cycling Center off Cameron Street, or Best Buy. Consider re-selling books and old albums at Second and Charles and BAM, donate to the Dauphin County Library System, or drop-off at the book collection bin by the Camp Hill Mall.

• Consider a garage sale. Part with it emotionally before you place that price tag sticker on it.

• Contemplate a hired hauler, like 1-800-Got-Junk, You Call We Haul, the Junk Tank, and Dirty Dog Hauling. They usually quote you a price to haul on the spot and it’s out of sight and out of mind.

• Keep one of what means the most to you. Instead of keeping all of my late dad’s Eagle sweatshirts, we kept two or three. It’s a philosophy applied by Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project, and this pathway allows you to keep a piece of the past.

• Remind yourself: you can always buy a new one. This may bring you comfort, but probably you won’t. Kotz told herself she would clean out more boxes once she moved, but, as human nature reigns, that hasn’t gone as planned.

• Apply the one-year rule. If you haven’t used something in a year, give it away. Or set your own time interval. Five years worked for me.

As the coronavirus pandemic proves, what is truly important is your family, your freedom, and your health. It’s not your designer pumps from college, your skinny jeans, or your Waterford crystal. Simplify.

As Kotz recommends, “The lighter the load, the smoother the flight.”7

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 33

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TASTE THIS! It’s Friday. What’s for lunch?

Last month, Harrisburg Magazine staffers sat down together on three consecutive Fridays and put their editorial taste buds to work, sampling items from local restaurants and officially launching “Taste This!” a new monthly feature. The idea was simple: a local eatery provides lunch and in return, gets a food review, both in print and online. Below are the reviews of the first three local eateries that delivered lunch, answering the question, “It’s Friday. What’s for lunch?” They include Soul House Café, Hong Kong Ruby, and Market Street Deli, now official charter members of “Taste This!” We want to thank all three for providing the delicious lunches that allowed us to sample real food instead of our brown bag lunches from home. We also want to extend the invitation for other eateries to take part.

If you would like to participate then all you have to do is let Editor Jackie Goodwin know by dropping her a line at jgoodwin@harrisburgmagazine.com.

Of course, none of this content would be created without our supremely talented and dedicated (also hungry) staff who accurately conveyed the taste, texture, smell, and presentation of the food items before them.

SOUL HOUSE CAFÉ Do you like soul food? Do you like authentic and affordable food? Then look no further. Soul House Café provides a real taste of the south!

This place does not skimp on flavor or portion size. Specialties of the house include mac and cheese, collard greens, candied yams, potato salad, tuna mac, Spanish rice, dirty rice, baked beans, cabbage, and fresh cut French fries, in addition to wings, shrimp, cat fish. And smoked turkey. Comfort food at its best.

717-236-3500 Fax: 717-236-3501 1852 North St. Harrisburg, PA 17103 Hours: Monday-Thursday 11 a.m.—10 p.m.

Friday 11a.m.—11 p.m.

Saturday 1 p.m.—11p.m.

Closed Sunday

36 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

HERE'S WHAT WE SAY ABOUT SOUL HOUSE CAFÉ “Never had soul food before but I’m here for it now. Everything was so good. The wings weren’t spicy but nicely sauced. The mac and cheese was perfection. I never tasted cat fish before but I would definitely order it again from Soul House Café.”

—Laura Reich, Graphic Designer “I loved the cat fish, mac and cheese and wings. Far exceeded my expectations. Thank you!”

—Chris Aloia, Director of Sales & Marketing “Was one of the best soul food experience to date. The mumbo wings were perfect with the mac and cheese. The cat fish was well flavored and the cornbread was moist.”

—Ross Burnett, Account Executive “Loved the fact that the cat fish was not greasy and the wings not too spicy. The food was delicious.”

—Julian Rosado, Account Executive “All the food was delicious. The items were perfectly seasoned. I highly recommend Soul House Café.”

—JoAnn Shover, Account Executive

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 37

MARKET STREET DELI Looking for a made-to-order sandwich on Artisan bread? How about a homemade deli style salad to go along with that sandwich? Then you’ve found your place. Market Street Deli, located in the West Shore Farmers Market, works with five bakeries in Philadelphia that bake and deliver on a daily basis.

Select from table breads, sandwich loaves, dinner rolls, sandwich rolls, and even a pastry case stocked with a variety of croissants, coconut macaroons, and, yes, pretzels!

717-727-3049 900 Market Street Lemoyne, PA 17403 Hours: Tuesday 8 a.m.—3 p.m.

Friday 8 a.m.—6 p.m.

Saturday 8 a.m.—2 p.m.

Catering available Tuesday – Saturday Delivery available to Camp Hill and Lemoyne areas.

HERE'S WHAT WE SAY ABOUT MARKET STREET DELI “The Big New Yorker Sandwich was delicious. It was stacked full of pastrami with a perfect ratio of Swiss cheese and Thousand Island dressing.”

—Danielle Carl, Director of Operations “While I’m not a salad ‘guy,” I did enjoy all of the salads, especially the Kristin Salad.”

—Ross Burnett, Account Executive “Everything was super fresh and delicious. All of the ingredients in the Kristin Salad. . .chicken, apples, dried cranberries, toasted almonds and crumbled blue cheese complimented each other well.”

—Laura Reich, Graphic Designer “The Chicken Salad Sandwich was delicious. Market Street Deli’s salads are best in the area.”

—JoAnn Shover, Account Executive “I absolutely loved the Kristin Salad. The Italian Sub was excellent.

Tasty, too.”

—Chris Aloia, Director of Sales & Marketing

38 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

HONG KONG RUBY Craving Chinese food? This is the place to go when you want traditional Chinese food that will not disappoint. Besides the usual egg foo young, lo mein, fried rice and egg rolls, specialties of the house include steamed dumplings, Sesame chicken Hunan beef and the ever popular General Tso chicken. The menu is extensive and the service top notch. Eat in, take out and delivery options available.

717-541-1378 2308 Patton Road Harrisburg, PA 17112 Hours: Monday-Thursday 11 a.m.— 9:15 p.m.

Friday 11a.m.—10:15 p.m.

Saturday 11 a.m.—10:15 p.m.

Sunday 11 a.m.—9:15 p.m.

HERE'S WHAT WE SAY ABOUT HONG KONG RUBY

“Thank you so much for lunch. The food was absolutely delicious. I also appreciate the fact that there was no MSG in the food.”

—Chris Aloia, Director of Sales & Marketing

“Yummy. Everything was really good. I loved the beef with snow peas.”

—Laura Reich, Graphic Designer

“Hong Kong Ruby’s food was delicious. It was very light; not heavy.”

—Julian Rosado, Account Executive 7

“The food was spicy, delicious and not heavy.”

—JoAnn Shover, Account Executive “The General Tso chicken was fried perfectly with the right amount of spices.

I could taste a hint of ginger and the chili peppers gave it the perfect zing.”

—Danielle Carl, Director of Operations

HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 39

Bartender’s Best

By Charlie Wohlrab

Run for the Roses

Saturday, May 2 would have been the Kentucky Derby.

However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Derby has been rescheduled for Saturday, Sept. 5. That means you have plenty of time to gather the essential ingredients to make a Mint Julep, the official Derby drink.

Thousands of Juleps are served on Derby Day. Traditionally, this drink is served in a pewter or silver cup with handles to keep the drink cold. The “official” Mint Julep at Churchill Downs consists of Woodford Reserve Bourbon, mint simple syrup, crushed ice and a sprig of mint. The simple syrup recipe is simple enough, but it requires boiling, straining, and planning ahead, so I use a slightly different recipe for my Mint Julep. As for the cup, I use an 8-ounce cocktail glass. I could use Moscow Mule cups, but it begs the question: Mules at a horse race? I don’t think so. The 8-ounce cocktail glass works just fine.

Crushed ice is a key ingredient for a Julep on Derby Day. Many years ago, crushed ice in May in Kentucky was a sign of affluence so it would be piled high in the cup to show how well off you were. As for the bourbon, there are several different brands with slightly different flavor profiles that work quite well. Some brands have different bourbons with different prices, proofs and profiles. I normally have three to four different bourbons in my home bar. That is how different in taste they can be. As usual, do your “research” and find the ones you like. Normally, I make my Mint Juleps with Old Crow Bourbon, the original sour mash Kentucky Bourbon (so they say). This is a fairly priced (inexpensive) 40 HARRISBURG MAGAZINE APRIL 2020

bourbon with a clean flavor profile which makes a nice Julep. I save the Woodford Reserve for enjoying my straight “on the rocks” cocktail. However, on Derby Day, I like to use Four Roses Bourbon because it “runs for the roses.”

The traditional Mint Julep consists of two ounces of bourbon, sugar and mint. As you can see, the ingredients are fairly simple. Some people like to add an ounce or two of water to soften the drink and lower the “kick.” Obviously, bourbon is the key ingredient, so it is a fairly strong drink.

I just use a splash of soda to smooth out the flavor. I also like to use dissolved sugar as it sweetens the drink more easily and uniformly.

Back in the ’80s, everyone had little spice racks on their counters. The racks had 10 to 12, two-ounce glass bottles with various spices in a cheap wooden frame. Over the years, these racks have long since been emptied and sent to closets, garages and yard sales. However, if you do come across a rack, one of its little bottles is perfect to predissolve your sugar.

First, fill the bottle with sugar, add hot water from the tap, shake and repeat until you can no longer add water.

The solution will be cloudy. Set it on the counter, and wait a few minutes. It will be clear with a precipitate (undissolved sugar, the water can only “hold” so much and is saturated).

Use the clear liquid to sweeten your drinks. As you pour off the liquid you can add more water to dissolve the remaining sugar until there is no sugar left. I am no Food Science Major, but this seems like an easy way to sweeten a drink.

To make a Mint Julep first pour a bar spoon of the dissolved sugar in the bottom of a mixing glass, add a few mint leaves, crush with a “muddling stick” (if you don’t have one a wooden spoon works quite well), add the bourbon (and water if you prefer), give a few gentle stirs with a bar spoon, and strain into a cocktail glass heaping with crushed ice (a sign of prosperity). Add a splash of soda (if you prefer), garnish with a sprig of mint, add a straw, and sit back and enjoy.

This recipe is dependent on personal taste, the Bourbon, the sweetness, and whether or not you add water or seltzer.

There is the “Official Julep of Churchill Downs,” if you are lucky enough to score tickets and watch the race in person, but if you are not there and have to watch the event on television from your sofa or easy chair, make a Mint Julep to your personal preference. Sit back and relax and enjoy the unofficial rite of spring with all its traditions, this year in early fall.

Charlie Wohlrab is a mixologist whose motto, “Drinking. . .more than a hobby” has been topmost in his mind since he first started tending bar while getting his Pharmacy degree. Now retired, when he’s not restoring his older home in New Jersey, he’s made it his goal to elevate the experience of having a daily cocktail from something mundane to something more exciting. He is now Harrisburg Magazine’s official bartender in residence.

My recipes are like my opinions,” says Wohlrab. “They continue to be refined as I try new products and work with old standbys.”

Currently working on a book about cocktails, Wolhrab welcomes comments from his readers. He can be contacted at jgoodwin@ harrisburgmagazine.com. 7