The Spark

Cows expel a lot of gas. They burp and have flatulence often. There are so many cattle in the world that all that gas is causing real problems by being a significant contributor to climate change. In fact, the 89 million cattle in the U.S. are responsible for 25% of the nation’s yearly methane emissions. That’s equivalent to the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by 650 million cars. So, finding ways to reduce cow burps and flatulence is a serious issue. Ad Crable, LNP’s outdoors columnist and a staff writer for the Chesapeake Bay Journal has written on the methane gas reducing efforts and was with us on The Spark Monday,"Even the media has kind of treated this problem as a joke for many years, but it's no longer a laughing matter. Methane gas coming from livestock is a major contributor to climate change in this country and has become the national environmental priority. The federal government is paying millions of dollars to Penn State, for example, to come up with some of the leading candidates for solutions to try to get feed cows, something where they would admit less methane. Carbon dioxide gets most of the greenhouse gas attention, but Crable pointed out methane can be worse,"It's by far the most prevalent greenhouse gas out there (carbon dioxide). But methane, even though it lasts less in the environment, in the atmosphere, dissipates quicker. It's not as common as fossil fuels, carbon dioxide, but it's 20 to 25 times more potent in terms of heating the atmosphere. So it is a necessary target if we're going to meet our climate change goals, both national and state commitments to reducing greenhouse gases." A little known fact: Crable said that 97% of methane gas from cows is through burps, not flatulence. Crable indicated scientists seemed to have settled on two feed additives that have shown to reduce gas,"You would add that to the feed you give the cows, mix it in with their grain or corn, silage or whatever else they are eating. They both would be administered the same way. Now, the two leading candidates, one is a synthetic feed supplement that studies have shown can reduce methane emissions from each cow by 25 to 29%. The other finalist is a red seaweed found in tropical oceans around the world that can reduce methane by even more. But the problem with it is we can't raid the world's oceans. It would have to be done on a large scale by aquaculture. And some studies are also showing that the seaweed may cause dairy cows to eat less and produce less milk. And not insignificantly, it seems that the cows detest the taste of it." The feed additive has been approved for us in 42 countries, but so far not in the United States. It's being studied. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lancaster City Alliance is a non-profit that is working to ensure Lancaster is a clean, safe, and vibrant city. They convene diverse stakeholders for the common good of Lancaster City, while harnessing the power of the private sector. Next week their premiere fundraiser Velocity kicks off, and is an evening that celebrates the city of Lancaster with music, art, a fashion show, food tastings from local restaurants, and a cocktail competition from local bartenders. This annual fundraiser is for the Lancaster City Alliance and the Downtown Investment District. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pennsylvania became the 24th state in the country to implement an automatic voter registration process earlier this week. Eligible Pennsylvanians will be automatically registered to vote when they renew their driver’s licenses or ID cards through Penndot. It fulfills a campaign promise made by Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro. Robby Brod, WITF's Democracy Beat reporter was on The Spark Friday where he explained voters previously could register to vote when applying for a driver's license but now they'll be registered to vote automatically,"Previously, eligible voters were required to opt in to the voter registration process while going through this process. But now it's going to kind of be flipped where they're going to have to opt out of it. And Pennsylvanians have been able to register to vote at DMVs. I'm going back to 1993. So essentially, this is kind of flips the requirement from opting out, from opting in to opting out." Shapiro said the idea is to get more Pennsylvanians registered to vote and to actually vote. Since the 2020 election, anything having to do with voting and elections will get some criticism. Several Republican lawmakers took Shapiro to task for not going through the legislature to approve the automatic voter registration process. The conservative Freedom Caucus threatened legal action Friday. One of the criticisms is that non-American citizens will register to vote. Brod was asked about that,"The only people who will be eligible to register to vote while getting a driver's license or getting a different form of ID or something like that are people who are already determined to be eligible to be able to vote. So, somebody who is going to get a driver's license, who's not a citizen, they won't even be asked to register to vote because while they're registering, if they provide a Social Security number, which some non-American citizens are issued because they do work in the state and in the country that needs to be taxed. Somebody, a non-citizen with a Social Security number going to register to get a driver's license. They're not going to be asked to register to vote because while going through the process, it will be determined that they're ineligible. So the same documents that you use to register to get a driver's license are not the same that you need to require to vote." Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The weather in South Central Pennsylvania has been almost perfect this week. Hopefully, it’s a preview of what’s to come when autumn starts Saturday. Not that the weather has to be picture perfect for a walk in the woods but many people enjoy this time of year outdoors. And for them, there are four spots that are either newly opened to the public or have undergone significant changes since last autumn in Lancaster and York Counties: Climbers Run Nature Center and the Clark Nature Preserve section of the Conestoga Trail in Lancaster County and the newly opened Mill Creek Falls Nature Preserve and Wizard Ranch Nature Preserve in York County. All this through the efforts of the Lancaster Conservancy. Joining us is Kelly Snavely, Vice President of Development and Marketing for the Lancaster Conservancy. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Having a conversation about cancer is difficult with any one at any time. Talking to children about the life-threatening disease can be especially hard. York native Brady Lucas knows about cancer firsthand. Brady was diagnosed with cancer twice as a child. As a healthy survivor, Brady Lucas has written a children’s book called Smiley’s Smile – the story of a turtle who was diagnosed and treated for cancer. Brady Lucas is with us on The Spark. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a busy world where not enough people take time to really listen to one another, the organization Someone To Tell It To does just that – listen to create better relationships and to bring the best out in people. What also make talking to someone and someone listening essential today is the loneliness and depression that many have suffered since the beginning of the COVID pandemic. The theme is To Come Alive. With us on The Spark Thursday were Michael Gingrich and Tom Kaden Co-Founders and CEOs of Someone To Tell It To and Jeannie Zappe of Mechanicsburg, who swam the English Channel two years ago at age 55. She’s be the keynote speaker at the event. Gingrich explained what Someone To Tell It is,"We started this because of a friendship that Tom and I had about how about we how we supported one another and how we were someone each other's, someone to tell it to. And we believe that all of us in this life, all human beings, need others in their lives to tell their stories to. We all need to be heard. We all want to be recognized. We love to be respected, and we certainly want to be loved. It starts with listening to one another and getting to know one another. That is so important. And because we live in a time where there is such an epidemic of loneliness and disconnection with people emotionally, relationally. We believe that the work that we are doing is helping people to reconnect. Helping people to come alive in their lives and in their relationships." Someone To Tell It To has trained, professional listeners to talk to, but they're not therapists -- they listen and talk. Kaden talked about the organization's history,"What we found probably in the early years, in the first five years, it was literally Michael and I just trucking ourselves around to make ourselves available for people to be heard. And we try to utilize every social media platform. So we would have folks like this woman who heard your radio program reach out to us through email. But we at that point in time utilized Skype. So we'd zoom with or Skype with somebody from Uganda, Africa, for example. And it's just grown every year. But we also meet people face to face if our listeners are local and probably over the last five years, our teams have just expanded significantly. So now we have a lot of teams of listeners who make themselves available for we call everybody someone." The theme of the Saturday event is "To Come Alive" and Zappe is a perfect example of someone who lived her dream. She said she had lots of inspirations for swimming across the English Channel. Did she ever waver when she was doing it? "There are no sharks in the English Channel, but there are jellyfish and there is current and cold. And the water was cold and it was 63. And you don't wear a wet suit in any of these swims. Wet nsuits are for triathletes, basically. I'm thinking about how wonderful it is to be alive, in all seriousness. When I went in at 10 p.m. and I pulled an eight hour dark swim, which is about the longest you can get, and you don't have a choice, you go when the pilot says go. But I literally was saying to myself, Don't wish this away. This is what you wanted. Be grateful. Be grateful. Your body can do this. Isn't it amazing that I get to do this? I get to do this. And I swear, I mean, it was the most amazing feeling in the world to swim that thing and. And then to land on France. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many schools across the country are not able to hire enough teachers. Fewer college students are majoring in education and aspiring to teach and fewer are seeking teaching certificates. This comes at a time when more teachers are leaving the profession. Substitute teachers are in great demand. There may or may not be a teacher shortage – depending on which school you’re talking about. Dr. Soo-yong Byun is a professor of Educational Theory and Policy program in the Department of Education Policy Studies in the College of Education with a joint appointment with the Social Science Research Institute at the Penn State University. He recently completed research into how teachers feel about their jobs and how teachers are viewed outside the classroom. The bottom line is teachers feels undervalued. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than 47,000 Americans die by suicide each year. For every suicide death, there are over 25 suicide attempts. Women are much more likely to attempt suicide but men actually die by suicide at a greater rate than women. In 2022, there were more deaths in the 25 to 44 years old age group than any other. September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Awareness means talking about a topic many don’t discuss. Govan Martin, Chair and Executive Director of the Suicide Prevention Alliance, said on The Spark Wednesday that we don't talk about suicide because it's uncomfortable, "Most now are actually coming around to say it is a mental health issue and not condemning. But we still have a long way to go. That's why conversations have to not just start just in the church (pointing out that the Catholic Church condemned suicide as a mortal sin), but between me and you, between our families. One piece of advice I'll tell everybody, if you're listening to the show, go home and ask your family member -- "so what do you think about suicide" at the dinner table or and anytime you're around and that will open up the conversation to see what they're thinking. Would they reach out and get help?" Dr. Rachel Drosdick-Sigafoos, a Crisis Specialist, was asked what if a person answers they are considering suicide,"I have a three step approach that I take. The first is to validate you must be hurting really badly. Things must have gotten to such a rough point in your life that you're thinking about ending your life. I want to thank you for trusting me with that. So you're now reinforcing that connection. And then the you know, you're going to say, I'm not leaving you alone. This is a promise I'm making to you. I'm not leaving you alone. Where can we go? Who can we call to help keep you safe? So it's a three step. The first is validate. The second is connect. The third is let's start talking about solutions." Drosdick-Sigafoos said childhood trauma is a risk factor in suicide,"Individuals who have a history of adverse childhood experiences, which is a list of events that can happen in a young person's life. So, the more traumas they have, the more likely they are to experience suicidal behavior. Someone who has a history of five adverse childhood experiences which can be sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, physical neglect, parent or family member incarcerated, being raised by somebody who has a mental illness, being raised by somebody who is struggling with addiction, as well as parental separation, that all of these things that they have, five of those, they are something like 24 times more likely to attempt suicide than somebody who has zero." Brain Sabo, Regional Director of Clinical Partnerships with Civic Addiction and Mental Health Treatment appeared on The Spark and said he attempted to take his own life,"I was a police officer for a number of years. That's where my mental health and my alcoholism really took off because I was afraid to ask for help. I didn't want to be I want to appear as being weak and being that weak person. I want to be strong, on the outside, my life looked great. I was always groomed in decent shape. My house is pretty, but on the inside of my head, I couldn't had the anxiety and depression. I never got help. It got too much. I went on a drinking spree for about three weeks straight. Nobody knew where I was. And and I had a suicide attempt. It's only by the grace of God that I am here today. The next day I got the help that I needed and went to a hospital where some kind of help, I guess, and got myself in treatment for addiction. And then over the years since then, for over 12 years, I've been treating my mental health and my addiction and daily basis." Help is available Call 988. Speak with someone today 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Hours: Available 24 hours. Languages: English, Spanish. Learn more 988 Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See...

Patients R Waiting wants to: Eliminate health disparities by increasing diversity in medicine. Their 3 areas of focus are; Increasing the pipeline of minority clinicians, making the pipeline of minority clinicians less leaky and support minority clinicians in practice. They are also holding a conference later this month in which; The Diversity in Medicine Conference, by Patients R Waiting, is designed by experienced health professionals of color with the needs of underrepresented students preparing for careers in medicine and other health professions in mind. The purpose of the conference is to provide underrepresented high school and college students that strive to be health professionals with the expertise of health professionals of color. The Diversity in Medicine Conference, annually held by Patients R Waiting, is designed by experienced health professionals of color with the needs of underrepresented students preparing for careers in medicine and other health professions in mind. This conference is an invaluable opportunity for students to get the information and support they need to succeed in their chosen field. Eliminating health disparities by increasing diversity in medicine is the mission of Patients R Waiting, with three focus areas: increasing the pipeline of minority clinicians, making the pipeline of minority clinicians less leaky, and supporting minority clinicians in practice. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Isaac Etter is a social entrepreneur. Isaac was transracially adopted at the age of two. He is the founder of Identity a startup focused on using technology to help foster and adoptive families thrive and the owner of a small business strategy agency, Etter Consulting. Isaac has a deep passion for innovating the adoption and foster care space and helping passionate people build their first company. He is also the father of an amazing son and avid learner. Isaac has been bringing his ideas to life since his first business, a recording studio, he started in his parented basement in high school. He has been on several non profit boards in the Lancaster, PA community where he resides. Before starting Identity, Isaac co-founded an education and advocacy organization, SafeHouse Lancaster, where he was the co-executive director. SafeHouse Lancaster merged with YWCA Lancaster in July of 2021. Isaac began his work in adoption and foster by speaking and leading trainings for adoptive and foster parents. He still has the joy of leading trainings whether through Identity or for adoption agencies, college, or an event. Isaac is always open to keynoting or leading a workshop for organizations. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Each September, Pennsylvania celebrates PA Trails Month and the more than 12,000 miles of trails across the commonwealth that are available to explore by foot, bike, ATV, horse, boat, and more. Pennsylvania’s vision is to develop a statewide land and water trail network to facilitate recreation, transportation, and healthy lifestyles for all. In addition to the trails on state park and forest lands, the agency supports local and regional trails with about $8 million in grants each year. These grants enhance Pennsylvania’s trail network and advance the goal of having a trail within 10 minutes of every Pennsylvanian. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1851, a Maryland farmer tried to apprehend two formerly enslaved men who had escaped from his property two years before. That farmer -- Edward Gorsuch -- probably didn’t anticipate the resistance he would get when he tracked Samuel Thompson and Joshua Kite to William Parker’s rented house near Christiana. Parker, a Black man who had escaped slavery a few years before, led a group of armed defenders against Gorsuch’s posse and the violence that ensued became national news coming just a year after the nation passed the Fugitive Slave Act. On The Spark Monday, Darlene Colon, with the Christiana Historical Society described what happened on September 11, 1851, Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yoda, a four-year-old Belgian Malinois, was instrumental in capturing escaped murderer Danelo Cavalcante last week after a 12-day manhunt. As Cavalcante attempted to crawl through underbrush, armed with a rifle, Yoda was released to pursue him. Yoda bit Cavalcante on the forehead and then latched onto his thigh and wouldn’t let go. It gave law enforcement time to catch up to Cavalcante and take him into custody. Yoda’s heroics also brought attention to dogs trained to help law enforcement. On The Spark Monday, Patrick Fitzgerald, owner of Keystone K-9 Services in Pottstown said dogs as early as eight or nine weeks are candidates to be trained,"There are some pretty big kennels across the country, private breeders who strictly sell military and police canines. But pretty much, right around that 8 to 9 week mark. The breeders, the trainers, they're going in there looking to see what dogs have the best nerves, the strongest drive, the most tenacity, the ones with very high food drive and toy drive." Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The manhunt for escaped murderer Danelo Cavalcante captured the world’s attention over the past two weeks. Calvacante escaped from the Chester County Prison August 31st and was on the run until being captured Wednesday. Along the way, he hid in wooded areas of Chester County, stole a gun and a truck and drove 20 miles north and reportedly had plans to carjack a vehicle a make a dash for Canada or Puerto Rico. Vinny Vella covers how law enforcement investigates crime in Philadelphia’s collar counties: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery for the Philadelphia Inquirer. He reported on the Cavalcante escape and manhunt extensively. Vinny Vella was on The Spark Friday to describe how Cavalcante escaped, how the search for him transpired and how he was captured. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ricardo Rodríguez is a former WWE wrestler that has taken his talents outside the ring and into the boardroom as the owner of Three Legacies Wrestling. Three Legacies Wrestling is a professional wrestling Academy and Promotion company based out of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We speak with Ricardo about his journey, his time during with the WWE, and how he now trains young athletes for the ring. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Church World Services and the Lancaster Rec recently partnered up to form the Unity Cup, which is a 16 team soccer tournament that features teams representing Lancaster’s refugee and immigrant communities. Sixteen soccer teams, representing five continents, will face off against one another over the span of 8-weeks which features soccer teams made up of members of Lancaster's refugee and immigrant communities. The next round of play continues this Saturday at Clemente Field. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

September is Hunger Awareness Month. About 1.7 million Pennsylvanians are food insecure. Many are children who go to bed or wake up hungry. Downtown Daily Bread in Harrisburg offers a soup kitchen and lunch for those who don’t have or can’t afford food. But Downtown Daily Bread is much more than a place to get a hot meal. It provides a day shelter with cots, computers, phones, and staff counselors; a winter season night shelter for men, and numerous assistance programs such as showers, lockers, mail delivery, laundry cards, vouchers for photo IDs, clothing, and other personal hygiene items. Downtown Daily bread also has something else that is unique – an Executive Director who was a sous chef at four-star restaurants and written three books. On The Spark Wednesday, Corrie Ligenfelter or Chef Corrie explained her journey from being a chef at four-star restaurants to Downtown Daily Bread,"I was at a time in my life -- it's time to give back -- to be community driven. I'm always been the advocate for any type of food insecurity. And I saw that we had a hunger gap in this area and that as a chef I wanted to tap into that of, "Hey, how can I take what I know, take what I'm working on, continue to advocate for the people?" And that's kind of how we got the tagline "Feeding the People," because I wanted to really bring awareness to that demographic and not just stand by. I want to provide good food to anybody. I think anyone should have access to good food, to healthy food, to food that we can sustain. So that is why I was the lead and that was my passion on that different demographic, because it's fun to cook for actors, it's fun to cook for celebrities, but then it's also fun to cook for your community and bring them things that they may not have had access to." How does Chef Corrie see hunger in this region?"It's an unfortunate thing. I think that. I've cried over that. And I think you can't serve something you haven't cried over. And I mean that by saying, I remember I was a teen mother and I wasn't always fortunate to have good paying jobs. I was struggling in the beginning, and I remember being on food stamps and waiting for it. I was like a day in between. I ran out of food and I had like these things that I could put together as a meal. But my daughter, I believe, was like three or four at the time. And I remember saying, like, where I can make this and I'll feed her and then I'll just take the rest and then whatever. We have food stamps tomorrow, but as long as she's fed, it's okay. And so I never put passion behind something I haven't experienced myself. She's 15 now, so ten plus years ago. So to then see the people we serve still kind of going through the same thing. Hunger in this region, it's still an insecurity. There's still people -- the working poor -- that they may not get food stamps, but they still don't make enough to just get the household ingredients, the good food that they need, the nutritional value. We always have these conversations about it's cheaper to go through Wendy's than it is to just get some food at Giant. So, I think it is sometimes a sad situation, but I think there's enough people and agencies like ours that are also bringing solutions and and striving to change that and to bring awareness to food insecurity as well as bring a solution. I think that we could talk about a problem, but I'm very solution based. What's the solution here? How can we fix this? What can we partner on? And that's that's kind of what we're doing with all the agencies that we work with, with the (Central Pennsylvania) Food Bank, with Feeding America, Feeding Pennsylvania and things like that. But it's sad and it's an issue. And I think it needs to be talked about more than just hunger action month as well." Chef Corrie new cookbook is called 30 Meals in 30 Minutes. "It's 30-minute meals. So there's like 100 meals in here. It's geared to those that are working, that are busy. The bachelor, the single woman -- that's...

Evita Colon and Solise White are the proud owners and operators of A Concrete Rose Book-bar and Micro-Winery! A Concrete Rose merges a bookstore, micro-winery and live entertainment venue under one roof; a book bar but so much more! The bookstore will feature books and art created by authors and artists of the African diaspora providing the community with the opportunity to learn about different cultures through the immersion of literature and art. They aim to provide the community with a place to freely express themselves and showcase their work on a regular basis. The inclusion of wine intersects a sophisticated experience with a casual experience giving our space a unpretentious vibe for all to enjoy. Their vision is to establish a passion and appreciation for culture, literature and the arts through the wine bar and bookstore. A Concrete Rose serves as a staple of growth and the merging of ideas in the community by providing a safe space for all to feel welcome. In celebrating and amplifying the stories of people of the African Diaspora, they hope to ignite conversations and actions that will positively change the dynamic of the relationships we have with others. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Historical fiction is one of the most popular genres of books Americans are reading today. Readers enjoy stories told with history in the background but most historical fiction readers like the history to be accurate. With that in mind, author Kim van Alkemade’s latest novel Counting Lost Stars is inspired by her family history during World War II and the Holocaust, the Baby Scoop Era when more than a million pregnant women were coerced into giving babies up for adoption and touches on issues that are relevant today. Appearing on The Spark Tuesday, van Alkemake said,"One of the things that really inspired me was learning that punch card computers were used to organize the Holocaust, and that's not something I discovered. Edwin Black wrote a book in the 80s called IBM in the Holocaust. But it was interesting to me as a device for creating a story that would bridge two time periods. So I have in the 1960s in New York, Rita Klein, who's a young woman working as a computer programmer who's become pregnant, and she's not married and she's coerced into giving up her baby for adoption. In 1940s, Netherlands, another young woman, Cornelia Vogel, who's working for the Ministry of Information, which is a fictional version of a real ministry where they are using computers to conduct a census of the population in Holland that will help them identify every Jewish person under the Nazi regime. And the two stories come together when Rita Klein meets Jacob Nassy, who is a Dutch Holocaust survivor on the observation deck of the Empire State Building and trying to help him find the information he's looking for about his lost mother brings her to the 1940 story about Cornelia Vogel during the Holocaust." Part of van Alkemade's own family story helped inspire the story. Her mother was from the Netherlands where his home city Rotterdam was bombed by the Germans during World War II and she describes her mother as a "Jewish girl from Brooklyn." The "Baby Scoop Era" after WWII is a unique story line in the book,"There was a lot of shame around unwed pregnancy and mothers, and yet there was a lot more sexual activity. Birth control was illegal unless you were already married. And so the result was many young women becoming pregnant and having no real options. And the Baby Scoop Era is a time when a system of adoption agencies came into place so that it really seemed for many young women that their only option was to -- it was called going away. You'd go away maybe "to visit a sick aunt." You would say, "come back six months later and pretend it never happened." Adoptions were closed. Nobody ever knew what happened with the babies. And, when it's a choice that you make, fantastic, great. But it was often not presented to the young woman as a choice, but more as something her family was so ashamed of. They wouldn't give her any support. And it was really a pretty coercive system in some place, in some cases." Van Alkemade will discuss Counting Lost Stars and the issues it raises Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Great Room at the Stern Center on the campus of Dickinson College. It's part of the Clarke Center for Contemporary Issues. Van Alkemade also has a book event scheduled Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Shippensburg University. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of many Central Pennsylvanians' favorite fall fun activities is exploring a corn maze. Cherry Crest Adventure Farm in Ronks, Lancaster County has one of the best in the country. USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice contest chose Cherry Crest’s corn maze number one in the nation in 2020 and it’s placed in the top three in 2021 and 2022. Cherry Crest is nominated again this year and the winner will be announced this Friday. Cherry Crest owners Jack and Donna Coleman spoke with The Spark on Tuesday's program. Donna was asked what makes their corn maze unique,"I think it's the interactiveness of our corn maze. We have a lot of activities going on in the maze. You have to find them in order to enjoy the fun part. But yeah, there's a lot of interaction in our corn maze, not only trying to find pieces to the puzzle to build your map and find your way out, but also play while you're in there." Cherry Crest Adventure Farm is more than just a corn maze. There are more than 60 farm-related activities. Donna Coleman said there are many people who visit Cherry Crest who aren't familiar with farms,"It's actually amazing because there are people who have never been this close to a corn stock in their whole entire life. And you still get the kids who think their milk comes from the grocery store or their corn is produced at the store itself. They don't understand the whole concept. So that's one of the main reasons why we started this as well, is to educate the public about where their food comes from and where would they be without farmers." The Colemans continue to farm the land producing corn, pigs, and chickens. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.