Good morning, Lancaster County. It's a bright, sunny one today — 80 and clear, the kind of evening made for a ballgame. And tonight's game at Penn Medicine Park carries a little extra weight: it's a public birthday party for a Lancaster institution that just turned 100. Read on for that story, plus a week of free park concerts, a peach festival, and an only-in-Lancaster scooter tour.
In today's Lancaster Local:
The Lancaster nonprofit that started with six people in a rented room — and just turned 100
Stormers baseball tonight, with a covered-bridge scooter tour to follow Friday
Two free evenings of music under the trees in New Holland this weekend
A free preschool bash and an all-things-peach day to close out the month
COMMUNITY NEWS
It started with six people, a few rented rooms, and a stack of reeds for weaving baskets.
In 1926, a small group in Lancaster rented a couple of rooms on East King Street and opened a workshop. The idea was simple and, for its time, quietly radical: give blind neighbors a place to learn a trade they could master by touch — weaving baskets, caning chair seats — and a way to earn a living doing it. They called it the Lancaster County Association for the Blind.
A hundred years later, that little workshop is still here. You know it now as VisionCorps.
From those two rooms it has grown into a multi-county nonprofit headquartered on North Queen Street, one that helps people who are blind or losing their sight live independently — through rehabilitation, vision screenings that catch problems early, education, and real jobs. The tools have changed; the mission hasn't. And in 2026, VisionCorps is marking its 100th anniversary — a full century of Lancaster County looking out for its neighbors.
Tonight they're taking the celebration public, out to the ballpark, where a hundred years of quiet, steady work gets a very loud round of applause.
EVENTS
A week that starts at the ballpark and ends with peaches — plus two free nights of music in between.
⚾ Lancaster Stormers vs. York Revolution (VisionCorps 100th Night) — Penn Medicine Park, 650 N Prince St, Lancaster, PA 17603. Tonight, Thursday, July 23, first pitch 6:45 p.m. The Stormers host their rivals from across the river in the War of the Roses, and the ballpark is throwing the party for VisionCorps' 100th anniversary. Tickets start around $16.
🛵 Covered Bridge & Brunch Scooter Tour — Strasburg Scooters, 246 N Decatur St, Strasburg, PA 17579. Friday, July 24, 8:30 a.m. A guided electric-scooter ride winding past covered bridges and Amish farmland, capped with a Lancaster-style brunch — an only-here way to spend a summer morning. Ticketed; price at booking.
🎶 New Holland Summer Concert: Perfect Harmony — New Holland Community Memorial Park, 400 E Jackson St, New Holland, PA 17557. Saturday, July 25, 7:00–9:00 p.m. Bring a chair or a blanket for a free, all-ages evening of uplifting music under the trees. Food trucks and ice cream on site. Free.
🪕 New Holland Summer Concert: Hammercreek Bluegrass Band — New Holland Community Memorial Park, 400 E Jackson St, New Holland, PA 17557. Sunday, July 26, 7:00–9:00 p.m. The free park series rolls into Sunday with a night of bluegrass — banjos, fiddles, and a warm summer breeze. Free, all ages.
🎸 April & the Old Man at McCleary's Public House — McCleary's Public House, 130 W Front St, Marietta, PA 17547. Thursday, July 30, 7:30 p.m. Live music at the historic riverfront pub in Marietta. No cover listed.
🎈 Family Fun Fest: 55 Years of Great Beginnings — First Presbyterian Church of Strasburg, 101 S Decatur St, Strasburg, PA 17579. Saturday, August 1, from 12:00 p.m. First Presbyterian celebrates 55 years of its Great Beginnings Preschool with a free community bash — bounce houses, balloon art, face painting, games with prizes, and free food. Free.
🍑 Peach Fest at Moo-Duck Brewery — Moo-Duck Brewery, 79 S Wilson Ave, Elizabethtown, PA 17022. Saturday, August 1, from 12:00 p.m., with live music by Jason Knorr 5:30–8:30 p.m. An all-things-peach day at the Elizabethtown taproom: a peach wheat beer on tap, peach-themed food specials, and an evening of live music.
Weather
Thursday, July 23 — A gorgeous one: sunny and pleasant, topping out near 80°F, clearing to a cool, clear night around 59°F. Just about perfect for a night at the ballpark — no umbrella required.
Thanks for reading Lancaster Local. Whether you're cheering on the Stormers tonight or saving your energy for a free concert in the park this weekend, we hope something here gets you out the door. If it did, forward it to a neighbor who still gets their news from a Facebook group.