The musical NUNSENSE at Tri-PAC in Pottstown!

NUNSENSE, the hilarious international hit musical, opened last night at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center in downtown Pottstown, and it runs this weekend and next weekend only.

The show focuses on the five surviving sisters at the Little Sisters of Hoboken nunnery. The nuns are organizing a talent show as a fundraiser after their order is reduced by the tainted vichyssoise soup prepared by Sister Julia, Child of God. With humor, song and dance, and audience interaction, NUNSENSE is a huge crowd-pleaser. No two shows are alike due to audience participation and improvisation by the actors. The original production received four Outer Critics Circle Awards, including best musical and became the second-longest running Off-Broadway show, bested only by THE FANTASTICKS.

NUNSENSE is showing tonight and tomorrow at 8 pm and Sunday at 3 pm. It will run next weekend too, from Thursday through Sunday. See show times below. Ticket prices are reduced for Thursday shows and always discounted for students and seniors. Tri-PAC is located in the heart of Pottstownat 245 E. High Street. If you haven’t seen a show there, you’re missing out on one of Pottstown’s arts and cultural gems. For more info and tickets, check them out on the web at www.tripac.org.

Thursdays
May 5 (preview) & 12
7:30 pm

Fridays
May 6 & 13
8:00 pm

Saturdays
May 7 & 14
8:00 pm

Sundays
May 8 & 15
3:00 pm

Special Events
Talkback with the Director/Cast: Thursday, 5/5 & Sunday, 5/8

Tickets

ADULT:  Thurs $15; Fri, Sat & Sun $17
STUDENT/SENIOR(65+): Thurs $13; Fri, Sat, Sun $15
CHILD (12 & under): Thurs $11; Fri, Sat & Sun $13

Classic Cars Return to Pottstown

Don’t try to drive down High Street this Saturday night; instead, take a walk through the Pottstown Classics Nostalgia Night scheduled for 5-9pm. 

The summer season for classic cars kicks off May 7th with the first of many car shows to come to town this summer-every first Saturday from May to September.  You can check out old cars and for the first time even new cars will be included in the show. 

Pottstown Classics Car Club is over 30 years old and does more than just gather car enthusiasts, it helps the community.  The club truly lives out their motto of “Serving the community through our hobby” by giving much of the  proceeds from each event to organizations such as Pottstown Seniors Center, Make A Wish Foundation,Vietnam Vets, World War 2 Memorial, Pottstown Police, Boy Scouts, Relay For Life, Ambucs, Genesis Crisis and Pregnancy Center as well as to individuals the club realizes are in need.

So, take a walk down automotive memory lane this weekend for the Pottstown Classics Car Club Nostalgia Night and help them get the 2011 season off to a great start.

Weekend Happenings in Pottstown

The first full weekend of May is here and the weather actually seems to be agreeing with the calendar for a (very welcome) change.  This weekend is all about Mom, with Mother’s Day on Sunday, but maybe you can change things up a bit this year and head outside instead of out to eat-or better yet, do both!

Here at Positively!Pottstown, we are big fans of the parks in our area.  Our loyal readers already know all about the Parks Series we wrote in the fall of last year, but if you are new to the blog, you should definitely check out all the opportunities our local parks offer for families.  The ground is drying out and a picnic lunch at Memorial Park or watching the model airplanes at Swamp Creek Park would be the perfect way to spend this Saturday or Sunday. 

Pottsgrove Manor is hosting their annual May Fair on Saturday, from 11am to 5pm and there will be fun for all ages, including historic crafts, cooking in the Manor’s kitchen and even old-fashioned games for the kids. If you have never been to Pottsgrove Manor, or haven’t been in a while, this weekend is a great time to visit. 

The Pottstown Classics Car Club Nostalgia Nights are back, starting this Saturday night on High Street.  From 5pm to 9pm you can check out some amazing classic cars and enjoy food and fun.  This all ages event will be held once a month throughout the summer. 

Take Mom to brunch at Sunnybrook this year!  Brunch and shopping with mom in mind from 11am to 2pm on Sunday.  The buffet menu includes everything from French toast to carved roast beef. 

Enjoy the weather and the weekend in Pottstown!

Application deadline for $10K Arts Scholarship this Saturday!

The application deadline has been extended until this Saturday, May 7th for the Greater Pottstown Foundation Arts Scholarship

Seniors from Pottstown, Pottsgrove, the Hill School and Owen J. Roberts High Schools, who will be furthering their education in the arts, are eligible to apply. For a complete prospectus and application, please go to The Gallery School of Pottstown’s website: www.galleryonhigh.com.

The Greater Pottstown Foundation Scholarship for the Arts is designed to financially assist a qualified applicant in obtaining a degree from accredited academic institutions of higher learning for a study in the arts. The scholarship is awarded based on a scholarship essay and based on merit as measured by artistic performance at the Greater Pottstown Foundation Senior High School Art Exhibit at the Gallery School of Pottstown. The applicant’s intended field of study must include a major in an arts related field.

For application details: go to www.galleryonhigh.com today! This is a unique opportunity offered right here in Pottstown to support young artists. The Greater Pottstown Foundation supports education, the arts, tolerance and the environment in the general Pottstown, Pennsylvania area.

PEAK event & literary arts in Pottstown

An estimated 600 people, most of them Pottstown’s youngest residents, turned out for a day of fun and information-gathering at the YMCA for the annual Pottstown Early Action for Kindergarten Readiness (PEAK) Community Event to kick off the Month of the Young Child.  

Erika Hornburg-Cooper of The Gallery School creates magic!

PEAK is funded through Pennsylvania-Pre-K Counts, United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation, and the Montgomery County Foundation and focuses on building partnerships with the early learning programs in the Pottstown community.

Please join me in sending a huge shout-out to Mary Rieck, PEAK Coordinator for the Pottstown School District, and all the other agencies and organizations who came out to share a few hours on a Sunday afternoon with the community.

PEAK was created in an effort to coordinate quality early childhood education and related services.  Every three- and four-year-old child has access to high quality child care, early childhood education, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten. Parents also receive education and resources so that they can do a better job at being their child’s “first teacher.”

These are all critical to the success of Pottstown’s students, which relates directly to the town’s fiscal situation. At last week’s meeting of the new PAID board, in response to a question, Dr. Lindley said something to the effect that if a child isn’t reading at grade level early in elementary school, there’s a very high chance that child is going to be a high-school drop-out. That’s pretty disheartening – to think that any person’s educational fate may be set at such a young age. As a mom who spent many hours reading to my sons from the time they could sit up, and as a creative writer myself, I am fiercely passionate about reading, writing and storytelling. These are the ways that humans of all ages connect. On the societal level, illiteracy and an undereducated workforce strain many aspects of community life, producing all kinds of negative fiscal impacts.

Family fun

My table was set up near the folks from Montgomery County’s Head Start and the YWCA, which runs literacy programs for all ages and for families, so I got to talk with their representatives for a few minutes about what they do. This got me thinking again about the potential for the literary arts to serve Pottstown’s children, improve educational outcomes, and play a role in revitalization. (Here’s an earlier blog post/discussion.) Now I’ve got an expanded take on my prior literary dreaming… What if all the existing organizations and programs – from early childhood through adult – got together to create/coordinate a year’s worth of literary programming to expose the community to an even wider array of writers and to make literature a more visible – and visitor-friendly – part of the culture of Pottstown? 

If we added “Literary Arts” as a category of resources to the Heritage Action Plan, we’ve already got:

Feel free to add to the list, and count me in for tapping the writers and publishing professionals I’ve gotten to know through my undergraduate university and my current MFA program at Bennington College.

There’s probably an impressive line-up of writers living in and visiting Pottstown already. By adding a few more events; “sharing” visiting writers within the context of larger community events; and then advertising all these events collectively, we might find that Pottstown is just a few stanzas away from being a literary arts destination. 

Pottstown Clean Up Day and More to do this weekend

In case you haven’t noticed, spring has definitely sprung here in Pottstown.  The view down my own street in the East End has gone from bleak to bursting with color in the span of just a week and even the stubborn sycamore tree outside my front door has finally decided to join in the fun and get some leaves. 

Now that Pottstown has woken from its long winter’s nap, it’s time to look around your neighborhood, pitch in and clean up.  And, the Borough is there to help. 

Tomorrow, Saturday April 30, from 8am to 12 noon, the Borough of Pottstown is sponsoring a Clean Up day to help residents and business owners clean up the streets and sidewalks after that long winter.  There will be dumpsters stationed at Borough Hall and at the Empire Fire Company on the corner of Franklin and Chestnut Streets. 

You can get some friends and neighbors together  to spruce up your own block or come downtown and join the larger effort there.  The weather looks like it is going to be perfect for getting out and re-connecting with nature and your neighbors!

After the clean up, there are plenty of fun things going on this weekend in town.  Here is just a sampling: 

Friday at 5pm, at the NorCo Fire Company

Give Love: A Mother’s Day event benefitting Trey Love

Saturday, April 30th:

10:30 am at The Ballroom on High

Zumbathon for Japan Earthquake/Tsunami Disaster Relief

Sunday May 1st:

Pottstown Celebrates Young Children

Kick off the month of May, which is also the Month of the Young Child, with a celebration at the Pottstown YMCA, sponsored by the PEAK program for early childhood education.  The event will feature fun and games for kids (all free) and community groups will be there in force to help families learn about the opportunities for young children in our town. 

1pm-3pm at the Pottstown Family YMCA (FREE)

Pottstown Roller Derby Rockstar Carwash

Also, on Sunday, bring that pollen covered car to the NorCo Fire Company between 9am and 2pm and get your car washed by some of Pottstown’s own Rockstars.  That’s right, the Pottstown Roller Derby Rockstars are holding a fundraiser carwash on Sunday and there will be derby merchandise and bake sale items to buy while you are waiting for your car to be done. 

Monday, May 2nd

While not technically the weekend, this event will be a great way to ease into the work week and help a good cause.  The Tri-County For a Cure team, who you will remember from the video last month a the Positively!Pottstown Happy Hour, is still raising money for Yoga on the Steps. 

This time, they’ve got Rita’s chipping in to help.  Just come to the Rita’s Water Ice on Route 100 near the intersection of Pughtown Road between 6 and 9pm and your purchase will help the team raise money for the Yoga on the Steps event coming up in just a couple of weeks. 

It’s bound to be a busy spring weekend here in Pottstown and may actually turn out to be a sunny one as well, so take advantage of all that’s going on in your hometown!  Get off to a great start by cleaning up from winter so we can all enjoy a beautiful spring here in Pottstown. 

If you’d like to see your event here in our calendar, be sure to send us an email or check in on our facebook page.  We love to spread the word about this town!

Two important community meetings tonight

Two meetings tonight will provide key information on various aspects of revitalization and serve as proof of the new collaborative spirit taking hold in Pottstown.

#1  For anyone interested in the status of the Pottstown Area Industrial Development corporation (PAID), the entity responsible for economic development in the Borough, there will be a meeting to announce their new board members this evening at 6 pm at the library on the The Hill School campus. The reconstituted PAID board is an outgrowth of a recommendation by the Urban Land Institute in a 2009 report for the Borough to create a single entity for redevelopment and revitalization. See The Mercury’s article here.

#2 If you want to know more about what’s happening in the Washington Street corridor and how you can get involved, Genesis Housing is holding a meeting called “Let’s Talk” at 7 pm tonight at the Ricketts Center, where you can learn about new projects and help design a community mural. The Ricketts Center is at  640 Beech Street, Pottstown, PA 19464. Community members will be asked for their ideas for a new mural at the Chestnut Street Park and to help to set priorities and develop future projects. An update on Washington Street neighborhood projects,  including the new community garden and the Science in the Park event, will be discussed.  Community concerns about this area and other sections of the Pottstown will be explored with the hope of setting priorities for future projects.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the proposed mural in the Washington St. neighborhood will speak volumes on the tenacity and determination driving the revitalization of Pottstown.  Genesis Housing Corporation, The Gallery on High and Citizens for Pottstown’s Revitalization are in collaboration to develop a mural at the park located at Washington and Chestnut Streets.  The artistic coordinators, Cathy Paretti and Erika Hornburg-Cooper of the Gallery on High have selected Robert Louis Williams, an accomplished local artist to design and create the proposed park mural.  Let’s talk about the different types of murals and what this mural should look like – this is the chance for your input!

Judith Memberg, Executive Director of Genesis Housing Corporation, will provide an update on their Washington Street neighborhood housing developments including the rehabilitation of vacant properties for new home buyers and the homeowner rehab programs.  Information about the Pottstown Homeowner Rehab Program will be provided.

Genesis Housing Corporation serves Montgomery County as a non-profit community development organization and is dedicated to the development of affordable housing and to the education of consumers on housing and financial issues.  For more information, visit their website at www.genesishousing.org or call 610-275-4357.

Brunish’s: There’s no place like home for hot dogs & hot sausage

577 Lincoln Avenue

Last week I walked into a Pottstown landmark and walked out totally in love with this town all over again. No, the building isn’t on the Historic Register, although the place has got the past written all over it, and its traditional pork and beef hot sausage sandwich – with mustard, relish and onions – is called “old school.” Yep, I’m talking about the concrete extension of the basement at 577 Lincoln Avenue, where Brunish’s Deli has been located since 1938. If you want a taste of Pottstown history and a hearty sausage sandwich, cheesesteak or hoagie, you need to put this on your list of go-to local spots.

Brunish’s Deli has been a family affair from the beginning, starting in 1937 when the grandparents of the current proprietors – Dan and Bob Brunish – opened a candy, sandwich and mini-mart in a basement a few doors away. One year later their grandparents moved to #577 and set up shop in their own basement. Dan and Bob’s father took over in 1949, and added hot dogs and hot sausage to the menu in 1955. Dan has been running the deli full-time since 1974. Justin Brunish, Bobby’s son, also works there, making him the fourth generation to be in the business. The Brunishes claim to have the last originally-owned family sandwich shop in town. 

In addition to an extensive sandwich menu, they’ve got convenience items like pasta, sauce, soups, chips, mac & cheese, cereal, soda, and – of course – Tastykakes. They’ve also got some sports gear for sale, most notably, Phillies hats and jerseys.

Brunish's interior

If you want to experience something real, check out Brunish’s for the food, the atmosphere and the architecture. While the 6’4.5” ceiling is just barely high enough for 6’4” Dan Brunish to stand up straight, the cocoon-like surroundings and the friendliness of the Brunishes make it feel like home.

Brunish’s is on the web at www.brunishgroceryinc.com. And check them out on Facebook: they’ve got 1,787 “likes” at I Love Brunish’s!!!!!!!

Brunish’s Deli is located at 577 Lincoln Avenue, Pottstown, PA, across from the former Jefferson Elementary School. They’re open 7 am-8 pm, Monday-Saturday and 7am-6pm on Sundays. The phone number is 326-1900 (“The same number since Day 1,” says Dan.)

Easter Services in Pottstown

Rev. Kerry Pidcock-Lester gives instructions to the kids at the Good Friday Prayer Processional
The Pottstown community of faith gathered today for  The Good Friday Prayer Processional (aka the Crosswalk). With no rain, and even peeks of sunshine, the walkers enjoyed a brisk one mile walk through town, stopping to pray for our leaders, the school administration, and the people of town.

This year, the kids who walked were given an extra charge (and plastic gloves): to pick up trash along the way.

The walk today is just the beginning of this holy weekend for area Christians and there are services all weekend for the faithful to mark both Good Friday and The Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Tenebrae (Latin for darkness) services are being held tonight at Cedarville United Methodist, Emmanuel Lutheran and Shenkel UCC.  An Easter Vigil mass will be celebrated at 7:45 on Saturday at St. Aloysius on Hanover Street, marking the beginning of Easter celebrations for Catholics.

For more information on Easter Services in the area, you can follow the links below to what is really just a sampling of the churches in this town.

St. Aloysius
 Emmanuel Lutheran

Shenkel UCC

Cedarville UMC

St. Paul’s UCC

Coventry Church of the Brethren

First Presbyterian

Easter Egg Hunts and more in Pottstown this Weekend

There is still time to get the kids out to do some good old fashioned hunting and gathering-Easter Style-at the North Coventry Fire Company on Rt.724 in Pottstown.  Their Easter Egg hunt, which is one of the largest I have ever taken my own kids to, starts at 12 noon this Saturday, April 23rd.  Bring your own basket and put the running shoes on the kids! 

In Upper Pottsgrove Township, at Heather Place Park, there is also an Easter Egg Hunt, sponsored by the Upper Pottsgrove Township Fire Company No. 1.  Their egg hunt is from 11 AM to 1PM. 

After the Easter Egg hunt, or maybe before the excitement of running through fields in search of candy and other goodies, you can take the kids to see the big fluffy rabbit for pictures at the Coventry Mall. 

If you are looking for a great place to bring your family (and skip the cooking) on Easter Sunday, Sunnybrook Ballroom is having an Easter Brunch from 11AM to 2PM.  They are serving a full buffet menu and Joe Horbach will provide the entertainment, playing Sunnybrook’s grand theater organ, “Ursula.” 

Of course, if you aren’t celebrating Easter this weekend and are looking for something to do outside, you should click on the Parks link at the top of our page.  In fact, even if you are celebrating Easter, a walk in the park is the perfect way to get rid of those extra calories the Easter bunny brings! 

The Schuykill River Trail is just bursting with spring color and you can rent a free bicycle on Saturday at Pottstown’s Tri-County Bicycles on High Street through the Bike Pottstown program and check out the trail. 

Have a wonderful (Pottstown) weekend and Happy Easter to those who celebrate it!

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