SoWe

Spring Blooms Tree Walk
2024-05-04 14:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York)
Get to know the beautiful trees that bloom each spring and bring so much color to our streets! Attendees will learn all about the trees that grow in SoWe this time of year, what benefits they bring to us and our animal/plant residents, and even take home a native tree of their own if they want!
For those who have been on our nature walks before – we always take a new route – so there are still plenty of our trees to get to know!
This walk is lead by Tree expert and professional forester, Ryan Davis from the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay (and he’s a SoWe neighbor – how cool is that!)
Email Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org – for specific details of where this walk will start

Cabbage Hill History Talk with Jim Gerhart
2024-05-05 16:00 - 17:30 | St. Joseph Church, 440 Saint Joseph Street, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
SoWe is hosting a talk by Jim Gerhart (author of “History on the Hill”) about a dynamic era in Cabbage Hill’s history. In an illustrated presentation, Jim will chronicle the growth of Cabbage Hill from a small settlement in the mid-1700s to the bustling working-class neighborhood of 1870-1970.
You are invited to join SoWe and Jim for this presentation, at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 5, in the Parish Hall of St. Joseph Catholic Church (410 St Joseph St). Admission is FREE, and parking is available in the lot across the street from the church.

SoWe Community Safety Committee
2024-05-08 12:00 - 13:00, 2024-07-10 12:00 - 13:00, 2024-09-11 12:00 - 13:00
The SoWe Community Safety Committee meets the second Wednesday of every other month. The vision of the Community Safety Committee is Southwest Lancaster is a safe and peaceful neighborhood through the ongoing collaboration of residents, community organizations, and public safety agencies.
Goals of the committee are:

Offer Positive Community Engagement for At-Risk Populations.
Improve Police/Community Relations.
Create a Safer Environment that Deters Crime.

Interested in joining the committee or attending a meeting? Contact Amos Stoltzfus at astoltzfus@wearetenfold.org or Dick Hecker at Dhecker123@comcast.net

Plants of the Pocket Park
2024-05-10 16:00 - 18:00 | SoWe Pocket Park, 244 Filbert St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Come learn about the native plants living in the Pocket Park, their benefits to our local environment, and the care they need through the seasons from two fabulous environmental experts: Christa Shoreman, Penn State Master Gardeners and Emily Broiche, Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay.
This event is FREE – but in order to get some also native freebies of your own – email: Christa, at cns5565@psu.edu your RSVP!
Address: 244 E Filbert St/ SoWe Pocket Park

SoWe Business Mixer
2024-05-30 17:00 - 19:00 | 551 West, 551 W King St, Lancaster, PA, PA, 17603, United States
If you own a business in SoWe – we want you at our event! Meet other local business owners and have appetizers and drinks on us! This is a great event for bonding with people who get your day-to-day and work in the same neighborhood!
Swap ideas, struggles, and stories – all over a drink!

Free Neighborhood Meal
2024-06-04 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Free Neighborhood Meals are open to all! They happen the first Tuesday of every month from now through October!
The purpose of these meals are:

To meet more of the people living around you
To get more connected to this specific, beautiful neighborhood (including enjoying one of SoWe’s lovely outdoor spaces – that even has cool community art!)
To eat yummy food you didn’t have to find/cook!

We promise to always serve some vegetarian and GF food plus often desserts!

Peace In The Streets Block Party
2024-06-08 12:00 - 16:00 | Culliton Park, 200-238 S Water St, Lancaster, PA, 19603

National Night Out
2024-08-06 17:00 - 19:30 | 440 Saint Josephs St, 440 Saint Josephs St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Join us as we party in the street (literally and safely because we close it to cars) on a weeknight! If you haven’t heard of National Night Out, the goal of this event is for neighbors all across the country, to get outside, onto their neighborhood streets to safely connect with each other, local organizations, and local fire fighters and police.
In light of this festive occasion, we always close the 400 Block of St Joe’s St and live it up with a DJ, dozens of activities and games for all ages, delicious grilled food, and connecting families with all they need for the upcoming school year (including fresh hair cuts, backpacks, and SDOL registration!)
This is one of our annual events and its a very special time to be outside in the heart of the neighborhood together!! Don’t miss it!

Community Conversation: Housing & Homelessness
2024-09-25 19:00 - 20:30 | Tec Centro West, 57 Laurel St, Lancaster, 17603, United States

Free Neighborhood Meals - Dates Corrected
2024-09-26 18:00 - 20:00, 2024-10-10 18:00 - 20:00, 2024-10-24 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Free Neighborhood Meals are open to all! Please note: we’ve had a few schedule changes. Below are the dates for the last three meals of the year:
Thursday, September 26th – 6-8PM
Thursday, October 10th – 6-8PM
Thursday, October 24th – 5:30 – 7:30PM (because it gets dark earlier)
The purpose of these meals are:

To meet more of the people living around you
To get more connected to this specific, beautiful neighborhood (including enjoying one of SoWe’s lovely outdoor spaces – that even has cool community art!)
To eat yummy food you didn’t have to find/cook!
BONUS: Learn about composting and rain barrels! Both are present on site.

We promise to always serve some vegetarian and GF food plus often desserts!
See you there!

SoWe Board Meeting
2024-09-30 17:30 - 18:30, 2024-11-18 17:30 - 18:30 | St. Joseph Church, 440 Saint Joseph Street, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States

SoWe Bowling League Open House + League Kickoff
2024-10-03 18:00 - 20:00
We are thrilled and excited to be offering a 6-week long duckpin bowling league here in the heart of the neighborhood – and it’s completely FREE to join!
In fact, this Thursday, October 3rd, from 6-8PM at 410 Saint Joe’s St we are hosting an Open House + League Kickoff for our new youth bowling league! That means if you’re not sure if this league will be up your child’s alley (see what I did there) – no problem, have them play with us one night and then decide!
This league is for 8-15 year olds and includes dinner each league night. The league runs from Thursday, Oct. 3rd through Thursday, Nov. 14th (we will skip bowling Halloween night). Your child will learn how to duckpin bowl, how to keep score, and even how to reset bowling pins.
In order to attend this Thursday, children must wear sneakers AND must come with a signed Bowling League Permission Slip. You can either send this signed permission slip to Jacquie at Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org OR you can sign it/hand it in at the door.
If you already know you want your kid to join the league – send your permission slip to Jacquie to reserve your spot.

Trick or Treat
2024-10-31 18:00 - 20:00 | Lancaster Rec., 525 Fairview Ave, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States

SoWe Board Meeting
2025-01-27 17:30 - 18:30 | St. Joseph Church, 440 Saint Joseph Street, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Agenda:

Call to Order
Public Comment
Approval of Nov. 2024 & Dec. 2024 Board Meeting Minutes
SoWe Story – Amos Stoltzfus, SoWe Director
Endowment Funds – Marie Cleaves Rothaker, Donor Services Officer, Lancaster County Community Foundation
Keystone Club Presentation – Lori Pagan, Boys & Girls Club
Board Meeting Calendar
Annual Calendar of Events
Update on 517 St. Joseph St. – Gene Duncan, Past Board Chair
Adjournment

All neighbors are welcome!

SoWe Board Meeting (Open to Public)
2025-03-24 17:30 - 18:30, 2025-05-19 17:30 - 18:30 | 440 Saint Josephs St, 440 Saint Josephs St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Every Board meeting begins with a public comment and/or question period. We enthusiastically invite neighbors to come share their thoughts, opinions, praises and concerns with us about the neighborhood and about programs/initiatives we run. We also welcome you to attend to stay informed on the many beautiful things happening in SoWe!
All are welcome to attend, our board meetings are always open to the public!

Community Egg Hunt
2025-03-29 10:00 - 12:00 | Culliton Park, 200-238 S Water St, Lancaster, PA, 19603
Hop on over to Culliton Park for the biggest, most egg-citing Easter Egg Hunt around! Our event will kick off with a 5,000+ Egg Hunt! We will have two separate age group areas, so all the kids are certain to come home with filled baskets and brimming smiles. But that’s just the beginning of the fun!
Next, you can expect to stay warm by the fire, roasting marshmallows, drinking hot chocolate, getting your face painted, getting a twisted balloon animal or accessory, playing games and other hands-on activities, taking home packaged breakfast/food items, prizes, and a book for every child!! Plus there will be a DJ! This year SoWe, Lancaster Historic Lions Club, the Moose Lodge 299, and the SDOL are turning this annual tradition into a full-blown, egg-stra special community event!
So mark your calendars for Saturday, March 29th from 10am-11:30am at Culliton Park (210 S Water St). Please be sure to arrive on time so that you don’t miss the Egg Hunt. In case of rain, we will host the event Saturday, April 5th from 10am-11:30am at Culliton Park.
If you’d like to volunteer for this fun outside event, please sign-up here – Lancaster Historic Lions Club: 3rd Annual Community Easter Egg Hunt

(Rain Date) Community Egg Hunt
2025-04-05 10:00 - 12:00 | Culliton Park, 200-238 S Water St, Lancaster, PA, 19603
If Saturday, March 29th is rained out – our big Community Egg Hunt will happen this Saturday instead.

Hop on over to Culliton Park for the biggest, most egg-citing Easter Egg Hunt around! Our event will kick off with a 5,000+ Egg Hunt! We will have two separate age group areas, so all the kids are certain to come home with filled baskets and brimming smiles. But that’s just the beginning of the fun!
Next, you can expect to stay warm by the fire, roasting marshmallows, drinking hot chocolate, getting your face painted, getting a twisted balloon animal or accessory, playing games and other hands-on activities, taking home packaged breakfast/food items, prizes, and a book for every child!! Plus there will be a DJ! This year SoWe, Lancaster Historic Lions Club, the Moose Lodge 299, and the SDOL are turning this annual tradition into a full-blown, egg-stra special community event!
So mark your calendars for Saturday, March 29th from 10am-11:30am at Culliton Park (210 S Water St). Please be sure to arrive on time so that you don’t miss the Egg Hunt. In case of rain, we will host the event Saturday, April 5th from 10am-11:30am at Culliton Park.
If you’d like to volunteer for this fun outside event, please sign-up here – Lancaster Historic Lions Club: 3rd Annual Community Easter Egg Hunt

FREE Neighborhood Meals - RESCHEDULED Because of Rain to 5/29/25
2025-05-15 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
**DUE TO RAIN, WE ARE CANCELING OUR FIRST NEIGHBORHOOD MEAL AND RESCHEDULING TO THURSDAY, MAY 29th FROM 6PM-8PM at the same location, 285 Conestoga St. SEE YOU IN TWO WEEKS INSTEAD! **
Would you like to get to know more of the people living around you? Do you enjoy free food?
Join us for Free Neighborhood Meals, happening once a month, on Thursday evenings, behind Culliton Park (where the Culliton Park Compost Bin lives and where the cool graffiti murals are) – at 285 Conestoga St.
These meals are a chance for us to use a beautiful public space we have in the neighborhood (Did You Know: this area has half of dozen picnic tables, making it the perfect place for a community meal. Additional Fun Fact: Eventually this area will be redesigned as an extension of Culliton Park – but until then, we still want to use the space for gatherings), meet more of our neighbors (because connection and belonging is what makes a neighborhood feel like home), and because who doesn’t want a night off from cooking!
Poplar Place, an intentional community here in SoWe, takes the lead on hosting this event. If you’d like to be a part of the core group that plans this gathering, please email Jacquie, Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org.
Please reserve all the following Thursday evenings – to eat for free, and socialize with your neighbors – at 285 Conestoga St.
May 29, 6pm – 8pm
June 12, 6pm – 8pm
July 10, 6pm – 8pm
Aug. 21, 6pm – 8pm
Sept. 18, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
Oct. 16, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
All ages are welcome and please know that for these meals we use the term neighbor broadly. If you enjoy spending time in SoWe or want to see what all the fuss is about – than we consider you our neighbor! The more people – the better! See you soon!
Please Note: This event is hosted outside. So in the case of bad weather – please check our website/ the Southwest Lancaster Facebook Group page for updates.

FREE Neighborhood Meals (Rescheduled Date)
2025-05-29 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Would you like to get to know more of the people living around you? Do you enjoy free food?
Join us for Free Neighborhood Meals, happening once a month, on Thursday evenings, behind Culliton Park (where the Culliton Park Compost Bin lives and where the cool graffiti murals are) – at 285 Conestoga St.
These meals are a chance for us to use a beautiful public space we have in the neighborhood (Did You Know: this area has half of dozen picnic tables, making it the perfect place for a community meal. Additional Fun Fact: Eventually this area will be redesigned as an extension of Culliton Park – but until then, we still want to use the space for gatherings), meet more of our neighbors (because connection and belonging is what makes a neighborhood feel like home), and because who doesn’t want a night off from cooking!
Poplar Place, an intentional community here in SoWe, takes the lead on hosting this event. If you’d like to be a part of the core group that plans this gathering, please email Jacquie, Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org.
Please reserve all the following Thursday evenings – to eat for free, and socialize with your neighbors – at 285 Conestoga St.
May 29, 6pm – 8pm
June 12, 6pm – 8pm
July 10, 6pm – 8pm
Aug. 21, 6pm – 8pm
Sept. 18, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
Oct. 16, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
All ages are welcome and please know that for these meals we use the term neighbor broadly. If you enjoy spending time in SoWe or want to see what all the fuss is about – than we consider you our neighbor! The more people – the better! See you soon!
Please Note: This event is hosted outside. So in the case of bad weather – please check our website/ the Southwest Lancaster Facebook Group page for updates.

FREE Neighborhood Meals
2025-06-12 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Would you like to get to know more of the people living around you? Do you enjoy free food?
Join us for Free Neighborhood Meals, happening once a month, on Thursday evenings, behind Culliton Park (where the Culliton Park Compost Bin lives and where the cool graffiti murals are) – at 285 Conestoga St.
These meals are a chance for us to use a beautiful public space we have in the neighborhood (Did You Know: this area has half of dozen picnic tables, making it the perfect place for a community meal. Additional Fun Fact: Eventually this area will be redesigned as an extension of Culliton Park – but until then, we still want to use the space for gatherings), meet more of our neighbors (because connection and belonging is what makes a neighborhood feel like home), and because who doesn’t want a night off from cooking!
Poplar Place, an intentional community here in SoWe, takes the lead on hosting this event. If you’d like to be a part of the core group that plans this gathering, please email Jacquie, Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org.
Please reserve all the following Thursday evenings – to eat for free, and socialize with your neighbors – at 285 Conestoga St.
June 12, 6pm – 8pm
July 10, 6pm – 8pm
Aug. 21, 6pm – 8pm
Sept. 18, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
Oct. 16, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
All ages are welcome and please know that for these meals we use the term neighbor broadly. If you enjoy spending time in SoWe or want to see what all the fuss is about – than we consider you our neighbor! The more people – the better! See you soon!

Peace In the Streets: Summer Block Party
2025-06-14 12:00 - 16:00 | Culliton Park, 200-238 S Water St, Lancaster, PA, 19603
Our Annual Summer Block Party, co-hosted by two wonderful organizations – ENDALL MOVEMENT and CJ’s Hoop for Hope, is back with the annual traditions you’ve come to know and love! Come and enjoy getting to know dozens of community partners, play sports, water and field games, watch CJ’s Hoops for Hope basketball tournament, play bingo and win cool prizes, play carnival games (like fishbowl and group races), get your face painted, henna art, and a caricature of you and your whole family/big group of friends, eat a delicious, locally-made lunch for FREE and go home with lots of goodies and new connections!
In addition to all the community-bonding fun, just like last year, we want to rally around keeping our streets safe and free from gun violence. So we are excited to again welcome impactful speakers (both from local government, local advocacy organizations, and neighbors with lived experience) to share how they are committed to bringing more peace to our neighborhood’s streets! We will have an important time of remembrance of family members and friends who tragically died from gun violence, and also have an Open-Mic time, for community members to share personal pieces (songs, raps, poems, stories) of how gun violence has impacted them.
This is our longest running event and one that our neighbors remember and look forward to all year long!
If you’d like to volunteer for one of the many fun activities of the day, please sign up through our sign-up link: Peace In The Streets: Block Party 2025 Volunteer Sign-Up! All volunteers will get a Brand New event volunteer shirt! You are encouraged to volunteer as a group – so sign up with your family and friends!

FREE Neighborhood Meals
2025-07-10 18:00 - 20:00 | 285 Conestoga St, 285 Conestoga St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Would you like to get to know more of the people living around you? Do you enjoy free food?
Join us for Free Neighborhood Meals, happening once a month, on Thursday evenings, behind Culliton Park (where the Culliton Park Compost Bin lives and where the cool graffiti murals are) – at 285 Conestoga St.
These meals are a chance for us to use a beautiful public space we have in the neighborhood (Did You Know: this area has half of dozen picnic tables, making it the perfect place for a community meal. Additional Fun Fact: Eventually this area will be redesigned as an extension of Culliton Park – but until then, we still want to use the space for gatherings), meet more of our neighbors (because connection and belonging is what makes a neighborhood feel like home), and because who doesn’t want a night off from cooking!
Poplar Place, an intentional community here in SoWe, takes the lead on hosting this event. If you’d like to be a part of the core group that plans this gathering, please email Jacquie, Jacquie@WeAreTenfold.org.
Please reserve all the following Thursday evenings – to eat for free, and socialize with your neighbors – at 285 Conestoga St.
July 10, 6pm – 8pm
Aug. 21, 6pm – 8pm
Sept. 18, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
Oct. 16, 5pm – 7pm (please note we moved the timeframe up and hour due to the setting sun)
All ages are welcome and please know that for these meals we use the term neighbor broadly. If you enjoy spending time in SoWe or want to see what all the fuss is about – than we consider you our neighbor! The more people – the better! See you soon!

Movie Night In Brandon Park - MOVED TO SUNDAY
2025-07-27 18:30 - 21:00 | Brandon Park, Brandon Park, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
**POSTPONED DUE TO RAIN** (Updated: Saturday, July 26th 1:34pm)
Movie Night will now happen tomorrow, Sunday, July 27th, in Brandon Park. Everything will stay at the same time.
6:30PM – Grab your spot, movie snacks (popcorn and cotton candy), and get a tour of the mobile unit!
7PM – Movie begins!
Spread the word! See you tomorrow!
——————————-
You know we love our Parks – so what better way to enjoy them then a Movie Night (with a childhood animated classic) in Brandon Park!
Saturday, July 26th (rain date Sunday, July 27th – please check our social media on the day-of to confirm – this summer has certainly been rainy), neighbors are invited to begin setting up your chairs/blankets/ inflatable pools/ air mattress (get comfy – any seating vessel goes!) in the Brandon Park parking lot starting at 6:30PM! This is also a great time to get delicious movie snacks – including popcorn and cotton candy (which will be available for FREE)! We will also have water and orange juice available!
The movie will begin promptly at 7pm!
Due to licensing restrictions we can’t say the name of the movie online or the names of prominent characters. So instead we invite you to play a fun guessing game! Here are your clues:
This movie is about a young Hawaiian girl who makes an unlikely friendship with a naughty alien. This is a great movie for KIDS and centers on themes of: family, belonging, redemption and the power of love.
We hope you will bring your whole Ohana! 😉“Ohana means family! Family means nobody left behind or forgotten.”
Also – in case you’re wondering: we are watching the original animated version (not the new live action)

National Night Out
2025-08-05 17:00 - 19:30 | 440 Saint Josephs St, 440 Saint Josephs St, Lancaster, PA, 17603, United States
Let’s get wild on a weeknight during this year’s National Night Out – Tuesday, August 5th from 5-7:30PM!
Our wonderful neighbor, Saint Joseph’s Catholic Church, is taking the lead on this cherished annual, neighborhood pride summer event! National Night Out is all about celebrating what’s special and great about the beautiful place where we live (three cheers for the SoWe neighborhood)! That’s why the event is held on a residential block – making it even easier to step out your doors and make memories with your neighbors!
So come on down to the St Joe’s Parking lot! Enjoy dinner, music, games, a fresh HAIRCUT before school starts and a brand new BACKPACK and even learn how to duckpin BOWL! The bowling alley will be OPEN!
If you’d like to help volunteer – email Matt (the event lead) at : wallaby38@gmail.com.
