Connie Dienner, the founder and executive director of Cavod Performing Arts, knows exactly whom to credit for the success of her nonprofit, which is expanding its Manheim location.

"The Lord just opened up the doors for us," she said. "And the community has embraced us."

Cavod, located at 1223 Lancaster Road, is in the midst of a 6,000-square-foot expansion, which will double the size of the space.

"We are pouring concrete now, and then we'll start our construction in January," Dienner said. "We are doing everything carefully and slowly. We're not going to officially open the space until Aug. 1. We need time to raise funds for it, since we're a nonprofit."

She estimates the cost of the project to be about $800,000.

To help fund the build, Cavod will kick off an expansion campaign toward the end of January.

"We are really excited about this," Dienner said of the expansion. "We are bursting at the seams now in our space there."

Cavod began in New Holland in 2004. For years, Dienner had considered expanding to a second location in Manheim.

From 2021 to 2023, Cavod's Manheim home was in Supply, located on South Oak Street.

"We rented one studio there and used the common space," Dienner said. "They invited us in and really opened the doors for us."

Although she loved the space, she needed more room for her ever-expanding roster of students.

One day, a construction detour took her to New Holland past the shopping center in Manheim where Cavod's second location now stands.

"There was a sign that said, 'For rent,' so I pulled into the parking lot, and I thought, 'This would be perfect,'" Dienner recalled of the gravel lot. "It was a God moment."

Cavod built a new studio space on the site and opened in 2023.

Soon, however, Dienner realized the nonprofit could use even more room for its programs, which include classes in dance, theater, acrobatics and music.

"We are going to have two private lesson rooms in the new space, as well as a playroom for the kids, which we're modeling on and expanding on what we have in New Holland," she said. "When siblings are taking classes, parents can hang out with their other children in the playroom."

The new site will also feature a large, professional dance studio for classes as well as another studio space set up black-box-theater style, with seating for 120 people.

"We're putting seating on three sides for that space," Dienner said, noting that the seating is movable so the space can be converted to any layout needed. "We'll have professional sound and lighting, and we'll be able to do things like cabarets, piano recitals, one-act plays. We're planning on making it available for the community to rent out as well."

During the week, the black box space will be used as a studio for acrobatics classes.

The expansion will also feature a separate entrance with a foyer as well as additional restrooms.

Between both locations, Cavod provides 120 classes a week for 1,300 students from age 3 through adult.

"We have really good teachers that truly care," Dienner said. "We offer a safe space for the community in a godly environment. We are Christ-centered, but everyone is welcome."

Over the 20 years that she's been directing Cavod, Dienner noted she's always impressed by how her organization has been embraced by the community and by the connections her students and families make with each other.

"This is a family," she said. "Cavod is a community."

For more information on Cavod, visit https://cavod.org.