"Local Interactive Vitality" is the mission of LIV-ETown, a community organization focused on enhancing Elizabethtown with events and activities.

LIV-ETown formed in May of 2021 as the brainchild of Tony and Clint Gibble, owners of The Tatted Toy Guys and The Candy Unicornium. "Clint and I came up with the concept of LIV-ETown initially as a way to give back to the community, but it has really evolved since then," Tony said.

Soon after the group was formed, Abby Huber came on board. Her business, Charlamay's Trinkets and Treasures, and another local business, Frugal Finds, along with community members Amy McEvoy and Heather Watts, make up the core of the group. But Tony is quick to point out that LIV-ETown is for everyone.

"We're spearheading events, and anyone can build off of them," he stated. "This is meant to be something for everyone to participate in, from businesses to community members."

One of the first initiatives of the group was to focus on Second Friday in town. LIV-ETown started a monthly scavenger hunt at local businesses. Abby noted that the scavenger hunt adds an interactive component to Second Friday, one of the goals of LIV-ETown. "It's a way to encourage the community to become part of the night," she remarked. "People love that this is something to do with their family downtown."

LIV-ETown held a strawberry social in July, collected food for Christmas boxes and organized Merry Grinchmas E-Town in December. The latter event drew an estimated 3,000 people downtown for a Grinch meet-and-greet, live music, cookie decorating stations and more. All of the events organized by LIV-ETown are free to the community.

Tony said LIV-ETown has been an opportunity to learn about individuals and businesses in the community who have special talents to share. When planning activities for October's Second Friday, for example, he learned of a local "pirate family," who are members of a pirate league, and he enlisted them to help with a pirate-themed Octoberfest event. That same family came in clutch when the person GEARS had recruited to play Santa fell ill and couldn't greet children at a December event. It turned out one of the pirates moonlighted as Santa. That organic community support is just what LIV-ETown is all about, Tony said.

"I meet a lot of people who come into my stores, but these events are helping us create conversations and build relationships," he explained. "LIV-ETown is all about pooling talents. One person can't do it all, and in this case, we want as many people involved as are interested so that we can benefit from what each person brings to the table."

Abby noted that above all, LIV-ETown is focused on everything that makes Elizabethtown great. "We want to bring the community together," she said. "You see these Hallmark movies where the whole town gets involved in events, and that's what E-Town can be."

Tony stated that he's already seen positive impact from the group in just the few months since its creation. "So many people have come up to me and said, 'I'm falling in love with my town again,'" he remarked. "That's a wonderful thing to hear."

For more information on LIV-ETown or to get involved in future events, visit the group's Facebook page.