GSV group offers Hispanic history lesson

A small group of Garden Spot Village residents and staff members has worked for a number of years to introduce the local community to the varied cultures represented in the area. Group member Karyn Nancarvis said the members now refer to themselves as Tapestry, but the collective has also gone by the names Racial Literacy and Cultural Awareness. "We meet once a month ... to find ways to educate our community and foster awareness of other cultures," Nancarvis noted.

This May, Tapestry has scheduled three events that will delve into the history of the Hispanic population in Lancaster County and specifically in New Holland. The first, which will be held in the Garden Spot Village chapel, 433 S. Kinzer Ave., New Holland, at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8, will be called Latino Experience in New Holland, and it will feature a number of speakers. The event is free and open to the public. Two bus trips will also be held. The first will be held on Tuesday, May 21, and the second will depart on Friday, May 24. There is a cost to take part in the bus trips.

The May 8 event will feature Don Horning, board member with the New Holland Area Historical Society, discussing how Victor Weaver offered stable employment to Hispanic migrant workers. He will bring copies of the book "The Story of Victor F. Weaver" by Allan W. Shirk to the event. Miriam Gonzales Lauver will speak on the beginnings of the Spanish Mennonite Church in New Holland, and Ramona Rivera Santiago and Paul Hess, pastor of Rawlinsville Mennonite Church, will discuss the migrant worker experience in that area. Jesus Cruz will discuss the Hispanic experience in the city of Lancaster from historical and current perspectives.

The May 21 bus trip will begin by visiting the site of the former New Holland Spanish Mennonite Church in a basement room at 209 E. Main St. Horning and Lauver are both expected to be present to discuss the origins of the church, which Lauver attended as a child, in that space. "The emotion of the people who went down the steps who had started their lives there as small children was palpable," shared Horning. "I want to try to tell people of that." From there, the bus will travel to the Bridgeport area, where the Ortega family from Mexico owned the land where the Lancaster Mennonite Church was built. The next stop will be Rawlinsville, where Hess will discuss the history of the early migrant workers. A trip to the Tomato Station in Holtwood will complete the tour.

The May 24 trip will also stop at the site of the former Spanish Mennonite Church before heading to the Spanish American Civic Association in Lancaster. Cruz will distribute brochures about the center to tour takers. "The organization provides all kinds of different programs," he said of the 51-year-old organization. "They are still there providing really valuable services in Spanish to the community - especially to people coming in from Latino countries." Cruz mentioned that the organization provides training and help to gain an understanding of the local community. Tour takers will then tour an area within a 1-mile radius of the center.

Readers who are interested in taking one of the bus tours may call 717-355-6000 by Thursday, May 16, to purchase tickets. More information may be found at http://www.gardenspotvillage.org/events.