She's bright, polite, positive and poised.

Emily Allen is a people person who represents herself well. Venture Lititz is banking on Allen representing the downtown business district in the exact same manner moving forward.

On Jan. 10, Allen became the next executive director of Venture Lititz, an organization designed to support local businesses and attract visitors to the downtown. Allen takes over for Rebecca Branle, who left at the end of 2023 to pursue an entrepreneurial dream in the very same Lititz business district she had served.

"I'm playing a lot of catch-up at this point," said Allen. "I think the thing that drew me to this job is that I love Lititz. I love this community. It's a great town. We're lucky to live here. People walk by you and say hi. I've lived in other places, and the neighbors aren't as interested in knowing how you're doing. It's such a heart-warming place to be a part of. I just want to continue to make Lititz the place where people want to be."

For starters, Allen has been cast into the proverbial fire - or more specifically Fire and Ice. One of her first duties as executive director has been to plan and stage the popular, upcoming Fire and Ice festival. Fire and Ice is one of a number of downtown events that Venture Lititz presents annually, and it's the most intricate to plan.

"The main thing I'm focused on right now is getting things ready for Fire and Ice," said Allen of the mid-February spectacle. "After that's over, my focus will shift to the other events. The main focus of our events is to bring more people downtown. Our goal is to never take away from the merchants, just to make sure our businesses love being downtown as much as we love having them there."

Allen has a background in real estate sales, and she will continue to pursue those interests on a scaled-back basis. She also possesses experience in event planning and serving as a wedding coordinator.

"I work well under pressure," said Allen, a resident of Lititz. "I have always enjoyed meeting someone and figuring out how people can work together. I've always been the person who doesn't get overwhelmed when things go wrong. I've always been able to see the big picture."

Allen is a native of Indiana, Pa., and a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania. There she majored in communications and pursued minors in theater and journalism.

"Venture Lititz and I are one and the same," said Allen. "I'm the full-time person who represents everything Venture Lititz is doing. I help everything come into practice. I'm super excited to step into Rebecca's shoes. I don't want to change things. It's like, 'Let's add on and make things even better.' I just want to enhance the things that are already going on."

"Venture Lititz is part of Main Street America, and they help train people like me to make downtown areas better," Allen added. "Lititz is one of the areas that everyone looks at to see how it's done. Everyone has worked so hard to make Lititz what it is. If a storefront opens up here, there are a lot of people who want to come in."

For additional information on Venture Lititz, go to http://www.lititzpa.com.