Cell Phones For Soldiers, Annville Inn B&B

Cell Phones for Soldiers & Annville Inn B&B Kick off Cell Phone Collection Drive

Campaign buys phone cards for solders!

NORWELL, Mass., April 4, 2010– More than 150,000 troops are serving overseas and are away from their families. Cell Phones for Soldiers, and Annville Inn Bed & Breakfast are calling on all Americans to support for these brave men and women by donating their unused cell phones. Cell Phones for Soldiers hopes to collect over 50,000 cell phones this year to help keep troops connected with their families. Cell Phones For Soldiers’ goal is every minute of every day a soldier can phone home.

“Over the past few years, we have been amazed by the generosity of others. But, we have also seen the need to support our troops continue.” says Brittany Bergquist, Cell Phones for Soldiers co-founder. “It is easy for Americans to make a small sacrifice of support by donating their unused cell phones, and providing families with a much-needed connection to their loved ones overseas.”

Annville Inn’s owner, Rosalie George, and her husband both come from military families, and currently have family members serving overseas in the U.S. Marine Corps. “We know how important it is for family members to stay in touch with their heroes overseas,” Rosalie says, “and we want to do our part to make these connections possible.”

The company that recycles the phones for eventual sales in order to raise cash to by phone cards for soldiers is ReCellular, founded in 1991. The company is dedicated to supporting charities and protecting the environment. Every 16 months, U.S. consumers are retiring an estimated 130 million cell phones and only 10 percent of those phones are being recycled. There are tons of phones in junk drawers across America, waiting to be collected and turned into calling card cash.

Annville Inn expects local residents as well as Inn guests to support the collection by donating cell phones for soldiers at: Annville Inn Bed & Breakfast, 4515 Hill Church Road, Annville, Pa. 17003. You can call ahead by phoning 867-1991. Receipts are available for tax deductions. Cell Phones for Soldiers is an IRS authorized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

“We’re proud to show our support for U.S. soldiers, and to contribute to a worthy cause like Cell Phones for Soldiers,” says Mrs. George, Innkeeper.

Cell Phones for Soldiers was founded by teenagers Robbie and Brittany Bergquist from Norwell, Mass., with $21 of their own money. Since then, the registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization has raised almost $1 million in donations and distributed more than 500,000 prepaid calling cards to soldiers serving overseas.

“W e are continuously overwhelmed by the enthusiastic support of thousands of Americans who have helped our troops speak with their loved ones,” says the teens’ father, Bob Bergquist. “However, the need for support keeps growing as more soldiers are sent to the Middle East or are asked to serve extended tours of duty.”

Through increased fundraising efforts, the Bergquist family hopes to raise more than $9 million in the next five years to fund new programs, such as providing video phones and prepaid service to allow soldiers abroad to see their families on a regular basis.

The donated phones are sent to ReCellular, which pays Cell Phones for Soldiers for each phone – enough to provide an hour of talk time to soldiers abroad.

Approximately half of the phones ReCellular processes are reconditioned and resold to wholesale companies in over 40 countries around the world. Phones and components that cannot be refurbished are dismantled and recycled to reclaim materials, including:

Gold, silver and platinum from circuit boards
Copper wiring from phone chargers
Nickel, iron, cadmium and lead from battery packs
Plastic from phone cases and accessories


About Cell Phones for Soldiers:
Cell Phones for Soldiers was created by Brittany & Robbie Bergquist of Norwell , MA. After reading a story about a soldier who ran up a huge phone bill calling home from Iraq, these two teenagers decided to help out. They started by opening an account with $21.00 of their own money. They are collecting cash donations and old cell phones. The cell phones are recycled for cash and the proceeds are used to buy prepaid calling cards for our soldiers serving in the Middle East. Cell Phones For Soldiers is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Their efforts have motivated people and businesses around the country to donate to this worthy cause. Today, numerous Fortune 500 companies are sponsors, as evidenced by their corporate logos on the Cell Phones for Soldiers Web site. Their goal is to provide every US soldier with a way to call home for free.

Please Click here to visit the official Cell Phones for Soldiers Web site, and please don't forget to dig up your old cell phones and bring or send them to Annville Inn B&B.

Oklahoma, Fishing Creek Playhouse Dinner Theater Opens

PREMIERE MUSICAL IN BRAND NEW DINNER THEATRE OPENS THIS FRIDAY!

Come see: Oklahoma!

Also enjoy: Dinner!

Be part of: The first audience of a brand new theatre, destined to become a theatrical tradition in Pennsylvania.

When: April 2nd to May 9th

Where: The new Fishing Creek Playhouse and Dinner Theatre

Location: 450 Fishing Creek Road; Etters, PA

10 minutes from Harrisburg, just off I-83

Contact: 877-998-7469. E-mail: rick.stevens@agrariancountry.com

For Readers of Our Blog, here is a special two for one discount! Introductory Two For One Discount Code: AAA325. Present this code at the time you order tickets.

The Harrisburg-Hershey-Carlisle-York-Annville-Lebanon region is gaining a brand new Dinner Theatre, part of a much larger vision of Dr. Robert Barr's Agrarian Country complex planned for the Grantville region. The theatre, Fishing Creek Playhouse and Dinner Theatre, opens to the public with its first Broadway musical April 2, 2010.

It will take a number of years to complete the massive Agrarian Country project, which will encompass approximately 1,800 acres, and will teach visitors about the backbone of Pennsylvania culture and life--agriculture!

The planned complex will feature the relocated "Star Barn," a Heritage Arts Center, other relocated historical Pennsylvania buildings, important agricultural equipment from bygone days, and much more.

FISHING CREEK PLAYHOUSE AND DINNER THEATRE

One facet of Agrarian Country's Heritage Arts Center that will come to life this Friday night is the debut of Fishing Creek Playhouse and Dinner Theatre. This weekend will be your opportunity to enjoy one of the longest-running musicals from Broadway, performed by the new professional non profit, non-equity theatre.

TICKETS FOR: FISHING CREEK'S OKLAHOMA!

The online Box Office is available 24 hours a day, and allows patrons to choose their own seating. You can go online to select seats and purchase tickets, as well as peruse the rest of the shows in the current season. Click Here to visit the Box Office to view shows descriptions and dates and to make your reservation for any show in the 2010 season!

THE NEW HERITAGE ARTS CENTER:

The Center will be Agrarian Country's first fully-operational educational center and will include a large multi-interest museum, 400-seat dinner theater and restaurant as well as facilities for educational programs in the arts, portraying our agricultural heritage, legacy, and culture. This facility will take approximately two years to complete. A short-term initiative under the Heritage Arts Center purview is the establishment of Agrarian Country’s Fishing Creek Playhouse and Dinner Theater.

Agrarian Country has leased a facility in northern York County off the Fishing reek Exit (Exit 36) along Interstate-83. This location will host the 2010 season beginning with Oklahoma!

Earlier this year, Fishing Creek Playhouse presented a special agricultural-related Broadway review at the 2010 Pennsylvania Farm Show. The show, "Broadway, Down on the Farm," was performed four times daily in the main exhibition building. Farm Show executives stated it was a huge hit and brought thousands of people to the show.

STARS Project

Congruent with the Agrarian Country's educational mandate, the organization has launched their youth educational program called, STARS. Targeted toward 3rd to 12th graders, STARS will focus on the performing arts.

ABOUT AGRARIAN COUNTRY:

Agrarian Country is a nonprofit organization, established to preserve Pennsylvania farmland and farm buildings and to provide a place where people of all ages can visit and participate in the operation of numerous agricultural enterprises in a real-life farm setting. One of the most visible projects is the rescue and eventual restoration of one of Pennsylvania's treasures: The Star Barn.

Through farmland preservation and hands-on agricultural educational activities, Agrarian Country hopes to rekindle interest in America’s agricultural heritage and a self-sufficient way of life, to promote wholesome, moral, and healthy living, and provide a refreshing escape from everyday stresses.

Agrarian Country is investing today to benefit future generations. Agrarian Country will have three centers:

• Center for Agricultural Enterprises
• Center for Agricultural Education
• Center for Agricultural Tourism.

The historic Star Barn will serve as Agrarian Country's Agricultural Education and Exhibition Center. To learn more about Pennsylvania's famous Star Barn, including a video and photographs, Click Here.

Cornwall Iron Furnace Bed and Breakfast Hershey

Minutes from Annville Inn Bed & Breakfast is Cornwall, site of the nation's only surviving completely intact charcoal fueled iron making furnace. The historical buildings are a wonder of architecture, constructed of locally quarried brownstone. We are posting a few photographs to pique your interest.



The site is also the location of one of the nation's largest iron ore mining facilities, in operation until 1972 when the mines flooded and Bethlehem Steel shut down operations. Nearby is a housing area that makes one feel they have been transported to England. The original charcoal mill, mine, and other operations originated with a settler from England, and later transferred to the Coleman family, which built up vast fortunes. The Coleman empire included enormous mansions throughout our area, and into Lancaster, many churches constructed of brownstone, and railroads.

Our favorite Rails to Trails project is along a railroad bed once owned by the Coleman empire.

The Cornwall Iron Furnace, part of a National Historic Landmark District, is America’s most complete charcoal fueled iron making complex. According to Robert Vogel of the Smithsonian Institution, “With the exception of a mere handful of similar preservations in Sweden and Germany — and possibly a few in eastern Europe — I doubt that elsewhere in the world is there a 19th century iron furnace complex with the degree of historical integrity to be found at Cornwall…”

Cornwall Furnace is indeed a unique survivor of the early American iron industry. Originally built by Peter Grubb in 1742, the furnace underwent extensive renovations in 1856-57 under its subsequent owners, the Coleman family, and closed in 1883. It is this mid-19th century iron making complex which survives today.

At Cornwall, furnace, blast equipment, and related buildings still stand as they did over a century ago. Here visitors can explore the rambling Gothic Revival buildings where cannons, stoves, and pig iron were cast, and where men labored day and night to satisfy the furnace’s appetite for charcoal, limestone, and iron ore.

Cornwall Iron Furnace is part of a National Historic Landmark District by the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. It has also been designated a National Historical Landmark by the American Society of Metals, and a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, citing Cornwall Furnace as “the only one of America’s hundreds of 19th century charcoal fueled blast furnaces to survive fully intact.”

Stay at Annville Inn Bed & Breakfast and explore the area around Cornwall. Here are some of our favorite sites regarding the Furnace:

• Cornwall Iron Furnace complex
• Mansion at Cornwall Manor, adjacent to the Furnace
• The miner's village, a step out of the pages of English history
• The Blue Bird Inn, one of the oldest restaurants continuously operating in the U.S.A. This restaurant is in the country, all by itself, and has had a remarkable restoration and expansion this past winter. Wonderful outdoor decks. Being in the country, when you eat on the deck, you aren't looking at industrial sites across the street; you are instead enjoying wide open countryside.
• Rails to Trails--an excellent, well maintained trail that grows yearly. It is now extensive, running from Elizabethtown, Pa. to Lebanon, Pa. There is a trail head marked by a giant "root beer barrel" the size of a one-room house, which serves as an info center. You pass right by it on the way to the Furnace. ALL SEASON: Great for cross country skiing.
• Alden Place shops, located in the carriage house of one of America's grand mansions, built by famed "guilded age" architect Stanford White. The mansion is not open to the public, but the carriage house is. As of this writing, the Buzz Coffee shop is closed, but we hear a new one is moving in to take its place. Beautiful outdoor deck to enjoy an espresso before heading to the Rails to Trails project.

Cherry Blossom Festival, Washington,DC Hershey PA B&B

Cherry Blossom Festival Opens Today in Washington, DC.

The Cherry Blossom Festival continues through April 11th, so you have plenty of time. Earlier the better, though!

Travel through our area, see Hershey, Pa., stay at Annville Inn Bed and Breakfast, and then have a casual, relaxed drive of a couple of hours to Washington and the Cherry Blossom Festival.

Never been to Washington, D.C. before? Your innkeeper, Rosalie George, is a native of Washington and can guide both new and seasoned visitors. Living in DC, one seldom encounters a "native Washingtonian," but Rosalie is, and is an excellent guide. Rosalie and Craig both worked in DC and the surrounding area for nearly two decades before moving to Annville, PA to purchase General Kendall's home and lovingly convert it into a five-star bed and breakfast.


We can help you plan your trip to Washington; we can make well informed suggestions of what to see, where to park, how to move about and not get lost, where to eat, best times to see the targets on your "must see" list, and much more.

Rosalie, every day, offers concierge service to our guests for the Hershey area. Hershey attractions, what to see, when to see it, where to dine, making reservations for meals, where to go for hiking, boating, tennis, bicycling, golfing--you name it. Now, with Cherry Blossom time in full swing in DC, she can also help you plan your trip in that city.


When you plan your SPRING TIME IN HERSHEY---SPRING TIME IN WASHINGTON adventure, we can even make well informed bed and breakfast suggestions for DC!

And with the cherry blossoms about to open, Washington is poised for today's {Saturday, March 27th} start of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, marking the 98th anniversary of the arrival of the trees from Japan .
On Thursday, the National Park Service hosted a festival preview on the shore of the Tidal Basin, where officials said that the two-week festival is the biggest recurring tourism event for the city and the National Park Service.

The peak bloom is expected to be April 1 through April 4, with the blooming period from March 28 through April 9. Of course, this is not 100% predictable, as Mother Nature is always a little "cagey" on such matters.

During the preview, officials of the U.S. Park Service, U.S. Park Police and the blossom festival were on hand to welcome visitors to the festival's various walks, talks, and other events. They were joined by the great-grandson of first lady Helen H. Taft, who planted the first tree nearly a century ago. Click here for Festival details.
"It's just amazing to see the transformation from the snows this year to spring awakening and the blossoms coming out," said John Piltzecker, superintendent of the U.S. National Park Service's National Mall and Memorial Parks. "This is the time everyone comes out. . . This is the time. Come out from winter. Come down to the Tidal basin, or out to Hains Point, and enjoy Washington D.C."

Hershey Gardens, Bed and Breakfast Hershey

Hershey Gardens Opens For Season

~Friday, March 26th~

9: a.m. to 5: p.m.

The spectacular Hershey Gardens is opening for its 2010-2011 season this Friday morning, March 26th at 9: a.m.

Hershey Gardens sprang to life in 1937 when Milton Hershey told his head gardener, "Make me a nice garden of roses." The Gardens have since grown to 23 acres, and now include about 7,500 incredible roses of multiple varieties, the rarest of rare trees and other exotic plants, two ponds (Swan Lake and the Japanese Pond), fountains, wonderful walking paths, and numerous themed gardens.

The themed gardens include the new Arboretum Meadow, anchored by near-life size cast iron statues of the mythical four seasons, the Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, Children's Garden, Herb Garden, and many more including an awe-inspiring arboretum punctuated by magnificent trees.

I

n the springtime, you will thrill to nearly 75,000 tulips, daffodils and other spring and summer flowering bulbs. The Perennial Garden's sister gardens, collectively called The Seasonal Garden feature the brightest annuals during summer and early autumn. Not to be missed is the Connifer Collection, a spectacular walk featuring shape, diminsion, color, texture and the element of discovery.

It is no wonder that Hershey Gardens has acquired the status of worldwide fame. You will certainly want to visit again and again.

The new 2010-2011 season also includes a special event this Saturday, March 27th.

~Signs of Spring At Hershey Gardens~

Event Date: 03/27/2010
Time: 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Admission: Regular: $10.00 Seniors (62+): $9.00 Junior (3-12): $7.00 Children under 3 and members are FREE
Event Details: See the "Signs of Spring" as Hershey Gardens opens for the season with activities like making a seed necklace, bird's nest craft, a puppet show by the Puppet Patch Players, a plant to take home, and a special children's weather program by CBS 21 meteorologist Tom Russell.

Annville Inn is a strong supporter of Hershey Gardens. During the Gardens' season, more than 90% of our guests visit Hershey Gardens!

Additionally, our guests enjoy a small public botanical garden here at the Inn, where we feature the formal rose garden with 500 roses, 10 fountains, The Garden Scale Railroad garden, Ashie's Garden, a large Butterfly Garden, The Romance Garden with a unique feature not seen at any other B&B, the Calendar Garden, Sign Garden, Garden of the Hidden Orange Rose, Potting Bench Garden, Secret Tapestry Garden, The Five C's Garden, and six other gardens spread over three acres.

TRAN SYBERIAN ORCHESTRA

Don't miss THE TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA April 3rd!

"TSO" presents what has been described as a "Once-in-a-lifetime experience" this spring in Hershey, just 17 minutes from Annville Inn!

See and hear the TSO tell the story of "Beethoven's Last Night" in its entirety, plus songs from their new album Night Castle.

To further drive the concept of a unique evening, imagine thrilling to the astonishing TSO in an intimate theatre setting. Hershey Theatre is the ultimate theatre experience. TSO is the thrilling ultimate concert experience. This will be a night to remember!

First Live Performance in History!

The Trans-Siberian Orchestra will be debuting songs from "Beethoven's Last Night" that have never been performed live. Having just been named one of Billboard Magazine's "Top 25 Touring Artists of the Decade" and coming off their massively successful Winter Tour, which played to over 1.2 million fans, TSO is not wasting any time and is gearing back up for the road.

Bringing it back to where it all started, TSO is taking this engagement out on a limited 31-city run performing for the first time in years in an intimate theatre setting.

It's been 14 years since Trans-Siberian Orchestra debuted with the single "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo/1224)," inspiring generations of fans to rediscover the multi-dimensional art form of the rock opera.

TSO has sold more than seven million copies of its first four rock operas -- 1996's CHRISTMAS EVE & OTHER STORIES, 1998's THE CHRISTMAS ATTIC, BEETHOVEN'S LAST NIGHT in 2000 and 2004's THE LOST CHRISTMAS EVE. On the road, meanwhile, they have become one of the world's top touring acts, with a $20 million-plus production that by 2008 played to over 5 million people in 80+ cities, selling more than $230 million worth of tickets.

For more information, from the TSO Web site, click here. Tickets are available at Hershey Theatre Box Office. The magnificent Hershey Theatre is celebrating its 76th Anniversary as one of the nation's premier historic theatres.

DATE: April 3, 2010
PRICE: $58.50 and $48.50 Processing fees apply
TIME: 3:00 PM

LODGING: Annville Inn Bed & Breakfast, of course!
Ticket/Info. Click Here.

The Moody Blues

For the first time ever, the legendary Moody Blues—Justin Hayward, John Lodge and Graeme Edge— bring their signature symphonic rock to Lancaster's American Music Theatre.

The Moody Blues’ dreamy, orchestral sound is ingrained in America’s consciousness, and their songs have been featured everywhere from countless TV commercials, an episode of the Simpsons, and even inspiring a theme park ride.

Their many hits are artistic, poignant, yet still have a wide appeal. Come for an evening of music you’ll remember, featuring: “Nights in White Satin,” “ Tuesday Afternoon,” “ In Your Wildest Dreams,” “I Know You’re Out There Somewhere,” “I’m Just a Singer in a Rock’ N’ Roll Band,” “ The Story in Your Eyes,” “ Question,” “Isn’t Life Strange,” and many more.

If you have never been to a Moody Blues concert, you just cannot imagine what you are missing. It is a MUST at least once in your lifetime. If you have been to a concert, then you know you must get to American Music Theatre March 27th.

IF YOU CANNOT GO, don't despair! You can also catch them the day before in Washington, D.C. at DAR Constitution Hall. When we lived in the Washington, DC area, Craig and one of our friends from London, Glenn, never missed The Moodies whenever they were in the area, and still strive to see them wherever they play. Their last tour, Hershey Theatre hosted the Moody Blues to a sold out crowd. Even after all these years, the Moody Blues continue to consistently sell out every venue in which they play.

Justin Hayward is arguably one of the most accomplished living guitar players. If nothing else, you must go to hear him!

Of course, "dyed in the wool" Moody Blues fans surely miss some members of the original band that have retired (such as Ray Thomas, [Pictured Here in 1972] famous for his flute work and as a founder of the Moodie Blues plus remarkable oratory on "Knights", and vocals in all their original albums) but their music lives on.