It’s 9:30 am on a bitter cold Saturday morning in Lancaster City. I walk into the gymnasium at Washington Elementary school and it is buzzing with activity. The gym is filled with rows of tables being covered with brochures, flyers, stickers, props… anything you can imagine to demonstrate what there is to do right here in Lancaster County. Who are these people bustling around the gym, frantically getting ready what seems like, but isn’t, a job fair? They are the people, the organizations, the clubs, and the businesses that provide entertainment, hobbies, activities, lessons, literally a ton of stuff to do.
Starting at ten o’clock on that Saturday morning, and for the following three hours, more than fifty vendors were joined by an estimated five hundred Lancaster residents who braved the cold and came together to learn, to laugh, to chat, to try new things, and to make new friends.
The Stuff To Do Fair is 100% free, for both the vendors and the participants. It’s organized and hosted by Sav Thorpe Capizzi and State Representative Izzy Smith Wade-El. This mission is to simply get people out of the house and try new stuff with other humans. It’s a noble pursuit, and a wildly popular one here in Lancaster.
We were on hand at the Stuff To Do Fair, representing The Candy Factory and, of course, the So Good Lancaster podcast. I interviewed a dozen of more than fifty vendors on hand and compiled those interviews into a two-episode series. This is just a taste of all that the fair has to offer, so be sure to keep an eye out for the next, and get over there to check it out in real life.
Part I interviews with:
- Sav Thorpe Capizzi, organizer of Stuff To Do Fair
- Olivia Polaski from Lancaster Bird Club
- Corey Paternoster from The Upside
- Mayor Jaime Arroyo from the City of Lancaster
- Laura Pauls-Thomas from Ride Roll and Stroll
- Heather Davis from Write Now
- Angie from Lancaster Improv Players
Part II interviews with:
- Jasmin Pantoja from Mambojaz Studio
- Luke Karpathios from Susquehanna Trekkers
- Shannon from Closing Time Collective
- Lola Omolabi from Hypnotic Pole Fitness
- Danny Mulligan from Danny and the Do-Overs
- JW Spurlock from Lancaster Square Dance
- Jess King from Lancaster County Local Journalism Fund
Check out these past episodes to hear our coverage of the 2025 (and first ever!) Stuff To Do Fair.
