Home Care In Elverson, PA

For two magical weeks every summer, the field explodes into bloom. Thousands of sunflowers blanket the landscape in vivid shades of yellow, their petals aglow in the afternoon sun.

In tiny Elverson, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it border town in Chester County, the field is a sight to behold — and photograph. Striking and romantic enough to be the backdrop for marriage proposals or the cover of engagement announcements, it’s also a charming setting for family photos. And it’s an Instagrammer’s dream, so camera-ready it has its own hashtag.

Last month, Country Living Magazine named it one of the top sunflower fields in the country, welcome recognition for a field that brings the tiny town nearly 100,000 visitors each year.

“This weekend, I’ll probably have 15,000 people here,” said Rick Frey, 55, who planted the one-acre plot — improbably — to attract customers to his nearby car wash. Frey never envisioned its popularity would soar.

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Visitors have come from California, Oregon, Ohio, Florida, Virginia, and upstate New York, he said: “Over the course of the month, we’ll probably get close to 100,000 people.”

The trickle of tourists starts in late July. There are the nature photographers, the parents and kids, the college students, the couples, the out-of-towners, and the passersby who got turned around on the highway and ended up here, this field of radiant sunflowers.

And it’s free. The Freys don’t seek donations, although if people insist, they ask them to send money to a local animal shelter.

“It’s put Elverson on the map,” said Doug Wachenfeld, whose deck overlooks the field.

The sight is a standout, a head-turning burst of color in a mosaic of farmland. And to think, it started with a car wash.

In 2010, seven years after Frey and his wife, Joey, opened Please Wash Me, a fully automated, two-port operation surrounded by cornfields in a borough of 1,300 residents, business was not exactly booming. For one thing, a nearby cornfield had grown close to 10 feet high, blocking the view of the car wash from the road.

The Freys needed more customers, so they thought of a gimmick.

Once, on the way home from a trip to the mountains, Frey saw a sunflower field stop traffic. So he bought some seeds.

“I didn’t put a lot of thought into it,” he said. “I just thought I’d give it a try.”

Now, every summer, when the flowers are at their peak, the field is a blur of cameras and folks navigating their way into the middle of the field, jostling for the best view.. People are there starting at 5 a.m. to snap pictures of dewy petals against the sunrise. They’re there at night for the dusky blue shots. The afternoon is nonstop.

On a recent day, Desiree Foja and Andrew Dayrit, in town from Los Angeles, stopped to pose for photos.

“We’re staying in Philadelphia,” said Foja, 28, who has dated Dayrit, also 28, for the last three years. “And I looked up ‘sunflower fields.’ We rented a car today just to come here.”

Their car was one of dozens in an adjacent parking lot, with every spot filled.

“Two hours ago, the cars were lined up on this side of the road," Frey said, pointing to pavement not meant for parking, “all the way to Route 23. It’s crazy. The weekend will be chaos.”

The car wash, just a few yards away from the field, was quiet, a lone car pulling through every now and then.

“I don’t make a lot of money,” Frey said of the car wash. “Someday, I’ll sell it and that’ll be my retirement. But I’ll tell the next owner they have to plant the sunflowers.”

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During my travels around Pennsylvania, I’ve been to many quaint small towns, but few have been as charming as St. Peters Village in southeastern Pennsylvania.

St. Peters Village is located in western Chester County, not far from French Creek State Park and Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site.

If you love charming villages filled with artisans and nice places to eat, you’ll definitely want to make a visit to this quaint village. There is also some great hiking in town, meaning there are plenty of things to do in St. Peters Village to make the trip worthwhile.

The community was founded in the mid-1800s as a company town in a narrow ravine along the banks of French Creek. The town was the home to workers at the iron ore mines and quarry that were located in the woods near the settlement.

Almost immediately the recreation potential of this stretch of French Creek was realized, and a hotel was built in the community.

Today, St. Peters Village has been amazingly well preserved and offers a great look at what a mid-19th-century industrial village would have looked like. Along the quarter-mile main street, a series of buildings are filled with artisan shops, places to eat, and even a hotel.

Behind the buildings, a series of interconnecting hiking trails allow for exploration of Hopewell Big Woods and the boulder-strewn French Creek.

Hiking at St. Peters Village

During my recent visit, I arrived in the village early on a Saturday and opted to go hiking first to beat the crowds that would surely be coming later in the day.

The parking area for the hiking trails is located just steps from the village’s shops and is large enough to fit a good number of cars. This parking area can be found at the following coordinates: 40.179807, -75.732020.

Even fairly early on a Saturday morning, there were a handful of cars already in the parking lot.

During my time hiking at St. Peters Village, I encountered a few other people on the trails including a guy who was doing some pretty sketchy jumping between the rocks. There also was a father and son who told me they were meeting a group there to go snorkeling. To be honest, I’m not sure if they were the victims of a prank or not as I’m not sure where or why you would go snorkeling there.

The main problem with hiking at St. Peters Village is that there is no trail map or markers. While there is a series of interconnected trails throughout this expansive forest, it’s next to impossible to figure out exactly where you are going once you leave the area around the creek. If you opt to head deep into the woods, I’d recommend carrying a GPS so you don’t get turned around and lost.

Because of this, I opted to stick close to French Creek and explore this incredible boulder-filled waterway.

Even without venturing deep into the forest, the hiking trails around St. Peters Village were pretty remarkable and featured beautiful scenery and even a few remnants of the area’s industrial past.

This portion of French Creek is strewn with boulders both big and small that create a series of small waterfalls along the waterway. In some places, especially upstream of the bridge, the boulders are so thick that you can’t see the creek’s water at all.

Walking up and down the stream is a ton of fun, and there are a lot of great nooks and crannies to explore here. It would definitely be easy to waste an entire day just enjoying this beautiful waterway (and possibly snorkeling). However, there’s a lot more to explore in the nearby village.

Exploring St. Peters Village

For many, the main attraction at St. Peters Village is simply the village itself. The entire community is a quarter-mile long, which means you could walk from one end to the other in five minutes or drive through even more quickly. However, giving such a cursory glance to this quaint area would be a mistake.

St. Peters Village is not only an incredible example of a mid-19th-century industrial village, but the buildings are filled with the types of shops that will make you want to keep coming back to visit again.

My first stop after hiking was the Saint Peters Bakery. This small restaurant features a variety of baked goods and utilizes unbleached flour and zero preservatives in their delicious food. They even bake their bread fresh daily using a starter that dates back over 100 years!

Whether you are looking for a quick snack or a meal, this is a fantastic place to stop, especially since they have a beautiful deck that overlooks French Creek.

Throughout the rest of the village, there is a winery and a series of artisan shops that feature everything from blown glass to local photography. Popping into these shops is a great way to pass the time and experience a few of the great artists that live in the region.

If you are looking for a bit of nostalgic fun, head into the Village Arcade. The Arcade primarily features pinball machines from the 1950s-1970s, as well as a few arcade games and games of chance. This is a great spot to waste a few hours while in the area.

On the edge of town, the largest building in the community is the Inn at St. Peters.

The inn has been completely restored and features seven room in its bed and breakfast. (Check reviews of the Inn at St. Peters)

The inn also features a fine dining restaurant, so if you are looking for a nicer or more substantial meal, this is the place to head.

Overall, St. Peters Village is a hidden gem of western Chester County, PA. While it’s not large, there’s more than enough to do in the village and on its hiking trails for a full day of adventure.

Looking for more spots to visit nearby? Check out our favorite hikes near Philadelphia, the covered bridges of Chester County, and Ringing Rocks Park.

The Singer Equipment Company tent sale has returned this year, Friday October 21st through the 23rd at its Elverson, Pennsylvania Headquarters. The annual event will be highlighted with the liquidation of many products from many of the most trusted brands in foodservice equipment and supplies.

Singer’s Tent Sale will include worktables, cooking equipment, refrigeration, small wares, glassware, pots, pans, and much more. With supply chain issues continuing to plague the food service industry, this tent sale is a great way to buy unique products that can be useful to operators in all segments from restaurants healthcare and corporate dining.

For 102 years Singer Equipment has been a trusted food service equipment dealer focusing on food service equipment supplies, heavy equipment, and disposables. It is the largest foodservice equipment and supplies dealer based on the East Coast servicing the NY to DC market, and a two-time recipient of the “Dealer of the Year” award by Foodservice Equipment and Supplies Magazine. Andrew Beauchamp, the Vice President of Sales Operations, touched on what makes Singer Equipment special.

“It’s our service and product sourcing capabilities,” Beauchamp said. “We pride ourselves on industry knowledge, relationships and responsiveness, and are always accountable. Every customer we work with receives this value proposition.”

Singer’s commitment to go that extra step was certainly the case with a restaurant project in nearby Hershey, PA. When deciding to add new food and beverage options at Hersheypark, Hershey’s team of experts contacted Singer Equipment Company to make their Chocolatier Restaurant, Bar + Patio a reality.

With a vision of fun meets chocolate, the Hersheypark foodservice team and Singer’s design experts created custom faux wood tabletops and a ferris wheel sampler platter. They both display Hershey’s iconic pinwheel inlaid, to create a feature that combines Hershey’s past and present. The eatery also includes Hershey Kisses shaped cast iron skillets, sandwich boards with the emblazoned Chocolatier logo, and Libbey glassware for the restaurants signature milkshakes.

Singer’s complete design build services, dedicated kitchen design teams, and partnerships with contractors will bring any project from concept to opening. These types of customizations, along with deep industry knowledge, are what makes Singer Equipment unique and that uniqueness is what you will find at this tent sale.

The tent sale is a way for Singer Equipment to close out on products that have been sitting in their warehouse for the last couple of years. You will mostly find custom or modified products that are not often available through your sales representative.

According to Beauchamp, “We welcome everyone back to our tent sale. There will be tens of thousands of custom and standard products for any foodservice setting. We will have great deals especially in the equipment and tabletop categories – this is the perfect opportunity to accessorize your kitchen or find a complimentary piece for a new menu item.”

You do not have to be a current Singer Equipment customer to attend this tent sale. If you do decide to swing by, just be sure to pre-register online here.

Now in its third generation of family leadership, Singer Equipment Company is the fourth largest foodservice equipment and supplies dealer in the United States,. Headquartered in Elverson, Pa., Singer also maintains offices throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, as well as 5 distribution centers totaling more than 450,000 square feet. The company has continued its growth initiative in 2022 with the purchase of Massachusetts based Kittredge Equipment earlier this year.

ELVERSON, PA — Adding to its investment in Chester County, Comcast this week announced it is expanding its smart, fast and reliable fiber-rich network to hundreds of additional residents and businesses in the borough of Elverson. Additionally, the expansion to Honey Brook Borough is now complete – reaching an additional 2,000 residents and businesses.

Soon, Elverson will have access to the full suite of Xfinity residential and Comcast Business services, including residential broadband Internet speeds of up to 1.2 gigabits per second (Gbps) for residences and up to 100 Gbps for businesses.

“We, in Elverson, are thrilled to welcome Comcast to our town to provide residents and businesses with a choice when selecting their broadband provider,” said Mayor Esther Prosser. “I see competition as good for Elverson, and Comcast will provide that, helping to make our greatest square mile a more attractive place to live and work.”

“We are proud to continue investing in Chester County,” said Dennis Mathew, Senior Vice President, Comcast Freedom Region. “Through our network expansion work, we’re able to bring our reliable network to more homes and businesses and provide them with the Internet speed, security and functionality that keeps them connected.”

Residents can check Welcome2Xfinity.com to see if their address is included in the expansion project. If so, they can fill out a form to have a Comcast representative contact them for more information on service offerings or visit your local Xfinity Retail Store in Wyomissing, Pottstown or Exton. Residents who are currently served by Comcast can visit Xfinity.com or call 1-800-XFINITY to inquire about service, or learn more about the federal government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provides eligible households with up to $30/month toward their Internet and/or mobile service ($75/month on Tribal lands). The credit can be applied to any tier of Xfinity Internet service, including Internet Essentials, along with mobile service through Xfinity Mobile.

Residential customers in these areas will be able to take advantage of Xfinity’s full suite of Internet products, including:

For local businesses, Comcast Business offers a suite of connectivity, communications, networking, cybersecurity, wireless and managed solutions to help organizations of different sizes prepare for what’s next. Powered by the nation’s largest Gig-speed broadband network, and backed by 24/7 customer support, Comcast Business is the nation’s largest cable provider to small and mid-size businesses and one of the leading service providers to the Enterprise market. Comcast Business has been consistently recognized by industry analysts and associations as a leader and innovator, and one of the fastest growing providers of Ethernet services.

From 2017-2021 alone, Comcast has invested nearly $20 billion to evolve and grow its national network and has built 50,000 new route miles of fiber into its network. This includes expansion to many new areas across Greater Philadelphia, New Jersey and northern Delaware. And Comcast customers have been able to enjoy speed increases at no additional cost, the most recent of which was announced earlier this year.

Comcast is also deeply committed to advancing digital equity in the communities it serves. The company has installed six Lift Zones in Chester County, providing free WiFi service to help these community centers promote digital learning. Lift Zones are part of Project UP, Comcast’s comprehensive, 10-year, $1 billion commitment to help build a future of unlimited possibilities and the continuation of the company’s long history of giving back to communities where it provides service and where its employees live and work.

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For the latest news on everything happening in Chester County and the surrounding area, be sure to follow MyChesCo on Google News.

TIMONIUM, Md. — The beef world may be ready for a change.

Angus, Charolais and Herefords continue to dominate, but unusual breeds are gaining popularity.

“You look around at any beef show and you see the same thing,” said Ashlyn Morelli of Howling Springs Farm in Elverson, Pennsylvania. “I like the difference between Highlands and other beef breeds.”

The Morelli family — Thomas, Beshka and their children, Ashlyn and Thomas Jr. (T.M.) — started the farm in 2016 after Beshka saw Highland cattle at the Keystone International Livestock Exposition. She decided right then she had to buy one at a Highland livestock sale later that week.

“Tom was coming home from a trip to the mountains the day before and I felt bad, but I told him he needed to get in the trailer because we were buying a Highland heifer,” Beshka said.

They found a heifer at the sale that was quiet and small but had potential. That heifer has helped the Highland herd at Howling Springs Farm grow to 20 head.

In the beginning, the animals were livestock projects for T.M. and his best friend, Mitchell, to show.

Ashlyn was an avid horseback rider, but was at the livestock shows with her younger brother. She soon began showing the heifers and bulls as well.

The Morellis have worked hard to get to establish their place in the agriculture and livestock communities.

While Tom is not from a farming family, he does have knowledge of agricultural practices and has friends who are active farmers in the Elverson area.

In addition to Highland cattle, Howling Springs is home to a few other farm animals. The family also has crop acreage on which they grow hay and rent the rest to a local farmer.

A hardy breed, Highlands can survive in the warmer, southeastern summers with the right amount of care. Originally from Scotland, the cattle have for generations been a source of meat and milk for the small farmers of the high country who lived principally by fishing and subsistence agriculture. The hair of the cattle was useful in spinning yarn.

Beshka is focused on breeding her Highlands to excel in the ring. Her ultimate goal, is a much bigger banner.

“I want the grand champion breeding heifer banner,” she said. “That would be an amazing honor.”

The family shows all over the country in Highland and beef livestock shows, including the National Western Stock Show in Denver, where won grand champion bull with STR Burning It Down in 2018, and reserve grand champion bull with their bred and owned Howling Springs King Maker in the beginning of this year.

At the Mid-Atlantic Highland Cattle Association’s Spring Classic in May, T.M. won grand champion junior breeding heifer with STR Adrenaline, and Ashlyn won reserve grand champion junior breeding heifer with Howling Springs Dream Whip.

Ashlyn also won showmanship accolades, earning the reserve junior showmanship title at the show.

And although the Morellis did not make the supreme champion beef drive at the Maryland State Fair this year, they did not leave empty handed.

With champion and reserve champion honors in the All Other Breeds classes, as well as premier breeder and exhibitor for the AOB show, the Morellis are well on their way to reaching their goals.