About Lititz's Historic Lititz Boro

Don't you just love it when you hear about a private enterprise doing their part for the community?

Several weeks ago, Fox's Country Sheds provided a "shed kit" to the Warwick Middle School technology class, in the Warwick School District in Lancaster County, PA.

Warwick School District is in the midst of renovating and expanding their current middle school, and the students are surrounded by on-going construction. Their very forward-thinking technology teacher thought it would help his students understand the processes going on around them if they could somehow participate in something similar firsthand.

So, they researched what they wanted to build, and decided on a "shed kit" ~ which includes all of the components of a garden shed, but it is not pre-assembled. They even went as far as spending time on the www.FoxSheds.com website, choosing a shed style - the Carriage Shed (shown below), choosing colors, and ordering the shed right online. Of course, being the community-supporter that it is, Fox's Country Sheds gave them a great discount.

There are some great photos of the shed being built by the students on the Warwick School District website.

There is also a great article on the Warwick School District website about how much the students learned while building the shed, and what they are purchasing with the proceeds after selling the shed to a fellow teacher.

According to the article, some of the students enjoyed the construction process so much that they might be considering it as a career. Others have taken to starting their own projects at home, such as treehouses.

There were some questions along the way, and Fox's was always available to help guide them through some tricky construction spots. But, the kids did everything from putting the walls and floor together to shingling the roof, and even hanging the vinyl siding.

I think it's great that our community has such innovative and bright teachers, who are helping local students expand their horizons. Kudos to the middle school students at Warwick, and their teacher Mr. Hartmann as well as their very helpful Millersville University student teacher.

Fox's Country Sheds would be happy to assist other local organizations or municipalities with a similar project. They can be reached at www.FoxSheds.com , via email at info@foxsheds.com , or called directly at 717-626-9560.

---------

Edited 10/12/08

I think the Lititz Porchwalk was a huge success! I had to drive through Lititz on Saturday morning and then back through again on Saturday afternoon. The entire town was buzzing with people enjoying the absolutely beautiful weather! The cafe's were busting at the seams with both , locals and visitors, stopping for a quick coffee break. The shops were busy, the porches were full of good stuff, and I drove through town jealous that I couldn't park and walk and participate.

Hope all who had a chance to visit the Lititz Porch Walk had a wonderful time! Remember Lovin' Lititz Every Second, when there are more terrific community events throughout Lititz Boro.

A few months ago I posted about my experience in donating blood during our Long & Foster Community Day blood drive at the office, and the importance of helping our your local Red Cross chapter in "Thanks, But I already Gave at the Office".

For those of you who for whatever reason either cannot give blood or choose to help in some other way, here is your perfect opportunity to not only spend a great day outdoors, but to help the National Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.

For a donation of $20 (or $5 admission) you can enjoy an All You Can Eat buffet sponsored by the Macaroni Grill (mmmm....) and watch the Lancaster Polo Club Tournament ~ all while helping to benefit the National American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund , which will go specifically to help those in need after 2008 hurricanes.

Sounds like a win-win kinda day to me! Below are the details as forwarded to me by the Susquehanna Chapter of the Red Cross:

Some people ask what I do in my spare time...

And my answer to them is "What spare time?!"

When I'm not showing and selling big houses ~ I'm still showing and selling "little" houses. What do I mean by that??

Well, my husband I and own a "shed manufacturing" business right here in Lancaster County. At Fox's Country Sheds & Structures, we design and build custom (and just regular 'ol ones) garden sheds, pool houses, and garages. We sell them retail through our website or on our facility property at discounted prices, but our main aspect of the business is wholesaling to dealers, landscapers and even custom home builders. We also ship out of state, and build "shed kits" for delivery to those who want to put the shed together themselves and save on shipping. Our most recent kits have been shipped to Virginia, Long Island and I have an upcoming shipment of a Cabana style shed to Florida.

I love both of my careers! Selling these "little houses" - sheds, poolhouses and garages - is like having a "closing" every single day!

When I am working on-site at Fox's, I meet fantastic retail customers -- just like home buyers:

• and help them to choose the colors of vinyl siding that will best match or complement their home,
  
• help them to choose shingles and shutters,
  
• help them to determine the best placement of their doors and windows to maximize and complement whatever their needs are.
  
• We also provide whatever support we can to those needing township permits or have special deed restrictions on colors and sizes of accessory buildings.

For those who do not have easy access to the site for our trailer to deliver their shed or garage, we do a "build-on site" right on their property. This means that our construction crew shows up early with all of the supplies they need and will custom build the structure right in front of your eyes right on the site you specify. It's very much like the famous "Amish Barn raisings" that Lancaster is known for. We do a large number of these build-on site jobs, and have had three scheduled for this week alone, two of them out of the Lancaster County area and one right in downtown Lancaster City.

We order lumber and building supplies by the truckload ~ and I can honestly say that I know how home builders are hurting with the rising costs of building supplies! But, while home sales are down, our sales of sheds and garages are going up... I find that homeowners are not moving, but rather adding economical storage to their homes and getting their *stuff* out of their garages and into their backyard sheds. They are also "vacationing" at home, and have been adding pool houses, cabanas and gazebos to their backyards rather than splurging and taking long distance trips!

My favorite part of this shed-building business, though, is working with custom orders. We use our architectural software to design new structures in various styles to meet the needs of our customers ~ whether they are our retail customers of the customer of one of our dealers. We are working on some designs of a Cape Cod style building for a local country club lately to store some of their recreational activity items, and have recently quoted a local boys club for a number of cabins for their campsite.

I also love helping a customer to design a special potting shed or garden shed that would complement their historic home, or whatever their specific design needs are. There are those who just want a regular ol' tool shop or garage, but then there are others who really want something special that no other neighbor of theirs has ~ those are the fun ones to work on!

We have done government contracts -- always a challenge but very satisfying -- and give discounts to municipalities and philanthropic and church groups. What better way to build your business ~ any business ~ than by giving back in some way.

I see our buyers sometimes take weeks to decide exactly what style and colors to choose ~ just like building and purchasing a house. And, with my real estate experience, I know exactly what they are going through! It's really no different to most people, and it's an investment in their property that they want to be sure will meet their needs for years to come. I can completely understand.

So you see, "houses" to me really do come in all shapes and sizes!

We also sell custom vinyl swingsets and gazebos - all built by our local Amishmen with unsurpassed quality and attention to detail. We are delivering a gazebo to a cemetary and have a bid in for our swingsets to go into a number of apartment rental complexes throughout Pennsylvania. The really fun stuff is the rubber mulch that we sell with our swingsets ~ and you'll often see me *testing* it out by jumping up and down on it ~ it's quite springy and fun!

For those of my collegues who have home buyers and sellers who need more room ~ whether a backyard shed or even a single or two-car garage ~ feel free to refer them to me at Fox's Country Sheds. I promise to take excellent care of their needs, and you will look like a hero for solving their storage and garage or parking dilemmas.

So again I ask -- Spare Time?? What's that!?!

Do you have a family business that you also help to run? I'd love to hear about it!

Fox's Country Sheds & Structures is located at 537 E 28th Division Hwy, Lititz, PA, right in the heart of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. We are just east of Brickerville at the Route 501 intersection, and west of Ephrata, along Route 322.

You can also visit our Shed Blog or our website at www.FoxSheds.com .