Chestnut Street Community Center is abuzz with activity.
A ribbon cutting ceremony for the 15,000 square-foot multi-use building at 611 Chestnut Street, Lebanon, was held at the beginning of May.
The community center is home to the Fresh Start Emergency Shelter, which is managed by Lebanon County Christian Ministries, and a Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13 community education center. Two churches are in residence–Ministerio Vida Nueva en Cristo and Iglesia el Buen Pastor. The community center also houses a community garden, community fridge, and a seasonal Farmers Market.
Chestnut Street Community Center was founded by Dave and Laurie Funk in October 2021. It is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. The Funks purchased what had been an underused property from the First Evangelical Congregational Church in January 2022. The church joined Zion Congregational Church to form Christ Community Church in Myerstown.
“Dave and I had a vision to revitalize the space,” Laurie Funk said. She currently serves as community center president.
“This is a way for Laurie and I to give back to the community. We wanted to create a safe, functional space where a variety of groups can meet the needs of the community in a collaborate way,” added Dave Funk.
“This is a way for Laurie and I to give back to the community. We wanted to create a safe, functional space where a variety of groups can meet the needs of the community in a collaborate way.”
Dave Funk, vice president at Arthur Funk & Sons Inc.
Fresh Start Emergency Shelter
“Our new location has created a sense of community for our guests.”
Bryan Smith, LCCM executive director
Fresh Start Emergency Shelter began as a family shelter operated through a partnership between Lebanon County Christian Ministries and Jubilee Ministries. Bryan Smith, LCCM executive director, said after several years of partnership, Jubilee shifted its mission and pulled out of the program.
“LCCM continued to operate the shelter, but it was rebranded ‘Fresh Start’. At the time it was a cold shelter—an emergency overnight shelter open during cold temperatures—and it rotated in two-week stints through various churches in the county including churches in Lebanon, Myerstown, and Cornwall,” he explained.
Smith said that changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. He said at that time, the best practice was to house guests in an environment by themselves, so from March 13, 2020 until January 2022, Fresh Start shelter guests were housed in individual hotel rooms.
“We used that time to regroup and rethink the model of rotating locations. We realized that it could be disruptive to our guests, and it provided a level of uncertainty for single parents with school-age children regarding their educational needs,” he explained. “We decided to look for a more permanent location and shift to a 24/7 shelter.”
In August 2021, Lebanon City Council awarded LCCM $200,000 for a new homeless shelter from its federal COVID-19 relief funds. Smith had been aware of the Funks plan to purchase the church building, and a donor provided an additional $200,000 to help LCCM with its new shelter. “That was an affirmation we were on the right path,” Smith said.
In February 2022, Fresh Start began using what would become the community center as a temporary shelter site—guests slept on the floor using mats. Construction on the shelter space began July 2023, and Fresh Start moved into the space in February.
Fresh Start’s new shelter has about 4,600 square-feet of space. It has a capacity for 24 guests with seven rooms that contain beds and bunk beds, three full bathrooms, a laundry facility with two washers and two dryers, a study area, a children’s playroom, and a full kitchen and dining room space containing two ovens, two microwaves and four refrigerator/freezers. There are also offices for the shelter’s director and staff.
Men, women, and families are accepted, and the intent is to provide housing for 45 to 60 days.
“Our heart and our main intent is to keep families together, and we try to connect our guests to community resources,” Smith said. “Our new location has created a sense of community for our guests.”
He added that Fresh Start is a partner of WellSpan’s Arches to Wellness recuperative care program, so two of the beds are dedicated for that program.
Community Education Center
“We’re about community impact and working together with other organizations for effective impact.”
Tim Shenk, IU13 community education program director
Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13’s Community Education Center has called Chestnut Street Community Center home since January.
“It’s not what people normally think of when they think of IU13—we serve adult learners,” said Tim Shenk, IU 13 community education program director.
IU 13 had been using space at a location on Cumberland Street, but about 18 months ago, the facility was flooded.
“We needed a place to hold classes, and as we discussed our needs, we realized we needed a larger space than what we previously had,” Shenk explained. “Plans for the community center were underway, and we were able to secure space here.”
He said the IU offers three levels of English as a Second Language classes, high school equivalency test preparation (GED or HiSET) classes, and citizenship classes, which prepare adult immigrants to complete the naturalization process. Online options are also offered including job training classes. The organization also partners with employers to offer classes at their site.
Classrooms in IU 13’s space at Chestnut Street Community Center. (Will Trostel)
“We have a full-time student advisor onsite who works with learners to connect them with job opportunities. The advisor also helps connect learners with resources that can help them overcome obstacles to job success including child care and transportation,” Shenk said. “We’re about community impact and working together with other organizations for effective impact.”
In addition to being in the heart of the city, the community center is close to an elementary school. “Some of our learners drop their kids off at elementary school and then come here for classes themselves,” he said. “Many of our parents want to be good examples for their kids and that’s impressive.”
Shenk said the IU is hoping to grow its community education class offerings in Lebanon. He said a partnership with HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s community college, is in the works, which would offer CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) classes in conjunction with Tec Centro Lebanon. Shenk said Tec Centro would provide space for the program, while IU 13 would offer an ESL component.
Community hub
The community center is also a hub for other activities.
Landisdale Farm operates a seasonal farmers market in the courtyard Wednesday afternoons from 3 to 5:30 p.m.
Penn State Health and Cornwall Manor-Rodale Institute Trailside Organic Farm are partners in a community fridge.
There’s also space for community groups to meet. Girls on the Run hosts coach training sessions, and Justic Works Youth Care holds family reconciliation planning meetings.
Constructing the Community Center
Dave Funk, who is vice president and project manager at Arthur Funk & Sons Inc., has a lifelong history of servant leadership. He has served on the board of LCCM and was involved with the Fresh Start Shelter. Laurie Funk has been involved with Lebanon County Youth for Christ.
“Through our volunteer efforts, we saw firsthand the struggles people had in dealing with homelessness, particularly the impact homelessness has on children,” Laurie Funk said.
The couple was familiar with the property that would become the community center since they’ve lived in the parsonage of the former First Evangelical Congregational Church since 2016.
Dave Funk said the building that currently houses the Chestnut Street Community Center is a three-story building built in 1963, and it served as a Christian education building. Classrooms occupied two floors, and a social hall was on another floor.
“It hadn’t been updated. There was no ventilation system, and it was not ADA accessible,” he explained.
“We wanted to create a warm, inviting feel throughout the center and have some uniformity throughout the spaces.”
Dave Funk, vice president at Arthur Funk & Sons Inc.
Planning for the renovation that would create the community center began in 2022. Beers + Hoffman Architecture designed the space with the Fresh Start shelter on the second floor. The two churches in residence, Ministerio Vida Nueva en Cristo and Iglesia el Buen Pastor, utilize the ground floor meeting space for their worship services. As the design for the building was being finalized, the Funks connected with IU 13, and after discussion, their classroom and space was incorporated into the design for the first floor.
After the most of the interior was demolished, construction began March 2023. “We basically kept the exterior shell of the building,” Dave Funk said.
He said adding an elevator to serve all levels of the building was the first item to be tackled. A Community Block Development Grant through the Lebanon County Redevelopment Authority funded the elevator installation. Other renovations included a new HVAC system, a fire suppression (sprinkler) system and new windows. New light fixtures were also installed.
“We wanted to create a warm, inviting feel throughout the center and have some uniformity throughout the spaces,” Dave said.
For more information about the Chestnut Street Community Center, visit www.cscclebanon.com.
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