Lydia Troncale spotlight

Lydia Troncale is living an adventure, one filled with both passion and dedication.

A former New Holland resident who graduated from Lancaster Mennonite School, she now lives in Russia and works for Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy as development director. The organization runs 12 social-service programs across Moscow, including two soup kitchens and several initiatives to help the large African and Afghani refugee communities.

Troncale’s primary job is to raise funds and expand MPC’s social programs. Her first connection to Russia was through mission trips as a teenager, working in orphanages in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

On her first trip, in 1998, she met a 4-year-old girl in an orphanage whom Troncale’s parents later adopted. Since then, Troncale has maintained a strong connection to Russia through a study-abroad program and more than a dozen visits. She plans to stay overseas and continue working for social justice.

“I can’t imagine doing anything else,” Troncale said.
Age: 24.
Family: Parents Joseph and Lisa; sisters Maria, Anna, Masha and Anya; and younger brother Joseph.
Education: Graduated from Millersville University with a bachelor’s degree in social work; Master of Arts in international development from Eastern University.

My day: Every day is different. I work with many different people on lots of tasks. I take the metro to the city and try to work at our soup kitchens, as the interaction with our clients makes my work extremely worthwhile. I also study Russian 15 hours a week at a language institute. My newest project is starting a “Meals on Wheels” program, which I hope to begin this spring.

Why I do what I do: I have a passion for people and social justice. As a Christian, I believe in living a life that emulates Jesus’ commands to help the poor.
Professional challenges: You have to find healthy ways to cope with the deep sadness of what you see every day on the job. The refugees are men, women and children of all ages. They are the lowest members of society, with few possessions and not much hope for the future.
Biggest cultural difference between Lancaster and Moscow: While Moscow is becoming much more westernized, the biggest social difference is that no one in Russia smiles! I miss happy faces.

Favorite thing about Russia: The architecture is magnificent because everything is so old. I also love the strong traditions in Russia. For example, you just know going into a Russian home that you will take your shoes off, put slippers on, and be invited to sit and have tea.

Favorite Russian food: Blini are little pancakes like crepes that are filled with cheese or jam. They are a common Russian street food.
If I could have dinner with anyone (living or dead): Anna Politkovskaya, the late Russian journalist.
Favorite book: “City of Thieves” by David Benioff. I also enjoyed “Sammy’s Hill” by Kristin Gore, which I read on the metro, riding to work.

For fun in Russia: I enjoy going to the theater and ballet and relaxing in coffee shops with friends. My roommate and I throw a weekly wine-and-cheese party and we play Nintendo Wii with several of our friends.

Who/what inspires me in life: People pioneering modern-day human-rights issues, like Gary Haugen, who started the International Justice Mission.
Future goals: I would like to go back to graduate school and become more educated on the topic of refugees and forced migration issues. I would like to become fluent in Russian and continue to stay oversees.

Words that describe me: Passionate, advocate and adventuresome.

Quote to live by: “If adventures do not befall a young lady in her own village, she must seek them abroad,” —Jane Austen.

Alice Eby spotlight

Alice Eby believes in hard work. So much, in fact, that she often forgets to eat.

Born in Taiwan, she has been in the area since 1982, when she married her late husband, John Eby, and moved to America.

“Working hard means you feel proud of yourself,” the Gap resident said.

When she first came to America, she helped her husband, a Lancaster County native, salt hides. Today Alice still works 18-hour days, but she’s branched into other ventures.

Alice owns two businesses in Intercourse: Eby’s House and Nancy’s Corner, where she sells quilts, pillows, wall hangings and other novelty items for tourists.

She said the road of life can have bumps, but they are what helps someone grow up. With age comes experience, she said. “If you do something you like, life will not be a bumpy road.”

What are some of the biggest cultural differences between America and Taiwan? I enjoy the four seasons. Over there it is only humid. Here it is also nice and quiet. In the city, I had no lawn to mow.

Family: My mother is in California. I have one brother and two sisters in America as well.

What was your life like when you first came to America? Johnny and I worked hard. We would work all day and forget to eat. We were hungry but happy.

The biggest challenges in a new country were: The hardest part was the language. I learned English in middle school but slang here is very hard to understand!

How do you know what tourists will want to buy? I know what the trends are and try to have options for both Americans and foreigners. People come from all over the U.S. and as far as Germany and Australia to buy quilts.

Here, people like flowers. Europeans like solid colors. Right now the big colors are browns and golds, colors popular in the ’70s.

My business advice: You have to try several things before you know what you’ll want to do. If you have a goal, you’ll make it. Johnny said you either float or you sink. I wanted to float.

The difficult part of running business today is: It is sometimes hard to find dependable help. You must always trust people, but they must prove themselves.

America today is different, in that: People used to save their pennies. People used to patch their clothes. Look around today: no patches.

My advice for today’s young people: It’s nothing fancy. You have to save, not use credit cards, and work hard. Learn everything you can and the money will come. Don’t forget that money isn’t everything. The question is: Are you happy?

The recession will pass: If everybody works together and works harder, our country will be like before. We must look up and look at the brighter side.

Planning on retiring? No, I like working! I enjoy it very much. I feel proud when I look at what I have created, and at my business. I like to keep learning.

Any hobbies? No. I work and eat. Work first. Eat second. I very much enjoy my life. Life isn’t about dressing up and being fancy. It’s about working hard.

A final piece of advice: In the end, you have to help yourself. You can have everything you want, but you have to like what you do.

"Wintergirls" book review

Books about eating disorders must straddle a very fine line, exposing the diseases as real and being as truthful as possible without making them look the least bit enticing.
In her new novel for young adults, “Wintergirls,” Laurie Halse Anderson uses her gift for becoming the character so well that it seems like a journal of a real-life girl — a girl who is killing herself slowly for the sake of being thin.
“I would never be popular. I didn’t want to be; I liked being shy. I’d never be the smartest or the hottest or the happiest. By eighth grade, you start to figure out your limits. But there was one thing I was really good at … I [would be] the skinniest girl in school.”
With that, best friends Lia and Cassie prick their fingers under the moonlight to seal their oath in blood, and their journey toward death begins.
Just as in Anderson’s best-selling young-adult novel “Speak,” painful life events lead to self-destructive behavior that seems out of the characters’ power to control.
Lia’s dysfunctional family and the death of her bulimic best friend cause her to gravitate to the only thing she feels she can control in life: her weight.
The reader may want to scream at Lia and shake her, but may also feel the demons and visions she sees are the same ones the reader sometimes sees.
Lia knows she is dying and dreams about it. She doesn’t want to die, but she can’t stop it. All she can do is calculate calories of the food she does eat. Self-condemnation is all she knows.
“I know exactly what’s wrong. I am a gluttonous, gorging failure. A waste.”
This is not a happy book. It is dark, from the cold winter setting to the demons that Lia sees every day. Lia struggles with the ghost of Cassie, who she believes wants her dead. Cassie’s ghost tells her she is trapped between the living and the dead, and she wants Lia on her team.
“The dead do walk and haunt and crawl into your bed at night. Ghosts sneak into your head when you’re not looking ... poison berries make girls stronger, but sometimes kill them. If you howl at the moon and swear on your blood, anything you desire will be yours. Be careful what you wish for. There’s always a catch.”
At the end of “Speak” the silenced rape victim compares herself to a tree. When she speaks, she can finally grow. “I feel the frozen stillness melt down through the inside of me, dripping shards of ice that vanish in a puddle of sunlight on the stained floor. Words float up.”
In the same way, “Wintergirls” does not have a happy ending but ends with the promise of a new beginning.
“Somehow, I dragged myself out of the dark and asked for help … there is no magic cure, no making it all go away forever. There are only small steps upward; an easier day, an unexpected laugh, a mirror that doesn’t matter anymore. I am thawing.”
Anderson will again capture, move and, more importantly, cause her teen audience to stop and think. Only books written with her clarity and honesty can shoulder the weight of stirring a life — and perhaps even saving one.

Shop Your Closet

“Fashion can be bought. Style one must possess.”
— Edna Woolman Chase


No money to buy the latest fashions? Trying to look trendy but can’t afford to? Just look in your closet — the style you want you might already possess.
With the economy forcing us to decide between needs and wants, now is the perfect time to get creative and organized by “shopping your own closet.”
There could be a great floral skirt lurking in there, waiting to be paired with a gray camisole and black cardigan that you never thought to put together, or a pair of wide-leg pants that would look fabulous with those leopard-print ballet flats you thought didn’t match anything.
According to http://style.com, the online home of Vogue magazine, shopping your closet means “diving deep into your closet, storage space or perhaps parent’s basement to uncover your own fabulous clothing from seasons past — so long past, in fact, that they somehow feel new.”
To Emily Bruce, of Coatesville, shopping her closet, she said, “means taking a new look at articles of clothing I already own and trying to find new ways to combine them into different outfits I didn’t think of before.”
Bruce said she owns a lot of bohemian/hippie-style tops that have stayed in style throughout the years.
In her book, “The Little Black Book of Style,” Nina Garcia, fashion director for Marie Claire magazine, says the key to updating what you own is adding jewelry. Unique costume jewelry can take simple, everyday clothes and elevate them to a fashionable level.
Wear a stack of gold bangles, or a long necklace for an updated ’70s-style image with your peasant tops and blouses.
Erica Eisenbise, of Narvon, agrees. “If you feel the need to buy something new but can’t really afford it, go and buy a few accessories that will accent a piece of clothing you already own,” she said. You will feel great knowing you didn’t spend a lot of money but are still “sporting a new look,” she added.

Eisenbise, 20, attended Indiana University of Pennsylvania for fashion merchandising. She likes to be creative with what she has. “Mix and match bright colors,” she said, noting that neon colors of the ’80s are, and will continue to be, a big trend. “You can also layer two shirts to create a whole different look.”
“There are many ways in which you can update an old look,” said Jackie Merrin, an Art Institute of Philadelphia fashion marketing graduate who currently lives in Drexel Hill.
“For example, I was going on a job interview while living in L.A. and I took an old cotton dress that I wore on the beach with flip-flops, and turned it into the amazing dress that landed me the position. The plain white cotton dress, that at one point just looked average, now looked unique.” How? Merrin added a rhinestone belt and wore silver heels; it changed the outfit’s entire vibe.
“Looking through old clothes can make you realize how creative you really are!” Merrin said.
Editing your closet is a good way to start rediscovering what you have. If you eliminate pieces that you never wear, it becomes easier to recognize the potential of items that remain.
Be honest and ruthless. Only keep things that fit, and that you wear. Put the clothes that are in good condition back in the closet; donate items you will never wear again; put pieces that need simple alterations in another pile. Allow yourself only one week to get them altered; if you don’t do it after that deadline, toss them.
Bruce said it’s a good idea to clean out your closet at the beginning of each season.
“Get rid of clothes that you don’t regularly wear. You can always sell them on eBay or at a consignment shop and use that money towards new purchases.” She has been shopping a lot less lately, because money is tighter, and said most of her clothes come from consignment shops.
“I think as long as you buy clothing that looks good on you and fits your body type instead of just buying stuff because it’s trendy, then you will be able to shop your closet for years,” Bruce added.
Back in a pre-recession world, shopping for something new was thought to be less of an effort than opening the closet and digging out something already there.
Now it seems wise to take the time to sort through overstuffed closets, before heading out shopping for even more.
“I think the economy has a lot to do with the way we shop now,” Merrin said. She finds herself buying more practical pieces like a “good pair of jeans or shoes,” that she can wear repeatedly. “I have definitely learned it’s about quality not quantity.”
Designer Michael Kors says on style.com that our fashion spending should now be limited to items that are “seasonless.” That could mean long cardigans, which can work from fall through spring, and denim jackets, which are always in style.
Throw one over a T-shirt and with jeans or leggings you already own, and you will look current no matter the season.
Shopping your closet will give you many new outfit options and “open up the door” to new style.
“It’s using what you already have to create a new look that fits today’s trends,” said Eisenbise, smiling in her neon sundress.n
So, are you ready to start?
Tips from Emily Bruce:
•Add jewelry, such as long necklaces, to your bohemian-style tops and blouses.
•Get rid of old clothes and make a few dollars by selling them through eBay or consignment shops.
•Buy clothing that fits your body, not just what’s trendy.

Tips from Erica Eisenbise:
•Mix and match different colors.
•Layer two shirts, one long and one short.



Tips from Jackie Merrin:
•Add a belt to an old dress.
•Wear different shoes with an outfit you already have.
•Buy practical pieces: Think quality not quantity!

Back to the '80s and '40s

Time to put away the shorts and tank tops — fall is here to stay and, with it, the fun of fashion!
This season, fashion is taking a turn to the past; the most dominant trend is the return of the ’80s.
That means big shoulders, neon colors and body-conscious fits are in style once again.
Marti Corle, owner of Marti on West King Street, said she is seeing a return of the decade’s “severe structuring.”

“One of my most popular fall pants is going to be a skinny-knit pant that stops at the ankle,” which, she said, references leggings.
Big shoulders will also be a popular look according to Candy Pratts Price, executive fashion director at
Style.com. Styles now are less bulky and more tailored, which creates a flattering silhouette.
Corle said jackets with strong shoulders look good with straight-leg pants “to balance the volume on top.”
Vivid colors like pink, blue and yellow are reminiscent of the ’80s, but now come in new shapes that look modern, not over-the-top retro.
The fall fashion issue of Marie Claire says the key to wearing saturated colors is to “mix solid separates in unexpected pigments.”
Debbie Serdy, of My Aunt Debbie boutique, located inside Mommalicious & Smilin’ Gal, on North Queen Street, said women are embracing vintage fashion from the ’40s this fall. This includes fur coats and stoles, tie-neck blouses and hats.
“What is trendy is mixing vintage and new,” Serdy said. “Pairing a sheer ’40s blouse with jeans is a great look. When you do this it doesn’t look costumey.”
Other popular looks from this era tap menswear, which includes variations from pinstripe pencil skirts to androgynous pantsuits and fedoras.
Alicia Byler, owner of Mommalicious, said, “large, chunky necklaces” will be very fashionable this fall.
They look best with simple clothing, so it’s an easy way to update what you own. Pair an outrageous necklace with a T-shirt and jeans, and you will look stylish and modern.
Whether you choose to embrace these trends full-on, or pick just a few to discreetly transition into fall, remember to have fun and be yourself! (Maybe an ’80s version of yourself, but yourself nonetheless).

"Classy" book review

“A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.” Coco Chanel

There are two kinds of girls: classy and trashy. Derek Blasberg, author of “Classy: Exceptional Advice for the Extremely Modern Lady,” starts with this simple premise.
But don’t worry. You might not have been born a lady, but there is no reason you can’t learn to be one.
This book couldn’t have come at a better time, just when it seems the worst-behaved celebrities get all the attention, your Facebook friend with the trashiest photos gets the most “likes,” and the loudest girl at the party is having the most fun.
Blasberg says it’s time for a change.
Blasberg is from Missouri and rose to fashion-world popularity after coming to New York City, attending New York University and writing for magazines like Vogue, W, Harper’s Bazaar and Interview
It is his Midwestern background and good-natured humor that make his writing very likable. You can see yourself hanging out with him, maybe becoming best friends.
He lives in the vain, shallow world of celebrities and socialites but knows and wants to pass on the idea that filling your mind with worthless activities like reading the tabloids and engaging in gossip will get you nowhere.
Blasberg covers many aspects of life, from throwing a dinner party to cleaning up a filthy mouth. The book is overflowing with advice, quotes from famous designers past and present, photos of do’s and don’ts, and lists of books, movies, plays and artists.
The best way to approach this book is to take it little by little or pick it up when you have a question about something — such as what to pack when traveling abroad.
The first tips are for outward appearances, such as choosing three accessories that are simple and go with anything: big sunglasses, cocktail rings and brooches.
Clothing tells the world a lot about who you are and is always sending a message. Short and tight says tramp. Classy is never both of those.
Blasberg then covers social situations with tips that range from how to perfect a flattering photograph pose to when to put a cell phone down: at the dinner table, on a date, and in a meeting.
Other tips include how to have good guest etiquette, how to decode a party dress code, how to introduce people, and even how to sit properly in a skirt.
At the end of each chapter, Blasberg has a little quiz you can take to check your ranking on questions such as “Do you know how to throw down?” (plan a party); “Are you a social dead weight?” (concerning charm); and “What’s your travel style?” (some people really do best staying home).
There are also “Recessionista” pages for ideas on dressing stylishly on a tight budget and throwing a successful party with cheap champagne and Kentucky Fried Chicken buckets.
Blasberg covers more than just the fluff of life by devoting a chapter to learning, saying a lady should always expand her horizons, help others, and know what’s going on in the world.
I especially enjoyed his section on hard work. In today’s entitlement society — and in the world Blasberg inhabits — it is easy to see Generation Y as lazy, self-obsessed and narcissistic.
He ends with a section on paying your dues, saying the chance to intern or work at an entry-level job is your time to make a good impression by working hard. After all, Blasberg quotes, “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”
Today’s young lady who is looking for advice on how to be a sophisticated modern woman only needs the motivation to do so and Blasberg’s Tiffany-blue “Classy” tucked fashionably under her arm.

"Bambo People" book review

"Writing to ‘shape the human heart"

Growing up, Mitali Perkins considered books her lifeline.
They were her rock and sometimes her only friends as her family moved around the world.
Today the Newton, Mass., resident writes her own books, hoping her words can influence and help teenagers who were just like her.
“I know firsthand how stories shape the human heart during childhood and adolescence, so it was a bit of a no-brainer for me,” Perkins said.
“Who wouldn’t want one of the most powerful vocations on the planet?”
Her new novel, “Bamboo People,” is about the modern-day war in Myanmar (Burma), told through the eyes of two teenage boys whose lives are changed when their paths collide.
“This book is not traditional,” Perkins said, “but kids will like it because it’s an adventure.”
Publishers Weekly gave “Bamboo People” a starred review, calling it “a graceful exploration of the redemptive power of love, family, and friendship under untenable circumstances.”
This is her first book written from a boy’s perspective.
“I have twin sons in high school, so I know boys, but I myself am a girly-girl,” Perkins said. She added that it was fun looking at life through the eyes of a teen boy, but she is happy to keep writing as a girl in the future.
Her previous books include “Monsoon Summer,” “The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen” and “First Daughter: Extreme American Makeover.”
Perkins’ experiences living in different cultures and traveling the planet inspire her to write books that aren’t typical of the children’s and young-adult genres.
By age 11, this Calcutta native had lived in London, New York, Mexico and Thailand before her family settled in the San Francisco Bay area.
She studied political science at Stanford University and public policy at University of California, Berkeley, and said she survived academia thanks to a steady diet of children’s books.
Perkins went on to teach middle school, high school and college students, but writing books remained her passion.
It was her political science background that led her to write “Bamboo People.” She knew about the struggles of child soldiers but said there are “no children’s books on the market that deal with this serious stuff.”
The author said she is counting on librarians and independent booksellers like Aaron’s Books to introduce her new book to teens, because it might not be a choice they would find on their own.
“I’m hoping when teens read this they will care about the characters and think about how small choices matter,” Perkins said.
“Because when the time comes for bigger choices, then you will make the right one.”