See, Hear and Taste Vera Cruz

by Jennifer Marangos, photo courtesy of CrazyHeart

You can tell true Vera Cruzian by the fact that he refers to his hometown as Vera Cruz.

The Village of Vera Cruz has in many ways been swallowed up by Upper Milford Township. Folks who live there use Upper Millford or Emmaus for their mailing address. Kids who live in Vera Cruz attend school in East Penn School District along with their friends from Emmaus and Macungie.

But, anyone who has driven through the main (and only?) intersection in Vera Cruz – the four-way stop
by the Tavern – the intersection of Main Road and Vera Cruz Road – can attest to the fact that Vera Cruz
is different.

Originally inhabited by the Lenape and said to be the location of one of the earliest jasper mines in
North America, Vera Cruz is the epitome of small town America.

Those who haven’t had the opportunity to experience life in Vera Cruz first-hand, will get a chance to
see, hear, and taste some of the best the Village of Vera Cruz has to offer on Sunday, Aug. 15 from 11
a.m. to 9 p.m. at the 59th Annual Vera Cruz Homecoming.

Sponsored by the Vera Cruz Community Association, the popular local event will be held, rain or shine,
at Mystic Chain Park on Main Road East in Vera Cruz, and will feature a variety of artisans whose work
includes jewelry, paper cutting, basket weaving, clock making and pen and ink drawing.

Fans of local television personality “Uncle Jeffrey” will surely want to stop by the Homecoming in the
late afternoon. Jeff Tapler, known to most as “Uncle Jeffrey”, will broadcast his weekly Health and
Happiness show live from Mystic Chain Park from 3-5 p.m.

CrazyHeart, one of the most popular country bands in the Lehigh Valley, will take the stage from 5-9
p.m.

The day’s events will begin with a Community Homecoming Service at the Vera Cruz E.C. Church at 9:30
a.m. and be led by the church’s pastor, the Rev. Robert Klersy. Special music will be by Derek Sandstrom,
a contemporary Christian artist from Central Pennsylvania.

The day will be filled with games and entertainment, cakewalks and a raffle drawing. The menu features
homemade baked beans, old-fashioned turkey bar-b-q, sausage sandwiches, hot dogs and hamburgers,
French fries, pierogies, ice cream, funnel cake and fresh fruit cups.

Jennifer M. Marangos and her family live in the Village of Vera Cruz. Both Jennifer and her husband will
be volunteering at the Vera Cruz homecoming on Sunday. When the couple isn’t serving food and birch
beer at Mystic Chain Park, they’re up the road a bit, running their Vera Cruz-based consulting company
Zephyros, Inc.