Publisher’s Letter

It’s June at County Lines. Couples are getting married. Schools are letting out. Travel is being planned. Menus — probably outdoors — are being arranged.

In “Weddings: A Million Dreams,” Carol Metzker writes that couples are allowing fate and nature to have a hand in their wedding day. Rain and rainbows, a historic church, mountain views, scenic spots in every direction, culminating in a cake prepared by an expert baker are some of the possibilities.

Today’s wedding menus are doing more than feeding a crowd. In “Eat, Drink and Be Married,” writes Shannon Montgomery, they’re telling a story. Couples are using food and drink to express their tastes, honor their roots and create memories guests will long remember after the last dance.

Marci Tomassone lends a hand planning the nuptials with a “Guide to Wedding Venues & Services.” Separately, she also compiles a “Summer Dining Guide.” We also have a special photography feature, “Chester County in Bloom,” showing the finalists for our spring photo contest. Vote for your favorite on Facebook.

How would you spend a “Weekend in West Chester”? Cara Corridoni maps a 36-hour itinerary, from hotel to dining to shopping to museums to cocktails to live shows. Do it with your favorite person.

Years ago, Mrs. Denny — then Mrs. Burns — escaped enslavement with her three children and 25 others. Aided by Union troops and a train to Philadelphia, she eventually landed in West Chester. In “Mrs. Denny’s Route to West Chester,” Jennifer Green of Chester County History Center describes the journey.

It’s the perfect season for fresh produce, especially strawberries. And there’s nothing like picking these luscious berries right off the plant to use in your kitchen. In Brandywine Table, Victoria Rose writes it’s “Strawberry Season,” and she’s collected several recipes from Highland Orchards.

There’s no better time to embrace the vibrant flavors of summer with cocktails that celebrate the season’s freshest ingredients. In “Effervescent Escapes,” Liz Tarditi suggests botanicals, sparkling wines, seltzers and incorporating fresh produce in the mix.

In “The Secret Lives of Mushrooms,” Alyssa Turner of Jenkins Arboretum & Gardens says that warm, wet weather after a summer storm often brings many kinds of mushrooms to life, providing an opportunity to observe a wide variety of fungi up close. With the right mix of shade, moisture and organic matter, mushrooms will find a place in your yard … and improve it.

By press time, schools will have wrapped up their 2025 sports seasons. In lacrosse, baseball and tennis, several stars have emerged, with most headed for top colleges. See who they are and where they’re going in “Private School Stars Wrap Up Spring Sports Season.”

Traveling this summer? If Southeast Asia is on your radar, Shelley Laurence of Main Point Books suggests that reading will be less hassle and cost much less than an actual trip. She recommends several books in “Read Your Way Through Southeast Asia.”

As always, we have plenty of Family Fun and the Best Local Events.

Perhaps you already have County Lines delivered to your mailbox. Save it for future reference. At CountyLinesMagazine.com, you can read the June issue online. At Issuu.com, you can read the digital issue. Or click “Get a Copy” on our website to find locations to pick up your own print copy.

We hope you’d like to subscribe to County Lines. Do it on our website or call 610-918-9300. For single issues, try Wellington Square Bookshop, Main Point Books or Reads & Co. Bookstore. Visiting an advertiser is also a great — and free — way to find copies!

We hope you enjoy this issue. Thank you for reading this month and all year long!

Ed Malet, Publisher

610-918-9300

Weddings: A Million Dreams

Their wedding seemed to be washed out. Rain, only interrupted occasionally by rays of sun, brought out umbrellas. They set up a large tent for the reception. Then it appeared — a rainbow that lasted nearly an hour, including during the exchange of vows. It was the wedding of a million dreams. At The Arches in Coatesville, the Pump House near Catawisa Creek, Westwynd Gardens in Honey Brook and elsewhere, nature answered and couples fulfilled their wedding dreams as they began their life together.

The Secret Lives of Mushrooms

Fungi provide an ecosystem service that few other things can: breaking down dead wood to release the nutrients inside. By digesting dead wood, mushrooms start the process of returning essential nutrients to the soil. Next time the summer rain falls, take a look at the forest floor. You just might uncover one of nature’s extraordinary partnerships, quietly at work.

Mrs. Denny’s Route to West Chester

Born into slavery, Mrs. Denny (later Mrs. Burns) spent her days laboring in the fields and her nights mending shirts. But she escaped, together with her three children and 25 other enslaved men and women. Eventually, after defying an armed posse, the group made their way to Harpers Ferry and then Philadelphia. Eventually, she settled in West Chester. The details of their story can be read at the Chester County History Center.