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Ma & Pa Railroad Heritage Village reopens for summer; volunteers say it needs your support

LOWER CHANCEFORD TOWNSHIP, YORK COUNTY, Pa. — In the past week alone, tornados and thunderstorms have caused widespread damage across our area. Meanwhile ...

LOWER CHANCEFORD TOWNSHIP, YORK COUNTY, Pa. -- In the past week alone, tornados and thunderstorms have caused widespread damage across our area.

Meanwhile volunteers with a railroad in York County are still paying for flood damage from last summer.

Ma & Pa Railroad Heritage Village opened Sunday after nearly 9 months of repairs, but the organization is still desperate for dollars.

Two-year-old Clyde was excited before he even hopped onto the Ma & Pa Railroad.

"Just an afternoon to spend with our grandson [Clyde] and show him a little train ride," said Ron Seitz of Red Lion when asked about why he came out to the railroad. "It is just a different type of train to take an adventure on!"

Not only is it a beautiful train ride through the roads, it's an educational one as well.

Seitz tells FOX43 he appreciates the local history; meanwhile, Melody Seitz enjoys the nature.

"I like just going through the country side and seeing the stream, the animals," explained Melody Seitz.

It was a perfect afternoon for its reopening.

"Over the course of this winter, we have been working... we had track contractors, volunteers out here, doing as much as we could, as fast as we could, to get to the point where we could reopen again," explained Jean Sansonetti with Ma & Pa Railroad Heritage Village.

Volunteers spent countless hours repairing and rebuilding the entire heritage village after last summer's flash flooding.

"August 31st, we got ten inches of rain in two hours, and it just poured down," explained Sansonsetti.

Rain washed rail track into muddy creek, eroded parts of the bank, and damaged three bridges.

The total cost to fix it all? About $215,000.

The only problem? Volunteers say they used money meant for other additions.

Volunteers say they have raised roughly $70,000 but have a long way to go to be able to pay for those additions, including the purchase and remodel of another locomotive and money needed to buy more property.

They say donations and visits certainly help.

"You can come down here, you can see our general store, our mill, our grain elevator, and take this beautiful train ride... We certainly appreciate all the community's support we had. We actually do have a GoFundMe that is up, and if anybody wants to give that way, it would be a great way to help," added Sansonsetti.

Tickets for the railroad: $7.00 adult, $5.00 child, under 3 ride free.

You may buy tickets at the village or online with a $1.00 handling fee.

Schedule: All Sundays, June 2nd - September 1st

  • Sunday - 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

+ Special Events

All times are from 1 PM to 5 PM unless otherwise noted.

June

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