My husband and I moved here from California in 2003. My husband had grown up in Carlisle and we decided after getting married that it was the best place to settle down. I quickly fell in love with the small town and change of seasons. The people were welcoming and I loved that it was a small town but yet so close to so many great places.
I live in Carlisle with my husband Matt, and two sons, Carson and Brady. We opened up a gift store in downtown Carlisle 6 years ago and I have loved being part of the downtown business community and am often in awe of the support of the local community. We attend The Meeting House, a church with campuses in Carlisle and Dillsburg. My husband has worked, volunteered, and now serves on the Board of the Carlisle Family Y. My husband’s family business has served the Carlisle community for 50 years. Our two boys attend Carlisle Christian Adacemy. So, yeah, we are fairly ingrained in the community – and the community in us! While our lives sometimes seems like a whirlwind of coming and going, the common thread is that we live, work, and play most often in Carlisle!
While there are many small towns trying to follow or recreate the blueprint for a thriving downtown, Carlisle continues to evolve, adapt, and become better. I love that this isn’t an isolated effort – it’s all about collaboration. As someone leading a small business, I know firsthand the tremendous resources and support available to someone trying to enhance the downtown. The Carlisle Chamber, DCA, CAEDC, and countless others have been the wind in our sails as we’ve worked to create a sustainable business in our community. I love meeting the other entreprenuers who have such amazing and inspiring stories, I love the nonprofit and faith community and the way they work well beyond their capacities to serve so many in our community and surrounding areas. We also love the diversity of people we meet and stories we hear from those attending the War College or Dickinson College. So many people come through Carlisle and we love meeting as many of them as we are able!
Carlisle has some rich and growing diversity. Diversity creates an environment of differences – different perspectives, different stories, different lens through which we see the world. This can naturally create gaps and division. While we certainly have our challenges, I think the Carlisle community comes together to serve one another well and care for our neighbors and neighborhoods. We’re generally a peaceful community that is unified. We’re human and we get it wrong in terms of how we treat each other many times, but I think that our community ultimately embraces and celebrates our differences.
I hope that people continue to shop local and support their community. Go to the downtown Farmer’s Market and pick up bread baked at your neighborhood farm. Buy fresh flowers cut locally. Enjoy a dinner and beverage from the folks trying to establish their dream restaurant while still working a full-time job.
Get involved. Find an initiative you can volunteer for or a Board on which you can serve. Give back. Be the neighbor that you wish you always had. Go to church.
In short, I guess my hope for Carlisle is that each of us can work toward leaving our community even better than we found it. – Kristin Tuckey, owner of the greatest gift
My family and I moved here from Germany in 2013. My husband was stationed at the Army War College. When my husband retired from the military in 2015 after 33 plus years our daughter was a sophomore at Carlisle High School, we as a family decided to stay in the area to let our daughter finish school. Now, we have decided to stay in the area until our daughter finishes college. Who knows – we might just continue to stay. We love Carlisle! Before settling in Carlisle we had moved 13 times in 10 different cities. We lived in Europe twice.
I am currently employed at the greatest gift. This is my second year here. When we moved here in 2013 I volunteered on Carlisle Barracks for various organizations. Once my husband retired from the military I wanted to volunteer in our community. One of my first volunteer opportunities was at Canine Rescue at Dillsburg. I also volunteer for one of the local elementary schools, reading to children and they read to me. It is to assist those who need just a little bit of additional reading time. My husband and I have one daughter who is currently attending Alfred University in New York. And we attend First Lutheran Church on High Street.
What we love about Carlisle most is the history! When we found out we were moving to Carlisle we were very excited. The small town of Carlisle and the surrounding area has so much history. Of course being military, my husband enjoys all the local history and he enjoys Gettysburg every chance he gets. One of our favorite things about Carlisle are the many family owned restaurants and small businesses. We get very excited when we see new small businesses opening their doors in the Carlisle Area. Everyone that we have had the pleasure of meeting is very friendly. We love how the community comes together to help those in time of need. It is one of the most giving cities we have ever lived in.
Of course, the growth doesn’t come without its problems. As Carlisle grows so does the traffic. There are concerns with speeding within city limits and residential areas of Carlisle. If there is an accident on I-81 in this area the entire downtown Carlisle community is affected by the traffic flow. I do believe that the city of Carlisle and members are continually looking and working on traffic solutions
Overall, my hope for Carlisle is continued growth in diversity, lower and eliminate crimes, and empower all with the ability to care for themselves and others. My dream for downtown Carlisle would be a street that is only for pedestrians and many more restaurants with outside seating. We love outside seating at Brick and the beer garden at Market Cross. A rooftop restaurant would be wonderful! The community of Carlisle is very giving and I hope that will continue as our small charming city grows. – Sharon Parrish, associate at the greatest gift
I have lived in Carlisle all of my life. I was born in the old Carlisle hospital. My mom grew up in Gettysburg and my dad in Scranton. They moved here after college because of teaching jobs in Carlisle School District. I went to Carlisle High School and then on to Indiana University of PA to also be a teacher at South Middleton School District at W.G. Rice Elementary. I continue to live in Carlisle and have raised my family here.
Currently, I am a reading specialist at Rice in my 26th year and have a part-time job at the greatest gift for two years now. I attend Carlisle’s The Meeting House church. I have a husband and 2 sons, one 17 years old and finishing his junior year at Boiling Springs and the other son is 20 and attending West Virginia University (and in the Army National Guard).
I love the small town community of Carlisle. It’s so close to bigger communities when I feel that I need that. I also feel very proud that we are growing and getting new restaurants and shops regularly. I see people that I know and love all the time.
I feel like we are becoming more diversified and loving as a community with our churches help as well as our festivals/celebrations. We also have all kinds of restaurants and shops that appeal to many people.
In all, I hope that as Carlisle continues grow it is able to maintain that small town, close knit, caring community feeling that we all love. – Kelly Klacik, associate at the greatest gift