🌹 The Lancaster Ledger

Good morning, Lancaster. If you're reading this and haven't eaten a fasnacht yet — well, that ship has sailed. Mardi Gras is in the rearview, Ash Wednesday is here, and Columbia is kicking off its 300th birthday celebration tonight. Busy week.

In today's Lancaster Ledger:

Let's do it.

— Collin

If you own a Kia or Hyundai with a traditional key ignition (not push-button), Lancaster Township Police want to give you a free steering wheel lock. And who doesn’t love free stuff! Certain models from 2011–2022 have a well-known security flaw that makes them easy targets for theft — a problem that went viral a few years ago as the "Kia Challenge" on TikTok and has led to a spike in thefts nationwide.

The locks are available on a first-come, first-served basis at Lancaster Township Police Department headquarters, 1250 Maple Avenue, Lancaster. Hyundai and Kia donated the locks at no cost to the department. If you've been putting this off, now's the time — these tend to go fast.

David Greene, the longtime host of NPR's "Morning Edition" and current moderator of KCRW's "Left, Right & Center," is suing Google over what he says is an AI clone of his voice. Greene alleges that the male podcast voice in Google's NotebookLM tool replicates his cadence, intonation, and even his use of filler words. He says friends and co-workers started emailing him about the resemblance before he'd ever heard of the product.

Google denies the claim, saying the voice comes from a paid professional actor.

The Lancaster connection? Greene's nonprofit, Always Lancaster, assumed ownership of LNP | LancasterOnline in December 2025 after Pennon gifted the publication to the organization. Greene currently serves as interim publisher. So the guy suing one of the biggest tech companies in the world over AI voice theft also runs our local paper. Small world.

Penn State Health now has 100% ownership of the Surgery Center of Lancaster on Plaza Boulevard, effective January 1. The health system had held a 60% stake since fall 2021 and purchased the remaining 40% last month.

The outpatient facility handles more than 4,200 procedures annually. Penn State Health says the full acquisition allows them to streamline operations and expand services without needing to coordinate with a co-owner. If you've had a knee scope or cataract surgery in Lancaster recently, there's a decent chance it happened here.

Lancaster Township ranks second in tree canopy coverage among the top 15 Lancaster County communities, with 42.7% coverage according to 2021 i-Tree data. Only Conestoga Township beats them, clocking in at over 50%.

Residents aren't just proud of the canopy — they want to protect it. A group of homeowners petitioned the township to assess and preserve the tree-lined streets, and the township responded by forming a Tree Working Group that held three meetings in 2025 to facilitate the conversation.

"The trees are magical; don't take them away," said Jill Craven, a Wheatland Avenue resident.

If you've ever driven through Lancaster Township in the fall, you know exactly what she means.

Wednesday
Columbia 300 Kickoff | "The Pleasantest Country as Can Be" speaker event about Columbia's first settlers | 6:30 PM | National Watch & Clock Museum, 514 Poplar St, Columbia

Thursday
Horses Story Time | Free kids' storytime all about horses | Milanof-Schock Library
Sip & Clip Bonsai Workshop | Learn bonsai basics while sipping wine | 6 PM | Nissley Vineyards

Friday
Paint Your Partner Art Workshop | Grab your person, paint each other's portrait, enjoy 2 drink tickets | 6–8 PM | Southern Market | $100/pair
Picture This: Historic Photograph Workshop | Learn to research and preserve old family photos | 10 AM–12 PM | LancasterHistory | $20 members / $25 non-members

Saturday
Lancaster City Lunar New Year Festival | LAAPI's free annual celebration with cultural performances, food, and family activities | 11 AM–3 PM | Ewell Plaza & Binns Park, 123 N. Queen St
Hand-in-Hand Fire Company Chicken Pot Pie Dinner | Annual fundraiser — dine-in comes with cake & ice cream, take-outs include a whoopie pie. Take-outs start at 9:30 AM, dine-in 10:30 AM–5:30 PM (or until sold out) | Bird-in-Hand
Tree Identification Walk | Learn to ID local trees in winter | 10–11:30 AM | Pocket Books Shop
Table 21: Dinner with New Friends | Meet new people over a great meal — think dinner party meets blind date (for friends)
Lancaster Royal Princess Ball | Little ones meet their favorite princesses | 10 AM–1:30 PM | Lancaster Marriott
Off The Cuff Improv Comedy Gameshow | Hosted by Austin Rittle | 8:30 PM | Lancaster Improv Players, 16 S. Prince St | $15

Nothing in this section is sponsored. They're just the things you need to know. I'll always let you know when something's sponsored.

Wednesday High 49°F, low 35°F.

Thursday High 46°F, low 33°F.

Thursday
Southern Market | Music Trivioke | 7–9 PM | Free
West Art | Make Music. Make Peace. Benefit Concert (Sopa Sol, Mark & Jordan Rast, Leo DiSanto, Liz Fulmer) | 7 PM | Ticketed

Friday
Southern Market | Bridge Street Trio | 8–10 PM | Free
Tellus360 | GoodStew | 8 PM
West Art | Cathedral of Funk! | 7 PM | Ticketed

Saturday
Phantom Power | Sons of Seattle Tour (ft. Black Days, Love Hate Love, Serve The Servants) | 8 PM | ~$20
West Art | Andrew Pauls Album Preview / Birthday Show | 7:30 PM | Ticketed
Tellus360 | Nineties Entertainment System | 10:30 PM | $10

Sunday
West Art | Gubbulidis w/ Jesse Bardwell | 7:30 PM | Ticketed

Next Wednesday (2/25)
Proof Lancaster | Jerry Lee Watkins (Singer/Guitarist) | 6–9 PM | Free

Thanks for reading The Lancaster Ledger today. If you found something useful here, share it with someone who drives a Kia and has never had it stolen before and wants to keep it that way.

Cheers!