This Week’s Connect Happy Valley eLetter
Click image below to open email link, or view the PDF.
Think We not Me Community Food Program
According to Feeding America, Centre County has more than 15,000 individuals who are food insecure, which means they “do not have enough to eat for an active, healthy life.” Think We not Me (TWnM) Community Food Program provides freshproduce at no cost to food-insecure individuals in Centre County. In 2025, it did this through 32 food banks, pantries and prepared meal centers spread throughout the County. Items donated by the TWnM to the food charities include apples, cabbage, corn, potatoes, melons, salad greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, squash, eggplant, zucchini and more.
Finding Warmth Indoors: Conversation, Music, and Art in Happy Valley
Winter has made itself very clear. Between the Groundhog’s verdict and the weather doing exactly what it wants, February reminds us that we’re still very much in it.
That makes this a good week to lean less toward rushing around and more toward showing up. This week’s Connect Happy Valley Events Calendar is especially rich in opportunities to take part, converse, and gather, including markets, talks, listening sessions, and workshops alongside a strong lineup of music, visual arts, and sports. With Valentine’s Day woven into the middle, many of these events offer something quieter and more meaningful than the usual dinner plans.
Here are some highlights…
Love as Showing Up, Not Showing Off
Every February, the Bryce Jordan Center fills with thousands of people doing something quietly radical. They dance, they stand, they cheer for 46 hours straight. Most will never post about the hardest moment, the 3 a.m. wall, or the kid whose family they just met. The point is not the content. The point is showing up. For The Kids.
That is THON, and it is also a living lesson in what research keeps telling us: the people who live longest and best are not the ones who perform love the loudest. They are the ones who show up, consistently, in real life.
Why You Matter More When You Show Up: The Case for Connection in Happy Valley
We have been sold a lie about the good life.
Somewhere between our grandparents’ era and now, we traded necessity for convenience, obligations for options, and showing up for staying in. We told ourselves this was progress. In many ways, it was. But we forgot something crucial along the way. Humans are not just built for comfort. We are built for connection with a purpose.
The data tells a stark story.
First Hockey Match in Beaver Stadium
First Hockey Match in Beaver Stadium
We’re Winning at Winter, and No One Does Four Seasons Like Happy Valley
Let’s be honest, we’re crushing it.
While others are dreaming of warmer weather, Happy Valley is out here winning at winter. From packed trivia nights and buzzing brewpubs to snowy hikes, ski runs, and full house crowds cheering for Penn State sports, the energy is real.
And this is just the start. In Happy Valley, we don’t just survive the seasons, we celebrate every single one.
Now, with Spring Break and Daylight-Saving Time both landing on March 8, it’s the perfect moment to fill your calendar with connection, creativity, and pure local joy.
Slow the Pace: Where to Find Music, Art, and Meaning This Week in Happy Valley
Whew!
Are you still tired from last weekend?
After a sports-heavy few days, this week shifts the spotlight to performing and visual arts across Happy Valley. Listening rooms, concert halls, and performance spaces take center stage, offering plenty of chances to slow the pace and lean into something creative or reflective. Sports are still here this week, holding their place at the end.
The co.space: An Ongoing Experiment in Connection, Community, and Becoming
Over a decade ago, we started an experiment in downtown State College.
It began with a few simple questions:
What might be possible if people were more intentional about how—and who—they lived with?
What if housing wasn’t just a place to land at the end of the day, but a place that actively shaped who you were becoming?
What if we could retain creative young professionals in our town—through a unique housing model—who were passionate about making Happy Valley an amazing community to call home?
Those questions became the seed of the co.space.
