Bushy Run hosts holiday market in Penn Township

Landon Wells was supposed to be doing some Christmas shopping at the Bushy Run Christmas Market in Penn Township.

But the 3-year-old boy was understandably distracted by the model train booth there, which returned after being on hiatus last year.

“We’re doing some gift shopping for his mother and father,” said Wells’ grandmother, Laura Nelevanko of Greensburg.

Thirteen vendors were on hand Sunday at the market, which has operated for roughly the past five years, according to Bushy Run Museum Facilitator Shawn MacIntyre.

“Attendance has been good,” he said. “We’ve had 165 people come through in just the first couple hours.”

Morgan Barlock and Aaron Yuhouse of Greensburg, who own and operate Sugar & Spice Around the Clock Confections, were selling cookies, hot chocolate bombs and pepperoni rolls for the first time at the market.

“Business has been steady since they opened,” Barlock said.

She and Yuhouse got their start selling hot chocolate bombs at the beginning of the pandemic, but after a successful summer of outings, they decided to return for the holidays.

The confections are spheres of chocolate with hot cocoa mix and miniature marshmallows inside. Adding steamed milk creates a DIY cup of cocoa.

“We started at the Ligonier Country Market last summer,” Yuhouse said. “Then we added the pepperoni rolls for something a little savory.”

Temperatures hovering near the 50-degree mark also made a stroll around the historic battlefield grounds a better possibility.

“This kind of event brings more attention to the site itself,” MacIntyre said. “It may not be the hugest fundraiser for us, but it helps us and it helps the community.”