Some ideas are classics because they always have a place. In Chambersburg, one classic idea is to be a “believer in Main Street.
In mid-October, Bartlett Tree, the Borough, and a faithful group of dedicated volunteers were finishing the annual stringing of lights. As they were wrapping up, a special tree was restrung in front of 133 South Main Street, the former Gartenberg Jewelry. Andy Gartenberg, owner of Gartenberg Jewelry, was joined by Will Pananes, second generation owner of Olympia Candy Kitchen; Paul Cullinane, former executive director and president of Downtown Chambersburg Inc.; Mark Miller of the Downtown Business Council; and father and son volunteers Mark and Matt Alleman to string lights on the newly planted tree. The tree replaced one planted in 1984 by Andy Gartenberg and his mother Belle Gartenberg in memory of father and husband Egon Gartenberg—Believer in Main Street.
Egon Gartenberg was born in 1911 and held a lifelong commitment to music and business. He was a graduate of the Austrian State Academy of Music and the Vienna Academy of Commerce. In 1938, he narrowly escaped Nazi persecution as Germans occupied Austria. He came to America in 1940, where he met Belle Berman, whose father was a watch maker and operated a jewelry store. Belle taught Egon the jewelry business, and Egon and Belle married in 1945. Together, they came to Chambersburg in 1946 because it was a lovely town with a college and a synagogue. They opened a jewelry store on Main Street. Active in the business community, Egon Gartenberg was instrumental in organizing the Gilmore-Hoerner Endowment Fund to bring artists to Chambersburg. He lectured, conducted, was an associate professor at Penn State Mont Alto, was a music reviewer for the Public Opinion, and authored three books—Vienna, Its Musical Heritage, Johann Strauss, The End of an Era, and Gustav Mahler: The Man and His Music. Egon passed away in 1982 at age 70.
After Egon’s death, Belle lived a full life, serving the community and her faith. She retired at age 86 in 2004 with nearly 70 years in the jewelry business. She passed away in May 2012 at age 94.
On May 4, 1993, Andy Gartenberg opened Gartenberg Jewelry at 133 South Main Street and operated his own jewelry store for more than 25 years. Andy Gartenberg was active in the Downtown Business Council and a stalwart believer in Main Street, just as his parents before him. Today, 133 South Main Street is YP Jewelers, and the tradition of being a believer in Main Street is moving to the next generation.
Fortunately, some ideas are always in style.