• Former OpenAI executive to talk at Lancaster Chamber dinner: Zack Kass, a former executive at ChatGPT creator OpenAI, will be the keynote speaker at the Lancaster Chamber’s annual dinner June 18. He was responsible for OpenAI’s sales and business partnerships. He aims to provide a positive vision of AI’s capabilities as opposed to the common dystopian narrative surrounding the technology. The dinner will be at the Lancaster County Convention Center, and tickets are $250. (Source: LNP)
• Shady Maple Smorgasbord to celebrate 40th anniversary in July: Shady Maple Smorgasbord, the country’s largest buffet-style restaurant based in East Earl, will turn 40 in July. The restaurant opened in 1985. Many people have been regulars there since its opening, such as 80-year-old Ray Paulshock, who has eaten at Shady Maple almost every day since it opened. The Shady Maple property goes back to 1962, when Mr. and Mrs. Henry Martin opened a farm stand under a stand of maple trees, where the market and smorgasbord get their name today. (Source: LNP)
• Just Press Play closes Lititz Pike location in preparation for opening ‘mega store’: Just Press Play, a local chain of video game stores, has closed its location in the Lancaster Shopping Center on Lititz Pike. This is to prepare for the opening of its new “mega store” on Lincoln Highway East, which will feature 22,000 square feet of space and a “retro museum.” Just Press Play started in 2006 and sells not just video games but also movies, trading cards, vinyls, and more. In addition to the mega store, they also have two smaller remaining locations on Centerville Road and in York. (Source: ABC 27)
• Pilot and son in Manheim Township plane crash released from burn unit: Pilot Matthew White and his son Judah have been released from care in the burn unit. They had been in Lehigh Valley Hospital’s burn unit since their single-engine plane crashed in Manheim Township near the Lancaster Airport last month. The plane had been bound for Ohio from Lancaster before it went down shortly after takeoff and crashed into a retirement home’s parking lot. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. No one on the ground was injured, though several other passengers aboard the plane were also taken to the hospital. (Source: LNP)
• Shapiro administration to issue funding to revitalize Pennsylvania communities: The Shapiro administration will invest $20 million into 81 community projects across Pennsylvania, which aims to revitalize downtown communities. According to the Shapiro administration, the funding is coming from the state’s Main Street Matters program. Lancaster County communities receiving funding include Downtown Ephrata’s Recreational Areas project, the Light Up Lancaster project, and Community Basics, Inc., who will use the funding to rehabilitate an affordable housing complex. (Source: ABC 27)
• Nation/world: Scan of famous shipwreck of RMS Titanic reveal secrets of disaster (Source: BBC News) Roof of club in Dominican Republic collapses, 15 dead (Source: NBC News) Supreme Court removes block on Trump administration deportations under Alien Enemies Act (Source: NBC News) A look at the waterworks behind Rome’s famed Trevi Fountain (Source: AP News) Childcare scholarship are becoming obsolete (Source: AP News)
