04/01/2026
With heavy hearts, the staff and board of directors of the Adams County Arts Council share the passing of Chris Glatfelter. She was our founder, our champion, and for so many of us, the person who made us believe this work mattered.
Chris didn't just lead ACAC. She built it, shaped it with intention, and refused to let it be anything less than essential to this community. From our earliest days, she understood something that guided every decision she made: that the arts don't belong to a privileged few, but they belong to Adams County, all of it. That conviction showed up everywhere, from the programs she launched to the doors she made sure stayed open.
Her most enduring gift may be the Arts Education Center, which she established in 2011 and which continues to hum with classes, youth programs, and community gatherings to this day.
Even after her retirement in 2020, Chris never really left. She was on the other end of the phone when we needed guidance, a sounding board, or just the reassurance that we were on the right track. She remained at the helm of our Gingerbread Celebration (an event she adored) and poured herself into it until it grew into a December tradition drawing more than 2,000 people each year.
There is no version of ACAC that exists without Chris Glatfelter. We carry her legacy forward not as an obligation, but as a privilege.
She will be profoundly missed.
