A Place in the Conversation (APITC) is dedicated to helping facilitate the restoration of relationship that leads to healing and transformation.
We believe true transformation begins when each person finds their “place in the conversation.” A place where they can speak freely, are truly heard, and learn from the experiences of others.
We invite you to journey with us.
Building Trust One Conversation at a Time: Community Rising in Kennett Square
Barbara McIlvaine Smith retired in 2020, moved to Kennett Square right before COVID, and spent two years largely isolated. What came out of that experience wasn't withdrawal. It was action.
Barb is a member of the Kennett Friends Meeting and one of the people behind Community Rising Kennett Square, an initiative that creates open spaces for neighbors to share concerns, hopes and ideas with each other. No agenda, no debate. Just people sitting together and listening.
The conversation gets honest about why listening is harder than it sounds. Most of us are already forming a response before the other person finishes talking. Barb connects that back to something bigger: the difference between empathy and compassion. Empathy is understanding what someone else is going through. Compassion is doing something about it. One without the other doesn't move anything forward.
Barb also talks about growing up on land her family has farmed since 1681, how that shaped her sense of community, and why she believes real change starts at the neighborhood level, not anywhere else.
Community Rising meets the third Sunday of each month from 2 to 4 p.m. at Kennett Friends Meeting, corner of West Sickle and Union Street. Everyone is welcome.
19 May 2026
Finding Your People: How Fiber Arts Build Community
Winnie Hardy moved to Avondale, PA without knowing anyone. Instead of waiting for community to find her, she built it herself through a shared love of fiber arts. In this episode, Winnie shares how she founded Friends of Fiber Art at the Avon Grove Library and later launched her own LLC to teach crochet, knitting and other fiber arts to students of all ages.
Winnie opens up about living with dyslexia and how fiber arts became her form of expression long before she had the words to explain it. That personal connection shapes how she teaches and why she believes every person has a gift worth developing.
The conversation covers the mental health benefits of repetitive hand arts, the surprising boom in crochet among younger generations and what it means to build real friendships through a shared craft. Winnie also shares two community initiatives at Avon Grove Library: a clothing donation basket called Need a Wear, Take a Wear and a community knit-and-watch movie night she hopes to bring to more people.
Her message is clear. When your hands are busy, your phone goes down and people actually talk to each other. That's the kind of community she's creating, one stitch at a time.
To learn more about Winnie's classes or connect with Friends of Fiber Art, visit the Avon Grove Library or reach out through Hooked Fine Yarn Boutique in Haddonfield, NJ.
12 May 2026
Teaching Kids to Resolve Conflict Before It Escalates
Most conflict doesn't start big. It starts on a playground, goes home unresolved on the bus and lands in a principal's inbox the next morning. Perk Musacchio and Monica Reinhardt Gurney saw that pattern repeat itself throughout their careers in education and decided to do something about it.
In this episode, Perk and Monica share how they co-authored three books and Perk developed the Peace Walk, a conflict resolution mat that gives children as young as kindergarten a structured, visual way to work through disagreements on their own. What started on a shower curtain became a tool that reduced after-school parent complaints, helped kids feel heard and taught them skills that most adults still haven't learned.
Monica brings her background in school counseling and private practice to the conversation, focusing on how adult behavior shapes children's conflicts and why coaching parents and teachers is essential. Perk shares the classroom realities she witnessed over nearly 40 years in special education, including how unmet sensory needs, poor nutrition and sleep deprivation often show up as "challenging behavior."
Together they talk about I statements, perspective-taking, the lost art of a real apology and why giving children choices makes them less likely to lash out. They also take an honest look at what happens when conflict resolution systems aren't sustained in schools. The skills disappear. And the kids notice.
Their message applies well beyond the classroom. When people feel heard and have tools to work through disagreement, the conflict doesn't have to escalate. That's true at age 5 and at age 55.To learn more about Perk and Monica's books and the Peace Walk conflict resolution mat, reach out through A Place in the Conversation.
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