Throughout her young life, Lauren Gorney rarely strayed far from her family’s Polish roots. Come to think of it, the plucky entrepreneur rarely ventured far from Glen Lyon, nor from her grandma’s side. When the mini-pierogi pincher and her beloved babcia weren’t elbow deep in dough and flour, you’d likely find them cookin’ up some kind of neighborhood scheme. Penny candy, doggie biscuits – can’t knock the hustle.

Little Lauren ran the quiet streets of Glen Lyon with her tiny gang of popsicle-stained, scuff-kneed neighborhood kids (until the street lights came on at least). It was one of those lazy days down the “crik” or on the tracks kind of childhoods. Like so many in the Newport/Glen Lyon/Nanticoke tribe lands, it was a life fueled by piggies, pierogi and polka.

Adulthood nearly pulled her away. For a spell, the GNA/LCCC/Misericordia grad ventured onto that traditional path. You know, the one with regular (see boring), corporate (see soul-crushing) type jobs. Then, a visit to Europe (namely Poland) jarred something loose in her brain. Well, that and being laid off during Covid (see Sign from God).

Somewhere along the way, Lauren met Frank (and you will too – a little later). She had the drive, the grit, the know-how. He had the perfect pierogi dough recipe. Both bore the force and spirit (and strong fingers) of a thousand proud Polish immigrants. Northeastern Pennsylvania would soon come to know the pair as NEPA’rogi.

We caught up with Lauren in the space she shares with the equally iconic Tarnowski’s Kielbasa. And, through a bouquet of butter, onion and boiled potato, she took on the tough one – Why NEPA?

How long have you lived in NEPA?

Thirty-three and a half years. My whole life.

What do you love about your town?

Specifically, it’s funny. The Glen Lyon/Newport rift ended in the 60s when we combined into Nanticoke, but it’s still kind of present. There’s a healthy competition between Newport and Nanticoke. Frank’s from Nanticoke. I’m from Newport. We live in Newport obviously (laughs). I am not abandoning my roots. The Glen Lyon I grew up in and the Glen Lyon that my Grandmother and my parents shared with me is a really special place. Sometimes when I’m traveling and meet someone and they ask where I’m from, I do the whole Scranton and The Office thing and then narrow it down to like Wilkes-Barre and so on. But once in a while, I’ll say Glen Lyon and people are like, “oh my God, Miracle of the Bells, coal mining, etc.” It is a geographically beautiful space. And I just really love all the magic and the energy of all the people who have come and gone and been a part of Glen Lyon – all of the little businesses. I love that hometown, cozy feeling, that “drop in on your neighbors” feeling. I grew up doing that. Everybody had these parlors where you’d hang out. My grandmother kind of brought me along through all of that. And I still see that magic of this place. Some people tell me that I’m walking around with rose-colored glasses on, but I really believe that the more we could do in this business, the more we could do in this culture, the more we could give back. We want to help by investing in that culture and continue to enhance it.

What’s your favorite NEPA restaurant?

Ok, ok… Our favorite restaurant right now is Rikasa. Frank and I like to go there for date night. But I will never say no to sushi (laughs). I’m literally never not hungry for sushi. And because they take such great care of us every single time we go, I have to throw Mirakuya in there as well. I mean, we all travel together like a big family. We work together. We eat Sunday dinners together – my family and Frank’s family. And we’ll roll into Mirakuya with this huge group and they take care of us. And they remember us.

What’s your favorite thing to do in NEPA?

I really enjoy participating in community events. We have a great Christmas parade here. We just did a reading day with the local kids. I also love all of the fun networking events like the galas and all that stuff. You know how they say “the wise man learns from others and the fool has to learn by himself”? I like to think of myself as one of those “wise men.” I love to ask questions and learn from others. I’m like a sponge. Whatever people are willing to share, I’m absorbing that and thinking, “ok, so how can we apply that, or how do we grow that relationship?” There is a really great millennial network right now in Northeastern PA. They’re rockin’ and rollin’. There’s a real synergy here, and I think people see and feel the same things that I see and feel here. We’re building and fostering relationships and lifting each other up where we can.

What’s next for you?

Professionally, we’re scaling up. This is… let’s see (pensively counts on fingers). Yeah, this is like our third climb. We started doing this out of a home and subletting. And then we got this space. So, that was our second scale. And now we’re scaling up again to be able to meet the demand.

Personally, I have been grinding for two years just non-stop. So, I’d like to have a little time exploring the world again. I want to get back to Poland and that spiritual connection to it that I feel when I’m there. I want to get down with that. And then, I don’t know, maybe become a mom (laughs). You know? Not too far down the road — a little pierogi pincher.

Where do you see NEPA heading in the future?

I think we’re on the come up. I think we’re on the rise. I’m really enjoying repeating the cycle of my ancestors in that I’m loving the blending of cultures. I love that we have all of these different cultures coming in. Obviously, food is the number one place that this affects us in a positive way, but I also love that we’re having picnics, fairs, bazaars. And it’s not just one culture involved in these things. It’s like we’re going through a second version of the NEPA melting pot. And, with that, people are finding great value in being here. It’s a great place to raise a family. It’s a great place to have a small business and to be a part of your community.

Why NEPA?

(laughs) Frank has a really good answer to that. I wish he could have been here. I’m just going to try my best. (long pause) Umm… There’s no place like home. That’s pretty much it. I graduated in 2007. Back then there was this perception that, if you didn’t leave the area, you weren’t going to make something of yourself. And I became obsessed with leaving. But there’s also this pull here and it’s stronger than that. I feel so fulfilled by the magic that is my local ancestry here. They live in me. I feel a duty to the area. We need to be here to help it reach its full potential. We can’t just be like, “Oh well, it used to be a great place.” That’s all a perception thing. When you grow with a place like this and you lose that little “hometown chip on your shoulder,” that perception fades away. And you realize that there are so many things to do here. There’s always something going on. We’re fulfilled by having our family so close to us here. And we are really conveniently located. We could go on trips anywhere — to New York and Philly — and be home at the end of the evening. We don’t want to be a part of that whole grind. We have a good, happy, balanced life here. And, yeah, there’s no place like home.

Then… after the interview was complete, after the photo had been snapped, the mythical, mysterious Frank chimed in.

Frank Marcinkowski (Lauren’s partner in life and crime and NEPA’rogi), who’d been alluded to several times above, was also supposed to take part in this interview. Due to circumstances beyond his control, he could not make it. A short time later, though, I received an impassioned email. Frank wanted to offer his perspective on the relationship between NEPA and the humble pierogi. He even invented his own question to answer. These are his words:

Frank: What is the best part about NEPA’rogi in THIS area?

Also Frank: Sometimes this area gets a bad rap, but we pride ourselves on being here in Northeastern PA. We take pride in this area’s history and of what we are and where we’ve come from. It’s all about who you surround yourself with, and we know of countless local people that are doing huge things to uplift our community.

There are, of course, many families that have immigrated from Poland and surrounding countries that live here. It brings us great joy to be a part of some of their traditions. Not as many families make their own pierogi these days, so when people come to the window and tell us that our food reminds them of maybe a grandma, or just a holiday season, that’s what makes it all worth it.

Also, for the families that don’t have those same backgrounds, it’s good to introduce them to foods and cultures that they might not know about. Everybody loves pierogi! So even if it’s not their ancestors, they can share some common food with their “landcestors” being that they live here.

Thankfully a food like pierogi is a comfort food that can bring happiness and memories to all.