Storybook Charm, Gretna-Style

by Stacy Schroeder

[Originally published in the Winter 2026 issue of Mount Gretna Magazine. View the full issue to see this story in its designed layout, complete with additional images.]

Photo by Shannon Fretz Photography. Lynne Davie’s stunning kitchen, where she cooks up curries and chutneys and all types of culinary delights.

Lynne Davies purchased her 1926 Mount Gretna cottage almost 13 years ago, moving from nearby Annville. Though she had brought her daughters to swim in Gretna’s lake many times, she did not know much about the community.

In fact, Lynne almost did not enter her current home when touring with the real estate agent because it did not have the prerequisite number of bedrooms. Once she did, however, she was smitten.

“It reminded me of our family cabin in the Poconos,” says Lynne, who named the cottage Secret Garden.

The cottage is a three-bedroom, two-bath home nestled on a tenth of an acre in Gretna’s Chautauqua neighborhood. When asked to name her favorite place in the cottage, Lynne quickly lists the kitchen, the sleeping porch, the deck, and then right in front of the fireplace (featured as this issue’s cover photo). She also points out the private back garden tucked into the hillside that gives the cottage its name. And then she states that Thanksgiving in the cottage is a personal highlight, with the cozy adjoining rooms embracing up to 35 people in small conversation circles.

Lynne has been a loving caretaker, embracing the cottage’s history while adapting it for her needs and style. She’s involved local craftspeople, including carpenter Steve Wentzel and landscape artist Ryan Fretz of Ryan Fretz Arts.

Photo by Shannon Fretz Photography. The cozy living room with stained glass windows added by the homeowner.

Lynne has found life in Gretna delightful and without significant challenges.

“Winter here is magical,” says Lynne, who declares that the borough takes better care of the roads than most surrounding municipalities.

“But what has surprised me the most is the people,” says Lynne. “I know my neighbors. People walk everywhere.”

Neighbors John and Marianne Spychalski hold a special place in Lynne’s heart for a kindness offered when she was new to Gretna. “They sent me a card with a note that said, ‘You are part of our world now,’ which meant so much to me,” Lynne says.

Lynne has welcomed in a dog and several cats, including a tabby named Hank, who inspired Cultured Heat’s “Hank’s Red-Hot Sauce,” available at nearby Porch & Pantry restaurant. While nomadic Hank has since taken up residence with a neighbor, chef Guido Michael still gifts Lynne the occasional bottle of hot sauce in recognition of her former feline.

Neighbors sometimes wander by as well. “People just stop over,” Lynne says. And with a cottage like Secret Garden, is it any wonder?

Stacy Schroeder is the creative director of Mount Gretna Magazine and the co-author of a local history book. This is the third magazine she has designed. She also brings over 30 years of nonprofit leadership and over four years as a spiritual director to this role.