I’m going to attempt to keep things (mostly) light in today’s newsletter, which will feature a fair amount of talk about my favorite of all the food groups: round foods. (That is a food group, right?)

Today is a day to celebrate a round food that is essentially an excuse to eat cake for breakfast: donuts. It’s National Donut Day. Though it seems like a marketing ploy cooked up by the corporate overlords of Big Donut, National Donut Day was actually established by The Salvation Army in 1938 to honor the organization’s Donut Lassies and Donut Girls, women who traveled to France to serve donuts and other snacks to soldiers during World War I. The more you know.

If you’re looking to celebrate National Donut Day on the cheap, I’m here to help. I’ve taken the liberty of compiling this list of Pennsylvania locations offering free and discounted donuts today.

And if you’re on the hunt for a great donut any day of the year, we highlight some of the best donut shops in the commonwealth in this story. And our food and travel writer Kalena Thomhave has the lowdown on where to find Pa.’s best mochi donuts—a fusion of traditional American donuts and Japanese mochi—right here. 

My favorite donuts? Thanks for asking. It’s really a toss up between Yum Yum Bake Shops (they have several locations in Bucks and Montgomery counties) and Beiler’s Doughnuts (Lancaster and Reading Terminal Market in Philly).

Bakeria 1010 is going on its third summer of serving up creative square and round pies (and slices) in the heart of Ocean City. (Patrick Berkery/The Keystone)

Time to talk about perhaps the greatest of all the round foods: pizza.

As you may or may not know, I write and edit our twice-monthly newsletter highlighting the best in Pennsylvania pizza called Pizzavania (subscribe here).

With summer (unofficially) upon us and vacation season kicking into gear, I thought it would be an ideal time to highlight some of the best pizza spots at two destinations Pennsylvanians often frequent during the summer: the Jersey Shore and the Poconos.

You can read my round up of the best pizza spots at the Jersey Shore here, and you can find our Kalena Thomhave’s rundown of some of the most popular Poconos pizza spots in this story.

• U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (Bucks) crossed party lines with three other Republicans to pass an Iran war powers resolution in the U.S. House on Wednesday. Find out what he had to say about his decision in this story.

• Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to move almost $4.7 billion from the state’s rainy day fund to balance his $53.3 billion 2026-27 budget proposal. Find out what he’d like those rainy day funds to cover here.

• More rural pushback to data center expansion as Columbia Borough council members unanimously rejected a $6.4 million bid to build a data center on the former McGinness Airport property. Get the details here.

• A newly proposed bill in the Pennsylvania House would require employers to provide water, shade, and other protections for those working in extreme heat. Find out more here.

Join COURIER and 3.14 Action on June 11 for Facts vs. Fiction: The Fight for Science in American Democracy.

Misinformation isn’t just noise. It’s shaping policy decisions that determine who can afford care, which communities are protected, and how our government responds to real-world risks.

This live conversation will examine what’s at stake when facts are ignored and how science-informed leadership has shaped policy on healthcare, climate, agriculture, and public health. At a moment when institutions and public trust are under attack, we’ll explore what happens when decision-making is driven by evidence, what it takes to rebuild trust, and why scientific integrity is essential to democracy.

Stay tuned for more speaker announcements, and don’t miss this conversation.

Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Patrick Berkery with stories from Kalena Thomhave, Sean Kitchen, Graham Harrington, and USA Today via Reuters Connect. It was edited by Brook Bolen.

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