About

Who is The Row House?

Who started it? Who’s in charge? Who do we exist for?

Our Founder & Curator of Surprises

Tom Becker

Husband to Rebecca (m. 1985) and father of five
Author of Good Posture: Engaging Current Culture With Ancient Faith (Baltimore: Square Halo Books), 2017
Education
- Master of Divinity, Covenant Theological seminary, concentration in Christianity & Culture, The Francis A. Schaeffer Institute
- BS Bloomsburg University of PA, Speech & Communications
Columnist
- Side Ways: Quarterly slice-of-life chronicles on just about anything in LancasterOnline’s Sunday Living Section (print too!)
- Town Character: Monthly explorations of towns, characters, and curiosities on Substack
- permeability: Short takes on the intersection of Christian faith and culture also on Substack
Former college Pastor at Bucknell, Susquehanna, Bloomsburg, and Millersville Universities (InterVarsity, R.U.F.)
Community Advisor with The Open Discourse Coalition at Bucknell University
Former Teaching Elder and current lay minister at Wheatland Presbyterian Church (PCA)
Founding member of Lancaster chapter of Strong Towns, Inc.
Airbnb Super Host and casual inn keeper
Urbanist, bicyclist, dog therapy partner, pizza maker, road-tripper, town discoverer, hack D.J., roller skater, collector of artists

Mysterious Origins

In 2010, Tom Becker founded The Row House, Inc. in the historic city of Lancaster, PA.

The idea came to him in a dream.

Tommy James was crooning Crystal Blue Persuasion in the back seat of a flaming Chevy Corvair and pointing to a sign along that road that read Nothing Is Not Sacred.

It was a daydream, admittedly.

Tom’s life work has become The Row House Forum, cobbled out of years of academic ministry, town life, and a myriad of interests. He believes that nothing is not important to God. Which is why Tom is interested in just about anything. That would make him a Generalist and the perfect person for curating surprises.

He’s hosted close to 100 events that are always hospitable, civil, utterly human, and a fair bit whimsical.

Over the years, besides hosting public lecture events, he’s presided over concerts, meal discussions, and speaking engagements.