East Marlborough Township officials discuss possible earned-income tax
By Monica Fragale Contributing Writer
dents
as a result.
“If you’re thinking about (an EIT), maybe you should have a referendum,” said resident Chris Char. “A lot of people are already under the impression that it’s a done deal.”
Resident Richard Marquard asked how revenue raised from an EIT would be spent, adding, “No one from the board has addressed where that revenue is going to be used. It seems to me you’re asking
for a blank check.”
The supervisors invited representatives from Keystone Collections to answer questions and explain the intricacies of the tax. Jayson Lawson of Keystone said that 70 of the 73 municipalities in Chester County already collect an EIT, which can be up to one-percent of a resident or employee’s income.
“This was our first step,” said Ellen Sosangelis, the chairperson of the Board
of Supervisors. “We wanted to hear from residents, and wanted to hear from Keystone (Collections), the group that would collect an EIT).”
Talk of an earned-income tax surfaced during last year’s budget discussions, when the township had to increase taxes partly to cover East Marlborough’s obligation for fire and EMS services.
East Marlborough is in a unique position in
that its borders encompass two school districts, one of which (Kennett Consolidated) already has an EIT in place, according to Lawson.
a onepercent EIT to Kennett,”
In its Dec. 6, 2023 edition, the Chester County Press featured the story “Bringing Tate Home,” that introduced Tate Lambert of West Grove, who was diagnosed with PURA syndrome, an extremely rare genetic disorder, three months after he was born on June 9, 2023, and who spent the first several months at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, while his parents Greg and Elizabeth sought to find qualified nurses to provide home care. The article – and its subsequent postings on social media - generated an emotional outpouring of responses from our readers. A few weeks after the article was published, Tate left CHOP and has been in the care of several healthcare professionals, including pediatric nurse Sue Paris. Here is the story of how Tate Lambert came home.
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
From the start of Tate Lambert’s life and through all the complications he endured for the next several months, it was always the goal of Elizabeth and Greg Lambert to have their newborn son home by Christmas of 2023. Tate and his twin brother, Oliver, were born 33 weeks premature on June 9, 2023 at the Chester County Hospital, and after the brothers’ six-week stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), Oliver came home with his parents to their West Grove home. Tate,
however, remained, and was eventually transferred to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) as a result of the complications he had contracted during his birth, which included premature apnea and difficulty in breathing on his own.
In September of 2023, after several rounds of testing at CHOP’s neurology, pulmonary and genetic departments, Elizabeth and Greg were informed of their three-month old son’s condition: Tate was diagnosed with PURA syndrome, a very rare genetic disorder that affects the nervous system, causes moderate to severe developmental
delays and learning disabilities and often leads to movement difficulties, epileptic seizures and other health issues. To complicate matters, Tate would require the use of a trachea, a feeding tube and around-
the-clock care that would involve monitoring his heart rate and oxygen levels and constant cleaning of his trachea and feeding tubes.
“When you have twins, you have a vision of normalcy that imagines them
Despite USDA cuts, Chester County Food Bank continues to move forward
‘No
By Gabbie Burton Contributing Writer
At a moment when local community members are struggling with food insecurity at levels unseen before, the recent cancellation of a $250,000 food
community partner of ours in Chester County
is going
to see any service disruption at all’
order from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to the Chester County Food Bank (CCFB) now leaves the agency and other local food distribution organizations to their own devices.
On April 1, it was
Oxford residents express concerns about speeding on Mt. Vernon Street
By Betsy Brewer Brantner Contributing Writer
Laurie Woods and George Jones, two residents of Mt. Vernon Street in Oxford, expressed their concerns about speeding vehicles on the street—as well as worries about the upcoming improvement project
for the street - at a recent Oxford Borough Council meeting.
Oxford Borough Manager Pauline Garcia-Allen informed them that a letter is being prepared for the residents of that street answering questions about the project. It is expected to be mailed out shortly.
announced that the USDA would be cancelling the food order that includes pork chops, cheese, chicken breasts, eggs and other items from The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) for the first quarter of 2025. If the can-
cellations continue through the next year, the CCFB could face over $1 million in lost food items. For an organization that distributes five million pounds of food to over 40,000
By Chris Barber Contributing Writer
Scores of anglers stood on the banks of the Anson B. Nixon Park ponds this past Saturday, hoping to snag some of the 750 trout that had been stocked there just two days earlier. This, in spite of the outlook that was not
Chester County residents per year, this additional loss in TEFAP food would have a huge impact on the agency and the community it serves.
“The cancellation of these orders are going to have a significant impact on our operations, and
spending their whole infancy together,” Elizabeth told the Chester County Press in early December of 2023. “It’s been hard, but we’re just pushing through to get them both home. Even Continued
Trout Rodeo attracts scores of anglers despite storm warnings
Photo
“Folks that live in the township and send your children to Kennett, you’re already paying
Photo courtesy of the Lambert family Tate Lambert of West Grove will turn two on June 9.
Photo by Chris Barber
The sides of the ponds were loaded with attendees.
East Marlborough...
Continued from Page 1A
Lawson said, adding that if East Marlborough enacted an EIT, it would receive some of the tax revenue currently going to KCSD. The Unionville-Chadds Ford School District does not have an EIT.
“A larger portion of the
township lives within UCFSD, which does not have an EIT,” Lawson said. Under an earned-income tax, anybody who lives or works within municipal borders could pay up to onepercent of their income. If there’s an EIT both where someone lives and works, then the funds are split, according to Lawson.
“If you’re employed,
you’re responsible for the tax,” Lawson said. “If you’re retired, you’re not responsible.”
Residents who live in East Marlborough but work in an area with an earnedincome tax currently pay the EIT to another municipality or school district. If the township supervisors would approve an EIT, then up to half of that tax
would come back to East Marlborough, according to Lawson.
Resident James Horgan asked if an EIT could help reduce property taxes.
“If we put an EIT in place, will we reduce our property taxes to where they were?” he asked.
“That was part of our discussion,” Supervisor Jake Elks said. “If, in the
future, an EIT is likely, then we need to go back and look at the entire revenue package.”
“Township residents would like to see a reduction,” Horgan said.
According to the township website (eastmarlborough.org), any impact of an EIT would depend on when it was approved.
“If the Board of Supervisors were to implement an EIT for collection to commence in 2026, it would have had to adopt an ordinance by its October 2025 meeting, which would be publicly advertised before any adoption,” the website says.
The supervisors meet on the second Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m.
though it’s tough, it’s about having the mental strength for it, and we both have that. It comes from knowing eventually that Tate is going to come home.”
The unbearable agony of not having their son with them was compounded by their daily visits from West Grove to Philadelphia, a round trip that totaled nearly 90 miles and swallowed up three hours. Each car ride was filled with a rewind of questions, of doubts (Would he ever be able to talk? To walk?) and the small victories of a small smile from the bed looking up at them. It was then – when their infant son was 90 minutes away when Elizabeth and Greg shut their eyes at night – that their true resolve to bringing Tate home before Christmas began.
Elizabeth and Greg redesigned their home to what would become the new normal; Tate’s room would occupy much of what had been the living room. They took training classes with CHOP officials on learning how to administer and care for tracheostomy tubes and properly monitor respiratory devices.
Connecting the dots to home care
In order to bring Tate home, however, there was a necessary caveat: CHOP required that 80 percent of Tate’s home care would need to be performed by skilled, in-home nurses.
Finding that in-home care specialist would take the Lamberts the next two months, and although they sought assistance with BAYADA Home Health Care in Downingtown to find a qualified applicant, they were not finding the right persons who would provide in-home nursing care at a rate that is less than what they would earn at a hospital.
“When Tate was in NICU at the Chester County Hospital for the first six weeks, I got to be friends with Victoria DiBernardo, a NICU nurse,” Elizabeth said. “After Tate was transferred to CHOP, Victoria would call me every week and say, ‘It’s my Friday check in. What’s going on with Tate?’ I would then provide her with all the
updates, and especially where we stood on finding a nurse who could provide in-home care.”
Sensing the Lambert’s frustration, DiBernardo spoke with her colleague Sue Paris, a pediatric nurse at Chester County Hospital’s NICU unit, about the possibility of becoming a home care nurse for Tate. DiBernardo knew that Paris, who has 25 years of nursing experience, was familiar with tracheostomy tube cleaning and application, and that Paris lives with her family in Lincoln University, about a ten-minute drive from the Lamberts’ West Grove home.
The initial meeting between Paris and the Lamberts felt as if they had known each other for years, and in timing with Tate coming home from CHOP two weeks before Christmas in 2023, the Lambert family would now have a home care nurse for their son.
“When I first started working with Tate, I was also working full time at the hospital so I could only give the Lamberts one day a week,” said Paris, who is the mother of two sons.
“I never saw myself as a home care nurse, but I really enjoy working with the Lamberts and Tate is a great baby. He’s progressed to the point where I have dropped my status at the hospital to part-time, so now I’m able to consistently provide two to three days a week of home care for him.”
To compliment Paris, the Lamberts now have several home nurses to provide for Tate’s care.
“Sue fills in a lot of the blank spots that Greg and I have in our daily lives,” Elizabeth said. “If she works from 3 p.m. until 11 p.m. and hears that we aren’t able to find an overnight nurse, she will stay so that Greg and I can get some sleep.”
Small steps, forward steps
When Tate first came home, he was dependent on the ventilator, and while he no longer requires it, he is still reliant on the tracheostomy tube. Over the last few months, he has made incredible strides in his motor ability, such as being able to sit up independently. He also receives speech and occupational therapy and is often taken by his family to outings at neighboring parks and other outdoor activities.
The Lamberts are hoping that Tate will be qualified to have his tracheostomy tube completely removed in June – near the time of his second birthday and in time for a planned family vacation at the end of July.
“When Tate came home at six months old, he was on a ventilator 24 hours a day and he couldn’t even reach his hand out or turn his head from side to side,” Elizabeth said. “When it comes to his physical development, he now demonstrates greater leg strength, he can stand with assistance, and he not only reaches for things, he can take a ball and place it
down a shute or play with a farm animal toy.
“At first, we were seeing Oliver reach milestones while Tate was stumbling like a newborn, but now that Tate has started to catch up, we’re starting to see the both of them interacting with each other, and it’s been the leveling of the playing field that has brought us the most joy.”
During the first few months of Tate’s life, the staff at the Starkweather Elementary School – where Elizabeth was a teacher – dropped off breakfasts and dinners at the Lambert doorstep. Two of her former students contacted their dance teacher who coordinated three separate collections that raised money to pay for the Lambert’s travel expenses back and forth to CHOP. In the spirit of that selflessness, the Lamberts are discovering ways that they can bring wider attention to PURA Syndrome, in the manner of Jean Weinberg and Kyle Czepiel, the founders of Jack’s Tomorrow, named after their son, Jack, who was born in 2019 and diagnosed with PURA Syndrome. Since its found-
ing, the agency has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for PURA Syndrome research through benefit events like a cycling race and a golf tournament.
On a recent overnight trip, Elizabeth and Greg began discussing the idea of organizing a fundraising concert at Tate’s grandmother’s home, with all proceeds going to Jack’s Tomorrow.
‘He shows me what each day looks like’
“Having been a pediatric nurse for the past 25 years, and having had two babies myself, I know that every baby has their own personality,” Paris said. “Tate is a very easy-going baby. When his brother Oliver cries, it’s fairly normal for a child of that age to do so, but when Tate cries, everybody stops what they are doing, because he doesn’t cry often.
“Tate recognizes every-
one. He smiles, he laughs, and he loves to look through picture books. While Oliver is running all around, Tate just wants to sit in my lap and cuddle. There are times when I am having a tough day, and yet I know that I’m going to see Tate later and it’s like a kind of therapy for me. With Tate, it’s about taking it day by day, and he shows me what each day looks like.”
“He is the most calm, sweet mannered little ray of sunshine,” Elizabeth said in describing her son. “Tate wakes up in the morning with a huge smile on his face and he reaches his hands out because he wants to touch your face and play with your hair.”
To learn more about the Jack’s Tomorrow Foundation, visit www.jackstomorrow.org.
To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email rgaw@chestercounty.com.
Photo courtesy of Sue Paris
Tate with Sue Paris, one of his in-home care nurses.
Photos courtesy of the Lambert family Tate is joined by his twin brother Oliver, his half-sister Caroline and his parents Greg and Elizabeth Lambert.
Caroline reads to Tate and Oliver.
Jack’s Tomorrow has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for PURA Syndrome research.
Elizabeth snuggles with her twin sons Tate and Oliver.
they couldn’t come at a worse time,” said Andrea Youndt, CCFB CEO in an April 2 press release.
“We are currently experiencing a cost-of-living crisis in Chester County and Southeastern Pennsylvania. We need more support now, not less.”
In addition to the cut in TEFAP funding, the USDA also cancelled $145,000 in Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) funds which are used to buy food from local growers here in Chester County. Nick Imbesi, director of community relations at CCFB, clarified that the agency has already spent those funds for this fiscal year, but moving forward will no longer have that funding.
In its press release, CCFB stated, “Without these funds, not only would we be shorter in supply of much-needed food for food insecure families in Chester County, but our local growers would also lose support. To help shoulder this weight, however, the Chester County Food Bank will continue to partner with local growers with our own dollars.”
Oxford...
Continued from Page 1A
Workers will also put door hangers at the residences to inform them about possible water shut-offs, construction details, and more.
The loss of LFPA and TEFAP funds are part of a trend of funding cuts at the USDA under the Trump administration that total $1 billion. As to where and who the cuts are coming from, Imbesi clarified that they were a USDA decision, and that the department can utilize the funds how they see fit.
“We want to be very upfront and honest and transparent that while this is going to create a challenge for the food bank, it is within the USDA’s full authority to withdraw those funds,” said Imbesi.
“It’s not authorized funds by Congress that they must purchase food with those funds.”
Imbesi shared that 39 percent of the five million pounds CCFB distributed in the last fiscal year was government supplied food from programs such as TEFAP. Despite now losing a large part of that percentage, Imbesi is adamant that there will be no changes to the food CCFB can provide to their community partners.
“No community partner of ours in Chester County is going to see any service disruption at all,” he said. “We are going to be purchasing this food now, and we are going to be
distributing this food to our community partners.”
Kennett Area Community Services (KACS) shared in a April 24 website post that they receive more than 30,000 pounds of food every month from CCFB and thanked the Food Bank for their continued commitment despite the adversity of funding cuts.
“We are incredibly grateful for the unwavering support of the Chester County Food Bank,” said Leah Reynolds, KACS chief executive officer. “Their leadership, innovation, and deep commitment to community well-being give us hope and confidence, no matter what challenges come our way.”
Similarly, Melissa Pacella, the Executive Director of SILO in Oxford, said in an April 4 interview that although she feels government funding moving forward is uncertain, she is confident in the team at CCFB to meet the needs of local communities. Pacella shared that SILO receives about 80-90 percent of their food from CCFB.
“It puts our organization in a challenging position that we want to be sure we’re able to address the needs and we’re going to need more support from the community to be able to do that fully,” Pacella said.
According to Imbesi, community support for both monetary and food donations has increased at the food bank. KACS additionally called on the community to increase donations in their April
4 press release and have received increased support as well, according to their website.
Although CCFB, KACS and SILO all recognize the challenge they are facing and the potentially devastating consequences, the care and loyalty to the community amongst all the organizations seems unfaltering. For the CCFB, Imbesi was clear on their commitment. “We are more dedicated
than ever,” Imbesi said. “We are even more committed now to continue serving our neighbors in Chester County facing food insecurity. No matter what, we’re going to be here.” To learn more about the Chester County Food Bank, visit www.chestercountyfoodbank.org
To contact Contributing Writer Gabbie Burton, email gburton@chestercounty.com.
Another resident, Darcy Dix, was concerned about semi-trucks turning down on Mt. Vernon Street every week and questioned who sends those trucks to that street. That will be discussed at the upcoming Police and Public Safety Committee meeting.
cer in June or July. Iacono does want to pursue more testing and secure another hiring list.
Police Chief Sam Iacono presented the police report to council. He advised council that Jose Nava had passed the police exam and will be sworn in as an offi-
Mayor Phil Harris told council, “We have received complaints from Whitehall over the last 6 to 8 weeks. We have new management there. Sgt. Coverly will have a meeting with the residents there in the near future.”
Stacey Fuller, the borough solicitor, told council that she continues to work on the Moran tract and other ordinances. She is hopeful that agreements with Providence Place will be ready in May. Providence Place, a development located in Lower Oxford Township, just outside the borough line, is still working with the borough on easement agreements.
The deadline to register for “No Mow May” is nearing so if you want to put your lawn mower away in May, please register by May 1. For registered participants in “No Mow May,” the borough shall temporarily suspend, during May, the enforcement of Chapter 5, Section 306.1.B(2) of the Oxford Borough code. Allowing your lawn to grow in May provides flowering plants a chance to bloom. The flowering plants provide essential nectar and pollen for bees and other pollinators. This uninterrupted bloom period helps sustain their populations. Additionally, longer grass offers shelter for invertebrates like ground beetles and butterflies.
You can email the signed registration form to the Borough Codes Officer to be officially registered or you can drop off the completed form at the Borough Hall in their drop box located at the front entrance at 1 Octoraro Alley, or mail to P.O. Box 380, Oxford, PA 19363. Please check the Borough’s website at www.oxfordboro.org for a registration form and more information.
In other business, hydrant flushing continues in the borough until May 3. Hydrant flushing is conducted to maintain water quality by removing sediment and debris from the water mains, and to ensure the proper functioning of the hydrants for fire emergencies. Water customers are encouraged to check their cold-water supply before using the water, and if discoloration is discovered, customers should flush their cold-water line for a short period until discoloration clears.
Garcia-Allen informed council that 39 people have not responded to other notices about the replacement of water meters, and
they have received door hangars notifying them of their responsibility. She is hopeful that the replacement of the water meters will be completed by the end of May. Spring clean-up will be held May 8 through May 10 from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Public Works Building at 450 W. Locust Street. The Public Works employees will be on site to assist.
Oxford Borough Council approved the special event permit application submitted by Oxford Mainstreet, Inc. (OMI) for the Hometown Harvest on Aug. 1, conditioned upon payment of $466.69, which is the 50 percent deposit for two-thirds of the cost to provide police services. A special event permit application submitted by Oxford Mainstreet, Inc. for the Oxford Village Market was also approved. The Oxford Village Market will be held every Thursday beginning May 1 through Oct. 2. The next meeting of Oxford Borough Council will be held on Monday, May 5.
Trout Rodeo...
Continued from Page 1A
very inviting. The weather prediction for Saturday was ominous and included heavy rains, wind and thunderstorms.
Lucky for the fisher-men and fisher-women however, barely a drop of rain fell from the sky until the event finished, and the temperature hovered pleasantly in the 60s.
Nixon Park, which sits on the Kennett Square Borough and Kennett Township line on North Walnut Street, hosted its 27th trout rodeo on April 26.
This annual event began under the banner of Red Clay Valley Association because the park ponds are fed by the Red Clay. When the Red Clay and Brandywine Valley associations merged, it came under the operation of what is now the Brandywine Red Clay Alliance.
The Alliance’s Executive Director Jim Jordan was asked if he was nervous when he heard the weather prediction the night before.
“I don’t worry about the weather,” he said. “I only worry about things I can control, and I can’t control the weather.”
their catch.
Similarly, enthusiasm for fishing permeated the crowd, with many of them stating, “It’s always fishing weather.”
The Alliance routinely stocks the pond on the Thursday before the Saturday event.
This year Jordan said that among the 750 fish that were brought from the Cedar Spring Trout Hatchery in Mill Hall were brooks, browns, golds and rainbows.
Brandywine Red Clay Alliance Executive Director Jim Jordan stocks the ponds with trout on the Thursday before the Trout Rodeo started.
They varied in size as well, with one weighing in early at 3.9 pounds.
Early on at the event, the anglers were rewarded as they showed off their catches for photographs.
Many who came were families with young children. Parents were often attempting to teach the kids how to cast lines for the first time.
Quite a few who came were repeat participants, especially the offspring of the late, beloved Avon
Grove High School athletic director Al Weeks. That family comes every year and was represented this year by Al Weeks’ grandson, Al, and by his great-grandson Austin. They never fail to catch their limit of fish each year.
A father-daughter combination enjoying the event was Bobby Auch and his young daughter Kayden from Coatesville.
“She won in the children’s division the last two years,” Bobby Auch said.
Sal Martinez came from Oxford and snagged a few trout. He said he grew up in Kennett Square and went all the way through the Kennett school system.
Another family, who identified themselves only as “the Brothers from West Grove” said they were returning after enjoying the event in past years.
A special feature this year was the gesture by the Nixon Park Authority to invite children whose families had utilized ser-
vices provided by Kennett Area Community Service. David Schurr, vice chairman of the Kennett Area Park Authority, said this was the first time they invited the children and taught them how to go fishing.
Except for the days just before the Trout Rodeo, people go to the park and casually go fishing. They often report catching some of the trout that were left over from the annual event.
Octoraro Watershed Association announces photography contest winners
The Octoraro Watershed Association (OWA) recently announced the winners of the 5th annual photography contest.
Eighty entries were submitted in four categories for youth and adults: Wildlife, Landscapes, Trail Camera, and Agriculture. All photos will now be a part of a traveling display to local libraries— Atglen, Oxford, and Quarryville—starting in May and running throughout the summer.
Chotty Sprenkle, the contest organizer, said, “We received many entries this year with notable photos taken within the Octoraro watershed.”
OWA also partnered with Octoraro Area High School, Amanda Keifer, educator, and the “Students of the Watershed” members for a robust youth submission of 40 photographs.
Jenifer Warren, the vice president of the Oxford Area Historical Association, and her son Finn judged the photo contest. The results are as follows:
Austin Weeks, great-grandson of late Avon Grove Athletic Director Al Weeks, displays his catch.
All photos by Chris Barber
“The West Grove Brothers” loaded their rods and hooks for another year.
The People’s Choice Award photo is this image of a cemetery at sunrise and was taken by Kevin Joyce of Atglen, Pa.
The Best in Show photograph winner is the fox kit by the tree, a photo taken by Steven Berkowitz of Kirkwood, Pa.
On the first Earth Day, held on April 22, 1970, approximately ten percent of all Americans took part in protests and rallies, calling for the complete overhaul of the environmental system in a country that had seemed to give carte blanche to its largest polluters, with nary a slap on the hand.
It was the equivalent of rocket launch missile of concern and immediacy that said that our planet was in dire trouble, and the message reached around the world and led to environmental regulations, organizations and legislations – the breathtaking birth of what became a global consciousness.
Beginning on Jan. 20, 2025, however, the efforts of millions of private citizens and hundreds of environmental agencies in the U.S. began to tumble unceremoniously into the abyss.
During the first two days of his second term in office, President Donald J. Trump began a tumbledown of antienvironmental executive
Indignation into action
orders. He froze in-progress climate, clean air and consumer protections. He authorized the federal government to expedite permitting and approval of fossil fuel, infrastructure, and mining projects and circumvent Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act requirements. He withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement that reversed the country’s commitment to addressing climate change and reducing pollution. He revoked climate crisis and environmental justice executive actions instituted by the Biden administration.
He put an end to clean car regulations that required automakers to reduce tailpipe pollution from vehicles by 2027. He reauthorized liquid natural gas drilling. He rescinded an order requiring the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to assess environmental and community impacts and allow community input into federal infrastructure projects. He authorized the reopening of U.S. coastline to offshore drilling. He ended the American Climate
Corps, which had created thousands of jobs for those who wished to combat climate change. He withdrew wind energy development from U.S. waters and federal lands. He reopened the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and other territories in the region to drilling.
Again, these executive orders were completed in Trump’s first two days in office. Soon after, he fired members of the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee and Science Advisory Board; suspended funding for Solar For All, an Inflation Reduction Act program that delivers clean energy and lower prices to vulnerable communities; scrubbed the words “climate change” from all federal websites; and, perhaps most damaging of all, he recently ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Energy Department, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and Fish and Wildlife Service to amend their regulations so that they expire by October 2026.
“By rescinding outdated regulations that serve as a drag on progress, we can stimulate innovation and deliver prosperity to everyday Americans,” the memo said.
For certain, the chopping block approach to environmental safety by the Trump administration has been both erratic, unpredictable and irresponsible, and as this blatant disregard for our safety continues to reveal itself, many of us – Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals – are at our wits end of patience.
Yet, on the 55th anniversary of the first Earth Day, we must be reminded that the last half century of progress made in fighting pollution and environmental enemies has not been achieved by the stroke of a pen, but by grassroots action. Our nation’s elected officials did not lead the charge on that day; globally conscious Americans did, and against the grain of this scorched-Earth dismantling of our nation’s environment, there is a silver lining in the formation
Guest Column
of hundreds of regional, statewide and national organizations. It is time for us to call on them to step up again, and in a more fervent sense, for us to join their ranks.
Our climate, the safety of our children and our future generations, and the next centuries of our Earth are
Brandywine Red Clay Alliance: www.brandywineredclay.org
Chester County Environmental Alliance: www.chescoenvt.org
Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania: www.conservationpa.org
Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association opposes proposed closings
By John Eckenrode
Last month, hundreds of members of Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association (PSCOA) descended on Harrisburg to fight for the future of SCIRockview, SCI-Quehanna and the community corrections centers (CCC) of Progress and Wernersville – all of which are being targeted for closure by the Shapiro administration.
The state Department of Corrections (DOC) says every employee will receive a job at another facility, which sounds easy on the surface, until you look deeper. Three of the four facilities they’ve targeted for closure are at least an hourlong one-way drive to the closest facilities where our members could work. The lone exception is Rockview, which is located very close to Benner. There’s just one problem: Rockview will
have 466 employees looking for work but Benner only has about 40 vacancies. That means Rockview staff who don’t get a job at Benner will also be forced to travel an hour a day one-way. To make matters worse, the department has already assigned incoming trainees to some of the positions in Benner and another prison targeted for transfers, SCI-Houtzdale. For those who are able to transfer from Rockview or Quehanna, they’ll now have to spend two hours in their cars each day away from their families. Their financial reward? An extra $500 each month out of their own pockets to pay for gas because our department doesn’t help with any expenses. Commutes from those transferring from CCCs are similar, if not worse.
Closing a jail is also a death sentence for its host com-
Alan E. Turns...........................Advertising Director
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munity. In today’s America, it’s virtually impossible for small towns to replace prisons that create hundreds, if not thousands, of direct and indirect jobs when factoring in that prisons contract with local businesses for goods and services. Transparency also continues to be an issue. Even though we filed Right-toKnow requests about the steering committee the department used to rationalize these closures, they will not release even basic information to us. To this day, we do not know who the members of this committee are, any of their deliberations or CGL’s contract. Given that these dedicated public servants working in the jails and their families are facing an uncertain future, you’d think the department would want to be fully transparent to their people.
If these facilities close, history tells us the other jails will become more dangerous as their populations absorb more inmates. In 2019, vio-
lence in our state prisons was some of the worst I’ve seen in a quarter century of service to this commonwealth.
Much of this was due to 21 of 25 prisons being over 90 percent capacity, including 11 over 100 percent. Today, violence has dropped in part because the prison population is spread more evenly. Last year, only half of all prisons were over 90 percent capacity and only four over 100 percent.
In DOC Secretary Laurel Harry’s recent Appropriations Committee hearings, she indicated that most of the violence in our state prisons was committed in only seven prisons. She was correct. But what she didn’t say was the most violent seven prisons were the ones with the highest capacity. The violent lessons learned from 2019 now are being forgotten.
Saving money at the expense of the safety of our members is too high a price to pay. In fact, are there even any real savings? As
we all know, state budget math can be quite creative. The commonwealth talks about saving money by closing these prisons, but we know that’s not true. It’s just a budget gimmick.
For example, according to a recent Senate Majority Policy Committee hearing, three state-run facilities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities have been closed since 2018, but their continued maintenance and upkeep has run up a $47 million tab for taxpayers — and counting.
The committee also examined three properties that sat vacant for years before being torn down. The state spent more than $115 million maintaining the former Harrisburg State Hospital, Allentown State Hospital and SCI-Pittsburgh properties.
We filed our own Rightto-Know requests for the most recently closed state jails. Even though it’s been five years since it was shuttered, SCI-Retreat has cost the commonwealth millions
of dollars. Together with two other closed prisons, Greensburg and Graterford, Pennsylvania taxpayers have paid nearly $30 million since the last inmate was transferred.
So, do the math.
The closings of Quehanna, Rockview and two CCCs were pitched as a way to save the commonwealth $100 million. But taxpayers have spent nearly $200 million on properties that have been closed for years. The commonwealth’s contention that we’re somehow going to save millions by closing more prisons simply isn’t believable. This isn’t putting money above public safety. It’s even worse. This is putting budget gimmickry above the safety and quality of life of our brave corrections employees, their families and communities.
John Eckenrode is president of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association.
Pa. House OKs Williams’ bill to help municipalities fight blight by tightening LLC permit rules
Legislation introduced by State Rep. Dan Williams to give local governments the tools they need to fight blight in their communities passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
“Every struggling community in Pennsylvania wants to fight blight and revitalize their neighborhoods.
to obtain permits. Even if a principal owner of an LLC is behind on taxes, municipalities may still be required to issue permits under current law.
House Bill 316 would put an end to the disingenuous practice, giving local governments the power to deny a permit to LLCs or corporations if they or any of their principal owners
have tax delinquencies in the municipality.
“It’s time we stop bad actors from exploiting this gap in the law and give local governments the ability to ensure revitalization
4th annual Kennett Jazz Festival returns with a great vibe
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
Even before the Orrin Evans Trio hit The Kennett Flash stage this past Saturday night to close the fourth annual Kennett Jazz Festival, the two-day tribute to the musical genre of the cool had already done its work. As has become tradition, the line-up of what has been tacked on to Chester County’s music scene offered a variety of artists that kicked off on April 25 with performances by the Sharon Sable Group and the Vahe Sarkissian Group.
The festival returned on April 26 with a nearly tenhour musical marathon that began with a late morning performance by Buzz Talk, followed up with shows by the Michael Kaplan Superband featuring The Philly All-Stars; the Bacon, Lettuce and North Organ Trio; Chris Oatts’ Pretty Big Band; Jeanette Berry; the Mike Lorenz Trio; Dr. B’s Groove and a closing performance by the Orrin Evans Trio. Born in Trenton, N.J. and raised in Philadelphia, the pianist and composer has released
well-established
26 albums and is currently on a tour that will take him to New York City, Cape May, N.J. and Santa Cruz, Calif.
“It’s difficult to bring something like this to a small town that is not necessarily going to have a built-in jazz audience,” said David Mattock, the coorganizer of the festival.
“It’s about establishing a consistency and drawing new audiences who appreciate that we're pulling
something into town from somewhere else that they have never seen before, and allow it to grow on its own, kinetically. Each year, we make the festival a little more sophisticated and a little larger.”
Each year, the festival’s line-up has continued to grow in sophistication and diversity. It’s a complicated process to determine the final list of performers, Mattock said.
“About half of the Kennett
Jazz Festival Committee is made up of professional musicians, so when we do our selection process, we get 40 to 50 applications every year,” he said.
“We go through them and curate it based on quality, and there are always more excellent acts than we can possibly put on a stage.
“It becomes a selection based on balance, making sure that one act supports another one, whether it’s in contrast or if it’s because
we’re looking to build up a particular type of sound over the course of a day.”
When the festival first premiered, it was performed at several locations in the Kennett Square Borough that included the Kennett Library, the Kennett Brewing Company, the second floor of Holly Peters Oriental Rugs and the Kennett Flash. Mattock said that confining the festival to The Flash provided the audiences with being
able to enjoy better sound quality.
“When you’re presenting music that is at this level, you really want to have a lot more control over it in order to make sure that we’re giving the audience the same level of the musician’s output,” Mattock said, “and The Flash has the best sound system possible.”
To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email rgaw@chestercounty.com.
West Chester Film Festival celebrates a diversity of compelling cinema, stories
By Caroline Roosevelt Contributing Writer
Nina Simone said it best.
“An artist’s duty is to reflect the times.”
If that is the artist’s duty, it is also the duty of a film festival’s curators, jurors and sponsors to amplify that reflection.
At the 19th West Chester Film Festival at the Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center this past weekend, the films and thoughtful curation paid homage to that, from the kick-off party on April 25 to a weekend of workshops, film blocks, panel discussions, and networking opportunities.
I provided coverage of this event for the first time last year and will insist on keeping this festival on my roster for the foreseeable future as the quality of work, and breadth of emotion, opinion, and experience exceeded my expectations. As has become the festival’s trademark, filmmakers from all over the world participated in this year’s event, presenting a stunning array of cinematic styles and genres.
“Our submissions open in August every year, and we accept submissions from all over the world, all genres, 30 minutes or less,” said festival coordinator Victoria Rose. “We usually get a few hundred submissions, then we have an independent screening committee who watches every single film and then scores them. Then we all get together and once we select the films that come in. We have an independent
jury, who are all filmmaking professionals, and they select those films who receive awards.”
Accompanied by a nearly full house, I attended Saturday afternoon’s block of films that served as a cinematic lineup that was as diverse in message as it was in poignancy. The first film, An Orange From Jaffa, is set at one of the many check points between Israel and Palestine and focuses on the conversation between a Palestinian man attempting to get cross into the West Bank without proper paperwork, and the reticent Palestinian, taxi driver who accepts him out of a sort of kinship obligation. The two are met with scrutiny by the IDF at the border, and what ensues is 15 minutes of tension, uncertainty and a bit of humor as they remain in the car while awaiting their fate.
The film, which I had anticipated to spill into darker territory, managed to present a reality and a humanity to an increasingly volatile current event.
The next film, The Circle, filled the experimental film genre in this block.
Director Evgenii Bakirov documents tattoo artist Herman Devyashin’s first AR (augmented reality) based tattoo. The concept is derived from Devyashins’ artistic existential crisis of bearing the burden of infinite repetition in his work - and his desire to create beauty without relying on the banality of routine. We watch his model, draped over a velvet couch, preparing for her session in which he uses his AR headset to provide the stencil and thus free him from the stenciling portion of the process. Once finished, the artist shows off the model’s back torso on which a black and white floral tattoo blooms. Stylistically, the film had all the vibes of a Nine Inch Nails music video.
The Hunters’ Lament presented a subtle, and artfully apolitical account of a school shooting and a parallel memory of an uncle and nephew going on their first deer hunt. The block also featured
the Iranian film In The Shadow of The Cypress, a wordless and animated visual of PTSD and the effect it has on the individual and their families through the analogy of a beached whale. I found the film moving and beautifully crafted. Fear not, the film bock ended on a comedic note with the locally produced film Viaticum, in which a priest arrives at a home to offer the last rites to an aging man who confesses on his deathbed that he committed a murder several decades before. His dying wish to a visiting priest is to receive the sacramental wafer dipped in his sons’ homemade BBQ sauce, but his nurse, gob smacked by her patient’s confession, sets out to deny him a bite of the sweet and saucy wafer.
After the film block, I attended the panel “Based on a True Story,” which was led by Devorah Hope Palladino, a documentary producer for CNN and National Geographic along with Dr. Dyan Neary,
addition
a
a West Chester University professor and investigative journalist; filmmaker Frederick Taylor; and filmmaker H. Paul Moon. Each panelist had informative and enlightening recommendations and reflections on finding stories, paying respect to the subjects, and navigating the complex legal side of telling a true story. I found it to be a riveting and very important discussion in a world where the truth tends to get muddied on social media, and
and
place
alike must wade through the swamp to find, tell and share real stories.
The average life span of a smaller film festival is five years. As the West Chester Film Festival is preparing to celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2026, I know for certain that I will be occupying an aisle seat, because it will be well worth the wait and well worth my –and your - visit. To learn more about the West Chester Film Festival, visit www. WestChesterFilmFestival. com.
Photos by Richard L. Gaw
A performance by the Orrin Evans Trio closed out the fourth annual Kennett Jazz Festival this past weekend that featured a lineup of ten
performing artists at The Kennett Flash.
Courtesy images
The films Orange from Jaffa and In The Shadow of The Cypress were among the several dozen films that were shown during this year’s festival.
a
where filmmakers
journalists
Photo courtesy of West Chester Film Festival
The 19th West Chester Film Festival was held this past weekend at the Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center, before large and enthusiastic audiences.
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
In
to
wide assortment of films, this year’s festival presented several panel discussions, an opening night celebration and an awards ceremony.
Doris “Cooky” Howett, of Oxford, passed away peacefully on April 22, 2025. She was 87. She was preceded in death by her husband of 60 years, Kenneth Howett, her parents, Guy and Elinor Hess, three siblings, Carl Hess, Donald Hess and Dorothy Lewis, and one granddaughter, Maddie Smock.
She is survived by her children, Vicki Holcombe (Tip) of North East, Md., Michael (John) of Philadelphia, Marjorie Smock (Craig) of Ocean View, N.J. and Michele Zook Bickling (Clark) of Hockessin, Del., two granddaughters, Ellie Holcombe Rixham and Megan Smock, and one great-grandson, Colton Rixham.
Cooky was born in Lancaster, Pa. in 1937 and graduated from Solanco High School in 1955. She excelled in sports, was active in field hockey and basketball and
DORIS MARIE HOWETT
was inducted into the Solanco Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017. She graduated from West Chester State Teachers College in 1959 with a degree in physical education. She married her high school sweetheart, Ken Howett, that same year. In 1965, they built a house and moved to Oxford, where Ken was a high school teacher and athletic director for 32 years.
After their move to Oxford, Cooky was involved with the Oxford Area Historical Association, the Oxford Bell Tower Project, the Oxford Contemporary Club, and the Octoraro Chapter of Ducks Unlimited. She also served as a substitute teacher in the Oxford Area School District and was employed by Cameron’s Hardware in Oxford. Cooky was a PIAA referee for high school field hockey and girls’ basketball in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware. After Ken’s retirement from teaching, they started Howett’s Custom Screen Printing which kept Oxford sports teams, businesses and organizations in tee shirts and uniforms for years. Cooky was an avid gardener, traveled the world
with friends and family, and was a huge fan of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Cooky was an active member of Moore’s Chapel United Methodist Church in Elkton, Md., where she sang in the choir and participated in too many activities to list. Her biggest loves were her family and friends, and she easily and willingly filled multiple roles as family matriarch, loving wife and mother, “best ever” Grammy, and a good friend.
There will be a memorial service and reception at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 9 at Moore’s Chapel at 392 Blake Road in Elkton, Md.
In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to the Oxford Education Foundation (P.O. Box 142, Oxford, Pa. 19363) or the Oxford Area Historical Association (119 South 5th St., Oxford, Pa. 19363).
Arrangements are being handled by the Edward L. Collins, Jr. Funeral Home, Inc. (www.elcollinsfuneralhome.com) in Oxford.
LUCILE ANDREWS BOZZONE
Lucile Andrews Bozzone, of Oxford and formerly of Kennett Square, passed away on April 19, 2025 at Ware Presbyterian Village in Oxford. She was 93.
She was the wife of Paul Anthony Bozzone, with whom she shared almost 70 years of marriage.
Born in Bridgeville, N.J., she was the daughter of the late Gilbert Gore, Sr. and Mary Camper Andrews.
Lucile was a member of the Episcopal Church of the Advent in Kennett Square and was a 55-year member of the Four Seasons Garden Club of Kennett Square. She loved flowers and earned numerous awards.
CHURCH DIRECTORY
First
Kennett Square Missionary Church 408 Bayard Road
610.444.0867
www.kennettsquarebaptist.com
Kennett Square Presbyterian Church
211 S. Broad Street
610.444.5255
www.pcks.org
New Garden Memorial U.A.M.E 309 E. Linden Street
610.444.3357
Second
Unionville Presbyterian Church 815 Wollaston Road 610.347.2327
205 Penn Green Road, Landenberg 610.274.8384 www.landenbergchurch.com
Christian Life Center 125 Saginaw Road, New London 610.869.2140 www.CLCFamily.church
New London United Methodist Church 1010 State Road,
www.stmichaelpa.com
She is survived by her husband, one daughter, Paige Dagg (Kevin), one granddaughter, Lindsay Rozell (Vince), two great-grandchildren, Aelia and Jake, one brother, Rev. D Thomas Andrews (Kathleen), and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, April 30 at the Edward L. Collins, Jr. Funeral Home, Inc., 86 Pine St., Oxford. Friends and family may visit from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Online condolences may be made at www.elcollinsfuneralhome.com.
TheChesterCountyPressfeaturesadedicatedchurch/religious pagethatcanhelpyouadvertiseyourhouseofworshipand/or business.Thepageisupdatedweeklywithnewscripture.Only$10 Weeklyforthisspace. Weareofferingaspecialdiscountof25%offeachandeveryhelp wanted/classifiedadvertisementtoanybusinessthatadvertiseson thePRESSchurchpage. For more
FRANCES CASSEDY HUTTON
Frances “Sue” Cassedy Hutton, age 100, of West Chester, passed away on April 17, 2025 at Chester County Hospital.
At the time of her passing, she was one day short of her 101st birthday.
She was the wife of the late Robert Earl Hutton, with whom she shared 60 years of marriage up until his death in 2006.
Born at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, she was a daughter of the late Frances Justice Hannold Cassedy and the late James Alvin Cassedy.
Sue graduated from Nottingham High School in Syracuse, New York, and from the College of Home Economics of Cornell University in 1946. She married Robert Earl Hutton on June 29, 1946 at the South Presbyterian Church in Syracuse, New York.
Sue and Bob had two sons, Kenneth Robert Hutton and the late, Thomas James Hutton. The family of four lived in Auburn, New York, Pottstown, Pa., Kennett Square, New Fairfield, Conn., and Somerset, Mass.
Sue and Bob traveled extensively throughout the United States and Europe. In 2004, they moved to Kennett Square temporarily before becoming residents of Jenner’s Pond Retirement Community in West Grove, where they enjoyed becoming active in their new community.
During Sue’s earlier years, she was a volunteer with Red Cross blood drives at Cornell. After her sons were both in school, she resumed volunteering at Pottstown Hospital and then at Danbury, Connecticut Hospital where she was also president of the Auxiliary. Sue also volunteered at Fall River’s Charlton Hospital where she served for 30 years, including being president of its Auxiliary. In addition, she was a docent at the Rhode Island School of Design Art Museum in Providence, Rhode Island.
At Jenner’s Pond, she was a member of a number of committees. She enjoyed gardening, flower arranging, reading biographies, history and art books, visiting art museums and other museums, and attending plays, classical music concerts and pops music concerts. She enjoyed summers at Skaneateles Lake in New York.
Sue will be remembered for always sharing her appreciation of art and music.
In addition to her son, Ken Hutton and his wife, Jeanne, she is survived by two granddaughters, Christie Hutton Conn and Amy Hutton Spaziani (Charles), and three great-grandchildren, Cassedy, Tony, and Clara. She was predeceased by her husband and a son, Thomas.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Sue’s memory to the Cornell Library alumni.library.cornell.edu/give-library.
Arrangements are being handled by Grieco Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. of Kennett Square (484-734-8100).
To view Sue’s online obituary and leave condolences for the family, please visit www.griecofunerals.com.
LAUREL JEAN HURLOCK
Laurel Jean (Schaetzle) Hurlock, beloved wife of the late Frederick T. Hurlock, passed away peacefully on April 25, 2025. She was 93. Born on September 2, 1931 in Madison, Wisc., she was the cherished daughter of Edwin and Maybelle (Cantlon) Schaetzle of Elverson, Pa. Laurel married the love of her life, Fred, on December 24, 1950. Together, they embarked on countless adventures, moving 13 times during their 58 years of marriage. Their journey took them across Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Wyoming, and back to Pennsylvania, always hand in hand.
A valedictorian of Warwick High School’s Class of 1949, Laurel had a variety of work experiences. These included operating the Flowing Springs Inn with Fred for 15 years, serving as a manager at Spring City Knitting and Detra Flag, and later working as a screener at Jackson Hole Airport until her retirement in 1998.
She was a life member of the Order of Eastern Star, Freeland Chapter #323, and participated in the Laramie Garden Club. Laurel and Fred were active volunteers at the Jackson Hole Cutter Races hosted by the Shriners Club as an annual fundraiser for their hospitals. Her passion for nature and the great outdoors was reflected in her National Park Service lifetime membership.
Laurel found joy in her legendary flower gardens and quilting. She lovingly crafted over 100 quilts, sharing them with family, friends, and donating to local senior centers and the Unityville Fire Company. Her love for the great outdoors was evident in every stitch and bloom.
During the last 10 years, Laurel shared a home with Laurel Lee and John. She served as the chief household organizer and den mother of four Siamese kitties, Jack, Sweet Pea, Buddy and Norah. Neighbors marveled at her award-winning flowers and she enjoyed touring her main competition, Longwood Gardens.
Laurel is survived by her loving son, Fred, husband of the late Dianne (Perez) of Lander, WY, and daughter, Laurel Lee, wife of John Brabson of Kennett Square, her adored grandchildren, Caitlin Hurlock, Esq., of Fargo, ND, and Dr. Matthew Hurlock of Pasco, WA. She was predeceased by her brother, Edwin James Schaetzle, Jr., and her beloved husband, Fred.
Laurel’s family would like to thank the staff of Barclay Friends and Willow Tree Hospice for their compassionate care.
Relatives and friends are invited to a celebration of Laurel’s life at 11 a.m. on Friday, May 2 at Ludwig’s Grill & Oyster Bar at 2904 Conestoga Road in Glenmoore, Pa. Interment will be private at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, 2440 Conestoga Road, Chester Springs, Pa.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in her memory may be made to Shriners Children’s Hospital, 2900 Rocky Point Dr., Tampa, Fla. 33607, or online at www.shrinerschildrens.org/locations/philadelphia/ways-to-give.
Arrangements are being handled by Grieco Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. of Kennett Square (484-734-8100).
To view Laurel’s online obituary and leave condolences for the family, please visit www.griecofunerals.com.
Obituary submissions
The Chester County Press publishes obituaries free of charge for funeral homes with active advertising accounts only. Others with a connection to southern Chester County are charged a modest fee. Obituaries appear on the Wednesday after they are received with a Monday
5 p.m. deadline. They are also posted on www.chestercounty.com. Photos should be sent as .jpeg attachments to the obituary text. To
submit an obituary to the Chester County Press or for a rate quote, email the information to editor@ chestercounty.com.
ESTATE NOTICE
ESTATE OF Douglas Edward Wilfert, late of Downingtown, Chester County, Pennsylvania. The Executrix of the Estate is Randi Wilfert. All persons having claims or demands against the Estate of said decedent are requested to make known the same, and all persons indebted to the decedent to make payment without delay to Randi Wilfert c/o George S. Donze, Esquire, Donze & Donze, 696 Unionville Road, Suite 6, Kennett Square, PA 19348 4p-16-3t
ESTATE NOTICE
ESTATE OF DONN KEVIN
BIRDSALL, DECEASED. Late of Oxford Borough, Chester County, PA, LETTERS TESTAMENTARY on the above Estate have been granted to the undersigned, who request all persons having claims or demands against the estate of the decedent to make known the same and all persons indebted to the decedent to make payment without delay to KRISTI ANN EISENBERG, EXECUTRIX, 1163 Kensington Ln., Apt. 2112, Oxford, PA 19363, Or to her Attorney: KRISTEN R. MATTHEWS, KRISTEN MATTHEWS LAW, 14 E. Welsh Pool Rd., Exton, PA 19341 4p-30-3t
NOTICE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Council of the Borough of Oxford, Chester County, Pennsylvania, at a public meeting scheduled on Monday, May 19, 2025, commencing at 7:00 p.m., to be held at the Borough Building, 1 Octoraro Alley, Oxford, Pennsylvania, will conduct a public hearing to consider and possibly enact an ordinance amending Chapter 15, Motor Vehicles and Traffic, Part 3, Restrictions on Size, Weight and Type of Vehicle and Load, §15-304, Truck Traffic Restrictions on Certain Streets, the caption and summary of which follow. The full text of the ordinance may be examined at the Chester County Law Library, 201 West Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania and the Borough Building at the above address during regular business hours. Copies of the ordinance may be obtained at a charge not greater than the cost thereof. AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOROUGH OF OXFORD, CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, AMENDING CHAPTER 15, MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC, PART 3, RESTRICTIONS ON SIZE, WEIGHT AND TYPE OF VEHICLE AND LOAD, §15-304, TRUCK TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS ON CERTAIN STREETS, OF THE CODE OF THE BOROUGH OF OXFORD.
SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 15, Motor Vehicles and Traffic, Part 3, Restrictions on Size, Weight and Type of Vehicle and Load, §15-304, Truck Traffic Restrictions on Certain Streets, to designate North 6th Street, between Market Street and the end of North 6th Street, north of the intersection with Old Street, as an additional street, or portion thereof, upon which it shall be unlawful for any person to drive a vehicle
other than a passenger car or a three-fourths-ton pickup truck:
SECTION 2. Provides for the severability of unconstitutional or invalid provisions of the ordinance.
SECTION 3. Repeals ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict with any provisions of this ordinance.
SECTION 4. Provides that the amendment shall be effective as by law provided.
Notice is Hereby Given pursuant to the provisions of Act of Assembly, No. 295 Office of the Department of State of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, an application for the conduct of a business in Chester County, Pennsylvania under the assumed or fictitious name, style or designation of Jordan Diane Photography, with its principal place of business at 226 Highland Ave. Downingtown, PA 19335. The names and addresses of the persons owning or interested in said business is/are Jordan Martino, 226 Highland Ave. Downingtown, PA 19335.
4p-30-1t
PUBLIC NOTICE
AT&T proposes to modify their existing facility at new antenna tip heights of 117.5’, 120’, 121.5’, & 124’ on the building at 122 Mill Rd, Phoenixville, PA (20250337). Interested parties may contact Scott Horn at 856-809-1202 or 1012 Industrial Dr, West Berlin, NJ 08091 with comments regarding potential effects on historic properties. 4p-30-1t
Sheriff Sale of Real Estate
By virtue of the within mentioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution on Monday, June 16 th, 2025. Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale No. 25-5-121
Writ of Execution No. 2023-09066
DEBT $437,209.50
ALL THAT CERTAIN lot or piece of ground, with Improvements erected thereon, situate in the Township of New Garden, County of Chester and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as shown on Subdivision Plan for
Candlewyck at New Garden (PIA Tract) prepared for Orleans Corporation by Nave, Newell and Stampfl, Ltd dated April 26, 2000 and recorded June 14, 2001 in Plan No. 15798, bounded and described as follows, to wit:
BEGINNING at a point in the dividing line between Lot 25 and Lot 24, said point being located on the Westerly right of way line of Honey Locust Drive and continuing from said beginning point the four following courses and distances: (1) South 84 degrees 52 minutes 15 seconds West the distance of 150.00 feet to a point thence (2) North 5 degrees 7 minutes 45 seconds West the distance of 100.00 feet to a point thence (3) North 84 degrees 52 minutes 15 seconds East the distance of 150.00 feet to a point on the Westerly right of way line of Honey Locust Drive; thence (4) in the line of Honey Locust Drive South 5 degrees 7 minutes 45 seconds East the distance of 100.00 feet to the first mentioned point and place of Beginning.
BEING Lot 24, as shown on said plan.
BEING the same premises which Bindu Varghese, by deed dated November 16, 2021 and recorded January 3, 2022 at Instrument No. 11896907 in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds of Chester County, PA, granted and conveyed unto Keeohn Small, in fee.
Tax Parcel # 60-04-0020.040
PLAINTIFF: U.S. Bank Trust Company, National Association, not in its individual capacity, but solely as trustee on behalf of NFMP Trust, Series 2023-C VS DEFENDANT: Keeohn J. Small a/k/a Keeohn Small
SALE ADDRESS: 219 Honey Locust Drive, Avondale, PA 19311
PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY: LOGS LEGAL GROUP LLP 610-2786800
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets.Writ of Execution No. 2023-09066 DEBT $437,209.50 4p-23-3t
Sheriff Sale of Real Estate
By virtue of the within mentioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution
on Monday, June 16 th, 2025.
Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale No. 25-5-129
Writ of Execution No. 2024-08266
DEBT
$337,514.45
ALL THAT CERTAIN lot or parcel of land situated in the Township of London Britain, County of Chester, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, being more fully described in Deed dated April 22, 1994 and recorded in the Office of the Chester County Recorder of Deeds on May 10, 1994, in Deed Book Volume 3753 at Page 927, as Instrument No. 199437344.
Tax Parcel # 73-05-0044.120
PLAINTIFF: Wilmington Trust, National Association, not in its individual capacity, but solely as Owner Trustee for BRAVO Residential Funding Trust 2020RPL2 VS
DEFENDANT: Gregory C. Rigg a/k/a Gregory Rigg and Tamera L Rigg
SALE ADDRESS: 17 Chesterton Drive, Landenberg, PA 19350
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets.
4p-23-3t
Sheriff Sale of Real Estate
By virtue of the within mentioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution on Monday, June 16 th, 2025. Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale No. 25-5-133
Writ of Execution No. 2022-06479
DEBT $362,627.30
ALL THOSE CERTAIN LOTS OR PIECES OF GROUND SITUATE IN THE TOWNSHIP OF EAST NOTTINGHAM, CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA:
Tax Parcel # 69-3-63.12
IMPROVEMENTS thereon: a
residential property
PLAINTIFF: LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC, VS DEFENDANT: BENNIE PETTWAY
SALE ADDRESS: 140 Schoolview Lane, Oxford, PA 19363
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets 4p-23-3t
Sheriff Sale of Real Estate
By virtue of the within mentioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution on Monday, June 16 th, 2025. Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale No. 25-5-136
Writ of Execution No. 2024-09222 DEBT $239,953.06
Property situate in the BOROUGH OF KENNETT SQUARE, CHESTER County, Pennsylvania, being BLR # 0 304 016 000 00
IMPROVEMENTS thereon: a residential dwelling
PLAINTIFF: SANTANDER BANK, N.A. VS DEFENDANT: CHARLES E. THOMPSON III A/K/A CHARLES E. THOMPSON
SALE ADDRESS: 424 S Union Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets.Writ of Execution No. 2023-09066 DEBT $437,209.50 4p-23-3t
Sheriff Sale of Real Estate By virtue of the within men -
tioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution on Monday, June 16 th, 2025. Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale 25-5-138 Writ of Execution No. 2024-04460 DEBT $354,868.01
Property to be sold is situated in Kennett Township, County of Chester and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania:
Tax Parcel # 6205 02880000
PLAINTIFF: U.S. Bank Trust National Association, as Trustee of Treehouse Series V Trust VS DEFENDANT: Susan E. Schwartz, James C. Schwartz
SALE ADDRESS: 202 Balmoral Circle, Chadds Ford, PA 19317
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets.Writ of Execution No. 2023-09066 DEBT $437,209.50 4p-23-3t Sheriff Sale of Real Estate By virtue of the within mentioned writs directed to Sheriff Kevin D. Dykes, the hereindescribed real estate will be sold at public online auction via Bid4Assets, by accessing URL www.bid4assets.com/chestercopasheriffsales, on Thursday, May 15 th, 2025 at 11AM. Notice is given to all parties in interest and claimants that the Sheriff will file with the Prothonotary and in the Sheriff’s Office, both located in the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W Market Street, West Chester, Pennsylvania, Schedules of Distribution on Monday, June 16 th, 2025. Distribution will be made in accordance with the Schedules unless exceptions are filed in the Sheriff’s Office within ten (10) days thereafter.
Sale No.25-5-146 Writ of Execution No. 2024-02283 DEBT $147,910.53
Property situate in the TOWNSHIP OF LONDON GROVE, CHESTER County, Pennsylvania, being BLR # 59-11-41
Preliminary hearing for couple held at District Court in Oxford
By Betsy Brewer Brantner Contributing Writer
James Rudolph Allen and Nicole Allen had their preliminary hearing at the District Court 15-305 before Judge Scott Massey, almost a year after the couple was first
taken into custody following allegations of theft of funds in connection to a youth softball team’s fundraisers.
IMPROVEMENTS thereon: a residential dwelling
PLAINTIFF: AMERISAVE MORTGAGE CORPORATION VS DEFENDANT: BENJAMIN J. FULLER
SALE ADDRESS: 545 E. Avondale Road, West Grove, PA 19390
N.B. Ten percent (10%) of the purchase money must be paid at the time of the on-line sale. Payment must be made via Bid4Assets. The balance must be paid within twenty-one (21) days from the date of sale via Bid4Assets.
4p-23-3t
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James Rudolph Allen, 50, was identified as a resident of Cochranville when he was first taken into custody and charged in April of 2024. He was arrested for alleged theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and receiving stolen property.
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His wife, Nicole Allen, also appeared at the preliminary hearing in District Court. After a lengthy investigation by police, she was also arrested and charged with
similar alleged offenses as her husband on September 11, 2024.
Oxford Police Sgt. Chris Coverly said, “This was a long time coming. There were multiple victims and a defendant and co-defendant. There were a couple more charges added. They waived their hearing. This
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Police Testing: Notice of Examination, Entry-level Police Officer
Borough of Oxford Civil Service Commission NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Borough of Oxford Civil Service Commission will administer an entry-level police officer
will now move forward to the Chester County Court of Common Pleas.”
They were both charged with a felony for theft by deception and a felony for unlawful business practices.
Technically, the case should be held within 180 days, but because there are multiple victims and multiple co-defendants it may take longer. There are also numerous attorneys involved which could prolong the outcome. By law, the husband and wife must have separate attorneys, and the number of victims also adds to the number of attorneys involved.
examination for the purpose of establishing an Eligibility List on Saturday, June 14, 2025, beginning at 8 am. The examination will include both a Physical Agility Test and a Written Test. Applicants are required to pass the Physical Agility test in order to be eligible for the Written Test. Applicant Requirements: · Be twenty-one (21) years of age at the time of the test · Possess a High School Diploma or GED Certificate · Be Act 120 Certified or eligible for Certification before receiving a conditional offer of employment · Be a citizen of the United States · Possess a valid driver’s license
· Comply with any other qualifications as set forth in the Civil Service Rules of the Borough of Oxford. Testing Location- Physical Agility Test: Oxford Area School District Athletic Complex, 736 Garfield Street, Begins at 8:00 am Written Test: To Be Determined, • Begins at the conclusion of the Physical Agility Test. Application Packets are available at the Borough of Oxford Police Headquarters located at 57 North Fourth Street between the hours of 8:00 am and 4:00 pm Monday through Friday. Completed applications must be received at the Oxford Borough Police Headquarters no later than Tuesday, June 6, 2025, at
OMI First Friday events begin on May 2
By Betsy Brewer Brantner Contributing Writer
Oxford Mainstreet, Inc.’s First Fridays begin on May 2 with a celebration of Cinco de Mayo from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on S. Third Street in Oxford.
Leslie Sleesman, the interim executive director of Oxford Mainstreet, Inc. (OMI) said she is excited for the monthly event to begin.
“Our First Fridays are held May, June, August, and September,” she said. “We always have a great lineup. First Fridays are a great community event
for everyone, and they are free.”
Full details about events planned by OMI can be found at oxfordmainstreet. com/first-fridays.
OMI is working on securing their Mainstreet Designation through the Pennsylvania Downtown Center and Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED). The Pennsylvania Downtown Center partners with Mainstreet America to revitalize downtown communities.
Main Street is a comprehensive, community-based approach to revitalizing downtowns and central
business districts, and these programs have been working across the United States since the early 1980s.
The Pennsylvania Downtown Center (PDC) is a Main Street America coordinating program and provides technical assistance, board and committee support and education to designated programs while the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) provides access to funding opportunities and oversight of designated Main Street and Elm Street Programs in Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Downtown Center is part
of a powerful, grassroots network consisting of more than 40 Coordinating Programs and over 1,200 neighborhoods and communities across the country. These programs are committed to creating high-quality places and to building stronger communities through preservation-based economic development.
Sleesman said, “Mainstreet designation is a roadmap for organizations like OMI. Basically, it sets up our organization for success by using the national Mainstreet model. It goes through the background, demographics,
bylaws, etc. All of these things help you become better positioned for success and funding. This is a process that helps your organization become better equipped to help your community be more effective. People check it to make sure you are set up seek funding ops that non-designated Mainstreets don’t have access to.
OMI received a $30,000 grant from DCED which will be used for a strategic plan.
Sleesman added, “We are on the precipice of great changes because of the fire and the theatre project. I want to make sure OMI is in best position to help merchants in downtown Oxford succeed. We are always making contacts with potential merchants and seek people we want to bring to our town. We are always looking for sponsors for events, inside and outside of Oxford. We are looking to partner with community-minded partners who are willing to give back to also partner with community outside of Oxford to sponsor events.” Oxford Mainstreet Inc. is located at 39 S. Third St., Oxford. Call 998-9494 or visit oxfordmainstreet.com for more information about events and activities.
Chester County breaks ground on pollinator garden at County Justice Center
Staff from Chester County’s Department of Facilities, Keep Chester County Beautiful, the county’s Go Green employee sustainability committee, and the West Chester Green Team recently joined Chester County Commissioners Josh Maxwell, Marian Moskowitz, and Eric Roe in breaking ground on a new pollinator garden at the Chester County Justice Center.
The groundbreaking event, which took place on Earth Day, April 22, is the first step in preparing a garden to be planted with over 400 native perennials, trees, and shrubs in early May.
Commenting on the groundbreaking, the Commissioners said in a statement, “We are pleased to set aside county-owned land right in the heart of downtown West Chester that will bolster native bee and butterfly populations and promote a more resilient, sustainable, and vibrant natural environment.
“Members of the West Chester Green Team
approached us to consider creating a pollinator garden in front of the Justice Center, and it is wonderful to see their idea come to fruition – with the help of our Chester County Facilities Department and Keep Chester County Beautiful staff.”
“The Chester County Climate Action Plan calls for the County to develop more sustainable landscaping practices for our facilities, and this pollinator garden is a great example of how we’re working toward that goal,” said Chester County sustainability director Rachael Griffith. “The finished garden will have signage so anyone passing by the Justice Center can learn about the plants in the garden, the pollinators they attract, and the importance of providing habitat for pollinating species, even within urban areas like West Chester.”
Chris Pugliese, a landscape architect and vice president of the West Chester Green Team, said, “The collaboration between the West Chester Green
Chester
Beautiful, Chris Pugliese, West
Commissioner Marian
Team and Chester County on the Justice Center garden is a wonderful opportunity to transform a barren lawn into a dynamic pollinator garden. We could not ask for a more prominent location than the Justice Center to create such a garden.”
County
The County’s Go Green committee said in a statement, “Go Green supports all endeavors to facilitate the increase of native plants in our ecosystem so that native species can thrive.”
Volunteers interested in supporting the planting of
the new pollinator garden are invited to join county staff on Saturday, May 3, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Chester County Justice Center, 201 W. Market St., West Chester.
“We want this garden to be appreciated and valued by the community and welcome everyone who wants to help plant and mulch the pollinator garden on May 3,” added Griffith. Volunteers can sign up at Keep Chester County Beautiful Pollinator Garden Planting.
Commissioners
take ‘Innovate Chester County’ to the next level
First group of Innovate Chester County citizen recommendations will support children’s mental health, housing, veterans, and community transit projects from recommendations by county citizens, generated through Innovate Chester County.
Chester County Commissioners Josh Maxwell, Marian Moskowitz and Eric Roe recently announced the start of projects resulting
The Innovate Chester County first-phase projects
will support children’s mental health services, veteran resource communication, affordable housing, and the county’s community transit service, Chesco Connect.
“Through ‘Innovate Chester County’ we invited residents to explore new ways to tackle some of the complex social challenges we face in county government today,” said Maxwell.
“As we expected, some great ideas were generated by the teams of residents, and they have all been reviewed and prioritized,” added Maxwell. “We will now begin working on some of the recommendations that use existing resources, while researching other recommendations that require a greater amount of time, investment and partnerships with the private sector and nonprofits.”
More than 100 individ-
uals were selected to be part of Innovate Chester County’s work groups, following a county-wide call to action for applications. The applications asked for professional qualifications and personal interests, as well as submitted ideas that addressed the noted county government challenges.
“The Innovate Chester County work groups started meeting late last year, and within a short timeframe, each team researched and prepared a selection of ideas to present to us, to our county administrative team, and to our steering committee,” said Moskowitz.
“The ideas ranged from simple volunteer ambassador programs for Chesco Connect and Veterans Affairs, to more detailed recommendations that support a public education campaign on affordable
housing, as well as collaboration on children’s mental health services, and communication of our amazing local agricultural and farming products.”
Roe said, “One of the best things about Chester County is the interest that people have in taking time to make our community a better place for everyone.
Asking residents to collaborate on finding ways to address the complex issues of today might not work elsewhere, but it does here.
“We thank everyone who took the time to submit ideas and then meet to formulate those ideas into practical actions that we, in county government can take. We are looking forward to seeing the results of these Innovate Chester County recommendations, not just in the coming months, but for a long time to come.”
Follow the progress of Innovate Chester County at www.chesco.org/ innovatechesco.
Courtesy photo
On Earth Day, the Chester County Commissioners joined others for the groundbreaking of a new pollinator garden in front of the Chester County Justice Center. Pictured, from left to right, are Carrie Avery, ChesCo Go Green Committee, Andrew Wiegand, ChesCo Go Green Committee, Ryan Mawhinney, Keep Chester County
Chester Green Team, Commissioner Eric Roe, Commissioner Josh Maxwell,
Moskowitz, and Chester County sustainability director Rachael Griffith.
