Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 154, No. 13
INSIDE
Wednesday, April 1, 2020
$1.00
Now extended through April 30
Pennsylvania orders 26 counties to follow ‘Stay at Home’ order As of March 30, the Pennsylvania Department of Health confirmed that there are 4,087 positive cases of COVID-19 in 59 counties, including 146 positive cases in Chester County By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf joined with State Secretary of Health Dr. How local residents are Rachel Levine last week making the most of their to issue “Stay at Home” time at home...1B orders to residents in Chester County and several other counties in the state, in an effort to save lives and slow down the spread of COVID-19. The order went into effect on March 23 and at the time, was set to remain in place through
Local pastor shares harrowing story of being on cruise ship...6A
April 6. As COVID-19 cases have continued to rise and the state continues to seek relief to save lives and stop the spread of coronavirus, Wolf and Levine revised and extended their “Stay at Home” orders to a total of 26 counties, which went into effect on March 30 at 8 p.m. and will continue through April 30. In addition to Chester County, the order now includes the following counties: Continued on Page 2A
Courtesy photo
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf with Dr. Rachel Levine, State Secretary of Health.
Temporarily shuttering the churches hasn’t dampened the faith By Chris Barber Contributing Writer
The coronavirus pandemic may have shuttered the doors and forced the temporary cessation of services and Masses at local churches, but it has not damped their missions of faith and love. “Some people think that pastors are having a vacation, but we’re working harder than we ever did,” File Photo by Chris Barber explained Rev. Annalie Rev. Chris Rogers is maintaining contact with his flock Korengel of Unionville Presbyterian Church. Nursing home receives online. donation of handmade masks...3A
INDEX Opinion.......................4A Obituaries...........5A & 2B
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Classifieds..................3B
responses,” Korengel said. Similarly, St. Patrick Church in Kennett Square presented a live stream service as well. Pastor Chris Rogers said one of his members who is nimble with technology was able to produce the service as a livestream. “Five hundred were watching. Hopefully we get more next time. The links are on the website,” Rogers said. For the members of St. Pat’s, Sunday was not the only day to keep the church Continued on Page 2A
State lawmakers County Commissioners set new date for extend ‘essential servicesonly’ order to April 13 Primary Election By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer Pennsylvania has joined more than ten other states in postponing their Primary Elections in response to the coronavirus outbreak. The Pennsylvania Primary Election will now take place on Tuesday, June 2, five weeks later than the original date of April 28. The measure passed both the Republican-controlled State House and State Senate on March 25. In the Primary Election, Pennsylvania voters will have a chance to select the nominees for the U.S. presidential race, the races for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as various State House and State Senate contests. State Senator Tom Killion (R-Chester and Delaware) joined county officials in southeastern
Pennsylvania in calling for the delay of the Primary Election. “COVID-19 is an unprecedented public health crisis,” said Killion. “Delaying our primary date… is the prudent thing to do to protect the health of voters, election workers and the integrity of our democracy.” County Commissioners in Chester, Bucks, and Montgomery counties, the Delaware County Council and Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney all formally requested the primary election be moved, with June 23 suggested as the potential date. Ultimately, the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf and legislative leaders decided on moving the primary to Tuesday, June 2. Wolf and state lawmakers already approved legislation giving every voter the ability to mail in a ballot.
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
In a further effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 and protect the county’s 2,400 full-and part-time employees and its individual and families, the Chester County Commissioners announced on March 25 that they have extended the county’s ”essential services-only”waiver to April 13. The Commissioners’ decision dovetails with the “Stay at Home” order issued by Pennsylvania Gov. Wolf and State Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine on March 23 to residents in Chester County and several other counties in the state, in an effort to save lives and slow down the spread of COVID-19. The other counties on the list included Allegheny, Bucks, Delaware, Monroe, Montgomery, and Philadelphia. It is the latest layer of protection issued by Chester
Courtesy photo
The Chester County Commissioners – Michelle Kichline, Josh Maxwell and Marian Moskowitz.
County government, who moved to an “essential services-only” order on March 14, in advance of other counties in the region. “The County’s essential services have long been identified in our continuity of operations (COOP) plan, so while making the decision was not an easy one, enacting it was relatively straightforward,”said Chester County Commissioners’ Chair
Marian Moskowitz. “Making that decision has proven to be very prudent. The build-up of prevention measures put in place over the past week by us, by the State and our neighboring counties have been necessary to make every effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. “And although we have put an end-date of April 13 on our plan to return to full Continued on Page 5A
Historic Kennett Square is ready to help businesses restart strong By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
For one thing they are still sharing the Spirit—they are just doing it online. Korengel was particularly enthusiastic about her church’s most recent presentation when Unionville Presbyterian joined Bethany and Doe Run Presbyterian churches in a livestream. Korengel, Yung Me Suh Morris of Bethany and Gabby Kennedy at Doe Run united to spread the Word. “It was neat that there were three women. The people could see us and participate in singing and giving
Historic Kennett Square has pivoted in response to the coronavirus pandemic and is now focusing on helping businesses prepare for a strong restart once normal business activity resumes. “We had to transition quickly,” explained
Bo Wright, the executive director of Historic Kennett Square, who just joined the organization in January. Wright explained that up until recently, the organization’s efforts had been focused primarily on economic development— attracting new businesses to the area and helping others to expand. Now, and for the immediate future,
the emphasis is on providing assistance to the small businesses that have been hit hardest by the cumulative effects of the pandemic. Those small businesses are vital to the Kennett community. “In this uncertain and difficult time, one of the most hopeful things we can do is to make conscious consumer choices that invest in
preserving our community,” Wright explained. “Small businesses and merchants are much more economically vulnerable than big box stores and mega online retailers, but the good news is that together we can make a difference.” Kennett Square has a diverse group of businesses that are led by entrepreneurs and experts
in their fields. They are the ones responsible for the extraordinary variety of small businesses in Kennett Square—including restaurants, shops, galleries, cafes, salons, barbershops, fitness and wellness facilities, breweries, a beer garden, a co-working space, and more. Wright said that it’s Continued on Page 3A