Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 156, No. 16
INSIDE
Wednesday, April 20, 2022
New Garden Flying Field to host air show in August
Country Chrysler and Jeff D’Ambrosio Chevrolet plan donation to Oxford Recreation Association...7A
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
The New Garden Flying Field will be hosting an air show on Tuesday, Aug. 30 that will feature flight displays, a car show, food and music and an evening fireworks show.
Crazy Deli Crepes Café opens in West Grove...1B
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
For one Tuesday afternoon and evening in late August this year, the skies over the New Garden Flying Field will be ablaze again with the wonders of aviation. Speaking at the New Garden Township Board of Supervisors meeting on April 19, New Garden Flying Field Aviation Director Jon Martin announced that the Flying Field will host an air show on Aug. 30 that will include remote control airWalschburger appointed craft displays, aerial shows, Chester County Deputy County Administrator...5B music and food vendors, a demonstration of unique automobiles, the Flying Field’s first night air show
INDEX
Opinion.......................5A Obituaries.............2B-3B Classifieds..................4B
and fireworks to close out the event. The air show signals a return to normalcy for the Flying Field, who has hosted numerous air shows such as The Festival of Flight, as well as the Chester County Balloon Festival and several running and community events over the past several years. Since 2020, however, the Flying Field has been unable to organize large-scale shows for two reasons: COVID-19, and the temporary flight restrictions (TFR), enacted by the United States Secret Service that have restricted aviation at the airport whenever President Biden
Annual fundraising event to be held on May 7, 2022
Running together again: The Kennett Run returns By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer It would be difficult to imagine now – with the world slowly returning to a semblance of normalcy – what the tenor of the meetings were like in the early spring of 2020, when the organizers of that year’s Kennett Run, scheduled for that May, faced an uphill battle of deciding what to do as the world seemed to close itself up. “We were halfway through the process of putting the run together when the pandemic hit,” said Bob Merkle, who replaces Chris Daney as the Kennett Run President. “We had hundreds of runners already signed up and had about 80 percent of the sponsorships locked in, so it was simply communicating to everyone that we were not going to have the race that year because of the onset of COVID-19.” Ultimately, the 2020 Kennett Run was cancelled, but instead of a giant cloud, the race’s organizers saw that a silver lining emerged. The business community of the Kennett Square area came through again, just as they had since the race
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Photo by Richard L. Gaw
After a two-year postponement, the 32nd annual Kennett Run will return on May 7, beginning at Anson B. Nixon Park in Kennett Square.
began in 1989, when it was conceived as a fundraising event that has to date contributed more than $1.2 million to area organizations. “Knowing full well that the many sponsors were about to enter into a precarious time of their own and potentially struggle to survive, we asked them, ‘Do you want your contributions to be returned, or can we keep it and place it where needed in the community?’” Merkle said. “The vast majority of our sponsors told us, ‘Keep it and use it wisely.” Members of the Kennett Run Charities Board of Directors then contacted Carrie Freeman, the CEO of the United Way of Chester County. Through Freeman’s assistance and recommendation, the Board identified
Oxford Police add to ranks and seek accreditation By Betsy Brewer Brantner Contributing Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
$1.00
Oxford Police Chief Sam Iacono and Mayor Phil Harris accepted a $500 check from Presence Bank at 136 S. Third Street Oxford for their Community Outreach Program. Pictured at the presentation are (left to right) Chief Iacono, Doreen Broadus, Mayor Harris, John Pinno, III and Heather Glock.
Oxford Mayor Phil Harris swore in three police officers at the March 21 Borough Council meeting. Those officers were Detective Adam Weaver, Officer Jacob Williams and Officer Jamie Cruz. Weaver started at Oxford Police Department as a part-time officer in May of 2013, and was hired fulltime in August of 2015. Weaver was sworn in as Detective to replace Sgt. Chris Coverly, who was the
detective, but was recently promoted to Sergeant. Williams was hired as a part-time officer in February of 2021 and recently became full time in March 2022 after successfully completing the civil service process. Williams is an active reservist. Cruz was hired as a parttime officer in December of 2021 after graduating from the police academy earlier that same month. Cruz is bi-lingual and will be an asset to the police department in working with the diverse community. Continued on page 3A
2022 Plant Sale to feature sunflowers tee members are raising awareness and showing solidarity with Ukrainians by featuring sunflowers at their annual plant sale. “We’ll have sunflower starts and seed packets as well,” Donlick said. “Sunflowers are a powerhouse providing food, shade, and energy in addition to being pollinators and there are many different cultivars, from tall varieties to smaller ones.” Pratt’s Greenhouse, at 634 Hillendale Road in Avondale, will once again
host this year’s Kennett Beautification Committee Plant Sale on Saturday, April 30 (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Sunday, May 1 (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). The sale moved to Pratt’s last year, and the new location was a great success. Customers appreciated the wide variety of beautiful and well-tended annuals and perennials for sale, including plants that local garden club members bring from their gardens. Pratt’s offers a spacious layout and plenty of free parking. The two-day
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Editor’s Notebook
Oxford Borough seeks public input on comprehensive plan
format was also popular, organizers say. The Greater Philadelphia Dahlia Society was unable to attend last year’s sale due to COVID-19, but they will be back with a table at the plant sale this year. Those who don’t have the space for extensive garden beds can still brighten up window boxes, hanging baskets, and containers with colorful blooms and textured, multi-hued foliage. All proceeds from the Kennett Beautification
On Thursday, April 28, from 7 to 9 p.m., Oxford Borough will hold a public open house to get input about the borough’s Comprehensive Plan that will help officials plan for the future. The borough will present draft plan materials for review and comment from the public. The public open house will take place at Oxford Borough Hall, 1 Octoraro Alley in Oxford. Light refreshments will be served. Please RSVP to admin@ oxfordboro.org and look for updates on the Oxford Borough website at www.oxfordboro.org.
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The Kennett Beautification Committee’s Plant Sale will take place April 30 and May 1 Amidst all of the heartbreaking news and stories from Ukraine, one more catastrophic loss that will be felt around the world is in the area of agriculture— Ukraine’s largest export industry. “These people are farmers,” said Kennett Beautification Committee member JoAnn Donlick, “and they cannot plant this year.” As Southern Chester County residents eagerly await the spring planting season this year, Donlick and her fellow commit-
which organizations needed the funding the most. As a result, Kennett Area Community Services and the Oxford Area Neighborhood Services Center each received a $30,000 contribution in 2020. “As soon as COVID19 hit, both of these food cupboards were being overrun with demand,” Merkle said. “We literally reversed our whole decision process, due to their enormous need.” As 2020 fell into 2021, the Kennett Run Board of Directors expressed their optimism that the pandemic was going to disappear, and allow the annual race to resume in 2021. What they all