Friday, May 4, 2018

WEST MARLBOROUGH: The Plant Sale

"See you at the Plant Sale!" I said to two neighbors as I was leaving the township meeting the other night. They didn't need to ask what plant sale I meant; it was, of course, the one held every spring under the Penn Oak at London Grove Friends Meeting. It's one of my favorite days of the year because they have such great plants and I get to see so many friends and neighbors, either shopping or volunteering.
The sale runs from 7 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday, May 12, rain or shine. London Grove Meeting is at the intersection of Newark Road and Route 926 (Street Road). 
This year, the minute I arrive, even before I start socializing, I am going to the annuals tent to buy my Rocket snapdragons. They are the best and are available nowhere else that I've found. The Plant Sale also has beautiful hanging baskets, vegetables, herbs, geraniums, perennials and groundcovers, and in the social hall there are refreshments and a bake sale to benefit the kindergarten.

KENNETT SQUARE: Old and New Kennett

Two old friends and I met for coffee on Wednesday morning and spent pretty much the whole morning catching up (work deadlines? what are those?).
It helped that we chose such a pleasant and convenient spot for our rendezvous: Philter, the coffee shop on West State Street in downtown Kennett.
For a while we were reminiscing about Kennett back in the 1970s, when stores like Resnick's, Sheldon's and Newberry's were still around. And was there a pet store "uptown" at one time?
Philter is quite a bustling place: Claire Murray and Mary Hutchins of Historic Kennett Square were sitting outside; architect Dennis Melton was holding an informal meeting with three or four people; the man at the next table was reviewing the proofs of his book on the Jersey Shore; and other customers were just relaxing and reading the newspaper. 
Even Philter's friendly owner, Chris Thompson, stopped by our table to say hi.

VOTING: Primary is coming up

Just  a heads up that Primary Election Day is Tuesday, May 15. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You need to be a registered Republican or Democrat to vote in the primaries (unless there's a ballot initiative). Usually the turnout is light on primary day, although voting is always something of a social event here in West Marlborough, where we cast our votes in the township garage and it's not unheard of to have a voter stop by on horseback.

SMALL TOWN: Social capital

The healthy sense of community in our area got a nice shout-out in an April 25 "Washington Post" op-ed piece by John A. Burtka IV, who lives in downtown Kennett Square. He wrote:
"Not long ago in my town of Kennett Square, Pa., the owner of our local bookstore for more than 40 years, Thomas Macaluso, died at the age of 85. A sign on the door of his shop reads, “Loving Husband, Father, Brother, Grandfather, and Community Friend. Over the years Tom was a fixture in the town of Kennett,” and goes on to describe all the local charities and civic associations where he volunteered.
"In our living room, prints from his store are a daily reminder of Thomas’s presence. Shortly after his passing, we were dining at a local restaurant on bingo night, and the bingo caller raised a glass in honor of a life well lived. Everybody knew whom he was talking about. Ask yourself, do you know the owners of the stores where you shop? Would you mourn their absence?"
He continues: "If we want to strengthen our country, we must strengthen the fabric of civil society in our towns and neighborhoods . . . Limiting the size of the administrative state is certainly a necessary ingredient toward achieving this goal. However, when financially possible, people should also reinvest their dollars into locally owned institutions — vigorously defending community and cultural heritage against the stifling conformity of our national monoculture."
John is the executive editor of "American Conservative" magazine. 

KENNETT SQUARE: Dining in the street

The first "Third Thursday" open-air dining event of 2018 will be from 6 to 9 p.m. May 17. State Street will be closed for a few blocks in the center of Kennett Square so that Grain Craft Bar & Kitchen, Verbena, La Verona, Lily's, and Portabello's can set up tables outdoors and serve dinner in the middle of the street. This event always attracts a lot of folks, so you might want to call the restaurant for reservations (except for Grain, which will be first-come, first-served). Parking is free after 5 p.m. in the parking garage. "Third Thursday" will continue through September. 

Thursday, May 3, 2018

WEST MARLBOROUGH: Slow down!

At 8 a.m. Wednesday, May 2, I was delighted to see a state trooper with a radar gun parked in a driveway along Newark Road between Street Road and Upland Road (Routes 926 and 842). Motorists along that stretch of road routinely ignore both the 40-mph speed limit and the "no passing" signs, as well as the stop signs at both intersections.

Wednesday, May 2, 2018

PARADES: Marking Memorial Day

Southern Chester County is marking the upcoming Memorial Day holiday with parades through town and services.
West Grove's Memorial Day parade, organized by John Ruffini, will kick off at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 26, at Avon-Grove High School. It proceeds north on Prospect Avenue and ends with a service at the Memorial Garden on East Evergreen Street near Brothers Pizza.
Marshallton's Memorial Day parade, sponsored by the Marshallton Conservation Trust, will begin at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, May 27, rain or shine. Participants should gather at the Goddard School parking lot at 12:45 p.m. Kids participating in the decorated bicycle contest should register there as well. The parade enters West Strasburg Road from the alley next to the "Merchant of Menace" store and heads east to the Marshallton United Methodist Church, where the Memorial Day ceremonies will be held.
And Kennett Square's Memorial Day parade, organized by Bill Taylor, is set for 10 a.m. to noon Monday, May 28. The parade starts at Kennett High School and proceeds to South Street, turns north toward the center of town on South Union Street and proceeds to East Cypress Street, goes a block east and turns onto South Broad Street, then turns west onto State Street, and finally turns north onto Union Street. (Our time-honored viewing spot is on North Union Street near the parking garage). The parade ends with a service at the Union Hill Cemetery on Route 82, north of town.

WEST MARLBOROUGH: A new committee

At their May meeting, the West Marlborough supervisors agreed to form a five-member advisory committee to explore how the township should fund local fire and ambulance services. The members will be charged with gathering data and making recommendations to the supervisors.
The township's engineer, Fran Greene, said that at a recent statewide conference he attended a roundtable discussion about the problems that small townships like West Marlborough are having in funding emergency services.
"It's an issue many municipalities face," he said.
The issue is a complicated one, because many local emergency services are facing rising costs, decreasing numbers of volunteers and dwindling donations from the public.

MAIN LINE: A hoppin' joint

The other day I was at a funeral at the Church of St. Monica in Berwyn (what a magnificent church!), waiting in line to greet the widow and her sons. The line was not moving, so the folks around me were making small talk.
They hit pay dirt when one fellow remarked that six weeks ago he had undergone knee-replacement surgery. Well, it turns out the man next to him had undergone the same procedure a year ago. They compared their experiences in detail: their pain level, their medications, their range of motion, their surgeons, where they had their procedures, where they did their physical therapy, whether their golf game had suffered.
The woman in front of me joined in: she recognized the name of one of the surgeons they mentioned and said her husband is considering going to him. Advice flowed forth.
In some circles, it seems, arthroplasty is replacing the weather as an ice-breaker.

Sunday, April 29, 2018

FOOTLOOSE: Dancing with the 'saurs

Saturday night we donned comfortable shoes and headed off to a fundraising event that promised a "Dance Through the Decades." The DJ was in his 20s and started out with what for him must have been music from the Dawn of Time: Chubby Checker's "The Twist" and the Beatles' "Twist and Shout." We were on the dance floor immediately.
As he segued to the 1970s, he started spinning Earth Wind & Fire, Donna Summer and "Saturday Night Fever," conjuring up happy memories of my college years. It was a hoot, and good exercise as well.
Then something odd happened: two guests in gigantic inflatable dinosaur suits showed up as the DJ was playing the BeeGees' "Stayin' Alive" (more than coincidence?). People just laughed -- this was an extremely laidback, accepting crowd -- and made extra room for them. They lumbered around for a couple of songs (one was "Jungle Boogie") until one of the costumes showed definite signs of deflation.
What? Why? Where did they come from? I fear it will remain an unsolved mystery.
We stayed until about 10, then headed home; I'm sure the energetic young people were still dancing as Saturday turned into Sunday.

SPRING: Signs of the season

If you haven't yet put out your hummingbird feeders, it's time! I saw the first hummer at my backyard feeder on Thursday, and another thirsty little guy showed up this afternoon. Other welcome signs that "spring has sprung" are the fuzzy goslings at the Stone Barn pond and the Angus and Belted Galloway calves up the road. And the scent from a blooming daphne shrub along West State Street in Kennett Square was heavenly.
And on April 25 we made our first visit of the season to La Michoacana Ice Cream on East State Street. My pick was their Coffee Oreo ice cream; so delicious!

KENNETT: An alternative work space

On Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Presbyterian Church of Kennett Square (211 S. Broad St.) is providing a quiet space where folks can work, compete with tables, chairs, coffee, tea and WiFi access.
At lunchtime on April 23 I packed up my paper-and-pencil proofreading project (it's about space travel) and headed over there. It's a very comfortable, distraction-free venue, and almost every table was taken with people and their laptops. One woman brought along her infant, who slept the whole time in a car seat. Somebody had brought Indian food for lunch and it smelled delicious.
I plugged in my headphones (yoga music and proofreading are a good mix), settled in, and spotted a lot of typos.

UNIONVILLE: Remembering a scholar-athlete

This was the 15th year for the Unionville Track & Field Invitational, held April 28 at UHS, but it marked the very first Christine Smith 3200m Run. Christine, nicknamed "Mighty Mite" for her 5-foot stature, ran cross-country and track for UHS from 2004 to 2008, won statewide honors her freshman, junior and senior years, and went on to earn a degree in chemical engineering at Cornell University.
"Christine was raising puppies, bodysurfing and working at Boeing in South Carolina when she was tragically killed in a car accident this winter. She was and will always be remembered as one of the great athletes of Unionville's running history," according to the event's program.
Winners of the inaugural event on Saturday were Brooke Hutton of Coatesville and Joshua Lewin of West Chester East.

HISTORY: Two lectures

I want to let you know about two history lectures that are coming up this month.
On Wednesday, May 16, at Primitive Hall in West Marlborough, three clock experts, including Hall board member Wendy Cooper, will tell the saga of Joseph Pennock's spectacular eighteenth-century tall clock, which has just returned to its original home at the Hall. The clock's movement was made by George Crow of Wilmington and its walnut case was crafted locally. Reception is at 6 p.m., with the lecture to follow at 7; tickets are $35. Email primitivehalltours@gmail.com for more information. (Full disclosure: I'm on the Primitive Hall Foundation's board of trustees.)
On Tuesday, May 22, the Kennett Township Historical Commission will present its annual history lecture, this year entitled "That's a Fine Horse, I Think I'll Take Him." Quaker historian Christopher Densmore will discuss how local Friends suffered because of their religious beliefs during the Revolutionary War. The free public lecture will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 22, at the Kennett Township building, 801 Burrows Run Road, Chadds Ford. 

KENNETT: Family Promise gala

Annalie Korengel, the pastor of Unionville Presbyterian Church, is also the Board president of Family Promise of Southern Chester County, a social service agency that provides temporary housing and support services to help homeless families regain their self-sufficiency. She told me that more than 300 people attended the group's first fundraiser, "An Evening of Promise," on April 21 at the Kennett Square Country Club.
"It’s wonderful to see the church congregations who partner with Family Promise and the community come together to help support housing needs in our community," said Annalie. Susan Minarchi is the group's executive director.       

 

KENNETT: Astronomy program

This spring's Sky Tour will be held starting at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, May 19, at the Tino Leto Athletic Fields on North Walnut Street. Members of the Chester County Astronomical Society will bring their telescopes and stargazing gadgets to share.
Here's the plan, according to the group's press release: "As the sun fades the first thing we’ll see is bright Venus shining in the west. Next we’ll find Jupiter, the king of the planets, rising in the east. Overhead the Big Dipper will be high in the sky accompanied by Leo the lion, Hercules the strong man and Draco the dragon. As the sky becomes fully dark, we’ll find star clusters, galaxies and nebulas."
Stargazers are asked to bring a small flashlight.
This sounds like a great way to introduce astronomy to young people.  

NEW GARDEN: Tractor Supply coming soon?

Fans of Tractor Supply Co. are wondering if some clearing and demolition work that's being done along Newark Road at Route 41 heralds the start of construction for the long-awaited store. It will be located north of the Sunoco gas station, with entrances onto both roads. Until it's built, the closest Tractor Supply stores to us will remain Parkesburg and Oxford.

KENNETT SQUARE: Concerts in the park

This year's summer concert series at Anson B. Nixon Park will kick off on June 20 with folk singer/songwriter Jake Armerding, sponsored by the Hadley Fund. The eight concerts, which always draw a big crowd, are held every Wednesday evening from 7 to 9 p.m. in the park's amphitheater. I'm eagerly awaiting the announcement of the rest of the schedule, as we are regulars at the shows.