Frances A. Fichter (nee Barry), of Glen Mills, formerly of Springfield, died April 29.
Born in 1942 in Philadelphia, she was the daughter of the late Josephine and Louis Barry.
Frances was the beloved wife of George P. Fichter IV; the loving mother of George P. Fichter, V, of Glen Mills, Kenneth Barry Fichter (Mary) of Jennersville, Jeanne Marie Giord (James) of Winston Salem, and Jeffery Scott Fichter of Glen Mills; the dear sister of Louis Barry (Ruth), James Barry, and Karen Barry; also survived by 10 grandchildren.
Doris June Tindall (nee Meyers), of Westtown, formerly of Ridley Park, passed away on April 29.
Born in 1925 in Upland, she was the daughter of the late Frances M. and Christopher L. Meyers Sr. Doris attended the Pierce Business College and worked as an executive secretary with Scott Paper.
She was the judge of elections for 35 years in Thornbury Twownship, Chester County. Doris was also involved in the figure skating community at the Skating Club of Wilmington and the Philadelphia Skating Club and Humane Society. She volunteered in the Chester Hospital Gift Shop and was a member of the We Go Rotary Club.
Doris was the beloved wife of the late Rodger A. Tindall; the loving mother of Pamela A. Tindall-Becker (James Michael), Rodger Keith Tindall (Ann Marie Waterhouse), and the late Cynthia Marie Tindall; and the dear sister of Helene Pratt, the late Christopher L. Meyers Jr., the late Grace M. Craig, the late Robert Meyers and the late Frances Meyers.
Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh has enjoyed a distinguished history of notable accomplishments.
Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh is excited about her Bosslift opportunity.
In 1982, she founded Hercon, an aptly-named business that became the first female-owned construction firm to receive, in 1984, a major contract with PennDOT to complete a $700,000 overpass over I-95 in Chester. By 1995, she became the first woman president of the Chester/Delaware Homebuilders Association.
Then the Pennsbury Township resident shifted gears, having been lured to politics by her late father, an Upper Darby councilman. She became Chester County’s first female sheriff in 1999.
At a subsequent national training class in Colorado for first-time sheriffs, she became the first woman to be elected class president out of about 3,000 sheriffs, only 30 of whom were female. In 2009, Welsh smashed another gender barrier, becoming the first woman to head the Pennsylvania Sheriff’s Association.
Last month, she got news of another potential first: The National Sheriffs’ Association called to ask whether she wanted to go for a spin in a Boeing C-135 Stratolifter, a giant transport aircraft used by the military, on Thursday, May 14. She said she didn’t hesitate to say yes.
“It wasn’t even on my bucket list,” Welsh said, adding that maybe it should have been. “I thought it sounded like quite an adventure.”
The opportunity is part of the Defense Department’s Bosslift program, which gives employers insight into military installations, where they can observe National Guard and Reserve members involved in training exercises.
Welsh, who has six reservists on her staff, said she and 14 other guests will assemble at Andrews Air Force Base on Thursday morning for a briefing and breakfast. Then they will grab boxed lunches and board the C-135 for the three-hour refueling mission.
She said she was told to wear comfortable clothes and hard-toed shoes since the exercise would involve some hands-on details. “They told me I’d be in the cockpit at some point,” she said.
Welsh guesses that she’s probably the first female sheriff to ride in a C-135 and is likely the first Chester County official tapped for the program. But right now she’s focused on the flight, not its potential for boosting her list of pioneering endeavors.
“I’m excited,” she said. “This should be an incredible experience.”
Woody Shirley Deinish, 85, of Kennett Square, formerly of Bozman, Md., and Plandome, N.Y., died peacefully on Saturday, May 9, with her loving family by her side.
Woody was born in Glen Dale, W.Va, on April 24, and retained an abiding love for West Virginia and for her extended close-knit Hinerman and Fauley families. Her door was always open, and she welcomed and fêted newcomers and old friends alike.
Woody married James Armistead (“Army”/“Jim”) Shirley, Jr., on Sept. 7, 1957, and spent 25 happy years in Plandome, N.Y., raising their three children: Jim Shirley III, Margaret Shirley Hein (Rick), and Nancy Shirley Imbalzano (John).
After Army died in 1982, Woody moved to Bozman, Md., and became a dedicated hospice volunteer. In 1986, Woody was again lucky in love, and met the second love of her life, Bob Deinish. They were married on May 7, 1988, and spent the next 10 happy years in Maryland. They were both devoted grandparents to their nine grandchildren: Jim IV, Kyle, and Katherine Shirley; Andrew and Robert Imbalzano; William, Elizabeth, and Lauren Hein; and Scott Deinish. In 2004, Woody and Bob moved to Kennett Square.
In addition to her first husband Army, Woody was pre-deceased by her beloved sister Nancy Fauley Mitchell, brother-in-law Lloyd Mitchell, and nephews Bill and Peter Mitchell.
She is survived by her loving second husband of 25 years, Bob Deinish; her son, Jim Shirley, and two daughters, Margaret Shirley Hein (Rick) and Nancy Shirley Imbalzano (John); her step-sons Jim Deinish, Gary (Donna) Deinish, and Bruce (Michelle) Deinish; and her nine grandchildren.
Her memorial service will be held at the Episcopal Church of the Advent in Kennett Square, 401 North Union Street, on June 6, at 1 pm.
In lieu of flowers, her family requests that donations in memory of Woody Shirley Deinish be made to Neighborhood Hospice, 400 East Marshall Street, West Chester, PA 19380.
Commuter rail service is going to get a boost within the next few years. SEPTA will be renovating and re-opening its Wawa station in Middletown Township, making it easier for commuters to use public transportation between Philadelphia and Western Delaware County and Southern Chester County.
SEPTA representatives spoke to a variety of stakeholders during a breakfast meeting at the Red Clay Room in Kennett Square on Wednesday, April 13. The event was sponsored by Chester County 2020.
According to George Asimos, president of Chester County 2020, the re-opening of the station is significant for both counties in the region.
“There are some very intense nodes of transportation, some places where there are people who really want to get somewhere and are frustrated with the lack of public transportation, especially employers who need to get employees from where they can afford to live into Southern Chester County. I think it would make a huge difference,” Asimos said.
He also said area college students from Lincoln University and New Bolton Center could benefit, too.
“While ordinary citizens might not be thinking how this could change their lives, we saw businesses and institutions are realizing the potential,” he said.
An audience member commented, “Local governments should not underestimate the reach this can have on the demand for more public transportation and the possible development of land for both residential and commercial use.”
The service restoration project of the Wawa station “is going to be a reality,” said Bob Lund, the assistant general manager for SEPTA’s Engineering, Maintenance and Construction Division.
Lund said the design for the renovations has been on the books since 2008, but a poor economy delayed the project. Actual work should start in the next two years and be finished by late 2020.
Construction for the infrastructure improvements, including bridge replacements and power line upgrades, will begin in 2017. Work on the station itself will start a year later.
The finished project calls for a 600-car parking facility and the new building, with highway access from Route 1 near the former Franklin Mint property, which will be fully compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act, Lund added.
“It’s a huge infrastructure project,” Lund said. “You have to look at it as almost rebuilding the entire infrastructure to get to Wawa…But it’s a reality now, and it is moving forward.”
Getting the Wawa station functional again would only bring back some of the service that was lost more than 30 years ago when the station was shut down. Service from Wawa to West Chester also stopped.
“There’s a lot of interest in the borough about restoring service all the way to West Chester, but that’s for future discussions,” he said.
The $80 million project will re-open a three-mile stretch of currently unused rails from Middletown to the Elwyn station outside of Media.
Byron Comati, SEPTA’s director of strategic planning, said the push to reopen the station is based on significant ridership growth — from 25 to 30 percent — during the last seven to 10 years. Much of that is from Southern Chester County.
During a question-and-answer period after the presentation, one person asked about bus access to the train station.
Currently, the only regular bus service is the 111 Line, running from 69th Street in Upper Darby to Chadds Ford. Nothing else is planned at this time because there’s nothing in SEPTA’s budget for added bus service.
However, Lund said there would be provisions for private shuttle service.
While there were no ready answers, other people asked about expanded taxi and ride-share services.
Another person suggested bringing Delaware state transportation people into the conversation.
Randy Waltermyer from the Chester County Planning Commission responded by saying that a Chester County/New Castle County transportation study is already planned for later this summer.
(Top photo: Bob Lund, the assistant general manager for SEPTA’s Engineering, Maintenance and Construction Division briefs regional stakeholders on SEPTA’s plan to re-open the Wawa train station. The project is expected to be finished by the end of 2020.)
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Hi, I am Whiskers, a handsome gray and white, 10-year-old domestic shorthair/mix who came at the Chester County SPCA on April 28. I am quickly becoming a volunteer favorite as a social butterfly. I love attention and enjoy being petted. I would do well in most home situations, with an adopter old or young. Won’t you consider me as your next family pet?
• A Wilmington man was cited for speeding after his 2008 Mercury Milan struck an embankment on Creek Road in Chadds Ford Township on May 11. State police said Ronald J. Bender, 60, was driving south on Creek Road, north of Bullock Road at 4:05 p.m. His car crossed over the northbound lane as Bender was negotiating a left-hand curve. The vehicle flipped over after hitting the embankment and came to rest on the driver’s side. There was no injury.
• An unidentified 67-year-old woman from Wilmington was arrested for DUI in Pennsbury Township on May 9. Police said the driver was stopped for traffic violations on Fairville Road at Route 52 at 10:46 p.m.
• On Friday, May 1, at 11:53 p.m., New Garden Township police conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle travelling erratically in the 800 block of eastbound West Cypress Street. Police said the driver, Marco Lopez-Bedolla, 37, of Kennett Square, who had an open bottle of beer in the center console and failed field sobriety tests, was arrested for DUI.
• A truck driver making a delivery at Brinton Manor accidently backed into a wall at the building, damaging stucco on the exterior and insulation inside the wall. The accident also caused damage to a rain gutter and a yellow parking barrier at the facility. No one was injured. The incident happened at 5:30 a.m. on April 29.
• State police from Troop J, Avondale barracks, came across a 17-year-old male from Wilmington passed out in his car at 3:30 a.m. on April 25. Police came upon the vehicle at the intersection of Kaolin and Marshall Bridge Roads. Police searched the vehicle and found marijuana and paraphernalia. Charges were pending.
• Identity theft on income tax returns continues in the area. State police from both the Avondale and Media barracks are reporting three more victims in Kennett, East Nottingham and Thornbury (Delaware County) Townships.
• Become a time traveler in an exciting walk to explore signs of the Newlin Grist Mill nature park’s past on Saturday, May 23, at 1:30 p.m. Newlin’s park naturalist will introduce participants to living fossils, help walkers discover the descendants of dinosaurs, and facilitate a visit with trees old enough to have witnessed the lives of wooly mammoths. “Prehistoric Newlin” is part of Newlin Grist Mill’s Faces of Newlin – Talks at the Mill series. For more information, email info@newlingristmill.org or call 610-459-2359.
• The Brandywine River Museum of Art Antiques Show opens Memorial Day weekend, May 23-25. Visitors will enjoy a feast of decorative and visual art along with unparalleled examples of 17th-, 18th-, and 19th-century antiques and can purchase fine antiques, from furniture and rugs to porcelain, needlework and more from 30 distinguished dealers, and see outstanding Wyeth and American art on view in the galleries, including the special exhibition, Horace Pippin: The Way I See It.
• The Resident Theatre Company, a new professional theatre company in West Chester, will produce its first event, featuring five New York singers performing excerpts and songs from the hottest shows in Broadway history. RTC Artistic Director Kristin McLaughlin Mitchell directs, bringing her Broadway and regional theatre experience to The Ballroom at the Westside, West Chester’s newest event space. The show is May 29. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show starts at 8. An After-Party starts at 9 at the Ballroom at Westside, 430 Hannum Ave., in West Chester. All proceeds will help RTC bring professional theatre to West Chester.
• The Music at St. Michael Concert Series presents “Summer in the City” with the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus on Sunday, May 31, at 3 p.m. It’s an afternoon of fun-filled summertime favorites that will transport you from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July, a baseball game, and all the way to Cape May. Enjoy favorites like “Under the Boardwalk,” “Surfin’ USA,” “Summer Nights,” and more, along with selections from Randall Thompson’s “Testament of Freedom.” The suggested donation is $10 per adult, $5 per child under 12. St. Michael Lutheran Church is at 109 E. Doe Run Road in East Marlborough Township.
• The Concordville Chadds Ford Rotary Club will hold the fifth annual Twisted Vintner homemade wine contest at 6 p.m., June 4, at the Concordville Towne Center, starting at 6 p.m. Come sample the wines made by local vintners, enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres from seven of the area’s best restaurants and seasonal parings from five area wineries. The tickets are $50 in advance and $60 at the door. Proceeds will benefit the Rachael Kohl Library, Camp Bournalyf and the Brandywine Youth Club, as well as other Rotary Club programs. For more information, to purchase tickets or to feature your homemade wine, donate an auction item, or be a sponsor, please visit www.twistedvintner.org.
• Uptown! Entertainment Alliance has raised $2.1 million toward its goal of bringing a theatre to downtown West Chester. Uptown is in the midst of a $3.75 million capital campaign to purchase, preserve and repurpose the former National Guard Armory at 224 North High Street as a full-on Cultural Arts Center that will present professional plays, musicals, concerts, ballet, original shows and lectures along with independent and classic films. Once the renovation is complete, the (still un-named) Armory Theatre will serve as a permanent presence for the community to enjoy the performing arts for generations to come. For additional information on Uptown! Entertainment Alliance, visit www.uptownwestchester.org.
• The West Chester Food Cupboard is asking residents to share their homegrown produce with the less fortunate. West Chester is one of the wealthiest areas in Pennsylvania, yet 24.5 percent of residents live below the poverty level. The Cupboard, located at 545 E. Gay Street, serves an average of 600 households per month, representing 1,800 to 2,000 hungry people. “Being able to offer fresh-picked vegetables is one of the highlights of the summer,” said board member Fiona Allison. For more information, visit www.westchesterfoodcupboard.org or call 610-344-3175.
• La Comunidad Hispaña’s Board of Directors has appointed Alisa M. Jones as president and chief executive officer of the organization. Jones had been serving as LCH’s interim president and CEO since January. She had served as the organization’s chief operating officer since 2013. LCH’s mission is to help low-income residents of southern Chester County stay healthy, build strong families, and lead productive lives by providing high-quality, culturally welcoming health care and social services.
• The Kennett Public Library Board of Trustees, which has come under fire recently for changing the name of the library from Bayard Taylor Memorial and for its plans to move the facility from the borough to Kennett Township, has confirmed that Henry “Jerry” Brown has not resigned from the board. A notice on the library’s website said Brown’s name was added to a resignation letter without his permission by two board members who did resign. “We welcome Henry back,” the message said. “He is a great supporter of the library and we are delighted he is still on the team.”
Even if you’ve never seen the movie, “The Graduate,” you’ve heard lines from it. You’ve heard the career advice that a family friend sagely offers Dustin Hoffman’s confused character as they walk together next to the family pool during his graduation party: “Plastics, my boy, plastics.”
You’ve heard songs from the memorable Simon and Garfinkel soundtrack. You may even recall the awkward exchange when the young protagonist of the film realizes that that Mrs. Robinson, the wife of one his father’s business partners, has amorous intentions towards him.
It’s a great movie with many memorable elements, but the one that sticks with me doesn’t take place until the very end, just as the credits are about to roll. In those climactic scenes, Dustin Hoffman bursts into the church where his (age appropriate) girlfriend is about to marry someone else. He sweeps her off of the altar, they run together out of the church and they jump on to a passing bus to make their escape.
But then, when most movies would stop and leave the audience in the exhilaration of that dramatic narrative apex, the director, Mike Nichols, keeps the camera on Dustin Hoffman and Katherine Ross sitting in the back of the bus, not talking to each other. Without saying a word, they communicate their discomfort about what might happen next.
In the afterglow of that thrilling rescue, they fidget and squirm and face the realization that they don’t know where the bus is headed. They don’t have anyone waiting to pick them up at the end of the route. They don’t know where they’ll sleep that night or what they’ll be doing in a week, or a month or a year. By the time the credits roll, we realize that we’ve been fooled. We were expecting the end of the story. Instead, we learn that this is the beginning of a new one. After the dramatic tensions have been resolved and the story has reached its conclusion, that’s when the real work begins.
In turning our expectations on their heads, this wonderful film teaches us something about real life. Real life is not like most movies in which problems dissipate, plot lines resolve, and justice wins out by the end of the story. In real life, momentary epiphanies are obscured by the surprise of subsequent realizations as well as the crush of mundane details and the tyranny of daily responsibilities. Moments of clarity give way to the confusion of the conflicting priorities that govern our days. Like this movie, there are so many ways that our tradition teaches us that endings are illusory, but it also teaches us that beginnings are ever-present.
In the Jewish tradition, this is evident in the story of Passover. The Israelites are freed from slavery in Egypt in order to begin the process of learning about freedom – a process that continues until this day. Similarly, the end of Moses’ life is the beginning of our responsibility to discern the will of God through our own exploration of Torah and of ourselves instead of through a prophetic intermediary.
I am approaching the end of my tenure as the rabbi of Kesher Israel and there are so many conclusions that crowd my consciousness: every Sabbath and every Bar and Bat Mitzvah bring me closer to my departure. Every newsletter article, every board meeting, every meeting in the hallway and every interaction with our preschool and religious school students feels like a process of resolution. It is easy to fixate on mourning all of the losses that come with the close of this particular chapter of my life. Yet, as spring unfolds and I turn back to the narratives of our tradition, I am reminded that every ending is also a beginning.
As I contemplate the new beginnings that I am about to encounter, I know that everything that I have learned during my time in Chester County along with all of the relationships that I have formed here have prepared me for them. It is my hope that my community, too, will look at the years that we have spent together and find in them inspiration for the years that are to come.
And, while none of us can know what will come next, I look forward to the excitement of staying in touch and sharing the stories that are about to start.
Rabbi Eric Rosin began his professional career as an attorney in Los Angeles serving the entertainment industry, but discovered he needed to be doing something he was passionate about. He left the practice of law and began studying for ordination at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles. After ordination, Rabbi Rosin served for two years as the assistant rabbi of Temple Beth-El in Richmond, Va., then assumed the pulpit at Kesher Israel Congregation in West Chester, Pa. in 2004.
