***UPDATE: Chadds Ford Live has just learned that Lenny Rivera has withdrawn his write-in campaign.***
There will be no regular Republican Party candidates for state representative for the 158th Legislative District on the April 26 primary. But there will be two write-in GOP candidates.
Perry Bentley has decided to re-enter the race, joining Lenny Rivera as a write-in candidate hoping to take over for Chris Ross, who is retiring from the state House after this year.
Perry Bentley
Chester County Republicans had endorsed Rivera as their candidate earlier this year, an action that caused Bentley to step out of contention. However, Rivera withdrew his name from the primary ballot after signatures on his ballot petition were challenged for irregularities.
Rivera then decided to run as a write-in candidate. Bentley now joins him in that write-in quest.
Bentley announced his intention in a letter saying, “Due to circumstances beyond the control of Republican voters in the 158th Legislative District, there will be no Republican candidate for state representative on the ballot for the April 26 primary. After a period of consultation with friends, family, and community leaders, I am announcing my candidacy as a Republican in the 158th Legislative District.”
He said in the letter that he did not want to see the legacy of Ross “diminished by allowing a Democrat to take office without any conservative, Republican opposition.”
Bentley added that with the primary less than 30 days away, the party needs a well-organized candidate who can launch a campaign quickly.
“I am ready to run today. I have the resources, desire and ability to mount an effective campaign to secure the Republican nomination on April 26. I pledge to run a campaign that will do all that is necessary to win,” he said in the letter, adding “Republicans in the 158th Legislative District need a well-organized, principled, and hard-working candidate with the campaign resources to defeat the Democrats. The Republican candidate must immediately launch a campaign that can quickly gain voter support and educate the public on how to cast a write-in vote.”
Bentley said his campaign mission would be to “send Chester County’s values of commonsense reform and fiscal sanity to Harrisburg.”
The winner of the Republican primary will face Democrat Susan Rzucidlo in November.
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.
John E. Davidson, 90, of London Grove Village, died Monday, March 28, at his residence. He was the husband of Mildred Ross Davidson, who died in 2004, and with whom he shared 61 years of marriage.
Born in Unionville, he was the son of the late James and Beulah Nunemaker Davidson.
He was a self-employed farrier, retiring in 1990. After his retirement he worked as a ranger at the Loch Nairn Golf Course, where he opened the pub in the morning for breakfast and coffee.
John was a member of the American Legion in Kennett Square and the Italian American Club also in Kennett Square.
He enjoyed golfing, dancing and being with his family and friends.
John is survived by three daughters, Amy Torello and her husband Duke of Kennett Square, Eleanor Mahala and her husband Douglas of Christiana, and Julie Marston and her husband Wayne of Avondale; a daughter-in-law, Mary Linda Davidson of Coatesville; one brother, Steve Davidson of Unionville; one sister, Marion Guest of Kennett Square; a sister-in-law, Betsy Harris of London Grove; seven grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
He was predeceased by one son, John Joseph Davidson, two brothers and three sisters.
He will be greatly missed by his family.
You are invited to visit with his family and friends from 6 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, April 3, at the Kuzo & Grieco Funeral Home, 250 West State Street in Kennett Square, and again from 10 to 11 a.m. on Monday, April 4, at the Unionville Presbyterian Church, 815 Wollaston Road — Route 82 and Wollaston Road. His funeral service will follow at 11. Burial will be in the London Grove Friends Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, a contribution may be made to the Willow Tree Hospice, 616 E. Cypress Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348
Painting by Matthew Reinert, on exhibit during Evening of the Arts, Kennett Square
April brings a host of wonderful new art shows to Chester County, with many openings this Friday. Openings are exciting art events full of that fresh energy that comes with the unveiling of newly orchestrated shows.
Artists and customers mingle and chat, and food, refreshments and often music heighten the spectacle of an opening reception. This weekend highlights include “Evening of the Arts” in Kennett Square, Mala Galleria and The Art Trust openings, and an encaustic artist and book-signing event on Sunday.
In Kennett Square, the annual one-night-only “Evening of the Arts” opens this Friday from 5 to 8:30 p.m. in the Genesis Heathcare Building. Twenty-three local artists show artworks, juried by artist John Baker, in two floors of exhibition space. Artists include Diane Cannon, Jeremy McGirl, Carol Lesher and featured artist Matthew Reinhert.
Reinhert’s contemporary impressionist paintings are sold in galleries to collectors throughout the country. Full of light and quick, strong brushwork, his paintings evoke his subject matter through minimal details, and broad strokes. Diane Cannon mixes her brightly torn collage pieces with painting to create intimate, magical artworks that are also widely collected. This terrific show, with complimentary food and wine, is a benefit for Historic Kennett Square.
Before you head to “Evening of the Arts,” check out the opening at Mala Galleria for “Wonders of Nature” from 6 to 9 p.m. A generous selection of contemporary botanical artists, including Judith Simon, Diana Heitzman and Margaret Saylor, wow us with their detailed depictions of flora and fungi. One block up, check out the latest gallery show at the Longwood Art Gallery, which exhibits an array of contemporary and traditional paintings and jewelry made by established local artists.
In West Chester, stop into The Art Trust at the Meridian Bank, for the opening of “For Real?” this Friday from 5 to 8:30 p.m. The Art Trust invites the audience to “Come play with us!” as the “Trompe l’Oeil” exhibition toys with the idea of mimicking what is real. Trompe l’oeil is literally a “trick of the eye” . The trick is delightful and often provokes interesting discussions about representationalism, choice of subject matter, and the position of the still life in contemporary art. This is serious painting that has a clever, witty side, and I am looking forward to playing along.
Three blocks away at Church Street Gallery, this is the last weekend of the Valerie Craig exhibition. The artist’s gallery talk is on Thursday, March 31, at 7 p.m. The public is invited to attend this interesting discussion and enjoy these wonderful works of art before the artwork leaves the gallery.
Collage of art from the cover of book published by Schiffer – Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century
This Sunday, April 3, at Galer Estate Winery in Kennett Square, Schiffer Publishing house will unveil its new book Encaustic Art in the Twenty-First Century, and celebrate the publication with five renowned encaustic artists that are featured in the book: Jeff Schaller, Alan Soffer , Karen Freedman, Lorraine Glessner, and Marcie Wolf-Hubbard. Each of the artists will be present to sign books as well as show artworks for sale during this reception from 3 to 5 p.m. This promises to be a one of a kind art event for Chester County and is a much overdue acknowledgement of the contemporary reinterpretation of this age-old wax paint medium.
Further afield in Wilmington, local clay artist Rhoda Kahler is opening her group show “Abstraction” at Blue Streak Gallery on Friday April 1, from 5 to 8: 00 p.m. Her clay sculptural works will be paired with wall pieces by artists Robyn Burckhardt and Wes Memeger.
Bobcat by Daniel Jackson at the Delaware Art Museum
Before you go to Blue Streak, check out The Delaware Museum of Art and wander through “Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art” and the latest installation in their ever popular contemporary Outlooks exhibition space. Remember, though, the museum closes at 4 p.m. on Fridays.
Regional artists Carol Tippit Woolworth, Catherine Drabkin, Pahl Alexander Hluchan, Colleen Randall and Daniel Jackson make up the new Outlooks show entitled “Inside Out,” which explores the concept of space from different points of view, in different mediums. Stay tuned for next week’s Art Watch that offers an in-depth view of the artist of the month, Rhoda Kahler.
Lele Galer is an artist who has chaired numerous art shows, taught art history and studio art, public art and has chaired, written and taught the Art in Action Art Appreciation series for the UCFD schools for the past 12 years. She worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and wrote for the Associated Press in Rome. She has been dedicated to Art History and art education for most of her adult life. Lele and her husband Brad own Galer Estate Winery in Kennett Square.
From background on the township’s trail network to an update on the Barnard House to mementos from the Locust Grove Schoolhouse, history in various forms dominated the Pocopson supervisors’ 1 ½-hour meeting on Monday, March 28.
The Brandywine Conservancy’s Sheila Fleming uses maps to illustrate a presentation on trails in Pocopson Township.
The supervisors first heard from Sheila Fleming, a senior planner with the Brandywine Conservancy who provided insight into the township’s open space and trail planning. Fleming said in her 17 years with the conservancy, Pocopson has always been regarded as progressive in that area.
Fleming said the conservancy is working with Pocopson and 25 other municipalities on the Brandywine Creek Greenway. When completed, the trail would stretch from the Delaware state line, just south of Chadds Ford, to Honey Brook. In Pocopson, a segment of the 30-mile trail that extends from Routes 52 to 926, goes along the shoulder of Pocopson Road.
“For safety and enjoyment, we are trying to realign it so it’s off the road and closer to the creek,” she said.
She said the conservancy has been working with three property owners and most recently has focused its efforts on negotiating an easement with Lenape Forge. She said that no deal has been finalized and that it might be helpful to schedule a meeting with the company that includes a township representative.
If no agreement materializes with Lenape Forge, resident Scott Kirkland, president of the Riverside at Chadds Ford Homeowners’ Association, pointed out that his subdivision has an existing trail that parallels Pocopson Road. Although that trail is farther from the creek, Fleming said it was beneficial to have a backup option.
Fleming said her purpose in making the presentation was to ensure that the conservancy is “on the right track.” The supervisors said they appreciated her efforts and asked to be kept updated, agreeing that township secretary Susan Simone would continue to be the liaison for the project.
Another history project, the Barnard House, is nearing completion of the work necessary for the Kennett Underground Railroad Center to occupy its portion of the building. Once a stop on the Underground Railroad, the building was originally envisioned as the home of KURC as well as the township’s offices; however, the latter use has hit obstacles related to the building’s layout and renovation costs.
Public Works Director Mark Knightly said he expected to get a bid on the security system, one of the final requirements, later this week. Supervisors’ Chairwoman Ricki Stumpo said she was getting information on a cleaning service for the public bathroom in the building.
Stumpo asked Knightly if he would review the complaints about shoddy workmanship at the Barnard House presented to the board last year by resident Sean Rafferty. Knightly said he didn’t believe he was the best choice since he deems some of the examples subjective.
Supervisor Alice Balsama noted that if a contractor put nails through a roof that should have been clipped then someone should be able to identify that. Kirkland suggested checking with the manufacturer, who could then go after the contractor if the product were improperly installed.
Pocopson Township Supervisor Elaine DiMonte displays one of the larger pieces of engraved slate from the Locust Grove Schoolhouse project.
Supervisor Elaine DiMonte said with a grant deadline looming next month, the board still needs to make decisions on which of the building’s windows to replace and whether they need to be historic or just energy-efficient. She said because of the board turnover, she planned to give the township’s treasurer information that would likely lead to an extension. “I don’t want to give up the grant,” she said.
Kris Firey-Poling, chair of the Historical Committee, presented a number of options the committee is considering to raise funds for the historic Locust Grove Schoolhouse renovations. The supervisors said the township solicitor had raised concerns about a couple of them, such as organizing a breakfast at Applebee’s restaurant and holding a cow pie bingo event; however, they expressed enthusiasm for the garage sale scheduled for May 21 and suggested speaking to the Founder’s Day committee about a proposed silent auction for that event.
The supervisors also applauded an initiative that Firey-Poling debuted at the meeting. She said Guy Land, one of the schoolhouse contractors, had suggested making use of the leftover slate from the installation of the schoolhouse blackboard. She said that suggestion morphed into a collaborative project that involved Mike Berkeihiser, a tech education teacher at Unionville High.
Firey-Poling credited Jake Mims, a junior at the high school and the son of two Historical Committee members, Sarah and Randy Mims, for the creation of about 50 engraved pieces in two sizes. On the first, the size of a coaster, Locust Grove Schoolhouse is printed along with the date: 1870. A larger rectangular design that could sit on an easel boasts an image of the schoolhouse, as well as the name and date.
Because Firey-Poling had just picked up the completed mementos, she said the committee would have to determine a nominal price, and the pieces would then be sold.
In other business, the supervisors authorized Knightly to purchase a $6,475 walk-behind blower and a $19,435 mower, both of which has been budgeted at $7,000 and $38,000 respectively.
The supervisors said preliminary land development plans for a Ducklings Early Learning Center on Winston Lane in the Riverside development, a proposal opposed by the HOA, would be discussed at the next supervisors’ meeting.
Gary Summers, chairman of the Pocopson Township Planning Commission, said documents presented at the March 14 supervisors’ meeting by the HOA’s attorney, did not necessitate further review. “We’ve done our job,” said Summers.
Finally, Stumpo urged residents to attend the PennDOT meeting on Wednesday night at Pocopson Elementary School, starting at 5:30 p.m. regarding the replacement of the Pocopson bridge.
Stumpo also asked Simone to request a job description from Donna Murray, director of the Kennett Public Library, for the library’s board of trustees. Once she receives that, Stumpo said she would interview the five residents seeking that position.
After the meeting, board members said they are still waiting for a response from the Chester County Commissioners regarding a meeting to discuss options for the Barnard House. When the county sold the building to the township for $1 in 2008, the purchase came with restrictions on its use that the supervisors want to clarify.
Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board directors voted Monday night to change the policy of reporting decile rankings for students applying to college. However, instead of simply not reporting those rankings, the district will report a grade point distribution that proponents say will put a student’s grade point average “in context.”
Decile rankings compare students to others in their class on a scale of 1-10. A ranking of 1 indicates a student is in the top 10 percent of the class. A ranking of 2 indicates a student is in the top 20 percent.
The proposed grade point distribution reporting shows, in bar chart form, how many students fall within a given grade point range. (See chart below.)
School administrators recommended dropping the reporting after learning that many colleges and universities don’t bother with them. Ken Batchelor, assistant to the superintendent, previously said 43 percent of colleges used the rankings in 1993, but that dropped to 19 percent by 2012.
The March 28 vote was 7-2, with Region B representative Michael Rock speaking strongly against the compromise. Rock is in favor of dropping the ranking, but said including a grade distribution is “dishonest.”
He said his criteria for voting on an issue was to do no harm.
“First, we got a report from the administration that said removing the decile ranking would not hurt our top decile students, and would actually help students who were below the top decile…Doing no harm would require us to remove the decile ranks, period, full stop,” Rock said, calling the grade point distribution “a decile ranking in sheep’s clothing. It’s dishonest because all we’re doing is recreating a decile rank in a different form.”
Rock added that it does not correct the principle of doing no harm.
The chart shows how the grade distribution may be presented. mIt shows the number of students in each grade point range.
“It reinforces the existing harm principle. It’s dishonest. It’s inconsistent with the facts,” he said.
Also voting no was Director Bob Sage. He said he’s in favor of doing away with the decile reporting entirely, but still wants something in place. He suggested allowing the students to decide whether their ranking should be reported, but that option was not up for a vote.
Gregg Lindner, of Chadds Ford and representing region C, said he agrees with Rock that reporting the decile should be dropped, but that he would vote for the compromise so that there’s a new policy in place for the current 11th-graders.
“I, too, would prefer that we took the initial administration position. They laid it out well. They said what it was they wanted to do. If we had five votes to do that, I would vote yes to do away with it, just as recommended by the administration,” Lindner said. “But we’re left with a situation where, if we vote no on this, we end up not doing away with the decile ranking. I have to look at what I believe would do more harm.”
He said voting for the compromise was the least harmful approach.
“I would rather do away with the decile ranking and be one of the votes to make sure there is no decile ranking with this [11th-grade] class. I’ll be voting yes, but I wish we had five votes to do the other.”
Board President Vic Dupuis said he would echo some of the comments Rock made regarding the rankings, that they hurt students who are not at the top.
He stopped short of calling the grade point distribution dishonest, saying “we don’t have an absolute certainty that full elimination of all grade-relevant data is appropriate.”
Dupuis added that he’d like to see the distribution go away in time, but “this is a great step in the right direction.”
Former Director Kathy Do said after the meeting that getting rid of the decile ranking is the right thing to do, and that while she doesn’t care for the compromise that includes the grade distribution, she would have voted for it simply to eliminate the decile ranking.
“Getting rid of the decile ranking is in the best interest of the community as a whole. I’m very glad that the board took this action. I think it was the right decision,” she said.
Ironically, she spent a recent weekend talking with colleges regarding her son and said colleges are far ahead in their understanding of rankings.
“GPAs don’t have the same meaning that they used to have. There are so many ways of weighting GPAs, that a GPA at Unionville doesn’t look anything like a GPA at Conestoga or Kennett,” Do said.
However, the distribution as a way to put a GPA into context shouldn’t cause a problem, she said. She would have supported the compromise just to remove the decile ranking, but said colleges — including Johns Hopkins, which she recently visited — “no longer look at GPA. They want to look at the classes the student took, they look at the transcript, they look at the rigor.”
Other business
The Chromebook Pilot program was expanded to include grades six through eight at Charles F. Patton Middle School. Families will have three options. They may buy the tablets at cost — $266 — or the school will own the tablet, but the student may take it home and pay $20 per year for insurance to cover loss or damage. A third option also has the school owning the tablet and enables the student to take it home without insurance, but the family would be responsible for any loss or damage.’
The board voted to spend more than $2.5 million on renovation projects for Patton Middle School. Work will include auditorium renovations, roofing improvements mechanical and electrical work.
Board members also approved a field trip to Spain for the International Club in the summer of 2017, and an expenditure of $17,000 for improving cyber security.
Samuel Theodore Lewis Edwards, 88, died Thursday, March 24, after his short battle ALS. He leaves behind his loving wife, Pat, of West Grove.
Sam began his long life in Collingswood, New Jersey, the second son of Bob and Louise Edwards. He spent his early years in Collingswood, and honed his skills and passions as a hunter and fisherman with his father and uncles in central Pennsylvania. These skills would serve as his anchor and define who he was to all who knew him throughout his life.
He attended Rutgers University, and worked at a YMCA camp in Medford Lakes in the summers where he met, and eventually married Pat. He enlisted in the Marines, later transferred to the Navy, and was stationed in California. He was a decorated veteran of the Korean War and served as a hospital corpsman second class.
After serving his country in Korea, he and Pat moved to the family farm in Concordville where they built the biggest sheep farm east of the Mississippi. Love of family drove all he did. Sam served on the vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church of Concordville, was elected as chairman of Concord Township Supervisors, and worked tirelessly as a coach for his children’s baseball teams at Brandywine Youth Club.
Sam and Pat moved to West Grove, where he continued to serve as a role model for all who knew him. The love of family, hunting, fishing, and nature were passed on to children and grandchildren. Sam and Pat never missed attending sports activities for their seven grandchildren, and became surrogate grandparents to many of the grandchildren’s friends.
When Sam and Pat moved to Chadds Ford, a new generation was able to use him as a model for their lives. Now great-grandchildren were taught to model their lives after Pop Pop. Sam and Pat attended the sports activities of their great grandchildren, and Sam loved passing on the love of nature to them.
Sam is loved and survived by his wife Pat, his daughter Cathy, and husband Ken, of New London; son Brad and wife Leslie of Landenberg; and son Rick and wife Debra of Chadds Ford. He was a beloved Pop Pop to his seven grandchildren and their spouses; and nine great-grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 9, at the New London Presbyterian Church (Old Church), 1986 Newark Road (Route 896) in New London. His memorial service will follow at 3 p.m. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, a donation in honor of Sam Edwards, may be made to the ALS foundation, ALS Association Greater Philadelphia Chapter 321 Norristown Road, Suite 260 Ambler, PA 19002
In this re-imaging of an older image, a cloud-creature seems to be rearing up on its hind legs while using a front paw as if to put up a “stop” gesture toward an incoming fireball.
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.
