December 8, 2021 - ChaddsFordLive.com

Dolores Costanzo Cooper of West Grove

, “Mama Dee,” 90, of West Grove, died Saturday, Dec. 4, at Chester County Hospital. She was the wife of the late Vance M. Cooper who died in 2011 and with whom she shared 59 years of marriage. Born in West Grove she was a daughter of the late Joseph and Ethel Walker Costanzo.

Dolores is survived by three sons, David C. Cooper of Kennett Square, Jeffrey N. Cooper (Paula) of Dover, Del. and Jon Christopher Cooper (Kristen Binz-Perrone) of Hockessin; one daughter, Candace L. Cooper of Lewes, Del; six grandchildren, Erin, John, Kevin, Kimberly, Ryan and Jacob, and three great-grandchildren, Nolen Mae Barrow, John Hillferty and Jason Hillferty.

It may sound cliché, but to know Dee Cooper was to love Dee Cooper. Her energy was magnetic and light-filled, creating a lasting impression on anyone she met. Even articulating just how special she was is difficult because her personality and presence was so dynamic. Loud, fun, crazy, and someone who did things her own way, always – all wrapped into a highly-accessorized, colorful bundle of beauty and joy. Who else is a flower girl at the age of 85? https://www.cbsnews.com/news/delaware-woman-85-serves-as-flower-girl-at-best-friends-wedding/ Did she ever mention to you that she won “best legs” as a high school superlative? It’s a fact. But perhaps her greatest gift was her ability to create true, meaningful connections with so many in her life.

Dee loved to know people and their stories; she could make you feel heard and seen as no one else. She was kind, generous, and always made you feel special. And if you were lucky enough, she would shower you with her yard sale treasures. Time never slowed her down, always young at heart with charm and comedic timing that never dulled.

Dee grew up as an only child that always dreamed of becoming an actress. Even though she never made it to the silver screen, she made a home on the small stage in her youth and kept a flair for the dramatic throughout life. Her favorite place was her home at the shore on Benny’s Landing Rd., spending summers that always went too quickly with a never-ending guest list of friends and family. In its heyday, the walls were covered from floor-to-ceiling with anything and everything that made an impression on her: knickknacks, photos, quotes – you name it. And they all had a story. She treasured experiences and people, and never forgot a thing.

There may never be another human quite like Dee Cooper, but to have had her as part of your life is truly a blessing. She will be greatly missed, but dearly remembered by so many.

You are invited to visit with Dee’s family and friends from 10-11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 11, at the Kennett Square Golf and Country Club, 100 East Locust Lane, Kennett Square, PA 19348. Her memorial service will follow at 11. Interment will be held privately. Contributions in her memory may be made to Goodwill (online) at https://www.yourgoodwill.org/donate/money/monetary-donations Arrangements are by Matthew J. Grieco of Grieco Funeral Home & Crematory, (484-734-8100) condolences may be shared at www.griecofunerals.com

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Lola Lois Caldwell of West Grove

Obituaries

Lola Lois Caldwell, 90, of West Grove, died Tuesday, Nov. 30, at Jenners Pond Retirement Community in West Grove, PA.

She was born Feb. 20, 1931, in Holdenville, Okla. at home to the late Lexie Lois Mankin and John Fredrick Mankin. She will be lovingly remembered by her husband of 71 years, Edward Andrew Caldwell, daughter Kathryn Marie Schumacher (Greg), and daughter Gaila Ciccarone (Carlo). Grandma Lola (also known as MomMom) was cherished by her five grandchildren, Eric Schumacher (Yvette), Sara Field (Damon), Giancarlo Ciccarone (Lauren), Michael Ciccarone (Christine), Melina Van Brunt (Chad), and her 10 great-grandchildren, Ella Field, Ethan Schumacher, Quinn Field, Ezra Schumacher, Levi Van Brunt, Lincoln Field, Matteo Ciccarone, Samuel Van Brunt, Giuliana Ciccarone, and Callie Ciccarone.

Lola attended Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, Calif., and was proud to have graduated with the class of 1949. She attended high school with her beloved cousin June and her brother Chuck and she always had happy memories of her days there and enjoyed reading the Fremont Alumni Association newsletters.

Lola met her husband-to-be in Sunnyvale. On May 20, 1950, Lola and Edward were married in a double wedding ceremony along with two of their greatest friends, in Reno, Carson City, Nev. After their daughters were born in California, the family began moving with Edward’s work assignments. This took them to Grandview, Wash. and then to the Chicago area, to Yakima, Wash. where Lola worked at Joseph’s Fruit Packing plant and then to Yorktown Heights, N.Y. where Lola was secretary to the director of programs, Taconic Correctional Facility, Bedford, N.Y. Upon retirement, the couple settled in Brevard, N.C., and then relocated to West Grove, to be closer to children.

Lola was a longtime member of a non-academic sorority known as Beta Sigma Phi whose motto is “Life, Learning and Friendship.” Lola loved to recall stories of her childhood and liked to study history, particularly the history of the areas where her family settled. As a hobby, she enjoyed many hours tracing her family history and lineage – with the ultimate and successful goal of becoming a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Lola loved to cook and collect recipes. She was an avid learner with an inquisitive mind. Lola’s joy came from watching her family grow and she posted and kept almost every picture received and loved to talk about what each member was working on or doing.

The family would like to acknowledge the care and comfort provided by the staff of Friend Home-Linden Hall, Kennett Square; Jenner’s Pond-Preston Skilled Nursing, West Grove; and Willow Tree Hospice, Kennett Square. Family and friends are asked to hold Lola in their hearts and remember the happy times spent together. She will be dearly missed by so many.

Services and interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers contributions in her memory may be made to the Kennett Area Senior Center, online at https://kennettseniorcenter.org/donate.php or Rocky Mount State Historic Site (living history museum and the first capital of the Southwest Territory that became Tennessee. It was the home of Lola’s ancestors from the Cobb family and her Patriot for verification to the NSDAR.) https://rockymountmuseum.com/

Arrangements are by Matthew J. Grieco of Grieco Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc. (484-734-8100) Condolences may be shared at www.griecofunerals.com.

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Taxes steady in Concord

Local News Concord, Local News

Concord Township has its budget for 2022, and there’s no tax increase. Council passed the budget during the Dec. 7 meeting. The budget is balanced, with anticipated revenues and expenditures at $3,999,150.

Highlighting the revenue, $1.355 million comes from all taxes, with $662,490 from real estate taxes. Another $422,500 in revenue comes from business licenses and permits, while another $653,500 comes from building, electrical, plumbing, and other public safety permits.

On the expense side of the ledger, $465,145 goes toward township administration, $342,150 for code enforcement, and $278,890 for public safety, planning, and zoning.

The total millage rate on property taxes is 0.514 mils. That breaks down to 0.064 mils for the library fund, 0.061 for fire hydrants, 0.044 for fire protection services, 0.139 for open space, and 0.206 for general purposes. A mil is a tax of $1 for every $1,000 of assessed value.

The full detailed budget — which includes sewer, tree, open space, highway, open space reserve, capital reserve, fire hydrant, and library funds can be found here.

Other business

During the meeting, Township engineer Nate Cline said that the township has been in contact with PennDOT regarding improvements for the intersection of Route 1 and Schoolhouse Road. A packet of information is ready for PennDOT, including desired plans for a left-turn restriction from southbound Round 1, traffic signal modifications at Route 1 and Stoneybank Road, Route 1 and Cheyney Road, and a four-way stop sign at Cheyney and Trimble. Other requests will follow.

A new feature has been added to Concord’s website called Public Packet. It includes the documents — in draft form ‑ that the council members will be dealing with during their meetings. The public packet link is found under the Agendas & Meetings link on the home page. After clicking on Public Packet, there’s a link in red for each document under consideration. Township Manager Amanda Serock said Public Packet would be updated on the Monday before the Tuesday council meeting.

About Rich Schwartzman

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.

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Civil action against Moore

Local News Kennett, Local News

A civil action is ongoing in the case of former Kennett Township Manager Lisa Moore’s embezzlement of $3.249 million from the township.

“We are currently negotiating with several parties about civil responsibilities, which means we can’t talk about them yet,” Supervisor Scudder Stevens said at a special public meeting Tuesday. “We are also considering legal action against several parties.”

Joseph Poluka, a lawyer with the Philadelphia law firm of Blank Rome who specializes in white-collar investigations, was hired by the township in 2019 to pursue civil recovery efforts. A civil suit filed against Moore and her partner, Brian Gore, is on hold, according to Poluka, and will need to be assessed going forward.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Poluka spoke of “another matter that remains highly confidential where we hope to see additional recovery.”

Moore is currently in the State Correctional Institution at Muncy, serving a 3-10-year sentence. She pleaded guilty Oct. 4 to theft by deception, dealing in unlawful proceeds, forgery, tampering with public records, and access device fraud and was sentenced to 3-10 years in a state correctional institution and five years of probation. Other terms of the plea agreement include full restitution of the $3,249,453 to the township, a $2,500 fine, and $1,842 in state police lab fees. She also has to forfeit her pension from the township and can never work for a non-profit or government where she is responsible for money, according to the plea agreement.

A resident had asked if external auditors would have any culpability regarding Moore.

Poluka said he “couldn’t address any of those questions at this time.”

Supervisors’ Chairman Richard Leff said the board “will try to answer your questions when we are able.”

Township costs and recovery

Stevens estimates that Kennett Township has spent close to $1 million since discovering the embezzlement, which includes the costs of hiring a forensic accountant and a recovery law firm, legal fees, and more.

“Lisa Moore’s crimes forced us to spend additional money,” Stevens said. “Our total losses and cost for investigating, rebuilding, recovery, legal, and accounting fees come to about $1 million … over and above the original $3.2 million-embezzlement.”

Moore has made restitution of $1.7 million to the township, including delivering a $1.27 million certified bank check to the District Attorney’s office on the day she pleaded guilty. Stevens said that represents about 53 percent of the total stolen funds.

The township has also recovered a million dollars from a surety bond on Moore. Supervisors’ Chairwoman Whitney Hoffman said she discovered that Moore at one time had been insured for more money but had reduced it.

“The total of restitution and recovery efforts so far, led by the supervisors and attorneys, is $2.7 million or roughly 85 percent of the total stolen,” Stevens said.

Moore’s $440,000 pension is being used to fund other pensions in the township, according to Poluka.

“She loses her pension because of the crime she committed,” Poluka said. “That’s a saving to the township. That money in the Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement System will go to township pension obligations going forward.”

The PMRS provides pensions to municipal government employees, according to its website (pmrs.state.pa.us).

Not long after the embezzlement was discovered, Hoffman said she went to look for the bond and, in the process, found a $7,000 charge for a bonding company in Ohio.

“That was a renewal of the bond for the next year that was supposed to start in May,” she said. “We got that $7,000 back.”

Current township Manager Eden Ratliff said it will be up to the board of supervisors to decide how to reallocate the money received through restitution and recovery. In the wake of the embezzlement, separation of duties was one of the changes implemented among township staff, and the township manager is no longer the township treasurer as Moore had been. Currently, Ratliff is bonded for $1 million, and township Treasurer and Finance Director Amy Heinrich is bonded for $4 million.

Following the evidence

Richardo Zayas, who led the forensic investigation on behalf of Marcum LLP, said they follow the evidence when investigating financial crimes.

“We’re not into guessing games,” he said. “We’re not into speculating about everything that could possibly be wrong. You simply follow the evidence you have and see where it takes you.”

With Kennett Township, Zayas and his team looked at expenses that didn’t benefit the township, such as Moore’s personal use of a township credit card. They discovered charges for Gucci and Michael Kors.

“With purchases of that nature … clearly, we can say there’s no township benefit associated with those purchases,” Zayas said. “But in that same universe … there were a number of transactions that either were clearly for the benefit of the township or were in the gray area where they could have been.”

Zayas also said his team found a lot of personal expenditures but not an accumulation of assets. Money that was taken was shuffled through different accounts or were classified as payments to vendors.

“What they are describing is this shell game – hard to follow, hard to track – so the money could be shuffled out in ways that might not be identified,” Ratliff said.

About Monica Fragale

Monica Thompson Fragale is a freelance reporter who spent her life dreaming of being in the newspaper business. That dream came true after college when she started working at The Kennett Paper and, years later The Reporter newspaper in Lansdale and other dailies. She turned to non-profit work after her first daughter was born and spent the next 13 years in that field. But while you can take the girl out of journalism, you can’t take journalism out of the girl. Offers to freelance sparked the writing bug again started her fingers happily tapping away on the keyboard. Monica lives with her husband and two children in Kennett Square.

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Police Log Dec 8: Multiple thefts

Police

Pennsylvania State Police

Media Barracks

• State police made three arrests during a Sobriety Checkpoint in Chadds Ford during the overnight hours of Nov. 27-28. Police said Juan Farrell-Malinconico, 18, of Media, was arrested for DUI, Jyairre Chapman, 18, of Bear, Del. was arrested for drug possession, and Richardson Obiero Asabe, 51, of Upper Darby, was arrested for DUI.

• Police said they arrested a 42-year-old Glen Mills man on retail theft charges following an incident at Target in Concord Township on Oct.8. A report said the unidentified man stole a $600 Polaroid camera and $93 worth of Polaroid film.

• Someone stole more than $85 worth of cigarettes from the Wawa on Naamans Creek Road in Concord Township on Nov. 11. Police said the unidentified suspect walked behind the counter and stole six cartons of Newport Shorts.

• A 27-year-old woman from Aston was the victim of a pair of pickpockets, a police report said. According to the report, the unknown suspects pickpocketed the victim’s purse at Wegmans while she was looking away.

• Police are investigating two cases of thefts from vehicles in Concord Township on Nov. 20. In one case, the victim lost $20 taken from her unlocked vehicle. In the second case, a 51-year-old woman from Elkton left her car unlocked, and someone stole more than $700 worth of property, including a $300 backpack, a $150 laptop charger, and a $150 textbook.

• Police are also investigating multiple thefts from cars on Nov. 22. The unknown suspects stole a $600 cell phone from one of the vehicles. The incident happened on Shavertown Road in Concord Township.

Avondale Barracks

• Police from the Avondale barracks arrested two people, a 20-year-old man from Ridley Park and an 18-year-old woman from Philadelphia, on drug possession charges in Kennett Township on Nov. 27. The arrests followed a traffic stop for an expired inspection.

• Ulta Beauty in East Marlborough Township was ripped off to the tune of more than $500 worth of salon products on Oct. 22. Police said four women entered the shop, gathered products, and left without paying. Troop J is investigating.

• State police said they arrested a 46-year-old Wilmington man on retail theft charges. A report said the suspect, not named in the report, stole $95 worth of merchandise from the East Marlborough Township Walmart on Nov. 10. Troopers caught the suspect as he was fleeing. They also determined he was under the influence of a controlled substance.

• Police are investigating a jewelry theft on Route 1 in Pennsbury Township. The incident happened on Oct. 30. The unknown suspect broke the locks off two display cases and then stole multiple pieces of jewelry items and a purse. The estimated value of products solen is $4,540. In a similar case on the same date, someone broke into a glass display case and stole $3,000 worth of rings an hour earlier, at 3:30 p.m.

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