December 19, 2021

An 18-wheeler plowed through Leaders Sunoco on Route 1 at Stationway Road in Chadds Ford Township Sunday morning. Police have not yet released any details of the accident. The cause and the driver’s status remain speculation.

What is known is that the truck was northbound on Route 1 when it drifted to the right and snapped a utility right before the entrance to the gas station. The truck entered the station area, took out the pump nearest that entrance, veered between the pump island and station building, eventually coming to rest on the small island at the corner where the main sign was. The sign is gone, as are the rose bushes, flag pole, and guard barriers. The cost of the damage is as yet unknown.

Dan Leader said he received a phone call about the accident at about 6 a.m. He and Jim Leader were cleaning up what they could even before work crews removed the truck from the station lot shortly after 8 a.m.

No one was at the station when the accident happened. Leaders has not been able to pump gas since the Sept. 1 flood destroyed the pumps.

The Chadds Ford Township Residents Association Board honored Mary Kot and Ted Varney with the organization’s Citizen of the Year Awards. The event, held on Dec. 15 at Pescatore’s Restaurant, recognizes residents who have demonstrated extraordinary community service on behalf of Chadds Ford residents and businesses.

The 2020 Citizen of the Year, Ted Varney was recognized for 30 years of volunteer work with the Rachel Kohl Library and the local Boy Scouts. He was also honored for his contributions as an Eagle Scout Project Advisor and overseeing remote camping experiences at the Haliburton Scout Reserve in Ontario, Canada.

Varney’s honor was delayed a year because of the COVID pandemic.

Mary Kot, the 2021 Citizen of the Year, was recognized for more than 25 years of volunteer work with numerous local organizations including the Civic Association of Chadds Ford Township, the Chadds Ford Township Municipal office, and the local Republican Party. Mary was also president of the Unionville High School PTO and worked on the school’s After Prom event for many years.

According to Phil Wenrich, president of the association, Kot is “one of the nicest, sweetest and kindest people I have met in my life and a person who is impossible to say no to when she would ask you to do something.”

Regarding Varney, Wenrich said, “Ted is a man who has always been there for the kids as well as all the residents of Chadds Ford Township and the surrounding areas. He is honest, wholesome, and does everything with grace.”

The Chadds Ford Township Residents Association is a volunteer, non-profit civic organization devoted to supporting the residents and businesses of Chadds Ford Township. Its mission is to foster a strong sense of community and help retain the area’s unique cultural history and character.

(Story and photos courtesy of Jesse Sheppard, of the Chadds Ford Residents Association.)