The Kennett Square Mushroom Festival has awarded $3,000 to the Kennett Library’s Adult Literacy Program, the library announced in a press release. The grant comes from proceeds from the 2021 Mushroom Festival.
The money will help provide adult students with materials for classes in English as a Second Language, American citizenship, and high school equivalency diploma testing, which leads to a GED.
While the Mushroom Festival is a weekend event, its impacts last all year long in Kennett Square and surrounding communities. Each year proceeds from the famous Kennett Square Mushroom Festival are awarded to local community organizations and non-profit organizations. During the past 20 years, the Mushroom Festival has donated more than $1 million in funds to local organizations for things like books, playground equipment, food, transportation, and healthcare services, among other projects.
“We are thrilled to receive this grant!” said Adult Literacy Program Director Filomena Elliott. “The money will allow us to continue to purchase much-needed materials for our new immigrants learning English, for those adults who are studying Civics to test for American citizenship, and for those who are studying Math, English, Social Studies, and Science to earn their high school diploma. We are very grateful for the funds from the Mushroom Festival Grant and appreciate its support for the Kennett Library and its Adult Literacy Program.”
The 2022 Mushroom Festival will be held on Sept. 10 and 11 on State Street. For information and updates on the upcoming Festival, visit www.mushroomfestival.org.
Last Saturday afternoon was the perfect first weekend of Spring. It was the kind of day that makes you want to run out and listen to music by the Russian composer, Igor Stravinsky.
Wait, did I hear you say “No”?
To most people Stravinsky (1882 – 1971) might bring to mind Disney’s 1940 Academy Award-winning movie Fantasia, with Stravinsky’s discordant and jagged music from his Rite of Spring, accompanying animations of exploding lava and dinosaurs mauling each other to death. It gave a lot of little kids nightmares.
In fact, when The Rite of Spring was premiered on May 29, 1913, in Paris, fights broke out among audience members while people in the streets rioted over the harshness and modernism in the music.
According to Michael Hall, director of the Kennett Symphony, Stravinsky once quipped, “My music is best understood by children and animals.”
But Saturday’s “concert and cocktails” by the Kennett Symphony Orchestra in the Grand Ballroom of the Mendenhall Inn, featured Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite. Unlike The Rite of Spring, the suite was part of Stravinsky’s neo-classical style, composed with techniques that looked back to the order and form of the classical period.
Hall has re-imagined these yearly afternoon concerts by placing the orchestra in the middle of the ballroom, allowing the audience to sit around the orchestra. The doors opened half an hour before the concert with butlered hot and cold hors d’oeuvres and a signature cocktail fittingly named “The Rite of Spring.” If you arrived early enough to claim a front-row seat, your fantasy of sitting in a symphony orchestra was about to begin.
Before the concert started, we spoke with audience member Timothy Blair, retired dean of the School of Music at West Chester University. I asked him if he was excited about live music coming back again.
“If we weren’t excited, about this concert, nothing could excite us,” he said. “It’s good to see things being rebuilt. We’re back.”
The overture to the Pulcinella Suite could fool all but the most educated ear into believing they were listening to Haydn, Mozart or Pergolesi, one of Stravinsky’s favorites. Hall described it as “very tuneful, very elegant, very easy to listen to.”
And while the minuet and finale had hints of the typical Stravinsky dissonance, it was nonetheless a delightful listening experience.
The performance was enhanced by a PowerPoint program projected on large screens on both ends of the ballroom, showing action from the Pulcinella ballet as well as historic footage of Stravinsky composing at his piano.
After the well-deserved standing ovation performance, I asked Hall how he felt when the orchestra came in on his downbeat.
“Fantastic,” he replied. “I’m always impressed by how well it sounds in this ballroom.”
We also spoke with long-time violinist Martin Beech who has played with the Kennett Symphony Orchestra since 1969 when he was a student in the School of Music at West Chester University.
When asked what he thought about that afternoon’s concert he said, “Wonderful,” quickly adding, “We really missed playing live. Kennett [Symphony Orchestra] shut down completely.”
Of his own career, he said, “I’ve played more concerts in the last two months than in the last two-and-a-half years.”
The Kennett Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1940 and is the only professional orchestra in Chester County, attracting top musicians from five states.
Sally Denk Hoey, is a Gemini - one part music and one part history. She holds a masters degree cum laude from the School of Music at West Chester University. She taught 14 years in both public and private school. Her CD "Bard of the Brandywine" was critically received during her almost 30 years as a folk singer. She currently cantors masses at St Agnes Church in West Chester where she also performs with the select Motet Choir. A recognized historian, Sally serves as a judge-captain for the south-east Pennsylvania regionals of the National History Day Competition. She has served as president of the Brandywine Battlefield Park Associates as well as the Sanderson Museum in Chadds Ford where she now curates the violin collection. Sally re-enacted with the 43rd Regiment of Foot and the 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment for 19 years where she interpreted the role of a campfollower at encampments in Valley Forge, Williamsburg, Va., Monmouth, N.J. and Lexington and Concord, Mass. Sally is married to her college classmate, Thomas Hoey, otherwise known as "Mr. Sousa.”
Police said Joan P. Selke, 73, of Nottingham, was cited for her involvement in a two-vehicle crash that injured a 75-year-old woman from Kennett Square. The accident happened at 3:12 p.m., on March 15, on Doe Run Road west of Unionville Road in East Marlborough Township. According to the report, Selke was pulling out of a parking lot onto Doe Run when she struck an oncoming vehicle traveling westbound on Doe Run. Longwood Fire-EMS took the injured woman to Chester County Hospital.
The March 21 Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board meeting was about money from facility upgrades to a new teachers’ contract.
The contract between the district and the union — the Unionville-Chadds Ford Education Association — was approved unanimously and will go into effect July 1, 2023, and run through the 2026-2027 school year.
Salaries range from $59,514 at the low end up to $109,291 during the first year of the contract. After that, there are built-in salary increases of more than 3 percent for each year of the four-year agreement. In year four, that range goes to $64,604 to $115,181.
In addition to salaries, there is a full range of health benefits, including dental and vision care plans and a prescription plan. There is also an income protection clause: “Coverage shall be 66 2/3% of the insured employee’s monthly earnings (base salary) to a maximum of $3,500 per month for up to two (2) years for sickness or accident, with coverage beginning after the sixtieth (60th) day, or exhaustion of sick leave allowance, whichever is greater…”
There is also a no strike-no lockout clause.
School Board Director Steve Simonson said the contract is “well-deserved by our teachers…It’s a win-win agreement.”
In addition to the new “early bird” contract, directors authorized spending for several facility improvements, discussed during the board’s March 14 work session.
The district and Hillendale Elementary School PTO will split a $75,000 cost for a new playground at Hillendale. The district will take on the combined cost of $50,344 for flooring replacement at Chadds Ford, Pocopson, and Unionville Elementary schools and will spend $300,000 to renovate the CF Patton Family Consumer Science rooms. That work will involve demolishing the current space and replacing it with new updated casework, appliances, furnishings, and finishes.
Additionally, the district entered into an agreement with ELA Sport for $152,870. That work will take place on the campus between Unionville High School and Patton Middle School and involves designing improvements for parking, traffic, and pedestrian flow between the schools and replacing the existing tennis courts. There will also be room to add two more courts.
The School Board’s April meetings are scheduled for April 4 and 18. The regular meeting on the 18th will be at Hillendale.
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.
The new exhibit at the Baker Gallery at West Chester University, Homeward Arts Fest, is a comprehensive, encompassing, multi-disciplinary art experience that exceeds expectation and defies definition. Proclaiming “What is Art? We are Art!” with gusto, the show is set to raise awareness of the various forms art can take. The exhibit provides opportunities for local artists and art lovers alike to promote community engagement through the arts. Over fifty artists are included in the show, from the Brandywine Valley and the greater region.
Homeward Vase by Kevin Korb
“It is all about local things shown in their natural habitat,” says Andrew Snyder, Associate Professor of Art at West Chester University and co-curator of the exhibit along with Constance Case, Associate Professor of Theatre, and Maria Urrutia, Associate Professor of Dance. Their goal is to create a participatory experience for visitors, inviting them to come in, make a cup of coffee, grab a seat, and stay a while. To that end, the curators have raided the WCU theater department’s storage closets to stage the show, creating a home to welcome visitors. There is a kitchen on the far wall, a central living room, a basement complete with ping pong table and drum set, and even a patio with a clothesline. Every corner invites the visitor to sit and interact with the objects around them, whether it is a gaming console loaded with Street Fighter II or a stunning bronze sculpture on an end table—carefully, and with only your eyes when it comes to the art!
“When you say the word ‘gallery,’ it becomes a precious thing,” Snyder says. “I want this to be accessible. Someone can come in and play ping pong, or have a jam session, or sit on the couch and do homework.” It is certainly a different type of gallery experience, one sure to entice both students and visitors.
Button Scarf by Grace Marks
Transforming an art gallery into an entirely different space is nothing new to the Baker Gallery. In 2019, Snyder was part of the team that put on The Skate Show, a deep artistic dive into skateboard culture. Artists, students, and professors took skateboard decks, handmade by Snyder, and transformed them into one-of-a-kind pieces of art through painting, carving, and other techniques. The resulting pieces were displayed throughout the gallery, where a full-size indoor mini halfpipe ramp, built by Snyder and students, was available to test out the functional boards (with a signed waiver!). Throughout the run, professional skaters showed off their skills, various music groups played sets, and cult movies were projected on a wall. The events brought in many visitors who had never entered any art gallery before, let alone the Baker Gallery at WCU.
Homeward is sure to attract new visitors again with the wide variety of events planned. All are invited to workshops from professional artists, dance performances and poetry readings, game tournaments, and an open mic night. The grand finale of the show will be a Craft Show on April 2nd, where visitors will be able to walk through the gallery and then shop outside, where seventy artists will be selling a wide variety of arts, crafts, jewelry, and more.
The exhibit truly showcases the art that surrounds us, especially objects that are easily overlooked. Snyder points out one in particular: “I love that planter from Sam Diamond. Planters, you can get it at Home Depot, but this is handmade, unassuming. It isn’t decorative in the same way a piece of art or even a vase is decorative.” Taking an unusual view of art was a directive for Snyder’s pottery students leading up to this show. “I had students working on planters for that reason, it is performing a function, and supporting that life. That monstera would die outside around here, it needs to live inside.” The plants are thriving and vibrant in their new homes.
Pieces included in the show range widely, from oil canvases to intricate necklaces, tiny ceramic bowls to queen-size quilts. “Art is so subjective, everyone thinks they know what art is,” Snyder says. “There are a lot of traditional things in this exhibit that look great in the space, but would look out of place if this wasn’t a participatory exhibition.” The show demonstrates the beauty of art in the everyday. “This is how our houses are too, you have a poster from the dollar store next to a painting from a friend, an Ikea mug set next to a platter from a craft show.”
When asked to reflect on their favorite piece, Snyder can’t pick. I love the Rinal Parikh’s intricate painting of a bird or Kevin Korb’s vase, I picked out the couch to put next to the piece because of the colors on it.” He continues to scan the room. “That scarf, it is handwoven. That is what the show is about, it is a functional object that someone wears yet the craftsmanship is superb, and that is what art is—they are the things people live with. It is an intimate relationship with these functional objects over the course of time.”
Snyder walks over to the scarf, a gorgeous blue-and-white piece by Grace Marks, continuing to contemplate it from all angles. “It is wrapped around you, it keeps you warm, it is beautiful in its own right but performing that function.” He looks around the rest of the exhibit. “Plus, I am a sucker for craft, someone wove that. How do you even do that?” It seems that he does actually have a favorite piece. “Maybe that scarf is my favorite, now that I say it out loud. It encompasses the statement of why the show is together, in a piece.”
Snyder hopes that, above all, “people walk away with a smile on their face.” With something new to discover in every corner, it is hard to imagine that anyone would be able to do otherwise. “That is the schtick, I hope people will look differently at the things in their house.” The exhibit truly does enforce a new point of view. “The displays are important for any exhibition. It needs to be installed properly. Art is visual, art has to be cool looking.”
Snyder’s final thought: “If it doesn’t look cool, it isn’t cool.” By that standard, this exhibit is, above all, else, cool.
Homeward Arts Fest ’22 is open from March 21st through April 2nd, with public hours Monday to Friday, 9 am to 3 pm. Other events are scheduled outside gallery hours. The exhibit is at the John H. Baker Gallery in the E. O. Bull Center for the Arts, located at 2 E. Rosedale Avenue, West Chester, PA. For more information, check WCUPA.edu/arts-humanities/artdesign and on Instagram @artsatwcu.
Victoria Rose (she/her) is an editor, writer, avid reader, self-described geek, and fan of all things creative. Her passion for words has led to her current career as a freelance editor, and she is the owner of Flickering Words, an editing service. When not wielding a red pen (or cursor), she loves reading books of all genres, playing video, board, and word games, baking ridiculous creations to show off on the internet, or enjoying the gorgeous outdoors. She is a board member of the West Chester Film Festival and part of the Thirsty Monsters, a team of streamers from around the world who fundraise for various charities supporting LGBTQIA+ and accessibility rights. She can be found online @WordsFlickering or the Brandywine Art Guide @BrandywineArtGuide.
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.
The following animals are ready to be adopted from the Brandywine Valley SPCA in West Chester.
Michelle
Michelle
Sweet Michelle’s golden years have definitely made her appreciate love and affection. This staff and volunteer favorite has a ready purr and a silent meow that is really quite endearing. Michelle would love to find a quiet home where she can be cherished. You can name your fee for Michelle through Sunday, March 27.
Bernie
Bernie
Sweet Bernie is a playful one. He enjoys his outdoor time where he gets to zoom around the play yards and throw around his toys. He’d be a great fit for almost any family who will appreciate his spunky personality. Bernie has made other dog friends at the shelter and would love to meet any other dogs in the home before making a commitment. You can name your fee for Bernie through Sunday, March 27.
For more information, go to www.bvspca.org or phone 484-302-0865.
John C. Fleming Jr., 83, of Chadds Ford, formerly of Broomall, died Wednesday, March 16. Predeceased by his parents John Charles and Virginia (nee Smedley). Survived by his sisters Joan Agatone (Dominick) and Gail Freed; his brother Richard Fleming (Elizabeth); and his two nieces and five nephews. Relatives and friends are invited to his visitation Wed. March 23, 10-11 a.m. with a service immediately following at the Elam United Methodist Church, 1073 Smithbridge Rd, Glen Mills, PA 19342. Interment following the service. Please see danjolell.com for further details.
The Chadds Ford Elementary School Art Show and Sale remains alive and well at 73.
The words most often used by multiple artists and one principal were, “It’s great” and “It’s fantastic.”
“It” refers to the 73rd annual Art Show and Sale at Chadds Ford Elementary School. The event opened Friday night, and it was the first time the show was live and in-person in three years. The last time was 2019, pre-COVID.
The show is a major fundraiser for the CFES PTO, which gets 30 percent of the proceeds. And while it was exciting for the school, it was also special for the artists. Many of them only see one another at events such as the CFES show.
“It feels fantastic. There’s nothing like being with people,” said Annette Alessi on being back in person.
Friends. Artist Annette Alessi shares a moment with a friend and loyal supporter, Helga Testorf who posed often for Andy Wyeth.
And even beyond the sense of joy of being in person again, the annual art show at the school is special to her.
“I’ve been showing here for about 16 years, and I feel like I’m a part of history, part of the Wyeth tradition, and I feel like it’s a little reunion. So, it’s definitely special to me.”
While the past two years were disruptive to normal life, Alessi said she was able to use the time constructively. She said she was able to refine and refocus her energy and that allowed her more time to paint.
Jacalyn Beam has been showing at Chadds Ford Elementary for about five or six years. She said it’s basically her hometown show.
“I was born and raised in Chester County, so my schooling and background were all about the Wyeths in art classes. And I live here, I live in the Brandywine Valley, and I love it. I have painted in national juried plein air events for the past two years [in Texas, California, and New England], and I like painting Chester County and the Brandywine Valley the best.”
This year’s event hit her stronger than ever.
“I’m so excited [to be back in person]. I was thrilled to be invited back. First, it’s a nice group of ladies [referring to the PTO]. They take such good care of you; I can’t say enough about that. But besides that, this is the story of this land. This is Chadds Ford, and the people who live in Chadds Ford recognize these scenes. So, my heart is here, my spirit is here, the images are here, and I really enjoy being with these people,” Beam said.
As with the others, Nicki Wandersee said it’s great to be back in person.
“I really missed it. It’s better to see everybody, to talk to the other artists and meet the people who want to come in and look at the art. It’s great.”
She added that the COVID years have had an effect on her art, making her “a little more creative, taking more chances with my art.”
Helena van Emmerik-Finn has been showing at CFES for 17 years. She appreciates how it all began with Betsy Wyeth, Andy’s wife, starting it in 1949 and then staying involved when her sons Nicholas and Jamie were in school.
“It’s being a part of history, the fact that the Wyeths started this, and to have a piece of mine hanging in this school, it’s just such an honor,” she said.
As for being back in person, she said, “It’s great and a relief.”
Rick Phillips was this year’s featured artist, and he’s been taking part in the Chadds Ford show for about 10 years. So why does he keep coming back? History and camaraderie.
“I love the history of the Wyeths and the fact that they started the show. And these are my friends. I live in Claymont, and this is like a hometown show for me,” he said.
And while he said there’s no extra significance for him that the show is live for the first time in three years, he likes that it is live again.
“I’m just glad to be back. It’s nice to be able to see reactions to your work. And the artists, too. We’re like a big family because most of us know one another. And the patrons, you get to know them, too,” Phillips said.
And the artists weren’t the only people excited for the art show to be back in person.
Danielle Clark is the principal at CFES, and this year’s art show was her first in-person show as principal. She said her excitement began the day before the opening.
“When I came in yesterday, as the PTO was setting up and working with the artists, I was just in awe and overwhelmed by the quality of the pieces, the investment that the volunteers have to our school, and opening the school to our community is just fantastic. What better way to celebrate the arts and our school and marry the two together? It’s amazing.”
And coming off the COVID-caused shutdown of so many events, getting back in person is significant for Clark.
“The community was already supportive of our school, and the connection between the Brandywine Valley and the arts and history is already there, but having this be in-person … What a better opportunity to have people in our building? It’s just amazing to have people here.”
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.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced that more than 80 municipal police departments from Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties will join the Pennsylvania State Police in a coordinated aggressive driving enforcement wave to help reduce the number of crashes, injuries, and fatalities on area roadways as part of a statewide mobilization that runs through April 24.
The enforcement wave will focus on distracted driving, speeding, and work zone awareness. Motorists exhibiting other unsafe behaviors such as driving too fast for conditions, following too closely, or other aggressive actions will also be cited.
Law enforcement will use traffic enforcement zones, saturation patrols, speed enforcement details, corridor enforcement, work zone enforcement, and multi-jurisdictional patrol strategies to identify and cite aggressive drivers.
The enforcement is part of Pennsylvania’s Highway Safety Program and is funded by part of PennDOT’s investment of federal funds from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
If you encounter an aggressive driver, PennDOT offers these tips:
Get out of their way and don’t challenge them;
Stay relaxed, avoid eye contact, and ignore rude gestures;
Don’t block the passing lane if you are driving slower than most of the traffic;
Do not attempt to follow or pursue the vehicle. You or a passenger may call the police. But, if you use a cell phone, pull over to a safe location.
In 2020, there were 983 aggressive driving crashes, resulting in 49 fatalities in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties. Aggressive driving crashes are crashes involving at least two aggressive driving factors in the same crash. Factors include, but are not limited to, running stop signs or red lights, tailgating, careless turning or passing, and driving too fast for conditions.
The goal of targeted enforcement is to reduce the number of aggressive driving-related crashes, injuries, and deaths on roadways throughout the state. Any aggressive driver stopped by police will receive a ticket.
The money will help provide adult students with materials for classes in English as a Second Language, American citizenship, and high school equivalency diploma testing, which leads to a GED.
