National Day of Prayer

Councilman Thomas J. McGarrigle (center) introduced a resolution at the March 25 Delaware County Council meeting declaring May 1 to be National Day of Prayer, which he presented to Evelyn Wright (left) and Robert Wright (right) of the Delaware County National Day of Prayer Task Force.
A National Day of Prayer program is sponsored annually by the National Day of Prayer Task Force on the first Thursday of May in Rose Tree Park as part of a national observance which was established in 1988 by President Ronald Reagan when he signed legislation which was passed unanimously by both Houses of Congress.
Joining in the presentation were (2d row, from left) Councilman Andy Lewis, Councilwoman Christine Fizzano Cannon, Council Chairman Linda A. Cartisano and Council Vice-Chairman John J. Whelan.

Child-Abuse prevention

County Council Chairman Linda A. Cartisano (center) presented a resolution declaring April to be Child Abuse Prevention Month to stress the importance of preventing child abuse and neglect and promoting programs dedicated to improving the lives of children who are victims of abuse and to eliminate such tragedies.
The resolution was accepted at the March 25 Delaware County Council meeting by (from left) Anthony DiTommaso, of Comcast Cable of Delaware County; Amy Nardi, Assistant Director, County Department of Intercommunity Health Coordination; Anne McFadden, Vice-President and Senior Community Banking Manager, Sovereign Bank, Media; and Carol Goertzel, President, PathwaysPA; as well as (from right) Greg Gegwich, Director, Public Relations and Marketing, Crozer-Chester Medical Center; Michele Edgcumbe, Executive Director, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates); Deirdre Jacques, County Children & Youth Services Agency, Chester; and Pat Kozinski, Executive Director, Family Support Line of Delaware County.
Joining in the presentation were (2d row, from left) Councilman Thomas J. McGarrigle, Councilwoman Christine Fizzano Cannon, Councilman Andy Lewis and Council Vice-Chairman John J. Whelan.

St. John Chrysostom Youth Group helps hungry

When Easter approaches at St. John Chrysostom Parish in Wallingford, members of the high school youth group know it’s time to go hungry.
Again this year, Operation Growl brought members of the youth group together for a 24-hour fast – all part of an effort to raise the students’ awareness of the plight of the hungry, and to raise money for local food programs.
And how do they pass the time? This year, the students spent Saturday, March 15, helping the Delaware County Literacy Council. The students packed books from DCLC’s Lansdowne office for shipping to DCLC’s main office in Chester. The group spent five hours packing boxes and shredding files. By the end of the day, they had filled 25 boxes with books and many trash bags of shredded paper.
Students who participated in the project were: Jenna Bates, Kelly Carey, Alex Cocco, Samantha Daley, Katie Endres, Matt Lucci, Richard Scott, Susan Seitz, Clare Sherry, Stephanie Smedile, Molly Tareila, Joyce Theur, Grace Theur and Natalie White. They were chaperoned by Joe Lucci, Karen Theur and Father Jim Bajorek.
In addition to their volunteer work, the students asked parishioners at St. John’s to sponsor their participation in the program. Their goal was to raise $9,000.

The four faces of Edgar

Here are four generations of family members with the name Edgar Osborne Moore. The oldest Edgar (called "Bud") will be 89 years old on March 25. The youngest Edgar Osborne Moore is my grandson (called "Quinn") and is ten years old. It's a great photograph and thought it might be used for a human interest story or just a photograph with a header that you think would be appropriate. The photograph was taken at a recent holiday gathering at my son's home in VA ("Ned").

Edgar Osborne Moore ("Bud")
Edgar Osborne Moore III ("Ed")
Edgar Osborne Moore IV ("Ned")
Edgar Osborne Moore V ("Quinn")

The Moore family has lived or owned property in Wallingford since the 1870's.

Media group rocks Senate

Business was far from usual in Harrisburg this month when a group of "Miracles" from the Media Theatre rocked the grand Rotunda with their music, and impressed the State Senate with their diverse abilities.
The State Street Miracles, a performance troupe of 11 adults with developmental disabilities, traveled to the state Capitol and performed for the esteemed members of the legislature as part of Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.
The mission of the Miracles is to spread the joy of music and dance while increasing awareness of the talents and abilities of people with disabilities. While many non-disabled advocates travel to Harrisburg to speak for people with disabilities, these performers are self-advocates and ambassadors who inspire people with their abilities.
The Miracles traveled to Harrisburg on March 10 as the guests of State Sen. Ted Erickson, an ardent supporter of people with disabilities. Their trip allowed them to take their message beyond Delaware County to a statewide audience.
Family members and representatives from the Media Theatre joined the Miracles as they toured the resplendent Capitol, performed in the Rotunda, and were recognized on the Senate floor when Sen. Erickson presented a Resolution declaring March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month in Pennsylvania.

Franklin Mint donates money to Riddle

Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union’s air-filled cash vault is loaded with swirling play money, but it became real money when John D. Unangst, FMFCU President/CEO, challenged Daniel E. Kennedy, Riddle Memorial Hospital’s President/CEO, to grab all he could in 3 minutes!
The donation to The Riddle HealthCare Foundation amounted to $3,621.00 and was presented to Kennedy recently as one way the FMFCU supports the mission and services of the hospital. " I couldn’t be more pleased to accept such a creative and thoughtful donation." said Kennedy, "It will be a wonderful infusion of much needed dollars that stay here at Riddle Memorial Hospital to better serve our community."
"It is my honor to be part of the leadership here at Riddle Memorial Hospital and my service on
The Riddle HealthCare Foundation Board is only a small part of what FMFCU does to ensure that Riddle brings the finest of care to our community" remarked Unangst. "I personally see this as an investment that makes perfect sense."

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Ocean Rose Verrall, born on Feb, 6, already knows how to party on St. Patrick's Day. Her parents are Petty Officer 3rd class-Crystal Verrall (McCollum) and Sergeant Robert Verrall.

Packing in the eggs

Grace Stewart, 3, of Aston, takes part in the Aston Township sponsored an Easter Egg Hunt at the Community Center on Concord Road.

Happy Birthday

Frances Gillespie, centenarian and resident of Fair Acres Geriatric Center,celebrated her 100th birthday on March 11. Frances was born in SouthPhiladelphia in 1908 and was one of five children. She worked as abookkeeper at the American Tobacco Company for many years until herretirement. An avid bowler until she was 90, Frances also enjoyed reading2-3 books per week. Her last remaining sibling, Catherine, age 90, wasunable to attend the party, however, her son Richard and his wife Vickieparticipated in the festivities with fellow residents and Fair Acres staff.

Dancing champion

Millis Faust, 15, has been training hard since the end of January for the largest student ballet competition in the world, the Youth American Grand Prix. The competition awards scholarships for dance education and ends in an intense workshop. The Radnor High School freshman competed Fri., March 7, at Swarthmore College in the regional competition. Her hope was to be invited to the New York in April to perform with dancers from around the world and to vie for scholarships to some of the most esteemed dance schools in the world.
By Monday night, the Faust family learned that Millis had won gold in her age division for classical ballet and had placed in the top 12 for her contemporary performance.
She will be competing in the finals April 15-21 at NYU’s Skirball Center.

Volunteering in Haverford

Bill Downs volunteers at Havertown Center as homebound meal driver

Irish Dancers

The Cara School of Irish Dance won the Walter Garvin Award for the Outstanding Children's Irish Dance Group at the Philadelphia St. Patrick's Day Parade. In keeping with the theme of the parade "ST. PATRICK, BLESS ALL THOSE SERVING THE PEOPLE OF GOD", the dancers portrayed several significant Philadelphia religious figures who "served" God's People. In the routine the Cara School also paid tribute to the 200th anniversary of the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

In the picture left to right:
Jamie McPeak, Sammie Greenberg, Laura Fay, Megan Dunham, Megan Smith, Meghan Moran, Kirsten McGroary, Kelly Connelly, Brittany Scattergood, Stephanie Dunham and Trisha Connelly

Delco Woman's Hall of Fame

The induction of Judy Chang Wenderoth, architect, artist and photographer, into the Delaware County Women’s Hall of Fame by the Women’s Commission was celebrated as part of Women’s History Month with a presentation at the Women’s Commission awards reception held March 11 at Brodeur’s Restaurant, Media. Ms. Wenderoth passed away in July 2007. Accepting the award on behalf of her and her family was longtime friend Beth Lawn (1st from left), from Commission Vice-Chair Carol Staubach (right) Chair of Women’s History Month activities, County Councilwoman Christine Fizzano Cannon (1st from right) and Commission Chair Lorraine Bradshaw (left).

Woman of Achievement Award

Dr. Meg Barney (1st from left) was presented the 2008 Woman of Achievement Award by Lorraine Bradshaw (left), Chair of the Delaware County Women’s Commission, who was joined in making the presentation by County Councilwoman Christine Fizzano Cannon (1st from right) and Commission Vice-Chair Carol Stauback (right), Chair of Women’s History Month activities. Dr. Barney was honored at the Woman of Achievement Awards reception, held March 11 at Brodeur’s Restaurant, Media.
Dr. Barney is Research and Development Specialist for Rose Tree Media School District. She taught in all the schools in the district, including 17 years at Penncrest High School.

Rotary Club donates dictionaries

March is Literacy Month for Rotary International when Rotary Clubs around the world engage in activities to boost literacy. The Upper Darby – Lansdowne Rotary Club recently donated dictionaries to the William Penn School District for every third grader enrolled in their schools. Internationally, Rotary Foundation funded a learning method known as the Concentrated Language Encounter (CLE) method in Brazil in 2001 that is continuing to boost literacy rates among low-income families throughout the country. To date, more than 72,600 Brazilians have learned to read and write through this method.
Pictured is Rotarian Phyllis Sockwell, with Rotary Club President Pat Lyman, presenting an edition of the dictionary to Dr. Steven Greenfield, Assistant Superintendent for the William Penn School District.

Irish Dancers

On Monday evening, March 10, dancers from the Cara School of IrishDancing, Drexel Hill, performed for the residents of Bryn Mawr Terrace.

Maureen Hegarty, one of the school's directors, accompanied the dancers. Residents of the Terrace enjoyed this annual performance by the young people of the Cara School. One of the dancers in the group is headed to Ireland next week to compete in the world championships of Irish dancing.
Pictured with Terrace resident Mimi Connelly of Berwyn, are dancers (left to right): Mairead McGillian, Ciara O'Sullivan, Kathryn Stavish, Emily Mullen

It's never too early for St. Patrick's Day

Jack Ryan Benner, 9 months old prepares for St. Patty's celebration with parents Jill and Ryan, of Drexel Hill.

Submitted by Deborah Callahan