Ex-Sheriff Welsh, Deputy McKinney face charges over misuse of funds, deputies

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times @mikemcgannpa Former Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh. Times file photo. State criminal charges and arrest warrants were issued Tuesday against former Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh and her boyfriend former Sheriff’s Deputy Harry McKinney alleging misappropriated funds from a charity for the department and alleged misuse...

COVID Update, Nov. 23: Wolf issues stay at home advisory, new limits on schools, gatherings

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times @mikemcgannpa Gov. Tom Wolf warned Monday that the COVID-19 pandemic could worsen seriously in commonwealth with today’s peak cases that average more than 6,000 per day could spike to more than 22,000 per day by December and overwhelm the state’s hospital system, asking — but not ordering – residents to stay home as much as possible. Wolf did announce some...

We will remember who is backing this coup

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times @mikemcgannpa This madness is not just on President Donald Trump, who continues to to make ridiculously false claims about the election. This is not about Rudolph Giuliani, who went into federal court this week, literally seeking to set aside your vote in Pennsylvania, with crazed conspiracy claims untethered from reality. Yes, they spew ridiculous conspiracy theories...

Inner Nature: Vaccine Formulations

By Vidya Rajan, Columnist, The Times In early October, I was listening to Weekend Edition on National Public Radio when an interview with the Executive Director of Shark Allies, Stefanie Brendl, came on the air [1]. Her concern was urgent: a world-wide coronavirus vaccine that could contain the ingredient squalene, isolated from from shark livers, could lead to over a half-million sharks being...

What To Do: A holiday season like no other gets under way

By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times  Longwood Gardens The number of days left in the countdown to Thanksgiving 2020 is in single digits. We all know that Thanksgiving is the traditional “unofficial” start of the Christmas holiday season – even though the season commercially “started” when Christmas items were being stocked on stores’ shelves on Labor Day Weekend and “Black Friday”...

Chester County Commissioners present agriculture awards

Commissioner Marian Moskowitz, Commissioner Josh Maxwell, Scott Taylor (spouse of Sonya Beltran), Sonya Beltran, Avril Beltran, Daniel Beltran, Maria Beltran, Commissioner Michelle Kichline, Chester County Ag Council Board Chair Chris Alonzo AVONDALE — The Chester County Commissioners, along with the Chester County Agricultural Development Council (Ag Council), recently presented two annual agriculture...

On Stage: COVID spike means brief run of live shows coming to an end

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times  Pete Davidson The old saying, “If you snooze, you lose,” is valid for a wide variety of situations. If you don’t take advantage of watermelon and fresh-picked corn on the market shelves during the summer and early fall, don’t be disappointed when you look for it now and it’s long gone. The signs were there. Growing seasons only last so...

Kennett Supervisors give preliminary OK to budget with no property tax hike

KENNETT – The Township Board of Supervisors voted to adopt a preliminary budget with no real estate tax increase for 2021. The Township held seven budget hearings beginning on September 16th designed to engage the community in a discussion about priorities for 2021 as it relates to the delivery of government services. The balanced budget is available for public inspection on the Township website...

COVID 19 Update, Nov. 18: State sets records for cases, hospitalizations, state tightens some rules, no changes for Chesco as yet

Editor’s Note: After nearly daily updates from late March through June, the pandemic eased enough for use to reduce coverage. The recent explosion of cases, hospitalizations and deaths nationally and in state have prompted a return to semi-regular reports again. By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times @mikemcgannpa The Wolf Administration moved to boost COVID-19 mitigation efforts, as case numbers...

You may not want to hear it, but Public Health Professionals are keeping us safe

By Dr. Stephanie McGann, DMD FAGD, Columnist, The Times We are in complicated and trying times to be sure. This month I would like to spend a few moments thanking another group of unsung heroes in our current crisis.  Public health professionals have gotten ignored or “thrown under the bus” at times during this pandemic. I thought it prudent to share all of things we take for granted today...