On Stage: Nelson meets life challenges with new music

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Ryan “Gooch” Nelson If you googled the word “resiliency,” an appropriate entry in the search results would be a picture of Ryan “Gooch” Nelson. Nelson has suffered several major physical and medical setbacks. Back in 2004, he was paralyzed in a truck accident. In addition to being a quadriplegic, he had to deal with leukemia a few years...

What To Do: Celebrating Pennsylvania on Charter Day

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, the Times This weekend’s calendar features a wide array of Charter Day activities. Charter Day, which is “officially” celebrated on March 11, recognizes the day William Penn received his land grant for Pennsylvania from King Charles II of England in 1681. In observance of Pennsylvania’s founding, some of the region’s historic sites host special activities...

On Stage: The Lil Smokies much more than a snack

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times The Lil Smokies If the act headlining a show at Boot and Saddle (1131 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, 215-639-4528, www.bootandsaddlephilly.com) on March 5 sounds more like a sausage links brand then a music band, there is a good reason. The band that will perform at the South Philadelphia venue is The Lil Smokies, a Montana-based bluegrass/Americana...

Katdare wins Chester County Spelling Bee

DOWNINGTOWN — Soham Katdare, an eighth grader at Downingtown Middle School, practiced spelling more than 4,000 words to make it to the final round of the Chester County Spell Bee on Monday, February 10, 2020. Winning with the word “A-N-A-L-E-P-S-I-S,” Soham will continue on to the Scripps National Spelling Bee Contest in Washington, D.C. that begins on Sunday, May 24, 2020. 2020 Chester County...

Don’t Retire, ReFire: Sometimes you have to ‘go into the desert.’

By Gail Supplee Tatum, Columnist, The Times Have you ever had a time in your life when you felt like you’re just going through the motions? Have you felt like you can’t find joy in your day to day life? Have you felt unsettled about it and not sure what to do and how to pull yourself out of your funk? I had a revelation last week as I ruminated over what to give up for Lent, which is that period...

Inner Nature: COVID-19 and what you need to know

By Vidya Rajan, Columnist, The Times News of the novel coronavirus outbreak has exposed our vulnerability to two things: fear and contagion. I have had conversations with people, admittedly not science-aware types, who think that countries should be providing antibiotics prophylactically, or frustrated a vaccine is taking so long to make. I have heard people conflating the virus that causes COVID-19,...

Brandywine Hills Point-To-Point on tap, April 5

Horses vault the stone wall at last year’s Brandywine Hills Point-to-Point. With spring in Chester County comes the local fox hunting tradition and point-to-point races, where Brandywine Hills stands out for its more intimate, kid-friendly event. For 2020, the Brandywine Hills Point-to-Point will take place on Sunday, April 5, at the Myrick Center in Pocopson Township. An expanded slate of activities...

Op/Ed: Time to reject Socialism in America

By Christopher Gerber, Special to The Times Christopher Gerber As we look forward to the 2020 presidential election, it appears likely that Americans will be faced with a choice of two very different ideologies:  one that espouses capitalism, self-motivation and ingenuity versus socialism and its empty and destructive promises of free housing, college and healthcare for everyone. The platform...

The stark truth: Sanders will lose Chester County, Pa. and nationally

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Until Saturday, the early state voters in the Democratic primary had spoken: “Four More Years of Trump!” While Joe Biden’s strong win in South Carolina gave hope to his campaign, the fact remains that he is underfunded and a strong underdog on Super Tuesday. At this point, there are no other viable candidates to take on Sen. Bernie Sanders. This fact —...

What To Do: Kennett Winterfest features region’s top breweries

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, the Times This is a special time of year in Kennett Square – the time for a popular annual event known as the Kennett Winterfest. Usually, tickets are already sold out by this time but this year some tickets remain. The Eighth Annual Kennett Winterfest (http://kennettwinterfest.com/) will be held on February 29 from 12:30-4 p.m. in a tented area near 600...