Coatesville City Council moves to centralize fire equipment

Washington Hose Company. Courtesy, Coatesville Fire Department. COATESVILLE — In a four-to-one vote on Monday, members of the City Council passed a motion for the first reading of an ordinance authorizing an amendment to a lease agreement between the City and Washington Hose Company—in order to centralize all fire personnel and equipment at the Washington Hose Company. Effective April 1, the...

Smart ways to use your tax refund

By Joe Oliver, Columnist, The Times It’s almost that time of year when many people start receiving their tax refunds. If you get one, what will you do with it? Of course, the answer will depend somewhat on how big your refund is. Last year, the average refund amount was about $2,750, according to the Internal Revenue Service’s Filing Season Statistics report. Whatever the size of your refund,...

What To Do: Tix still available for Kennett Winterfest

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 Annual Kennett Winterfest (http://kennettwinterfest.com/) will be held on February 24 from 12:30-4 p.m. in a tented area near 600 South...

On Stage: ‘The Girl From the North Country’ at The Forrest Theater

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Chiara Trentalange and Ben Biggers in The Girl From The North Country, which is now running at The Forrest Theater. Philadelphia’s Broadway season of shows at the Miller Theater, Academy of Music and Forrest Theater fortunately has some new touring Broadway shows that are playing in Philly for the first time – like “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Mean...

Kennett Consolodated School District mourns the sudden death of a teacher

Kathleen Arvanites The Kennett Consolidated School District is mourning the loss of beloved teacher Kathleen Arvanites, who passed away on Sunday from a sudden illness. Arvanites taught Spanish in the district for more than 15 years, first at Kennett High School before moving to Kennett Middle School. KCSD issued a statement this week, alerting the wider school community: “It is with heavy hearts...

Inner Nature: Merde!

By Vidya Rajan. Columnist, The Times Merde. In other words, s**t, p**p, d**g, number 2, BMs, excreta, droppings, stools, feces. This is not a really pleasant subject of conversation, or even a polite one (unless you lived back in the eighteenth century when everyone was apparently fascinated by it as an indicator of health). But it’s an important part of life. If you’ve ever been constipated...

What To Do: George Washington’s birthday party

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times This weekend will feature many special family events dealing with history and nature – including an annual Presidents Day event at a national park. On February 19, Valley Forge National Historical Park (1400 North Outer Line Drive, King of Prussia, www.nps.gov) is hosting “George Washington’s Birthday Party” from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The site of...

On Stage: Ringling Bros. roars back to life, minus animals & clowns

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Ringling Bros. Imagine having lost contact with a dear friend and assuming that he/she had gone away forever. Then, out of the blue, the person from the past made contact and suggested getting back together again. That’s pretty much what happened to Maria Pontigo Lopez. Lopez is part of The Lopez Family, one of the best and most innovative highwire...

Commissioners demonstrate CPR in honor of American Heart Month

(Left to right) Chester County Commissioners Eric Roe, Chair Josh Maxwell and Marian Moskowitz demonstrate Hands-Only CPR under the instruction of Chester County EMS Operations Coordinator Larry Smythe (right) at the Commissioners’ February 14th Public Meeting. At the Valentine’s Day meeting, the Commissioners Proclaimed February as American Heart Month. When a Valentine’s Day public meeting...

Don’t waste your time engaging with Trump supporters; take ’em on at the polls

By Rich Heiland, Columnist, The Times After Donald Trump’s latest horrific, anti-democracy, insulting comments, anyone who still supports him is not worth engaging with… But, they are worth taking on at the polls. Trump and his followers have removed any doubt about who they are and what they want, and it’s not a democratic republic. Far from it. WE LIVE IN a time when up is down; the sun...