All that is left are the memories. Once a vibrant and beloved neighborhood, now all that is left are the echoes of memories and photographs. R.I.P Lisa Drive in West Whiteland.
SuNOco / Energy Transfer / Mariner East are the architects of this tragedy. And the PA DEP gave a stamp of approval.
Given the age of the homes, one nearby resident aptly noted did the DEP take precautions for lead paint and potential asbestos or are those particles just going to be left to float in the air, lay in the soil, get into water? But do we think they all care? I do not.
This neighborhood was sacrificed for the god almighty profit of what we now know as Energy Transfer. In 2019, beleaguered residents 2 weeks to agree to the offer and move out back . And they had to sign NDA’s. These people would never have just compensation because all of what they lost was not monetary which would never matter to this company and too many elected officials. They lost their neighbors, their homes where they raised their families, etc. Those things cannot ever have a dollar amount placed on them.
I have written about this many times in the past and today I take a minute to remember a neighborhood. We should not be losing our neighborhoods and environment to this crap. Period.
R.I.P. Lisa Drive in West Whiteland Township, Chester County.
Former Congressman Jim Gerlach May 29, 2010 at Historic Montgomery Cemetery at a Memorial Day Observance with a lady I once knew as Auntie Eileen.
I think it’s time to mention how we all wherever we are, whatever we believe, need to be able to have conversations. We can be opposites politically all of the time and yet, we can should be able to talk about things, even politics. People have lost that ability and I think it’s sad. We all don’t have to be bobble headed sheeple for either political party, but we need to relearn the art of conversation and meeting in the middle to get things done. To that end and this topic, has everyone seen see the article in the Daily Local about Jim Gerlach?
I have to admit, I would not have chosen that title for the article, I find it cringey and awkward. But because it was about someone I like and respect, I read the article. Here’s an excerpt:
Jim Gerlach has taken on a new position.
The former congressman has joined the board of the Pennsylvania Democracy Defense Project. The organization was created to support the transparency, safety, security and validity of Pennsylvania’s election system.
“I’m excited to join this bipartisan coalition of Pennsylvania and national leaders working to restore faith in our election system,” Gerlach said in a release announcing his appointment to the board. “Now more than ever, we must work to dispel the misinformation surrounding our elections and restore trust in the process.”
Gerlach most recently stepped down from his post as president and CEO of the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance last year. He had been with the chamber since March 2020.
Before taking over as leader of the local chamber, Gerlach represented parts of Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties as a member of Congress for 12 years. The Republican lawmaker, who was widely regarded as someone willing to work with his colleagues across the aisle….Gerlach joins former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, former U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart and former State House Speaker Keith McCall as board members of the Democracy Defense Project in Pennsylvania.
This bi-partisan approach is not new to Jim Gerlach. He practices what he preaches on this topic, he always has, from the State House to Washington, D.C.
Two hundred and thirty-three years ago last week, on April 6, 1789, the first joint session of the U.S. House and Senate met in New York’s Federal Hall and proceeded to count the electoral votes that would establish George Washington as the nation’s first President. That remarkable proceeding was peaceful, dignified and the outcome was accepted by all participants – candidates and supporters alike, those who prevailed and those who did not. Thus began the first full session of an institution now in its 117th iteration.
Since the founding, more than ten thousand Americans have had the honor and privilege to represent their constituents in the House of Representatives and Senate. As legislators, their primary responsibility has been to accurately reflect the will and needs of those they represent and, most importantly, engage with their colleagues and the executive branch to formulate public policy that best advances the rights, opportunities, and security of their fellow citizens.
Because our nation is so diverse, our people’s representatives are as well. Consequently, to achieve passage of legislation in either chamber, productive members are those who interact with each other, engage in meaningful conversation, and ultimately find the common ground that is the foundation of public policy advancement. They do so by respecting each other as colleagues, regardless of party label. It is certainly true, that during that first Congress and ever since, spirited policy debate has been the hallmark of the American legislative process. But that debate must be conducted civilly and responsibly if we are to advance as a nation.
Unfortunately, in the past few years, the conduct of far too many members of the House and Senate and in legislative bodies across the land has devolved into angry exchanges and name-calling that serves no other purpose than to inflame passions and harden sentiments against fellow officials. We are concerned that too many of those serving in and seeking elected office are willing to degrade our centuries-old representative democracy by riding a wave of tribalism and division. Instead of engaging in dialogue to achieve practical policy solutions, these outbursts of acrimony only serve to further separate members from each other and inflame individuals and organizations among the broader public. Worse, the rhetoric is increasingly involving threats or encouragement of acts of violence.
In response to this dangerous and divisive trend, as two former members of Congress with a combined 24 years of service and coming from different regions and political parties, we have authored a “Civility, Not Violence Pledge” that has now been signed by a bipartisan group of over 100 former members of Congress. Together, we have all have pledged to withhold our support of any candidates – regardless of party – who advocate or threaten violence against their political adversaries. The pledge reads:
“Recognizing that a strong, vibrant, and unified republic is founded on our citizenry’s mutual respect for the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others, and
That our local, state, and federal elected officials have a special and solemn responsibility to recognize and promote such mutual respect in the conduct of their public duties, and
That their conduct should at all times be civil, respectful, and ethical in action and discourse,
The undersigned do hereby affirm and pledge that they will:
Responsibly conduct themselves in speech and action in a manner that fosters civility and respect among fellow officials and citizens,
Decry and oppose any conduct or activity that encourages, supports, or condones any act or threat of violence against any individuals, groups, elected officials, or government employees at any level of government, and
Decline support for any persons or organizations that encourage, support or condone such violence.”
…Having served in office ourselves, we call on current members and candidates for Congress to join us and publicly demonstrate their recognition that public service should be founded on mutual respect for their colleagues and constituents, and that their words and conduct should not be used to support or condone any form of violence in the public square. We also call on the public and the media to hold elected officials and all candidates accountable to make and abide by this same commitment.
Baird served in Congress from 1999-2011 and Gerlach served from 2003-2015. Both are members of the U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress.
Jim Gerlach with members of the Save Ardmore Coalition in 2006 with the late (and beloved and missed) Dick Saha and his wife Nancy of Wagontown Valley Township
Jim Gerlach was our Congressman for many years and he was a terrific congressman in my opinion. He helped us in Ardmore with eminent domain for private gain many years ago and the hallmark of his tenure in Congress is his door was always open for anyone regardless of political persuasion. You do not have that today and then there is the pecking order or if you can’t do anything for most elected officials with few exceptions, they don’t have time or they are more aptly put handled out of reach of every day constituents.
Now he has joined the board of the Pennsylvania Democracy Defense Project. The organization was created to support the transparency, safety, security and validity of Pennsylvania’s election system. Gerlach joins former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, former U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart and former State House Speaker Keith McCall as board members of the Democracy Defense Project in Pennsylvania. This group wants to bring together trusted leaders to bolster faith in the integrity of election systems. They said the organization will run a campaign to raise awareness of efforts to subvert elections across the country and help move people beyond polarizing rhetoric. This is BI-PARTISAN.
I think this is a great idea and I hope it’s successful. I am tired of the rhetoric. I am tired of the baseless crazy conspiracy theories and ridiculous litigation after every election cycle. And I know most of you are so I hope you all pay attention to this.
I am sure the critics of this post will become giant mina birds as to why this won’t work, and to them I simply say, what if it does? We have to start somewhere. The extremism of politics is ruining this country. Pure and simple. And no someone like Donald Trump won’t seriously support something like this because most simply put, a project like this is a complete threat to his insanity. He is essentially an autocrat, a dictator in training and has destroyed the Republican party. He is about whomever gets all the toys wins and HE wants all of the toys, he will never as a malignant narcissist care about anyone other than him which is exactly WHY when something BI-PARTISAN pops up, we all as Americans need to look at it.
So when the Philadelphia Business Journal articles came out about Scott and Lynne Mason and Rubicon Wealth Management and Orchard Park Real Estate Holding LLC, one of the first things I did was go to the Rubicon website to see what they were about. https://www.rubiconwealth.com/ was the website and when I plunked it into Google I came up empty:
So I think the Rubicon phone number is the same from when they were in Bala Cynwyd, before Blue Bell, and it is just ported as a VoIP number. Who knows if there is still an actual office? 980 Jolly Road in Blue Bell is an office complex- think this is the website: https://www.980jollyroad.com/
Anyway, I was getting stuck trying to figure out where the cache of the Rubicon Wealth Management website was. I figured it had to be somewhere, it’s the Internet, right? So I asked a techie friend what the name of the website was that captures these old things if they are entered. They texted me back “Internet Archive : Wayback Machine.”
So where to begin? Before I get to the website, allow me to start with one of their little website video snippets, geared towards women. As a woman, considering the accusations, this is particularly despicable. A lot of women of a certain age, are not necessarily investment savvy, and can be too trusting.
And that led me to the info on the former Chief Compliance Officer who left a while back I guess. He was the Compliance Officer before Scott Jeffrey Mason donned the cape of regulation, which is truthfully kind of dumb because where is the separation of church and state?
So people were asking who was on the Rubicon website. Well here are your screenshots:
So Malvern Capital Management who was in the Inquirer article is literally right in Malvern. Here is a link to their website. They are also potential victims, aren’t they? Like what about the people related to Scott and Lynne Mason? You know when you have “family” in the financial business, it’s common that they manage their family members’ assets as well, isn’t it? Or you do business with neighbors, friends, the folks you met at a civic association meeting, it’s all good over a round or two of golf, a cocktail party, etc? What will the fallout be exactly? This is actually a tragedy that will possibly have several acts, right?
This whole thing takes your breath away. I can still find nothing at all on the Orchard Park Real Estate Holdings LLC except the LLC basics on the Commonwealth of PA website.
Well that’s all I’ve got but I hear the 19035 is all abuzz. Also, so we are clear: I am not following this for the salaciousness alone, I think this is wrong. People entrust their life savings to people and they expect honesty and a moral compass, right? I realize the cases here are just beginning but remember, the Philadelphia Business Journal articles and the Philadelphia Inquirer article both mentioned that “clients have been in contact with FBI and SEC investigators who are seeking information about Rubicon”, he said” to directly quote Joseph DiStefano’s Inquirer article.
I will be honest and say out loud that this is so sad what the Main Line has become. And the Nouveau Main Line is ripe for these issues because these people move there now because it’s an exclusive-ish suburbia in Lower Merion Township and no one knows the history at all. And a perennial problem? People from one side of the river quite literally in Montgomery County never pay attention to the other side of the river. It’s like when I was growing up, the Main Line crowd and the Chestnut Hill crowd didn’t mingle, and neither of them mingled much with Ambler, Abington, Dresher, Jenkintown, Huntingdon Valley, Bucks County, etc.
The First Amendment as always allows me my opinions.
BUT STOP THE FREAKING PRESSES AGAIN THERE IS A NEW SCANDAL. This one will be a peach. Hat tip to the Philadelphia Business Journal for breaking the story wide open and public…but the guy they mention in the article is not the only one suing their “advisor”…AND once again, yes more fine upstanding Lower Merion Township residents? Perhaps the Magic Kingdom has priced itself out of residents with moral compasses? And I think the Philadelphia Inquirer article is going to be a fan favorite (and the subscription is much more reasonable, sadly, and I like and appreciate the Philadelphia Business Journal as well.)
But wait…more articles…from the Philadelphia Business Journal who popped out with these ahead of the Inquirer. All articles are interesting…very interesting….very interesting….
Of course I am legit wondering aloud what in the Sam Hell is in the water in Lower Merion these days. And OMG the woman the articles filing suit is the guy’s aunt according to press so far?
Here’s an article from 2005 that shows the beginnings of the SEI relationship with Rubicon/Mason:
But this is not the most interesting thing of all, is it? If you cross reference an obituary notice you can verify that this is not the only Mason who has had issues, isn’t it? Like father like son?
(And yes the First Amendment, the SEC, and the New York Times can back this ALL up, can’t it?)
I can’t find much on the Orchard Park whatever business other than this:
However…when I went perusing the Montgomery County dockets I found three cases all filed within the past few weeks plus the SEI related one:
I went and pulled what I could find for Rubicon Wealth Management/Scott Mason. There was a Rubicon Securities on FINRA that was in Bala Cynwyd that looks like it closed up shop in 2002 and when you try to clickaroony on the Rubicon Wealth Management website , https://www.rubiconwealth.com/ it is “not found”. It disappeared apparently as a website? I found some stuff on Zoominfo.
Society snippets of yore, tell their own story, right? Social climbing and needing to belong? Just go noodle through Newspapers.com with their names in it.
I am feeling sarcastic towards Lower Merion Township and their new found “celebrities” but I am seriously wondering what is in the water. In all seriousness, this is kind of disgusting and I think like the other stories of the Nouveau Main Line it is going to grow legs. As an issue, it’s like all these Madoff types came to town isn’t it? It’s sad, gross, disgusting and God don’t like ugly too, isn’t it?
This is all so Ponzi-esque and Madoff-esque isn’t it?
As I close this out, I ask again if perhaps the Magic Kingdom has priced itself out of residents with moral compasses? Is it SO important to live high SO high on the hog? And since I started sharing the Philadelphia Business Journal articles I have received some unpleasant private messages from the 19035. To those people I say wake up. Before this is over how many people will be hurt including their innocent family members? Philadelphia Business Journal and the article about Mason’s Aunt. OMG
This continues to grow legs, including a blip in the Glenside Local. This seems like it will be a tall tale of many articles? The Main Line is so not what it used to be….
But buy more popcorn, Lower Merion’s ugly underbelly is getting another scratch this summer, eh?
The postscript is for those not familiar with that Squires club there was quite an amusing article in Philadelphia Magazine in 2016:
High-stakes gambling. Near-death experiences. Semi-naked golf. For decades, what happened inside the exclusive, strictly all-male Squires golf club stayed in the clubhouse — until now.
I don’t know who this person is. Her social media Facebook profile says that she’s only here to keep up with her child’s school and Facebook marketplace and likes Downingtown STEM. Yet here she is sharing the love towards me? And apparently according to her I stalk people with larger followings than mine? Really? I am not an influencer earning money on clickbait or a compensated blogger, and the whole thing about followers is pretty much always amusing to me because I don’t get it. And I will also never get that how so many people who don’t know me, have never met me, and whom I don’t care to know can take so much time to actually hate me? And while they claim I am the big old hater, it’s ok for them to hate me? Pretzel logic, my favorite kind.
This person posted the above about me because I posted about what was happening over in Westtown on the blog’s Facebook page. And I’m not going be called hypocrite or anything else by them. They need to be reminded of the following:
I shared a news item.
I did not create the news item.
I am not the architect of the crime.
I actually don’t go near the place, except to occasionally go up and down 926 which means a drive byon a public road.
I should not be an adjacent topic to the news item, and even if I have reservations about the fauxmer over at Westtown, I would never ever condone what has happened inside that historic barn. It’s wrong. It’s disgusting.
My crime as it were is I had shared the news articles about what is going on at the old Pete’s Produce, now Farmer Jawn at Westtown. My other crime is I am not a fan of what I have seen over there since the new tenant moved in.
And again, no matter how sketchy I feel in my opinion the whole successor to Pete’s Produce is, when have I ever said or thought that disgusting hate symbols, vandalism, or graffiti were ok anywhere? You can answer or not answer, as you choose. The answer is the first day of never. I’ve covered all of these topics over the years.
Of course, this woman did not unfollow my blog’s Facebook page on her own, she was removed. They all announce when they come with their criticism and their nasty thoughts that they’re going to unfollow or some actually message me and tell me to do it for them, but they never do it on their own. That is one of the funniest things about Facebook, especially. Every day, someone in some group or on someone on some page announces their departure….and then sit there and lurk.
And being outraged that anyone would do this to a historic barn on a property owned by a Quaker school makes me a hypocrite? How? That’s ridiculous.
It’s like saying you are a racist because merely as a nanny nanny boo boo retort if you say something that makes them uncomfortable in their rainbow farting unicorn bubble of a world. I find that despicable as well.
We live in this ridiculously political correctness society. All of these people expect you to listen to their perspective, chapter and verse, but if you say something that is out of the Stepford wife, category of safe topics, or if you are not a Disney mom cruise blogger, you are a baaaad person. You can even be the same political persuasion as someone but if you veer off a safe, Stepford wife topic you are a baaad person. It’s funny, except it’s also pathetic and overdone.
I am a baaaaad person here because I have questioned the authenticity of Farmer Jawn and that is my right. And that doesn’t make me a racist, either. Oh yes I am deliberately being repetitive, because the only way to get a message across with some of these essentially drooling idiots is to keep repeating yourself.
People are super accusatory just because. Not because they have anymore depth than a fruit fly or have done any research into anything. They will say someone is bad horrible nasty, pick your pejorative adjective because somebody told them that that’s what they should say. Or just because you are different from them and they can’t understand that.
Of course these are also the same people that vote every single election how someone else told them to vote, without doing any of their own research into whomever the candidate is. It’s the grand land of sheeple, and a misplaced sense of entitlement.
Like this woman today who is only on Facebook for her kid’s school and Facebook marketplace who also told me I was an embarrassment to this entire country. I just have to laugh out loud and ask who died and made her George Washington? Do they even understand that our rights as Americans is what gives us all the right to question and speak out or speak up, and more?
Now I’ve asked around in the Quaker community and people who had kids at the school who either graduated or left, and neighbors. Apparently, there are people who have been upset with the school past and present. I was reminded of the whole nastiness with turf fields, and I don’t remember how many years ago that was. Is this nasty business the work of kids who are just jackasses or adults and why? Someone in the area also told me that the school also has overnight camps during the summer? That could mean quite a bit of other than normal human activity, right?
And the hate symbols with regard to the swastikas? I have been told this symbol is used not just against people who are Jewish now like white supremacists which I had forgotten. But I am sure yet more people will surface and blame me for all of this for questioning Farmer Jawn in general, and I will REMIND them, I am not the only one who has asked questions, there have been questionable business things as in several other things seemingly failing correct? And I still think that was a big ass grant to give someone who really hasn’t demonstrated a consistent track record, and saying that has never meant that the ideas aren’t good. It’s a lot of money for someone without a proven track record. Have you ever done anything with or for a non-profit? If so you would know how hard it is to get ANY grants.
And I do have many questions about this whole thing from beginning to end. And the media reports say this happened as well in the spring and did anyone hear anything about that? Wouldn’t you have thought Westtown School would have said something? Did they not report it to the police?
If anyone knows who did this, they absolutely should come forward.
I will finish with the Inquirer article. Whatever is happening, those symbols and whatever the other racist stuff was is really disgusting and horrible. Only time will tell if this latest venture at Westtown will be a success, but were you surprised to essentially hear not much security seems to be over in that part of Westtown’s sprawling acreage? And I am not saying that is the responsibility of Farmer Jawn, Westtown’s tenant, but I am kind of thinking Westtown should have already had a lot of security in today’s world because most schools do, don’t they? I was honestly surprised.
And to the Inquirer, I feel the need to remind them that questioning this place etc., doesn’t mean all of who have are running around with paint and messing up historic barns. And people weren’t upset at the actual farm fields laying fallow in advance or organic conversion, etc., people were upset at the weeds growing all over the FRONT where the store is and THAT is an important distinction as well.
I swear to God people are so dumb. When you see a tree like this down somewhere, you don’t go under it, you turn around and go another way.
This was this morning on Lenape. Yes, I know it’s close to a really busy intersection and people have to get to work but people should be more worried about getting to work alive because some of the trees that are on this road are huge.
We just had a lot of rain, preceded by extended heat and drought. So it’s no surprise some trees are falling.
This was originally posted as a reel and somebody asked who is responsible for the trees on both sides of the road and it’s the property owners whomever they are, but something like this? You can’t necessarily blame a property owner for it falling.
But no, please don’t get me started about people who don’t take the time to be proactive with tree care. 
I hear the road is closed now and probably they’re clearing up the tree. It would be nice if people would PLEASE exhibit some common sense.
And I personally saw this behavior last week when trees were coming down in the winds and rain. And the reason I saw the behavior as I was in locations were trees came down, and as I’m turning around and leaving to go back another way, people were still trying to get through.
I also heard a story last week from a friend of mine who had blocked Kirkland Avenue in West Whiteland with his truck when he called in a downed tree, waiting for I guess, police etc. to arrive, and this kid argued with him that he needed to get by and he’s told the kid you literally can’t get by there’s a tree down completely blocking the road.
Don’t be stupid. If you see a big tree down or you see that the road is flooded, just turn around. A tree like that if it shifted further while a car was going underneath, could crush a driver in a car.
Thank you very much to the person who posted the reel/video that I took stills from.  They were concerned with public safety. 
Yes I reported it to PayPal’s phishing email. I don’t know that they actually do anything about it but I did report it. The funny thing is they sent it to an email not affiliated with PayPal.
And then I reported the emails as spam and blocked the email addresses.
This is a PSA to look carefully at things you receive, especially if you didn’t order guns on the Internet. The way this whole email was phrased and the fact that it used an email address not associated with PayPal was my dead giveaway other then of course the fact that I don’t buy guns on the Internet.
And yes, I have pretty high spam filters, etc. but these happen to get through because they were clever enough that they looked legitimate.
Well OMG everything old is new again in West Vincent Township. It’s literally GROUNDHOG day!
Wait, did you expect me to leave this alone?
Jim Wendelgass, like black mold or ants a picnic, is bacccccckkk! Jim Wendelgass last time around did not have his contract renewed, yet here he is with a temporary one or whatever? Gosh and when he retired at West Pikeland why was that really? (Oh and for fun check out DJ APPEAL 2022-07736-CV on Chester County’s civil dockets. It’s about West Pikeland and a pond. But I digress)
So the now among the dearly departed, Jacqui Guenther sure didn’t last long as West Vincent Township Manager, did she? If they are the least bit normal they are allergic to the Kool Aid and leave. Someone said she is possibly going to Marcus Hook? So if true, she’d rather be in the bowels of Delaware County and dealing with pipelines and big oil vs. West Vincent Township?
I have to ask, will Chickenman rise up from the dead or wherever they have been over this?
This is CRAZY. What’s next a pinch hitter for the upcoming election and perhaps instead of Sara Shick, the voters of West Vincent will be subjected to former Supervisor Roadmaster Farmer in the O’Dell KenOcrat? I mean I have heard tell of meetings between Shick, Wedelgas, and the KenOcrat already so is it very far fetched? And Speaking of Sara Shick, why is she seeming to wear the same outfit again to the stupidvisors meeting? And she is still in a wheelchair? All sarcasm aside, is she OK? And no sarcasm aside perhaps the current solicitor had best watch their six because doesn’t this crew have a preferred solicitor?
So in 2016, they shed Jim Wedelgass. But since snakes grow another skin, I guess it makes sense he’s back?
WEST VINCENT >> Supervisors and a former township employee entered an agreement to help assist the new staff.
The West Vincent Township supervisors last Monday approved an agreement with James “Jim” Wendelgass, the former township manager, to help during a transition period.
Wendelgass was not reappointed by the supervisors during the January reorganization meeting. The supervisors decided to have an interim manager serve from the Local Government Management Services, LLC.
Wendelgass served as the township manager for 11 years.
The contract is an employment separation agreement between Wendelgass and the township with an agreement to help as a consultant.
The agreement is $15,000 for 80 hours. When asked by the public, supervisors’ Chairman John Jacobs said Wendelgass has worked roughly 55 hours so far.
And let us not forget, Wendelgass was the guy that made sure taxpayers paid for a former stupidvisor’s healthcare AFTER the eminent domain debacle caused her to separate from a a certain non-profit, right? And he was there for the failed eminent domain taking right?
I just can’t with this choice. I didn’t think it could get worse than John Granger whom they 86’d , but here we are at Groundhog Day. Here are some vistas from his last ride in West Vincent:
West Vincent loves their cloudy days and when there were SO MANY cloudy days under a former manager why, why, why have they all fallen and hit their heads and think it’s a good idea to let a mangy fox back into the proverbial hen house? Or get another bite at the apple?
Just out of curiosity has anyone ever an analysis in West Vincent of how much did this guy cost that township LAST time?
Whatever, glad I don’t live there. (And so are the elected officials!)
You know how random memories float to the surface? I remember a farmhouse with a barn my aunt and uncle rented when I was quite small in Paoli off of Lancaster Ave, Route 30. My uncle was a corporate America guy from that era and while climbing the corporate ladder they were transferred around for years until settling eventually back in the Philadelphia area, but this was during a period of (if I remember correctly) being in between Cincinnati, Ohio and someplace in Florida.
I remember the house they rented at that time was on it’s own road off of Lancaster Avenue. I do not necessarily remember it being marked and I do not believe it was South Valley Road. I think it was on the right heading west. Mind you this was around 1968 – 1970.
It’s amazing the postcard images that show up on Ebay.
It was a white farmhouse, probably 19th century but I do not know. It was a large house, there was a barn to the side. I remember open space like a field across from the house which was on this road or lane.
The house (white with black shutters) had a big front porch, and inside it had a pretty staircase. There were also back stairs off of the kitchen. I remember a back staircase off of the kitchen and back of house. I spent one weekend there or a few days with my cousins one summer, but not my sister, she was a toddler just walking. We had one Thanksgiving I think it was there. I remember the grown-ups and any high chair kids in the dining room and the kids table was a card table with a white tablecloth. I remember the dinner because that was the first time I ate black eyed peas.
It was a cool house, and I remember at some point after my aunt, uncle, and cousins moved back out of state, the property was torn down for a store or stores. I believe it was gone before the Bicentennial.
It was a pretty big house and I often wondered what happened to it. So if anyone has any memories of a house like that with a barn to the side that is no more, please let me know. Below are two old images of two inns that are no more from the general vicinity, that remind me of my memory of the house. I also don’t know if this house may have had something to do with either the Dingee or Biddle farms which if memory serves were horse farms in the area.
It’s getting hard to keep the Lower Merion Main Line grifters separate in people’s heads – I mean there is Josh Verne formerly of Gladwyne and Joseph LaForte late of Haverford, right? And there they were both were living in the Magic Kingdom of Lower Merion Township for a while, yes?
Anyway, it seems to be UPS. He did it again for Josh Verne. And on the new Nouveau Main Line, maybe they’re finally learning the lesson. If some of these people seem too good to be true, generally speaking, they might be?
Here’s the press release that was forwarded to me today:
Former Gladwyne Entrepreneur Charged with Bilking Investors Out of Millions of Dollars, Forging Documents, and Obstructing Justice
Friday, August 2, 2024
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that an indictment was unsealed against Josh S. Verne, 47, formerly of Gladwyne, PA, now a resident of Fort Lauderdale, FL, charging him with 28 separate federal crimes, including securities fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, witness retaliation, and witness intimidation.
According to the indictment, Verne carried out a series of schemes from at least in or about 2017 to 2020, through which he defrauded dozens of investors, prospective investors, employees, and business partners out of millions of dollars, forged documents, and obstructed justice by threatening, intimidating, and retaliating against others in connection with the federal criminal investigation.
The indictment alleges that Verne held himself out as a wealthy and successful businessman, entrepreneur, and investor, and that he carried out his fraudulent activities through a series of limited liability companies, of which he was the chief executive and over which he maintained control. It is alleged that, among other things, Verne falsely represented his prior business successes, falsely represented his personal net worth, falsely represented his own investments, and falsely represented the financial health of his companies and investments, in order to induce others to invest in or provide loans to him or his companies. For instance, according to the indictment, Verne provided an investor with a forged Goldman Sachs statement that showed family investment holdings for Verne of more than $50 million, when, in fact, Verne did not have an investment account at Goldman Sachs in his own name or in his family’s names, much less an account with a market value of more than $50 million.
It is further alleged that Verne misused business and investor funds to repay prior debts and to finance an affluent lifestyle he could not afford, such as personal expenses related to renovations to his showcase vacation property on the Jersey shore, travel on private jets, contributions to political candidates, personal charitable contributions, and country club payments. According to the indictment, in order to delay and prevent discovery by law enforcement of his own misconduct, Verne later sent bank and FedEx confirmations purporting to confirm delivery of funds to investors to whom he had promised repayment; the bank and FedEx confirmations were false and fraudulent.
The indictment further alleges that Verne stole the identity of a former employee from his company, forging the employee’s signature on a sales agreement to disguise an unauthorized sale of the employee’s shares of stock. According to the indictment, Verne obtained $150,000 from the unauthorized sale and used those funds to make payments to himself and to a prior investor.
Finally, the indictment alleges that, after Verne met with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and learned details about the investigation, Verne obstructed justice by contacting the former employee and threatening to divulge false, embarrassing information about him because the employee provided information to law enforcement.
Verne was arrested today in Fort Lauderdale. He is expected to appear in federal court in Philadelphia next week for an arraignment.
If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 532 years in prison (including a mandatory minimum of two years in prison to run consecutively to any other term of imprisonment), three years of supervised release, a $21,250,000 fine, and a $2,800 special assessment.
If you, your family member, or anyone that you know believes they may have been a victim of these crimes and would like to report the information, please contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation at 215-418-4000 and reference “Josh S. Verne.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul G. Shapiro and Jerome M. Maiatico. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Philadelphia Regional Office investigated civil securities fraud charges against Verne, which are pending.
An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
