Tag Archives: fox29

we did it! church farm boys are going to prom (in style)

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So, if you all remember recently, I wrote a post about Church Farm School. And getting the boys to prom. I also remarked that there are tons of places to help girls get ready and go to prom but not boys.

any fairy godmothers or godfathers out there who can pay it forward for the boys at church farm school so they can go to their very first prom?

So I am thrilled that the community at large came together for these boys from Church Farm School and yesterday I heard from Jenn Frederick from Fox29 that she had some good news. This is after I had heard from friends and churches that they were helping these boys as well.

Then this morning came two teases in the FOX 29 Good Day Philadelphia newscast before the big reveal!

First:

Then came Jenn Frederick’s big reveal and I was reduced to tears of happiness for these boys:

This is amazing! I can’t tell you how happy I am! This is the school that I happen to be in ordinately fond of, and I attend events there once in a while. It’s a beautiful school, and as a matter of fact, their greenhouse program years ago was started by none other that Edith Lockwood, one of the two Lockwood sisters of Loch Aerie in Frazer.

When I first posted this some asked why a “ritzy” private school needed help to go to prom. And then I realized that so many people right here in Chester County. Have no idea about the mission of Church Farm School. That these are boys here being given a chance at a future and college. These are kids on scholarship who worked hard for this opportunity. There is no silver spoon in any of their mouths, what they do is merit based. And these are amazing kids.

This is a Church founded in the light of the Episcopalian church and their principles a century ago.

The Church Farm School was founded by the Reverend Dr. Charles W. Shreiner in 1918. Dr. Shreiner had long envisioned a school where boys could develop their minds and bodies and grow to productive, meaningful adulthood.

Originally home to 15 boys, the school was focused on instilling its students with character according to three clear tenets: the value of religion, the value of hard work and the value of education. Students were given room and board in exchange for their continued efforts to pursue personal, physical and academic growth. And, just as it still does today, the school opened its doors to the families of boys who may not have otherwise been able to financially afford such a valuable opportunity.

Today, Church Farm School is a boarding/day college preparatory school for boys of all backgrounds in grades 9-12. It offers a positive, structured home life, an outstanding private school education, a competitive athletic program and recreational opportunities. In addition, thanks to the generosity and continued support of our donors, alumni and other organizations, Church Farm School offers a liberal scholarship to every student. Over the course of its history, the school has provided generations of young men with the skills necessary to be successful in all aspects of life.

Although the school has necessarily evolved and changed to keep pace with the world around it, what remains unchanged is its steadfast allegiance to its founding principles. All students at Church Farm School are required to attend weekly chapel services and to participate in their choice of numerous diverse community service programs. For more than 100 years, CFS has provided a safe, structured environment, extremely competitive academic and athletic programs and a commitment to individual personal growth for hundreds of young men from across the nation and around the world.

~ History of Church Farm School from their website

And these boys had never gone to prom. Every kid should have the opportunity to go to prom. some kids choose not to, but others want the experience. And because of my fondness for this school when my friend who works there, put it out into the universe that she had this crazy idea of wanting these boys to go to a prom at their sister school, Linden Hall in Lancaster, I decided to write about it and share this message.

There has been an outpouring of support, including from one of my other favorite places, St. David’s Church in Wayne, Who lives their Episcopalian mission every day giving back within the community.

This all makes my heart happy. We live in a world that is very ugly some days, and to find the goodness in humankind once in a while is just so nice. Fox 29 devoted a total of close to 8 1/2 minutes of airtime to Church Farm School today, and they helped get the boys the rest of the way there to go to their prom. But they also focused on the core values of the school and the fabulous colleges that these boys are getting into and getting financial aid and assistance so they can go. This was an incredible gift to the school on the part of Fox 29 and their morning program. [CLICK HERE FOR STORY ON FOX29]

So enjoy the sunshine and if you are interested in helping Church Farm School check out their website.

#BloggingForGood

hey usps and louis dejoy, where’s the mail??

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This was posted by a friend today:

I hate to sound nostalgic (AKA old!), but I fondly remember when the USPS managed to deliver mail REGULARLY. We — and our neighbors — have had no mail delivered since Tuesday, and that batch included only some of the mail that had been scheduled to land on Monday, when our carrier was also a no-show.

Because you can receive a daily email from USPS that shows images of what is scheduled to arrive in your box each day, it has been rather unsettling to see how many items qualify as missing. Well, the mystery has been solved.

This morning, my husband decided to pay a visit to the actual post office, after efforts to contact a human by phone went nowhere. A worker explained that the postal manager for the West Chester region issued an edict recently to deal with the agency’s short staffing: surreptitiously skipping delivery days. She said the office needs 80 carriers to handle the load: It has 40. As a result, she said we should expect to see a delivery every 2 or 3 days.

I guess the idea of notifying customers about the worker shortage wasn’t part of the plan. Would it really have been too difficult to put a notice in people’s boxes on their lucky delivery day? Perhaps some publicity about this problem would help solve it. Sigh. End of rant, but curious about whether this is happening in other areas.

~ Chester County Resident # 1

Now this is the second such tale in less than a week.

I have you on my mailing list but my mailman hasn’t been seen for five days. I was told that he had health problems but there were no replacements. Also, PO closed in town. So I will try for Christmas card instead.

~ Chester County Resident # 2

My second friend lives in the Borough of West Chester. She works from home and is self employed and well…mail is kind of essential.

So Louis De Joy you plastic arsehole, where’s the mail? Santa might want to deliver the Christmas cards himself I guess?

It’s time for Washington to deal with this. We need our mail. This is happening all over. It’s bullshit.

what bishop tube looks like (and more legal stuff filed)

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DSC_8760I went to Malin Road and stood outside the fences of Bishop Tube today.  Totally creepy and deserted.  I was glad to see an unmarked police car do a drive by a couple minutes after I got there, the place gave me the willies.

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I took photos from outside the fencing on the road. What a weird feeling to be out on such a gloriously beautiful day, yet there was the overwhelming creepiness of the Bishop Tube Site, all abandoned and the only way to describe it was the place seems to radiate negative energy.  Don’t see how that feeling will be eradicated by plastic townhouses marching row after row.  The site doesn’t appear to be particularly secure and given what appears to be vandalism, nor does itappear as if it has been for years has it?

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Staring at the site, I couldn’t help but wonder where the PA DEP was on this? I can find on the Internet where they were in the past, but not in the present. Or the EPA, which is so screwed up just read THIS and THIS and THIS.  Here let me share this:

The EPA Should Resign in Shame over Orange River

Let States Step Up to the Plate on the Environment

August 11, 2015 at 9:54 am

The scene was otherworldly. A river tinted orange by a toxic brew of heavy metals, including lead, arsenic, and other pollutants. Three million gallons of wastewater from an abandoned gold mine in rural southwestern Colorado flows slowly downstream. Communities are shutting off drinking water collection. Vacationers are being warned to avoid contact with the contaminated water.

The cause? None other than a mistake by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The Wall Street Journal reported details on the incident Sunday, noting that the spill was initially downplayed by the EPA, and that it was much larger than first reported. Most importantly, as of Sunday, the mine is still releasing wastewater at a rate of about 500 gallons per minute. The pollution incident is ongoing.

This latest toxic release is yet another example of the EPA spectacularly failing at its primary mission. As I’ve expressed in this space before, the government is not particularly competent at environmental remediation and management.

When you read things written by critics of the PA DEP, it is often not much better. Look these government agencies have good intentions but they all seem to get in their own way and in the end are the accomplishing their goals of protecting all of us?

Just check out this article from 2014 about fracking contaminating drinking water :

The Pennsylvania DEP has been criticized for its poor record of providing information on fracking-related contamination to state residents. In April, a Pennsylvania Superior Court case claimed that due to the way DEP operates and its lack of public record, it’s impossible for citizens to know about cases where private wells, groundwater and springs are contaminated by drilling and fracking.

“The DEP must provide citizens with information about the potential harm coming their way,” John Smith, one of the attorneys representing municipalities in the lawsuit, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “If it doesn’t record and make available the violations records then it is denying the public accurate information, which is unconscionable.”

When is the last time the PA DEP or EPA took a good look at sites like Bishop Tube in Pennsylvania?  These aren’t new sexy disasters, they are plodding along existing trouble spots so now that there don’t appear to be lots of  government money floating around for clean up ( a la “Growing Greener“) who cares about these toxic sites like Bishop Tube?

Now the PA DEP mentions Bishop Tube in it’s 2014 report, yes but it isn’t in so much detail is it? I found the annual reports on the DEP website which crashes a lot. So where are State Representative Duane Milne and State Senator Andy Dinniman on Bishop Tube?  Aren’t they supposed to be looking after Chester County residents on this topic as well?

I happened to check the court dockets on the Bishop Tube litigation mention in prior posts when I came home and there are a few more filings on the case of ordinary hard-working people vs, everyone involved around Bishop Tube.  Here are the two most interesting:

Plaintiff Memorandum Response Bishop Tube 2015

Amended Complaint With Jury Demand Bishop Tube 2015 Aug 12

Apparently although The Daily Local did that curtain raiser of an article a couple of weeks ago, no other media seems interested in a toxic superfund site in bucolic Chester County? Or are there media inquiries and other inquiries starting to foment and ferment behind the scenes?

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Here are a couple of gems from all this legal stuff:

From the plaintiffs’ memorandum (2:15-cv-01919 (GJP) filed 8/10/15):

Table of Auth

Page 4: “The Plaintiffs have alleged that, during the Defendants’ respective ownership and operation thereof, they discharged hazardous substances into the environmental which have migrated onto and into the Plaintiffs’ property including the Plaintiffs’ drinking water. It is further alleged that the Defendants have failed to remediate the contamination, the regulatory authorities have failed to require the Defendants to remediate the contamination and additional response work will be necessary.”

Page 6 “It is alleged in the Complaint that, during their respective periods of ownership and operation of the Bishop Tube site, the Defendants used or permitted the use of hazardous substances, including trichloroethylene (“TCE”), during the manufacturing processes for their seamless stainless steel and other products and that, as a result of the Defendants’ ownership and operations at the Bishop Tube site, hazardous substances, including TCE, were disposed into the environment, including the Bishop Tube site’s soils and groundwater. See Complaint,¶¶34-35. It is further alleged that subsurface migration of contaminated groundwater from the Bishop Tube site has and continues to contaminate the aquifer beneath the Bishop Tube site and beneath off-site premises including the Plaintiffs’ home. See Complaint, ¶36.”

Page 7 “Accordingly, in or about 1999, the PADEP took over response actions at the Bishop Tube site, which included periodic sampling of soil, surface water, groundwater, vapor intrusion pathway analysis and maintenance of monitoring wells in the contaminated aquifer as well as the installation of a soil vapor extraction and air sparging system designed to capture and remove contamination from subsurface soils at the Bishop Tube site. See Complaint, ¶¶42-43.

However, none of the Defendants have taken any steps to actively remediate the contamination that originated on the Bishop Tube site, which has and continues to migrate onto the Warren property and neither the EPA nor the PADEP have taken any steps to compel such remedial activity. See Complaint, ¶44. Further response action is necessary to abate the release of the hazardous substances at the Bishop Tube site which have and continue to migrate onto the Warren property. See Complaint, ¶45.”

A Notice of Intent to Sue was served on all Defendants as well as the EPA and PADEPon December 8, 2014, to which no one responded”

Page 11: “III. Plaintiffs’ RCRA Claim Must Not Be Dismissed

Johnson Matthey next argues that the Plaintiffs’ RCRA claim must be dismissed because it does not adequately allege an “imminent and substantial endangerment to health or the environment” and because the State is diligently addressing the contamination.

However, as described in detail above, the Complaint alleges that TCE contamination from the Bishop Tube site has migrated into the Plaintiffs’ well water. TCE is a volatile organic compound “used mainly as a solvent to remove grease from metal parts, but it is also an ingredient in adhesives, paint removers, typewriter correction fluids, and spot removers.

Trichloroethylene is not thought to occur naturally in the environment. However, it has been found in underground water sources and many surface waters as a result of the manufacture,use, and disposal of the chemical.” There is evidence that TCE affects the developmental and nervous systems in humans and is also carcinogenic. Specifically, there is evidence that TCE can cause kidney cancer and limited evidence for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and liver cancer as well as various tumors in animals. See United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Toxic Substances Portal for TCE, http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/substances/toxsubstance.asp?toxid=30 (last visited August 7,2015).

Accordingly, it is respectfully submitted that it is disingenuous for Johnson Matthey to claim that Plaintiffs have not adequately alleged sufficient imminent and substantial endangerment to health or the environment to sustain a RCRA claim.”

Page 13: “Conclusion

Simply stated, in support of their federal CERCLA and RCRA claims, the Plaintiffs have alleged that: (1) the Defendants, including Johnson Matthey, discharged hazardous substances, including TCE, into the environment at the Bishop Tube site which have migrated onto the Plaintiffs’ property and, specifically, into their drinking water; (2) that the Defendants have failed to remediate the contamination; (3) that the regulatory authorities have failed to require the Case 2:15-cv-01919-GJP Document 6 Filed 08/10/15 Page 12 of 13 10 Defendants to remediate the contamination; and (4) that additional response work will be necessary. Indeed, TCE is a carcinogenic. Based on the foregoing, it is respectfully submitted that the Plaintiffs have alleged sufficient facts, which must be presumed true for purposes of this Motion, to withstand a Motion to Dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the FRCP”

From First Amended Complaint With Jury Demand:

Page 5: 37: “During their respective periods of ownership and operation of the Bishop Tubesite, the Defendants used or permitted the use of hazardous substances, including trichloroethylene (”TCE”), during the manufacturing processes for their seamless stainless steel and other products.”

 TCE

const dr ptnerbish tuNegligence Bishop Tube80 81Ok above are just snippets of the legal documents, quotes, excerpts. You can read for yourself the entire thing as they are uploaded in this post:

Amended Complaint With Jury Demand Bishop Tube 2015 Aug 12

Plaintiff Memorandum Response Bishop Tube 2015

I did not create any of this it is all on the court record.

I am a cancer survivor. I would not wish that on anyone. I have also known people who have seen their children through cancer and trust me, it is too gut wrenching for words. In my opinion based on the research available to publicly peruse, this is site is toxic is it not? And then there is General Warren Village.  Those residents deserve peace of mind don’t they?  They have always been directly affected by Bishop Tube haven’t they?

I am a realist. This might be a creepy site but it is this chunk of land that developers are salivating over (don’t know if they are glowing in the dark from walking around it, however.) This site will be made into something although really it should be cleaned up and left alone since it is also my opinion that this site will take years to properly remediate, and can’t you agree that is reasonable?

But the thing is this: a plan like that not only affects people who want their piece of the American Dream and want to live in gorgeous Chester County who might purchase these cram plan slab on grade no basement wonders if they are built, but potentially every east Whiteland resident in the future, correct?

How can East Whiteland say for certain they would not ever become a party over litigation surrounding this site?  They can’t, can they?  And they have an obligation to current and future residents to see beyond the shiny promises of developers oh so familiar to them, see beyond and some new ratables  down the road, and must put their heads down and see that this site is properly remediated and even get alternate land uses investigated, right? The bottom line is the owner of the land knows how to remediate this properly, they have the experience, correct?

Approving a development plan here while this litigation is ongoing and remediation isn’t complete can be considered a case of putting the cart before the horse, yes? And why is it all we hear is about the developer planning on “capping vapors” with the concrete slabs for the townhouses, yet the current litigation mentions aquifer again and again which is ground water, drinking water, and so on, right? A little different from vapors, right?

East Whiteland has a lot of development balls in the air and should we worry about how the land planning with all the developer driven zoning overlays are getting done?

East Whiteland, you have to do this right. Lives depend upon it. Please.

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being christian at christmas

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How some people define the spirit of the Christmas season in West Vincent baffles me.

Please see below as another one of those nasty and pathetic missives is making the rounds. I was told this was found on a Ludwig’s Village community bulletin board.

West Vincent is such a beautiful place, but it’s like it has a rotten core, doesn’t it? This is unfortunately still a place with a handful of pious hypocrites who claim to “love thy neighbor” yet do things like this and isn’t that terrible? These people give the really nice people who live in this Chester County community a bad name and I think that is truly awful don’t you?

Being a Christian isn’t faux piety, it’s actually living what you preach. A lot of these people preach a good game, but are some of them really good neighbors? My opinion is the answer is a resounding no. Normal, emotionally healthy people do not do things like this to other people.

One day those of you who do things like this to your neighbors will find yourselves in a time of trouble. Will people lift a hand to help you? Or will they say “we’ve had enough of those bullies” and turn their backs?

People who do things like this during the most holy season of the year are held in the highest contempt by me.

Also it may appear contradictory, but I do actually pity these people for their meanness. They are missing out on so much in life by hating.

This man who is being victimized has run good and honest businesses for years. He and his wife are the kind of people that would give you the shirt off their back no matter what you had done to them. They are truly good people. I am proud to call them friends. We have used him professionally in addition.

If I were in this gentleman’s shoes, I would take all these missives to law enforcement. And a TV station or two.

I don’t know why it is that some people are not content unless they make other people unhappy. They should be ashamed of themselves. The sad thing is, I know they are not. However I believe karma is a very, very real thing. Everything that goes around eventually comes back around.

To the rest of you I say it is Christmas, so if you see one of these missives floating around West Vincent pull it down and give it to the police and tell them where exactly you found it and what day and what time.

It is time for this to stop.

If you know the people who are doing these things, it’s time to stand up and tell them to stop. Or call them out publicly. (Cowards like this hate having a light shined on them even if they secretly crave the attention.)

Christmas is but a few days away. Let’s get back to the real reason for the season, shall we?

Thanks for stopping by today.

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sam vs. the school board

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samWell this puts a new spin on “Sam I am .”

I was on Facebook this morning and caught something that the editor of Delco Times, Phil Heron, had put up.  Phil is one of my favorite editors of local/regional papers.  He is no-nonsense, calls it like it is.  His editorial corner is a play on words and is called the “Heron’s Nest” (if you don’t read it, you should – he covers lots of things not just what is going on in Delaware County.)

So this morning’s offering is titled A Sun Valley drama starring Sam Schmucker.  It is about this boy Sam from Sun Valley High School over in Delaware County who in essence stuck up for his girlfriend being bullied by the adult director of the school play that they were both in. This director made this girl cry and Sam went to her defense.  The problem is Sam also grabbed the guy’s collar.

Ok so Sam got booted from the play.  You would have thought that was the end of it.  But no, now his school district and school board ( Penn-Delco School Board) are thinking of expelling him.  The irony is this kid Sam is a really good student, vice president of his senior class, and is such a nice kid he gets awards to that effect.

Ok wow.  Talk about a heavy hand, right?

This is the crap about educators and school boards I don’t get.  Was Sam right? His heart was in the right place and instincts as far as protecting someone who was hurt, but the actions, NO.  Not right for many reasons.

However the flip side of this is bullies in schools aren’t just the kids so it makes you wonder doesn’t it about this adult the director doesn’t it?  Reducing students to tears and causing extremes in negative emotion/action?  Of course when educators and school boards wonder why some kids end up anti-establishment maybe they need to look in the mirror, huh?

So I decided to blog this.  I don’t know Sam, will never meet Sam, yet I think Sam is getting the short end of the stick here.

Sam was wrong laying hands on anyone.  That accomplishes nothing.  But it is entirely understandable human nature to go to another human being in crisis.   And as Phil Heron says in his editorial :

“Sam Schmucker is a Life Scout and was scheduled to receive the American Citizenship Award for the second straight year before this tempest in a teapot exploded.”

Translation: this is a good kid that half the parents in the world wished their kid could be like who made a mistake.  And in my mind he was standing up to bullying.

One of my largest problems with educators and school districts today seems to go across the board from district to district. It happens in private schools, Catholic schools, charter schools. They talk a good game about bullying but don’t actually do much about it.  And don’t tell me it doesn’t happen, have seen it with my own eyes.

Bullying is not always just from the kid on kid angle.  I have seen plenty of adults in positions of power who were the biggest bullies of all.  Please, if we are honest with ourselves we experienced it.  Some experienced worse.

How about the pretty girls who are preyed upon by lecherous male teachers?  We’re not talking the girls pretending to be Lolita and experimenting with their own sexuality with deliberate behavior that got them into a pickle (not that it was right for adult males to think playing with underage girls is ok), we’re talking about girls who were true innocents.  Think it doesn’t happen? It happens.  It didn’t happen to me thank God, but can’t say the same for everyone I know.

Can we talk about the Squash Coach from my alma mater who was sentenced in May for his inappropriate relationship with a minor girl? Or the swim coach from the WCASD High School Bayard Rustin who was recently sentenced for his inappropriate relationship with a minor girl? (And I took some heat  for expressing my disgust on that topic when the news first broke too).

My point is this: I never quite believe when schools say they don’t know this stuff is going on and wonder how much is a surprise and how much they just didn’t check out when they could have. For example in this case with this drama teacher, were there ever complaints or whispers of issues with him being too heavy-handed with kids?   Did he have a pattern of only looking to himself and not to the best interest of the children he was responsible for?  Were plays for his own glory or for the students?

Maybe you think I should not have taken this brief detour or think I am co-mingling too much, but my other point is the kids aren’t always at fault are they?  What of extenuating circumstances? What if these girls who were preyed upon by male teachers had been booted out of their schools for not saying “no” for example?  How would that make people feel?

Sam the senior in high school is not too young to learn the lesson of consequences from laying hands on another person like that. He got tossed out of the play and served a 16 day suspension.  Enough already.  This school board wants to make an example out of him and prove what big adults they are.  Enough already.  Seems to me that their overreaction might be covering up other issues? Issues that have nothing to do with this kid Sam?

Why should this school board have the power to ruin this kid’s life?  This is a college track kid with a bright future ahead of him who screwed up.  Does he deserve to pay with his entire future?

I don’t think so.  I don’t think what he did was right although I think his heart was in the right place.  But this is not some hardened juvenile delinquent.  This is a good kid who did a dumb thing.  Good lord I think actual juvenile delinquents and school bullies get more chances than this Sam is getting.

#FreeSam and Save his future.

And as an aside, I thought the name of the school board’s lawyer rang a bell so I Googled Barry Van Rensler, after all how many lawyers who represent school districts with that name can exist?  This is what I came up with:

State team moves in to study solicitors’ bills The rapid state action focuses largely on the Upper Darby school district and one lawyer.

By Barbara Boyer INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

Posted: May 01, 2003

Investigators, at the direction of Auditor General Robert P. Casey Jr., arrived in Upper Darby yesterday to begin scrutiny of lawyers’ bills in six Delaware County school districts.

The special investigation, ordered by Casey on Tuesday, is noteworthy for the rapidity with which the investigative team was mobilized. Under the direction of former federal prosecutor Peter J. Smith, investigators will determine whether there is any basis for criminal charges…….Casey ordered the special investigation after articles in The Inquirer this week reported that the Upper Darby School District paid solicitor Barry Van Rensler for working more than 24 hours a day on six occasions since 1997.

Taxpayers footed the bill because school officials never noticed

The Laughing Lawyer: Lawyer clocks 81-hour day. State to decide whether to throw lawyer or clock away.  (Slight parody you can click and read for yourself)

So it seems to me that Solicitor  Van Rensler got a bunch of second chances because he is still representing school districts isn’t he?  So why can’t he suggest his clients be more magnanimous with a kid?

Here’s the media coverage on Sam.  What do you think?

Heron’s Nest:  Friday, March 15, 2013   A Sun Valley drama starring Sam Schmucker

It’s not every day you meet a kid who gets in a tiff with an adult and admits he was wrong.

Well, meet Sam Schmucker.

Sam is vice president of the senior class at Sun Valley High School. At least for another week.

Right now he’s serving a suspension. And the Penn-Delco School Board is considering expelling him. You can read all the details here.….

Penn-Delco vs. Sam Schmucker: The sun might come out tomorrow for student facing expulsion (With Video)

Published: Friday, March 15, 2013 By LAURA WISELEY Times Correspondent

ASTON — A Sun Valley High School senior will continue to serve out a suspension for his role in an altercation with a school employee while the Penn-Delco School Board deliberates whether he should be permanently expelled from the school.

About 75 people came out to support Sam Schmucker, 17, during a two-hour expulsion hearing Thursday at the district services center, after which the school board voted 4-3 against allowing Schmucker to return to school while they deliberate his possible expulsion.

 • Video: Sam Schmucker talks about incident.

…. In his testimony Thursday, Schmucker said he was talking with another student when the play’s lead female role, who is also Schmucker’s girlfriend, ran past him and into the school’s basement, saying she “couldn’t deal with it anymore.”

What she couldn’t deal with, Schmucker testified, were comments from play director John Baxter. Schmucker said Baxter came looking for the female student, and as he passed Schmucker, the student grabbed Baxter by the shirt and yelled at him….Schmucker said he could not recall details of the conversation or whether he had pushed Baxter against the wall, but said he did try to apologize to the director about 10 minutes later…..Barry Van Rensler, the attorney representing the district…“If this was a C student who never got in trouble, but never did any activities, are we saying we wouldn’t throw him out?” he asked the board. “Because this student has an A average and a wonderful family and lots of friends and can pay an attorney, he should be different?

Fox News (Fox 29 Philadelphia) High School Senior Faces Expulsion After Confrontation With School Play Director

intolerable cruelty

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dogsWhen I saw a post on a friend’s Facebook wall this evening from one of their friends, I had to read it half a dozen times to make sure I wasn’t reading incorrectly. When I read what I read I started to cry, and also thought I would throw up. It was Just. That. Awful.

Here:

intolerable cruelty

I have to ask why these things happen in West Vincent Township? I am told this occurred in West Vincent Township within the last week?  This is crazy and it is sick and this guy shooting up dogs should not be able to hide behind antiquated farming statutes.

Do we really believe this guy with the gun doesn’t know his neighbors’ dogs?  Do we believe that he really gave these dogs a chance? Can it be said if he had, they would be with their humans?

map of area

I am generally speaking a big supporter of farmers, and I get how farmers do not want livestock worried in a field. The thing is this: if you are a farmer or are dog saavy you know when a dog is herding, playing, or attacking.

Oh and here is a voicemail left for a neighbor (who turned this over to grieving family and police apparently) by the dog shooter:

I just don’t believe this farmer guy did not have any options other than to gun down two dogs who could still be considered puppies. The family knows nothing can bring back these beloved pets.  But they do feel there should be some accountability – the wife said to me in a note:

[We] know that nothing will bring our pups back, but if we could save another family from having to go through this, we would do anything. This man will do this again, I know this in my heart.  He is using this law as justification and is showing absolutely no remorse

These people have little kids.  How the heck do you tell little kids their neighbor shot their beloved dogs? And yes I get there are laws designed to protect farmers, but most of the farmers I know wouldn’t just shoot puppies.  They might round up the dogs and turn them over to animal control for return to their families but they wouldn’t just gun down a neighbor’s pets.

My heart bleeds for these people.  I think West Vincent resdients should bring this up in person at the next township meeting. I think the media should investigate. I think the Chester County SPCA and Humane Society should investigate.

2.20.2013 UPDATE:

I am told by sources that the Chester County SPCA is going out to investigate today?  Here is hoping they check things out thoroughly.  Sources tell me this guy really isn’t much of a farmer that the sheep mostly keep his lawn cut?  Also if this guy is in a R2 (think that is the residential zone) in West Vincent, does he legally have enough acres to keep farm animals/livestock which is what sheep are?  If his acreage with the amassed lots he owns is under 10 acres how does that work?  I mean out there you must have a minimum of 2 acres to keep one horse for personal use, right? But farm animals are different and how many years has this guy had sheep?  I ask because is it not true if he does NOT have the correct acreage he could be in violation of current zoning and prior to the 2010 revisions as well? Are all his grazing or “pasture” areas fenced in? Is he connected over there or something?  Also, if this guy is in a residential zone, is he compliant with PA gaming laws in a residential area with regard to the safety zone for discharging rifles and shot guns?

I had more farmers contact me today.  Some who were very amusing to me because they scoffed at the idea of this guy really being a farmer. (I don’t know so I leave it up to the experts as it were.)  Including one who said he had to shoot a feral dog years ago because it mauled and killed two of his sheep – he said he hated to do it, but in that case the dog was wild and was caught in the act.  This farmer said to me if he had seen these dog he would have maybe fired a warning shot, but most likely he would have plunked them in a stall in his barn and called the police to return the dogs to the owners with a warning.

I found a reference to PA law below – not a lawyer, not sure if it applies, but read it:

Safety zones – 34 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 2505

§ 2505.  Safety zones.
(a)  General rule.–Except as otherwise provided in this
title or to any political subdivision, its employees or agents,
which has a valid deer control permit issued under section
2902(c) (relating to general categories of permits), it is
unlawful for any person, other than the lawful occupant, while
hunting game or wildlife, taking furbearers of any kind, or
pursuing any other privilege granted by this title, to hunt for,
take, trap, pursue, disturb or otherwise chase any game or
wildlife or to discharge, for any reason, any firearm, arrow or
other deadly weapon within or through a safety zone, or to shoot
at any game or wildlife while it is within the safety zone
without the specific advance permission of the lawful occupant
thereof.
(b)  Penalty.–A violation of this section is a summary
offense punishable by a fine of not less than $200 nor more than
$500. A second or subsequent offense within two calendar years
is a summary offense punishable by a fine of not less than $500
nor more than $1,000.
(c)  Definition.–As used in this section, the term “safety
zone” means:
(1)  Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2), the
area within 150 yards around and that area which is below the
highest point of any occupied dwelling house, residence, or
other building or camp occupied by human beings, or any barn,
stable, or other building used in connection therewith or any
attached or detached playground of any school, nursery school
or day-care center.
(2)  When applied to properly licensed persons hunting
with bow and arrow or crossbow, the area within 50 yards
around and that area which is below the highest point of any
occupied dwelling house, residence or other building or camp
occupied by human beings or any barn, stable or other
building used in connection therewith and the area within 150
yards around and that area which is below the highest point
of any attached or detached playground of any school, nursery
school or day-care center.
(Nov. 25, 1988, P.L.1082, No.125, eff. imd.; Mar. 29, 1996,
P.L.41, No.13, eff. imd.; Dec. 19, 1996, P.L.1442, No.184, eff.
60 days; June 28, 2002, P.L.474, No.79, eff. 60 days; June 23,
2004, P.L.435, No.43, eff. July 1, 2004)

Cross References.  Section 2505 is referred to in section
2741 of this title.

West Vincent Zoning: See Satndards for Raising Animals Codified-Draft%20ZO-TOC-4-12-12 (Also see other pages like page 83 of the West Vincent Zoning Code

Excerpt from Gaming LawsWV Zoning 1

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So this Bing image shows how residential this is, right?  Maybe Chester CountyDA needs to look at discharge of weapons in R2 zone ? Do you all not see
numerous dwellings that *possibly* could be well within the 450 ft gun safety zone?  I am told the area where he keeps the sheep is fenced, but in poor repair, with a section patched with plastic garden fence? If dogs as big as sheep can get in, sheep can get out, right?  Again, is he possibly in potential violation of zoning and gun laws?  Pine Drive is the first development approved in WVT in the late 60’s or early 70’s, correct?Isn’t it the only development ever approved with 1 ACRE LOTS?  So what about that safety zone in the entire residential development and discharging a weapon? Guns are a hot nationwide topic are they not?  Even in PA?

FIVE people have sent me photos. Here are the ones pertinent to this discussion:

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apparently it is “fugly” out there with horse rescue?

Posted on by

Someone sent me the link to a site called “FuglyBlog” and more specifically a link:

http://fuglyblog.com/2010/09/26/another-chance-to-avoid-actually-working/

But there is something fugly and funky going on about this website because for a fewdragrope from fugly blog minutes it came up and then it went down.

So the reason I was sent this post  was so I could see the apparent systemic problems with horse rescue within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Can we say it isn’t just Jessica Basciano, Barbara Luna, Turning for Home and Off the Track Thoroughbred Rescue that people need to have their eyes open with?

This manure pile that is horse rescue seems to have a lot of whinnying going on, yet the more I read about it, the more I wonder why PA’s Attorney General isn’t looking at inconsistencies and oddities in all of this from the end of those who are registered in PA as charities to criminal investigations having to do with animal rescues?  From how the horses leave the track and where they go to how the horse rescues run and if they meet to burden for animal protection and welfare let alone how these businesses and non-profits run doesn’t it just seem the questions are layered with questions?noassfqhamare from the fugly blog

And let me be clear, I am not just speaking about the two rescues blogged about up here before, but the entire business of horse rescue in Pennsylvania.  I heard a tale yesterday of a situation going on at another Chester County barn that seems just nutty.  I don’t own horses, never have, never will.  But am I wrong in saying that it seems the only consistency about horse rescue in Pennsylvania are the many inconsistencies? Is it just me who seems to feel that if there are hard and fast rules, there seems to be a lot of gray area for interpretation?

And lets talk about the group that is supposed to be helping being the eyes and ears of right, ok? LAPS or Large Animal Protection Society? I have been told repeatedly by those in animal rescue in general that these folks have badges or something?  That they can go in and do surprise inspections and if need be, remove animals? But is their judgement clouded because of personal relationships their ranks may or may not have with persons in the groups they are supposed to keep an eye on? (And before someone in LAPs gets in a lather, sorry but it is not beyond the realm of reasonable to ask questions is it?)  And what of all the people worried about horses in Chester County who have a hard time with LAPs personnel? Are they all bad people out to bad mouth LAPs or are they merely good people who keep going back to the well that is LAPs hoping they will actually do their job?

LAPs has on their own website:

LAPS Can Assist Other Humane Agencies

In addition to investigating reports of cruelty to large animals, prosecution offenders, and rehabilitating and placing animals in new homes, LAPS is always ready and willing to provide information and support to other agencies both within and out-of-state.  We have provided people in other counties with the means and knowledge to encourage their local law enforcement officials to step in when the local humane societies do not, and have many times supported the State Police in their investigations in areas where the humane agencies do not provide service.

Also, we are glad to help anyone wishing to organize a humane society in an area not currently serviced by one.   We have “been there, done that” and are more than willing to share the information you will need to get started.  Our knowledge of the way the system works has been hard-won over the years since 1988 we have been in existence.  If you need help, just call!

Pennsylvania’s law governing animal cruelty, Statute 5511.

Pennsylvania’s law governing disposal of dead animals

Pennsylvania’s law governing the marketing of animals.

So LAPs if all this kerfuffle and conundrum concerning horse rescue has you down, can’t you all turn to other rescue groups for assistance?  Like the Humane Society and the ASPCA?

Anyway, back to what prompted this post – this Fugly Blog.  I pulled the cache on this one post (it is a couple of years old).  I turned the cache into a PDF that I found a fascinating and illuminating read.  (see upload of Fugly Blog cache ) It is about yet another horse rescue, Another Chance 4 Horses.

I will note that I went to www.GuideStar.org and pulled the most recent 990s I could find on Turning for Home, LAPs, and Another Chance for Horses.  I am posting them as they are public record and they are registered non-profits.  There are no 990s to be posted on Off The Track Thoroughbred Rescue because has anyone ever been able to actually find a business registered, a non-profit registered, or is it just a fictitious name registration?  Maybe that is why the judgement I found based on that recent court date is lodged against Ms. B? (See the links below, you can check the documents out yourself.)

Every time I say I am done with this cautionary tale the more that crops up.  Water seeks its own level, mold spreads, choose your analogy I have but one final question and that is when did it stop being about what is right for the horses?

Links:

Fugly Blog cache

judgement entered

turning for home PA 2011 990

LAPS PA 990 2011

Another Chance for Horse 2010 990

CBS Baltimore: Animal Rights Groups Angry After Sick Horses Found On Frederick Co. Farm (“A Pennsylvania man faces animal cruelty charges for the death of one of his horses in Frederick County.”

I think a non-profit rescue called the “Foxie G Foundation”  took in some of these poor beasts and apparently same person as involved in that case last year in Adam’s County  a guy named James Houseman. It is like hop scotch with horses. )

ABC27.com: 24 sickly horses seized from Dauphin Co. farm Posted:
Jan 14, 2013 3:47 PM ESTMonday, January 14, 2013 3:47 PM ESTUpdated: Jan 14, 2013 4:39 PM ESTonday, January 14, 2013 4:39 PM EST

By Sari Heidenreich – email (PALMYRA, Pa. (WHTM) -Twenty four horses, including four who are pregnant, were seized from a Dauphin County farm by the Humane Society of Harrisburg last week….Earlier this month, Kaunas said this is the first type of horse hoarding case she has seen.)

And from the LAPs website, “A Horse’s Prayer”:

Feed me, water and care for me,

and when the day’s work is done,

provide me with a shelter,

a clean dry stall large enough

for me to lie down in comfort.

Talk to me, your voice often means

as much to me as the reins.

Pet me sometime that I may serve you

more gladly and learn to love you.

Shoe me properly that I may serve you in comfort.

Never strike, beat, or kick me when I don’t understand what

you want, but give me a chance to understand you.

And finally oh master,

when my youthful strength is gone,

do not turn me out to starve or freeze,

or sell me to some cruel owner

to be slowly tortured or stoned to death,

but do thou, my master,

take my life in the kindest way, and

your God will reward you here and hereafter.

You will not consider me irreverent if I ask this

in the name of Him who was born in a stable…

Amen