Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 157, No. 22
Wednesday, May 31, 2023
$1.50
Kennett Square Memorial Day Parade delights large crowd By Chris Barber Contributing Writer
Photos by Chris Barber
Bill Taylor, who served as chairman of the Kennett Square Memorial Day Parade for 16 years, greets the crowd from his honored seat as Grand Marshal.
INSIDE
Bill Taylor may have retired as the Kennett Square Memorial Day Parade chairman, but he was clearly visible on Monday as a Grand Marshal of the 2023 event. He sat high in a convertible, waved to the crowd, and smiled broadly as he acknowledged the applause he received. His successor, who picked up the baton and guaranteed the continuance
of the parade, is community “cheerleader” Dave Haradon, who said earlier, “We owe Bill a debt of gratitude for all that he did for 16 years.” Traditionally, the parade honors two or three veterans of past wars as grand marshals. This year, the honorees were Taylor and Korean War Army veterans Hugh Hagerty and Paul Donohoe, who likewise rode the route in convertibles and acknowledged the audience. The crowd numbered in
the thousands, and spectators lined the streets of the borough from the parade starting point on south Union Street to its conclusion on State Street. A memorial service followed at Union Hill Cemetery. The spectators arrived as early as an hour ahead of time to set up the folding chairs in good positions for viewing. Those without chairs appeared just as enthusiastic as they stood Continued on page 3A
Classic small-town parade marks West Grove’s memorial ceremony By Chris Barber Contributing Writer Anyone who was looking for a classic, small-town Memorial Day parade could have easily found one in West Grove this past Saturday. Barber Shop owneroperator John Ruffini now leads the effort to plan the event. His late father, Dominico, handled those duties before him, so the
Inaugural pop-up art exhibit debuts in Oxford this weekend…..1B
Ruffinis have been putting the Avon Grove Memorial Day Parade and Ceremony event together every year for the last 23 years. It was a simple ceremony, but one that has become near and dear to the hearts of local residents. It began with a march down Prospect Avenue, moved onto a service and wreath-laying at the Veterans’ Memorial Continued on page 2A
Enjoy the Brandywine Valley Wine Trail at Kennett Summerfest…1B
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Photos by Chris Barber
© 2007 The Chester County Press
West Grove Mayor Stephen Black looks on as John Ruffini, center, and speaker Paul Abrams present a wreath at the stone in the Veterans’ Memorial Plaza.
Upgrades coming for Oxford Senior Center State Sen. Comitta announced state funding to help pay for the project Upgrades are coming for the Oxford Area Senior Center, and more than $14,000 in state funding will make the capital improvements and renovations possible. State Sen. Carolyn Comitta announced that the Oxford Senior Center project will be one of 48 senior community centers statewide receiving a combined $2 million in funds through the Pennsylvania Department of Aging 202223 Senior Community Center grants. “Our senior centers offer a variety of important services to help our older friends, neighbors, and loved ones stay happy, healthy, productive, and empowered in their golden
years,” said Comitta, who serves on the Senate Aging and Youth Committee. “These investments will help them continue to deliver vital programs and resources to the older adult community.” The grants help senior centers support projects, such as updating and modernizing facilities, providing new health and entertainment programs, upgrading technology, and enhancing nutrition services. “Our Senior Community Centers are pillars in our communities and to the older adults they serve,” said Jason Kavulich, the acting secretary of aging. “Whether it’s a meal, Continued on page 2A
A float full of Little Leaguers rides down Prospect Avenue in the parade.
Juneteenth to be commemorated in Kennett Square from June 11-18 By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer Over four days from June 11-18, The Kennett Square Juneteenth Planning Council will sponsor a Juneteenth celebration that will retrace the steps of the pilgrimage to freedom, host a fashion show and introduce the inspirational music of a gospel choir and the beat of a poetry slam – all through a collaboration of agencies and organizations. On June 11, Ken Johnston, a local walking artist and board member of the Kennett Heritage Center, will kick off the schedule of events with “A Pilgrimage to Freedom – Tracing the Steps of Harriett Tubman from Maryland to Canada.” The walk will begin
at the Kennett Friends Meetinghouse at 125 West Sickle Street, starting at 3 p.m. On Friday, June 16, “Fashioning Freedom,” a celebration of African American fashion and its critical relationship to the work of freedom, will be a musical performance by held at Longwood Gardens’ singer Madelyn Brene. Open Air theatre begin- On June 17, the celning at 8 p.m. Sponsored ebration will include by Voice Underground and several separate events, led by Kimberly Jenkins, beginning at 9:30 a.m. with founder of The Fashion and “Abolitionists, Conductors Race Database and Artis and Underground Railroad Solomon Consulting, the Stations,” presented by event will focus on the the Kennett Underground impact of fashion on self- Railroad Center on 120 Union Street. expression, politics, race, North Beginning at 10 a.m., psychology, and anthropolJohnston will lead visiogy, and will also include tors on a walk to introduce a fashion show highlighting the work of several “Kennett’s First Free Black African American curators Community,” that will and designers, as well as Continued on page 2A