Landenberg Today Spring/Summer 2016

Spring/Summer 2016

Landenberg Today

Magazine

A look around Landenberg's stables

Inside • Acrodance students step into the spotlight • Q & A with Joseph Birmingham • How two deadbeats helped name Franklin Township Complimentary Copy

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Landenberg Today Spring/Summer 2016

Table of Contents 8

8 22

Acrodance students step into the spotlight

The delicate beauty of flowers inspires a Landenberg artist

22

38

56

32

Q & A with Joseph Birmingham

38

The bridges of communication

56

The old barn: From dilapidation to restoration

62

Benjamin Franklin’s connection to Franklin Township

86 86

90

Landenberg couple, married 34 years, recalls their first date at “Star Wars”

One family’s efforts start a community tradition and improve our environment

90 Cover design by Tricia Hoadley Cover photograph by Carla Lucas - Old Brick Barn Stables 6

Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

Spring/Summer 2016

Landenberg Today

Magazine

What was Benjamin Franklin’s connection to Landenberg?

Letter from the Editor: Welcome to the Spring 2016 issue of Landenberg Today.

Franklin Township was named after Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States, but do you know why? In this issue, we explore the answer thanks to the research and a presentation by Paul Lagassé and Nan Latimer, members of the Franklin Township Historical Commission, who helped lead an effort to learn Benjamin Franklin’s real relationship to the Chester County township that shares his name.

Also in this issue, we meet some of the interesting people who make Landenberg such a special place to live and work. We profile Landenberg artist Mindy Hadley Dole and explore how she is inspired by the surroundings in Landenberg. We also meet Philip and Ann Wengloski, who fondly remember their first date nearly four decades ago.

We talk to Abigail Sites about how, in six short years, the Abundance Academy of Dance family has grown to include approximately 150 dancers who study every style of dance from tap to hip-hop to jazz.

We also explore how April Schmitt and her family’s efforts to clean up the White Clay Creek Preserve started what has now become a community tradition.

Writer Lisa Fieldman explores the subject of learning how to adapt to deer in the environment.

This issue also features the Theraplay, Inc.’s Landenberg Center, which works with interpreters to meet the needs of the Spanish-speaking community.

The subject of the Q & A is Joseph Birmingham, who has created the “Landenberg – You Can’t Get There From Here” Facebook page.

Landenberg is known as a haven for equestrians, and Carla Lucas’s photo essay focuses on some of the many stables in the area.

As always, we hope that you enjoy reading the stories in Landenberg Today.

We’re already busy preparing for the next issue, which will arrive in the fall of 2016.

Sincerely, Randy Lieberman, Publisher randyl@chestercounty.com, 610-869-5553 Steve Hoffman, Editor editor@chestercounty.com, 610-869-5553, ext. 13

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—————|Around Landenberg|—————

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

Dance instructor Abigail Sites at her studio, Abundance Academy of Dance, with students Tullia Pizzini, Brooke Daddis, Avery O’ Haire, Nicole Gill, Jessica Trent, and Kate Ei.

By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer

W

hen Abigail Sites was looking for a location to open her own dance studio in 2010, she initially looked to Delaware. She was, after all, a graduate of the University of Delaware, and had worked as an elementary school counselor in Newark. She had also served as an instructor at a Youth Exercise Program at the YMCA, taught motor development classes at The Little Gym, and directed the City of Newark’s Dance Program for several years. With so many activities based in the First State, it made sense for Sites to choose a location in Delaware for the dance studio. But then she looked at a location in the Shoppes at London Britain in Landenberg and knew that she had found the perfect spot for her business.

“I fell in love with the whole setting,” Sites explained in an interview Continued on Page 10

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Photos courtesy Michael Greenley Photography www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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Acrodance Continued from Page 8

at the dance academy. “The beautiful rolling hills, the farms, and all the friendly faces. Landenberg has been such a positive part of this business.”

In six short years, the Abundance Academy of Dance family has grown to include approximately 150 dancers who study every style of dance from tap to hiphop to jazz, and gain the poise, strength, flexibility, balance, body awareness, and self-confidence that comes with a disciplined dance program.

“In addition to weekly classes, we have Master Workshops, summer camps, and intensives,” Sites explained. “Abundance Academy of Dance is very family-oriented, and we have events such as our annual father-daughter dance, family game night, and a big recital each June. I have had so much support from the parents.”

Continued on Page 12

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Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

“Our acrodance program is strong and it’s something that not every studio has,” Abigail Sites explained.

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Acrodance Continued from Page 10

One of the classes at Abundance that is particularly popular is the acrodance class. In 2015, Sites was certified to teach all levels of acrobatic arts, from primary to pre-professional. “Our acrodance program is strong and it’s something that not every studio has,� Sites explained, noting that hers is just one of nine dance academies in the state to have this certification.

Acrodance blends the artistry of dance with some of the acrobatic skills of gymnastics. Sites said that the growing number of people participating in acrodance can be attributed to the enormous popularity of Cirque du Soleil, the

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

In six short years, the Abundance Academy of Dance family has grown to include approximately 150 dancers who study every style of dance from tap to hip-hop to jazz. Approximately 30 students are in the acrodance program.

Continued on Page 14

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Acrodance Continued from Page 12

prevalence of dance shows on television, and the increase in the number of youngsters who have some acrobatic skills from participating in other sports.

Acrodance incorporates everything from power-tumbling to aerial skills to contortionism, and the skills that the participants develop are useful in all other styles of dance. The athleticism necessary for acrodance is extraordinary, and Sites said that it appeals to dancers who are looking for a little bit of a challenge.

“It is demanding,” Sites said. “It requires a ton of body awareness, flexibility, and strength. Back flexibility is super-important. I really like teaching acrodance because it allows the dancers to be creative, and they can show off their skills.”

There are about 30 students in the acrodance classes.

The dancers start each class with a variety of stretches and activities to get their bodies warmed up.

“We always give them a really good warm-up because injury-prevention is very important,” Sites explained.

Before long, the girls are contorting their bodies in ways that seem impossible to the average person. They Continued on Page 16

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

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Acrodance Continued from Page 14

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do back-bend races and hand-stands against the wall where they compete against each other to see who can stay in the position longest. The dancers often work in tandem to help each other improve their skills.

Sites said that the students in the acrodance classes demonstrate their proficiency and move up one level at a time. The highest level that the students can attain is a pre-professional 3 level.

Tullia Pizzini, 11, of Landenberg, previously trained in gymnastics until she transitioned to acrodance two years ago. She has demonstrated tremendous natural ability since then, according to Sites.

“Gymnastics and dance are two of my favorite things,” Pizzini explained. “It’s challenging, but fun.”

One of the young dancers who studied under Sites in Delaware before joining the Abundance Academy of Dance is Nicole Gill. The fourteen-year-old is a student at the Odyssey Charter School, and she has been taking dance classes since she was three.

Continued on Page 18

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Sites works with the students to help develop their skills and make sure that they are training safely.

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Acrodance Continued from Page 16

Gill currently takes six dance classes a week at Abundance, including acrodance, which helps her face the challenges of living with Cystic Fibrosis.

Sites said that Gill never ceases to amaze her with her determination to overcome Cystic Fibrosis, and she never lets the disease slow her down.

“I always say that I want to be like her when I grow up,” Sites said.

Many of the acrodance participants say that what they like best about the classes is the other people that they train with.

“I like the positive atmosphere here—we’re all friends,” said Jessica Trent, a 15-year-old Newark Charter School student who started taking dance classes when she was five years old. She also participated in competitive gymnastics, but prefers the creative freedom that acrodance offers.

The students enjoy the acrodance classes so much that it’s rare for any of them to miss a class.

Photos courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

Continued on Page 20

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Acrodance Continued from Page 18

Last year, Avery O’ Haire suffered an injury on the ski slopes when she fell and another skier ran into her.

“I broke my tibia and I had to have surgery,” she explained.

Sites said that the injury didn’t keep O’ Haire from coming to each practice to encourage the others while she recovered.

“Even if I’m not dancing, I still like to watch my friends dance,” the twelve-year-old said.

O’ Haire, 12, has been a dancer for the last six years. She said that she likes acrodance because of the acrobatic elements.

“I’ve always liked to flip around on a trampoline,” O’ Haire explained.

Brooke Daddis, 12, a student at Fred S. Engel Middle School, has been dancing since the age of four. She came to Abundance two years ago when her best friend, O’Haire, told her about the class.

“I wanted to try something new and Avery introduced me to acrodance,” Daddis explained. “The dance teachers are great, and it’s a good community of people.”

Kate Ei, 14, of Landenberg, echoed Daddis’ comments.

“I like it a lot,” she said. “The people are really nice.”

Ei has been training at Abundance for the last five years. She previously trained in gymnastics, and the floor exercise was her best event. She said

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Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

Fun is a part of every acrodance class.

that her skills as a gymnast are very similar to the skills that are used in acrodance. Ei is very good at front hand-springs, and is working on aerials.

“I say that it’s dance with gymnastics,” Ei said. “Each style of dance is challenging in its own unique way.”

She’s also a volunteer assistant teacher for young dancers. “It’s so much fun watching them. They are so adorable. It’s great to see them enjoy dance so much.”

The acrodance pupils work on their skills all year long. When the Abundance Academy of Dance holds its annual recital, the acrodance students are included fully in the show.

“My acrodancers have an actual dance routine to do in the show,” Sites explained. “The routine is set to music.”

The theme of Abundance Academy of Dance’s 2016 recital is “Royals.”

The recital will take place at 6 p.m. On June 18 at Lincoln University. It is the sixth annual show. Sites said that they also recently launched a highenergy class called acro groove for preschoolers that combines hip and acrodance. They will also be holding an Olympic-themed day camp this summer where participants will dance, learn acrodance, and play games that are centered around the Olympics.

For more information about Abundance Academy of Dance, visit abundanceacademyofdance.com or the school’s Facebook page.

To contact Staff Writer Steven Hoffman, email editor@chestercounty.com.

Photo courtesy Michael Greenley Photography

Students in the acrodance classes demonstrate their proficiency and move up one level at a time. The highest level that the students can attain is a pre-professional 3 level.

www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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——————|Landenberg Arts|——————

‘Heavenly Blue’: “I painted this one for my father after he passed away, because Morning Glories were his favorite flower,” the artist said.

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Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

By John Chambless Staff Writer

F

rom the large table in her one-room frame shop, Mindy Hadley Dole creates frames that make the best of artwork by others. But her own artistic inspirations are outside, in the fields and gardens and woodlands of southern Chester County.

“When we grew up, everybody was outdoors, all day long. I remember when I was little, my brother and I would go out in the woods and be out there all day,” she recalled during an interview at her home on Newark Road in Landenberg.

She grew up in northern Delaware, and her father worked as a designer and builder of exhibitions for area museums, giving her constant exposure to creativity and great art.

“He worked with Hagley Museum, the Delaware Natural History Museum, and a lot of Philadelphia places, too. I worked with him a lot of summers when I was a teenager.”

Continued on Page 24

Photo by John Chambless

Mindy Hadley Dole in her one-room framing shop in Landenberg. www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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Dole Continued from Page 23

Later, Hadley got a framing job at Finley’s Art Shoppe in Newark, Del., learning the ropes of the business. After she started her own family, she worked in a Hockessin cross-stitch shop, framing delicate works for clients there.

“When my children were small, I used to do pen and ink because they were quick to pick up and put down when family duties called,” she said. In 1991, she opened Framing by Mindy in the Continued on Page 26

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‘King of the Jungle’: “My garden is always full of zinnias and sunflowers, and therefore many beautiful butterflies.

The tiger-swallowtail seems to be king of my overgrown jungle of a garden.”

Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

Dole Continued from Page 24

front room of her home on Newark Road.

“We’ve been living here 30 years,” she said. “This was not a busy road back then. We used to ride a wagon down the road. Can’t do that now.”

Never knowing what’s going to be brought in to be framed keeps things interesting, she said, recalling a customer who wanted a photo of their dog put inside a metal boat porthole; framing a wooden shingle; plenty of sports jerseys;

‘Clover and Buttercup’: “These two friendly cows just kept following me along the fence as I took photos, so I gave them names.”

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Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

and valuable comic book art, as well as paintings and limited-edition prints.

Helping customers pick out what would look best with the artwork – and not necessarily what will Continued on Page 28

‘Morning Light’: “I try to capture the play between light and shadow, which can be best found in early morning or evening, when sunlight comes in at an angle. The glow on this white rose provided a great subject to explore the patterns.”

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Dole Continued from Page 27

match the couch – brings Hadley the most satisfaction in her framing work.

“I do enjoy it,” she said. “Sometimes it’s a challenge.

Most people need guidance. I pull out mats and frames that I think would go well with a piece, and I ask what they prefer. I steer them toward choices that will work best. I actually started a frame shop at Route 41 and Penn Green Road, in a little country store there. Now it’s the Mexican market. When my third son was born, I came here to my home to open the shop.”

Her own art has evolved from intricate pen-and-ink illustrations in the 1980s to vibrant, airy floral studies that convey a strong sense of light. She signs them with her maiden name, Mindy Hadley.

“I’m self-taught, basically,” she said. “I’m inspired by nature, and flowers and insects. I take photographs to work from. I hike around White Clay Creek Park, Longwood Gardens, places like that.” One of her favorite works shows two cows, Daisy and Buttercup, who live just down the

road from her home. She offers giclee prints and notecards with some of her works.

“I can’t say that my artwork supports me,” she said. “It’s more like an important hobby. I have to do it. I don’t know that I could make a living at it,” she added, laughing.

Pointing out the interlaced shadows of stems in some of her paintings, Hadley admitted, “I do get doodling. I just sort of make it all up – the negative space in the paintings.

It just happens. I just love light and shadow.”

Hadley’s original works range in size, but all take advantage of the versatility of watercolor, capturing the brilliant colors she finds inspiring. Working from photos allows her to paint whenever she gets time – not necessarily when flowers are in bloom – but working several days a week on framing does take away from time spent making her own art.

“I did start working for the school district in 2004, when the economy was down,” she said. “I was able to keep the

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‘June Bride’: “The iris is a beautiful and graceful flower that blooms in June. It is as if she puts on her wedding dress and is about to be wed to summer.”

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Dole Continued from Page 28

framing going slowly at that point. I got into working with students with disabilities. I work with a man now who has autism. I’m his job development and support person, so I help him find meaningful work.

He loves dogs, so we started making these memory stones for dogs who have passed away. A lot of people order the stones to put in their garden to remember their pets.”

With the freedom to work flexible hours, leaving her time to pursue her own art, Hadley is happy and comfortable with her home-based business.

Her husband is a lab technician, and they have now welcomed their first grandson, who is 6.

“I pick him up at school and bring him here, and we paint,” she said, smiling. “I’m helping pass the art along.”

For more information, visit www.facebook.com/framingbymindy, or www.framingbymindy.com.

To contact Staff Writer John Chambless, email jchambless@chestercounty.com.

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—————|Landenberg Q&A|—————

Q &

Landenberg native Joseph Birmingham missed his hometown – its people, its stories and its history — so he created the “Landenberg – You Can’t Get There From Here” Facebook page four years ago. Since then, it has become the town’s coolest meeting place for ideas, stories and reflection. Recently, Landenberg Today met with Birmingham to talk about the Facebook page, a celebration he’s helping to plan for the town, and an actor he would like to have dinner with.

Landenberg Today: You were born and raised in Landenberg.

Birmingham: My family moved here in 1968, and are still here in the house I was born in, so that makes us almost Landenberg natives!

Typically, the requirement is to have at least three generations in order to be granted native status — where people know your family name, and your house is still your house, although you may have sold it years ago. I went to New Garden Elementary School, and spent my childhood playing in the fields and streams and woods and hills of Landenberg. It was wonderful.

Continued on Page 34

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Birmingham Continued from Page 32

Landenberg Today: What first spawned the idea to begin the Facebook page?

Birmingham: After I grew up here, I moved away, traveled the country as a performing artist, and then moved back to the area a few years ago. I wanted to know who was still around, what had changed, and what had remained the same. I had been on Facebook for four or five years, and I had been blogging. I am a writer and author. I was looking for a format where I could reach out and try to re-connect.

Landenberg Today: To what degree are you surprised that the “Landenberg- You Can’t Get There From Here” Facebook page now counts more than 1,100 people in its membership?

Birmingham: I established the page four years ago as a very simple format to allow people to meet and reconnect socially online from far and wide. The “Landenberg – You Can’t Get There From Here” catch phrase was the common theme that I felt would strike a

chord with most of the long-term residents. I didn’t expect 1,100 members, because when I grew up in Landenberg, I do not believe there were even 1,100 residents.

Landenberg Today: Your Facebook page has come to mean much more than merely a place to post opinions, reflections and events. In your view, what does the Facebook page represent for the people who use it?

Birmingham: I think it represents, in a small way, an opportunity to hold onto the past, while using the convenience of modern technology such as social media.

It serves as the equivalent of a small-town newspaper, which back in the day was often mailed out to wherever someone moved to, so that they could keep up with local events, and that when they came back twice a year, they weren’t shocked to find that the local grainery had closed, or that the pastor’s daughter had married the wrong guy from the wrong side of the tracks. It’s that small-town news feel that reaches people who now live in other parts of the world.

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Landenberg Today: In addition to maintaining the Facebook page, you are also in the beginning stages of organizing an event you’re calling Landenberg Day. What are your reasons for doing so?

Birmingham: Since I’ve returned to the community, I’ve seen the revitalization of Kennett Square, specifically when it wraps itself around the Kennett Mushroom Festival. We initially had the idea about two years ago, but it was hard to get the impetus to get something going.

Now that the Facebook group page membership is in four digits, I’m certain we can get something going -- even if just to get a half dozen people who can help preserve the memories of Landenberg the way it was. A lot of people don’t remember or know that Landenberg was one of the largest commercial centers in the area in the late 1800s, and that its population was once larger than it is now.

The White Clay Creek resource was a powerful financial incentive to settle the area, and it was built from the ingenuity of men who figured out that: this water is moving this fast, at this grade, which will enable the ability

to harness that power to run these machines, to support these buildings, that enabled thousands of people to be employed and live here.

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Landenberg Today: So the initiatives for Landenberg Day are the same as those that began the Facebook page.

Birmingham: Absolutely. It’s a call to arms to the people who remember Landenberg a certain way, and it gives them an opportunity to celebrate that.

Landenberg Today: What have you found out about Landenberg from the Facebook page that you hadn’t previously know, since launching it?

Birmingham: I had always known a lot about the history of Landenberg because I researched it a lot. I was fortunate to read Coreen Haggerty’s book on New Garden Township, and found that particular complicated historical recounting of events fascinating. What has surprised Continued on Page 36

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Birmingham Continued from Page 35

me the most as a result of the inception of this page is just how many different connections have been made between people, places and events, with all generations and geographical locations intersecting. I am amazed at just how small a world it is.

Take the peacocks, for instance. When you have one thousand people sharing stories about the peacocks, you get many, many different memories.

Landenberg Today: What is your favorite place in Landenberg, and why?

Birmingham: I think about the rock outcroppings, the preserve, the moving water and the open woods, but I guess if I had to pick one place, I probably wouldn’t be alone in my choice. Anyone of my age group would have to pick the Landenberg Store. The store was known by so many contributors, and it served as the lifeblood and the well-being of our community for over 100 years. If we want to remember it, we need to either re-source it, or revive it as it was, and/or find someone to run it under its current restrictions. I can’t think of going over the Landenberg Bridge and through the valley, and not having some reason to go by the store -- just to hear what’s going on.

When I think of my hometown, my youth, the Landenberg Store is an iconic part of that. It’s still a landmark.

Landenberg Today: Who are your dinner party guests?

Birmingham: I would have to invite Sean Penn. I find myself drawn to people who are creative individualists, who also selflessly give back to the world around them.

Landenberg Today: What food is always in your refrigerator?

Birmingham: Bacon.

– Richard L. Gaw

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—————|Landenberg Business|————— Theraplay, Inc.’s Landenberg Center works with interpreters to meet the needs of the Spanish-speaking community

The bridges of communication

Courtesy photo

Founded in 1991 by pediatric therapist Lisa Mackell, Theraplay, Inc. is recognized as a regional leader in providing physical, occupational speech and feeding therapy for children from birth through age 21.

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By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer

S

ometimes, it doesn’t take an entire village to help someone — just one more person.

Cara Myers, a physical therapist, greets Boris, a ten-year-old boy from Kennett Square, just as she has done twice a week for the past several months, at Theraplay, Inc.’s facility in Landenberg.

For the next hour, as therapist and patient go through the various tests of strength and endurance commonly prescribed to those who live with cerebral palsy, Myers and Boris work through the hour with the playfulness and teasing of an older sister and a younger brother.

Courtesy photo

Heidi Boucher, DPT and Center Manager of Theraplay, Inc.’s Landenberg Center, works with a youngster.

And yet, there is a quiet determination in Boris’ face that tells the real story of therapist and patient – the steps forward and the progress that is made when a bond of trust happens, and the wheelchair that Boris arrived in an hour ago becomes an unused afterthought, completely out of the picture.

After their session, they meet back with Boris’ father and two brothers in the lobby — along with someone else who has become nearly as invaluable to Theraplay’s Continued on Page 40

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Theraplay Continued from Page 39

curriculum of care as the therapy itself.

It’s Alexander Reyes, an interpreter.

“His footing was more equal, and he wasn’t dragging his right foot behind him tonight,” she says to Boris’ father and Reyes. “He only took one rest, so his endurance is improving as well. We also worked on side-stepping, and I only had to remind him twice to keep his feet back, so that’s improving nicely as well. We worked on hands and knees, and when he separates his knees, he has much better balance. Overall, he did great.”

Boris’ father then turns his attention to Reyes, who translates in Spanish what Myers has just told him in English. The father nods in both recognition and appreciation – to both Myers, the therapist — and Reyes, the bridge of communication.

Founded in 1991 by pediatric therapist Lisa Mackell, Theraplay, Inc. is recognized as a regional leader in providing physical, occupational speech and feeding therapy for children Continued on Page 42

Courtesy photo

The Landenberg location, opened in May 2014, became Theraplay, Inc.’s seventh and newest outpatient facility.

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Theraplay Continued from Page 40

from birth through age 21. Of Chester County’s population of more than one half million, close to six percent are Hispanic, particularly in the county’s southern region, so even before it first opened its doors to its Landenberg location in May 2014 — its seventh and newest outpatient facility — Theraplay, Inc. already saw the need to invite language interpreters to become part of each therapy session.

“We knew coming into the area that there would most likely be a very high Spanish-speaking population, based on marketing and preparation with the physicians we worked with,” said Heidi Boucher, DPT and Center Manager of the Landenberg Center, who estimated that as many as 20 percent of families who visit the center require an interpreter. “It’s a relationship that’s made our lives easier, because when interpreters are present, it makes it so much easier to communicate with the families.”

Although most of the families who require an interpreter come from New Garden Township, West Grove, Kennett

Square and Oxford, the need extends to those who travel from Delaware and Cecil County in Maryland.

Although in most cases, the interpreter meets with the therapist and the family in the lobby after a session, several work directly with the patient and therapist during the session.

“It depends on the child,” Boucher said. “If he or she is in an English-speaking school but is learning and speaking Spanish at home, he or she knows both English and Spanish. There are some times when a bilingual therapist is necessary, particularly for kids between one and three years old, who have not had much exposure to English.”

For occupational and physical therapy sessions, the need for an interpreter is very important, because therapists are often called on to not only provide a synopsis of that day’s session, but to review the therapy sessions that both the patient and their family can work on at home.

Interpreters are also valuable in speech therapy, when the therapist often has to determine the sources of the

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language and communication barriers the child is having — whether it is a true language deficit, or whether the child is having difficulty because of living in two languages — Spanish at home and English everywhere else.

Interpreters go through several layers of certification, and come from a variety of arenas wherever the need for an interpreter is required — such as law enforcement and the medical community.

Continued on Page 44

Courtesy photo

At Theraplay, Inc., highly skilled, pediatric experienced and licensed therapists, assistants and educators evaluate each child according to his or her needs.

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Theraplay Continued from Page 43

By day, Reyes is a court interpreter, but several nights a month he arrives at Theraplay, Inc., in cooperation with an insurance broker that works with Theraplay to arrange for his services. He said that being at the Landenberg center is his opportunity to give back to the Hispanic community.

“I see my family in these people, because neither my mother or my father speak English,” he said. “I am glad I am able to break down the walls of communication.

It’s always rewarding when you see a child progressing. You see them early on when they’re not as strong, and as the months go by, you begin to see them walking and moving. It feels good to be a part of that.”

At Theraplay, Inc., highly skilled, pediatric experienced and licensed therapists, assistants and educators evaluate each child according to his or her needs, but a visit to any one of the seven centers throughout Pennsylvania will reveal a philosophy put in motion that has helped define the company for more than 25 years: Not just one child at a time, but one family as well.

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“Seeking physical, occupational speech and feeding therapy for a child is a scary time for a lot of families,” Boucher said. “For some, it’s helping their child live with a debilitating condition, while for others, it’s simply wanting to know why their child is having difficulty doing things with their peers. We explain to the parents what may be impacting their child, from being able to do the things they should be able to do, and ensuring the family that as we work on things, that their child is going to improve.”

It’s all part of the breakthroughs that happen at Theraplay, Inc.’s Landenberg Center — breakthroughs that get to be told in two languages.

Interpreters can be made available for other foreignspeaking families, in addition to Spanish. For more information about Theraplay, Inc. and the services it offers, visit www.theraplayinc.com.

The Landenberg Center is located on 385 Starr Road, Landenberg, Pa. 19350. Phone: 484-720-8252.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, e-mail rgaw@ chestercounty.com.

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————|Landenberg Photography|————

Into the wild life of Landenberg Karen Pappa, a resident of Landenberg, wanted to share these photos with the readers of Landenberg Today. She took the photos in the fall of 2015.

Pappa was surprised to see the elusive fox just hanging out in a field on Broad Run Road. While zooming in taking pictures, she discovered that he was playing with his breakfast (which looked to be a mole).

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The photo of this snake was taken while Pappa was walking in White Clay Park on London Tract Road.

The image of these cows was taken on Broad Run Road in early morning.

Pappa said that the fall colors were spectacular on this morning. www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

49

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—————|Landenberg History|—————

The old barn: From dilapidation to restoration

By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer

F

or about 30 years, Reid Rowlands lived with his wife Susan on Main Street in Newark, Del. In 2000, a friend told him about a 1700s farmhouse that was for sale on about ten acres in nearby Landenberg.

Rowlands stopped by the house, but his attention kept being drawn to another structure that stood forlorn

Photo courtesy of Brandywine Sotheby’s

Once a crumbling barn, this rebuilt home is situated on 4.9 acres near the White Clay Preserve in Landenberg.

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Landenberg resident’s DIY vision rebuilds a piece of local history

and neglected next door — an 11,000-square-foot barn estimated to have been built in the 1800s, complete with a silo. Rowlands walked up to the barn’s bank entrance, peeked inside at decades worth of hay and small mountains of fencing and debris — and imagined something spectacular in his mind’s eye that no one else could.

“I could see it, and I knew that we could do this,” Rowlands said. “I saw the kitchen there, the living room and the dining room over there.”

Continued on Page 58

Photo courtesy of Brandywine Sotheby’s

Many of the home’s doors were salvaged from a 200-year-old monastery in Baltimore.

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Barn Continued from Page 57

Rowlands did not buy the home. He bought the barn, and began what would be a three-year journey to completely rebuild it. Rowlands was no novice at construction; he was a commercial developer in Newark, and had a passion for woodworking, but he was about to completely rebuild a barn, having never done so before.

For the first six months, he divided his time between cleaning out the barn and designing the interior layout.

There were many winter days when it was actually colder in the barn than outside, but very little deterred Rowlands and his three co-workers.

“My favorite quote is, ‘To be in business, you have to be eternally optimistic and self-delusional,’” he said. “I kept thinking, ‘I can do this. No problem.’ When I’d come across a problem, we just figured it out, and did it.”

Rowlands, Susan and their then-infant son Ryan officially moved into the home in 2003.

The finished product — a three-level structure on 4.9 acres bordering the White Clay Preserve — is a stunning marriage of space, wood and light. With wide-beam flooring, solid poplar trim and cathedral ceilings on the

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second floor, the step-down entrance of the home opens to a spacious open room, kitchen, living room and a formal dining room. Upstairs, the four bedrooms offer the unique flavor of a barn’s high ceilings and exposed beams.

The home has a southern exposure, and sunlight streams through the large windows of nearly every room, illuminating many distinctive touches, which include several doors that were salvaged from a 200-year-old monastery in Baltimore. Just off the kitchen and living room, an in-ground pool features an adjacent 20-by30-foot pool house.

The energy-efficient home also comes with a five-car garage, solar electrical security and sprinkler systems, radiant floor heating and foam spray insulation.

Rowland wishes to remain in Landenberg, the future site of what will become his next large project: The construction of a passive certified, energy-efficient home, complete with radiant flooring and zero energy construction. It’s inspired by his work on the renovation of his current home, and the mission of his Newark-based

company, World Class Supply, a high-performance building supply and design center that provides products and interior finish materials for the construction of zero energy buildings.

Passive housing has begun to appear on the horizon of home construction, and could be the wave of the future, Rowlands said.

“The Pennsylvania Housing Authority has begun getting on board, by initiating credits toward passive housing construction,”

Photo courtesy of Brandywine Sotheby’s

The home’s kitchen is illuminated by light from its southern exposure.

Continued on Page 60

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Barn Continued from Page 59

he said. His company is currently supplying products toward the construction of a passive house in Allentown, Pa. Reflecting on the three years he spent bringing a slice of Landenberg history back to life, Rowlands said he looked at himself as more of a caretaker than an architect.

“I wanted to preserve this in the sense that, because it has been here for 200 years and will be here for another 200 years, the work shouldn’t be done haphazardly, but correctly,” he said. “You don’t come to Landenberg without an appreciation of history.”

To see additional photographs of the Landenberg home and the property, visit www.pabarn.com. This home and property is being listed by Brandywine Fine Properties.

For more information, contact Jack Clough or Laird Bunch at 302-654-6500.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, e-mail rgaw@chestercounty.com.

Photo courtesy of Brandywine Sotheby’s

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By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer

P

aul LagassÊ and Nan Latimer, members of the Franklin Township Historical Commission, helped lead an effort to research Benjamin Franklin’s real relationship to the Chester County township that shares his name. In the 1760s and 1770s, Franklin owned approximately 200 acres of land on both sides of Route 896 in what is

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now Kemblesville. Lagassé has shared the interesting story about how Franklin came to own land in the tow township to own wnshi wnsh sh hip ip during a public presentation tattiion ta on at the Franklin Township hip p Building and at otherr events in the area.

Initially, Lagassé explained, the research was not focused on Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States, but rather on a specific part of local history.

“We began this as an n attempt to put together a ta talk alk k about the taverns in Franklin raankklin lin li Township,”Lagassé explained.

“Our research draws upon a lot of sources—records of the Chester County

Historical Society, the Chester County Archives, and Franklin Township papers.”

Franklin Township’s origins can be traced back to 1852. At that time, Kemblesville and Chesterville had grown to become villages of a decent size—Kemblesville had a tavern, a church, a blacksmith shop, a general store, several nearby mills, and a post office. Residents petitioned to divide New London Village into two different townships.

Lagassé explained that the county Continued on Page 64

Courtesy graphic

Lagassé included a timeline of events with the presentation.

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63

Franklin Township Continued from Page 63

appointed a three-person commission to investigate the possibility of dividing New London Township. The commission’s recommendation was to divide the township, with the west section retaining the “New London” name. The eastern portion was to be called Franklin Township.

Why was this new township named Franklin Township?

“It was named, as we all know, in honor of Benjamin Franklin,” Lagassé explained. “But if you seek out more details, things get more complicated and become less clear. The petition for the new township and the commissioners’ report don’t say why the name of Franklin Township was chosen, though various other sources do offer hints.”

Benjamin Franklin, who was known as “The first American” was a renowned polymath—he was a politician, an inventor, a statesman, a diplomat, a scientist, an author, a printer, and even a postmaster.

Lagassé explained that tax records show that Franklin paid taxes on property, ranging from 160 acres to 200 acres, in the 1760s and 1770s, so it’s fairly certain that

the national hero did, in fact, own property.

The Franklin Township Historical Commission received the property history of the Kemblesville Hotel from current owner Bill Hutchings.

“The history stated that letters at the Chester County Historical Society referred to land that Franklin had bought in New London Township from George McCleave,”Lagassé said. “McCleave once owned the property that the Kemblesville Hotel is on. He is the first known owner of the property, aside from the London Company, the land company that originally acquired the land from William Penn.”

McCleave is known to have owned two parcels of land, one a 96-acre parcel, the other a 119-acre parcel.

McCleave operated a tavern on the property. He may have also owned other property in the area. There is uncertainty about which property Franklin owned.

“Did Franklin acquire McCleave’s 119-acre plot, of which the property history said little, or perhaps another piece of land once held by McCleave? The acreage Continued on Page 66

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Paul Lagassé, a member of the Franklin Township Historical Commission, helped research Benjamin Franklin’s real relationship to the Chester County township that shares his name.

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Franklin Township Continued from Page 64

figures in the property history were no help in clarifying this,”Lagassé said. “Neither matched the 160, 184, and 200 acres that Franklin was recorded as having paid tax on. Though the exact location of McCleave’s lands and Franklin’s land was unclear, we do know that at least one of the two parcels was in what was known as the London Tract.”

The London Tract was a large tract of land that was acquired by a group of stockholders who hoped to enrich themselves by leasing the land. The group of stockholders, called the London Company, owned about 60,000 acres of land in Pennsylvania and Delaware. The London Tract was huge, and locating McCleave’s and Franklin’s lands in the London Tract or elsewhere in Franklin Township would require more information.

“We did have a host of names that might provide clues,”Lagassé explained.” As the Historical Commission searched the available online records and indexes to find out more about George McCleave for a possible talk on township taverns, the details that we’ve found revealed

much about McCleave and also the true story of how Ben Franklin acquired land in 18th-century New London.”

George McCleave first showed up on the tax lists in 1749, and his name continued to show up on the tax lists for most years through 1775. From 1763 to 1773, he also had tavern license applications.

“McCleave’s fortunes go up and down, but mostly down,”Lagassé explained.

In 1762, McCleave mortgaged his two parcels to Philotesia and Amos Strettell to settle a debt that McCleave owed Robert Strettell, a Quaker merchant who died in 1761. Philotesia, his wife, and Amos, his son, were the executors of his estate.

A year later, in 1763, McCleave made a second mortgage on both parcels to William Dunlap for an outstanding debt.

McCleave was sued by Thomas and Sarah Massey for a third debt in the spring of 1764. While the reasons for McCleave’s considerable debt have been lost to history, he may have been trying to pay for the land or cover the

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Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

costs associated with starting up a tavern.

Lagassé explained that tavern owners at this time sometimes struggled financially.

“Whatever debt McCleave incurred in buying his land and setting up his tavern may have been compounded by running the tavern, especially since there were four licensed taverns for much of this period,” he said.

William Dunlap was married to Deborah Crocker, a niece of Ben Franklin’s wife, Deborah. Ben Franklin helped Dunlap set up his printer shop in Lancaster in 1754.

Three years later, Franklin appointed Dunlap as the postmaster for Philadelphia while Franklin was in England as Pennsylvania’s agent to Parliament. McCleave was a post rider, and that’s probably how he knew Dunlap and came to borrow money from him.

Like McCleave, Dunlap sometimes had financial problems.

At the time,Lagassé explained, uncollected postage was the responsibility of the post rider or postmaster. Franklin and John Foxcroft, another postmaster for British North America, sought to collect the money that Dunlap owed.

Continued on Page 70

Courtesy photo

Franklin Township gets its name from Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the country. In the 1760s and 1770s, Franklin owned approximately 200 acres of land on both sides of Route 896 in what is now Kemblesville.

www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

67

Jenny Chen Pediatric and Family Dentistry: enny Chen Pediatric and Family Dentistry is a multispecialty dental practice with a highly visible location at Old Baltimore Pike and Guernsey Road in West Grove.

The practice offers pediatric, family, and cosmetic dentistry, and has specialists in orthodontics and implant dentistry.

“From the moment our patients Àrst arrive here, our goal is to provide them with a comfortable, relaxing experience,” said Dr. Jenny Chen, who provides top-quality care along with her husband, Dr. Michael Lemper, and their team at the West Grove ofÀce and their ofÀce in Willow Street. For a decade, they have built a thriving practice that has seen long-term loyalty from parents, children and grandchildren.

Dr. Jenny, as she prefers to be called, was a dentist in Beijing, China, before coming to America 20 years ago to pursue a Ph.D. in experimental pathology at the University of Texas.

After earning her degree and preparing to be a scientist, she decided that she wanted to pursue her Àrst love, dentistry. She then obtained her DMD from the University of Pennsylvania school of Dental Medicine, where she met her husband, Dr. Mike.

After several years of honing her skills as an associate in busy Philadelphia practices, Dr. Jenny came to Chester County to open her own practice. Dr. Jenny is skilled at all aspects of general dentistry, including cosmetic dentistry, root canals, crowns, bridges, and restoring implants. The aspect of Dr. Jenny most loved by her patients, however, is her friendly, humorous, easygoing manner, which often calms the fears of the most severe dental-phobic patient.

Many patients who have avoided seeing the dentist for years out of fear have come to Dr. Jenny and now will receive dental care from no one else. She trulyy treats her p patients as part of the family.

A unique feature of Dr. Jenny’s practice is that it provides comprehensive dentistry for

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all ages, and to this end has both a board-certiÀed pediatric dentist and board-certiÀed orthodontist on staff. It is unusual for a dental practice to provide this kind of specialized care for everybody in the family. Dr. Ahmad F. Charkas is the orthodontist, and he provide comprehensive orthodontic care for children, adolescents, and adults. Dr. Charkas is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics and is Invisalign certiÀed.

Dr. Jenny’s husband, Dr. Mike, is the pediatric dentist, and is trained and experienced in providing dental services for all children, including those with severe dental disease, anxiety, behavioral issues, and special health care needs. Dr. Mike is a Diplomate of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry.

Almost the entire staff speaks Spanish, Dr. Jenny said.

“People appreciate that you try to communicate in their language,” she said. “We have brochures and information in Spanish to explain everything about a procedure.” About half S of the service’s clients are Spanish-speaking, she said. A very o warm and welcoming environment exists among staff and w patients. “The staff treats each other as family, and we treat p our patients as family,” says Dr. Jenny. o Many people avoid the dentist due to barriers involving insurance and economics. At Jenny Chen Pediatric and Family in Dentistry, they try to make dental care available to as many D people as possible. “We take a wide range of insurance p and coverage through almost every network.” Among the a many insurances accepted are the full range of PA Medical m Assistance and CHIP programs for children. “We want to help A the children who need us most”, Dr. Mike says, “and we want th

Dr. Charkas (Orthodontist) and Daniella Guzman (Receptionist) D

Expert Dental Care for the Entire Family to erase the typical barriers to care that many children face.

All children have the right to see the dentist and have happy and healthy teeth”.

In addition to accepting a wide range of insurances Dr. Jenny is willing to work with you to implement the best treatment plan for your budget. “Some dentists examine a patient and give them a very expensive treatment plan, which is either all or nothing, and no other options. This naturally scares the patient and prevents them from undergoing much-needed dental care. We work with a patient within their budget or insurance limitations and prioritize. You can get a few teeth Àxed this year, and a few next year” Dr. Jenny says.

Another aspect of the practice that Dr. Jenny is proud of is her willingness to squeeze in emergencies. A wide range of emergency dental services are offered, and often people can be seen on the same day as they call. Tooth pain can be very serious, and we want to help as much as we can. To this end, the practice offers convenient hours including evenings and Saturdays.

The practice stays up-to-the-minute with technology as well, Dr. Jenny said, including the i-CAT, a three-dimensional dental imaging tool that allows the doctors to examine teeth and surrounding structures with amazing accuracy. Because the i-CAT allows the staff to view a patient’s oral structures from different angles on a monitor, the doctors can create more comprehensive treatment plans. This is extremely useful for implant placement, and the practice has an implant specialist

for complex cases, including multiple implants for denture stabilization. “This advanced x-ray system allows us to take 3-D photos, whereas previously we were only able to diagnose from 2-D images,” Dr. Jenny said. “With this technology, we have a better understanding of the patient’s anatomy and dental problems, and can more accurately recommend procedures. Very few general dentists have this technology.

Everything’s very advanced in our ofÀce. We’re constantly looking for new technologies.”

Jenny Chen Pediatric and Family Dentistry is open Monday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For more information, visit www.SmilesInPA.com.

www.SmilesinPA.com Jenny Chen Pediatric and Family Dentistry West Grove, PA • 610-869-0991 207 N. Guernsey Road For our friends in Lancaster County:

Lancaster County Pediatric and Family Dentistry Willow Street, PA • 717-464-0230 325 Carol Lynn Drive Se habla Español

Front row (L to R) Dr. Ahmad Charkas, Dr. Jenny Chen, Dr. Michael Lemper. Second row (L to R) Dulce Villagomez, Vicky Zhu, Tracy Nino, Diana Fraticelli, Paula Williams, Andrea Mireles, Lindsey McCabe. Third row (L to R) Dalila Padron, Daniella Guzman, Edgar Beltran.

Franklin Township Continued from Page 67

In late 1764, Dunlap wrote Franklin and Foxcroft, offering a 200-acre tract of land in Chester County to settle the debt.

The offer was deemed to be insufficient, prompting Dunlap to write an extraordinary letter, which read, in part: “As I see nothing will satiate your unbounded, cruel, and merciless Resentment but the entire Destruction of a poor helpless Family, no Branch of whom, I will dare say, ever injur’d you in Thought, Word or Deed. I have no Favor to ask at the Hands of a Man who thursts for nothing short of my Heart’s Blood…”

Franklin and Foxcroft were unmoved by the letter.

They wrote Dunlap back, pointing out that the debt was owed to the Post Office, not them, and they didn’t have the authority to accept less than the amount of debt.

“Here at last we can see, quite vividly in fact, how Franklin came to control property in New London,”Lagassé explained. “The property was offered to Franklin to cover a post office debt. But, as far as we knew, Dunlap only held a mortgage on George

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McCleave’s lands. Was that land the land that Dunlap transferred to Franklin, and that Franklin later paid taxes on? Or was it another parcel?”

The research revealed that James Parker, the comptroller of the colonial post office, met with Dunlap and McCleave in Philadelphia in 1764. Dunlap had acquired control of the parcels because McCleave had failed to settle his debts. Franklin’s ownership of the properties was not formally recorded, but that was not uncommon at that time.

At the time that Franklin apparently owned land in what is now the Franklin Township area, he was mostly working overseas. Correspondence to and from Ben or Deborah Franklin at the time was not complimentary to the property.

The land was described as poor, and the dwelling on it was in need of repair.

“Clearly, the land was not worth what Dunlap had valued it at, and Franklin had no interest in acquiring the land—he was forced to as a way to settle Dunlap’s debt.

McCleave continued to operate a licensed tavern for

a few more years, but his financial difficulties continued. In 1770, records show that he is listed on the tax rolls as an inmate, which indicates that he is landless. He was eventually convicted and jailed for operating a tavern without a license.

Tax records show that Franklin paid taxes starting in 1766. He paid those taxes in subsequent years, but after 1771 there is no further records of Franklin paying taxes.

“Deborah Franklin’s surviving letters contain no further information about the properties.

She died in late 1774, before her husband returned from England,” Lagassé explained.

“The last we hear of the New London properties in the Franklin Papers is in 1776, when Franklin attempts to settle his accounts with the British Post Office, and this is the last we hear anywhere of any association between Benjamin Franklin and the lands of George McCleave. Franklin left for France shortly after, and did not leave France to return to America until 1785.”

Did Franklin himself ever visit the area during the time that he owned the property? There remains a lot of uncertainty about that. Franklin was only in America for two brief periods during the time when he may have owned land.

Franklin was a Pennsylvania delegate to the Second Continental Congress. He was named Postmaster General by the Congress. He was involved in the effort to acquire munitions, the planning for the defense of Philadelphia, and was on the committee that wrote the Declaration of Independence.

Lagassé concluded the presentation by saying that it was unlikely that Franklin would have traveled all the way out to Chester County to visit the properties.

“We can’t say for sure that he didn’t visit the Kemblesville, Franklin, or New London vicinity at some point during his life, but it seems unlikely that he did so when he owned land here,” Lagassé said. “He had greater, more pressing things to do.”

To contact Staff Writer Steven Hoffman, email editor@chestercounty.com.

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CAMP & ED GUIDE DIRECTORY Summer camps offer fun and learning The Arc of Chester County 900 Lawrence Dr., West Chester Paradise Farms in Downingtown is the location for week-long day camps this summer. Camp Safari and Teen Camp offer children and teens a camp experience regardless of disability. Teen Camp is slated for Aug. 10-14. Camp Safari is scheduled for June 15-19 and Aug. 24-28. Call 610696-8090, ext. 240, or visit www. arcofchestercounty.org.

Camp Arrowhead Summer camps are offered in five sessions for grades 2 to 11 from June 26 to Aug. 13 at a wooded site on the Rehoboth Bay. Call 302-945-0610 or visit www.camparrowhead.net.

Cecil College Summer camps are offered this summer for ages 6 to 8, 9 to 12, and 13 to 17, with outdoor activities and exploration of career pathways.

Call 410-392-3366, ext. 628, or visit www.cecil.edu/youth.

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Centreville Layton School Summer Program 6201 Kennett Pike, Centreville, Del. A summer program is offered for youngsters in June and July. Call 302-571-0270 or visit www.centrevillelayton.org.

The Chester County Intermediate Unit Students entering sixth through ninth grade can explore careers such as animal science, game design, and culinary arts in July. There are locations in Phoenixville, West Grove and Downingtown. Registration closes May 15. Call 484-237-5525 or visit www.cciu.org/summer.

Delaware Aerospace Academy Children in grades 1 to 10 can take summer camps focusing on science and technology, engineering, mathematics and space exploration, with a variety of packages available at Newark or Smyrna, Del., locations.

Call 302-834-1978 or visit www. dasef.org.

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Delaware County Community College 901 S. Media Line Rd., Media Camps in cooking, karate, arts, sciences, languages and more are available from June 6 to Aug. 11.

Visit www.dccc.edu.

Delaware Museum of Natural History 4840 Kennett Pike, Wilmington, Del. Thirty two summer camps are offered for ages 2 to 12, exploring the natural world. Call 302-658-9111 or visit www.delmnh.org.

Fairwinds Farm 41 Tailwinds Ln., North East, Md. Horse Camp to learn the basic skills of horsemanship is offered on weekdays this summer. Call 410-658-8187 or visit www.fairwindsstables.com.

Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania Four resident camps and three day camps are open to girls entering grades 1 to 12 this summer, focusing on a wide range of outdoor skills and interests. Visit www.gsep.org/camps.

Hockessin Athletic Club 100 Fitness Way, Hockessin, Del. Summer camps are offered for ages 3 to 12, with swimming, crafts, sports, games and volunteering. Call 302-7667482 or visit www.hachealthclub.com.

New Garden Flying Field Future Aviators Summer Camp is offered for ages 7 to 15 from July 11 to 15, and from Aug. 8 to 12. Call 610-268-2619 or visit www.newgardenflyingfield.com.

Saginaw Day Camp 740 Saginaw Rd., Oxford Camps are available from June 20 to Aug. 19 for first to 11th graders. There is an open house on June 4 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Call 610-998-1281 or visit www.saginawdaycamp.com.

Sanford School 6900 Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, Del. The school offers day camps for ages 3 to 14, with sports and arts camps for ages 8 to 14, and specialty camps in tennis (June 13 70 17, June 20 to 24, June 27 to July 1) and basketball (June 13 to 17 and June 27 to July 1). Visit www.sanfordschool.org.

Tatnall School 1501 Barley Mill Rd., Wilmington, Del. Summer camps are offered from June 20 to Aug. 26 for ages 3 through 12th grade. There are sports camps, an onsite pool, music classes, science and technology classes, dance camps and more. Bus trips to local attractions are available. Call 302-892-4347 or visit www.tatnall.org/summer.

University of Delaware Community Music School University of Delaware campus, Newark, Del. Summer camps are offered for children under 5 up to 12th graders in composition, musical theater, jazz, choral music and more. Call 302-8311548 or visit www.music.udel.edu/ cms.

West Chester Parks and Recreation Summer Camps Summer Day Camp for ages 5 to 10 is offered from June 20 to Aug. 12, with a variety of bus trips and other options. Camp Big for ages 11 to 14 is offered June 20 to July 15, and July 18 to Aug. 12, with a variety of bus trips and other options. Registration deadline is June 12. Call 610-436-9010 or visit www.west-chester.com.

West Chester Studio for the Performing Arts Classes are offered at the Chester County Historical Society, 225 N. High St., West Chester. One-week summer theater camps in acting, improvisation and music are offered at the Chester County Historical Society in West Chester. Call 484-995-2915 or visit www.westchesterstudio.com.

Wilmington Friends School A camp for ages 3 and 4 is offered June 20 to Aug. 26; a camp for kindergarten and first grade is offered June 20 to Aug. 26; a camp for second to fifth graders is offered July 5 to 8; and a camp for fifth to ninth graders is offered June 20 to Aug. 26, with activities and themes. Call 302-576-2998 or visit www.wilmingtonfriends.org/summercamp.

Wilmington Youth Rowing Association 500 E. Front St., Wilmington, Del. Two camps are offered: “Row For It!” from June 27 to July 14; and “Rowing 101” from June 20 to 24 and Aug. 15 to 19. Call 302-777-4533 or visit www.wyra.org.

YMCA Camp Tockwogh An overnight camp on the Chesapeake Bay offers summer camps for ages 5 to 16 from June 26 to Aug. 19. Camp tours are available on May 22, and an open house is offered June 5. Visit www.ymcacamptockwogh.org.

A guide to area schools DELAWARE PRIVATE SCHOOLS Archmere Academy 3600 Philadelphia Pike, Claymont, 798-6632, archmereacademy.com Caravel Academy 2801 Del Laws Road, Bear, 834-8938, caravel.org Hockessin Montessori 1000 Old Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, 302-234-1240, thehms.org Independence School 1300 Paper Mill Rd., Newark, 302-239-0332, theindependenceschool.org Layton Preparatory School 6201 Kennett Pike, Centreville, 655-3280, laytonprep.org The New School 812 Elkton Road, Newark, 456-9838, thenewschool.com Red Lion Christian Academy 1390 Red Lion Road, Bear, 834-2526, redlionca.org Salesianum School 1801 N. Broom St., Wilmington, 654-2495, salesianum.org Sanford School 6900 Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, 239-5263, sanfordschool.org St. Andrew’s School 350 Noxontown Road, Middletown, 378-9511, standrews-de.org The Tatnall School 1501 Barley Mill Road, Wilmington, 998-2292, tatnall.org Continued on Page 74

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Tower Hill School 2813 W. 17th St., Wilmington, 575-0550, towerhill.org Ursuline Academy 1106 Pennsylvania Ave., Wilmington, 658-7158, ursuline.org Wilmington Christian School 825 Loveville Road, Hockessin, 239-2121, wilmingtonchristian.org Wilmington Friends School 101 School Road, Wilmington, 576-2900, wilmingtonfriends.org

DIOCESE OF WILMINGTON Padua Academy 905 N. Broom St., Wilmington, 421-3739, paduaacademy.org

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St. Elizabeth High School 1500 Cedar St., Wilmington, 656-3369, sehs.org St. Mark’s High School 2501 Pike Creek Road, Wilmington, 738-3300, stmarkshs.net

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES Delaware College of Art and Design 600 N. Market St., Wilmington, 622-8000, dcad.edu

333 Shipley St., Wilmington, 571-5300, dtcc.edu Goldey-Beacom College 4701 Limestone Road, Wilmington, 998-8814, gbc.edu Springfield College 1007 Orange St., Wilmington, 658-5720, springfieldcollege.edu

Delaware State University 3931 Kirkwood Hwy., Wilmington, 254-5340, desu.edu

University of Delaware Main Campus in Newark; Wilmington Campus, 831-2792, udel.edu

Delaware Technical Community College 400 Stanton-Christiana Road, Newark, 454-3900;

Widener University School of Law 4601 Concord Pike, Wilmington, 477-2100, law.widener.edu

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Wilmington University 320 Dupont Hwy., New Castle, 356-4636; 31 Reads Way, New Castle, 655-5400; 3411 Silverside Road, Wilmington, (877) 967-5464; 651 N. Broad St., Middletown, (877) 967-5464;

PENNSYLVANIA HIGH SCHOOLS Avon Grove School District 375 South Jennersville Road West Grove, PA 19390 610-869-2441 Avon Grove High School (610-869-2446) 257 East State Road, West Grove, PA 19390

Continued on Page 76

TCHS

Technical College High School (TCHS) Pennock’s Bridge Campus builds up the southern Chester County community, bringing the latest industry advancements and learnings to local students.

PENNOCK’S BRIDGE CAMPUS

A public high school of choice that provides college and career opportunities for local students.

TCHS gives students the means to excel: in their district high school classrooms, in their hands-on experience at TCHS and in their future careers.

APPLY NOW! www.tchspennocks.org Technical College High School Pennock’s Bridge Campus 280 Pennock’s Bridge Road | West Grove, PA 19390 www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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Fred S. Engle Middle School (610-869-3022) 107 Schoolhouse Road, West Grove, PA 19390 Avon Grove Intermediate School (610-869-2010) 395 South Jennersville Road, West Grove, PA 19390 Penn London Elementary School (610-869-9803) 383 South Jennersville Road, West Grove, PA 19390 Kennett Consolidated School District 300 East South Street Kennett Square, PA 19348 610-444-6600

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Kennett High School (610-444-6620) 100 East South Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348

New Garden Elementary School (610-268-6900) 265 New Garden Road, Toughkenamon, PA 19374

Kennett Middle School (610-268-5800) 195 Sunny Dell Road, Landenberg, PA 19350

Oxford Area School District 125 Bell Tower Lane Oxford, PA 19363 610-932-6600

Bancroft Elementary School (610-925-5711) 181 Bancroft Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348

Oxford Area High School (610-932-6640) 705 Waterway Road, Oxford, PA 19363

Greenwood Elementary School (610-388-5990) 420 Greenwood Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348

Penn’s Grove Middle School (610-932-6615) 301 South Fifth Street, Oxford, PA 19363

Mary D. Lang Kindergarten Center (610-444-6260) 409 Center Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348

Hopewell Elementary School (484-365-6151) 602 Garfield Street, Oxford, PA 19363

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Elk Ridge School (610-932-6670) 200 Wickersham Road, Oxford, PA 19363 Jordan Bank School (610-932-6625) 536 Hodgson Street, Oxford, PA 19363 Nottingham School (610-932-6632) 736 Garfield Street, Oxford, PA 19363 Unionville-Chadds Ford School District 740 Unionville Road Kennett Square, PA 19348 610-347-0970 Unionville High School (610-347-1600) 750 Unionville Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348 Charles F. Patton Middle School (610-347-2000) 760 Unionville Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348 Chadds Ford Elementary School (610-388-1112) 3 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford, PA 19317 Hillendale Elementary School (610-388-1439) 1850 Hillendale Road, Chadds Ford, PA 19317 Pocopson Elementary School (610-793-9241) 1105 Pocopson Road, West Chester, PA 19382 Unionville Elementary School (610-347-1700) 1775 West Doe Run Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348 Chester County Intermediate Unit Educational Service Center 455 Boot Road, Downingtown, PA 19335 Telephone: (484) 237-5000 Continued on Page 78

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Chester County Technical College High School Brandywine Campus 484-593-5100 443 Boot Road, Downingtown, PA 19335 www.tchsbrandywine.org Chester County Technical College High School Pennock’s Bridge Campus 610-345-1800 280 Pennock’s Bridge Road, West Grove, PA 19390 www.tchspennocks.org Chester County Technical College High School Pickering Campus 610-933-8877 1580 Charlestown Road, Phoenixville, PA 19460-2371 www.tchspickering.org

NON-PUBLIC SCHOOLS Assumption B.V.M. School (610-869-9576) 290 State Road, West Grove, PA 19390 Bethany Christian School (610-998-0877) 1137 Shadyside Road, Oxford, PA 19363 CFS, The School at Church Farm (610-363-7500) 1001 East Lincoln Highway, Exton, PA 19341-2818

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GUIDE DIRECTORY Episcopal Day School (610-644-6181) Church of the Good Samaritan 212 West Lancaster Avenue, Paoli, PA 19301 www.goodsamdayschool.org George Fox Friends School (610-593-7122) 2009 Gap-Newport Pike, Cochranville, PA 19330 www.gffs.org Kimberton Waldorf School (610-933-3635) 410 W. Seven Stars Rd., P. O. Box 350, Kimberton, PA 19442 Landenberg Christian Academy (610-255-5512) P.O. Box 397, Kemblesville, PA 19347 www.lca-pa.com London Grove Friends Kindergarten (610-268-8466) 500 West Street Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348 Malvern Preparatory School (484-595-1131) 418 South Warren Avenue, Malvern, PA 19355 Continued on Page 80

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Sacred Heart School (610-932-3633) 205 Church Road, Oxford, PA 19363 Upland Country Day School (610-444-3035) 420 West Street Road, Kennett Square, PA 19348 Villa Maria Academy Lower School (610-644-4864) 1140 King Road, Immaculata, PA 19345-0600 West Chester Christian School (610-692-3700) 1237 Paoli Pike, West Chester, PA 19380 West Chester Friends School (610-696-2962) 415 North High Street, West Chester, PA 19380

White Clay Learning Center (610-880-0114) 250 New Garden Road, Toughkenamon, PA 19374 whiteclaylearning.org

Westtown School (610-399-0123) 975 Westtown Road, West Chester, PA 19382

Summer Classes Registration Now Open Choose from day, evening and online options.

Summer I May 23 – June 30

PowerUp! Online June 6 – August 11

Summer II July 6 – August 11

LEARN MORE: Call 1-877-912-DCCC (1-877-912-3222).

Visit dccc.edu/pennocks or dccc.edu/powerup.

Pennocks Bridge Campus Technical College High School | 280 Pennocks Bridge Road | West Grove, PA

Find yourself here.

Delaware County Community College is an equal opportunity institution.

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Educating Delaware and Chester Counties

CHESTER COUNTY CHARTER SCHOOLS Avon Grove Charter School (Early Learning Center) (610-255-5325) 1769 New London Road, Landenberg, PA 19350 www.agcharter.org Avon Grove Charter School (West Grove Campus) (484-667-5000) 110 East State Road, West Grove, PA 19390 www.agcharter.org

AREA COLLEGES & UNIVERSITIES Cheyney University of PA (610-399-2220) 1837 University Circle, P. O. Box 200, Cheyney, PA 19319-0200 Delaware County Community College (Marple Campus) (610-359-5000) 901 South Media Line Road, Media, PA 19063-1094 Delaware County Community College (Brandywine Campus) (610-723-1100) 455 Boot Road, Downingtown, PA 19335

Delaware County Community College (Exton Campus) (610-450-6500) 912 Springdale Drive, Exton, PA 19341 Delaware County Community College (Pennock’s Bridge Campus) (610-869-5100) 280 Pennock’s Bridge Road, West Grove, PA 19390 Immaculata University (610-647-4400) 1145 King Road, Immaculata, PA 19345 The Lincoln University (484-365-8000) 1570 Baltimore Pike, Lincoln University, PA 19352 Penn State Great Valley (610-648-3200) (School of Graduate Professional Studies) 30 East Swedesford Road, Malvern, PA 19355 Valley Forge Christian College (610-935-0450) 1401 Charlestown Road, Phoenixville, PA 19460 West Chester University of Pennsylvania (610-436-1000) University and High Streets, West Chester, PA 19383

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—————|Landenberg Photo Essay|—————

Through the Barn Door A look around Landenberg’s stables

By Carla Lucas Correspondent Landenberg is known as a haven for equestrians – from small farmettes where families keep a horse or two, to larger stables and farms. A drive around the area’s back roads reveals stables, barns, and horses of all shapes and sizes. Take a look at a few of them on the following pages.

Silver Dollar Farm Barbara and Keith Hoffman have a small farmette in Landenberg. Among their animals are Bart and Albert (a cross between a miniature pony and Shetland pony).

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Old brick barn stables Old Brick Barn Stables gets its name from the oldest part of the structure built on the Vannoy farm at the corner of Strickersville and Appleton roads.

The original section of barn was built in the early 1800s. You can still see the bark from the trees used to support the hayloft.

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Photo Essay Continued from Page 83

morningstar stables

All photos by Carla Lucas The barn at Morningstar Stables was built in 1723. Since Chris and Trish Wethean purchased the property in 2004, they’ve worked hard to restore the barn. When they gutted the inside and renovated the stalls, they found a beam with carved initials dated 1806 and 1827. The Wetheans have two horses and board six additional horses.

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latimer stable and farmhouse Nan Latimer started with her home above the stable. Later, a new house was added, and the two buildings attached with a breezeway. Her horses, Jack and Penny, enjoy a carrot in the pasture. Nan places horsehair in the trees outside the barn that birds use for nest-building.

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—————|Landenberg People|—————

Landenberg couple, married 34 years, recalls their first date at ‘Star Wars’ Courtesy photo

Philip and Ann went to see “Star Wars” on their first date nearly 39 years ago. When the latest episode in the space saga came out, they made sure to make a date night to go see it.

By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer

O

n Sept. 23, 1977, Philip Wengloski asked his friend, Ann Hesse, out on a date. He was a freshman in college. She was a senior in high school in Lebanon, Connecticut, the town where they had both grown up.

Philip and Ann decided that they would go see “Star Wars” that evening. Four months after its release, the movie was on its way to becoming a cultural phenomenon. Watching it sounded like a pretty good way to spend a Friday night.

“I was excited to see “Star Wars,” Ann recalled. “It just

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looked like a cool movie.”

Indeed, like millions of other movie-goers that summer a long time ago, Philip and Ann loved George Lucas’s epic space saga and the adventures of Luke, Han, and Leia as they battled against Darth Vader and the evil Galactic Empire. It was a great movie with a lively story, even though it wasn’t exactly romantic.

But for Philip and Ann, there was romance in the air that night as they enjoyed “Star Wars” and snacked at Friendly’s afterward. That night marked the beginning of their love story.

“It was definitely magical,” Ann explained. “We both knew that it was going to be a special relationship.”

*** Hit the hyperdrive and fast forward nearly thirty-nine years.

Today, Philip and Ann Wengloski live in Landenberg. He is a nuclear engineer with Exelon Generation in Kennett Square.

She is a speech pathologist for a school in Delaware. They still celebrate Sept. 23, the anniversary of their first date, as well as other important dates like their wedding anniversary and the birthdays of their two children. Lindsay, 28, lives in Wisconsin, and Joe, 26, resides in Virginia.

Philip and Ann both find it hard to believe that before too long it will be four decades since the night of their first date.

“When you’re 10,” Ann explained, “summer lasts forever.

But, as you get older, you realize how quickly time passes.”

The couple settled in Landenberg last year after a 14-year stay in Maryland when Philip’s job transferred to Exelon.

“We love the area,” Ann explained. “It has a nice, comfortable kind of feeling.”

“It reminds us of our eastern Connecticut roots,” Philip added. *** The seeds for the relationship between Philip and Ann were planted in Lebanon, a small farming town that is 20 miles east of Hartford and just to the northwest of Norwich.

The town is best known for being a base of American operations during the American Revolution. Gov. Jonathan Trumbull, Sr. was the only British colonial governor to side the American forces during the Revolution, and he directed Connecticut’s war effort on Lebanon’s town green. Trumbull was an important ally to Gen. George Washington, and his children were also influential in the war effort: his son, Joseph, was a colonel in the Continental Army; Jonathan was secretary to Gen. Washington; and John served first as a soldier and then as a personal aide to Gen. Washington during the war. The Trumbull family, and the town of Lebanon itself, was so important to the war effort that it earned the nickname, “Heartbeat of the Revolution.”

The town offered Philip and Ann an idyllic American childhood. Ann recalls that, while they weren’t childhood sweethearts, their lives kept intersecting with each other.

They went to the same schools and their families belonged to the same church.

Once, when she was in fifth grade, Ann attended a church event that was taking place at a local elementary school.

Her father owned a blue Galaxie Ford 500 at the time.

When the event was over, she went out and hopped into the first blue Galaxie 500 that she saw. It turned out that Philip’s father had the exact same car. When she realized the mistake, the fifth-grader was so embarrassed that she asked Mr. Wengloski not to tell his son what she had done.

“I got out of that car so fast,” Ann said with a laugh.

Courtesy photo

Philip and Ann at their home in Landenberg.

They were one grade apart in school, but Philip and Ann would occasionally have the same class together.

They also became better friends through church activities. By the time they went to see “Star Wars” together on that memorable night in September of 1977, they already knew that they liked each other.

Before long, they realized that they loved each other.

The couple got engaged in 1981. They were married in 1982.

While it has been said that opposites attract, this couple has more similarities than differences. They obviously have a great deal of respect and affection for each other. When they talk, it’s clear that they are continually on the same wavelength, as only couples who’ve been married for 34 years can be. To put it simply, they have a relationship that is worthy of one of those terrific “When Harry Met Sally,” vignettes Continued on Page 88

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where the couples talk about how they were destined to spend their lives with one another.

Still, there are some differences.

He packs in about five minutes while she will spend days preparing for a trip.

When Philip is pressed to identify one way in which he and Ann are different, he quips, “She’s more bossy than I am.”

“It’s called structure, Phil,” she replies without missing a beat.

According to Ann, there are no secrets to being a happy couple, although the couple has shared some of what they’ve learned during weekend retreats with engaged couples who are preparing themselves for marriage.

She said that humor and faith are essential ingredients to a strong relationship. Humor helps because, in life, things are going to happen. And faith because, well, in life, things are going to happen.

“Faith is very important to us,” Ann explained.

They also make sure to listen to one another and do small things for each other. He will leave notes for her around the house. She also hides little notes for him when he travels—notes with inspirational quotes or short messages to let him know that she is thinking of him.

“Just doing things for each other—that’s important,” she said.

Little traditions that they share as a couple are important, too. They still

Courtesy photo

The couple has two children: Joe, who lives in Virginia, and Lindsay, who resides in Wisconsin.

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like going to the movies, and they will often follow it up with a visit to Friendly’s, just as they did on their first date.

In early January, Philip and Ann went to see the latest installment of the space saga, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” The movie, directed by J.J. Abrams, quickly became the top-grossing movie of all-time, and reminded a new generation about how great the Star Wars story is.

“It was awesome,” Ann said. “The creativity behind it all is amazing.”

Philip noted that the place that Star Wars has in pop culture is rather unique in that there aren’t many stories that endure for 40 years.

According to their daughter, Lindsay, Philip and Ann’s relationship has had many endearing details that seem cinematic.

“They grew up less than a mile apart in the same small Connecticut farm town and played on the same playground,” she said. “And then, to begin their relationship with a movie date to

T L

Courtesy photo

Philip and Ann say that Landenberg reminds them of the area in eastern Connecticut where they both grew up.

see “Star Wars: A New Hope”? The intersection of that relationship milestone and a pop-culture watershed always struck me as romantic. So to celebrate their anniversary this year with another Star Wars movie date—that’s picture-perfect.”

To contact Staff Writer Steven Hoffman, email editor@chestercounty.com.

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—————|Around Landenberg|—————

One family’s efforts start a community tradition and improve our environment

Photo by Carla Lucas

April Schmitt oversees the dump site and invasive plant removal at the 2015 annual clean-up event in White Clay Creek Preserve.

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At the beginning of a clean-up, the soil vegetation is removed and volunteers begin to find the trash.

Photos by Carla Lucas

April organized a special fall clean-out in White Clay Creek Preserve with volunteers from Friends of White Clay Creek Preserve for National Public Lands Day in 2014.

By Carla Lucas Correspondent

F

ifteen years ago, when I walked along the trails in White Clay Creek Preserve, I’d see piles of rusted appliances, tires, bottles, and other dumped trash. I thought someone ought to do something about it.

That “someone” turned out to be April Schmitt, of Landenberg. What started in 2005 as a family service project for April, her husband John, and their children Courtney and Drew has grown into a community event that has cleaned up the above-ground dump sites in White Clay Creek Preserve in Pennsylvania, and White Clay Creek State Park in Delaware. More than 170 people have volunteered on the 14 clean-up projects April has organized over the years.

“The trash does not belong in the park,” Schmitt said.

“We all need to do more to minimize our polluting and waste, and I’m especially appalled that humans even consider dumping their waste in natural places. The need to remove man-made debris from parkland was completely logical for me.”

To find dump sites, April hikes in the winter, when there is little or no vegetation covering the ground. She goes off trail and looks around for stuff that protrudes above the ground. She says the worst dump sites are old farms and home sites. In the past, people would choose a washed out area, or a place where there was a depression, and dump stuff over the edge. These sites remain for years.

At a dump site clean-up project, the goal isn’t to “cure”

or remove everything, it is to take off the top layer of stuff. “You don’t want to dig so much that it will create erosion and harm the area,” Schmitt said. “You want to get to a point where you no longer see man-made objects sticking out of the ground. Once the brush grows up in a cleared area, we hope it will look natural. We can’t make the trash disappear, we just extract it and move it to a landfill.”

For the first couple of years, workers would drive the removed trash to the landfill in pick-up truck loads.

Eventually they determined it was a better use of everyone’s time to get a dumpster near the site and fill it.

In 2005, the four Schmitts removed an old washer and numerous bags of trash from a site near the David English trail. It was a small family affair.

After that first year, the family started recruiting friends to help, which was a great thing. Their children were attending Avon Grove High School at the time and found many willing to help from friends, teachers and even school board members. At their second clean-up, they moved lots of old appliances and 45 discarded tires in just one morning.

Also since the second year, the staff, rangers, and/or managers at both White Clay Creek Preserve and White Clay Creek State Park have supported Schmitt’s projects and helped to make them successful.

“The volunteer work crews are by far the most important asset to all of these efforts,” Schmitt said. “Extricating trash can be pretty dirty and difficult, but carrying heavy loads Continued on Page 92 www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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Trash Removal Continued from Page 91

out of the woods, sometimes uphill, is very exhausting.”

Recently, about a third of her volunteers come from the members of the Wilmington Trail Club, another organization Schmitt has joined.

Word of mouth brings new people out to help. At last year’s spring clean-up, 47 people gathered along Sharpless Road in the Preserve. They removed 35 extra-large bags of dump waste and cleared twice as much volume of invasive plant species from the adjacent trail side.

The annual spring dump clean-up projects Schmitt organizes are in conjunction with the wider Christina River Watershed Clean-up (CRWC) each year. April and John participated in the first CRWC in 1992 when they heard about it from a friend.

“We were impressed and have participated in most of the clean ups each year,” she

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Photo by Carla Lucas

Near the dump site, a third group of volunteers works on invasive plant removal along a section of trail in 2015.

Landenberg Today | Spring/Summer 2016 | www.landenbergtoday.com

Photos by Carla Lucas

Volunteers collected the trash into buckets in 2015.

The buckets are carried down the hill to the collection area by another set of volunteers in 2015.

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Trash Removal

Photos by Carla Lucas

Left: A wheelbarrow filled with trash is taken out from the dump site in 2014.

Continued from Page 92

said. “Over the years, all of the CRWC sites have cumulatively removed more than 360 tons of tires, appliances, household items, and other trash from within the extended watershed.

“Although most cleanup projects seem overwhelming, any effort to remove debris, no matter how small, will result in some positive impact on nature.

Volunteers get a lot of satisfaction seeing how their efforts can restore an area back to its natural beauty.”

Schmitt will add anyone interested in helping on future dump site or invasive species removal projects to her database and mailing list. Email her at april. schmitt27@gmail.com.

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—————|Landenberg Outdoors|—————

Oh, Deer!

Photo by S. Halford

Deer on the move.

Learning to adapt to deer in the environment Lisa Fieldman Correspondent

P

icture a herd of white-tailed deer, gracefully running across an expanse of open ground. Whether a group of does with their fawns, or a glorious buck with a full rack, it can be quite an amazing sight.

Now picture the same deer feasting on your newly installed landscape.

Feelings vary when it comes to deer. They can be a source of both enjoyment and annoyance. One of the advantages of living in Landenberg is the proximity to open space and wildlife.

We need to learn to coexist with the white-tailed deer, instead of expecting the deer to adapt to us.

When land is developed, we are often building on the deer’s preferred habitat. As a result, they are pushed into areas that may not be optimal for their survival. If plants they feed on are unavailable or not as plentiful, they will go looking for alternative food sources.

“As much as people love to see deer, there are too many deer and not enough habitat,” said Chris Kane. A native of Landenberg, Kane grew up playing and hunting in the woods, and is quite familiar with the habits of white-tailed deer. He started his own landscaping company, Superior Yardworks, more than 20 years ago, and his extensive knowledge of the area’s flora and fauna gives him an edge when it comes to native gardening.

So you’ve just planted a beautiful new landscape bed, and are anticipating the enjoyment it will bring for seasons to come. The next morning, you find plants yanked from the ground and tips of shrubs nibbled. Who’s the culprit? While a rabbit will neatly chew a plant to the ground, deer are notoriously messy eaters. They rip a plant out, take one or two bites,

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Photo by L. Fieldman

Chris Kane of Superior Yardworks, Inc., shows ‘deer candy’ protected by deer wire.

and move on to the next delectable morsel. Often they trample the plants they have not eaten.

The key to gardening in deer territory is to use plants they prefer not to eat.

This is where the concept of using native plants comes into play.

“You have to understand,” Kane said, “there is no such thing as ‘deer proof.’ There are many types of native plants that are deer-resistant, but there is no guarantee when it comes to deer and their appetites.”

Deer are doing what they need to do to ensure their survival. It is important to understand that when deer are very hungry, they will be driven to eat things that are not in their normal diet. Holly has long been considered a “deer proof” food, but when food is scarce, deer cannot afford to be picky.

“Who wants to eat a prickly-leafed holly?” Kane said, laughing, “but if we were hungry enough, we might eat holly too!” Deer know which foods are the most nourishing and this dictates how they feed as the seasons change.

White-tails eat approximately five to eight pounds of food each day, and have two feeding patterns: browsing and grazing. Grazing occurs in the spring and summer, when deer need more water-based foods such as herbaceous leaf foliage, grasses, weeds and soft-stemmed plants. This is the time when they will savor the tender annuals and perennials you have so carefully planted. Deer lose approximately 25 percent of their body mass over the winter, so come spring, they are desperate to bulk up.

Deer browse in the fall and winter. They will eat branch tips, stems, Continued on Page 98

Photo by L. Fieldman

Janie Schnelle of London Britain Township coordinates the deer feeding program.

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Deer Continued from Page 97

remaining foliage, acorns, and bud tips that are setting up for the spring. The white-tails are stocking up for the winter, when food will become scarce.

They do not convert excess food into fat like hibernating animals. While they will gain some excess fat in the fall, it won’t sustain them through the winter, so deer need to eat continuously.

Feeding on our prized gardens is not the only way deer damage our landscape. Male deer will rub a tree to mark their territory during mating season. They will also rub to remove the velvet from their new antlers. Sometimes a buck will rub a newly planted tree simply out of curiosity. Buck rubs open wounds on trees, making them susceptible to insects and disease, and during a rub, bark can be stripped, branches broken and saplings can be pushed over.

Cedar and other aromatic trees are favorites for deer to rub, and they prefer small, flexible saplings. Wire cages or other physical barriers can be placed around newly planted trees to protect them from damage.

“If we can use native plants in our everyday landscapes, we stand a better chance of surviving deer damage than if we choose a fancy ornamental specimen,” Kane said.

“Native plants have adapted to our particular growing conditions and have been coexisting with the white-tail deer population forever.”

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When choosing deer-resistant specimens, look for shrubs and trees with thorny or prickly leaves and stems, such as mahonia, barberry and pine, or plants that have a strong scent, like Catmint or Bergamot. “If using a plant that is ‘deer candy,’ you need to choose your location wisely,” Kane explained. Deer candy is plant material that you know deer will be attracted to, such as roses, daylilies and some varieties of hostas.

“Install these plants in a location where deer won’t be tempted to visit, or with plantings they will avoid,” Kane said.

You might consider creating a series of smaller fenced gardens, as deer feel threatened in small spaces and steer clear of them.

Most importantly, do not plant these specimens along a wood line or in a deer travel path.

You may think your options are limited when planting a native landscape. So much information is available from the Pennsylvania Native Plant Society website or the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society. You will find a rich and varied list of native plantings to enhance your garden.

“Working with a knowledgeable landscaper is also a great idea,” Kane said. “I always advise clients to include native plants, as well as to use more organic methods in their gardens.”

Still, you may want to have that bed of colorful daylilies, and there is no reason why you cannot enjoy your garden and keep

Photo by L. Fieldman

The amount of food a deer will eat in a day.

deer at bay. There are many options when it comes to deer deterrents: high wire or electric fencing, organic and chemical sprays, and scare devices. “With fencing,” Kane said, “keep in mind deer can jump eight feet or higher.”

He often advises clients about deer deterrents, and Continued on Page 100

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Deer Continued from Page 99

said, “no repellent system is effective long term.” Fencing needs to be maintained, sprays need to be reapplied and scare devices need to be repositioned to keep the does on their toes.

Although it may require some planning, with the right plant material choices and an understanding of our whitetailed neighbors, we can all share our beautiful surroundings in harmony.

Fighting Lyme disease with deer feeder stations In the early 1990s, members of the Schnelle family were diagnosed with Lyme disease. While devastating for the family, it was also a relief to have finally found the cause for the ailments affecting the family for several years.

“It was a struggle to get a proper diagnosis,” explained Janie Schnelle. The medical community was just starting to react to the skyrocketing outbreak of Lyme nationally, and it was hard to find a doctor who specialized in Lyme disease.

Once diagnosed, Schnelle started investigating Lyme disease, its cause – the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi -- and the relationship between the black-legged tick and white-tail

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deer. She read about deer feeders that apply insecticide on deer as they feed. Her interest was piqued as she considered the impact a deer feeder program might have on the spread of Lyme disease.

To effectively combat the black-legged (deer) tick, it is necessary to understand its life cycle. An adult tick will lay thousands of eggs in the ground, and in late summer, the eggs hatch into larvae that feed on the blood of mice, chipmunks and birds. At this stage, the tick can pick up the Lyme bacteria.

After feeding for a few days, the tick will drop off and remain dormant until the following spring. Molting into the nymph stage, the tick will again seek another host such as a mouse, chipmunk, or the unlucky human. Being the size of a poppy seed, nymphs are hard to detect.

After feeding, the nymph will drop off and eventually molt into an adult. By the end of the summer and into late fall, the adult tick is again searching for a blood meal and will attach to deer as well as humans. After feeding for about one week, the female tick drops off and lays approximately

3,000 eggs in the ground, creating the next generation of deer ticks.

White-tail deer are so integral to the tick’s life cycle that when the deer population dwindles, there is a drastic reduction in the population of the black-legged tick.

In 1996, the Department of Agriculture developed the four-poster treatment bait station to treat ticks on cattle.

After a five-year study to see if the bait stations would work equally well for white-tail deer, the feeders became commercially available. The feeders reduce deer tick populations by controlling ticks that feed on white-tail deer.

Schnelle, a township supervisor at the time, was looking for a way to combat the deer tick problem in Landenberg.

She discussed the benefit of the deer treatment feeder program with her fellow supervisors. They unanimously agreed to support the program, “as long as I did all the work,” she explained with a laugh.

In 2004, London Britain Township purchased 35 deer feeders using a $30,000 gift to the program. When a notice about the program was placed in the township newsletter, people were very responsive. Approximately 30 feeders are currently installed in the township, and Franklin Township has a few in use as well.

Continued on Page 102

Photos by L. Fieldman

Left: Azalea buds, a deer favorite.

Right: A sapling shows signs of a buck rub. www.landenbergtoday.com | Spring/Summer 2016 | Landenberg Today

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Deer Continued from Page 101

The feeder contains a central bin that stores corn. The corn spills down into two feeding areas at the base. On the outside of the base are two sets of rollers that are saturated with a tickicide (a mineral oil/ Permethrin solution). As Photo by L. Fieldman the deer leans in to feed, Anyone can build a four-poster deer it is forced to rub up feeding station. Plans are available from London Britain Township. against the rollers that apply the solution to their ears, heads and shoulders, where 90 percent of ticks are found. Later, through grooming, the pesticide is spread throughout the deer’s body. The insecticide kills the tick on contact, and the residue remaining on the deer will continue to kill new ticks that attach.

Permethrin is a commonly used insecticide, as well as an insect repellent. It belongs to a family of synthetic chemicals called pyrethroids, which act like extracts of the chrysanthemum flower. Permethrin is highly toxic to ticks, damaging the nervous system of the insects, but has low toxicity to mammals, and does not affect the meat of the deer. It is also considered environmentally safe.

Some people will argue that it is best to treat the deer tick in the rodent population. This can be done by placing small paper tubes filled with Permethrin-treated cotton in the underbrush. It is more efficient, however, to treat the deer, as one bait feeder will impact a 50-acre area, the normal range of a deer, versus impacting a much smaller area when treating rodents.

“Everyone who is using the deer feeders sees a decrease in deer ticks,” Schnelle explained. However, Permethrin degrades in sunlight, so it is necessary to re-saturate the rollers every two weeks to continue its effectiveness. Optimally, the feeders should be used from the end of March through June, then again in September until the first hard frost.

The township provides corn for residents who have installed the bait stations. “This program is run completely by volunteers,” Schnelle explained. She and her husband Dave can be relied on to educate people about the importance of deer treatment feeders in the battle against Lyme disease. “It’s essential to keep using them,” she warned, “because the ticks come back.”

Anyone interested in setting up a four-poster deer treatment feeder can contact London Britain Township, and they will put you in contact with Schnelle, who will provide the necessary assistance.

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