Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Friends unite; Cub Scouts raisemoney for a great cause
Life in America continues to evolve in wake of coronavirus crisis; Unionville parents call COVID- 19 restrictions ‘ political’
From Cub Scouts to cherished friends, daily life in American society continues to develop.
Although the public schools remain closed to student collaborative learning, and folks are wearing masks to buy necessities at grocery stores, there is still a popular local consensus that Pennsylvania has “flattened the curve” at home against the global pandemic of COVID19.
Originally referred to as the Wuhan Coronavirus, then novel coronavirus, and COVID- 19, this Corona pathogen impacted daily life for Americans in countless ways.
Many people now face enormous financial hardship and others, including senior citizens across the Greater Philadelphia Region, remain in isolation. Yet still life continues. Scouts from Pack 60, including Jaxson Taylor and twin sisters Ally Taylor and Zoey Taylor worked an outdoor table selling popcorn products at Landhope Farms in West Marlborough Township on Saturday.
“Support couts,” the little ones said in unison.
Northward to Chadds Ford, near the Chester County border on Route 1 in Delco, friends united at the Brandywine River Museum of Art on Thursday.
The ladies hadn’t seen each other since February.
After over six months apart, Janice Quinn of Ardmore, Susie Baldauf of Ardmore, Vicki Childs of Claymont and Ricky Pfeifer of Glen Mills visited the museum to enjoy an afternoon of art together, with reserved tickets in tow.
“It’s wonderful,” Pfeifer said of the reunion.
Without the joy of friendship, depression knocks loudly for some people.
There have been 39 suicides in Chester County in 2020, as of Aug. 31, according to the Chester County Coroner’s Office.
There have been 362 COVID19 deaths in Chesco, as of Sept. 15, according to Chester County spokeswoman Becky Brain.
Of these 362 deaths, 275 occurred in long- term care facilities for senior citizens. The most such deaths occurred at the Southeastern Veterans Center in East Vincent near Spring City.
Three people died from COVID- 19 in Coatesville, the only community in Chester County to issue a curfew during the statewide mandated shutdown of the entire greater Philadelphia region, which included the suspension of “non- essential” commerce from real estate to auto sales, this past winter and spring.
From March to Sept. 15, of the 362 confirmed COVID19 deaths in Chester County, 43 deaths represent people between the ages of 60 to 69.
However, in Chesco, the vast majority of the 362 people who’ve died from COVID- 19 have been seniors 70 or older.
Specifically, 301 people who suffered COVID- 19 related deaths were 70 or older. Thus, seniors 70 or older represent 80 percent of all Corona- related deaths in Chester County.
Despite an ongoing increase of happy reunions among friends at beautiful landmarks, the region’s children, from Philadelphia to Oxford, remain in isolation from their peers without the benefit of collaborative instruction. In September, students enrolled at public school districts in Chester County all began the 2020- 21 academic year with five days of remote learning only.
Many children are struggling to learn virtually and youth depression is on the rise.
“It’s heartbreaking,” said Amy Dettore on Sept. 21 standing outside Unionville High School during a peaceful protest, attended by students and parents, to “open the schools.”