A beautiful look at neighbors helping neighbors

A look at the week that was, the issues and people who made headlines, and a few darts and laurels for those who deserve them.

LAUREL: To the McGonigle Family of Havertown. Faced with a series of medical dilemmas, they reached out to friends and family for help. Now they’re returning the favor with Compassion United Havertown. It’s a Facebook page where you can request help. They are confirmation of the basic goodness inherent in all of us. Bravo!

DART: To cancer. The McGonigles have had more than their share of this dreaded disease. It continues to take a horrific toll. Spring brings with it the annual Relays for Life, a major fundraiser for cancer research. Why don’t we all go for a walk.

LAUREL: To Republican U.S. Reps. Pat Meehan and Ryan Costello. The Delco and Chesco congresemen both stood up to intense pressure from GOP leadership and even the president to vote against the GOP’s American Health Care Act. It took some political guts to do that. It’s called being a “representative” for a reason. You are supposed to represent your constituency. These two just did. Well done!

DART: To the sight of President Trump, Vice President Pence, House Speaker Paul Ryan and all their Republican counterparts gloating on the White House lawn at passage of the bill that could mark the beginning of the end of the Affordable Care Act. We hope voters upset at the prospect of losing critical coverage wipe those smiles off their faces in the upcoming mid-term elections.

LAUREL: To calling in the cavalry in Chester. Delco District Attorney Jack Whelan joined city officials Wednesday at a press conference to announce something that was put in place a few years ago. That would be a return of state police patrols in the city. Chester needs all the help it can get in quelling the scourge of guns and street violence that are far too much a part of daily life in the city.

DART: To what can only be described as unacceptable manpower situations in the city. Last weekend at one point there were as many gunshot victims – from the latest drive-by incident – as there were officers patrolling the streets. Chester needs more cops. And they need them now.

LAUREL: To James Sharkey and his work in the Eastside Rec Center gym. One of the things involved in Chester’s predicament is the lack of alternatives for young people. Sharkey and his gym are giving kids a fighting chance, a place where they can go to get right, and be safe. Well done.

LAUREL: To those who gathered at Saint Mary Magdalen Church in Upper Providence last weekend for the Blue Mass in memory of fallen law enforcement officers. This Mass in particular was dedicated to county Parks Officer Ed Wehe III, and Upper Chi Native Jacai Colson, who was killed in the line of duty last year in Maryland.

DART: Ironically the Mass comes just days after a Delaware state trooper was gunned down during a confrontation with a suspect in the parking lot of a Wawa store in Bear, Del.

DART: To the surprising move by Chester High School officials to dump Larry Yarbray, the extremely successful coach of the Chester Clippers. The two-time state champion is not having his contract renewed. Guess those state titles, the latest in the long line of Chester High hoops excellence, aren’t worth what they once were.

DART: To some young hooligans in Ridley. First it was kids in Springfield acting up. Now it’s Ridley. Officials and police are warning these young toughs that this kind of behavior will be met with zero tolerance.

LAUREL: To the muchanticipated arrival of Cracker Barrel in Delaware County. Officials in Ridley said the popular eatery will be opening on Stewart Avenue not far from the Boeing plant this November. And they’re bringing 175 jobs with it!

LAUREL: This little strip is a bit of a boom town in Ridley. It already houses a couple of hotels, a Wendy’s and a Royal Farms store. But Cracker Barrel puts it over the top. Citizens have been buzzing about it for months. When do you think they’ll start standing in line for the opening?

LAUREL: To the kids at Grace Park Elementary School in Ridley. Local hero Nick Colleluori is not forgotten in his home town. Before succumbing to cancer, Nick established the HEAD-Strong Foundation to help families in the struggle against cancer. Last week the kids at Grace Park all donned lime green T-shirts and hit the sidewalks, walking 27 minutes in a special fundraiser for the organization.

LAUREL: To the huge turnout in Eddystone last weekend for the borough’s annual Overdose Awareness Day and Walk. An astounding 7,000 people turned out to take part, many remembering friends and loved ones lost to the heroin-opioid scourge.

DART: The walk only reinforces just how bad the heroin epidemic is. Kudos to the city of Philadelphia, which is tightening regulations on doctors who often hand out powerful painkillers like candy. Many heroin victims started with legitimate injuries being treated with painkillers such as oxycodone. Before they know it, they’re hooked. When the prescription runs out, unfortunately their craving does not. Soon they’re on the street scoring heroin. It’s a vicious circle.

LAUREL: To the memory of longtime Aston coach Rich Scharrer. The Little League fixture collapsed and died of massive heart attack. His friends, family and colleagues paid respects to his memory before a game last Friday night.

LAUREL: To Swarthmore, for putting some ‘sizzle’ in this spring’s Primary election. Voters in the borough will take another shot at whether the end their long tradition of being a ‘dry’ town. The referendum asks if the borough should allow sales of booze – at other than the Inn at Swarthmore, owned by Swarthmore College. Right now that’s the only place in town to wet your whistle.

DART: To the sure knowledge that this off-year municipal election will see voters stay away in droves. Parties will nominate candidates for local and county offices. You know, they’re only the people who set your taxes.

LAUREL: To the hard work of all those who pushed to preserve the Beaver Valley tract in Concord. This beloved chunk of open space now will not fall to the developer’s bulldozer. The Brandywine Conservancy this week announced they had raised the necessary funds to spare the tract, long a favorite of walker, runners, bikers and nature lovers in the heavily congested western edge of the county.

DART: It’s about time. Have you tried driving on Route 1 or Route 202 in the western end of the county recently. It’s no longer rural. It’s jam-packed with commuters during the week, shoppers on the weekend. A leisurely trip south on Route 202 and then a left on Route 1 to get to Route 322 is now a white-knuckle experience.

LAUREL: Speaking of Route 322, the infamous Conchester Highway, a serious tip of the hat to state Rep. Steve Barrar. He realized a decades-long dream last week when Gov. Tom Wolf officially kicked off the expansion plans for what is scorned as the “Killer Conchester.”

DART: Of course getting there is going to be painful in itself. Expect lane restrictions and long delays on this heavily traveled route for months.

LAUREL: To Eagles fans. They were the star of the show as the eyes of the sports world zeroed in on Philly for the NFL Draft. More than 250,000 people packed the Parkway for the event. That’s a record, according to the NFL czars.

DART: To the non-stop blather about these draft picks. Call us when these guys actually get on the field. Can we please retire the phrase, “he has a high motor.” That’s nice. But can he play? And by the way, maybe the Eagles are taking a page out of the Sixers playbook. Their second round pick, cornerback Sidney Jones, is not expected to play at all this season as he nurses a bum Achilles. Swell. Sam Hinkie would be proud. The Process is alive and well, only across the street in South Philly.