Rug man’s debut novel about Delco’s tradesmen
DCIU presents workshop to help students coping with anxiety
UPPER DARBY » David Amadio of Drexel Hill released his debut novel, “Rug Man,” earlier this month. Published through Paul Dry Books in Philadelphia, the book is set in Delaware County.
The plot of “Rug Man” centers around the main character’s carpet business in Upper Darby and his client’s McMansion in Villanova.
For fans of Richard Russo and Stewart O’Nan comes a frank and funny debut novel about the workday world of an unassuming carpet installer.
The publisher describes the story this way: Frank “Ace” Renzetti has been installing carpet for over 40 years, working the upscale neighborhoods of Philadelphia’s Main Line. At a time when he should be considering retirement, Frank takes on one of the biggest and strangest jobs of his career.
The house is owned by a volatile and eccentric divorcee and its rooms are teeming with weary contractors, many of whom have been on the job for months. A pampered dog regularly sabotages everyone’s work, and the general contractor patrols the site as if it’s the border.
Amid this weeklong circus, Frank’s body starts to fail him, and when he loses both his helpers to a drug bust, he is left to complete the job by himself on one good leg.
Desperate, he poaches a day-laborer from his competitor and finds that the young, paperless El Salvadoran
has a way with carpet and just might be the future of the trade. As the physical challenges of the job mount, the fate of Frank’s business, along with the fate of his blue-collar genius, become increasingly uncertain.
According to a press release about the book, “Rug Man” is a tribute to a bygone era of craftsmen whose work was the source of their greatest suffering but also their greatest pride.
Amadio teaches creative writing and composition at Lincoln University. His work has appeared in Cleaver, Packingtown Review, Adaptation, Talking River, Nerve Cowboy and the San Francisco Examiner.
Amadio explains, “‘Rug Man’ was largely inspired by my experience working for Ascot Carpets, the family-owned rug business. Founded in 1952 by my great uncles, Ascot Carpets has been a fixture in my life for as long as I can remember. My father bought the business from my uncles in the early 1990s, and I starting working for him shortly thereafter, apprenticing on my off-days from school, straddling the line between academia and the workaday world. During this time, my father greatly expanded his mechanical repertoire, developing sophisticated sewing and binding techniques that earned him the interest of high-end designers. I quietly watched him become the most trusted and sought-after carpet installer in the region.”
During his time on the job, the author used a notebook to record the names, and attitudes, of his ever-growing client list: Julius Erving, Will Smith, Jim Gardner and many, many others.
“The novel’s main character, Frank Renzetti, is modeled after my father,” Amadio states. “And the book is a
paean to him and his working-class brethren, including the plumbers and painters and carpenters who, in the words of Eugene O’Neil, ‘make the whole thing go.’ ”
To order a copy of the book, visit www.pauldrybooks.com or amazon.com.
DCIU presents free parent workshop to help children cope with anxiety
Parents can learn strategies to help their child cope with anxiety at a special free workshop, via Zoom, presented by the Delaware County Intermediate Unit Division of Teaching and Learning, 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 11.
Presented by Natalie Bowen, the IU teaching and learning specialist, the workshop will focus on how parents can help their child develop emotional regulation skills in general, but particularly those that come in handy when dealing with worried or anxious feelings.
Parents can learn ways to support and empower their child to work through feelings as well as recognize when it may be time to involve the support of the school or a therapist outside of the school setting.
The IU’s workshops are geared to help parents better navigate the often challenging roadmap of educating their children with disabilities or learning challenges who may need extra help.
The content of this workshop is geared toward parents but open to all. There will be no Act 48 or continuing education credit offered if a professional chooses to attend this workshop.
Parents must register at https://tinyurl. com/2avy37ce.
There is no cost to attend, but registration is necessary. The Zoom link will be emailed on the day of the training. To participate, parents must register for this session by 4 p.m. on April 7.
Our Lady of Peace to hold cash bingo
Our Lady of Peace Parish in Ridley Township will hold bingo Saturday, April 1 at 7 p.m. at Notre Dame deLourdes Nelson Hall.
Doors will open 6 p.m. Bingo costs $35 in advance and $40 at the door and features cash prizes.
Raffles and a 50/50 drawing will be available. Attendees can bring their own snacks and drinks. The prize amounts will be based off on the number of players.
For tickets, email RoseTimMoran@gmail.com or call Dan Tyson at 610-7660527. For tickets through Venmo, @OurLadyOfPeaceParish
IceWorks presents celebrity hockey game
Five-time NHL All-Star Brian Propp invites the community to attend the Brian Propp Celebrity Faceoff Hockey Game, presented by Sun East Credit Union, to benefit the HEADstrong Foundation, Saturday, April 1 at IceWorks, 3100 Dutton Mill Road, Aston.
Doors open at noon for all tickets.
Joining Propp on the ice are former NHL players Riley Cote, Doug Crossman, Mark Howe, Nick Schultz and Chris Therien.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the HEADstrong Foundation, the local nonprofit organization focused on providing financial, residential and emotional support to families affected by cancer.
Tickets are $10 and children under age 2 are free.
But there are $20 tickets that include a meet-and-greet.
For $40, the ticket includes event, meet-and-greet and happy hour. Tickets are available on a first come, first served basis online at http:// provantagesolutions.com and, if still available, onsite at the event.
White Horse Village campus renovation recycles 45,000 pounds of vinyl siding
White Horse Village, an active senior living community in Edgmont Township, is the site of a sustainability initiative to recycle 45,000 pounds of PVC vinyl siding.
As part of campuswide renovations, the pilot project is a collaboration between R. Titter Roofing and CertainTeed building products, a division of Saint-Gobain North America.
White Horse Village’s renovations include new siding, stonework, and windows for 186 residences as part of a larger master plan.
The vinyl recycling program kicked off last year with the exterior renovations of 70 garden cottages and will continue in 2023 as work begins on 116 villas this spring.
“We’re thrilled to participate in this pilot project with CertainTeed and R. Titter Roofing. It is an excellent fit for our environmentally focused community,” shares Len Weiser, CEO & president of White Horse Village. “We’re committed to using resources wisely and recognize that building for sustainability requires partnerships with like-minded organizations.”
As new siding is installed, R. Titter Roofing carefully collects the old tear-offs as well as construction scraps and places the vinyl into storage bins.
CertainTeed is piloting a “closed loop” recycling process.
Bins full of vinyl from White Horse Village renovations are being transported to CertainTeed’s regional partner to crush and bale the material.
It is then hauled to CertainTeed’s PVC recycling partner for repurposing into raw material for new siding and other vinyl products. The initiative positively impacts the environment by redirecting vinyl waste and avoiding the fees of dumping it at a landfill.
The CertainTeed vinyl siding recycling program launched in 2022 and remains in the pilot phase with projects in Ohio, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.
CertainTeed works with various stakeholders from the construction industry, including contractors, distributors, and fabricators, and seeks collaboration with interested partners in other regions of the country to expand the project footprint.
For more information, visit http://www.whitehorsevillage.org.