A wealth of local news

Another great issue of The Times Chronicle from Sunday, November 13, 2022:

How about those perky students at Keith Valley Middle School who raised a whopping $20,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. About 300 students, said principal Jon Kircher, raised the money to help students who are too sick to play, due to “life-threatening illnesses.”

A former Warminster police officer, James Carey, pled no contest to sexually assaulting five teenagers during his time as a DARE officer for troubled teenagers. He was arrested after a lengthy investigation. These assaults, said district attorney Matt Weintraub, occurred between 1989 and 2009.

Ever-present gun-trafficking was curtailed when a 20-year-old man was discovered as the head. Thirtyfour firearms were purchased throughout Montgomery, Bucks, and Philadelphia counties and were resold throughout the region.

A rundown of police news will rival any John Grisham or Lee Child novel: bad checks, indecent assault, retail theft, using counterfeit bills.

And now for the good news:

Dr. Bruce May will have none of these life-threatening violations. At 94 years old, May wakes up and has a cup of caffeinated coffee and then assesses his arthritis. When he was around 40 years old, his daughter, Melissa, gave him a book of stretch exercises for people 35 and older. From then on, May, a retired optomotrist, committed to “diet, exercise and sleep.”

As he ages, he will change around the procedures, having added swimming in a warm pool at his fitness center. Married to wife, Kathy, for 39 years, the two of them enjoy spiritual pursuits at their church in Exeter Township. It it good genes? Perseverance? Good luck? Or all three?

One thing is for sure. On Thanksgiving Day, Bruce May lots to be grateful for.

The Elmwood Park Zoo in Norristown was given a $30 million anonymous donation. The donor spoke with higher-ups and they all decided how to spend the money on the 17,000-sq. ft. campus.

“You’ll learn why zoos matter,” said Al Zone, director. Established in 1934, the zoo has about 300 animals and 800,000 to 1 million visitors a year. A welcome center will be installed. Treatment facilities will be center-stage and visitors may view exam rooms, treatment centers and surgical suites, as well as adding Asian and South American exhibits.

“It’s exciting to do something like this,” says Dr. Michele Goodman, the zoo’s veteranarian.

Work will need to be done in a year, continued Goodman, to be ready for the public on the zoo’s 100th anniversary in spring, 2024.