Lots of ways to invest in our little citizens
Declutter + donate, build for the future, get elected
Happy 2025! Hopefully, it’s gotten off to a good start. My boys had no complaints about a snow day in the first week back. It provided barely enough snow to sled down the giant hill in front of Pocopson Elementary with a few of their friends (and seemingly most of the other students in the district). ❄️
You probably weren’t sledding in the “doesn’t quite cover the grass” accumulation, but maybe you had a new year inclination to declutter a space in your home and give it a fresh start. Did you know we have a local Buy Nothing Group in Chadds Ford? Have you heard of a Buy Nothing group?
At 592 members strong, maybe you’re already signed up for the Chadds Ford Buy Nothing Group. If not, I highly recommend it. It’s a Facebook group through which you can give away and receive free gifts from neighbors of things they no longer need (like FreeCycle, but so much better).
On the surface, one might expect a transactional group. But it helps build neighborly connections. It encourages us to share our abundance, borrow from neighbors instead of always buying something new, and get to know the neighbors a few streets over who could use what we have but no longer need. Passing your old golf club set, winter jacket, or extra garden seeds to a neighbor is much better than putting them in the trash bin, right?
If you’re already in the Buy Nothing group, I’d love to hear a highlight about your experience using it. If you haven’t signed up, head over and check it out. If you have any questions, drop them in the comments, and I’ll do my best to answer them. I’ve been a bit of a Buy Nothing evangelist for a few years, so I’m happy to shout from the rooftops about its benefits.
New Middle School? Yes, Please.
My boys are in 5th and 7th grade, so one is at Patton now, and the other will walk through the halls in a few short months. If you haven’t been inside lately, the infrastructure leaves something to be desired (to say the least).
Several days last year, unusual smells and HVAC issues severely disrupted classes. The building has asbestos. The bathrooms are older than me (literally), and I understand that some stalls are permanently out of use because asbestos remediation would be required to fix the plumbing issues. That’s pretty gross, no? 🤢
The district recently presented a recommendation to replace Patton with a new middle school, and I am here for it(!)… even though my boys are too old to attend it. I am so grateful to live in a district rated one of the top in the state, and I want our facilities to live up to that reputation as well. I think they must.
Investing in our future means investing in children, which sometimes costs money. I hope we all believe our children are worth investing in. This investment doesn’t even require a tax hike (i.e., no tax increases above the standard Act 1 Index adjustment authorized by the state).
I bet you’d be hard-pressed to find a student or teacher in our district who doesn’t firmly believe the middle school needs an overhaul. I get it; they (the students, at least) aren’t paying for it. But shouldn’t we give some credence to the perspective of the people working hard every day in those classrooms and hallways?
Benjamin Franklin said, "An investment in knowledge pays the best interest." I bet the investment in a new middle school pays far more in interest for the future of kids than the interest on renewed debt for enhanced facilities in which we can help our children flourish. 📚✨
Chadds Ford Elementary Textile Donation Bin
Do you have clothes, towels, sheets, or shoes ready to hit the road and not in good enough condition to pass along in the Buy Nothing group? Chadds Ford Elementary recently added a textile recycling bin in the parking lot. (It’s bright green and on the left when you drive into the parking lot; you can’t miss it).
The textile recycling company that manages the bin sorts donations and diverts items that can be reused or downcycled into products like rags and insulation to proper vendors. With each donation, Chadds Ford Elementary’s PTO receives a small donation to support programs and grants for the cuties in our community who attend Chadds Ford Elementary.
Free up space in your closets to raise money for the school for free! Win-win, right?
Crebilly Farm Conserved 🌳+ Sunset Hill Preserve 👣
Did you hear? In partnership with Natural Lands and many supporters, Crebilly Farm will be a conserved open space for our community. It’s not in Chadds Ford, but the 300+ acres are certainly close enough for us to use when it opens to the public.
Open spaces help protect biodiversity, support clean watersheds, and offer outdoor use space to residents (to name a few of the benefits). No matter how many times I hike the trails in Brinton Run Preserve, Beaver Valley, or other hyper-local natural spaces, I feel so grateful that we have access to these gorgeous spaces.
As silly as it sounds, we didn’t even know that Beaver Valley had an extensive path network when we bought our current house. We discovered this lucky gem after moving in. We can’t put a price on the value of being able to walk to these paths from our front door!
A couple of months ago, I mentioned that Chadds Ford’s Open Space Committee is working on opening even more paths on Sunset Hill Preserve, a township-owned property. The existing paths need a little TLC to become beautiful spaces for residents. Nothing has been finalized, so if you are one of the many residents who love preserving open space and allowing low-intensive use of public space, contact the township to share your support!
Do you know a rising kindergartener in our district?
Even though my kids didn’t get to participate, I’m happy that full-day kindergarten is finally coming to our district. Because many students in the area attend full-day kindergarten at alternative schools and then attend UCF schools in first grade, the school anticipates that this new structure may change the number of kindergarten-eligible students who choose to attend our public schools. They’re hosting an informational webinar for interested families with questions about the new program to address this.
In light of the change, they’re asking families to register their rising kindergarteners early so the district has time to prepare for the incoming cohort, right-size class sizes, and ensure sufficient teachers and resources. So… if you know a rising kindergartener, spread the word to their parents and caregivers! Late registrations could result in larger than desired class sizes, which would be a bummer.
Know a Good School Board Candidate?
📢 Four school board seats are up for reelection this year. All three seats in the Chadds Ford district are currently filled (thank you, Jody, Erin, and Brian!). But if you know someone eligible for an open seat who will be a good advocate for the students and our district, spread the word.
Public education is so essential ✏️ and a foundation of American democracy. Several of our country’s founders proclaimed knowledge and education as imperative to preserving freedom and happiness. In his “Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge,” Jefferson noted that public education was the key to preserving our republican government. He later said a well-informed public can be trusted with self-government.
Let’s continue the tradition of supporting robust public education for the sake of our unique American experiment in self-governance.