But Memorial day is so much more.  It’s the stories of the men and women who write a blank check to their nation that included their lives.  How many 19 year olds have ever had to write their wills and know that at some point it will have to be used?  How many 18 year old girls and boys leave home and know that it may be the very last time that they see their loved ones?

In WWI the total casualties of war were 323,018,  WWII 500,000, Korea 169,365, Vietnam 58,156, Desert Storm 1,972 and in the Afghan War the numbers are still coming in.  Whether you believe in the reasoning of the war/conflict or not these young men and women bravely faced sometimes an unseen enemy, forged through jungles, tolerated desert heat of 140 degrees and higher, charged onto a beach where they knew death was almost certain and were protecting
our right to live free.

We so often times forget these things as we are grilling burgers and dogs, playing horseshoes with the family or heading “down the shore for the first weekend of the summer”, but they will never forget.

So this weekend I ask that you take a moment and thank a soldier, sailor, marine and guard for their sacrifices so that you can enjoy a long weekend of fun and if you happen to live with a vet hug them with all you have because they are here and so many are not.

You may have recently noticed a new space dedicated to Ads, Help Wanted, and Announcements on the right hand side of the DOES site, but did you know that we are offering an introductory offer of 50% off all DOES Ads! See coupon below for details…

Whether you’re a business or an individual you have the opportunity to take advantage of any of these spaces and guarantee yourself a dedicated space to make yourself heard.

Don’t get lost in a news feed, buried on a timeline, or hidden on a calendar! For a very nominal fee, you can claim your space and get your event, announcement, or ad noticed on the DOES homepage for an amount of time you desire.

 
You can choose from a text ad (Announcements and Help Wanted) or a picture ad (Banner ads above or below the calendar). All spaces are visible for the duration you have paid and on all pages throughout the website.

Get started today by clicking here!

Around 9:30am police received a call that a male was attempting to gain entrance into a home located on Autumn Lane. There were people in the home at the time and the suspect fled the scene. Police checked the immediate area and were unable to locate the man. Around 10:3o am, police located Goeringer on a street near the location of the attempted break in.

After investigation, it was later determined that Goeringer was the person who attempted to gain entry into the home on Autumn Lane. Further investigation revealed he had gained entry into properties located on Park Road & Heatherhill Lane and had attempted to enter another house in the neighborhood.

Goeringer was taken to the Upper Uwchlan Police Department where he was processed and charged with the following:

• Burglary
• Attempted Burglary
• Criminal Trespass- Enter a Structure
• Criminal Trespass-Break into a Structure
• Attempted Criminal Trespass
• Criminal Mischief

Goeringer was arraigned before District Magistrate John Bailey of Exton and was held on $20,000 cash bail. He was sent to the Chester County Prison to await his upcoming preliminary hearing.

DOES, and many members of the Chesco community, were blessed to have met Jamica and her daughter Janija (Buppa) in Dec of last year.  In coordination with Jamica’s pastors (and unbeknownst to her) she was selected as one of three families to be the recipient of our Extreme Christmas Wish.  Our criteria is simple; find families that are currently in a temporary struggle and bless them. Having never met Jamica prior to arriving at her house on Christmas Eve, we quickly realized that she was truly a special woman deserving of a random act of kindness.

After volunteers were requested at her church to help with the Extreme Christmas Wish, Jamica was one of the first people to offer her help.  She told her pastors that she could not help monetarily, but wanted to help out the families in any other way she could; offering us the proof we didn’t need that we chose the right person.

We are fortunate to have Jamica’s testimony of that day and confirmation from her pastor, that due to the kindness of the community, we were able to provide Christmas she had dreamed of and never thought she could have.

It is in that spirit that we are asking for the communities help once more for Jamica and her family.  We are calling on the community to help us raise funds to cover the costs of funeral arrangements and any other expenses. You can donate online by clicking here, be sure to make a note of  ‘Jamica Woods’ when donating.

Thank you to all who have helped, who will help, and who continue to offer their thoughts and prayers to those left behind when Jamica was taken away from us too soon.

A sobriety checkpoint is a traffic safety checkpoint wherein Pennsylvania State Troopers systematically stop vehicles at selected locations to briefly observe drivers for articulable facts and/or behaviors normally associated with alcohol or drug impaired drivers.  The goal of a sobriety checkpoint is to reduce the number of alcohol and drug related fatal and serious crashes, and to reduce the number of DUI drivers on Pennsylvania’s highways.

The Pennsylvania State Police is committed to maintaining a safe environment for the motoring public.  The above mentioned sobriety checkpoint is intended to achieve this goal.

At least one local legislator has taken an increased interest in stiffening DUI penalties in the wake of a recent tragedy in Chester County, which saw a man in his 20′s lose his life to a repeat DUI offender – click here for that story.

The League of Women Voters of Chester County is a great resource for your voting questions and more.

You can visit their site here, and perform a search for candidates in your area or use one of the following useful resources:

• You can view all candidates by office here: http://www.smartvoter.org/2013/05/21/pa/ch/
• You can view sample ballots here: http://www.chesco.org/index.aspx?NID=156
• Or type in your address here for candidates here: http://www.smartvoter.org/.

This last site is nice because it gives a brief overview of each candidate’s experience and priorities. (Please bear in mind, not all lists are entirely inclusive. If you want to encourage your candidate to update their information – which SmartVoter would appreciate very much -  they can email this address for instructions on how to do that: smartvoter@lwvccpa.org)

Please help spread the word about these resources! (And thank you to Debra Galleck of the SmartVoter team for passing this information along!)

West Pikeland Township
1645 Art School Road
Chester Springs, PA 19425

Unfortunately, he faces great challenges ahead after a swimming accident last summer that changed his life forever.  During a summer weekend trip with friends, Bob took one casual dive  into a wave in the Atlantic City ocean at just the wrong angle.  He suffered a severe fracture to the C-5 vertebra in his neck. This catastrophic injury resulted in severe spinal cord damage leaving him paralyzed below the chest with very limited movement in his arms.

This Sun (5/19/13) friends of Bob, including faculty and alumni of WCU will host a Benefit Concert and Reception to help defray the costs of Bob’s uninsured rehabilitation expenses.  Click here to buy tickets or contact Jamie Chimchirian at 484.643.3119 or jamie.chimchirian@gmail.com.

An employee of the store reported that 3 females entered the store and removed numerous purses and clothing. The subjects were observed fleeing the area in a black 2009 Lexus.

Patrol officers began checking the area and an officer even attempted to stop the vehicle but was unsuccessful when the driver accelerated and drove away. Officers from several departments assisted with a pursuit of the vehicle which was eventually terminated due actions of the driver in the fleeing vehicle. The vehicle was last seen entering the state of Maryland and Maryland State Police were advised of the situation.

A short time later, a Maryland State Trooper located the vehicle parked in the parking lot of the Hollywood Casino in Perryville, MD. The three occupants of that vehicle were located and arrested. It was confirmed that they were the same three subjects involved in the theft at TJ Maxx.

The recovered merchandise, valued at approximately $7,000, included a large amount of Michael Kors handbags.

Tara Jenkins (26 year old female from Glenside, PA), Tylisa Williams (25 year old female from Philadelphia, PA) and Shadeya Granger (24 year old female from Philadelphia, PA) are currently being held in Maryland and are awaiting extradition back to Pennsylvania.