zip19355

Zane's Run supports families dealing with devastating disease

I had never heard of SMA -- Spinal Muscular Atrophy.  But I did some reading after picking up a pink flyer at Wawa promoting Zane's Run for Families of SMA.  What I learned was frightening.

SMA strikes infants, the most vulnerable among us.  It is a motor neuron disease that affects the muscles used for crawling, walking, head and neck control, and swallowing.  Research progress has been made, but a cure hasn't been found yet.  It is a devastatingly aggressive disease.

Keith and Hillary Schmid of Malvern are Zane's parents.  Zane and her twin Avery were born on Jan. 2 of this year.  Avery is healthy.  Zane passed away on June 18, but her legacy lives on through Zane's Run.

The first Zane's Run will be held Sunday, Sept. 20, at Sugartown Elementary School (611 Sugartown Road in Malvern).  A one-mile Fun Run/Walk begins at 9 a.m.  A 5K Run/Walk follows at 9:30.  Age groups range from 11-and-under to 60-and-over.  Walk-up registration begins at 7:30.

"We were hoping for 100 and we've already registered more than double that amount," said Keith Schmid.  "We're very happy about that.

"We want to keep doing things like this so we can donate money to Families of SMA.  They were wonderful to us.  Within a week of our diagnosis, they had sent us a special wagon and a care package to make things easier for us.  Through Zane's Run, we want to raise money for FSMA and also raise awareness that SMA can be eliminated."

I doubt whether many know that a simple blood test can determine whether you're a carrier of SMA.  One in 40 people are carriers.  The odds are high -- about 25 percent -- that a baby of two carriers will have the disease.  Schmid said that SMA has been cured in animals, and research is now moving forward on humans.

There is hope, but much needs to be done.  Zane's Run will do its part.

"A lot of great research is being done at the University of California-Irvine," Schmid said.  "We hope to raise enough money to send a family out there.

"We have such fond memories of Zane and we did everything we could for her.  Now we want to help others as much as we can."

In addition to walk-up registration on Sunday morning, you can donate or register online.

It really was rocket science for Phelps

I may be the last person in America who picks up a lot of magazines, particularly when the cover promotes a list that I absolutely must read: "The top 10 left-handed quarterbacks of all time," "American Idol's biggest scandals."  You know, the really important stuff.

Philadelphia Magazine is famous for its annual "Best of Philly" issue, and throughout the year lists best doctors, real estate values and much more.  The current issue focuses on the best of schools, and I found a gem of an item about one of our own in 19355 -- The Phelps School.

Headlined "Rocketry," here is how the item reads:

The Phelps School

That this Malvern boarding school for boys with learning challenges could qualify one team for the world's biggest rocket competition is impressive.  That last school year it qualified two teams -- who placed 15th and 59th while attempting to send a raw egg exactly 750 feet into the air, then land it precisely 45 seconds later -- is superior.  This year, co-coaches Skip Turansky and Fred Kepner will become NASA-certified in high-powered rocketry and debut a physics class exclusively on the subject.

Congrats, Phelps!  It sounds like you're literally having a blast.

Remembering 9/11 and media heroes

September 11 hurts.

As much as I want this site to focus on good news, not much good happened today.  And I didn't really expect it to.

It rained.  It was dark.  And I had a disturbing experience at my day job.

As some of you know, I work for Comcast in Center City.  My job is to communicate about the company's good works in the community, which are considerable.

The Comcast Center is 975 feet high.  It is the tallest building between New York City and Chicago.  I work on the 49th floor.  It is September 11.  And the emergency alarm goes off.

Damn.

Thankfully, it turned out to be a false alarm.  But as I waited with my colleagues while cracking lame jokes, I wondered this: When will the specter of 9/11 leave us?  My guess is not in the lifetimes of anyone capable of reading this.

That makes me sad.

So we will remember, and as a long-time journalist my memories will include the brave writers and broadcasters who risked their lives to tell this awful story.  They are unsung heroes.

If you're considering a day trip from 19355 to Washington, D.C., you can learn about these journalists at the 9/11 Gallery in the Newseum, a fabulous building with dozens of exhibits focusing on how the news is gathered and presented.  This Week with George Stephanopoulos is broadcast from the Newseum every Sunday morning.

I blogged about the 9/11 Gallery today for Comcast.  It's my pleasure to share it with you.  And here's to a much better day tomorrow.

People's Light ready to open 35th anniversary season

It's always important to support our local businesses, and it's quite a bonus when you get entertained in the process.

You will be entertained at People's Light & Theatre Company, which is a true gem in 19355.  If you've never been there, I encourage you to plan a visit during the 2009-2010 season.  People's Light is celebrating its 35th anniversary season.

As you see above, the opening play is Nathan the Wise.  Here is a brief description:

• Don't miss the new adaptation of this beautiful classic of world literature. Jerusalem in 1192 was a city in which Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived side by side, however uneasily. A heroic act by a mysterious Templar brings together wealthy Jewish merchant, his love-struck daughter, a sultan, and a Christian Patriarch with a dark agenda.

The play stars David Strathairn, an accomplished actor with considerable stage credits and an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Edward R. Murrow in Good Night, and Good Luck.  I most enjoyed his work in Eight Men Out, one of my all-time favorite movies.  Strathairn played star pitcher Eddie Cicotte, who was part of the Black Sox World Series scandal of 1919.

Tickets are available here, and enjoy the show! 

Labor Day: Thanks and celebration

For many of us, today means a day off, burgers and dogs on the grill, or a "do we really have to go?" return trip from the beach. For certain, it means the unofficial end of summer and a turn of the calendar toward fall.

That's all fine, and I'm lamenting as much as anyone that my Malvern days are becoming Malvern nights way too quickly.  But I'm also trying to keep in mind what the U.S. Department of Labor says this day is all about: "...a creation of the labor movement and dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers."

This isn't exactly a news flash, but millions of American workers are hurting today.  The unemployment rate inches toward a frightful 10 percent, even as some economic indicators show improvement.  Here in our little slice of the universe, a drive along Lancaster Avenue from around Wayne to Exton reveals more closed businesses than I can remember in the last 20 years.

So let's be grateful for the jobs we have, hopeful for those who are searching, and thankful for those whose labor built Chester County and our country.  And maybe try to remember someone special.

I'll remember my dad, who never graduated from high school but proudly worked for 40 years at Rohm & Haas in Philadelphia.  Today, Rohm & Haas is owned by Dow Chemical, which is closing the plant where he worked.  He would have been livid about that.

Thanks also to all those working today in 19355, whether police, fire and emergency heroes; cooks, waiters and waitresses; the people who brew steaming hot coffee at Wawa; the folks who wrangle carts in the Giant parking lot; concession stand workers at the East Whiteland 9 in Frazer, and many, many more.  We appreciate all of you, today and throughout the year.

A thing of beauty...

The pond at Malvern Prep.  One of the prettiest spots in zip19355.

Taken on Sunday, Sept. 6.

Welcome to zip19355!

On this site, we are the heart of Chester County and all else beats around us.  We’re the ZIP code that never sleeps, the ZIP code of Brotherly Love, the ZIP code of … well, you get the idea.

We are Malvern Borough, Frazer, East Whiteland, and parts of Charlestown, Tredyffrin and Willistown.  We're 38 square miles and 22,000 interesting, engaging and, of course, good-looking people.  This site is for all those who live here, work here and enjoy what we offer here.  As a resident of 19355 (East Whiteland) for nearly 20 years, I believe it's the best place to live in the Delaware Valley.

zip19355 itself is well over 20 years in the making.  When I was in the newspaper business writing about sports for the Daily Local News, Pottstown Mercury, Bucks County Courier Times and Philadelphia Inquirer, I often dreamed of running my own hometown paper.  That dream has evolved over time, as have the newspaper and advertising industries, reader habits and, perhaps most of all, technology.

So the evolved result of my dream is zip19355, a hyper-local site focusing on the people, places and activities that are near and dear to us.  It's really as simple as that.

Within our borders are leafy neighborhoods, rolling horse farms, a lively downtown, some of the best public and private schools in the state, casual diners and upscale bistros, major highways and country lanes, boutiques, Little League fields, major corporations and much more.  We devour water ice, quaff craft beers and love a parade.  In short, we're a mix of quaintly historic, thoroughly modern and a healthy dose of quirky.

And while we’re certainly proud of our ZIP, we’re not completely provincial.  We eat, shop, work and play in cool towns such as Paoli, Exton, West Chester, King of Prussia and Philadelphia.  All are welcome here.

So, with your help, I will do my best to convey the flavor of zip19355, tell interesting stories about our people, share a few personal thoughts, and give you some ideas about nearby things to see and do.

I invite you to hop aboard, spread the word and offer plenty of feedback … and let's all enjoy the ride together.   Thanks for reading!

Gene Morris, zip19355