Lower Merion Police are investigating two 17-year-old part-time summer township employees, both of them playground counselors at General Wayne Park in Merion Station, for allegedly discharging an airsoft pistol on two summer day campers late Wednesday morning.
The two, whose names were not released because of their age, are said to have struck two 12-year-old boys. One boy was struck on the pinky finger and another was struck in the back, on his upper shoulder blade. Both children were deemed unharmed by a summer camp supervisor, who said the plastic projectiles caused no marks on the boys.
“Both employees are suspended without pay, with the intent to dismiss,” said Lower Merion Parks and Recreation Department Director Lindsay Taylor, who referred the matter to Township police.
The Lower Merion Township Parks and Recreation Department has announced that due to extreme heat, the Township playground programs will end at 1 p.m. today. Playground staff is notifying parents about the programs' early dismissal.
All other programs will continue as scheduled.
There has been an increase in residential burglaries over the last 10 days, according to an email blast from Lower Merion Township, particularly in the areas of Penn Valley and Merion. Several have been overnight.
Immediately report any suspicious persons or vehicles in your neighborhoods and take extra care to secure your home. Use outside lighting, timers inside their homes, and notify neighbors or the police department when you will be out of town.
A week ago, the Supreme Court declined to hear Students Doe v. Lower Merion School District, ending the legal debate over the Lower Merion School Board’s redistricting plan. Several black students alleged that the new plan made them the victims of racial discrimination.
LMSD is divided into zones corresponding to two high schools: Lower Merion and Harriton. Lower Merion is actually situated within the Harriton zone, meaning that students within walking distance of Lower Merion had been allowed choose to attend either school.
With the new zoning, the "Students Doe" lost the ability to attend Lower Merion High School. They claimed that it was the result of racial discrimination because they lived in a neighborhood that, while mostly white, had a much-higher-than-average black population.
The Lower Merion Township Police will conduct impaired driving checkpoints this Friday through Sunday, combined with roving patrols, as part of a national impaired-driving crackdown using the new tagline "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over."
A sobriety checkpoint is a highly visible, systematic method for stopping vehicles to determine whether motorists are under the influence of alcohol or controlled substances.
The checkpoint is being funded by a PennDOT grant.
The new Red Mango frozen yogurt store in Radnor Township, owned by Jamie and Matt Whicomb of West Chester, will hold a grand-opening on Saturday to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
The fun will include face painting, balloon making, and free T-shirts for the first 100 people in line. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
For every $5 donation, customers will receive a $5 coupon to be used towards a future purchase of frozen yogurt. A portion of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
On their lunch break, Jennifer Leach and M.P. Tomai walk along Lancaster Avenue in Bryn Mawr until the come across the recently opened Vge Cafe. The two enter the vegan eatery to try something new for their midday meal and split the Vgë burger, Vgësteak and falafel wrap.
"I love vegan food and I would go again," Leach said as she Tomai walked out of the cafe.
Originally set to open in late March, Vgë (pronounced "vee gee") has been in the works since February. Owner Fernando Peralta, 41, said a few construction hurdles pushed back the cafe's debut to April 26, when it had its soft opening.
"We made our little noise in terms of opening," Peralta said. "It was great, better than expected."
While researching a place to open the business in 2010, the Vgë Cafe owner explored the Main Line because of its centrality to numerous colleges, such as Villanova University, Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College. When the vegan cafe opened its doors to customers for the first time, the targeted college demographic made in dent in Vgë's clientele, but not as big a dent as expected because of forthcoming finals and graduation.
It's already been a busy and touching month for volunteers, staff and supporters of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF).
In addition to hosting Alex's "Original" Lemonade Stand on June 9, when family, friends and supporters commemorate the foundation's namesake's annual traditional of holding a lemonade stand in her neighborhood, the organization celebrated the Seventh Annual Great Chefs Event, National Lemonade Days, the construction of a LEGO lemonade stand and numerous other support from its sponsors.
The "Original" Lemonade Stand last Saturday featured Alex's family, friends and supporters come together for the annual tradition, which featured food, games and a butterfly release.
Main Line teens with artistic flair have another option to add to the list of summer activities: The Main Line Art Center's summer program, Teen Studios.
For artists ages 13-18, the Art Center's Teen Studios gives participants the opportunity to participate in one-week and nine-day studios Monday through Friday for an in-depth study of a art medium of their choosing.
"I learned more at the Main Line Art Center than I did with nine years of school art classes," Jenni Bennett said in a news release. "They helped me grow as an artist, plus the classes are tons of fun, and I met some really cool people there over the years."
No teen wants to dial 911 at the risk of cutting a party short or being labled “loser,” but what is an underage drinker to do if a friend needs immediate medical attention?
The students of the Coalition for Youth of Lower Merion and Narberth’s Youth Advisory Council answered that question with a YouTube video to educate their peers about alcohol poisoning and a new law that eliminates the disincentive for underage drinkers to make that call.
“If you’re underage, it takes a lot of courage to make the call and break up a party,” YAC co-director Paula Singer said, explaining that kids are often worried about getting themselves in trouble at the same time over their own behaviors. “Before this law, I saw kids get cited after they made calls that basically saved someone’s life.”
Singer, a social worker who sits on Montgomery County’s restorative justice program Youth Aid Panel for teens cited for drinking, discovered the Good Samaritan law after she read a newsletter from Rep. Greg Vitali (D-166) in September.
Pennsylvania’s Good Samaritan Law is similar to medical-amnesty laws that exist in states like New York and New Jersey and are popular at college campuses across the country. Meant to encourage partiers to call 911 if a friend who is under the influence needs medical attention, it exempts the underage caller from getting into trouble with the law if he or she has been drinking too. In Pennsylvania, the person who needs medical attention may still get cited for underage drinking. New Jersey's similar law protects the sick person as well.
Sponsored primarily by Sen. John Rafferty Jr. (R-44), the Good Samaritan Law passed in June 2011 as an amendment to an existing act that details underage-drinking offenses. Gov. Tom Corbett’s signed the law in late August.
