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Additional interviews from Aston-based
businesses and residents are now in the process of being scheduled
for taping with Comcast Newsmakers to be aired at future dates.
These segments are shown three times throughout the day
during two week intervals. Tune
in to cable channel 50 and take a look at these informative
interviews!
Township
Times newsletters are available, on the first of each month, at the
following locations:
Aston
Community Center
Aston Township Municipal Building
Eckerd Pharmacy
First Keystone Bank
Giant Food Store
Iron Workers Bank
Village Green Mobile Home Community
Wawa
Township calendars for 2006 will be available in the brochure
racks at our community center and municipal building as soon as they
are received from the printing company.
We anticipate arrival of our 2006 calendars by the third week
of December.
Our
website project will become our
#1 priority over the next 6-8 weeks, concentrating on a clear
and friendly homepage that offers links to important township
information. Web designs
and layouts are currently underway.
More information regarding website progress will be available
in next months’ newsletter.
Making
a Difference in our Community
>
Living
Memorial Gardens,
located on Furey Road in Upper Chichester Township, is place of
remembrance and tribute to children who lost their lives through an
act of murder.
After visiting this special place, one can not help but be
transformed by the significance of these surroundings.
Loving memorials are tenderly scattered throughout
beautifully landscaped 3 1/2 acres
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donated to Delaware County Chapter of Parents of Murdered
Children, Inc. though
the efforts of Mr. Thomas Ferro, president of the
board of commissioners for Upper Chichester Township
and former police chief, Mr. Bill Robinson.
On
April 21, 1993,
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Hope Ann DiMario-Popoleo, daughter of Paul
and Barbara DiMario,
and mother of Joseph
Popoleo, died
at the young age of twenty-six, by the hands of a murderer, who also
took the life of Hope’s friend, Richard Pepe.
Hope was a graduate of
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John Roberts Powers Modeling Agency and was
a spokesperson for Redken, a leading cosmetics company.
“She was a very good person and a hard worker.
She and her father loved to play pool together and she was
quite good at it. Hope
was a beautiful person,” says her mother, Barbara.
Barbara
and her husband, Paul, found themselves struggling to understand the
court system and legal proceedings as they diligently worked in
assisting law enforcement officials to bring their daughter’s
murderer to justice. At
that time, there were no programs in place and no where to go for
emotional support. “We
were fortunate to have found a safe haven within the district
attorney’s office during the judicial process.
They were wonderful to us but I knew more support was needed,
and not just for my husband and me but for other parents as well,
” states Barbara.
Barbara and Paul, at times, found
themselves isolated. Friends
that were once a visible in their lives were becoming distant.
It was difficult for them to understand Barbara and Paul’s
agony and struggle to work through the myriad of emotions that had
become a part of their daily lives.
Barbara remembers, “You
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simply reach a different level.
You become more aware and more sensitive to the needs
of others. You’re
life is never the same, it changes you forever.”
Barbara determined that she
would make a difference, and give voice to victims of murder
by starting a support group for parents, family members,
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friends.
After contacting Cincinnati, Ohio based Parents of Murdered
Children
Inc., Barbara learned that one of the requirements in
establishing a local chapter was to comply with a two-year waiting
period after the murder occurred.
Barbara, a determined woman, held true to her vision and
commitment to her daughter and established the Delaware County
Chapter of Parents of Murdered Children, Inc. just 18 days shy of
the two-year waiting period.
One
voice does make a difference.
Because of
Barbara and Paul’s determination, a support system in Delaware
County is available and the Living Memorial Gardens stands in
tribute to those precious lives that have been lost.
Barbara and Paul DiMario, residents of
Aston Township, have raised their grandson, Joseph, from the time of
his mother’s death when he was only 4 1/2 years of age.
They proudly prepare to celebrate Joseph’s 18th birthday in
December and his graduation from Sun Valley in June 2006.
Joseph hopes to attend Temple.
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