Wow! There's Lots Of Free Stuff Listed Here!

FREE Wheelchairs To Those In Need

  The Knights of Columbus Mater Dei Council, Newtown Square, will distribute free wheelchair this fall, on a first come, first served basis. The group has a limited number of wheelchairs in good working condition that will be given to those who need them, including children nuns, seniors and veterans.   The program is part of the Knights humanitarian projects for which they fundraise all year.

  Those interested in receiving a wheelchair may write to Whee4lchair Project Chairman Jata Ghosh, Knights of Columbus, 2213 Windsor Circle, Broomall, PA 19008 (610-353-0353).

  Also, anyone with a wheelchair in good condition that is not being used is asked to consider donating it.

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Ridley Township Fall Festival FREE Performances And More On Sunday

  Ridley Township will hold its Annual Fall Festival Sunday (Sept. 16) on the grounds of the Ridley Township Municipal Building. The festival will include an art/print sale, craft vendors, a flea market, food court, moon bounce, face painting, balloon animals and a Library Book and Video sale. There will also be an auction of all unclaimed bikes found in the Township during 2011. This is a chance to pick up a bike at a reasonable cost.

  Bike auction is at 10; Magic with Eddie Ray is at 12 pm; music from Ridley High Drama Club is at 1 pm; and Let There Be Rock School performs at 2 pm.

  For more information, visit www.ridleytwp.org.

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FREE 40th anniversary celebration of Ridley Creek State Park

    A Ridley Creek State Park celebration event is free and open to the public will be held on October 21, starting at 1pm at the Hunting Hill Mansion in Ridley Creek State Park. Activities will include ranger talks, anniversary mementos, history displays, birthday cake and more. Tours of the Mansion and horse stables will also be given throughout the afternoon. The 40th anniversary celebration is sponsored by the Friends of Ridley Creek State Park. For more info, go to www.friendsofRCSP.org or contact vp@friendsofRCSP.org / 484-442-0223.

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Ridley Park Presbyterian Church Offers FREE Alpha Course
   Ridley Park Presbyterian Church will offer the Alpha course Tuesday evenings, beginning Sept. 25. Dinner will be served at 6:15 pm, followed by a talk, dessert and a discussion. Some of the questions to be addressed include, “What happens when we die?” “Why does God allow suffering?” and “Is there more to life than this?”

  For more information and to register for the free course, call 610-532-9400 or e-mail Wendy at rpps@rcn.com.

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Free Electronic Waste Collection At John Heinz
   Pennsylvania Resources Council (PRC) www.prc.org , Pa.’s oldest environmental organization, is partnering with ECOvanta , one of the few electronics recyclers in the country to hold the highest environmental and quality accreditation  of R2, or Responsible Recycler, to hold a FREE electronic waste recycling event at the John Heinz Wildlife Refuge, 8601 Lindbergh Blvd  Philadelphia, PA 19153 from 9- 3 on September 15, 2012. Staff will be on hand to help participants unload their cars. This event is being held in conjunction with “The Cradle of Birding Festival."  Drop off your recycling and discover the beauty of the wildlife refuge.

      The Refuge will offer convenient, responsible recycling of the following materials: Computers, laptops, TV’s, Printers, Monitors, DVD/DVR/VCR, Fax Machines, Gaming Consoles, Audio Equip., Telephones, Cell Phones, Camera/ Camcorders, CD/DVD’s and cases, GPS, IPod/ MP3 players, Remote Controls, Gaming and Computer Peripherals.  No Freon items or large appliances.

    This is a great opportunity to clean out your garage or basement with total confidence that nothing delivered to this event will end up in a land fill and nothing goes overseas as is. Everything will be 100% recycled. We have already collected thousands of pounds of e-waste and happy to collect more.

For more information contact Recycling Coordinator, Jayne Young 610-353-1555 ext 222 or young@prc.org.

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FREE Devon Fall Classic

  Laura Chapot, who has consistently won Open Jumper Leading Rider titles and Open Jumper Championships at the Devon Horse Show and Country Fair in early June, will be competing at the Devon Fall Classic, Sept. 13-16, in an attempt to win those titles at the end of the summer as well as in the beginning.

But she will have plenty of tough competition, as a number of Olympic medalists, including Joe Fargis and Lisa Jacquin, are also competing at Devon.

The $25,000 Devon Fall Classic will be featured Saturday evening, and will be preceded by the High Junior and Amateur/Owner Show Jumping Hall of Fame Classic.

The Fall Classic will also include a Fall Festival with boutique shopping, live music, food and family fun. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, there will be a Farmer’s Market from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A Midway will offer rides, games and treats throughout the four days.

Live music will keep the crowds entertained on Friday evening, all day Saturday and Sunday.

Sunday will feature a petting zoo and pony rides for the kids.

Admission on all days is free, and a few boxes, priced at $150, are still available for Saturday evening. For more information, call 610-964-0550.

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Swarthmore Public Library Hosts FREE Medicare Reform Program

MEDICARE REFORM:

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Presented by Heather Swaney

Bankers Life and Casualty Company

Swarthmore Public Library

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

2:00 pm

This program will address how Medicare Reform will change your health care requirements for hospital, doctor, prescription, home health care and long term care needs.  The following topics will be discussed:

• Home Health Care – Can you stay at home?

• Medicare – What it does and does not cover

• Medicaid

• Trusts – Do you need one?

• Transferring assets upon death – giving gifts to children

• What happens if you need long term care?

• Protecting your home and assets

• How can you protect your home in the event of a LTC stay?

• How can you provide an income for life during retirement?

• What will you need to know to plan ahead?

• What are your insurance options?

All programs are free and open to the public.

No products or services will be offered or sold at this program.

Please register at the library, call 610-543-0436, email swarthmore@delcolibraries.org

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  Ridley Township Library Offers Children’s Programs This Fall
  Ridley Township Library will offer children’s programs Sept. 17- Dec. 14.

  Infant Story Time will be held for children birth to 24 months 11 am Mondays and feature songs, stories and playtime.

  Toddler, Toys and Tales for ages 1-3 will be held Tuesdays at 10 and 11 am. Stories, songs and playtime will be featured.

  Toddler Play Group for ages 1-3 is held 10:30 am Wednesdays and Fridays. Toddlers can have fun with puppets, bubbles and blocks.

  Preschool: On My Own is held for ages 3-5 at 10 am and 1 pm Thursdays and include stories, crafts and songs. No caregivers are present.

  Kid’s Club for children in grades 1-5 is held 3:30 pm Thursdays and feature stories, crafts and games.

  For more information, stop by the library or visit www.ridleylibrary.org.

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FREE Hazardous waste collection on Sept. 13

The third of four household hazardous waste collections to help Delaware County residents remove toxic products, computers, TVs and more from their homes will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Sep. 13 at Rose Tree Park on Route 252 in Upper Providence.

Residents of the five-county area under a regional collection program are permitted to take acceptable products for disposal to the site.  There is no charge to residents to drop off the acceptable materials.

County residents can take acceptable products to locations in the five-county area as part of a coordinated regional household hazardous waste education, collection and management program, Civera said.  Computer equipment, fax machines and portable televisions as well as small appliances will be collected

Household hazardous waste products which will be collected can be found in the home in the bathroom, kitchen, living areas, garage, basement and utility room, she said.

Categories of products to take to the household hazardous waste collections include flammables, pesticides, caustics, toxics, rechargeable household batteries, lead-acid batteries and propane tanks which weigh less than 20 pounds.

Residents may take oil-based paint, paint thinner, varnish, kerosene, gasoline, motor oil, antifreeze, weed killers, fungicides, items containing mercury and cell phones.

Residents should not mix materials. They should tighten lids on all containers. If containers are leaking, they should be packed in a larger container with newsprint to absorb the leaks. Products should be brought in original containers with labels.

Products which won’t be accepted at the collections are any unidentifiable waste, latex paint, appliances, asbestos, biological waste, explosives, gas cylinders, alkaline batteries, PCBs, pressurized CFCs and radioactive waste.

Latex paint as well as joint compound, roof cements, asphalt sealers, caulking compounds and aerosol cans can be discarded with other residential trash.

No tires or commercial or industrial waste will be accepted.

The last recycling day will be on Saturday, Oct.13 at the Upper Chichester Township Building, 8500 Furey Road.

Organizers recommend residents take their materials to the collection site nearest their home. The program will be conducted as scheduled regardless of weather conditions.

A list of materials that will be collected, a full list of collections for the five-county area, and directions to those collection locations are posted on the County’s Green Pages section of the County Web site, www.co.delaware.pa.us/green, under “Waste and Recycling.” For additional information, contact the Delaware County Solid Waste Authority at 610-892-9627.

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Free ‘Cradle of Birding’ Festival on Sept. 15 at Heinz Refuge

The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum will host its annual "Cradle of Birding" Wildlife and Conservation Festival from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15.  The free event is sponsored by the Friends of the Heinz Wildlife Refuge and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and held in collaboration with dozens of partner conservation organizations.

   This year's featured speaker will be Don Freiday, of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and formerly Cape May Bird Observatory with a fun filled afternoon program on "How to Identify Birds like an Expert."

  There will be dozens of exhibits and programs including live animal demonstrations. Among the organizations showcasing their animals will be the Philadelphia Zoo, The Academy of Natural Sciences, Wagner Free Institute, NJ Adventure Aquarium, Delco Bird Club, Inc., Feathered Sanctuary Exotic Bird Rescue, Schuylkill Wildlife Rehabilitation Center and Tri-State Bird Rescue and more.

  Numerous workshops and demonstrations are planned including birding, nature photography, fly tying, fishing, bird identification, native plants, butterflies and woodcarving.

   There will be 3 early morning bird identification walks, "Birding for Kids" classes, "Birding by Ear," and "Beginner Birding" workshops and "Introduction to Nature Photography" workshop.

  Special interpretive trolley tours of the refuge will run 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and there will be a free hot dogs and soft drinks for all in attendance.

  Along with all the workshops, tours, and exhibits, music will be provided by the RSVP band and Tinicum's own environmental troubadour, Glen Waldek.

   The Friends of the Heinz Wildlife Refuge Photo Group will be recognizing the winners of this year's Photo Contest. This will also be an opportunity to see the photography work from the Refuge Photo Group on display in the visitor center’s auditorium.

   For more information visit www.fws.gov/heinz or call 215-365-3118

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Crozer-Keystone Hospitals Offer Free Prostate Screenings

  In recognition of national Prostate Health Month, Crozer-Keystone Health System will offer free prostate screenings in September.

  Screenings are available for men who are over 50 years old (40 years old if African American or have a family history of prostate cancer). Participants should not be under the care of an urologist, been treated for prostate cancer, or have had a PSA test within the last year. The PSA test will be offered.  Free prostate screenings will be held at the following dates and locations:

  --Sept. 19, 6 to 8p.m., at Crozer Regional Cancer Center, Crozer-Chester Medical Center, One Medical Center Blvd., Upland.

  --Sept. 20, 5:30 to 7:30p.m., at Taylor Hospital, Short Procedure Unit, 175 E. Chester Pike in Ridley Park.

  Appointments are necessary; space is limited. Call 1-800-CK-HEALTH (1-800-254-3258) to register.

 

                          
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‘Covered Bridges’ Topic Of Next Middletown Talk

  The Middletown Township Historical Society will present “Covered Bridges of Delaware County,” as part of its free Middletown Mondays lecture series, 7:30p.m., Monday (Sept. 17) at Lima Estates, 411 N. Middletown Road, Media.

  Historian Keith Lockhart will talk about how dozens of covered bridges once crossed many of the county’s creeks. Pennsylvania leads the nation with 197 covered bridges remaining intact. Sadly, in Delco, only the Bartram Bridge of Crum Creek remains.

  The first covered bridge in America was built over the Schuylkill river in 1800.

  The lectures are FREE and open to the public.

  Upcoming talks include “Brandywine Valley Ghosts” on Oct. 15 and “Holidays in History and Folklore,” Nov. 19.

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Delaware County Fair This Week At Granite Run Mall Features 'Special Kids Night' When Those With Disabilities Can Enjoy FREE Rides

  The 36th Annual Delaware County Fair, hosted by the Glen Riddle and Concordville Chadds Ford Rotary Clubs will kick off tonight (Sept. 12) at Granite Run Mall and run through Sunday (Sept. 16).

  Since inception at Rose Tree Park in the 1970s, Rotary carries on the tradition to raise funds for organizations such as Children and Adult Disability Education Services (CADES), Operation Warm, scholarships and other local charities. Thus far, the fair has raised over $1 million for Delco children and families in need.

   This year’s fair is being held at Granite Run Mall on Baltimore Pike in Middletown Township, across from Riddle Hospital. Majestic Midways will provide all new amusement rides, food and games for all ages. There will also be appearances by TV cartoon characters, music and much more.

  A major focus of the fair is Special Kids Night when Rotarians welcome children and adults with disabilities to enjoy free rides all night.

  Anti-Bullying Awareness Night is set for Friday (Sept. 14), when Teach Anti-Bullying will host games, raffles, educational programs and entertainment.

   Another outreach of Rotary will bring Child Identification Program (CHIP), sponsored by the PA Free Masons and Rick’s Sheds of Aston. Children will be fingerprinted and their DNA samples secured for identification purposes. The program is free.

  “Without a doubt, the fair is one of the most rewarding events in which I have been involved,” said fair founding member and former Delco Chamber President Jack Holefelder. “To see the faces of the children who benefit from this event makes all of the hard work on the part of the organizers and sponsors worthwhile. I certainly hope the community will come out and support this great community event.”

Fair dates and times are:

Wednesday, 6 to 10p.m., Special Kids Night

Thursday, 6 to 10p.m.,

Friday, 6 to 10p.m., Anti-Bullying Awareness Night

Saturday, 4 to 10p.m.

Sunday, noon to 6p.m.

  To learn more about Rotary, go to www.rotary7450 or attend a Rotary meeting. The Glen Riddle rotary meets for lunch Tuesdays at Barnaby’s, Rte. 452, Aston. The Concordville Chadds Ford Rotary meets for lunch Wednesdays at the Maris Grove community in Glen Mills.

   

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Free Legal Advice Offered
  The Philadelphia Bar Association will offer free legal advice to area residents from 5 to 8p.m., Wednesday (Sept. 19). Members of the public can access the service by calling the Association’s Legal Line P.M. hotline at 215-238-6333.

  Area residents seeking confidential legal advice will be able to speak for free with a volunteer attorney.  Attorneys are available to offer information about any aspect of the law including family law, landlord-tenant, workers’ compensation and employment law, among other topics.

  Legal Line P.M. is offered on the third Wednesday of every month from 5 to 8p.m. The program has existed for nearly 20 years, allowing volunteer attorneys to help thousands of callers through direct service or by referring them to an appropriate source.

  If callers do not need an attorney or cannot afford one, they will be directed to a legal service organization, agency or other resource for assistance.

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FREE Haverford Music Festival Is Saturday

  The Haverford Music Festival happens 12 noon to 9:30 pm. this Sat., Sept. 15. Over 30 Live Bands. Three Stages. FREE Admission!

Rock, Jazz, Blues, Pop, Folk, All Ages!

Plus Beergardens. Craft Village, Moonbounce, Food vendors.

 For more information, visit  http://haverfordmusicfestival.org/    

 

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 FREE Child Car Seat Installation and Check

  The Pennsylania State Police, Media barracks will hold a child car seat installation and safety event 3-6 pm Tuesday, Sept. 18, at the Rocky Run YMCA, 1299 W. Baltimore Pike in Media. No appointments are necessary. Chick-fil-A at Baltimore Pike and 452 has donated coupons that will be distributed at the event. Everyone is welcome to the FREE event.