Pattye Benson

Community Matters

Phoenixville Township

State Rep Paul Drucker to Host Job Fair on March 31 in Phoenixville

State Rep Paul Drucker’s March newsletter arrived in the mail yesterday and contained an important announcement for those in the community that are looking for a job. Together with PA Department of Labor & Industry, Rep Drucker is hosting a Job Fair on Wednesday, March 31, 2-5 PM at the Phoenixville Civic Center, 123 Main Street, Phoenixville. The job fair will include a resume writing workshop and job hunting seminars. Job opportunities at all levels will be available.

Rep Drucker is reporting that the following industries are confirmed to be on-hand:

  • Human Services
  • Retail/Restaurant
  • Non-Profit
  • Healthcare
  • Insurance
  • Financial Services
  • Early Childhood Education

Employers from various additional industries are also expected to be in attendance. The event will also feature job opportunities for veterans. Admission is free and business attire is encouraged. This is good news for local job-seekers. If you are in the job market, mark your calendar for March 31. Thank you Rep Drucker for offering this opportunity to the residents in your legislative district!

Public Invitation Includes Speakers Gerlach, Toomey and Kampf . . . but Where's Buckwalter?

A friend gave me a public invitation she received in today’s mail. Here was a part of the invitation:

Come and Hear:

Congressman
Jim Gerlach

Tredyffrin Supervisor and State Representative candidate
Warren Kampf

Plus a Surprise Speaker!

Sponsored by Tredyffrin Township Republican Committee www.ttgop.com

I am puzzled and confused by this invitation. On February 20th, both the Democrats and the Republicans held their nominating conventions and I wrote about both of the conventions. For the State House Representative 157, incumbent Paul Drucker was endorsed by the Democrat Party. However, at the Chester County Republican Convention neither Warren Kampf nor Ken Buckwalter were endorsed by the party. After three rounds of voting (Round #3, Kampf 29 – Buckwalter 27) the decision was to recommend, not endorse either candidate. To receive the party’s endorsement would have required one of the candidates to receive 60% of the votes. To read about the Chester County Republican Committee vote which I posted, click here.

So then I look at this invitation and wonder to myself if the TTGOP is sponsoring this public event in a public place (the event will be at the Strafford Library, April 12, 7-9 PM) a couple of things jumped out at me. First thing, I wondered was where was Ken Buckwalter’s name? Warren Kampf is recommended (just like Ken) and this is sponsored by the local Republican party, so shouldn’t both of their names appear on the invitation? Shouldn’t Ken have the same opportunity as Warren to speak at this public forum? Was this a simple oversight . . . a miss-step . . . or what? The opportunity to participate in this forum should be open to both candidates. If Warren had been endorsed by the party, this would be a different matter but he was recommended, just as was Ken. I think that Ken should be included and given the same opportunity to participate; level the playing field.

Then the next question I have about the invitation is re Jim Gerlach. Is this invitation intended to imply that Gerlach has endorsed Warren Kampf? That’s the way it reads to me but I don’t recall seeing a press release to that effect. Has Gerlach endorsed Kampf? Did Gerlach OK this invitation? Does Gerlach know that Ken Buckwalter was not included? For the sake of party unity, I would think that Gerlach would want to treat both candidates fairly until the primary.

Now my third comment on this invitation, I was curious who the ‘surprise speaker’ was? I did some checking around — and was able to track down the surprise speaker — Pat Toomey. Very interesting . . . I wonder if Gerlach was told about the surprise speaker? Interesting trio of speakers – Gerlach, Toomey and Kampf. Comments anyone? Do you agree that Ken Buckwalter should be asked to join this group on April 12 and given an opportunity to speak?

PA State House 157 Race Adds Ken Buckwalter of Phoenixville

Ken Buckwalter of Phoenixville made his formal announcement in The Mercury that he is in race for the PA State House 157. To read the full article, Phoenixville Councilman Seeks GOP nomination for State House click here.Besides the many other accomplishments of Mr. Buckwalter (volunteer firefighter, Phoenixville councilman, businessman) his background includes an interesting twist,which caught my eye. Since 2006, Ken has been an active blogger; his blog Watching Phoenixville is dedicated to ‘Keeping an Eye on Phoenixville and the General Surrounds and Holding those in Leadership Positions Accountable’.

Yesterday, Ken highlighted my Community Matters in a post on Watching Phoenixville, as he compared Tredyffrin Township’s recent Board of Supervisor meeting to some of the past Phoenixville Council meetings. As a blogger, Ken has an interesting vantage point from which to launch his State House 157 campaign. In reading his blog post, Ken makes an interesting point, ” . . . it is important for candidates of an office and those who have been elected to office to understand those who put us in office deserve transparency and accountability of our actions. Citizen journalists and their following are watching and taking notes.”

From one blogger to another, I offer best wishes to Ken as he takes on this latest challenge.

Community Matters © 2024 Frontier Theme