The Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC) will continue to update this page with new developments during the COVID-19 crisis. It includes the latest news impacting businesses in Chester County and Pennsylvania, links to services offering assistance, and more.
Webinars about the CARES Act
With all of the information circulating on the Coronavirus, small business owners and private non-profits still have many questions regarding loans and the passage of the CARES Act.
Join SBA and SCORE Chester and Delaware Counties for a daily no-cost webinar, to provide you with answers and help you understand:
1. Who is eligible for an SBA Emergency loan?
2. What you need to have in hand before filing your application?
3. How will the CARES Act impact me?
4. Q&A to answer your specific questions.
Dates:
Monday, April 6th – Friday, April 10th
Monday, April 13th – Friday, April 17th
Time:
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm Eastern Time
To Join this valuable webinar, please go to: https://score.zoom.us/j/723846010.
Kids’ Update: Thomas Suarez, App Developer
Most 12-year-olds love playing videogames — but Thomas Suarez taught himself how to create them. After developing iPhone apps like a whack-a-mole game called “Bustin Jeiber,” he is now using his skills to help other kids become developers. Click here to hear Thomas’s TEDtalk — Thomas Suarez, 12 Year-old App Developer.
The Empty Pot is a wonderful story about another boy who uses his talents well.
The Youth Services Staff at the Chester County Library and Hankin Branch are presenting Virtual Storytimes beginning April 27th. They will be for three different ages groups — 0 to 2 Year Olds, 3 & 4 Year Olds, and 5 & 6 Year Olds. Registration is required via the Events Calendar at https://chescolibraries.org/. Virtual Storytimes are not registered as multi-week sessions; you will need to register for each storytime individually.
Harry Potter at Home!
Enjoy Harry Potter At Home! The eBook and eAudiobook of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is available without holds through our OverDrive collection for the month of April.
It is also available in other languages without holds! It is available in Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Danish, Italian, Finnish, Dutch, Polish, Swedish, Chinese, Czech, Greek, Hungarian, Indonesian, Icelandic, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, and Turkish.
Virtually Visit 8 World-Class Libraries
Do you miss being inside a library building? Library Journal has compiled a list of 8 libraries from around the world that have virtual tours available online so you can visit without leaving home!
Helping Local Senior Living Community
Wondering how you and your family can help the community and still be safe? Many of the seniors in our community live alone and are currently quarantined in their apartments in senior living facilities. How about making some Easter/ Spring themed greeting cards to bring cheer to those isolated in their rooms/ apartments? Or put together a small care package of prepackaged goodies/ treats to be distributed to the residences. They cannot see family right now and many don’t have the technology means or skills to video chat so the tiniest gesture would spread a lot of cheer for these residences. The links below provides some websites to local senior living communities. Some have safe outside drop off so no contact is exchanged with others. Please call first to find out their policies with regards to receiving outside cards/gifts.
Ashbridge Manor at Downingtown
Simpson Meadows at Downingtown
Five Stars Exton Senior Living
Sunrise Senior Living of Exton
Arbours Square at West Chester
The Hickman Friends Senior Community of West Chester
Sunrise Senior Living of Westtown
Resources for Nonprofits
Looking for ways to sharpen your nonprofit’s skills while working from home? Here are a variety of resources you can use to learn many new skills or hone old ones.
Foundation Center by Candid is offering free access to their Foundation Center Essentials during this time for nonprofits to search for funding opportunities.
This valuable resource includes:
- 103,000+ expanded grantmaker profiles
- 300,000+ key decision makers and leaders
- Searchable 990s and 990-PDFs
- FDO Workspace
If you need more in-depth information on a foundation than FDO Essential can provide, please email us at ref@ccls.org and one of our librarians can send you the full Funder Profile from Foundation Directory Online Professional.
Grantspace by Candid is a great place to find training to build your nonprofit skills as well as documents and eBooks related to non-profit topics. Whether you’re looking for help with fundraising, proposal writing, governance, or even starting a nonprofit, they have you covered! Trainings include Introduction to Finding Grants, Introduction to Proposal Writing, and much, much more!
Candid is also offering some other great resources to use that you can access here.
Pennsylvania Associations of Nonprofit Organizations are offering a website with links to webinars, funding resources, and tips for working from home or remotely.
The Nonprofit Center at La Salle University is offering free access to their Video Learning Library.
Kids’ Update: Coloring Sheets and Puzzles
You probably don’t know that there’s a publisher right here in Chester County! Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. publishes books on all topics, for kids and adults, and they’re located in Atglen. Our friends at Schiffer have a shared their Kids’ Resource Hub with us. Check it out for coloring pages, puzzles, and more!
What would you do if your under-the-bed monster went fishing for a week? Find out in I Need My Monster!
The Youth Services Staff at the Chester County Library and Hankin Branch are presenting Virtual Storytimes beginning April 27th. They will be for three different ages groups — 0 to 2 Year Olds, 3 & 4 Year Olds, and 5 & 6 Year Olds. Registration is required via the Events Calendar at https://chescolibraries.org/. Virtual Storytimes are not registered as multi-week sessions; you will need to register for each storytime individually.
Resources for BUSINESSES during the COVID-19 pandemic – PA CareerLink Chester County
To mitigate the spread of the CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19), the PA CareerLink Chester County and United Way Financial Stability Center is currently closed. In the event you need to reach them, you may leave a message at 610-280-1010. They will be checking voicemail and returning messages as soon as possible. Claimants should direct all unemployment claim (UC) inquiries to the Unemployment Office at 1-888-313-7284. Any additional changes to PA CareerLink Chester County’s operating schedule will be posted on their website at https://www.pacareerlinkchesco.org/.
For further employer resources, go to https://www.pacareerlinkchesco.org/job-seekers/downloads/.
Online book clubs for book lovers
Just because in-person book clubs are on hold, that doesn’t mean you have to stop talking about the books you’ve read. Celebrities, athletes and regular readers are out there ready to talk. Here are some online options for book clubs to keep that conversation going.
Reese’s Book Club – Hello Sunshine
Want a smaller group with people you know? You can create your own Facebook group and add your reading friends. If you have a website, designate a page for book discussions. Or start a free website on WordPress.com or Wix.com. Even a group chat on your phone can be a fun way to run a book discussion.
Are you in a book club? What adjustments have you made? What book do you want to talk about? Leave a comment – we’d love to hear from you!
Stay Connected with Chescolibraries 