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Human Interest - Bensalem Township

Unveiling “Forward Backward Together Forward (160 Years)”, A Juneteenth Art Celebration by Bucks County Artist

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Bucks County Artist, Kevin Aster Young, creates a community-driven art for the 160th  Anniversary of Juneteenth titled “Forward Backward Together Forward (160 Years)” and will be shown  at the Mercer Museum.

The art will be unveiled to the public at the Mercer Museum’s fourth annual Juneteenth Celebration at 12 p.m. on June 14th, 2025 – 84 S. Pine Street in Doylestown’s cultural district.

Young has created work for the museum’s Juneteenth event each year since 2022. He draws inspiration from his activism work in Bucks County around racial justice, community outreach, and the historical contributions of Black Americans to American history.

Year 2022 – Courtesy of Kevin Aster Young

 

Year 2023 – Courtesy of Kevin Aster Young

 

Year 2024 – Courtesy of Kevin Aster Young

Each year since Juneteenth became a federal holiday, the Bucks County artist has invited the community to contribute to a collaborative work of art at the annual Mercer Museum Juneteenth celebration in Doylestown based on the imagery found in the Juneteenth flag. This year, for the 160th anniversary of the holiday, Kevin has partnered with sixteen different community organizations and faith-based institutions to create a piece that simultaneously celebrates the holiday, highlights the history of the African-American experience, and unites diverse segments of the local community by having them collaborate on one cohesive work of art.

Courtesy of Kevin Aster Young

Each organization was given ten small canvases to paint according to the artist’s guidelines, resulting in 160 separate pieces in total. These many small canvases combine to create an image of the Juneteenth flag. In addition, each canvas corresponds to a particular year since the first Juneteenth celebration in 1865, and can be rotated to reveal the year and a QR code that links to a relevant educational article on Black history for that time.

This year’s work, titled “Forward Backward Together Forward (160 Years)” brings the community closer together while simultaneously embodying unity in diversity, visualizing the passage of time, and highlighting the contributions of Black Americans to American history at a time when doing so is of paramount importance.

 

Courtesy of Kevin Aster Young

 

 

 

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Cops, Courts & Fire -Morrisville Borough

Morrisville Woman Charged with Threatening Woman on School Property with Gun Heads to Trial

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A 31 year old Morrisville woman is heading to trial at the Justice Center in Doylestown after charges were held over- which include allegedly bringing weapon on to school property- at a preliminary hearing Tuesday.

Magisterial District Judge Corryn L. Kronnagel ruled there was enough evidence to sustain charges filed against Ashlynn A. Parker Paris connected to incident in which she and another woman brawled with each other at Morrisville Borough Police Headquarters after the suspect allegedly pointed a gun at her in front of  the Borough High School.

According to the probable cause, on Wednesday February 25, 2026 at approximately 9:20 a.m., officer Amanda DeLuca observed a physical altercation occurring at Morrisville Police Department Headquarters.

DeLuca walked into the municipal  building and observed one female, identified as Ashlynn Parker Paris, holding another female against the wall with her forearm. The two women were screaming at each other. At this time, police separated the two females, at which point, Parker Paris kept lunging at the victim and trying to push past police to get to her.

At this time, the two women were separated in separate rooms.

The victim said that this altercation started because Parker Paris’s daughter assaulted her daughter earlier at Morrisville High School.

The victim told police, according to court records, that when she picked her daughter up from the high school, Parker Paris walked towards the victim’s vehicle holding a firearm in her hand and stated “I’ll slap the s**t out of you”.

At this time, the victim fled the area, police said.

The victim arrived at Borough Police Department to file a report and  Parker Paris was already there.

The victim said Parker Paris was screaming at her which led to the suspect physically attacking her in which she suffered a small laceration on the right side of her face, the probable cause alleges.

DeLuca subsequently obtained CCTV footage which shows the altercation between the two women.

According to police,the footage shows the victim in her vehicle and Parker Paris walking out of the school, towards the victim’s vehicle, the two exchange words. Parker Paris and her daughter walk back to her vehicle. The victim reverses her vehicle and starts driving towards Grandview Avenue.  The CCTV footage then shows Parker Paris get out of her vehicle and raising her right hand which contained a handgun. Parker Paris then points the black handgun at the victim’s vehicle then gets back in her vehicle and drives off.

Further investigation led to the discovery that Parker Paris’s firearm was fully loaded during the time of the incident and was turned in to police after the incident, police said.

Parker Paris was represented by Shaka Mzee Johnson, Esq at today’s hearing.

Parker Paris is charged with misdemeanor counts of possession of a weapon on school property, terroristic threats, simple assault and disorderly conduct.

She is due back in court on April 10 in Doylestown for formal arraignment.

 

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Cops, Courts & Fire -Bensalem Township

Bensalem Police Officers Recognized at Council Meeting

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Two Bensalem Police officers were recognized for their extraordinary service and life-saving actions at Monday night’s Council meeting.

Officer Mark Wildsmith was honored as the 2025 Bensalem Township Police Department officer of the Year.

Over the past year, Wildsmith demonstrated exceptional dedication to the community. His accomplishments include successfully handling a life-threatening critical incident, saving a man’s life by performing the Heimlich maneuver, assisting a suicidal veteran as part of the Bucks County Veterans Response Team, and arresting a suspect during a traffic stop who was in possession of a Glock handgun equipped with a “switch,” making it fully automatic, said officials.

Wildsmith also helped develop the department’s Jiu-Jitsu defensive tactics training program. He previously served as a Philadelphia Police Officer and is a proud United States Army veteran.

The second officer honored was Kristopher Harley who was recognized for his heroic actions during a call to a local hotel. When alerted that a child had drowned in the pool, Harley, officials said, immediately located the unresponsive child and began CPR. Through his quick and decisive actions, the child regained consciousness and began breathing on his own.

The child has since made a full recovery, officials said.

It was especially meaningful to have the two survivors in attendance at the meeting to personally thank the officers who saved their lives, officials noted.

 

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Cops, Courts & Fire -Bristol Borough

Fitzpatrick Announces $2 Million Federal Grant for New Fire Station

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Updated Tuesday March 10 at 11: 15 pm 

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick a Republican (PA -1) attended Monday night’s Bristol Borough Council meeting to announce he secured a $2 million federal grant Bristol’s new yet to be built centralized consolidated fire station.

“Last night, I was proud to attend the Bristol Borough Council meeting to formally deliver great news: $2 million in federal funding has been secured for Bristol’s new consolidated fire station” Fitzpatrick said in a statement.

The congressman said he and and borough officials had been meeting in recent months to discuss the needs of the of borough first responders. And that  one issue was clear: firefighters were operating out of four aging facilities that no longer meet the demands of modern emergency response

Fitzpatrick said a single, centralized fire station that will strengthen coordination, improve efficiency, and reduce response times when seconds matter most was identified as a priority was included in the FY26 federal funding package so we could bring this vision to life.

The new centralized station will replace the outdated facilities with a modern, centralized hub for fire and emergency response, supporting both volunteer and career firefighters, officials have said.

The new fire station will include on-site living accommodations and with plans to house a Bucks County Rescue Squad substation, strengthening readiness and emergency coverage across the Borough and throughout Bucks County, officials said.

Fitzpatrick said, his office is working across the aisle so to speak, with state Rep Tina Davis’ office to secure as much funding as possible so there will be no cost to Bristol taxpayers.

Davis and state Senator Steve Santarsiero, just before the holiday season kicked off into full gear last year, announced a $1 million grant for the fire station.

Officials have estimated a $1o million price tag for the new centralized fire station. So far from state and federal grants the Borough has $3.7 million to get the project started.

Bristol Borough Fire Association President Steve Reeves said Borough first responders were truly grateful tp Fitzpatrick for his work on securing the funds for the station.

Reeves said the station will enhance public safety in Bristol Borough

Council President Ralph DiGuiseppe said he was determined to get the project moving forward.

“Just just for the record, we don’t have a firehouse design yet, but we’re very close. We’re working on a few issues,” he said.

Council President Ralph DiGuiseppe said he was determined

The funds come from the 2026 fiscal year federal funding package recently passed by Congress.

“I can’t think of a more worthy project” Fitzpatrick said.

Credit: Submitted

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