Kennett Square

"Christmas Melodies" is the theme of the Christmas Display, continuing through Jan. 5 at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pa. You can visit any day, including Christmas and New Year's, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. to find decorated trees, Christmas flowers and plants, lights and music.Christmas trees are decorated by area garden clubs to represent popular holiday songs, such as "Sleigh Ride," "Silver and Gold" and "The Night Before Christmas."One of the main attractions is the brilliant display of red, pink and white poinsettias arranged in various forms from hanging baskets to tree decorations.

Want to see an acrobat balance one-handed atop a stack of chairs? How about flying tumblers hurling themselves through the air? Yes, you do? Then head to Pennsylvania to see the Chinese Golden Dragon Acrobats. The troupe will be at Longwood Gardens, near Kennett Square, on Saturday. (Rain date is Sunday.) The acrobats, who have performed in more than 65 countries, will begin their show at 7 p.m. in the 1,500-seat Open Air Theatre. Wearing traditional and colorful costumes, they will incorporate balancing, juggling, dancing, contortionism, comedy and magical elements into the performance.

James Karcher Redding, a retired forklift salesman and college computer instructor, died of respiratory failure Thursday at a nursing home in Kennett Square, Pa. The former Towson resident was 85. Mr. Redding, who moved to Kennett Square this year, was born in Philadelphia and raised in Jenkintown, Pa. After graduating from Abington High School there, he earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University. He was a resident of Severna Park from 1959 to 1970, when he settled in Towson.

Sarah M. Dwyer, a homemaker and artist, died of cancer Saturday at a retirement community in Kennett Square, Pa. The former Chestertown resident was 80. She was born Sarah Moffett in Betterton and raised in Ardmore, Pa. She earned a bachelor's degree from the former Western Maryland College in 1946 and studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art. After her 1948 marriage to Dr. Frank P. Dwyer Jr., an otolaryngologist, the couple moved to Catonsville....

Can't wait to shake off the cold and gloom of winter? Longwood Gardens can get you in a springtime mood real fast. Its "Welcome Spring" display, featuring 16 indoor gardens, is in full bloom. The 3-acre display highlights thousands of familiar and exotic flowers, including daffodils, blue poppies, hyacinths, tulips, roses and orchids. Visitors also can enjoy gardening and cooking demonstrations, as well as Sunday concerts in the gardens. A free audio tour with more than two hours of information about the gardens is also available.

On October 14, 2003, FINDLEY BURNS age 86, of Southern Pines, N.C. formerly of Baltimore, MD. He attended Calvert School, Gilman School and graduated from St. Andrews School in Middltown, DE. and Princeton University. He served 32 years in the Foreign Service under the State Department and 6 years at the United Nations. Son of the late Findley Burns and Susan P. Burns of Baltimore. He is survived by his wife of 50 years Martha L. Burns of Southern Pines, N.C. Brother of Susan P. Burns of Kennett Square, PA and Barbara B. Moorhead of Baltimore and uncle of Carroll Barrett of Norwich, Vt and Ellen Cayer of Wellesley, MA and J. Harvey Rowland of BaltimoreFuneral Services will be held Saturday, October 18th in Southern Pines, N.C.

Winterthur wonderland Step into a winter wonderland at Winterthur, an American Country Estate, in Winterthur, Del., tomorrow through Dec. 23 and Dec. 26 through Jan. 1. Winterthur's Nights of Enchanted Lights is a nightly music and lights show at the estate's Enchanted Woods. Thousands of holiday lights will adorn the children's garden. Cobweb the storyteller fairy will spin tales. Children can help decorate the Enchanted Woods with evergreen boughs. And community choirs and singing groups will perform for visitors each night.

Giving Thanks at Historic St. Mary's CityFor a look at how our Colonial ancestors celebrated the end of the harvest season, attend "Giving Thanks: Hearth and Home in Early Maryland" tomorrow and Saturday at Historic St. Mary's City, an outdoor living history museum at the site where Maryland's first settlement and capital were founded in 1634.The museum-wide exploration of 17th-century food-ways includes demonstrations of hearth cooking, pickling meats and vegetables, preserving fruits, dairying, smoking and drying.

`Christmas at Longwood Gardens' The sight of 750 fountains rocketing skyward greets visitors to "Christmas at Longwood Gardens," near Kennett Square, Pa. The fountains dance to holiday music each half hour, beginning at 11 a.m., and continuously from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. daily through Jan. 6. After dark, starry snowflakes up to 6 feet wide and icicles up to 5 feet long sparkle in surrounding trees. And thousands of poinsettias, towering trees, fragrant flowers and exotic plants fill 4 acres of gardens inside the gardens' conservatory.