There's no time clock for this

Here's what members of the Chester Town Board have been during during this time of COVID-19:

Supervisor Robert Valentine

Supervisor Robert Valentine graded free of charge the grounds for the new Jarvis R. Boone Memorial Amphitheater at Larkin's Green in the Village of Chester.

On May 18, 2017, then-state Sen. William J. Larkin Jr. presented a $150,000 check to build an outdoor amphitheater in the Village of Chester.

Live music will soon fill Larkin's Green.

Deputy Supervisor Cindy Smith

Deputy Supervisor Cindy Smith sewed pajamas for the winter and now summer dresses and shorts outfits for small children. Smith said in her teen years, her mom taught her the basics of sewing.

While homemade bread rises in the pans and she's relearning fifth grade math with her granddaughter, she sews.

She donates all the outfits to Catholic Charities where they are distributed throughout the county. She's kept busy with donated material from St. Columbia church.

Board member Tom Becker

Town Councilmen Tom Becker, a former water plant operator himself, volunteered his time to help Bill Keller, the current water operator who recently lost his brother and co-worker) Tom Keller.

Becker accompanied Keller for several days to get familiar with daily routines at the water plants. He helped replace a water service line that was leaking. He also assisted Keller during a water emergency at Walton Lakes Estates water district that was experiencing a water shortage due to low water output from its main well. Becker reached out to a hydrogeologist, several well drilling companies and met with Valentine, well-driller John Turnbull and Keller to go over options.

They are also working to have an additional well drilled that Becker said "is desperately needed to fulfill the needs of the Walton Lakes Estate water district."

At the last board meeting, the board voted to send a letter to all Walton Lake Estates residents asking them to curb their water usage this summer so they will not run out of water. There is enough water for winter usage, Becker said, but not summer usage.

Becker said he's reached out to state Sen. James Skoufis for possible grant money. There are four water districts in Chester, and the town hall has a small system that feeds the town hall and the library.

Board member Robert Courtenay

Board member Robert Courtenay, an essential ShopRite worker as store director, said he didn't have a lot of downtime but he did help the Chester community configure outdoor seating to help local restaurants.

Courtenay contacted Village Mayor John Tom Bell who thought it was a great idea and agreed that restaurants are going to need help as the town reopens. He went with the mayor to all the village restaurants and spoke with the owners. He said he received positive responses about the outdoor seating.

He also presented a $500 donation from ShopRite in the form of a gift card to Pastor James Peterson of the Chester Food Pantry. He said he knows that some residents are in need of help. He also offered to help the pantry in any way he could.

Board member Orlando Perez

Courtenay said Michelle Deshler from the town's park and rec department is organizing a joint Town and Village Graduation parade for all 2020 graduating students in the Chester community. Courtenay said he and Councilman Orlando Perez are helping Deshler put the parade together. Perez said they're planning to create a caravan including antique cars, fire and police vehicles, and one car holding all the board members.