Paul Gurcules Memorial Bench In The Works In Phoenixville

PHOENIXVILLE, PA — The Phoenixville friends of a local artist and community advocate are working to honor his memory with a memorial bench in the Borough.

Paul Gurcules died early in September at 71. He was known for his love for Phoenixville and his encouragement of business and the arts in the Borough as he walked around taking photos, talking, and making friends.

Steel City Coffeehouse & Brewery owner Laura Vernola knew Gurcules well. "He came in all the time — and every Sunday. We'd sit around talking all day."

Vernola said Gurcules was loved by everybody. "He was a photographer. If you look at his Facebook page, you'll see he had a great eye," she said.

Vernola explained he had moved to Las Vegas recently to help his daughter. He was ill and died early in September, she said.

Gurcules will have a private burial in Phoenixville, she said. "The week it happened his entire family came in and met with me. Everyone was crying."

Another good friend, Zoe Sakos, is working with the Borough to place a memorial in Phoenixville in memory of Gurcules. Sakos and friends are requesting its placement near Bridge and Main streets, Vernola said.

Vernola set up a GoFundMe that aims at $900 to fund the project and in its first 24 hours, it raised $390. The GoFundMe site explains, "Our friend and Phoenixville champion, Paul Gurcules, passed away suddenly the first week of September 2021."

Vernola asks those who knew Paul — and knew how much he loved Phoenixville — to share in the effort.

"It's crazy sad because it was so unexpected," she told Patch. "Paul was an artist, a friend to many and he will be missed so much."

Years ago Gurcules created the Facebook group Phoenixville — Our Kind of Town. "He created the page because he loved this town and was often seen at festivals and community events, capturing moments with his camera," wrote Vernola. It now has almost 12,000 people on it. He was always out for any festival, taking pictures while walking around town," Vernola explained.

Vernola said Steele City Coffeehouse & Brewery, 203 Bridge St., will put in the balance if the fund doesn't raise enough, but she said she expects it will. She said many people in town have pieces of his art. "We all cared about Paul so much."

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