It all started in Virginia. The 15-year-old Paul Beale would rush to the flower shop after school and on weekends to be able to work with flowers. “I’ve always wanted to work with flowers,” Beale [continue reading…]
As you travel north on Broad Street, you’ll come across several flourishing communities such as West Oak Lane, East Oak Lane, Olney and Fern Rock. These communities consist of thriving, independent restaurants, community service organizations, [continue reading…]
Each spring, brooms, rakes and buckets of paint come alive as the neighborhoods across the city participate in citywide cleanup days. But what about the rest of the year? Vernon Smith and Carlton Williams, legislative [continue reading…]
On the corners of many streets in neighborhoods throughout the city, there is trash and other debris strewn around. Events like the annual city-wide spring cleanup day were created to help keep streets clean and also [continue reading…]
At the corner of Ogontz Avenue and Walnut Lane, a bright orange awning offered shade to a colorful storefront. Inside, owner Diane Caffie was bundling black and white balloon bouquets for one of her regular customers. Expressions of [continue reading…]
For Amenah Claiborne, her role as center director at Simons Recreation Center doesn’t feel like work. Instead, her job reminds her of a family, one that is helping to provide a safe haven for kids [continue reading…]
Portia Fullard, a longtime resident of East Oak Lane and graduate of Temple University, is program director for Sky Community Partners, Inc., a local non-profit organization that identifies children in underserved communities and helps pay [continue reading…]
West Oak Lane is home to many community centers, churches and offices that serve as gathering places for its residents. The West Oak Lane area is focused on building “community” by bringing residents together through different opportunities in the [continue reading…]
Town Watch programs are used in cities in many different states. The main tenet of all Town Watch programs is, “Observe, Document and Report.” This is the simplest form of guidelines for people who are [continue reading…]
We spoke with the Free Library of Philadelphia’s Northwest Area Coordinator Jeff Bullard, and Andorra Branch Librarian JoAnne Woods about how the Free Library serves the community in the Northwest, and also in what ways [continue reading…]
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