the spirit of penn's garden – march 17, 2016

THIS

WEEKMARCH 17, 2016

VOL. 1NO. 9

PRESS

HOTOFF THE

BACTERIALMENINGITIS

8

George Washington Carver High School student dies after contracting disease.

AIN’T NO STOPPING US

NOW

6

Brewerytown breast cancer survivor takes the spotlight

in “Survivor Love” music video.

ACCU REGGIE

3

Seven day forecast for the Penn’s Garden region.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

7

Events and happeningsin Penn’s Garden.

HYPERLOCAL DONE DIFFERENTLY

FAIRMOUNT + NORTH CENTRAL + BREWERYTOWN + TEMPLE + STRAWBERRY MANSIONFRANCISVILLE + POPLAR + LUDLOW + SPRING GARDEN

MOVIES AT THE PEARL

5

Reviews of films playing North Philly’s Pearl Theater.

COMMUNITY NEWS – FREE PUBLICATION – PICK ONE UP!

High school girls surrounded by dresses, makeup, shoes and jewelry can only mean one thing: It’s prom season! Although it’s more than two months away, girls from each of the city’s Police Athletic League (PAL) Centers — a youth

educational, recreational, cultural and character building after school program — swamped the Cozen PAL Center (732 N. 17th Street) in Fran-cisville on March 3rd to start preparing for their special night. Whether it is a v-neck floral silk dress or a lace rhinestone nylon dress, they gleefully went through the racks in search for the perfect dress for their matching leather pumps or angle strapped suede heels, earrings, necklaces and nail polish — and all for free. The girls were even able to leave the center with a new look as volunteers were on hand to do the girls’ make-up, including lip stick, eyeliner and

eye shadow. Lynetta Ferguson’s senior prom is May 27. The 18 year old said she is going to force herself to be a girl that night. “I don’t normally do dresses, so this is the first time I am getting glammed up,” Ferguson said. “Wearing a dress and looking in a mirror I am like, ‘Oh my God! This is what I look like in a dress?’ When I am look-ing at my legs, I am like, ‘Oh my.’” Tache Green,17, attends the Cozen PAL Center after school. In her spare time she makes her own custom clothing. She was making her third visit to the “Prom Boutique.” As a designer, Green went with a theme in mind. After trying on sev-

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The impending implosion of two of the three Norman Blum-berg Apartment buildings is big news — On Saturday, March 19th at 7:15 AM, two high-rise buildings will come down in of Sharswood. The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) asks

all residents in the “Evacuation Zone” to be cleared out by 5 AM. The PHA is moving forward with this demolition as part of a con-troversial Urban Renewal Project. The Blumberg Apartments are lo-cated between Cecil B. Moore Avenue (north), South College Avenue and Poplar Street (south), 20th Street (east), and 27th Street (west). According to Scott Beyer’s article on Forbes.com, “the area is defined by a large, crime-ridden public housing complex called the Norman Blumberg Apartments, a rundown retail strip along Ridge Avenue, and hundreds of abandoned homes.” But the city already owned 500 of the 1300 units that are in their project zone. Many of the properties were obtained through “abandonment and

tax delinquency.” Through the controversial process of eminent domain, the city is vacating the residents of the four-by-six-block area and replac-ing the high-rise buildings with mixed-income properties. As Beyer describes, this ten-phase project will be a $500 million invest-ment that will not be returned due to the low taxes the residents will be paying. Mixed-income housing usually has about 30 percent of their units affordable for low-income residents. The new development will have about 66 percent of its units affordable for low-income residents. But before looking at the future of these proposed developments and the controversy that has sprung from them (we’ll be taking a deeper look at this in an upcoming issue of The Spirit), let’s look back on what happened in this neighborhood in the past and discover how this community be-came the newest site for such a project. As an easy reference point, we will

The Spirit of Penn’s Garden – March 17, 2016

focus on Cecil B. Moore Avenue, which is a half of a mile away from the Blumberg Apartments, and in between them and Temple University. It was not until 1987 that Cecil B. Moore Avenue came into existence. Columbia Avenue from 33rd Street to Frankford Avenue was renamed for one of the most signif-icant Civil Rights leaders in the history of Philadelphia. A Temple University graduate, Cecil Bassett Moore earned this honor because of his contributions to the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. Moore was elected President of the NAACP, organized peaceful protests at segregated fa-cilities, and was responsible for the desegregation of Gi-rard College in 1968 after years of “mass protest.” But before Moore was making Civil Rights achievements in the city, the demographics of the area were vastly dif-ferent than what we observe today. The Temple Universi-ty Library tells us that beginning in the 1830s, Columbia Avenue was occupied mostly by German Jews and a small population of Jews from Eastern Europe. For a century, this area thrived. Business owners kept their businesses in town, but they moved their families to suburbs in West Philadelphia. In the decade before the Great Depres-sion, most residents of Columbia Avenue were Eastern European Jews. In the years following World War II (1940s/50s), the econ-omy was thriving, business was great, and residents of the area began another wave of moving to the suburbs. With the German Jews and Eastern European Jews moving out, middle-to-high-income African-Americans moved in, and the neighborhood was still doing great. The Great Migra-tion of the 1950s/60s describes the mass movement of Af-rican-Americans from the South who came to the North in order to find better job opportunities. For the first time in its existence, Columbia Avenue was a predominantly Afri-can-American corridor. The middle-to-high-income African-American families that replaced the Europeans moved out of the neighbor-hood next. The citizens left behind were the disenfran-chised Southern African-Americans who had little money and few job opportunities. Businesses were sold in the area to the people who now lived there. However, since the people residing in the area had very little money, many of these businesses failed. City governments across the nation observed cities be-coming poorer in the 1950s. In order to attract business-es and real-estate agencies to these areas, Urban Renew-al Projects took over the city landscape. For any number of reasons, businessmen did not choose to invest in this area. The Urban Renewal Project in North Philadelphia built tenements and public housing for the time being. Poor residents were forced to live on top of one another and tensions ran high. Citizens began to feel targeted by

the police officers of the area and racial conflicts began to arise as about half of the black population in 1960s Philadelphia was crammed into North Philly. The average income of the area dropped to 30 percent lower than the city average at this time. Due to decades of poverty, more businesses closed. In 1969, the PHA completed construction on the Norman Blumberg Apartments, a low-income, high-rise public hous-ing development, and with it came poverty that was hard to overcome. The remaining middle class residents soon left the neighborhood, and those who stayed behind watched as the community fell victim to crime and abandonment. But many in the neighborhood believe the PHA is to blame for the blight in the first place. According to Forbes, the widespread opinion around Sharswood is that the area began decaying in 1969 when the Blumberg apartments were built, and has worsened as the city took ownership of more and more lots, leaving them unplowed and trash-filled. This has caused residents to call that the PHA “the worst slumlord in the city.” In his Forbes article, Beyer writes that he is skeptical of the plan, saying,

“Philadelphia will spend $500 million in taxpayer money, confiscate hundreds of private properties, and overhaul a business community; will further concentrate poverty in an already-poor area that was primed for revitalization; and will empower a mismanaged agency by granting it more land,

housing, and even a new headquarters.” Adam Lang is a local activist who lives with his wife in Sharswood. They own a home and several adjacent lots in the neighborhood, which the PHA seized. After receiving an eminent domain notification, Lang wrote in his blog that,

“I will not deny the neighborhood is blighted. It is. It is filled with many vacant lots, sealed buildings and regular homes that need repair, but it is very important to discuss where the blight is coming from. Of the 1300 properties, about 500 are coming from the City of Philadelphia [and several hundred more from the PHA]… What is the logic in giving the people who are the main factors in the blight, even more power and authority over the neighborhood?”

PHA president Kelvin Jeremiah told Newsworks last sum-mer that “We have not always been a good landlord. We have not always been a good partner. That’s the old PHA. That’s not the new PHA.” This remains to be seen as further development begins following Saturday’s implosion. Spirit News will continue to report on the PHA’s plans to develop Sharswood in upcoming stories. If you have any thoughts to share, or wish to speak with us about how the PHA’s plans are affecting you and your community, please reach out to us at [email protected]. We are eager to tell your story. ·

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You knew it couldn’t last forever — 75 and sun-ny in March is on life support just days after it arrived. March is a cruel month; it teases with spring

and then dashes you back to winter. This March will be no different. This forecast period we snap out of the warm spell we’ve been under and jump back to winter. Yep, win-ter. We start the week relatively warm, but then transition to cold weather just in time for the weekend. There are shower chances all throughout the week so keep the umbrella handy. Overall, it is an active weather week with winter making one more appearance before spring officially takes the wheel away. We have one more chance for snow on Sunday as a coastal storm potentially impacts the area.

Snow chances this week: The Sunday storm is very inter-esting. There is a chance it misses us completely, but as-suming there is a storm and it wraps enough cold air in, there is a chance that it will snow in parts of the region. I think there is a good chance the Poconos and Lehigh Valley areas north of Philly see at least some snow. Philly proper may see a brief snow shower at the end of the storm or could see a few inches of it. The details will be finalized as we get closer so stay tuned! Wednesday is the warmest day of the week with tempera-tures in the 60s. Watch for a shower later in the day. Thursday is a transition day as colder air begins to fil-ter into the region. We will top out in the 50s with another chance for a shower or two. Friday is a windy and chilly day with off and on rain. It

will be raw and wet. Yuck. Saturday will feature sun and breezy, cool conditions. It will be chilly, but the sunshine will make it feel better. Clouds increase later in the evening. All eyes are on a potentially major storm impacting the area on Sunday. If the storm takes an easterly track it will be rain changing to snow. If it tracks over us or to our west it will be all rain. Either way, be prepared for cold, wet weather. It is cold and windy behind the storm on Monday as tem-peratures struggle to get out of the middle 40s. Tuesday will feel better as the wind subsides and tem-peratures get close to the 50 degree mark. The weather winner of the week is Wednesday; the weather loser is Sunday. ·

WEDNESDAY

WARMER WITH SUN.

HIGH48

LOW31

THURSDAY

CHANCE FOR SHOWERSIN THE AFTERNOON.

HIGH57

LOW42

FRIDAY

CHILLY WITH SHOWERS.

HIGH52

LOW31

SATURDAY

CHILLY WITH INCREASINGCLOUDS.

HIGH48

LOW35

SUNDAY

HIGH42

LOW34

MONDAY

CLOUDY AND WINDY. CHILLY WITH SUN.

HIGH46

LOW29

TUESDAY

HIGH48

LOW31

COLD WITH RAIN,SNOW POSSIBLE.


eral dresses with her mother, Shereea Green, by her side helping to straighten her dress, pull up the zipper at the back and giving her thoughts on how the dresses fit her physique, Green finally chose a grey floor-length floral lace dress with sparkling diamonds in the front. “The theme I want to go with is the Harlem Night, so I wanted a mermaid dress with a feather in my hair,” Green said. Ferguson and Green were just two of more than 100 girls who got their own dresses that night. Although it was a Prom Boutique, girls 12 and older were also able to choose dresses to wear to special occasions such as graduations, weddings and Sweet 16s. Nancy Rounbehler, the organizer of the event, said the Prom Boutique started six years ago when a grandmother asked if she can provide her granddaughter with a prom dress. Since then, the event has grown in terms of volun-teers, but also donations. Instead of hiding their prom dresses in the back of their closets, many girls donated their prom dresses. Different stores also donated a collection of dresses for the event. “This year a store in the Northeast called “Dress Up Time” donated a hundred dresses and 40 boxes of shoes,” Roun-behler said. Officer Phyllis Young, the director of Cozen PAL Center, said she has been involved since the event started. Young said it gives the girls an opportunity to see and try on some dresses they only see on television or in magazines. “I saw tags on some of the dresses that were $500, $700,” Young said. “So it’s pretty much dresses that they wouldn’t have the opportunity to purchase because they are so ex-pensive.” Now that the seniors have their dresses, shoes and acces-sories to match, the only thing they have to worry about is who their dates will be and the cost of their limousine. But even those girls who are not quite ready for prom left the PAL Center as princesses, carrying a new dress with them. “My best part of the whole day is when a girl sees a dress on the mannequin and she wants that dress so they have to take the dress off the mannequin and put another one on,” Young said. ·

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Movies at the PearlW R I T T E N B Y D A N O ’ N E I L

S H O R T R E V I E W S O F M O V I E S P L A Y I N G A T T H E P E A R L ( 1 6 0 0 N B R O A D S T . )

London Has Fallen Treading the same water that the original 2013 film, “Olympus Has Fallen”, did, “London Has Fallen” follows Secret Service agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler), trying his hardest to save the life of the President (Aaron Eck-hart) from blood-thirsty terrorists. It’s basically the same plot of the original movie, except that this time, it’s all set in London. Not much has changed this time around, except for the fact that the movie is tighter at 99 minutes, quicker, and most of all, more violent. Of course, the movie’s ideas about terrorism and politics are dated, to say the least, which causes problems whenever it tries to be more seri-ous than it has any right to be. Still though, when there is action, it’s fun, exciting and as vicious as you can possibly get with an R-rating. Some people will hate “London Has Fallen”, but then again, they may not be the audience the movie had in mind.

The VVitch Set in 17th century New England, “the VVitch” is about a close-knit Puritan Christian family who has been recently excommunicated from a plantation and now need some-where to live. Without many options, they choose this rural farm seemingly in the middle of nowhere, where they have nobody else to communicate with or rely on, except each other. This spells out great issues when the newborn goes missing and nobody has a clue who — or what — is to blame. From here, first-time writer/director Robert Eggers drives up the tension without ever making it clear just where he’s taking the story next, or what exact-ly is lurking in the woods that surround this small family. What we do know is that something here is not right and because of that, the chill remains in the air and makes for a terrifying, but memorable experience. Expect to be chilled for days after seeing this one! ·

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B R E W E R Y T O W N B R E A S T C A N C E R S U R V I V O R T A K E S T H E S P O T L I G H T I N “ S U R V I V O R L O V E ” M U S I C V I D E O

The chorus of “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” rose above the din of jackpot winnings at the SugarHouse on Monday, March 7. A sea of first-year breast cancer survivors — all clad in

pink t-shirts, feather boas, light-up tiaras, tutus, and foam fingers — danced and sang their way through the casino floor during the filming of their music video, “Share the Love.” The event was part of “Survivor Love,” a program sponsored by SugarHouse Casino. “Survivor Love” offers a special deal for first-year breast cancer survivors who want to participate in the Komen Philadelphia Race for the Cure, which takes place on Mother’s Day, May 8. SugarHouse is underwriting their Race for the Cure registration fee. First-year survivors are classified as anyone who has been diagnosed or in treat-ment within the past 12-18 months. According to Elaine Grobman, CEO of Susan G. Komen Philadelphia, SugarHouse has been a partner with Komen for the past five years. “We’re very fortunate to have great people who want to help Komen fight this disease,” Grobman said. “Komen is honored to be a part of this new friendship that [Sugar-House] has formed.” The majority of these women and men met for the first time at the new “Survivor Love” event. For many, it marked the first time they could refer to themselves as survivors. One of the scenes from the “Share the Love” music vid-eo features over fifty survivors singing on a bus. Another scene captures the women around a blackjack table. Tas-mara McLaughlin, a resident of Brewerytown, landed her own solo part. Nervous in the spotlight? Not McLaughlin. In the music video, all cameras are on her as she sits at the blackjack table, singing to the dealer and snapping her fingers. “It makes you teary eyed,” McLaughlin said about “Survi-vor Love.” “And it’s like, I’m going to go home, and I don’t

know how I’m going to sleep tonight. I’m really enjoying it.” In January 2015, McLaughlin went for her mammogram and found out she had breast cancer. “It was scary in the beginning,” she said. But with her family by her side, she made it through. “I prayed on it, and I fought and I won,” said McLaughlin. “Like Mike Tyson, they got nothin’ on this fight here. I won this.” In response to the outcome of the evening, young survivor and Komen employee Jeannine Donahue said, “I’m kind of in awe.” Donahue, who was chosen to run the event, is a nine-year survivor who was diagnosed at age twenty-six with inflammatory breast cancer. “It’s a very satisfying feeling and it’s also a little therapeutic,” Donahue said. As stated by Donahue, there’s a world of information and support for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. “It’s really important that [women] know, and I think that’s what this event embodies,” Donahue said. It was a night filled with support, enthusiasm, and prom-ise for the future. According to Komen Philadelphia’s In-stagram, nearly seventy-five first-year breast cancer survi-vors came out for the event. “We just want these women to know that we’re here for them and we’re fighting for them and with them,” Dona-hue said. Did the survivors feel that initial connection with one an-other? McLaughlin said yes, especially with one woman in particular. “We’ve been holding hands, walking all the way down together. It’s like I’ve known her for years.” According to Grobman, breast cancer is the largest sister-hood in the world. “These women immediately bond,” she said. “They im-mediately care for each other. I’ve been with Komen for twenty-six years and it never ceases to amaze me the car-ing and loving that survivors give each other.” The video premier reception will be held at SugarHouse

Casino March 21. Janis Productions, located in Philadel-phia, shot the music video. More information and photos from the event can be found on the Komen Philadelphia Facebook, as well as on Twitter and Instagram @KomenPhilly. ·

TASMARA MCLAUGHLIN (PICTURED LEFT)

FILMING THE MUSIC VIDEO AT SUGARHOUSE.


calendarC O M M U N I T Y

N E W S @ S P I R I T N E W S . O R G • 1 4 2 8 E . S U S Q U E H A N N A A V E • 2 1 5 . 4 2 3 . 6 2 4 6

March 2-26THE RESONANCE OF PLACECerulean Arts (1355 Ridge Ave.) is pleased to present The Resonance of Place: Andrea Krupp & Roger Chavez, fea-turing works inspired by their recent residencies in Ice-land and Ireland, respectively. The opening reception will take place on Friday, March 4 from 5-8PM and the Artists’ Talk will take place on Sunday, March 13 at 2PM. For more information on this exhibit and others, visit Cerule-anArts.com or call 267-514-8647.

Wednesday, March 16BUSINESS PLANNING & LOAN READINESSA business plan… it’s something you should have, but maybe don’t. It’s something you’ll definitely need when raising money or borrowing to grow and expand. Join colleagues for a discussion on how to create an effective business plan that will prepare you to present to lenders or investors. The event runs from 6-7:30PM and the loca-tion is TBA. For more information visit fcdc.wildapricot.org.

Wednesday, March 16CAN A KID BE A HERO, TOO?Did you know that more than 48 soldiers under the age of 18 won the Congressional Medal of Honor for their bravery and service during the Civil War? Follow your cu-riosity and imagination, verify your facts, and investigate your clues to discover stories of the children who were an active and critical part of the Civil War, on the home front and on the battlefield. All ages welcome. The event will take place at the Cecil B. Moore Branch of the Free Library, at 2320 Cecil B. Moore Ave. starting at 4PM. For more information visit freelibrary.org.

Thursday, March 17SOCIAL AND STUDIO CONVERSATIONS: MI-CHAEL RAKOWITZAt this special event, Iraqi-American and Jewish artist Michael Rakowitz will preview A Desert Home Compan-ion, his upcoming project produced with the City of Phil-adelphia Mural Arts Program. Realized in Philadelphia, the project will bring renowned Iraqi broadcaster Bahjat Abdulawahed together with other Iraqi refugees and Iraq War veterans, for a layered and transcendent look into the history and culture of Iraq, reflecting on the country’s mid-20th century cultural heyday and its recent wartime environment. This event is free to the public and will take place at Moore College of Art and Design (20th and Benja-min Franklin Parkway) from 6:30-8PM.For more information, visit muralarts.org/programs/mural-ab. THIS EVENT IS FREE TO THE PUBLIC

Saturday, March 19VISIONS OF BROADWAYThe 2016 Visions of Broadway on Broad at the New Free-dom Theatre (1346 N Broad St.) is directed and choreo-graphed by Patricia Scott Hobbs, Managing Director of the Performance Arts Training Program. In this original New Freedom Theatre production, she is joined by New Freedom’s teaching staff members: Diane Leslie, Shaw-na Evans, and Khalil Munir who make up the directorial/choreographic team. Latasha Morris is the musical direc-tor, Shanna Mawavise is the writer, and Gail Leslie, is the assistant to writer. The staff is joined by alumni teachers.For more information and to buy tickets, visit freedomthe-atre.org or call 888-802-8998.

Saturday, March 19NATURAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS: THE NEWEST BIOLOGICAL FRONTIERWhat is it like to discover a new species? Most people probably imagine a team of intrepid scientists trekking through a wild landscape to find creatures that have never been seen before by human eyes. While that situation is familiar to Smithsonian Curator and research zoologist Kristofer Helgen, he also knows that another kind of ex-pedition can be just as valuable: a trip to a natural histo-ry museumAt this Westbrook Lecture, one in an annual series of historic talks by world-renowned scientists, Dr. Helgen will share how some of his most well-known new mammal discoveries were inspired by natural history col-lections, and how today’s scientists are using collections such as the Wagner’s to paint a fuller picture of the ani-mal kingdom. The Wagner museum will open at 1:30PM; lecture starts at 3pm. Free for all.

For more information and to register visit wagnerfreeinsti-tute.org.

Saturday, March 19BALANCE DANCE COMPANYBalance Dance Company presents Map of the Human Heart, an exploration through dance of the highs, lows, and challenges of love. Performances take place at 3PM and 7:30PM. Tickets are $15 for adults, and $10 for stu-dents (16 and under) and are cash only. For more information and to get your ticket, visit perfor-mancegarage.com

Saturday, March 192016 WESTBROOK FREE LECTURESHIPDr. Richard B. Westbrook, Trustee of the Institute from 1884 until his death in 1899, established the Westbrook Free Lectureship as a means to encourage open discourse on scientific subjects, especially “disputed questions in science and the theories of Evolution.” Since 1912 when the series began, Westbrook lecturers have included some of the most distinguished scientists and scholars of the past 100 years, among them John Dewey, George Gaylord Simpson, and Margaret Mead.For more information visit wagnerfreeinstitute.org.

Monday, March 21LIBATIONS FOR CREATIONSJoin Crime & Punishment Brewery for an extended happy hour benefitting Kelly Elementary School from 4-8PM. $1 from every beer sold will be donated to provide art and music supplies.

Tuesday, March 22SM COMMUNITY RESOURCE GARDENInterested in growing your own vegetables and herbs? Join us at the SM Community Garden and learn how and when to grow food naturally. There are a limited number of plots available so come out and join the club soon. The event runs from 11AM-2PM.

Wednesday, March 23SEED SWAP & GARDEN SKILL SHARECalling all gardeners, seed keepers, and heirloom en-thusiasts! Join the Culinary Literacy Center and the Phil-adelphia Seed Exchange for an evening of storytelling, skill-sharing and seed and plant swapping. Early spring is the perfect time to get in the garden and plant seeds and starts for your favorite cooking greens, beans, grains, root vegetables, culinary herbs, flowers, and more. Bring your own seed, plant starts and plant cuttings for culinary crops to share. New to seed saving and plant propagation? Information on the practices and traditions of seed sav-ing will be available. Participants are encouraged but not required to bring materials to set up a small demonstra-tion and share a specific skill such as threshing seeds, seed starting, taking cuttings, etc. This is a family-friend-ly, physically accessible program open to gardeners of all skill levels. The event runs from 6-8PM at the Free Library of Philadelphia: Culinary Literacy Center - 1901 Vine St 4th Floor Conference Rooms 405-407.

Friday, March 25FRAM-ING :6The Performance Garage will host FRAM-ING :6 by Molly B. Misgalla. It is a 30-minute performance starting at 8PM with Q & A to follow immediately. Tickets will be sold at the door for $10 (cash only) Fram-ing : 6 is an investiga-tive research study looking at the use of film techniques in order to enhance the choreographic process. Artists in performance: Chrissy Howard, Shelby Glidden, Jason Gonzales, Tunai Jones, Kareem Marsh and Tony Rhodes. The Performance Garage is located at 1515 Brandywine St.

Tuesday, March 29THE VIETNAM WAR COMMEMORATION The Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support in Philadel-phia, PA is looking to inform local Vietnam veterans about an event in which they would be honored for their service. Every Vietnam War veteran in attendance will be person-ally recognized by current U.S. service members and com-munity members. Purple Heart recipient and Vietnam War veteran Army Lt. Gen. Jerry Sinn, Ret., will also pro-vide a keynote address on his experiences as a “tunnel rat” and a leader of a Rome Plow team. The Vietnam War Com-memoration Program is sponsored by the Association

of the U.S. Army and commemorative partners Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support and Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The event will take place at 3PM.

Friday, April 1FIRST FRIDAY RECEPTIONBrewerytown Social brings together businesses, resi-dents, and artists to create a cultural corridor around West Girard Avenue that showcases talented local artists and benefits the entire Brewerytown community. This first friday, there will be receptions at Brewerytown Beats, The Monkey & The Elephant, Crime & Punishment Brew-ing, and Lather Hair Studio from 6-10PM. For details on the artists and specific times, find Brewery-town Social on Facebook.

Tuesday, April 5A PEOPLE’S ASSEMBLYThe People’s Assembly at Tree House Books is a process that our community will engage in as important and es-sential impact makers in North Philadelphia. This pro-cess will, over time, expose how the ideas and work done by the people of North Philadelphia benefits the develop-ment of the entire city. By creating a relaxed and safe at-mosphere, Identifying key tasks to be completed during meetings, and being flexible with the agenda as new is-sues may arise, we will work towards community consen-sus. We will review writings reflective of great civilizations and municipalities, we will share stories of success and celebration. We use this practice to develop plans for growing together. This is our city. Together we will direct its growth. Treehouse books is located at 1340 W. Susque-hanna Ave., and the event runs from 6:30-8:30PM.

Tuesday, April 5STOPPING THE CRIMINALIZATION OF YOUTHOver the past few decades, a significant rise in the num-ber of out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, and refer-rals of students to the police – marked by an extraordi-nary level of racial bias – has stoked conversation about a “school-to-prison pipeline.” Building on years of research and advocacy, Harold Jordan will discuss some of the ma-jor obstacles to fixing our schools’ dependence on these measures, and some of the practices implemented in forward-looking school communities. Mr. Jordan is the Senior Policy Advocate at the ACLU of Pennsylvania, and the author of Beyond Zero Tolerance: Discipline and Po-licing in Pennsylvania Schools. He chairs the board of The Philadelphia Public School Notebook, a nonprofit news service reporting on public education. The event will take place at Eastern State Penitentiary from 6-7PM. It is open to the public and free, with a reception to follow.

Thursday, April 7THE BIOLOGY OF BEDTIMESLEEP—it’s something we do (or try to do) every night be-cause we feel tired and know how our behavior changes when we don’t catch enough zzz’s. Scientists, however, ar-en’t clear on the biology behind our compulsion to sleep, or even how regular snoozing benefits us. After making a simple discovery, that flies also need sleep, University of Pennsylvania Neuroscience professor Amita Sehgal was inspired to study the molecular basis of sleep and circa-dian rhythm (the 24-hour cycle that mysteriously dictates many of our physiological functions). At this Weeknights at the Wagner lecture, Sehgal will share the latest findings from her lab, where they use the Drosophila melanogas-ter fruit fly as a model for human sleep and sleep-related behavior. The lecture begins at 6PM. For more information visit wagnerfreeinstitute.org.

Saturday, April 9NEIGHBORHOOD CLEANUPJoin the Fairmount Civic Association for their 4th annual Spring Cleanup at 9:30AM, in conjunction with the Philly Spring Cleanup. Volunteers will receive supplies such as gloves, trash bags, and rakes. They will also be museum passes to Eastern State Penitentiary, 76ers tickets, and other items to be raffled away to volunteers. Refresh-ments to be provided. Afterwards, head over to a local es-tablishment (TBD) for drink specials and a fundraiser to benefit the FCA.


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Bacterial MeningitisW R I T T E N B Y D A N I E L R A I N V I L L E

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According to NBC10, a Philadelphia high school student died from a case of bacterial meningi-tis Tuesday morning. The 9th grade student, who has not yet been

identified, attended George Washington Carver High School. School officials organized a meeting Wednesday evening at the school to help address the concerns of par-ents. In addition, the School District’s Emergency/Crisis Response Team is bringing in trained professionals to help counsel grieving classmates and staff. The Philadelphia Department of Public Health is also monitoring the situation, which is the first documented meningitis fatality in the city this year. Common symp-toms of meningitis include nausea, vomiting, headache, fever, and stiff neck. Meningitis is not typically deadly, and Dr. Stacey A. Gorski of the University of Pennsylvania said that being fully vaccinated will ensure you’re protect-ed and that it’s most often those who are immunocompro-mised who are at risk.

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the spirit of penn's garden – march 17, 2016

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