This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on August 11, 2009
Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
Instead of traversing a red carpet with longtime girlfriend Oprah Winfrey, Stedman Graham trekked to a hot West Philadelphia classroom yesterday to share with high school students his secrets to success.
"How do you achieve success to the highest level?" he asked about 150 teenagers at William L. Sayre High School.
"The big answer is, you've got to be able to think."
Hailing from not only Sayre but also University City and West Philadelphia High Schools, the students were enrolled in summer enrichment programs offered by the University of Pennsylvania's Netter Center for Community Partnerships, which works for neighborhood revitalization.
The chief executive officer of a marketing and management consulting firm, Graham travels the world giving at least 100 motivational speeches a year. He also founded a nonprofit group aimed at developing leadership skills among "underserved" youths. His speech yesterday was given free, said Ira Harkavy, the center's director.
Graham is the author of 10 books, including the New York Times best-seller You Can Make It Happen and, more recently, Diversity: Leaders Not Labels.
To attain success, he said, one must have a clear concept of who one is.
"If you let other people define yourself," he said, "then you get left stuck in the box."
As an adolescent, Graham recalled, some people questioned what he could achieve. Once, when he told a neighborhood businessman he was going to college, the man replied, "You are not going to college, because your family is too stupid" - a reference, Graham said, to his two mentally challenged brothers.
"Ladies and gentlemen, that was my motivation to finish school," he told the students. "I don't know if I learned anything, but I finished."
Graham earned his bachelor's degree at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, and his master's at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind.
He emphasized that students should take responsibility for their own development, noting that "everybody is equal because everyone has 24 hours." He then asked, "What do you do with your 24 hours?"
Graham told the students that what they love should be the foundation of their success, and asked some of them to name all the things they loved in one minute.
"I love being determined," said Shayntreese Robinson, 19.
Later on, Graham told the student - who he said looked like the singer Jennifer Hudson - that she would be successful with that attitude.
But after all the motivational talk, Graham seemed to be thrown for a loop by some unexpected questions.
"Are you going to marry Oprah?" one student asked.
"We don't know yet," he replied.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
The mutable story of Betsy Ross and the flag
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on September 12, 2009. A video and interactive map were also published on the website on the same day.
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
In hushed tones, Betsy Ross motions three children into a secret huddle to show them her latest act of treason against the British government: the first American flag.
It is the 1777 version, with 13 stripes of red and white, and 13 five-pointed white stars in a circle on a field of blue.
Just as she did for the Founding Fathers three centuries ago, Ross boasts to the children that she can make a five-pointed star with just one snip of her scissors.
Carrie Haynes, 11, and Mary Neely, 7, believe her. Adam Young, 11, looks skeptical.
"George Washington did not believe it either," says Ross, with an English accent.
After one snip of her scissors, she hands them a five-pointed star.
And three more children have learned the story of the great American flagmaker. From family legend to the tale of a Revolutionary War hero and now a tourist stop, the story of Betsy Ross has evolved over the last 200 years.
Meredith Rich is at the forefront of how the story is told today. She is the newest of the three actresses who currently play Ross at the Betsy Ross House in Old City.
Retelling the nation's history at the heart of where it happened is one of the city's main selling points for tourists, and the Betsy Ross House is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the region. With suggested donations ranging from $2 to $5, the house receives close to 300,000 visitors each year, said Heather Kincade, a representative for the house.
While the economy has reduced the city's draw, Philadelphia continues as a tourist mecca, attracting 29 million domestic visitors in 2008 - up 35 percent from 1997, according to the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp.
As one of the city's tourism ambassadors, Rich helps enrich the experience for tourists interested in the city's historic stories.
"One of my favorite things is to help people realize that history is real, and it is alive in Philadelphia," said Rich, 22, a 2008 graduate of Franklin and Marshall College with a double major in government and theater.
Rich, 22, is the youngest actress to play Betsy, around the age Ross was (24) when she was supposed to have made the flag.
Though every storyteller who works for Historic Philadelphia gets the same training, each can bring her own spin to the character.
Rich said playing Ross is "second nature" as she tries to bring out their shared background in Quakerism. She often addresses visitors with "thee" and "thou," and walks around the courtyard with her hands folded together stiffly in front of her, as a basket with the American flag in it hangs by her elbows. If she is uncomfortable on a hot August day in in her full length skirt, long white apron, and bonnet, she doesn't show it.
She said it feels natural to her to play Betsy as "a little more reserved." And she especially likes matching historical wits with visitors.
"It's very entertaining to get to use your full knowledge and to get to prove what you know," said Rich.
One question that comes up is whether Ross really did make the nation's first flag. Rich doesn't shy away from the answer.
"Thou does not need to believe my entire story if thou would not, but I am telling it to thee as my own truth," she said.
While there is evidence that Ross made flags, historians question whether she made the first one.
"You have to think of it as a cherished American myth, not as a historical record," said Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, a professor of early American history at Harvard University.
"There is no strong evidence to support the Betsy Ross story," said Jim Gardner, project director of a Smithsonian Institution project on the American flag.
Ulrich explained how Ross' name became connected to the American flag.
The Continental Congress passed a resolution specifying vague requirements for the flag, which led to many versions. One of the strongest pieces of documentary evidence is a 1777 receipt for a flag from Betsy Ross, which is the same year she was supposed to have made the flag. There were many other women flagmakers at the time, historians noted.
"She definitely had a role in the creation of the early American flags," although "there really is not a first American flag," said Marla Miller, a University of Massachusetts professor whose book Betsy Ross and the Making of America is due out in April.
In 1870 William J. Canby, Ross' grandson, introduced the flag story when he read a paper before the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Canby said Washington and two members of the Continental Congress brought Ross a sketch of a striped flag with 13 white stars in a field of blue, and asked her to sew it. The stars had six points, but Ross, according to the legend, showed them that a five-pointed star was easier to make. The story of the first American flag was born.
"She became the mother of the country, comparable as George Washington as the father of the country," Gardner said.
Historians say the story gained traction in the late 19th century, when America was recovering from the Civil War and an influx of immigrants made Americans look at the flag with more reverence.
When the story emerged in the 1870s, as the suffragist movement was taking shape, even Americans with different attitudes towards women's rights could identify with Ross.
For Rich, the academic controversy over the origins of the American flag does not affect why she tells the Betsy Ross story.
"It wasn't out of the question," Rich said. "Even if she didn't make the flag, she is still one of the most remarkable women of her time."
Rich, who remembered going to the Betsy Ross House for class field trips, says the "magic" happens when children get excited about history and share what they have learned when they return to school.
"When you can see a child light up when you make them a star or show them a flag," Rich said, "that is really a wonderful thing."
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
In hushed tones, Betsy Ross motions three children into a secret huddle to show them her latest act of treason against the British government: the first American flag.
It is the 1777 version, with 13 stripes of red and white, and 13 five-pointed white stars in a circle on a field of blue.
Just as she did for the Founding Fathers three centuries ago, Ross boasts to the children that she can make a five-pointed star with just one snip of her scissors.
Carrie Haynes, 11, and Mary Neely, 7, believe her. Adam Young, 11, looks skeptical.
"George Washington did not believe it either," says Ross, with an English accent.
After one snip of her scissors, she hands them a five-pointed star.
And three more children have learned the story of the great American flagmaker. From family legend to the tale of a Revolutionary War hero and now a tourist stop, the story of Betsy Ross has evolved over the last 200 years.
Meredith Rich is at the forefront of how the story is told today. She is the newest of the three actresses who currently play Ross at the Betsy Ross House in Old City.
Retelling the nation's history at the heart of where it happened is one of the city's main selling points for tourists, and the Betsy Ross House is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the region. With suggested donations ranging from $2 to $5, the house receives close to 300,000 visitors each year, said Heather Kincade, a representative for the house.
While the economy has reduced the city's draw, Philadelphia continues as a tourist mecca, attracting 29 million domestic visitors in 2008 - up 35 percent from 1997, according to the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp.
As one of the city's tourism ambassadors, Rich helps enrich the experience for tourists interested in the city's historic stories.
"One of my favorite things is to help people realize that history is real, and it is alive in Philadelphia," said Rich, 22, a 2008 graduate of Franklin and Marshall College with a double major in government and theater.
Rich, 22, is the youngest actress to play Betsy, around the age Ross was (24) when she was supposed to have made the flag.
Though every storyteller who works for Historic Philadelphia gets the same training, each can bring her own spin to the character.
Rich said playing Ross is "second nature" as she tries to bring out their shared background in Quakerism. She often addresses visitors with "thee" and "thou," and walks around the courtyard with her hands folded together stiffly in front of her, as a basket with the American flag in it hangs by her elbows. If she is uncomfortable on a hot August day in in her full length skirt, long white apron, and bonnet, she doesn't show it.
She said it feels natural to her to play Betsy as "a little more reserved." And she especially likes matching historical wits with visitors.
"It's very entertaining to get to use your full knowledge and to get to prove what you know," said Rich.
One question that comes up is whether Ross really did make the nation's first flag. Rich doesn't shy away from the answer.
"Thou does not need to believe my entire story if thou would not, but I am telling it to thee as my own truth," she said.
While there is evidence that Ross made flags, historians question whether she made the first one.
"You have to think of it as a cherished American myth, not as a historical record," said Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, a professor of early American history at Harvard University.
"There is no strong evidence to support the Betsy Ross story," said Jim Gardner, project director of a Smithsonian Institution project on the American flag.
Ulrich explained how Ross' name became connected to the American flag.
The Continental Congress passed a resolution specifying vague requirements for the flag, which led to many versions. One of the strongest pieces of documentary evidence is a 1777 receipt for a flag from Betsy Ross, which is the same year she was supposed to have made the flag. There were many other women flagmakers at the time, historians noted.
"She definitely had a role in the creation of the early American flags," although "there really is not a first American flag," said Marla Miller, a University of Massachusetts professor whose book Betsy Ross and the Making of America is due out in April.
In 1870 William J. Canby, Ross' grandson, introduced the flag story when he read a paper before the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Canby said Washington and two members of the Continental Congress brought Ross a sketch of a striped flag with 13 white stars in a field of blue, and asked her to sew it. The stars had six points, but Ross, according to the legend, showed them that a five-pointed star was easier to make. The story of the first American flag was born.
"She became the mother of the country, comparable as George Washington as the father of the country," Gardner said.
Historians say the story gained traction in the late 19th century, when America was recovering from the Civil War and an influx of immigrants made Americans look at the flag with more reverence.
When the story emerged in the 1870s, as the suffragist movement was taking shape, even Americans with different attitudes towards women's rights could identify with Ross.
For Rich, the academic controversy over the origins of the American flag does not affect why she tells the Betsy Ross story.
"It wasn't out of the question," Rich said. "Even if she didn't make the flag, she is still one of the most remarkable women of her time."
Rich, who remembered going to the Betsy Ross House for class field trips, says the "magic" happens when children get excited about history and share what they have learned when they return to school.
"When you can see a child light up when you make them a star or show them a flag," Rich said, "that is really a wonderful thing."
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Phila. schools gearing up for flu season
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Fri, Sep. 4, 2009.
As families scramble to get ready for the first day of school, they may not be thinking about the coming flu season, but after last year's H1N1 outbreak, city officials have one message for Philadelphia parents: Keep your sick kids at home!
"If a parent sees the symptoms . . . please keep your child home until such time as these symptoms go away," Tomás Hanna, the chief of school operations, said during a media briefing yesterday with city Public Health Department officials.
On Tuesday, letters will be sent to parents explaining H1N1 prevention techniques and why it is important that children with flu symptoms don't go to school.
"We are asking young people and adults to be proactive about hygiene," said Donald Schwarz, the deputy mayor of health.
The district said that if a teacher spots a child with flulike symptoms, that child may be excluded from the classroom and sent to the nurse.
To prevent the spread of germs through hand to surface contact, schools will be equipped with hand-sanitizer dispensers.
The city said more than half of all confirmed cases of H1N1 type A in Philadelphia occurred in people between the ages of 5 and 19. The school district expects 163,000 students and 20,000 employees.
Starting around mid-October, the city expects to receive 1.2 million units of the H1N1 vaccine to deliver to health-care facilities and schools. Officials said the city was waiting for guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before making plans for how the vaccination will be distributed or if certain populations will get priority.
The Health Department is asking that parents take their children to their doctor to receive the vaccination, though it will also be available at schools for free.
"We expect that we will be able to deliver adequate amounts of the vaccine," said Schwarz.
In the event of an outbreak, schools will be closed only as "a last resort," Hanna said.
Factors that might affect that decision include evidence that the virus is being transmitted "rapidly and efficiently," that a particular school has a higher risk for transmission of the virus, or that a stronger strain of the virus is emerging, according to the Health Department.
Approximately 293 school nurses were trained in swine-flu prevention during their annual School Nurses' Professional Development Day at Murrell Dobbins High School in North Philadelphia yesterday.
"They understand they are the frontline players in this," Hanna said.
Stray dog, hit by car, thriving after surgery
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Tue, Aug. 18, 2009
Philadelphia's dog lovers have a reason to smile.
With perked ears and eager eyes, Miss Mickey, a 20-pound Australian cattle dog, can run, jump, and even catch a ball.
It wasn't always that way.
On March 13, the white and brown stray was following a family across Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia when she was hit by a car. She was saved by the quick actions of three police officers who rushed her to the Pennsylvania SPCA on Erie Avenue.
Yesterday, Miss Mickey and her "foster parent" from the Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association dropped by the Third District Police Station at 11th and Wharton Streets with a $150 donation to the city's Fallen Officers Fund on the dog's behalf. Officers Brian Karpinski, Jason Rush, and Melissa Kromchad accepted the gift, with appreciative pats for Miss Mickey.
"Last time I saw her," Rush said, "she didn't look anything like that."
Her survival was a surprise to everyone at the accident scene.
"I screamed," said South Street merchant Tony Fisher, who saw it happen. "I just assumed she was going to die right there."
The driver stopped, and tried to help by wrapping the dog in old clothing in his car. Rather than waiting for an animal rescue group to arrive, the officers put her in a patrol wagon and sped to the SPCA, where veterinarians found her pelvis had been crushed.
After a week of treatment there, Miss Mickey, thought to be about six years old, was transferred to Valley Central Veterinary Referral Center in the Lehigh Valley. There, metal plates were implanted in her pelvis. Such reconstruction would usually cost $10,000, but the surgeon discounted his bill to $1,800.
Back in South Philadelphia, Fisher returned to his store, the eco-friendly Big Green Earth, and started soliciting donations from his customers via e-mail for the dog he named Miss Mickey.
"Our customers are pretty much animal lovers," he said.
Fisher and Marianne Ahern, who volunteered to foster-care for Miss Mickey, also used Facebook to get the word out about her condition. One of Fisher's customers even sold some of his original artwork on eBay to raise money. Donations, he said, came from as far away as Florida and California.
The campaign brought in $4,000, enough for the dog's medical expenses - and the donation to the Fallen Officers Fund.
"She has had a lot of people reach out and try to help her," Fisher said.
Ahern said Miss Mickey is fully recovered from her injuries and is up for adoption.
"She likes to play fetch," Ahern said. "She likes tennis balls, but she doesn't mind an occasional stick."
For information on adopting Miss Mickey, visit the Web site of the Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association at www.acdra.org
Philadelphia's dog lovers have a reason to smile.
With perked ears and eager eyes, Miss Mickey, a 20-pound Australian cattle dog, can run, jump, and even catch a ball.
It wasn't always that way.
On March 13, the white and brown stray was following a family across Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia when she was hit by a car. She was saved by the quick actions of three police officers who rushed her to the Pennsylvania SPCA on Erie Avenue.
Yesterday, Miss Mickey and her "foster parent" from the Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association dropped by the Third District Police Station at 11th and Wharton Streets with a $150 donation to the city's Fallen Officers Fund on the dog's behalf. Officers Brian Karpinski, Jason Rush, and Melissa Kromchad accepted the gift, with appreciative pats for Miss Mickey.
"Last time I saw her," Rush said, "she didn't look anything like that."
Her survival was a surprise to everyone at the accident scene.
"I screamed," said South Street merchant Tony Fisher, who saw it happen. "I just assumed she was going to die right there."
The driver stopped, and tried to help by wrapping the dog in old clothing in his car. Rather than waiting for an animal rescue group to arrive, the officers put her in a patrol wagon and sped to the SPCA, where veterinarians found her pelvis had been crushed.
After a week of treatment there, Miss Mickey, thought to be about six years old, was transferred to Valley Central Veterinary Referral Center in the Lehigh Valley. There, metal plates were implanted in her pelvis. Such reconstruction would usually cost $10,000, but the surgeon discounted his bill to $1,800.
Back in South Philadelphia, Fisher returned to his store, the eco-friendly Big Green Earth, and started soliciting donations from his customers via e-mail for the dog he named Miss Mickey.
"Our customers are pretty much animal lovers," he said.
Fisher and Marianne Ahern, who volunteered to foster-care for Miss Mickey, also used Facebook to get the word out about her condition. One of Fisher's customers even sold some of his original artwork on eBay to raise money. Donations, he said, came from as far away as Florida and California.
The campaign brought in $4,000, enough for the dog's medical expenses - and the donation to the Fallen Officers Fund.
"She has had a lot of people reach out and try to help her," Fisher said.
Ahern said Miss Mickey is fully recovered from her injuries and is up for adoption.
"She likes to play fetch," Ahern said. "She likes tennis balls, but she doesn't mind an occasional stick."
For information on adopting Miss Mickey, visit the Web site of the Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association at www.acdra.org
After rape reports, women change running routines
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Wed, Aug. 26, 2009 .
Six days a week, Caroline Phelan of Manayunk runs about 10 miles through Fairmount Park to train for her seventh marathon - the New York City Marathon in November.
But in the last few days, Phelan, like many female joggers, has changed her routine, following reports of a second rape of a jogger in Fairmount Park.
A 21-year-old visitor to Philadelphia told police she was raped at 7:30 a.m. Sunday while jogging along the 3800 block of Edgely Drive, near the East Park Reservoir.
Women said they were jogging with groups, training in daylight hours, and limiting their runs to less-secluded areas.
"You feel like the odds of it happening to you are so low," said Phelan, a doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania. "Then something like that happens, and you realize that you just never know."
Since the attacks, Phelan said, she delays her morning run until after 7 a.m., when more people will be around.
She has also altered her route to the most popular parts of Kelly Drive, from Falls Bridge to Lloyd Hall, about three miles.
And "I consistently tell my husband when I am supposed to be coming back," said Phelan, who has been running for 13 years.
Police and leaders of Philadelphia running clubs say it is safest for female joggers to run in groups.
Police have no evidence to link Sunday's rape to an attack on Aug. 11, or to the so-called Fairmount Park rapist, who attacked four women in city parks between 2003 and 2007. That person has never been caught.
"You have to be realistic. This is a fairly large city, and the police can't be everywhere," said Carole Johnson, executive director of Women Organized Against Rape. "There's not a guarantee they'll be on every street, every lane, or every path."
Kate Hessenthaler, an assistant manager of iRun Philly, a women's running group, said she stressed to the club's 115 members that there was safety in numbers.
"People are less apt to attack you when you are in a group," Hessenthaler said.
For those running alone, she recommended that women avoid blasting their iPods, running down dark alleyways, or running at night.
"You always have to have an ear out and keep an eye open," Hessenthaler said. "You can't be naive and think that it's never going to happen to you."
Mallory Fay, 25, said such advice was already a part of her routine.
"I never run alone," said Fay, an accountant, also training for a marathon. "I don't run at night. And I don't wear headphones. And that makes me feel much safer."
Runners on a rigorous training regimen say running with a buddy is not always possible.
On the message board of Philly Runners, which organizes group runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays, some members expressed concerns about the recent attacks.
"I was hoping to get 10 miles in on Friday morning, and I'd like to do them on Forbidden Drive," wrote one woman. "With recent events, however, I don't want to run there alone."
Another woman wrote that she wanted to run on Forbidden Drive on Saturday. Phelan responded to both women, trying to link up, but they couldn't work it out.
"Running with someone is great advice, but it's not always very practical," Phelan said. "It is just difficult to find people and have schedules align."
For Phelan, restricting her runs to the most popular parts of Kelly Drive limits what she can see while she's running, but she said it was necessary.
"Six days a week, and I'm literally running up and down Kelly Drive and feeling like that's all I can do."
Six days a week, Caroline Phelan of Manayunk runs about 10 miles through Fairmount Park to train for her seventh marathon - the New York City Marathon in November.
But in the last few days, Phelan, like many female joggers, has changed her routine, following reports of a second rape of a jogger in Fairmount Park.
A 21-year-old visitor to Philadelphia told police she was raped at 7:30 a.m. Sunday while jogging along the 3800 block of Edgely Drive, near the East Park Reservoir.
Women said they were jogging with groups, training in daylight hours, and limiting their runs to less-secluded areas.
"You feel like the odds of it happening to you are so low," said Phelan, a doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania. "Then something like that happens, and you realize that you just never know."
Since the attacks, Phelan said, she delays her morning run until after 7 a.m., when more people will be around.
She has also altered her route to the most popular parts of Kelly Drive, from Falls Bridge to Lloyd Hall, about three miles.
And "I consistently tell my husband when I am supposed to be coming back," said Phelan, who has been running for 13 years.
Police and leaders of Philadelphia running clubs say it is safest for female joggers to run in groups.
Police have no evidence to link Sunday's rape to an attack on Aug. 11, or to the so-called Fairmount Park rapist, who attacked four women in city parks between 2003 and 2007. That person has never been caught.
"You have to be realistic. This is a fairly large city, and the police can't be everywhere," said Carole Johnson, executive director of Women Organized Against Rape. "There's not a guarantee they'll be on every street, every lane, or every path."
Kate Hessenthaler, an assistant manager of iRun Philly, a women's running group, said she stressed to the club's 115 members that there was safety in numbers.
"People are less apt to attack you when you are in a group," Hessenthaler said.
For those running alone, she recommended that women avoid blasting their iPods, running down dark alleyways, or running at night.
"You always have to have an ear out and keep an eye open," Hessenthaler said. "You can't be naive and think that it's never going to happen to you."
Mallory Fay, 25, said such advice was already a part of her routine.
"I never run alone," said Fay, an accountant, also training for a marathon. "I don't run at night. And I don't wear headphones. And that makes me feel much safer."
Runners on a rigorous training regimen say running with a buddy is not always possible.
On the message board of Philly Runners, which organizes group runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays, some members expressed concerns about the recent attacks.
"I was hoping to get 10 miles in on Friday morning, and I'd like to do them on Forbidden Drive," wrote one woman. "With recent events, however, I don't want to run there alone."
Another woman wrote that she wanted to run on Forbidden Drive on Saturday. Phelan responded to both women, trying to link up, but they couldn't work it out.
"Running with someone is great advice, but it's not always very practical," Phelan said. "It is just difficult to find people and have schedules align."
For Phelan, restricting her runs to the most popular parts of Kelly Drive limits what she can see while she's running, but she said it was necessary.
"Six days a week, and I'm literally running up and down Kelly Drive and feeling like that's all I can do."
Eagle fans are in a forgiving mood
This article was published on Philly.com on Fri, Aug. 14, 2009.
Eagles fans, who can be unforgiving, appear to be mostly in a forgiving mood when it comes to Michael Vick joining the team.
The signing of Vick, the former Atlanta QB who spent 18-months in prison in a dogfighting cruelty case, is bound to dominate water cooler discussions today and commuters in Center City offered a prelude to some of the themes.
Much of the talk was about second chances and how this will benefit the Eagles. But some are not happy at all, as can been seen from some of the comments to this story, because of Vick's troubled past.
"Too bad they don't have him for the whole year," said Charles James, referencing the possibility that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell might require Vick to sit out the first five games of the season.
"If they keep him, he'll be the man," said James, of North Philadelphia. "It was a big mistake what he did and he paid for it. He deserves another chance."
"He deserves a second chance," said Doug Brown and Leroy Emerson of North Philadelphia declared, "That was the best move the Eagles ever made, one of the best."
Shantae Thorpe of Mount Airy said it was time to move on from the dogfighting controversy.
"I think we should let bygones be bygones and start afresh." she said.
Carol Elko, a Northeast Philadelphia resident, agreed.
"I think down South that animal thing is normal," she said. "I think he got caught up in it and he learned his lesson and he deserves a second chance."
Other Eagles fans were not so happy about the newest hire.
"I thought they could have picked somebody else," said Dina Allen of Mount Airy. "I think I would have taken TO [Terrell Owens] before [him]."
Abbie Klebanoff, who didn't claim to be a die-hard Eagles fan, said the apology was not enough.
"He said he's sorry, but I think what he did was horrible."
Bob Jenkins, of Northeast Philadelphia, said true Eagles fans won't be bad-mouthing the decision.
"The only people who won't be quiet are the people who don't like the Eagles, he said, "Of course they're going to be talking because he's going to be throwing some touchdowns."
For some, the criticism against Vicks has gone a little too far.
"Other people get another chance," said Paul Kelley, of Center City. "When [Phillies piyther] Brett Myers beat his wife, everyone stopped talking about him a week later."
Charles Johnson, a New Castle, Del., resident said the criticism was hypocritical.
"Are we going to punish him because he's not a carpenter or electrician? They can go to jail, come out and work again," he said. "Martha Stewart is a back and she's on television. Not that I am against animals, but she harmed humans."
For Richardeena Harden, gaining Vicks is a plus, but her heart still belongs the current star quarterback Donovan McNabb.
"I love him dearly . . .," she said. "I hope nothing happens to McNabb because he's got plays that are incredible. But if something happens to McNabb they can put Vicks in."
Benjamin Lee, of Center City, said that the former king of football was getting a demotion.
"It is a slap in the face. Here he just received $1.6 million the first year and $5.6 million the second year," Lee said. "That doesn't even come close to what he was making before, but he'll persevere."
"I really look forward to going to the Superbowl this year," said Lee.
Contact staff writer Naomi Nix at 215-854-2797 or nnix@phillynews.com
Eagles fans, who can be unforgiving, appear to be mostly in a forgiving mood when it comes to Michael Vick joining the team.
The signing of Vick, the former Atlanta QB who spent 18-months in prison in a dogfighting cruelty case, is bound to dominate water cooler discussions today and commuters in Center City offered a prelude to some of the themes.
Much of the talk was about second chances and how this will benefit the Eagles. But some are not happy at all, as can been seen from some of the comments to this story, because of Vick's troubled past.
"Too bad they don't have him for the whole year," said Charles James, referencing the possibility that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell might require Vick to sit out the first five games of the season.
"If they keep him, he'll be the man," said James, of North Philadelphia. "It was a big mistake what he did and he paid for it. He deserves another chance."
"He deserves a second chance," said Doug Brown and Leroy Emerson of North Philadelphia declared, "That was the best move the Eagles ever made, one of the best."
Shantae Thorpe of Mount Airy said it was time to move on from the dogfighting controversy.
"I think we should let bygones be bygones and start afresh." she said.
Carol Elko, a Northeast Philadelphia resident, agreed.
"I think down South that animal thing is normal," she said. "I think he got caught up in it and he learned his lesson and he deserves a second chance."
Other Eagles fans were not so happy about the newest hire.
"I thought they could have picked somebody else," said Dina Allen of Mount Airy. "I think I would have taken TO [Terrell Owens] before [him]."
Abbie Klebanoff, who didn't claim to be a die-hard Eagles fan, said the apology was not enough.
"He said he's sorry, but I think what he did was horrible."
Bob Jenkins, of Northeast Philadelphia, said true Eagles fans won't be bad-mouthing the decision.
"The only people who won't be quiet are the people who don't like the Eagles, he said, "Of course they're going to be talking because he's going to be throwing some touchdowns."
For some, the criticism against Vicks has gone a little too far.
"Other people get another chance," said Paul Kelley, of Center City. "When [Phillies piyther] Brett Myers beat his wife, everyone stopped talking about him a week later."
Charles Johnson, a New Castle, Del., resident said the criticism was hypocritical.
"Are we going to punish him because he's not a carpenter or electrician? They can go to jail, come out and work again," he said. "Martha Stewart is a back and she's on television. Not that I am against animals, but she harmed humans."
For Richardeena Harden, gaining Vicks is a plus, but her heart still belongs the current star quarterback Donovan McNabb.
"I love him dearly . . .," she said. "I hope nothing happens to McNabb because he's got plays that are incredible. But if something happens to McNabb they can put Vicks in."
Benjamin Lee, of Center City, said that the former king of football was getting a demotion.
"It is a slap in the face. Here he just received $1.6 million the first year and $5.6 million the second year," Lee said. "That doesn't even come close to what he was making before, but he'll persevere."
"I really look forward to going to the Superbowl this year," said Lee.
Contact staff writer Naomi Nix at 215-854-2797 or nnix@phillynews.com
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Good Morning Philadelphia: Bipartisan bicycling
This article was published on philly.com on Thursday July 23, 2009.
Good Morning Philadelphia: Bipartisan bicycling
By Traver Riggins and Naomi Nix
Visiting state lawmakers from around the country put down their car keys and picked up bicycles for an eight-mile bipartisan ride around the City of Brotherly Love this morning.
For the Atkins family, a group of regular riders, the distance wasn't a problem.
"I'm guessing we won't have any trouble with eight miles we have more trouble with 6:30 in the morning," said Joe Atkins, a state representative from Minnesota. He was here with his wife and their three children.
The estimated 90 riders included lawmakers and their families who are in town for the 35th annual National Conference of State Legislators .
The tour started at the Thomas Paine Plaza north of City Hall and wound up the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, down a bike path along the Schuylkill River to Locust Street, passing some of Philadelphia's historic sites along the way.
Bike Texas, a nonprofit advocacy group, organized the race to show how bike riding can reduce a rider's carbon footprint, be an alternative method of transportation, a great way to exercise, and to encourage bike safety. Volunteers from the Bicycle Coaltion of Greater Philadelphia also helped with the event.
For the enviromentally conscious of Philadelphia, the bike ride had another benefit.
Astride his bike fitted with a GPS device, mobile pollution sensors and a digital video camera, Edgar Gil, health program manager of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, collected air pollution data while he rode.
He and his colleagues will use Google Earth to post his findings about the levels of carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide air pollution in the air. The results will be complied in a website called www.heanaction.org.
"Health and the environment go hand-in-hand," said Dr. Jane L. Delgado, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health in a press release. "Edgar's participation in this ride will help encourage legislators from across the nation to continue to do their part to enact standards that better protect us all."
The bike ride has become a tradition over the last five years for lawmakers attending the national conference. Last year it was in New Orleans, other locations have included Boston and Seattle.
"I am a big fan of bike riding because not only is it a great way to stay in shape, but an excellent way to see and experience a community as well," said Texas Senator Rodney Ellis, one of the bike ride's founders and host.
"I can't think of better city to do a Bipartisan Bike Ride than in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love."
Getting ready for school with a big party
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Saturday August 8, 2009
Getting ready for school with a big party
District event for children to have fun, parents to ask questions.
Zyla Peleton shyly hugged her mother as they waited for her turn to have her face painted."She ain't gonna talk," said her mother, Angela.
Zyla is about to start kindergarten, and her mother had some questions for Philadelphia School District officials.
"When do they start? Where do I go to register?" she said.
They were among the thousands of parents, child-care givers, and children who went yesterday to the school district's second annual Back-to-School Block Party, to learn what they need to know to get ready for the 2009-10 school year.
Classes in the 163,000-student district begin Sept. 8 for first through 12th grades and Sept. 15 for kindergarten.
"It's really sort of a celebration of a new school year with the entire community," Superintendent Arlene Ackerman said.
The school district and Radio One Philadelphia co-sponsored the event, and almost 100 community organizations, district departments, and government agencies filled the district's education center in Spring Garden to give away school supplies, prizes, and information for families.
District spokesman Vincent Thompson said he could not say how much the event cost, but the amount was minimal and sponsors paid most expenses.
The event also featured performances by student groups, free water ice, and T-shirts. The 5,000 book bags were nearly gone by noon. Those who came later got vouchers to pick up bags before school starts.
Thinking of her 12-year-old son, Monique Haynes said the information about higher education was helpful: "I want him to look toward the future, to get a jump start on what you need to know to go to college."
Getting ready for a new school year was nothing new for Christine Douglas, who has 11 adult children and three still in school. Her daughter Shadonayah Carroll said she was excited to begin first grade, but for now was thinking only about how to get her face painted.
"Mommy, I'm going to get SpongeBob. SpongeBob is my favorite show," she said.
"That's true," Douglas said.
Annual Ebony Fashion Fair show is a victim of economy
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Friday August 7, 2009.
Annual Ebony Fashion Fair show is a victim of economy
Mina Dia-Stevens recalls looking around the auditorium of an Ebony Fashion Fair show as a young adult and knowing that there were other African American fashionistas out there, from a cluster of giddy sorority college girls to a group of churchgoing women."They are exposing African Americans to world-renowned designers that they may not have known otherwise," said Dia-Stevens, who is an adjunct professor at Moore College of Art and Design and an associate professor at the Art Institute of Philadelphia.
And it's coming to an end, at least for now.
After more than 50 years of showcasing the highest caliber of fashion in the industry to mostly African American audiences, organizers of the traveling international fashion show have canceled its fall 2009 installment.
The Philadelphia Cultural Committee Inc., the nonprofit organization that has hosted the program annually in Philadelphia or New Jersey for 50 years, is among 180 organizations that will not put on a show this fall.
"The overall economic climate has presented challenges for many, including our potential corporate sponsors," said Linda Johnson Rice, the chairman and chief executive officer of Johnson Publishing Co., in a statement.
The firm, which publishes Ebony and Jet magazines, hopes to bring back a retooled show starting in fall 2010.
"In the coming months, we will develop a new business model to ensure that the show is a mutually beneficial endeavor," said Rice.
As a nonprofit endeavor, the Ebony Fashion Fair show has raised more than $55 million to benefit largely African American groups nationwide, according to Jeanine Collins, a spokeswoman for Johnson Publishing.
The Philadelphia Cultural Committee uses part of its $15,000 to $20,000 in proceeds to give scholarships to college-bound high school students who are interested in the arts.
Each year it gives $1,000 to five or six students who are pursuing higher education in New Jersey, Philadelphia, or Delaware. The remaining money goes to local charities.
"If we do not have the Ebony Fashion Fair show, it's going to be a deterrent to giving scholarships," said Gwendolyn A. Faison, president of the Philadelphia Cultural Committee.
Faison said the committee is meeting to discuss alternative fund-raising.
Over 4,000 shows have been performed to date in the United States, the Caribbean, and London, according to a representative from the publishing company.
The featured clothing includes cutting-edge couture fresh off the runways of Fashion Week as well as ready-to-wear "extravagant" pieces, said Cheryl Washington, a fashion designer and an adjunct professor at Moore College of Art and Design.
"It is a multitude of talent from all over the world," she said.
The show has exhibited the work of several notable African American designers, including Stephen Burrows, James Daugherty, L'Amour, B. Michael, and Quinton de' Alexander.
It was started in 1956 to support the Women's Auxiliary of Flint-Goodrich Hospital in New Orleans by John Johnson, then publisher and CEO of Johnson Publishing.
But Dia-Stevens says the show is more than just a few models strutting the latest fashions on the runway.
"When you see the show, it's like a performance - it's ambience, it's atmosphere," she said. "It is more theatrical than it is anything."
Thinking of her 14-year-old daughter, Dia-Stevens hopes to keep her family's appreciation for fashion alive.
"It is a special event that I would definitely want to experience with my daughter," she said.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Zoo bird flies the coop
This article was published on philly.c0m on July 24, 2009
Zoo bird flies the coop
Bird watchers, be on the look out.The Philadelphia Zoo is looking for a bird that flew the coop around noon Wednesday.
The sun conure parrot was permitted to do a free flight during the zoo's daily "Festival of Flight" when it took off and didn't return, according to the Zoo.
The zoo said the bird trainers teach all the birds in the festival to fly to three perches around the zoo.
"Because this was a younger bird and not so familiar with the zoo, we figure he just lost his way," said Bill Larson, director of communications for the zoo.
The bird is mango yellow with a green tail and orange around the eyes.
The bird is five or six months old and comes from northern South America.
It would not be able to adapt in Philadelphia outside of the zoo environment, Larson said.
Sun Conures are about twelve inches long, including the tail, and live an average of 25 to 30 years, according to www.sunconureparrots.com
The Zoo has had other larger and older birds fly away before, but they have always come back, Larson said.
"We want to make sure that people are on the lookout for a bird that really does stick out like a sore thumb," said Larson.
The Zoo is asking anyone who sees the bird to call 215-243-1100.
Bucks nurse to receive national award
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on July 24th, 2009.
Bucks nurse to receive national award
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
When residents in Bucks County need to know about health care, they can turn to Theresa Conejo.
"I call myself a health navigator," Conejo, 49, of Bensalem, says of her work for the last six years with community-service organizations, many of which assist minorities.
For her efforts, she will receive the Henrietta Villaescusa Award for community service today in San Antonio. It is given every year by the National Association of Hispanic Nurses at its annual conference. She was nominated by one of the nurses at Nazareth Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia.
Henrietta Villaescusa, who died in 2005, was a pioneering nurse in Los Angeles who helped implement health-care programs for underserved communities around the world.
Outside of her 36-hour job as a float nurse at Nazareth, Conejo says, she devotes about four hours of her free time each week to organizing awareness events about health issues including AIDS, diabetes, breast cancer, and strokes.
She rounds up some of her friends in the medical field and travels to flea markets, parades, and cultural events in Bucks County and Philadelphia, giving medical exams and distributing health information. She works with a spectrum of nonprofit organizations, from the American Heart Association to a Hindu temple in Bucks County.
Other community organizers praise her dedication.
"She is one of the most down-to-earth people I have ever met. Her advocacy comes from a true passion of wanting to help," says Kateria Nunez, the executive director of the Latino Leadership Alliance, where Conejo serves as board president.
Theda Jordan, a fellow member of the Bucks County chapter of the NAACP, agreed. Conejo, who serves as health director for the Bucks chapter, is "willing to go above and beyond to assist anyone," she says.
In her office at Nazareth, sifting through papers with research about the racial disparities found with some of the most serious diseases - African Americans are more likely to develop diabetes, Latinos and African Americans have higher rates of AIDS - she tells of a woman she knew.
Tomasa Gonzales emigrated from Mexico and lived in Bensalem with her husband and two young children. She took an English class at the YMCA in Bensalem, where Conejo volunteered as a translator.
Last year, Gonzales, 30 and five months pregnant with her third child, began to feel the symptoms of a stroke - dizziness, weakness, vision troubles, and difficulty speaking, Conejo recalls. Gonzales' husband took her to a free health-care clinic twice, but because neither was fluent in English, their medical emergency was not properly addressed, Conejo says.
Tomasa Gonzales died after suffering a stroke while dropping off her children at a Head Start program.
Motivated by Gonzales' story, Conejo organized a bilingual memorial event called Salud es Vida (Health is Life), which honored the memory of Gonzales, and at which Latino medical professionals taught 60 Latina women in Bensalem about the risk of stroke.
For Conejo, Gonzales' experience with the health-care system is nothing like the one she had as a child.
When growing up in Bensalem, her father was a steam feeder and her mother was a homemaker. Conejo, who is Mexican American, graduated from Bensalem High School and later Frankford Hospital School of Nursing.
Her family always had health insurance and good medical care, she says, and never had any difficulty communicating medical needs.
"It wasn't until after I became a nurse that I started hearing people's hardships, and I realized what people had to go through for health care," says Conejo, who is married and has a 20-year-old son.
Conejo emphasizes that good health care means that medical professionals should be conscious and sensitive to a patient's culture and background.
She says she is at times frustrated when she observes medical professionals who are not attentive or even are hostile when a patient is not fluent in English or has different cultural practices.
Conejo recalls a stroke victim, an Indian man who did not speak English. He was crying and holding his arm while the attending nurse was "kind of gruff with him," Conejo says.
Conejo had learned about his culture through her volunteer work at the Hindu temple, where she assisted with health fairs.
"They drink a lot of chai tea, and that's very comforting to them," she says. She did not know the stroke patient, but she made him a cup of tea. When she later went to the Bucks temple, she was surprised by the impact of the cup of tea.
"One of the key leaders, he came up to me and said, 'I would like to thank you for taking care of my father. You gave him tea that made so much of a difference to him.' " It is her hope that more health-care professionals will give that level of attention.
"Just that simple gesture of giving him tea made his day. Did it take his pain away? No. It made him feel that someone respected him," she says.
Bucks nurse to receive national award
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
When residents in Bucks County need to know about health care, they can turn to Theresa Conejo.
"I call myself a health navigator," Conejo, 49, of Bensalem, says of her work for the last six years with community-service organizations, many of which assist minorities.
For her efforts, she will receive the Henrietta Villaescusa Award for community service today in San Antonio. It is given every year by the National Association of Hispanic Nurses at its annual conference. She was nominated by one of the nurses at Nazareth Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia.
Henrietta Villaescusa, who died in 2005, was a pioneering nurse in Los Angeles who helped implement health-care programs for underserved communities around the world.
Outside of her 36-hour job as a float nurse at Nazareth, Conejo says, she devotes about four hours of her free time each week to organizing awareness events about health issues including AIDS, diabetes, breast cancer, and strokes.
She rounds up some of her friends in the medical field and travels to flea markets, parades, and cultural events in Bucks County and Philadelphia, giving medical exams and distributing health information. She works with a spectrum of nonprofit organizations, from the American Heart Association to a Hindu temple in Bucks County.
Other community organizers praise her dedication.
"She is one of the most down-to-earth people I have ever met. Her advocacy comes from a true passion of wanting to help," says Kateria Nunez, the executive director of the Latino Leadership Alliance, where Conejo serves as board president.
Theda Jordan, a fellow member of the Bucks County chapter of the NAACP, agreed. Conejo, who serves as health director for the Bucks chapter, is "willing to go above and beyond to assist anyone," she says.
In her office at Nazareth, sifting through papers with research about the racial disparities found with some of the most serious diseases - African Americans are more likely to develop diabetes, Latinos and African Americans have higher rates of AIDS - she tells of a woman she knew.
Tomasa Gonzales emigrated from Mexico and lived in Bensalem with her husband and two young children. She took an English class at the YMCA in Bensalem, where Conejo volunteered as a translator.
Last year, Gonzales, 30 and five months pregnant with her third child, began to feel the symptoms of a stroke - dizziness, weakness, vision troubles, and difficulty speaking, Conejo recalls. Gonzales' husband took her to a free health-care clinic twice, but because neither was fluent in English, their medical emergency was not properly addressed, Conejo says.
Tomasa Gonzales died after suffering a stroke while dropping off her children at a Head Start program.
Motivated by Gonzales' story, Conejo organized a bilingual memorial event called Salud es Vida (Health is Life), which honored the memory of Gonzales, and at which Latino medical professionals taught 60 Latina women in Bensalem about the risk of stroke.
For Conejo, Gonzales' experience with the health-care system is nothing like the one she had as a child.
When growing up in Bensalem, her father was a steam feeder and her mother was a homemaker. Conejo, who is Mexican American, graduated from Bensalem High School and later Frankford Hospital School of Nursing.
Her family always had health insurance and good medical care, she says, and never had any difficulty communicating medical needs.
"It wasn't until after I became a nurse that I started hearing people's hardships, and I realized what people had to go through for health care," says Conejo, who is married and has a 20-year-old son.
Conejo emphasizes that good health care means that medical professionals should be conscious and sensitive to a patient's culture and background.
She says she is at times frustrated when she observes medical professionals who are not attentive or even are hostile when a patient is not fluent in English or has different cultural practices.
Conejo recalls a stroke victim, an Indian man who did not speak English. He was crying and holding his arm while the attending nurse was "kind of gruff with him," Conejo says.
Conejo had learned about his culture through her volunteer work at the Hindu temple, where she assisted with health fairs.
"They drink a lot of chai tea, and that's very comforting to them," she says. She did not know the stroke patient, but she made him a cup of tea. When she later went to the Bucks temple, she was surprised by the impact of the cup of tea.
"One of the key leaders, he came up to me and said, 'I would like to thank you for taking care of my father. You gave him tea that made so much of a difference to him.' " It is her hope that more health-care professionals will give that level of attention.
"Just that simple gesture of giving him tea made his day. Did it take his pain away? No. It made him feel that someone respected him," she says.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Pilot program trains new teachers in Phila.
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on July 17, 2009.
Pilot program trains new teachers in Phila.
A group of Philadelphia's newest teachers finished yesterday a new training program aimed at helping them succeed and easing their first-day jitters.
Brittney Stone, a recent graduate from Temple University, said she had wanted to be a teacher since she was a teenager. Her first day on the job is fast approaching.
"I'm very nervous. You don't know what to expect," Stone said at the end of a seven-day program in the Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush on Knights Road in the Far Northeast.
Sandra Garner, a new teacher who is making the switch from the insurance industry, said the theory she learned in college was not the same as the skills she learned in the program.
"A lot of it was new," said Garner, who earned a master's degree in education.
She fits the profile of the kind of new teacher the Philadelphia School District hopes will want to stick around. But research says new teachers like her are the ones most in danger of quitting.
According to a 2006 study by the National Education Association, a teachers' union, nationwide, almost half of all teachers quit within their first five years on the job.
The numbers don't look too pretty for Philadelphia, either. Of the 831 teachers hired for the 2005-06 school year, almost 42 percent quit after three years, according to data supplied by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers.
"The system is literally bleeding teachers," said Jack Steinberg, who directs the union's health and welfare fund.
That loss inspired the union to develop the seven-day program in conjunction with the school district. The key is that newly hired teachers get the training before they step inside the classroom. Additional sessions will be held next week and in early August. The union expects to train from 400 to 500 new teachers.
In the past, state-mandated new-teacher training did not start until October, and teachers had up to six years to complete it, said Rosalind Jones-Johnson, director of education for the union's health and welfare fund.
"We want to make sure they have strong discipline strategies when they enter the classroom," she said.
Though Valda Woodson has been teaching for more than 30 years, she said the refresher course before the school year was helpful.
"By training early, you have time to go back into your binder, look through it, kind of swallow it all," she said.
The seven-day course, "Strong Beginnings," focuses on giving the teachers practical skills for the classroom, such as how to build an effective lesson plan, make and enforce rules, work with parents, form relationships with challenging students, and how to arrange a classroom. Jones-Johnson said the strategies are based on tested research.
Course material is taught through class discussion, PowerPoint presentations, and videos. The new teachers are required to sign a pledge saying they will implement the techniques in the classroom. They also have to submit reflection letters about how they are using the techniques. At schools with more than five new teachers, all new teachers will be assigned a teacher coach to check in on them and assist them in their first year on the job.
Jones-Johnson said any new teacher who was not assigned a teacher coach would work with her.
In Classroom 202, a dozen new teachers listened closely to trainers on how to deal with a "noncompliant" student.
"Teachers never win when they argue with their students," said Peggy Outing, a workshop leader.
Instead, she said, it's best to give them choices like this:
"John, you can stay after class and finish the assignment, or finish it now and not have to stay after class. It's your choice," Outing said.
Stone said the program "put her at ease." Garner agreed.
"I'm excited. I think it's going to be a good year," she said. "And now I have strategies."
Activists young and old protest closed city pools
This article was published in The Philadelphia Inquirer on July 15, 2009.
Activists young and old protest closed city pools
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
It wasn't the usual dress code for a meeting at City Hall.
But a bathing suit was appropriate attire for some children at a rally yesterday calling upon Mayor Nutter to open all 73 of the city's public pools this summer.
About 50 children and adult protesters stood behind an empty plastic pool, wearing floatation devices and towels and holding handmade signs, to draw attention to the 27 pools that will remain dry this summer because the city cannot afford to open them.
The group of children, parents, and community activists chanted slogans including "Mayor Nutter, Turn on the Water" and "Stop Balancing the Budget on the Backs of Our Children." The Coalition to Save the Libraries and nine other community groups organized the protest.
Tahkeam Williams, 9, of South Philadelphia, said he had a good reason to attend the 90-minute-long protest.
"It's not that much fun without the pool," he said. "We used to jump in it, play tag in the pool. We had a lot of fun in the pool."
For the adults, the loss of a pool means children have fewer places to cool off in their neighborhood on a hot day.
"The kids need somewhere to go, something to do besides be bad," said Jean Mills of Southwest Philadelphia.
Irene Russel, a parent leader with the community group ACORN, agreed.
"My kids want to swim," she said. "They want to swim today. They want to swim tomorrow when it's 80 degrees."
The protesters assembled at the northwest corner of City Hall and went to outside the mayor's office. Officials said Nutter was in Harrisburg, but his chief of staff, Clay Armbrister, spoke to the group.
"It is not a decision we wanted to make, but [it was] forced upon us" by the economic crisis," he said. "We are in a very, very dire economic situation."
Arbrister said the city initially had money only to open 10 pools, but additional funds and contributions made it possible to operate 46.
Susan Slawson, the city's recreation commissioner, said it takes about $60,000 to operate a pool for a season. Even if more money became available, there isn't enough time, she added.
"We are already two weeks into pool season," she said.
A plan for next summer, to be announced soon, would allow neighborhood residents to donate funds to keep specific pools open, she added.
Some protesters likened not reopening pools in certain areas of Philadelphia to the discrimination charges against the Valley Club as a result of the cancellation of the contract with the Creative Steps day camp.
"What the Valley swim club did to that day camp, the City of Philadelphia is doing to thousands of young people every day, and we will not stand for it," said Eric Braxton, an organizer with the Coalition to Save Libraries. His group first protested the closing of libraries announced last November.
Slawson said race and social class played no role in whether to open a pool.
"I don't know how anyone can come up with a comparison like that," Slawson said.
She said the decision to reopen a pool was based on a number of factors, including the average usage from last season, size, condition, location, and accessibility by foot.
But where the pools were opened was not evenly distributed across the city, said the protesters, who held rallies in five neighborhoods where pools remained closed.
For example, in the Northwest, nearly all of the pools were opened while in Fishtown and South Philadelphia, less than half of the pools were opened.
For Tahkeam, 9, next summer could not come soon enough.
"I'm going to protest out here until Mayor Nutter opens up our pool," he said.
"I won't," joked his twin brother, Markell.
Activists young and old protest closed city pools
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
It wasn't the usual dress code for a meeting at City Hall.
But a bathing suit was appropriate attire for some children at a rally yesterday calling upon Mayor Nutter to open all 73 of the city's public pools this summer.
About 50 children and adult protesters stood behind an empty plastic pool, wearing floatation devices and towels and holding handmade signs, to draw attention to the 27 pools that will remain dry this summer because the city cannot afford to open them.
The group of children, parents, and community activists chanted slogans including "Mayor Nutter, Turn on the Water" and "Stop Balancing the Budget on the Backs of Our Children." The Coalition to Save the Libraries and nine other community groups organized the protest.
Tahkeam Williams, 9, of South Philadelphia, said he had a good reason to attend the 90-minute-long protest.
"It's not that much fun without the pool," he said. "We used to jump in it, play tag in the pool. We had a lot of fun in the pool."
For the adults, the loss of a pool means children have fewer places to cool off in their neighborhood on a hot day.
"The kids need somewhere to go, something to do besides be bad," said Jean Mills of Southwest Philadelphia.
Irene Russel, a parent leader with the community group ACORN, agreed.
"My kids want to swim," she said. "They want to swim today. They want to swim tomorrow when it's 80 degrees."
The protesters assembled at the northwest corner of City Hall and went to outside the mayor's office. Officials said Nutter was in Harrisburg, but his chief of staff, Clay Armbrister, spoke to the group.
"It is not a decision we wanted to make, but [it was] forced upon us" by the economic crisis," he said. "We are in a very, very dire economic situation."
Arbrister said the city initially had money only to open 10 pools, but additional funds and contributions made it possible to operate 46.
Susan Slawson, the city's recreation commissioner, said it takes about $60,000 to operate a pool for a season. Even if more money became available, there isn't enough time, she added.
"We are already two weeks into pool season," she said.
A plan for next summer, to be announced soon, would allow neighborhood residents to donate funds to keep specific pools open, she added.
Some protesters likened not reopening pools in certain areas of Philadelphia to the discrimination charges against the Valley Club as a result of the cancellation of the contract with the Creative Steps day camp.
"What the Valley swim club did to that day camp, the City of Philadelphia is doing to thousands of young people every day, and we will not stand for it," said Eric Braxton, an organizer with the Coalition to Save Libraries. His group first protested the closing of libraries announced last November.
Slawson said race and social class played no role in whether to open a pool.
"I don't know how anyone can come up with a comparison like that," Slawson said.
She said the decision to reopen a pool was based on a number of factors, including the average usage from last season, size, condition, location, and accessibility by foot.
But where the pools were opened was not evenly distributed across the city, said the protesters, who held rallies in five neighborhoods where pools remained closed.
For example, in the Northwest, nearly all of the pools were opened while in Fishtown and South Philadelphia, less than half of the pools were opened.
For Tahkeam, 9, next summer could not come soon enough.
"I'm going to protest out here until Mayor Nutter opens up our pool," he said.
"I won't," joked his twin brother, Markell.
Friday, July 10, 2009
This article was printed in The Philadelphia Inquirer on July 10, 2009
S. Phila. parents, youth demand pool be reopened
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
Dozens of children and parents from South Philadelphia gathered yesterday in front of the Barry playground at 18th and Johnston Streets to protest a victim of the city's budget crisis: their local pool.
The crowd - mostly 15 and under - yelled and held handmade signs that said "No Pools No Fun" and "Outrage, Outrage, Outrage."
Parents said the city's decision not to reopen the Barry pool meant that their children could no longer take swimming lessons, compete in the city swim competition, or cool off in their neighborhood after a day at the playground. The closest pools to Barry are Vare, 1.7 miles and an estimated 33-minute walk away, and Ford, 1.3 miles and a 25-minute walk away.
"Being in the city, where else are you going to learn to swim except being in the pool?" asked Lauri Zanni, one of the parent organizers of the protest. "You are not going to learn in the sprinklers."
For Markera Tymes, 11, swimming lessons will be a think she will miss this summer.
"They taught us how to swim in deep water. They taught us how to float," she said.
Facing a fiscal crisis, the city said it could not afford to reopen 28 pools this year. In November, Mayor Nutter said the city only had the funds to open 10 pools. Through restoring money to the budget and fund-raising efforts through the city's three-year Splash and Summer FUNd campaign, there was enough money to open and staff 46 pools.
"We are cognizant that there are going to be more folks at our pools this year," said Alain Joinville, the public affairs and special projects coordinator of the Department of Recreation.
Joinville said the city would not open any additional pools this summer, even if more money is raised.
Some city residents are concerned about how the city selected which pools to reopen.
In some areas, such as in Northwest Philadelphia, nearly all of the pools were reopened. In four of the designated districts by the Department of Recreation, covering the Northeast, the Far Northeast, and sections of North and West Philadelphia, about half of the pools are open. In Fishtown and South Philadelphia, the number is less than half.
Joinville said the decision to reopen a pool was based on a number of factors, including the average usage from last season, size, condition, location, and accessibility by foot.
"We understand their frustration, it's not that we are oblivious to it. Because of the budget crisis, we couldn't open as many pools as we would have liked," he said.
Mike McCrae, the president of Philadelphia Recreation Advisory, which helps Philadelphia neighborhood groups, said that if the city had allowed potential donors to allocate their money for a specific pool, more funds might have been raised.
"We, as individuals, couldn't open up our own pool," McCrae said.
Joinville said the decision to raise money through a general fund drive instead of accepting donations to open specific pools was designed to give every neighborhood an equal chance at having an open pool this summer.
"We wanted the fund to be fair," Joinville said. "In Philadelphia, there are a number of neighborhoods that are very wealthy; they probably would have been able to raise the money easily. There are other neighborhoods that are not only not as affluent, but they wouldn't have been able to mobilize and organize their neighbors as easily."
The pool fight is not over.
With the help of organizations such as the Coalition for Essential Services and the Coalition to Save the Libraries, there will be a rally in front of City Hall on Tuesday to urge Nutter to open all of Philadelphia's pools this summer.
S. Phila. parents, youth demand pool be reopened
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
Dozens of children and parents from South Philadelphia gathered yesterday in front of the Barry playground at 18th and Johnston Streets to protest a victim of the city's budget crisis: their local pool.
The crowd - mostly 15 and under - yelled and held handmade signs that said "No Pools No Fun" and "Outrage, Outrage, Outrage."
Parents said the city's decision not to reopen the Barry pool meant that their children could no longer take swimming lessons, compete in the city swim competition, or cool off in their neighborhood after a day at the playground. The closest pools to Barry are Vare, 1.7 miles and an estimated 33-minute walk away, and Ford, 1.3 miles and a 25-minute walk away.
"Being in the city, where else are you going to learn to swim except being in the pool?" asked Lauri Zanni, one of the parent organizers of the protest. "You are not going to learn in the sprinklers."
For Markera Tymes, 11, swimming lessons will be a think she will miss this summer.
"They taught us how to swim in deep water. They taught us how to float," she said.
Facing a fiscal crisis, the city said it could not afford to reopen 28 pools this year. In November, Mayor Nutter said the city only had the funds to open 10 pools. Through restoring money to the budget and fund-raising efforts through the city's three-year Splash and Summer FUNd campaign, there was enough money to open and staff 46 pools.
"We are cognizant that there are going to be more folks at our pools this year," said Alain Joinville, the public affairs and special projects coordinator of the Department of Recreation.
Joinville said the city would not open any additional pools this summer, even if more money is raised.
Some city residents are concerned about how the city selected which pools to reopen.
In some areas, such as in Northwest Philadelphia, nearly all of the pools were reopened. In four of the designated districts by the Department of Recreation, covering the Northeast, the Far Northeast, and sections of North and West Philadelphia, about half of the pools are open. In Fishtown and South Philadelphia, the number is less than half.
Joinville said the decision to reopen a pool was based on a number of factors, including the average usage from last season, size, condition, location, and accessibility by foot.
"We understand their frustration, it's not that we are oblivious to it. Because of the budget crisis, we couldn't open as many pools as we would have liked," he said.
Mike McCrae, the president of Philadelphia Recreation Advisory, which helps Philadelphia neighborhood groups, said that if the city had allowed potential donors to allocate their money for a specific pool, more funds might have been raised.
"We, as individuals, couldn't open up our own pool," McCrae said.
Joinville said the decision to raise money through a general fund drive instead of accepting donations to open specific pools was designed to give every neighborhood an equal chance at having an open pool this summer.
"We wanted the fund to be fair," Joinville said. "In Philadelphia, there are a number of neighborhoods that are very wealthy; they probably would have been able to raise the money easily. There are other neighborhoods that are not only not as affluent, but they wouldn't have been able to mobilize and organize their neighbors as easily."
The pool fight is not over.
With the help of organizations such as the Coalition for Essential Services and the Coalition to Save the Libraries, there will be a rally in front of City Hall on Tuesday to urge Nutter to open all of Philadelphia's pools this summer.
Looking for America, students check out Philadelphia
Printed in The Philadelphia Inquirer on July 9, 2009
Looking for America, students check out Philadelphia
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
All the way from Nashville, 10 students and two professors hit the road this summer - rock-star style - to discover what people think it means to be an American.
Students from Belmont University took their sociology and writing courses to a grand laboratory - 40 U.S. cities - to ask what unites citizens. In a tour bus equipped with beds, wireless Internet access, and a quirky driver, the students yesterday made Philadelphia stop No. 28.
At each stop, students from the liberal-arts university start conversations with locals and tourists about what makes America tick. That issue was raised in part last fall when a town hall presidential debate took place at Belmont.
"Sometimes we get pretty simple answers, like freedom, and sometimes we get negative answers," said Emily Headrick, 22, the student coordinator of the Philadelphia leg of their trip. Each student is assigned three cities and is responsible for planning the day's activities. On completing the tour, students will write term papers.
They will crisscross 9,300 miles of America. They stopped at Memphis; Little Rock, Ark; New Orleans; San Antonio, Texas; Roswell, N.M.; the Grand Canyon; and other familiar places in the American West before hitting California and turning eastward. They will be in Washington today.
The Belmont students packed their only day in Philadelphia with visits to the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, LOVE Park, and a tasty pause at the Reading Terminal Market. Dinner last night was with a representative from the nonprofit Mission Year.
Philadelphians weighed in freely.
"The opportunity to make my destiny is what it means to be an American to me," said Lelfteria Papavasclis, 27, who lives in Stratford and commutes to Philadelphia every day to work as a park ranger at the Liberty Bell building.
Students Chris Speed, 21, and Rashina Bhula, 20, asked her if inequities persisted in America.
"The bell is not perfect and that's OK, because society is not perfect," Papavasclis said, citing prejudice as one of the biggest obstacles to national unity.
For Ray Tamaqua Gishgu, who was dressed in the traditional garb of his Leni-Lenape tribe, his experience as a racial minority has affected how he sees America.
"I would like to see the United States make amends for what it has done" to American Indians, Gishgu said.
But Gishgu, who gave his age as "over 50," said the United States had come a long way along the path to racial reconciliation.
"If you had told me at 20 that someday the United States would elect a black president, I would have laughed at you," he said while laughing. "Where's the rest of the joke?"
Being on the road for so much time means students and their professors must get comfortable touring on the bus, showering sporadically, and having limited privacy.
"Some of the barriers between teacher and student kind of broke down early on," 21-year-old Heather Gillespie said.
When asked the first thing she would do when the trip was completed, Emma Shouse, 20, said proper hygiene would top the list.
"Take a bath," Shouse said. "I have come to appreciate the private shower." She didn't say much about returning to a comfortable bed at home.
Keeping up with students while on the road has not always been easy, but Ken Spring, 37, the chairman of the sociology department at Belmont, motioned with two fingers from his eyes toward the door, as if to say he was watching them. The professor and the students laughed.
"He claims he has eagle eyes, but what he really has is Elizabeth's GPS," Gillespie said.
Jokes aside, there is work to be done.
Students shoot video, take photographs, and compile notes to post daily blogs about the places and people they visit.
The three required papers will give each student credit for a sociology and a writing course. The trip cost them $7,400, which is $1,400 more than tuition for two summer courses they would take on campus.
In addition to their vast laboratory, students avail themselves of the stories of their bus driver, who has hauled some famous clients. The man they know as Rubin has driven tour buses for Li'l Wayne, Papa Roach, Madonna, Jamie Foxx, and Paramore, among others. He also gets to sleep in a hotel each night.
"He got a call from Li'l Wayne this morning," said Pierce Greenberg, 19.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20090709_Looking_for_America__students_check_out_Philadelphia.html
Looking for America, students check out Philadelphia
By Naomi Nix
Inquirer Staff Writer
All the way from Nashville, 10 students and two professors hit the road this summer - rock-star style - to discover what people think it means to be an American.
Students from Belmont University took their sociology and writing courses to a grand laboratory - 40 U.S. cities - to ask what unites citizens. In a tour bus equipped with beds, wireless Internet access, and a quirky driver, the students yesterday made Philadelphia stop No. 28.
At each stop, students from the liberal-arts university start conversations with locals and tourists about what makes America tick. That issue was raised in part last fall when a town hall presidential debate took place at Belmont.
"Sometimes we get pretty simple answers, like freedom, and sometimes we get negative answers," said Emily Headrick, 22, the student coordinator of the Philadelphia leg of their trip. Each student is assigned three cities and is responsible for planning the day's activities. On completing the tour, students will write term papers.
They will crisscross 9,300 miles of America. They stopped at Memphis; Little Rock, Ark; New Orleans; San Antonio, Texas; Roswell, N.M.; the Grand Canyon; and other familiar places in the American West before hitting California and turning eastward. They will be in Washington today.
The Belmont students packed their only day in Philadelphia with visits to the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, LOVE Park, and a tasty pause at the Reading Terminal Market. Dinner last night was with a representative from the nonprofit Mission Year.
Philadelphians weighed in freely.
"The opportunity to make my destiny is what it means to be an American to me," said Lelfteria Papavasclis, 27, who lives in Stratford and commutes to Philadelphia every day to work as a park ranger at the Liberty Bell building.
Students Chris Speed, 21, and Rashina Bhula, 20, asked her if inequities persisted in America.
"The bell is not perfect and that's OK, because society is not perfect," Papavasclis said, citing prejudice as one of the biggest obstacles to national unity.
For Ray Tamaqua Gishgu, who was dressed in the traditional garb of his Leni-Lenape tribe, his experience as a racial minority has affected how he sees America.
"I would like to see the United States make amends for what it has done" to American Indians, Gishgu said.
But Gishgu, who gave his age as "over 50," said the United States had come a long way along the path to racial reconciliation.
"If you had told me at 20 that someday the United States would elect a black president, I would have laughed at you," he said while laughing. "Where's the rest of the joke?"
Being on the road for so much time means students and their professors must get comfortable touring on the bus, showering sporadically, and having limited privacy.
"Some of the barriers between teacher and student kind of broke down early on," 21-year-old Heather Gillespie said.
When asked the first thing she would do when the trip was completed, Emma Shouse, 20, said proper hygiene would top the list.
"Take a bath," Shouse said. "I have come to appreciate the private shower." She didn't say much about returning to a comfortable bed at home.
Keeping up with students while on the road has not always been easy, but Ken Spring, 37, the chairman of the sociology department at Belmont, motioned with two fingers from his eyes toward the door, as if to say he was watching them. The professor and the students laughed.
"He claims he has eagle eyes, but what he really has is Elizabeth's GPS," Gillespie said.
Jokes aside, there is work to be done.
Students shoot video, take photographs, and compile notes to post daily blogs about the places and people they visit.
The three required papers will give each student credit for a sociology and a writing course. The trip cost them $7,400, which is $1,400 more than tuition for two summer courses they would take on campus.
In addition to their vast laboratory, students avail themselves of the stories of their bus driver, who has hauled some famous clients. The man they know as Rubin has driven tour buses for Li'l Wayne, Papa Roach, Madonna, Jamie Foxx, and Paramore, among others. He also gets to sleep in a hotel each night.
"He got a call from Li'l Wayne this morning," said Pierce Greenberg, 19.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/20090709_Looking_for_America__students_check_out_Philadelphia.html
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