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Obituary

Fran Byers, community organizer and Friends of Clark Park founding member, passes away

March 1, 2024

fran

Fran Byers at a Clark Park re-opening event in 2012 (Archive Photo – West Philly Local).

We are sad to report that long-term Spruce Hill resident and community organizer, Fran Byers, 83, passed away this week. During almost all of her life in Spruce Hill, Fran was involved with local community organizations and neighborhood groups. She was a founding member of Friends of Clark Park.

“Fran… lived one block away from the park, and was an active member in many neighborhood groups, but her dedication to Clark Park knew no bounds,” reads a post dedicated to Fran’s passing on the Friends of Clark Park website.

“Fran had served as president many times and was still active at the time of her death. A threat to remove the internationally famous Dickens statue from removal triggered the original drive by Fran and fellow activists to create Friends of Clark Park; decades later, she still proudly served the cake at Dickens Birthday Party.”

For years, Fran headed many activities at Clark Park, like Bark in the Park, the Veterans Day celebration and Christmas caroling. She was also involved with St. Francis De Sales Church and the Calvary Center.

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Bob Christian, longtime editor of UC Review passes away after illness

December 22, 2022

Bob Christian/Facebook photo

Robert (Bob) Christian, a longtime publisher and editor of the community newspaper University City Review, passed away on Saturday after a prolonged illness, according to reports. Originally from New York City, Bob and his wife Claudia started the weekly newspaper in 1988. The couple also published the Philadelphia Free Press, which covered the news east of the Schuylkill River.

In the past two years, Bob was recovering from COVID-19 complications. A fundraiser to support him and his family was launched in January 2022.

A service for Bob Christian will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 30 at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 1325 Montgomery Ave., Wynnewood, PA. The burial will follow at 2 p.m. at The Woodlands Cemetery, 40th St. and Woodland Ave, Philadelphia. At Bob’s request, a New Orleans Jazz Band will perform at his funeral.

To read more about Bob and Claudia and their long-term service to the community, read this post from the UCD Blog.

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Funeral of Monsignor Joseph Anderlonis, Pastor of St. Francis de Sales Church, scheduled for this Saturday

December 11, 2019

The funeral of Monsignor Joseph J. Anderlonis, pastor of St. Francis de Sales Church, who passed away on Friday, Dec. 6 after a short illness, will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14. A viewing will take place in the church, at 47th and Springfield Ave., from 9-11 a.m., followed by a Mass at 11 a.m., with a reception to follow in the parish hall. All are welcome.

Anderlonis, 75, was appointed to his position as pastor of St. Francis de Sales in June 2016. Prior to that, he served for many years (from 1982 to 2016) as Pastor at St. George in Philadelphia.  Continue Reading

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Beloved West Philly community member, Joe Clarke, 64, dies after long battle with cancer

October 15, 2018

Joe Clark volunteered for many years at the Walnut Street West Library Chess Club.

A well-known member of the community, Joe Clarke, 64, passed away on October 6th after a long courageous battle with cancer. Although he was struggling with cancer for years he was still out and about in the community until just a few weeks ago.

Joe was remarkable in his lifework of being a friend and mentor to many. He was on a spiritual journey that embodied religious and philosophical ideas always being spun through human relations and a great love of music and the arts. He was sometimes affectionately called “The Mayor of West Philadelphia.” This nickname came about because of how well known he was. A common complaint by his friends was that if you were sitting with him for a cup of coffee there would be constant interruptions as he seemed to know about every third person walking down the block.  Continue Reading

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Spruce Hill community leader Mark Wagenveld passes away at 73

January 30, 2018

Mark Wagenveld photographed in Clark Park in 2011 (Photo from Spruce Hill Community Association Facebook page).

UPDATE (2/1/2018): A memorial service for Mark Wagenveld will be held on Saturday, Feb. 17 at Old Pine Street Presbyterian Church at 412 Pine St. Visitation will be from 9:45-10:45 a.m., with a service to follow at 11 a.m.

Longtime Spruce Hill community leader and retired Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Mark Wagenveld passed away on Saturday at the age of 73.

We got to know Mark in his role as president of the Spruce Hill Community Association and a mentor of sorts who took an interest in West Philly Local soon after we began publishing in 2010. He always had solid news tips and words of encouragement for us.

We also know him as the driving force behind the May Fair in Clark Park and the Halloween Parade. Mark became active in community work soon after his retirement from the Inquirer in 2005, according to Barry Grossbach, his friend and colleague in the Spruce Hill Community Association.

“Sometimes we don’t fully appreciate a person’s contribution or importance while they are around,” Grossbach wrote. “Not so with Mark. Everyone knew what he did and what he meant to our community. And everyone will be the poorer for his absence.”  Continue Reading

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Omar, a neighborhood fixture beloved by many and despised by others, passed away last week (updated)

June 12, 2017

This photo portrait of Omar was made by well-known West Philly photographer Kyle Cassidy.

The news has spread very fast – Omar, a controversial, but undoubtedly iconic Spruce Hill individual, has passed away. Although we couldn’t confirm the details, he reportedly died suddenly last week in Long Beach Island, N.J.

A vigil for Omar was held Thursday night at 45th and Locust (photo by Kyle Cassidy).

Many folks who knew him gathered at 45th and Locust Thursday night for a vigil (see more photos below).

Omar was known by many as simultaneously a neighborhood eccentric, dangerous aggressor (sometimes violently so) and idiosyncratic barfly. He showed up in the Spruce Hill neighborhood in the early 2000s, sometimes disappearing for weeks at a time to “the burbs” (his words).

Omar made some people in the neighborhood angry by his erratic and often aggressive behavior (especially toward young women), but he was “a staple of the neighborhood,” as one neighbor put it.  Continue Reading

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