A small and relatively new West Philly non-profit recently received $100,000 to help keep school libraries open and stocked with books, just as schools look to cut funding.

The West Philadelphia Alliance for Children (WePAC) recieved the grant from the philanthropic organization Impact 100 Philadelphia on June 9 to significantly bolster its “Open Books Open Minds” program, which collects and donates books and staffs closed or severely limited libraries at several West Philadelphia elementary schools. WePAC volunteers help students select and check out books, guide research, read to students and, perhaps most importantly, they have enabled underfunded libraries at several schools just to stay open.

WePAC Executive Director David Florig called the grant a “game changer” for the organization, which started with six volunteers during the 2003-2004 school year. The money aside, the grant will help instill confidence in other potential donors because “a very significant group has chosen to invest in this,” he said.

WePAC will use the money to help keep open libraries at up to five schools and help extend services at several others. The group will also initiate new after-school “newspaper clubs.”

Made up exclusively of women ages 21 and older who each contribute at least $1,000 to a grant fund, Impact 100 Philadelphia chose WePac from some 150 applicants. A day after the grant was awarded, WePac posted a job ad for a coordinator of the Open Books Open Minds program.

Honey bees have fallen on hard times in recent years. A mysterious phenomenon known as “colony collapse disorder,” where worker bees that maintain a hive suddenly disappear, has beekeepers on edge. Bees are also susceptible to all kinds of viruses and mites, not to mention pesticides. But as bee populations have decreased, the demand for locally produced honey has increased. Luckily, a growing group of Philly-based beekeepers is taking care of our local bees.

You can get a look inside the work of these beekeepers this Sunday at the Woodlands Cemetery as part of “Open Apiary Day,” a series of events across the city aimed at familiarizing folks with urban beekeeping.

In West Philly, beekeeper Daniel Duffy will discuss beekeeping at the working hives on the cemetery grounds from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Beekeeping has been intertwined with Philadelphia history since the 18th century. L.L. Langstroth, who is considered the father of modern beekeeping, was a Philadelphia native.

Open Apiary Day events are also taking place in Fairmount/Brewerytown and Mount Airy. The West Philly event includes a tour of the cemetery and arboretum.

Organizers are asking people to RSVP for the free event by calling 215-386-2181 or e-mailing info [at] woodlandsphila.org.

Later this month The Rotunda is hosting a June 23 screening of Queen of the Sun, a film about the disappearance of bees worldwide. The film starts at 7 p.m. and is a fundraiser for the Mariposa Food Co-op expansion.

If you need to drive toward Center City or get on the Schuylkill Expressway this weekend It might be a good idea to avoid Market Street. Drexel University’s commencement and student move-out is this weekend (they are on the quarter system so they finish a little later than other schools) and portions of Market and Powelton from 32nd to 34th will be heavily congested today through Sunday afternoon.

The university issued this warning:

Beginning Thursday, June 9 and continuing through Sunday, June 12, 2011, Drexel University will be holding its annual Commencement Ceremonies in the Daskalaskis Athletic Center located at 3300 Market Street. At the same time students will be moving out of the residence halls. As a result, there will be parking restrictions and street closures in effect from 32nd to 34th Streets and Market Street to Powelton Avenue.

Drexel Police will be assisting with traffic. Please avoid these areas if possible and seek alternate routes. Expect traffic congestion when traveling to and from University City.

Unfortunately, they won’t be more specific on exact times, so maybe it’s just better to avoid it all together. Spruce Street and the South Street on and off ramps are the way to go.

We all knew that the heat wave was going to give way to a storm at some point. Last night’s downpour and high winds knocked down trees and left many in West Philly temporarily without power.

Near 49th and Hazel a large tree crashed onto a shed, leaving a man inside trapped for about 30 minutes (see video). The man was not seriously injured.

6ABC Action News was on the scene. Below is video that includes incidents from around the city. The part about 49th and Hazel starts at about 2:20.

The farmers’ market season is in full swing now and while just about everybody knows about the Clark Park market,  many might not know about two other chances to get fresh food in West Philly going on today and tomorrow.

• The Walnut Hill Community Farm Stand

Youth growers from the Walnut Hill Community Farm (4610 Market St.) will be selling food from the farm today (and every Tuesday and Friday) after school from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the farm’s location, right near the 46th Street El stop.

• The African American Farmers of Operation Springplant in Henderson, NC at the 50th and Kingsessing rec center

This is a rare opportunity to meet some small-scale farmers from out of town who will be selling fruits and vegetables (from kale and sweet potatoes to apples and watermelon) who will be selling stuff not yet in season up here. Operation Springplant is made up of African American and limited-resource growers around Henderson, North Carolina. They will be selling their goods from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 50th and Kingsessing near the rec center, where some neighborhood youths also run an urban farm. So far this is planned to be just a one-day deal. If successful, organizers say, the farmers will make return trips to West Philly.

Urban gardening comes in many forms – the backyard plot, the communal garden and even “take back the land” Johnny Appleseed inspired “guerrilla gardening” like Plotland at 44th and Locust. After tonight, guerrilla gardening will get a little easier and quicker.

The University City District will unveil the first quarter-operated seed bomb machine in Philadelphia tonight at the Night Market (3911 Market St.). This retrofitted gumball machine dispenses little seed clusters that can be tossed into an open space with dirt and within a few days (or after there is a little rain or watering) wildflowers will start to grow. Based on the “seed grenades” of the 1970s, these gumball-size, handrolled spheroids contain a little clay, a little compost and some seeds.

The L.A.-based startup Greenaid supplies the machines and the seed balls.

After tonight, Grid reports that the University City District’s machine will go into their lobby and be brought out for special occasions.

You can also buy your own bombs from Greenaid and even get a wooden slingshot for long-distance planting. Look out for more of these in the future. This is right up West Philly’s alley.

Here’s a cool video that shows how it works:

Common Studios: Green Aid from ISHOTHIM on Vimeo.