If you are still around after the Rapture on Saturday, you should check in with acclaimed illustrator G.B. Tran, who will be talking about his amazing graphic family memoir VIETNAMERICA at Locust Moon Comics (4040 Locust St.) from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

A chronicle of Tran’s family’s journey from Vietnam to the United States during the war, VIETNAMERICA has been three years in the making.

The Library Journal writes of the book:

“This will be called the MAUS for the Vietnam War, and for good reason. Similar premise: clueless American-born son of immigrants confronts the legacy of family pain predating his birth. Similar outcome: a kick-in- the-gut graphic novel… he purposely fragments the plot, shifting points of view, narrative voices, and settings while the reader—as did Tran—must assemble the pieces to learn how his parents became the people he knew.”

Here’s an interview on ABC News with Tran (sorry about the commercial):

A person was robbed of a cell phone and $180 in an apartment building lobby near 48th and Springfield Ave. last night.

Police say three black males approached the victim in the lobby of 1000 S. 48th St. One of the men, in his mid 20s and wearing a black and white Addidas sweatsuit, brandished a handgun. The man also had a beard and mustache and a small teardrop tattoo on his face. There were no descriptions available of the other two suspects.

No arrests have been made.

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A full slate of kindergarten open houses are on tap for next week. These open houses have some added significance for many with the limited number of spots at the Penn Alexander School and the recent news that enrollment in the school’s lower grades will be limited beginning next year regardless of whether a student lives in the school’s catchment area or not.

Some schools are putting more effort into this open house than in the past. For example, days of planning have gone into the open house at the Henry C. Lea School, where the group West Philly Coalition for Neighborhood Schools has helped the school’s Home and School Association take care of everything from catering to publicizing the school’s May 23 open house. Lea’s catchment area borders Penn Alexander’s to the west.  Penn Alexander‘s open house is May 24 at 9:30 a.m. The Samuel Powel School will not have an open house.

The schedule for Lea’s open house (the only one where a full schedule was available) is:

8:20 – 8:40 a.m Meet and Greet with principal Dr. Lisa Bell-Chiles in the library
8:45 – 9:30 a.m. Kindergarten Open House, Rooms 101 and 102
9:35 – 10:00 a.m. Lea School Tour lead by Maurice Jones
10:05 – 10:20 a.m. Kindergarten teacher Ms. Mykytiuch will be free to talk to parents, Room 101
10:25 – 10:45 a.m. Meeting with Lea Home School Association President Maurice Jones and others in the library
10:50 – 11:05 a.m. Kindergarten teacher Ms. McCloskey will be free to talk to parents, Room 102

Other open houses in the neighborhood include (list courtesy of the West Philly Coalition for Neighborhood Schools):

A. D. Harrington School
5300-34 Baltimore Ave
(215) 471 – 2914
5/24, 9:00-10:00
Kindergarten teacher: Ms. Davis

Alain Locke School
4550 Haverford Ave.
(215) 823 – 8202
5/24 – 9-11 a.m.

Alexander Wilson School
1300 S. 46th St.
(215) 823 – 8206
5/24 – 9 a.m.
B. B. Comegys School
5100 Greenway Ave.
(215) 727 – 2162
5/24, 1:00-3:00 p.m.

Charles Drew School
3724 Warren St.
Phone: (215) 823 – 8204
5/26, 10:00-11:00
Kindergarten teacher: Ms. Gunderstorf

Penn Alexander School
4209 Spruce St.
(215) 823 – 5465
5/24 – 9:30 a.m.

Samuel B Huey School
5200 Pine St.
(215) 471 – 2901
NO OPEN HOUSE, Contact school to visit kindergarten individually

Samuel Powel School
301 N. 36th St.
(215) 823 – 8201
No open house

Everything from beautiful rugs to lavish dinners to Peter Gabriel tickets are up for grabs this Saturday. The University City Arts League‘s Annual Art Auction is 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Wilson Student Center on the University of the Sciences campus at 42nd and Woodland.

A preview dinner will precede the auction. SOOP Catering, run by former RX owner Greg Salisbury, is supplying the grub. Dinner begins at 6 p.m., the public silent auction starts at 7 p.m. and the live auction runs form 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Auction tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids 13-18 years of age. Kids 12 and under get in free and must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets are available at the door or at the UCAL office at 4226 Spruce St.

Other items include two plane tickets to anywhere in the United States, a tour of the Philadelphia Inquirer and attendance at a morning news meeting, and a week’s stay at an Orlando resort. More information is available here.

Lt. Brian McBride of the Philadelphia Police Department’s University City sub-division will be at the Calvary Center (48th and Baltimore) to talk to residents about crime issues in their neighborhood.

McBride’s meeting with residents last month proved fruitful when a resident’s tip led to the arrest of a man who had been stealing packages off of porches.

Meetings with McBride are held on the third Thursday of each month from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the large classroom on the lower level.

The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative’s Youth Development Program is hosting its annual “Eats and Beats” event this Saturday beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Woodland Presbyterian Church (401 S. 42nd).

The event helps support the youth-led Rooted in Community Conference and some of this year’s proceeds go toward the expansion of the Mariposa Food Co-op. Rooted in Community, a national organization dedicated to empowering youth to take the lead in their communities to address food justice issues, is holding their conference in Philadelphia on July 27-31.

Tickets are available on a sliding scale for $15-$50 and are available online here.