The Green Tambourine, the Cedar Park based music school, is starting a new set of classes for 4-6 year-olds called Introduction to Instruments.

“We offer these for violin, piano and drums,” says The Green Tambourine owner and director Ann Schwartz. “They are weekly 30-minute classes that get kids started playing an instrument. We learn about how to play and take care of our instruments, as well as getting started reading and writing notes.”

“We listen to lots of different styles that use the instrument and explore what makes these styles unique. We also play music games that kids love.”

Classes are held from April-mid June and will culminate with an in-class performance. More info and registration can be found on the Green Tambourine website: https://www.thegreentambourine.com.

Families are welcome to schedule a free trial class and West Philly Local readers can save 10 percent off their first enrollment – click here!

(Photos courtesy of The Green Tambourine)

The 5400 block of Woodland Avenue has been officially named “Dr. Minnie Moore Johnson Way” after longtime Southwest Philadelphian and community leader, Dr. Minnie Moore Johnson.

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier also presented a resolution honoring Dr. Johnson’s service to Southwest Philadelphia and the city at large.

Dr. Johnson moved to Philadelphia from Brooklyn as a teenager and became a social worker and community servant. She volunteered to provide food to seniors at Thanksgiving in 1968. Two decades later, in 1988, she hosted Thanksgiving dinner for more than 25,000 seniors at the then-Philadelphia Civic Center, garnering recognition by the Smithsonian Institute for her efforts, which was credited as the largest “one-day feeding in the history of the City.”

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After a break, a popular recreation program for kids, the Clark Park Youth Soccer League, is returning this spring. The program, run by the Friends of Clark Park, kicks off April 20 in the Clark Park “Bowl” and children in Kindergarten – 5th Grade are welcome to join. Sessions will be held every Saturday morning through June 8.

A pre-K clinic for kids ages 4-5 will also be held this spring with sessions scheduled for every other Saturday.

Registration is open now through April 10.

Registration fee for this program is $20 for one child and $10 for each additional child in the same family. Non-member families are also required to pay a Friends of Clark Park membership fee, starting at $25 for families registering one child. Financial “Soccership” assistance is available.

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Philly Homebrew Outlet has closed their shop at 47th and Woodland after eight years of operation. The West Philly location was Philly Homebrew’s final store.

“We are sad to say today, March 11th, is the day we have finally decided to close the doors permanently and shut down Philly Homebrew as a business,” reads an email newsletter message by Philly Homebrew co-owners, Jimmy McMillan and Nick Less, sent out on Monday. “Our final store in West Philly is locked up [and] will be no more.”

Philly Homebrew Outlet was launched in 2011 when McMillan and Less purchased Barry’s Homebrew and moved it from South Philadelphia to Kensington. The business opened its second, West Philly location in 2016 and later expanded to three stores.

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Community members are invited to participate in a new socially-engaged photography and archival project which kicks off at Malcolm X Park on Wednesday, March 20. The project, titled What is West?, includes a series of free community workshops and a public art installation at the park.

The goal of the project, sponsored by The Pew Center for Arts and Heritage and The Arts League, is to “give the authority and tools to define West Philadelphia as it exists for its community.”

“Recognizing lived experience as expertise while utilizing public art as a means of exploration, this project will allow our neighbors to move towards collective healing and justice,” reads the project description on the Arts League website.

Another project objective is to document West Philadelphia, a large area comprised of many different neighborhoods, as a place known for its “neighborly warmth, diversity, and collective optimism.” Historically, it has been documented for its issues.

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The historic Woodlands cemetery is home to dozens of trees of various species, some of which are very old dating back to the early 20th century. This Thursday, March 14, The Woodlands gates will be closed to the public to accommodate some necessary sitewide tree work.

The work will be conducted by Arader Tree Service. Because the tree work is taking place in several high-traffic areas, the site will be closed to the public to ensure visitor and worker safety. The gates will reopen for visitors in the late afternoon (around 4 p.m.).

The Woodlands visitors are invited to learn more about the trees growing on the site by using The Woodlands Tree Finder. There are also tree-focused digital tours of the grounds. Click here for more details. Finally, if you would like to support The Woodlands’ work of growing and nurturing their tree and shrub collection, consider donating to The Woodlands Tree Fund. In spring of 2022, contributions to The Woodlands Tree Fund helped set up a mobile water tank so that maintenance workers can water more trees in less time.

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