Here are some Martin Luther King Day of Service events and volunteer opportunities in West Philadelphia. If you’re hosting an event please feel free to add it in the comments section. More events and volunteer opportunities can be found on the MLK Day of Service website.

Friday, Jan. 16:

11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Hope PHL MLK Day Kick-off & Sneaker Drive

4017 Lancaster Avenue

Join Hope PHL’s Neighborhood Advisory Committee (NAC) for a day of support, resources and community empowerment in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy. In partnership with Black Men Run (BMR), Hope PHL’s NAC will also host a Sneaker Drive from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.. Please donate new or gently worn sneakers.

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The Free Library of Philadelphia has launched a new club focused on black genealogy, part of The Legacy Lab series. Club events will be held at the Blanche A. Nixon/Cobbs Creek Library and the Kingsessing Library and are timed with the nation’s 250th anniversary. The series offers community members opportunities to research, document, and celebrate their own family histories.

“The Legacy Lab demonstrates how libraries can expand access to powerful tools and for learning and discovery,” said Kelly Richards, President and Director, the Free Library of Philadelphia. “By offering free resources, guidance, and welcoming spaces, we are helping ensure that Black families explore their family histories, reclaim their narratives, and pass the knowledge on to future generations.”

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Like many of my West Philly neighbors, I am troubled that our City Government is sending more than a third of the City’s trash to the Reworld (Covanta) incinerator in Chester, PA, for burning. Incinerating trash releases toxins that pollute our own air as well as Chester’s, contributing to high rates of asthma, lung cancer, and other respiratory disease. In November, the West Philly Local reported on a bill to stop this practice. Introduced by West Philly’s City Councilmember, Jamie Gauthier, HB 250788, the Stop Trashing Our Air Act, would bar the City Government from signing new contracts for trash incineration.

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A test trolley exiting the tunnel near 40th and Woodland on Sunday, Jan. 4.

UPDATE (1/10/2026): SEPTA’s Trolley Tunnel (“T Trolley Tunnel”), which has been closed since mid-November, is set to reopen on Monday, Jan. 12 for regular daytime service, according to SEPTA. The tunnel will still be closed indefinitely from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night to accommodate additional inspections and maintenance. All trolleys will be diverted to 40th and Market during these hours. The tunnel will also be closed for additional repairs during the following periods:

• From 10 p.m. on Jan. 23 to 5 a.m. on Jan. 26
• From 10 p.m. on Jan. 30 to 5 a.m. on Feb. 2
• From 5 a.m. on Feb. 15 to 10 p.m. on Feb. 22

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A rendering of the upgraded Walnut Hill Community Playground (Image courtesy UCD).

Here’s some great news on the Walnut Hill Community Playground renovation project, which broke ground last spring at 47th and Sansom.

The University City District (UCD), which is leading the project along with community partners, has received additional funding which will help move the project forward. The McClean Contributionship recently provided a $25,000 grant which will help UCD’s landscaping enterprise, Green City Works, install a new poured rubber play surface (see rendering image above). The new surface ensures play safety by reducing current tripping hazards and possible injuries.

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Here are some ways to get rid of your holiday trees in an environmentally and community-friendly way. The City’s Department of Sanitation is again hosting Christmas tree community collection events and offering other tree disposal opportunities. There will also be tree collection events hosted by local non-profits.

City-run drop-off sites

The Department of Sanitation Christmas Tree Recycling Program kicked off Jan. 5 and will run through Saturday, Jan. 17. While the program is running, West Philly residents can bring their Christmas tree to one of the following drop-off locations on specific dates (see below):

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