December 12, 2023
Team Panbo, known for their recent Halloween Data Project that collected information on West Philly kids’ most popular candy, has some exciting news. This past Friday the group, comprised of senior Penn students Melissa Nong, Ethan Markwalter, Turner Halle, and Julianna Cimillo, installed a solar-powered lights display at the triangle intersection on 45th and Baltimore (see map). The funds for the display (over $300!) were raised from selling the West Philly Variety packs containing local kids’ favorite candies at Clark Park Farmers Market.
The lights charge during the day and automatically turn on once it gets dark.
“We’re hoping it adds some warmth and brightness to an area that gets quite a lot of foot traffic but is pretty poorly lit at night,” Melissa Nong wrote to West Philly Local.
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December 4, 2023
The Calvary Center for Culture and Community (CCCC), a nonprofit created by Calvary United Methodist Church in 2000 to manage staffing, space rental and fundraising related to the Calvary building, is in the process of restructuring its governance, organizational structure, and business model. The organization is hosting an informal meet-and-greet with current CCCC Board members, Calvary United Methodist Church leadership and other community stakeholders, on Monday, Dec. 11, 5-6 p.m.
The purpose of the gathering is three-fold:
1. To provide important updates on the Calvary building, including plans to restructure the CCCC Board to provide for broader community representation and more effective management and maintenance.
2. To encourage networking and relationship-building in support of Calvary’s ongoing function as a critical center of community activity.
3. To invite your consideration as to how you (and/or your office/organization) might be involved in or otherwise support the CCCC’s mission going forward.
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November 28, 2023
Today is #GivingTuesday, the day when we’re reminded to give back to the community we’re part of. As always on this day, we’ll be posting/sharing messages from local non-profit organizations in this post and on our social media. Please consider supporting a local cause today with your donation or volunteering. Also, please visit our Civic Life/Neighborhood Resources page where you can find information on many other West Philly non-profits.
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November 27, 2023
The Blanche A. Nixon Library after renovation (rendering image).
Rebuild Philadelphia, the City’s program that invests in public spaces, broke ground on a major renovation project for the historic Blanche A. Nixon Library located in the Cobbs Creek neighborhood of West Philadelphia (at 58th and Baltimore).
“Built in the 1900s, the Blanche A. Nixon Library requires critical accessibility improvements to equitably meet the needs of all the residents it serves,” Mayor Jim Kenney said at the groundbreaking ceremony held last week. “The renovations at Blanche are set to transform and restore this historic building into a clean, safe, modern, and accessible community asset for many generations to come.”
A community staple within the Cobbs Creek neighborhood, the Blanche A. Nixon Library is undergoing major renovations thanks to Rebuild’s $8.5 million investment, which includes nearly $1.7 million in grants including $250,000 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and $1.4 million in federal Community Project Funding (CPF) for ADA upgrades to the library, secured by U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA).
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November 20, 2023
Winter holidays are approaching fast, and residents have a chance to make them brighter for local kids by donating toys. One of local holiday toy drives is being hosted by the Office of Councilmember Jamie Gauthier (3rd District). There are two ways to donate:
First, toys can be purchased online from one of these toy registries: https://bit.ly/3rdDriveTarget or https://bit.ly/3rdDriveAmazon.
New, unwrapped toys can also be dropped off at the 3rd District Office at 606 S. 52nd Street on Mondays-Thursdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Donations are accepted until Dec. 14. Toy giveaway will be held on Saturday, Dec. 16 from 12-3 p.m.
See the flyer for more details.
Stay tuned for information on more holiday drives in West Philly.
November 10, 2023
The Halloween candy contest results are in and the most popular treat among West Philly kids is… not Reese’s! Read on to find out what it is.
Penn students involved with the Halloween Data Project went to the Spruce Hill Halloween Tot parade and hung around during the trick-or-treating festivities and were able to record lots of creative costumes and kids’ opinions (266 in total!) on their favorite candy and least favorite candy. The students compiled all of their data into an interactive dashboard for kids and parents to see all the different answers in the community: West Philly Candy Dashboard (Panbo App was used to create it).
To personalize the dashboard for West Philly, the students created digital drawings, a mascot named Panbo that explains the data, and a thank you note at the very end that names every individual costume they saw. The dashboard itself presents the data collected in many different ways: a cluster map with each individual response, bar graphs showing the rankings of the candy, and interactive pie charts that help you see correlations between certain costumes and their favorite form and flavor of candy.
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Team Panbo, known for their recent Halloween Data Project that collected information on West Philly kids’ most popular candy, has some exciting news. This past Friday the group, comprised of senior Penn students Melissa Nong, Ethan Markwalter, Turner Halle, and Julianna Cimillo, installed a solar-powered lights display at the triangle intersection on 45th and Baltimore (see map). The funds for the display (over $300!) were raised from selling the West Philly Variety packs containing local kids’ favorite candies at Clark Park Farmers Market.
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