Photos by Tony West

One hundred Philadelphia young chess players packed the St. Joseph’s University Athletic Recreation Center at 45th St. and Woodland Ave. this weekend, Jan. 27-28, seeking mates  – lots of them  – but all above board. A chess board, to be precise.

The 16th annual PECO/ASAP Checkmate Violence Chess Marathon drew youths K-12 for two full days of competition and awards. Rated players tested themselves through five long rounds over both days; non-rated players tackled five shorter rounds on Saturday. Coaches and parents from some of ASAP’s 150 chess clubs (one of the largest lineups in the country) came along for pregame prep work but once the tournament began all adults were shooed out.

ASAP presented a STEM Fair featuring organizations throughout Philadelphia that provide after school and summer opportunities in STEM.

Continue Reading

Manzanita, a new vintage boutique, has opened at 42nd and Baltimore.

Here’s some exciting news for local fans of vintage goodies. Manzanita, a new vintage boutique, has opened at 4206 Baltimore Ave.

“Manzanita is a brand celebrating the diverse and inclusive neighborhood of WEST PHILADELPHIA with future vintage curated to current perfection, boutique goods to enliven and inspire, and VIBES FOR DAYS!” the shop owner, Dorit Avganim, posted on Instagram.

The shop could be a great place to shop for unique gifts. It also hosts various events. For example, this Friday and Saturday, Jan. 26 & 27, the store, in collaboration with West Philly tattoo artist Jillian Christofferson, is offering hand poked tattoos. For more details, visit the shop’s Instagram page.

Continue Reading

The 2024 tax season officially began yesterday, and the Campaign For Working Families (CWF) has again opened multiple sites across the city where families and individuals can get free state and federal income tax preparation services.

CWF now offers four tax filing options: in-person services, regular drop-off services, virtual drop-off services, and virtual services.

Walk-in and drop-off locations in West and Southwest Philadelphia include:

CWFI Ebenezer Temple
5649 Christian St.

Hours:
Mon, Tues 12pm – 6pm
Wed, Thurs 10am – 2pm
Sat 9am – 2pm

Continue Reading

Great news for Malcolm X Memorial Park and local community advocates! The 188th District was recently awarded a state grant of over $76,000 which will be used to bring important improvements to the park. The grant will be used to repair the park gazebo, bathrooms and lighting. State Rep. Rick Krajewski, whose office worked on securing the grant, posted the following message on social media:

“If we want to fight for our young people and build a real sense of public safety for all, we need to make more investments like this one. Congrats to the Friends of Malcolm X Park! This will make a big difference for the 188th.”

Friends of Malcolm X Park is a volunteer-run group who organizes various events and activities at the park, including regular cleanups, and advocates for new resources. In recent years, the park has been home to such events as community/health fairs, outdoor theater shows by Theatre in the X, Juneteenth Festival, outdoor film screenings, and many recreational activities.

Project MEOW Facebook photo.

Project MEOW, the West Philly-based cat rescue organization, is in urgent need of foster homes after rescuing many cats, some of them injured, this winter. It is very important to pick up as many homeless cats as possible off the street during freezing conditions, but the number of animals they can save is limited and depends on the availability of fosters.

If you are interested in signing up as a foster for Project MEOW, please email: fosters@projectmeow.org

Cat adoptions are also available. The organization also helps keep local stray/community cat colonies under control by using TNR (trap-neuter-return) practices. Here are some Project MEOW stats from last year:

Cats adopted: 676

Cats in foster care: 205

Cats spayed/neutered: 981

Colony cats helped: 165

To learn more about Project MEOW, visit their website or Facebook page.

Here’s some great news for the old Calvary Church building, which has been home to many local community and arts organizations over the last few decades. As a result of the fundraising efforts supported by the community, a new, much-needed HVAC system has finally been installed and will provide heating and air-conditioning at this historic building.

The new HVAC system was installed at the end of last month and has been working well, according to Calvary Center’s social media posts.

The fundraiser was announced last summer with a goal to match a $100,000 grant from the National Fund for Sacred Places.

Continue Reading