The 2017 “Love Your Park” week kicks off on Saturday, May 13 with a Spring Service Day, and many residents have already registered to help clean up and beautify parks across the city. A lot more volunteers are needed. Here are some volunteer opportunities available in West Philadelphia:

Cedar Park
When: 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Where: S. 49th & Catharine Sts
What: Volunteers of all ages are welcome. Help is needed planting annuals and perennials as well as pruning garden bushes. (On May 19 from 6-8 p.m., join Cedar Park Neighbors for a Bring Your Own Picnic in the park)
Register to volunteer.  Continue Reading

The 10th annual Philly Spring Cleanup is scheduled for Saturday, April 8, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and volunteer help is essential for the success of this event. 130 project sites have been registered in West Philadelphia on the Philadelphia Streets Department website. Residents can view the projects in their neighborhood and register to volunteer here.

The organizers of the following cleanup projects also would like to let community members know about their sites:

Philly Spring Cleanup at Kingsessing Recreation Center (50th and Kingsessing), 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Cleanup supplies will be provided, plus free coffee, water and snacks for participants. Sign up at http://PhillySpringCleanup.com. For more information, visit the Friends of Kingsessing Rec Facebook page.  Continue Reading

Photo courtesy of Bartram’s Garden.

Here’s a great and unique volunteer opportunity this spring and summer in Southwest Philadelphia. The Bartram’s Garden Community Boathouse has few dozen open volunteer spots for its upcoming season. In exchange for helping run free boating programs, volunteers have access to the fleet of kayaks, canoes and rowboats on the lower Schuylkill River.

The boating season at Bartram’s begins on April 22 and ends on October 29, 2017. Volunteers are needed to help with the following programs: Saturday Free Walk-Up Boating, Tuesday Sunset Kayaking, weekday rowboating trips, monthly kayak tours, and more, as well as during special events at Bartram’s Garden, such as Tidal Schuylkill Boat Parade, the Philadelphia Honey Festival, Harvest Fest, and the Southwest Philadelphia Fishing Derby.  Continue Reading

Neighbors now have a chance to get more involved with Kingsessing Recreation Center (5001 Kingsessing Ave.). A new official program within the center, Friends of Kingsessing, has recently been formed and their first official service event is being planned for next week.

The program is seeking volunteers to come out on Saturday, Feb. 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help paint the front offices and basement, along with a few light maintenance tasks around the building.

Future events will be held on a monthly basis (no-commitment is needed), dates TBA, and future projects will be based on the input from and skills of the volunteers who participate.

“The Advisory Council, the Rec center, and the community would be very grateful if you can make it to this event, as volunteers truly make this facility function,” reads a message on the group’s Facebook page. “Pass the word around and invite your friends to come too, the more help, the better!”

Neighbors interested participating in the event can RSVP to Will Tung at: tungwill@gmail.com or through Facebook. Coffee, water and snacks will be provided!

The Woodlands Grave Gardener program is returning this spring for the second year and volunteers are needed. Here’s how it works:

Each volunteer (75 are needed) will be assigned to adopt a “cradle” grave at The Woodlands during the 2017 growing season. These graves were originally designed to be planters, so the volunteers are expected to plant and tend to their assigned “cradle” grave throughout the growing season (March-October). All gardens will be designed with the Victorian Garden aesthetic in mind. An approved planting list has been created by The Woodlands to help guide the gardeners.

A series of gardening workshops will also be offered to the program participants. The first workshop, on Gardening for Beginners with Sally McCabe of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS), will be held on February 1.

Those interested to participate in the program are asked to submit an application. The deadline is January 20.

For more information and to apply, click here.

(Photos courtesy of The Woodlands).

This year’s LOVE Your Park Fall Service Day, an event organized by Philadelphia Parks and Recreation and Fairmount Park Conservancy, will take place on Saturday, Nov. 12.

Hundreds of volunteers will step out to clean up their neighborhood parks and help prepare them for winter. We’re happy to let you know that West Philly’s Malcolm X Park, located at 52nd and Pine, will be this year’s signature “LOVE Your Park” site.

Mayor Kenney and other dignitaries will be present at the park on Saturday to show support to the volunteers, including Gregorio Cojulun Jr., the President of the Malcolm X Park Friends group.

Gregorio has been a member of the Malcolm X Park Friends since 1996, and has been its president since 1997. He is credited with helping to rid the park of crime and bring it back to life through his ability to motivate neighbors to get involved in the programming and stewardship of the park.  Continue Reading