The Drexel University Gospel Choir is celebrating 40 years of song, worship, praise, fellowship and ministry on March 9-11. The weekend-long celebration will include a throwback reunion luncheon, alumni welcome reception, campus tours and of course, a concert to commemorate 40 years!

The Drexel University Gospel Choir’s journey began in the spring of 1978, under the direction of Vashti “Tina” Gorham until 1985. From 1985 until the present, the Drexel University Gospel choir has been under the anointed direction of Pastor Gregory Ross, traveling throughout the United States and abroad praising the Lord through song, mime and dance.  Continue Reading

Multiple trees and tree branches were down on Saturday morning after a storm with hurricane force winds passed through the area on Friday. Several vehicles were damaged. Some streets were still closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic on Saturday evening as city crews worked to remove broken trees and branches. Here are some more photos:  Continue Reading

Mercy Philadelphia Hospital, located in West Philadelphia at 54th and Cedar, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year and has some exciting news and events to share with the local community.

Last week, the hospital broke ground on a multi-million-dollar Emergency Department expansion and renovation project, the largest such investment in the department’s history. The investment will dramatically increase the number of available beds, will create new offices and patient areas, and renovate existing facilities. Overall, the project will increase the size of the ED, making it more accessible to members of the community.  Continue Reading

Jaleel Shaw’s Band performed at the 11th Annual Lancaster Ave Jazz & Arts Festival in July 2017. (Photo by Kevin Smith)

Come July, the Lancaster Avenue Jazz and Arts Festival, a great summer tradition in the Powelton neighborhood, will return to Saunders Park. The National Endowment for the Arts has recently announced that it will support this year’s festival with a Challenge America grant of $10,000.

The NEA has approved more than $25 million in grants as part of its first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2018. The Challenge America category features NEA support for projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations – those whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability, according to the announcement.  Continue Reading

Rosa’s Fresh Pizza, the no-frills dollar-slice pizza shop, opened its second location this month on 40th between Ludlow and Market. Rosa’s is the brainchild of businessman Mason Wartman, whose claim to fame is appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres Show to talk about his restaurant’s wall of pay-it-forward post-it notes. Each post-it represents a slice of pizza purchased by someone to feed the city’s homeless population, and anyone who can’t afford to buy food for themselves can take a post-it off of the wall and trade it for a slice at the counter.

Rosa’s original location, in Center City near Jefferson Hospital at 11th and Ludlow, serves free slices to 50-100 customers a day. A person behind the counter at the new University City location who declined to give his name said that they had “some” people taking advantage of the free slices, but not as many as 30 or 40. “I guess people just haven’t heard yet,” he explained.  Continue Reading

Five community organizations are hosting an information session on Monday, Feb. 26 about the transition of governance of the School District of Philadelphia from the state back to the city.

Otis Hackney of the Mayor’s Office of Education will be a featured speaker.

The School Reform Commission voted in November to abolish itself, beginning the end of 17 years of state control of the district. The Mayor’s Office is now tasked with assembling a Board of Education, a multi-step process that will be explained in more detail at Monday’s meeting.

The event is hosted by Cedar Park Neighbors, Cobbs Creek Neighbors, Garden Court Community Association, Spruce Hill Community Association and Walnut Hill Community Association.

The information session will be held from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th and Baltimore). The regular monthly Cedar park Neighbors board meeting will follow from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.