The annual Ethiopian Day Festival is Saturday. A photo from last year’s event. (From the Ethiopian Community Association website.)

The Ethiopian Community Association of Greater Philadelphia is putting on its annual Ethiopian Day Festival and free concert tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 44th and Chestnut.

Music, children’s games, food and poetry are on the schedule.

Image provided by Resource Generation Philly chapter.

The local chapter of Resource Generation, a group of 18- to 35-year-olds who have pledged to leverage their wealth or class privilege for social justice, is holding an open house on Thursday, Oct. 15.

Over the past year the group has committed to providing more than $27,000 in funding to promote racial justice, splitting the money between the Organization for Black Struggle in Ferguson and the Bread and Roses Racial and Economic Justice Fund in Philadelphia. Its members have also hosted meetings on radical investing and regenerative finance, transferring capital and resources to communities impacted by economic inequality.  Continue Reading

The Fall season of the Clark Park Youth Soccer League (CPYSL) begins on Saturday, Oct. 3, and the popular volunteer-run program is still looking for coaches. You don’t need serious soccer skills or coaching experience in order to apply. The Fall season continues until November 23. It takes place on Saturdays at Clark Park (45th and Chester), with age groups 5-6 and 6-7 playing from 10:30 a.m. to Noon, and age groups 7-8 and 9-11 playing from Noon to 1:30 p.m. Volunteer coaches are asked to commit to being there most of the Saturdays through the season, but the program will try to have three or four coaches assigned to each team so that you will always have backup. Everyone who likes to play soccer and enjoys running around and having fun with kids is welcome to apply.  Continue Reading

Mosaic Community Church, 123 S. 51st St.

West Philly organizations and community groups have a chance to receive grants of up to $6,000 for their projects. Three years ago, as part of a capital campaign to raise money to renovate their new property at 51st and Sansom, Mosaic Community Church committed to give away 10 percent of all of the money raised to organizations who are doing good work in West Philly neighborhoods. This commitment turned into the Building It Together (BIT) Grant Program. This year, Mosaic’s BIT Grant Program has $26,000 to give away and invites local nonprofits and community organizations to apply.

The BIT Grant Program is comprised of two distinct funding opportunities:  Continue Reading

Six-year-old Elliott is in Clark Park every Wednesday to collect canned goods and other non-perishables for Philadelphians in need. His ongoing “Super-Duper Food Drive,” which benefits Philabundance, started in early August, and the response so far has been great. This Wednesday, Elliott will be in Clark Park at 43rd and Chester from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for his 4th collection, so everyone is welcome to swing by and bring a donation. High-priority items are:

• Jelly, jams or preserves;
• Miscellaneous shelf-stable proteins (peanut butter, beans, canned stews, or chili);
• Pasta, rice, & dry mixes;
• Breakfast foods (hot & cold cereals, bars, & oatmeal)

Elliott plans to host many more events throughout the year, according to his mom Jennifer. “We’d like to get others involved, especially kids,” she writes. “Elliott wanted to fill my empty coffee cans with food + water for those in need, so this is our compromise: an ongoing food drive to benefit Philabundance.”

For more information on Elliott’s Super-Duper Food Drive check out this Facebook page.

Branford Marsalis Jazz Quartet (from left: Joey Calderazzo (piano), Eric Revis (bass), Branford Marsalis (saxophone), and Justin Faulkner (drums)).

Internationally acclaimed jazz musicians will be guests at the 2nd annual Community Unity Music Festival at Clark Park (43rd and Chester). Saxophone legend Branford Marsalis and his band, The Branford Marsalis Jazz Quartet, will again headline the festival, which will be held on Saturday, Aug. 15, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. This year’s festival, which promotes nonviolence and unity in the Philadelphia community, is called “A Day to Remember.” In addition to live music performances, the festival program includes inspirational speeches from city and state dignitaries, food, games and other activities for kids.

The festival is organized with the help of Justin Faulkner, the drummer of the Marsalis Quartet, who grew up in West Philadelphia. One of the main goals of the festival is to show young community members that “creativity enriches the soul” (the festival’s motto is “Put down the guns and pick up an instrument”). To help local artistic youth, the festival organizers created “The Each One Teach One” coalition, which gives scholarships to five deserving students for private music lessons with one of the festival’s partners, the Clef Club for Jazz and the Performing Arts.

For more information about the Community Unity Music Festival and people behind it, click here.