Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is this Monday, Jan. 17 and many events celebrating his legacy have been scheduled around the city, virtually and in-person. Here’s a list of some events and volunteer opportunities happening in West and Southwest Philadelphia and on-line. Also, check out the list compiled by the Office of Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

To explore additional MLK Day volunteer opportunities in Philadelphia, click here.

Thursday, Jan. 13 & Friday, Jan. 14:

Sam Pollard Film Screenings – Virtual Event

Scribe Video Center is hosting an online screening of two films by acclaimed filmmaker Sam Pollard. On Thursday, Jan. 13 at 7:00 p.m., join Scribe for a presentation of MLK/FBI, and on Friday, Jan. 14 at 7:00 p.m. there will be a presentation of Two Trains Runnin’, followed by a conversation with Sam Pollard. The screenings and conversation will be presented through the Crowdcast platform. Click here for more information and to register. Continue Reading

PEC staff member James Wright at a pop-up food distribution event (Photo courtesy of PEC)

People’s Emergency Center (PEC) staff are distributing free food and hosting the Penn Medicine COVID-19 mobile testing unit at 39th and Baring Streets on Thursdays this month (Jan. 13, Jan. 20, and Jan. 27).

Neighborhood residents are welcome to come by for a fresh box of produce and testing. The events are part of PEC’s work with the community to improve health outcomes for everyone. To learn more about the Penn Medicine mobile testing unit, run by Dr. Antonio Dávila Jr., click here.

Food distribution begins at 10 a.m. and continues while supplies last. The mobile testing unit will be onsite from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

UC Green, the West Philly community greening organization, is again hosting holiday tree recycling events in two West Philly parks – Clark Park and Malcolm X Park. Both events will be held Saturday, Jan. 8 (check out the flier below for more details). Suggested donation is $5-$20 per tree. Recycled trees will be mulched and used in local parks.

If you can’t bring your tree to any of these events, check out the Christmas Tree Recycling program run by the city this month. Continue Reading

Historic Calvary United Methodist Church at 48th Street and Baltimore Avenue has been awarded a prestigious grant from the National Fund for Sacred Places.

The church building, which was erected in 1906, now provides space for several community, cultural and religious groups and organizations, including Cedar Park Neighbors community association, Curio Theatre Company, Crossroads Music, Kol Tzedek Synagogue, West Philadelphia Mennonite Fellowship, and more.

Calvary Church will receive a matching grant of up to $250,000 to support an ambitious capital campaign to be launched in early 2022 by the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (CCCC), a nonprofit organization established by the church 20 years ago to manage the building. Backed by an additional $500,000 Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) matching grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, awarded to the Calvary Center last year, funds raised will enable major repairs and renovations of the building. Continue Reading

Philadelphia City Council passed new legislation today that aims to create more affordable housing in parts of the city, including West Philadelphia, which are seeing rapid housing development.

The new Mixed Income Neighborhoods Overlay Bill, proposed by Councilmembers Jamie Gauthier (3rd District) and María Quiñones Sánchez (7th District), is the first-ever mandatory inclusionary zoning legislation that requires affordable housing be part of new large development projects in select tracts of the 3rd and 7th Districts.

The 3rd District includes West Philadelphia and Southwest Philadelphia neighborhoods, which have seen rapid growth of housing development in the past couple of decades and displacement of many lower income residents. Continue Reading

After a very challenging couple of years, it’s important to remember about all the hard work done in the community by local not-for-profit organizations. There’s a chance to support them today, on #GivingTuesday. Today, we’ll be posting messages from local non-profits so that you can support them with your donation or volunteer work. Also, please check our Civic Life page for the list of local organizations. Continue Reading