Twice a year, Clark Park Youth Soccer League invites local kids ages 5-11 to participate in the program held at Clark Park. The Fall season starts Sept. 23rd, and while there is no shortage of kids signing up, this low-cost program is still looking for volunteer coaches.

If you like to play soccer, know a little bit about the game, and enjoy running around and having fun with kids, please consider volunteering for this program.

The Fall season continues through mid-November. It takes place on Saturdays, with kids ages 5 to 7 playing from 10:30 a.m. to Noon, and ages 8 to 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. Three or four coaches will be assigned to each team so that you’ll always have backup. Continue Reading

Kingsessing pool (Archived photo).

Mayor Jim Kenney will officially kick off the 2017 Philadelphia public pool season Thursday afternoon at a dedication ceremony for a newly renovated playground at Murphy Recreation Center in South Philly. Over 70 indoor and outdoor pools will open in the city for the 2017 summer season, including dozens in West Philadelphia.

Citywide pool hours are Monday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday & Sunday, Noon to 5 p.m., but interested swimmers are advised to check in with their neighborhood pool for days and times of open swim, family swim and adult swim, as well as swim lessons and swim team activities.

Here are opening dates for West and Southwest Philly pools and also O’Connor pool in Center City West (for information on more public pools, go here):  Continue Reading

There’s a great chance for the Philly Pumptrack located in West Fairmount Park to get a grant that will help with upgrades. Philadelphia Parks and Recreation is teaming up with Disney and the National Recreation and Parks Association to award $20,000 to a Philadelphia Parks and Recreation facility, and all you need to do is vote for your favorite. The Philly Pumptrack is one of three projects residents can vote for through April 30th.

Residents can vote for the projects online at NRPA.org/BeInspired. If selected, the pumptrack would use the award money to purchase new equipment and to make site improvements to make the site cleaner and safer.

The Philly Pumptrack, a dynamic earthen bike track, opened in the spring of 2014 at 5300 Parkside Avenue and is part of the Philadelphia Parks & Recreation department. The track is open from 12 – 7 p.m. seven days a week. For more information, visit: www.phillypumptrack.org.

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

Youth soccer returns to Clark Park this month. Registration has begun for Clark Park Youth Soccer League (CPYSL), a low-cost sports and recreation program of Friends of Clark Park that provides soccer instruction for children ages 5 to 11. The CPYSL spring season will begin on March 25 and will feature 90-minute sessions every Saturday through May 20.

Children are assigned to teams by age:

– Mornings (10:30 a.m.-Noon): ages 5 to 6.5 and ages 6.5 to 7
– Afternoons (Noon-1:30 p.m.): ages 8 to 9 and ages 10 to 11

Deadline for registration is March 20. Online registration is available here. Walk-in registration will be possible on Saturday, March 25, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the University of the Sciences, Rosenberger Hall (43rd and Woodland).  Continue Reading

Photo courtesy of Clark Park Youth Soccer.

From daily jogging to youth soccer to boot camps, Clark Park is a great place for physical activities. But, does it need any improvements?

The next Clark Park General Membership meeting will take place Monday, Jan. 30 at the University of the Sciences, where Friends of Clark Park (FoCP) members and all interested community members are invited to ask questions and voice their concerns or ideas about the park. The focus of the upcoming meeting is how the park can contribute to the health of its users.

“The discussion will go beyond general environmental health sources such as tree cover and air quality, focusing more acutely on opportunities for evaluating the physical attributes of the park and healthy programming for all ages,” according to a message on the FoCP website.

So, if you would like to participate in this discussion and share your thoughts and ideas for improvements to the park-built environment and programming, come USciences’ Griffith Hall (43rd and Woodland) on Monday. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. More information can be found on the Friends of Clark Park website.