This Friday, May 18, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. there will be a “Super Swap” of baby, toddler, children’s and maternity clothing, toys, books and gear at the Greenfield Intercultural Center (3708 Chestnut Street), and all parents are welcome to bring clean, gently used items. Boys, gender neutral and older kids’ clothing are especially appreciated.

Make a minimum $5 donation at the entrance to benefit the New Parents @ Penn Group and take what you need/want.

You do not need to bring items to swap in order to participate. All remaining items will be donated to a local women’s charity.

You can drop off items two days before the swap and no later than 10 a.m. on the day of the swap.

To help set up, clean-up or if you have questions contact: Sarvelia Peralta-Duran at sarvelia.peralta@gmail.com. To be added to the Swap distribution list please request to join the Super Swap Yahoo group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SuperSwap/

This Super Swap is an initiative in collaboration with the Penn Women’s Center, Greenfield Intercultural Center and the Penn Family Resource Center.
 

If you remember the days when you played your favorite games in the neighborhood park, come to Clark Park tomorrow after work for the Old School Game Night. Come out to the park from 4 to 7 p.m. to show your stuff in a four-square tournament, make your way through a giant hopscotch court, and play in the signature kickball match happening in The Bowl. And please bring a positive attitude and a drive for fun!

This event is hosted by Philadelphia Parks & Recreation as part of “Love Your Park” week, a citywide celebration of Philadelphia’s parks. It is open and encouraged for all ages. Evening activities will be accompanied by DJ Patty-Pat’s Back-in-the-Day soundtrack.

Here’s the schedule:

4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.: Hot Potato, Double Dutch, 4-square tournament, Relay Races and more!

6 p.m. – 7 p.m.: Kickball Match (please come between 4 and 5:30 to put your name down for kickball).

Old School Game Night. Tue, May 15, 4 – 7 p.m. Clark Park “B”, 43rd & Chester.

While Clark Park “B” (43rd & Chester) is hosting the annual May Fair tomorrow (May 12), there will also be a couple of happenings in the “A” section of the park (44th & Baltimore), in addition to the weekly Farmer’s Market.

Friends of Clark Park need help to keep the park beautiful and invite community members from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. to participate in the park clean-up as Love Your Park Week kicks off tomorrow. Join your fellow Clark Park supporters and help them rake, mulch, water, weed, and generally tidy up the park. For more information and to RSVP, email: lisa@lisamcdonaldhanes.com

At 4 p.m. don’t miss a rare event – local Girl Scout troop #92373 will be releasing 18,000 ladybugs and 10 lbs of earthworms to benefit the ecological health of Clark Park and West Philly. Earthworms aerate soil, creating increased water absorption and air circulation, and ladybugs feed on aphids and other soft bodied insects that feed on plants. This is the Girl Scout troop’s main community service project for the spring.
 

Modeled on New York City’s Sackett Street Writers’ Workshop, Backyard Writers is a selective West Philadelphia-based writing workshop for emerging and established fiction and prose writers. Founded in February of 2011 with support from UPenn’s Kelly Writer’s House, and consisting of 10 writers, group members’ work has appeared in Glimmer Train, Tin House,The Sun, Story Quarterly, Indiana Review, Plain China, Philadelphia Stories, and Apiary, and earned them current positions in the creative writing faculty at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and the Community College of Philadelphia.  

Members have also received such honors as the Leeway Foundation’s Transformation Award, the Community College of Philadelphia’s Judith Stark fiction award, and numerous Best Short Story Awards. They have also published chapbooks with Popular Ink Press and Finishing Line Press, directed Thread Makes Blanket Press here in West Philadelphia, and been contributing writers to Philadelphia Weekly Paper.  Among them, they hold MFAs in Creative Writing from the University of Wyoming, Virginia Commonwealth University, Old Dominion University, the University of Virginia (enrolled), and Rutgers-Newark (enrolled).

Backyard Writers invites the general public to an outdoor reading event, featuring beverages and light refreshments for any and all interested in supporting the West Philadelphia literary arts community, and listening to a taste of their newest work.

Eight members of Backyard Writers will each give a short reading from approximately 7:30-8:30 p.m., followed by merry making in the beautiful backyard of collective house, “Fancy House” in a kind of literary salon meets backyard barbecue.

Sunday May 13. 7 p.m. 4951 Catharine Street. RSVP to eisenberg.emma@gmail.com

The Backyard Writers (with relevant links to bios/stories):

Emma Eisenberg
Kathleen Furin
Ben Goldstein
Sara Graybeal
Marissa Johnson-Valenzuela
Nathan Long
Maxime McKenna
Patrick McNeil
David Poplar
Emily Zimbrick-Rogers
 

Don’t miss the annual Clark Park May Fair this Saturday, May 12, from 10am – 4pm. There will be lots of vendors, food trucks, games and activities for children, a raffle and a plant sale.

May Fair Raffle grand prizes this year are an iPad3, and a new Schwinn SID 3-speed City bike. University Pinball has donated the iPad, along with 10 vouchers for 100 tokens each at its Family Fun Center. The bike is being donated by Keswick Cycle. In addition to the grand prizes, many local merchants have donated prizes for drinks, dinners and services (see details here). Raffle tickets will be on sale at the Spruce Hill Community Association (SHCA) booth: $5 for six chances. There will be a special drawing on the day of the fair for the Schwinn bike, with a value of $470 – one chance for $5.

As always, the fair will offer up tasty food from selected vendor trucks, music from groups that play the Green Line, and lots of arts and crafts by West Philadelphia artisans. There will be a bounce tent and obstacle course ($5) for kids, along with free games and face painting.

Finally, the University City Garden Club will be holding its plant sale at the fair. Their booth will be located on the south side of Chester Avenue near 43rd street. NOTE: You can also shop for their plants on Friday, May 11 at 517 Woodland Terrace from 10am to dark.

If you have questions, please call the May Fair Committee at 215-349-7825 or visit www.sprucehillca.org.
 

A huge multi-home porch sale is being held this Saturday, May 12, on Melville and Locust Streets beginning at 9 a.m. Check out the flyer below for more details.