The West Philadelphia Cooperative School (4625 Baltimore Ave.) will be collecting donated items for victims of Hurricane Sandy after its open house tomorrow – from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Volunteers are specifically asking for clothing, linens and cleaning products, but all donations will be accepted. The donation drive begins after the school’s open house, which runs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Donated items will be distributed to shelters on Staten Island.

A young woman who died on Monday night in Brooklyn when a tree fell on her during Hurricane Sandy had West Philly connections.

Jessie Streich-Kest, 24, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2010 and spent many hours working with homeless families and tutoring neighborhood children. She was a member of Penn Haven, a campus group “dedicated to people suffering homelessness and economic injustice,” according to its website.

Streich-Kest, a Brooklyn native, was walking her dog with a friend, Jacob Vogelman, during the storm when a tree fell on them. Neighbors discovered the two several hours later, Ditmas Park Corner reported.

Friends and relatives have flocked to Ditmas Park Corner to post tributes to Streich-Kest and Vogelman, including Streich-Kest’s former classmates from Penn. Here’s what one of them wrote:

“Jessie Streich-Kest was an extraordinary person, and I am tremendously privileged to have been her friend. No one I have ever met has devoted more of her life to service, to social equity, and to her friends than Jessie. Whether it was tutoring students in West Philadelphia, working to help the homeless, or dropping everything to listen to your problems, Jessie always strove to leave a positive mark on the world.”

If you knew Jessie, feel free to leave a comment.

Ghosts, goblins and all sorts of ghoulish creatures were out in force last night. Luckily we were able to get a bunch of photos. Check out the costumes in the gallery below. There were some great ones, but we think the best may have been Gandalf the Grey and Gollum. We don’t have the precious, but we do have the pictures.

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Wow! We got some amazing pumpkins in this year’s Pumpkin Carving Contest. Now we need you to help us with the top prize. So below in the photo gallery are this year’s entries for the “Reader’s Choice” award. The voting is open through Friday, Nov. 2 at 6 p.m. and we will announce the results on Saturday.

Here’s how it works:

• Click on one of the photos in the gallery to enlarge it.

• Choose your favorite and vote in the poll under the gallery.

• You can only vote for one pumpkin and only one vote per person please.

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The poll is closed.

The new large, second-floor space at 4145 Chestnut Street already hosts Bikram Yoga and this week another fitness studio is opening there. Focus Fitness Studios, which is headquartered on the Main Line, is branching out to West Philly and inviting everyone to a Grand Opening of Barre Focus Fitness this Thursday (Nov. 1). The Grand Opening celebration includes a complimentary class beginning at 6 p.m. and all classes through Sunday, Nov. 4 are free!

“We are thrilled to be opening in this thriving West Philadelphia neighborhood,” said co-owner Amy Feeney. “We are looking forward to sharing the barre workout with the colleges in the area and the community as a whole. Our classes are designed to be challenging for all fitness levels and abilities, from the collegiate athlete to the beginner.”

Barre Focus Fitness is also committed to supporting local communities through such programs as donation-based classes, book clubs, and nutrition and health seminars.

The studio’s signature offering, the BFF class, combines the most effective bodyweight exercises into one 60 minute power-packed workout using a traditional ballet barre. Most classes at the studio are accompanied by custom tracks spun by a local DJ. The studio can accommodate up to 25 students, and the adjacent lounge offers a peaceful place to change and prepare for class. Barre Focus Fitness carries snacks and water and also jewelry, accessories, and fitness apparel by local designers.

For more information, visit Barre Focus Fitness online at www.barreuniversitycity.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/barreuniversitycity, and on Twitter at @BarreUniversityCity.

Get ready to show off your Halloween finest. The Annual Halloween Parade will take place in the Spruce Hill area as planned on Wednesday, Oct. 31, according to the Spruce Hill Community Association website.

Kids and parents are invited to assemble on 45th St. between Baltimore and Larchwood at 4 p.m. The parade begins at 4:30 as the crowd proceeds East on Larchwood to 43rd Street, North on 43rd to Osage, and then East to the 4200 block of Osage for treats and drinks.

To get you in the mood, check our video from last year’s parade here.