Reader Margie is looking for this young semi-feral cat. Here’s what she writes in an email:

“This young male cat is semi-feral (not quite sure about humans and is not affectionate, but not totally afraid). He had been living in Queens Village, and accidentally escaped in West Philly after he was neutered (it’s a long story).

He is ear-tipped and can be quite vocal. He had a regular feeder in Queens Village, so maybe he found one here in West Philly? He was last seen around 46th and Hazel a few weeks ago. He could be anywhere now.”

If you’ve seen this cat, please email Margie at: m.politzer@verizon.net

Great news for West Philly’s Tool Library and Neighborhood Bike Works – both organizations received enough votes from the Facebook community to be awarded $25,000 grants as part of State Farm Insurance’s nationwide “Cause An Effect” grant program. Causes were submitted by individuals via Facebook to help build safer, stronger, and better educated communities (over 3,000 causes were submitted!). 40 out of 100 finalists received the grants based on the highest number of votes. See all the winners here.

“Earn-a-Bike Education” cause will allow Neighborhood Bike Works to offer five 8-week after-school Earn-a-Bike classes, providing a total of 60 youth with free, enriching programming. Youths involved will be introduced to safe urban riding, health and nutrition.

After learning of their win, West Philly Tool Library’s Michael Froehlich said that “this could be a real game changer for the Tool Library. Thanks to State Farm Insurance and the hundreds of people that voted for us, we now have $25,000 to spend on new tools and programming. We’re incredibly thankful to everyone for their support. We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again: West Philly is the Best Philly.”

Thank you to everyone who voted and helped these two amazing local programs win the grant.

Police are seeking residents’ help getting those pesky – and often dangerous – dirt bikes and ATVs off the streets.

Most of these things are illegal and they become more pervasive in the summer months, prompting concern across the city, including residents of West Philadelphia. Police are asking that if you see one on the street to call 911.

Here are a few other things to know when reporting an illegal use of these vehicles:

“Be prepared to provide a description of the vehicle and its operator,” according to Philly Police Blog. “Understand that these bikes and ATVs are moving vehicles and are often not in the area when an officer responds. Officers are trained to evaluate the danger that stopping these vehicles will pose to the public before attempting to pull it over. Also, it is important that citizens make every attempt to stay out of the way of these violators to avoid a potentially dangerous situation.”

You can also help the police if you can provide information about who has this vehicle, where it is stored, or if it is stolen. You can submit this information as a tip. You can send your tip as a text message to short code PPDTIP, email it to tips@PhillyPolice.com, or call 215-686-TIPS(8477).

Goldie, one of the Project MEOW cats, is missing near 45th-46th and Spruce Streets. Goldie was living with a foster mom when he escaped.

This information was posted on Project MEOW’s Facebook page:

“Apparently Goldie got out a second floor window. He is a medium-sized cat, buff color and very sweet. If you think you see Goldie, please put out a small plate of food for him and contact us at Projectmeow@gmail.com“.

Cedar Park Jazz Series, a long-standing fixture on summer Friday nights in the area, returns this week. Filled with melody and positive vibes, this event is a summer highlight for many members of the Cedar Park community.

Unfortunately, for the past two years, funds have been insufficient to allow the Series to cover the entire summer, leaving many neighbors disappointed. Cedar Park Neighbors is raising funds to support the Series this year. Please consider making a contribution here.

The Series kicks off this Friday, May 25, with a concert by Dr. Ketchup. See the flyer below for more information on Cedar Park Jazz Fridays.

 
We’ve seen more and more of these little calls for an art-free world popping up around the neighborhood for a while. We have noticed retorts on a lot of them. Have you seen any?