CLOSE UP by Brian Rudnick

Eating to Fight Hunger : Northwest's Empty Bowl Dinner

Featuring Mike McGrath, celebrity host, Thomas Uhas, Wharton Freshman interning with NWIHN and Frank Green.

From NWIHN literature "In every state in America, housing costs outpace wages. Approximately 2.3 to 3.5 million Americans experience homelessness at least once a year. 1 in34 children in Pennsylvania do not know where they will get their next meal. It is estimated that on any given night in Philadelphia as many as 1300 children stay in a shelter.... Please take a moment to sign the postcards at your table in support of stronger nutrition legislation."

From NPR site "Mike ..once again hosts [ Northwest Interfaith Hospitality Network's Empty Bowl Dinner at Chestnut Hill College] whose proceeds go to fund one of the best programs for homeless families in our area. For a small donation ($15 for adults; $5 for kids and students), you get to choose a bowl from a room full of wonderful ones (all handmade by local school children and artisans) and then fill it (or a disposable bowl if the 'real one' you picked is too cool to use) with all kinds of wonderful soups donated by area restaurants; as many different soups and as much of each as you want. (All you can eat bread and cookies too.) At the end of the evening you take home the bowl you picked out as a reminder of the empty bowls your donation helped fill"

From NWIHN's website:"Since our founding in 1991, Northwest Philadelphia Interfaith Hospitality Network (NPIHN) has moved 275 families—745 individuals— from homelessness to stability. We look forward to growing our network further as we expand to Northeast Philadelphia in 2011. The NPIHN program provides assessment and referrals, emergency housing, supportive service and transitional housing. Equipped with new skills and relationships, 92% of our families do not return to shelter programs after their NPIHN experience. We offer a safe and child-friendly alternative to more chaotic public shelter settings, allowing families to remain in tact. Because we are small, we accommodate in-tact couples, single father households, adolescent boys, as well as single women with children. We strongly emphasize taking a holistic approach to rebuilding from homelessness. We are proud that our guests call us "the shelter that's more like a home." Our hospitality network is comprised of 1,200 caring volunteers, 30 congregations, concerned citizens of the community, community businesses, and institutions, and we are growing! There is space in our network for you and your congregation or organization, in this richly rewarding service to your neighbors."

Friends, one blind, walk Chestnut Hill

I'VE SEEN YOU GENTLEMEN WALKING IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD FOR MANY YEARS. WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT'S YOUR ROUTINE?

JM: My name is John Manola.

WT: And I am William Talero. I met John forty years ago when I was teaching at the School for the Blind in Jersey City. He was a chaplain of a group of blind people who used to be foster grandparents to some of the blind youngsters. And then I met him again nine years ago when I went to a concert in Philadelphia. And we joined forces and we moved here to Chestnut Hill. And we try to walk as much as we can and live a healthy life.

ARE YOU VISUALLY IMPAIRED?

WT: I am totally blind. I lost my vision. I used to have partial vision but eight years ago I became totally blind because glaucoma took the last bit of sight that I had. So living with John has been very beneficial to me because he's and honest person and he happens to like to walk and I always enjoy walking. Before I was totally blind I used to walk all over- the Wissahickon and I did a little bit of the Appalachian Trail...You don't believe it but this gentleman next month is going to be ninety-three.

JM: I'm 92 now; I'll be 93 in December, yes.

I NOTICE YOU WEAR SHADES, ALSO.

JM: Yes, my eyes are sensitive to light, there's nothing wrong with my eyesight.

WT: He has very good sight

YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT USING YOUR OTHER SENSES.

WT: Well you know there is a great opportunity to use your other senses when you walk down on the avenue because the bakeries, the dry cleaning, the flower shop, and of course the sounds are certainly very much in evidence. I remember many years ago when they used to have the trolley. And it was always a kind of nice, quaint sound that you always related to Philadelphia. I kind of miss that 23 trolley, you know?

WHAT ABOUT THE COFFEE AND THE GARLIC?Yes, the coffee and all the garlic and all the wonderful smells of the various restaurants, not as many as there used to be.

WHAT RESTUARANTS DO YOU RECOGNIZE BY SMELL?
I definitely know when I’m getting close to the Japanese restaurant and the Chinese-French place, Cin-Cin, and on this side, of course, the Hotel. We like to go to Rollers. It’s very friendly and we always have a good meal there.

John Manola (left) and William Talero, along Germantown Avenue, Chestnut Hill.

Watch video here.

Going door to door for college financial aid

“My name is Anice Austin and I am a culinary arts student at Montgomery County Community college. I am going door to door to ask for a donation to help me pay for my tuition. I am trying to be a chef in Philadelphia and surrounding areas as best as I can. I have thirty-three credits toward my goal. I need thirty more. Here’s a letter from the KEYS Program validating that I am enrolled in the college. Here is my roster for the classes that are needed in this program. I am encouraged with culinary because I feel that during the recession period it’s hard for people to get by. So I figured if I pick a major that’s recession proof- food- it’s hard for people not to eat and survive.” AND HOW ARE YOU DOING WITH THE COLLECTIONS? “I’m doing pretty good. I’ve gotten so far a third of the way there. I have also tried the scholarship programs but being as I enrolled so late, I missed the deadline.” WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO COOK? “I like to cook everything. My favorite is Caribbean foods. So I’m good with the curried chickens and the oriental meals. I really like everything- baking, cooking, pastry chef. Those things cover a lot of territory. So for me, that’s my baby.” Anice Austin of Germantown, going door-to-door in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia. Watch video here.

Rain doesn't deter shopper pushing her own cart to Weavers Way Coop

I SPOTTED YOU AS A WEAVER WAY SHOPPER BECAUSE YOU HAVE YOUR SHOPPING CART AND BAGS ALREADY PREPARED.

“That’s right.”

IS THIS NEW FOR YOU? WERE YOU A CARUSO’S SHOPPER BEFORE? “Occasionally a Caruso’s shopper but now a regular Weavers Way shopper. I was a regular shopper at the farmers’ market but now I’m a member at Weavers Way. I like the organic foods they have there so that’s one reason I switched for most of my foods to Weavers Way."

AND HOW FAR DO YOU WALK WITH YOUR SHOPPING CART?
“About two and a half blocks”.

AND YOU’RE DECKED OUT WITH YOUR RAINGEAR TODAY. YOU’RE A TROOPER. “I look wonderful, don’t I?”

Mary Lau, on Germantown Avenue. Watch video interview here.

Alice McBee stirs sap by day and lights the stage at night

Alice McBee: “Sap’s coming from the maple trees” Bystander: “Does it get cold enough at night for a run?” McBee: “Oh, definitely. It’s going down below freezing every night.” Rudnick: SO, BY DAY A MAPLE SAP STIRRER? McBee: “And first grade teacher and graduate student, don’t forget!” AND AT NIGHT A THESPIAN! McBee: “That’s right, absolutely.…The show opened last night. It’s called “The Countess” and it’s at the Old Academy Theater and I play the Countess. It’s a true story about a Victorian love triangle between the lions of the art world in the 1850s.” CAN YOU DO A VERY SHORT MONOLOGUE? “Scotland is my home and the country, even in this weather, is delightful to me. I’m so happy to be able to dash into the woods, cross the trout streams without a bonnet or to walk across the moors to a mountain lake and watch a great flock of seagulls flying.” Alice McBee at the Andorra Natural Area Maple Syrup festival. Watch video interview here.

Zookeeping in the winter at the Elmwood Park Zoo

ARE YOU THE RAPTOR KEEPER? "No, actually, there’s usually four keepers on duty here at the zoo. And those four keepers could be in any one area. We split the entire area up into four so I’m area three today so I have the ferrets, these guys, the prairie dogs the elk, the bison, the peccaries, the rhea and then in the building next to the rhea there’s two parrots that live inside for the winter." AND WHAT’S IT LIKE BEING A KEEPR IN THE WINTER? "I like it because I’m not a summer person at all I’d rather wear ten layers of close and be warm than – in summertime you just can’t get cool. So I like it but if you ask my other keeper friends, they don’t like it." WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO? "In the wintertime, for all the exhibits, not everybody has automatic waters, so like today, that’s the water bowl from the red tailed hawk and vulture [showing frozen water disk] so you make sure they have water. Of course it’ll freeze again but at least they had it for a little bit. I cleaned up their dinner from last night, which was a rat, and the meatball, which was gone so the vulture ate all his meatball. There’s only a little bit left of the rat. The redtail hawk’s favorite part of the rat is the brain. Just as important as food and water, all the animals get enrichment and that is anything that you can put in their cage that will make them use their natural behaviors. So different food items that are different from their diet, scents like Old Spice or Aqua Velva, herbs and spices, puzzle feeders." YOU PUT THE SCENTS ON WHAT? "Depending on the animal, you can put it on their toys, put it on exhibit furniture. You can spray your shoes and walk around." AND HOW WILL THEY REACT? "For instance the wolves like to roll in certain scents just like your dog would if it found something cool in the backyard and wants to advertise or mask it’s own scent. The wolves also like to urinate on scents that they find, too.” Sierra Allen, animal keeper Elmwood Park Zoo, Norristown. Watch video here.

Free gluten free tastings coming to Poppy's Seed Bakery

WHEN DID YOU START CARRY THE GLUTEN-FREE PRODUCTS? “We originally started six months ago. We were starting to get inquiries from our customers and that’s what really led us into it... Amanda and I were down at the Appetite for Awareness at the Wachovia Center two weeks ago and that was the national celiac convention basically and we made some really great contacts….DO YOU DO ANY OF YOUR OWN BAKING? Nothing at all with the gluten-free. It’s such detailed and specific requirements and that’s one of the reasons it’s difficult to find real quality gluten free. A lot of the big bakeries aren’t involved in it at this point because everything has to be separate, all their equipment that’s being used. Like for me, I can’t buy a loaf of gluten free bread and bring it to my slicer and slice it. That automatically cross-contaminates it so that’s one of the reasons we have stayed out of trying to create it and just put lots of research into traveling all around to find the products that people are already doing a great job with. .. We’re going to begin to set up a time to advertise to our customers that we’re going to be doing some taste testing. ...Now we have some of our breads out taste-testing but I’d like to do it on a bigger scale.” Ron Loux with granddaughter Amanda Yoder and wife Bev, Poppy’s Seed Bakery, Chestnut Hill Farmer’s Market. Click here to see video interview.

Girls Sell Lemonade + Crafts to Benefit SPCA

YOU HAVE A LEMONADE STAND AND A CRAFT SALE? Eloise: And we also sell zucchini bread  Eliza: And one zucchini brownie but we want the rest. HOW'S BUSINESS BEEN? Eloise: It's been pretty good. Eliza: We're going to give some to charity. We're going to give some money to the SPCA. Eloise Kadlecek, left, with Eliza Dennis. See video interview here.

THOMAS WALSH WITH AL DANA MENUS

 
See Video Interview Here
“I’m working for Al Dana and I am delivering these menus to every house and hope they’ll come over at ours to enjoy lunch or dinner.” Thomas Walsh, distributing menus for Al Dana.