CLOSE UP Video Interviews

To save a rusted but sturdy pony driving cart from the dumpster, your correspondent and his spouse attached it to the back of our car and towed it home. A driving cart is meant for a leisure ride for two people drawn by a horse or pony. The retail value of a new one is upwards of $500. Luckily we were able to find it a new home. Lezlie Hiner is the founder of the acclaimed Work to Ride organization based at Chamonix Equestrian Center in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park. Work to Ride is an award winning horsemanship and polo program for urban youth. As long as they commit to the hard work of tending to the horses and doing stable chores such as mucking out stalls the kids can ride. Hiner plans to teach one of the program’s 33 horses how to drive the cart (after studying up herself) and doesn’t expect it to be too hard. She thinks it will be fun for the kids to take the cart out in Fairmount Park, once they get a seat attached, perhaps out along Kelly or West River Drive. She anticipates that all the kids will want a chance. Many years ago Hiner had a horse out at an old hog farm in Lafayette Hill, PA when polo-playing friends introduced her to the sport. The rest is history. After we loaded the cart into the bed of her pick-up truck, she tied it to the car’s frame with a slip knot, used in tethering horses. For your correspondent’s edification, she demonstrated it twice. “Got that?” At the time of publication, Work to Ride had posted a short video of the kids enjoying the cart- being pulled through the barn by one of them pedaling a bicycle! Watch interview here with founder of urban youth equestrian program about the pony cart.

Two separate rallies, one for Black Lives Matter and the other for Back the Blue both kicked off at 10:30 am on October 10, 2020 in Springfield Township, Montgomery County Pennsylvania in two nearby township parks. Was it coincidental??? Watch short video of rallies here.  An unscientific poll of 99  respondents on the NextDoor app indicates that people who support both causes are in a distinct minority, about 27%. It also indicates 76% support Black Lives Matter and  47% Back the Blue. Caveat: there is always the question of what people are thinking who are neither participating in such a poll or even on the social media platform where the poll was conducted. It's also worth noting that people may support the causes espoused without ascribing to a provocative movement or slogan.

As a member of the minority who espouse both causes, your correspondent attended only part of each rally so the material here is certainly not comprehensive and due to personal history, not necessarily well balanced. Photos of both rallies here.

At the Back the Blue Rally in Cisco Park, your correspondent heard 37 year veteran, Michael E. Pitkow, Chief of Police, thank the community for their support and the dedication of his officers. He spoke of a survey being conducted [the outgrowth of community meetings] among community residents soliciting their input about what they want from their police department. He remarked about the challenging times ensuing after the onset of the corona-virus pandemic and the "death of Mr. George Floyd" but noted Springfield Township hadn't experienced the civil unrest occurring in many other places around the nation.

Michele Chesaitis, an active member of the Friends of the Springfield Township Police is concerned when people make negative generalizations about the police. She comes from a police and fire department family and is proud of her family’s service. She considers the close knit community of law enforcement as part of her family, too. When asked whether the Black Lives Matter protesters had any legitimate issues she answered "There are legitimate and valuable issues for every walk of life," and as to what whether police could do better, "that we stop lumping police into groups.” When introduced she began her public remarks by asking everyone to join her in a prayer for the police, "In the name of the father, the son and the holy spirit...."

Watch video interview here.

At the Unity and Diversity rally to honor Breonna Taylor, clumps of young adults, families and older adults were spaced far apart in Mermaid Park listening to the speakers. Montgomery County Commissioner Ken Lawrence contrasted the actions of Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend who fired out from inside their home, defending their home with the act of a white vigilante who traveled from his home and killed protesters “There’s a hypocrisy. That’s why Black Lives Matter. Because when it happens to us it’s always something that we did wrong to end up dead.” He highlighted a recent incident in Upper Gwynedd Township in which police successfully de-escalated a situation and no one died; they were able to disarm a man who had fired a shotgun at them. “It absolutely can be done.”  Napoleon Nelson, who is running for representative in the 184th district of the Pennsylvania State House, encompassing Springfield Township spoke next. He had visited the police rally, too, and a photo of him there appears in the photo album above. Your correspondent regrets an opening didn't present itself to interview him, being apparently only one of three African-American adults present at the police rally. The African American Republican congressional candidate Kathy Barnette was similarly engaged with others and Barnette's  mother declined to be interviewed. The below is only an excerpt of Nelson's remarks. Readers are encouraged to listen to the fuller versions of both Lawrence and Nelson here.

"Before I got here I was over on the other side of the Township at a Back the Blue rally. And I do, I support police. I think there’s an important role for law enforcement in our community. But this day, this time, is not about backing the blue.

Nicoline Evans is a prolific writer of fantasy, the future and paranormal happenings. Her audience ranges from children to teens and adults. She began writing in 2009 and has published since 2014. At the September 2020 Artists of Yardley outdoor art exhibit, she had a booth with many of her photos and books on display. By way of example, she showed off “Hall of Mosses,” one of a young adult trilogy about a woman who hears the trees talking to her and so believes she is losing her mind. But when supernatural things start happening, Evans continues, the woman realizes that she may not be as crazy as she thought. Being an avid hiker has gotten Evans more in touch with nature. “In the end, nature has true power. We are just visitors here so we should treat [nature] with respect.” Through the fantasy genre, the author deals with a number of topical themes such as bullying, forgiveness, tolerance. Watch video interview of prolific young author of fantasy literature here.

The "Two Fish.Five Loaves" ministry of the New Covenant Church of Philadelphia gives out free food to the neighborhood and beyond. Many volunteers help with the distribution of nearly 1000 free boxes of food each week. During these pandemic times, demand is growing according to Minister Sandra. (Volunteers are welcome to sign up for either packing or distribution tasks at https://nccop.church/2fish5loaves  ) People arrive in cars, on foot and on the bus to pick up food, no questions asked. The food is provided by Common Market, a non-profit food distributor sourcing product from sustainable local farms and Caring for [Friends], also a non-profit organization. This past Saturday, boxes were brimming with fresh peaches and blueberries. Separate packages contained dry goods and meat. For the recipient, the different food items are considered one box. "Two fish, five loaves" references a Bible story in which two fish and five loaves were brought to Jesus; with it, he fed thousands with food left over. Minister Sandra says the ministry is following out Jesus' instruction to Peter to "Feed my sheep." "That's what we are doing every Saturday, feeding his sheep." Watch video interview here.

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Calvary Church of Wyncote Associate Pastor Tom Tweedle and some church youth were on the front lawn of a home in East Mount Airy making a video. The finished video will encourage teens to get active in the church's youth group which is restarting in September. As one young woman pointed a hose in the air to create a gentle arc of rain over the pastor's head, another took a video of him talking into the camera. "Baby Come Back" the 1978 song by Player played aloud in the background.  Expect to see the video on the Church's website calvarywyncote.com/youth/and perhaps, also, on TikTok. Watch video Watch video here

As your correspondent was taking a break from some landscaping work at the Weavers Way Farm located at W.B. Saul Agricultural high school, Gail Koskela, a large animal science teacher at the school,l asked if I wanted to see a newborn baby ewe that had seen first light just 10 minutes ago! This was the fifth lamb born this season and Koskela said they were looking for pie-themed names for the baby since the first two lambs were born on March 14th (3/14 as in 3.14, an approximation of the constant Pi) Accordingly those two were named "Pi" and "R squared." The next two lambs were christened she "Chocolate Mousse" and "Lemon Meringue." Koskela says she may have assisted the ewe sooner than she needed to but this first time mother had been pushing for a little while and Koskela didn’t want her to be become exhausted. So as the baby's legs and head began to emerge, she held on with a little tension so the mom could push it out completely. Very shortly after birth, the baby got up on its legs. The mother started licking her clean and the two were baa-baa-ing back-and-forth as seen in the video. The breed of sheep raised at the farm is selected for their confirmation and meat traits not for their wool which, in this breed, grows very slowly. Classes in the fall typically are in charge of breeding season and the spring classes learn about lambing hands-on. But because of the COVID-19 quarantine, only a few Saul students have been physically able to work with the animals. Koskela gave a little plug for the school's 24-7 "Ewe Tube" channel where everyone can follow the sheep in action, such as it is, in the spacious new blue barn. See newborn lamb and mom and video interview here.

Janae Davis, an apprentice at Ace Shoe Repair shop in Mount Airy was outside the store on a fine summer day cleaning boots and shoes sitting at a low wall which served as her work table. Asked about her favorite job she answered unhesitatingly it was dyeing a pair of shoes dark brown. It involved cleaning the shoes first, stripping the original color, then applying dye, which sometimes requires several layers to get the perfect effect, she added. Davis would love to learn how to fix heels. Of Ace Shoe Repair she glowed. "They do a lot of great work." Watch video of shoe repair apprentice cleaning boots, talking about her aspirations.
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Under the auspices of Turn PA Blue and Indivisible Philadelphia Northwest, Ann Mintz distributed packets of postcards to 20 some neighbors at the High Point Coffee Shop in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia this Wednesday. Seated around tables, each week the group hand writes postcards to voters in the surrounding counties urging them to support Democratic Party candidates in November elections. Boosting Jennifer O’Mara, Democratic candidate for state representative in Pennsylvania’s 165th district in Delaware County was the focus of this week’s efforts. Mintz cited research showing individualized postcards can boost voter turnout up to 3% which can make a difference in close elections. In a recent instance, a Democrat won a legislative seat by a mere 76 votes. Named for an aunt who was murdered in the Holocaust, Mintz relates that the administration’s immigration policies are very personal to her - handcuffing of 4 year old immigrant children, separating them from their parents. She also deplored the administration’s attacks on the LGBT community, tax cuts for the wealthy and the rollback of environmental protections. “I want my country back” Mintz intones. She notes that a health reporter from the Washington Post is visiting an upcoming postcard writing session with an interest in writing about how political activism is helping people cope in these times. Watch video interview of activist organizing voters to write postcards for Democratic Party Candidates in 2018 Pennsylvania midterm elections.

Photo: Sue Wells of Wyndmoor (left) and Charlotte Law of Manayunk (right) were among nearly 20 people gathered at the High Point Café in Mount Airy writing postcards in support of Democratic Party candidates in neighboring counties running for the Pennsylvania state legislature. In the center is Andrea Koplove, Director of Outreach for Turn PA Blue which is also spearheading canvassing and phone banking events throughout the weeks leading up to the November midterm elections.

November 6  Election Day Update: Southeastern PA turns blue!

Update form Andrea Koplove of Turn PA Blue

"Hello Red to Blue,

Before the news cycle moves too far ahead, I want to thank you for the indefatigable, unbelievable, and never-ending support of each and every one of you who gave your time and energies and resources to organizing, canvassing, hosting, fundraising, postcarding, and phonebanking for the entire slate of candidates running up and down the PA ticket! Here's some of what we did over the past few months:

• We volunteered for over 560 canvassing shifts, knocking more than 17,000 doors in five counties.

• We met for twenty-one Wednesdays at High Point and wrote more than 24,000 postcards to voters.

• We participated in nine phone banking parties and made nearly 5,000 calls.

• We greeted countless voters at the polls and helped ensure that our candidates had coverage at every single polling location in their districts throughout Election Day.

Our work made a huge difference!

Please take a moment to savor these election results:

PA HOUSE

We netted an amazing eleven seats, with fourteen flipped seats in Southeastern PA (SEPA)! Among those for whom your hard work paid off are many familiar names: Liz Hanbidge, Joe Ciresi, Joe Webster, Steve Malagari, Melissa Shusterman, Wendy Ullman, Danielle Friel Otten, Dave Delloso, Mike Zabel, and Jenn O’Mara. As if you need more proof that every vote counts, O’Mara won by just 163 votes!

PA SENATE

We broke the Republican super-majority and picked up at least five seats. Among the victories were four candidates whom we supported in SEPA: Katie Muth, Maria Collett, Tim Kearney, and Steve Santarsiero. Tina Davis’s race is still too close to call, with Davis trailing by a mere 100 votes.

Just remember, these are seats that have been gerrymandered to prevent us from winning, which makes these results all the more staggering. Way to go!

US HOUSE

Finally, SEPA contributed 4 US Congressional flips that were central to winning the House majority (currently at 28 seats and counting) for the Democrats!

With pickups including SEPA’s Mary Gay Scanlon, Madeleine Dean, Susan Wild, and Chrissy Houlahan, Democrats can now provide a direly needed counterbalance to the destructive policies of Trump’s GOP.

What's next? That's easy: MORE WORK AND MORE RACES TO BE WON!

More on that in the coming weeks..."

When Philadelphia Inquirer syndicated columnist Trudy Rubin called on a young man to pose his question after her talk, "7 years, 4 months and counting: the Syrian Civil War" at the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Philadelphia on Saturday evening, she addressed him by name. In an interview afterward, M. Eisa, a Syrian refugee, who had been living with church Reverend Jarrett Kerbel, echoed what Rubin had concluded- that the presence of foreign forces from Russian, Turkey and Iran fighting in pursuit of their individual agendas bode very poorly for the civilian population remaining after millions of Syrians have fled. As Rubin put it, they are fighting over Syria's dying body. Rubin believes the United States missed an opportunity to militarily back non-Islamist rebel forces many years ago and a United Nations powerless against Russia's security council veto, has sealed Syria's fate. M Issai says he tempted fate in 2013 when he stayed amidst regular bombing by the Russian supported Assad regime of his Homs neighborhood in order to finish 9th grade exams. He then fled with his mother to Turkey via Lebanon, received a scholarship to attend Friends Select High School in Philadelphia in 2016 and now is bound for Bard College in upstate New York where he intends to study philosophy. Of friends and family, he has lost a lot. "I don't think there's a single household in Syria that hasn't suffered losses." Grandparents and aunts who remain are facing economic hardship and food shortages. Watch video interview of young Syrian refugee describing escaping bombings by his own government and taking refuge in Turkey and U.S. and the plight of his remaining countrymen and women and kin.
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Chloe Wang fell in love with the lower Schuylkill River after she put in the river down by Bartram’s Gardens. The boat was an English style flat-bottomed canal "punt" that she and other Haverford College students had just built earlier in the day during a breakneck 6-hour workshop led by the Brooklyn based activist artist boat-building collaborative, Mare Liberum, www.thefreeseas.org That was 2015. Now she works for Bartram’s Gardens in its community boathouse program. The initiative allows people to take out kayaks and rowboats on the river for free on Saturdays from April to October. Just this year the “punt” was pulled from storage and dusted off. Wang was invited by Mare Liberum to help paint a mural on the bottom depicting the river’s tides and the non-humans that inhabit the river environment for a new exhibit on the Hudson and Schuylkill rivers at the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education. Painted on one side is a black silhouette of downtown Philadelphia, on the other the silhouette of the South Philadelphia oil refineries: both border the river. Your correspondent engaged Wang in the art gallery some minutes before the Center’s annual Richard James lecture, honoring its founder, which this year featured experts discussing “Water: Peril and Promise.” Watch video interview of college student who built then navigated canal boat,then painted mural on bottom for nature center gallery exhibit on rivers.