History in the Making

Activist scholar documents, and helps defend, West Philadelphia neighborhood

Patrick Grossi stands in front of the Philip B. Lindy House on Drexel University’s campus. Where he works to preserve history and increase political voice.
Patrick Grossi wields an unusual tool to help solve social problems: history.
The 33-year-old doctoral student of Temple University’s History program specializes in what

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Top of the Heap

Scott Blunk teaches Theresa Harter, a junior, how to work a loader at W.B. Saul High School in Roxborough. | Photos by Stephen Dyer
Compost expert and volunteer teacher makes educational programs possible for high school students
The compost pile at W.B. Saul High School in Roxborogh is about the size of a school bus—and that’s

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Lost and Found

When he’s not working with the Fairmount Civic Association, Sam Holloschutz picks up trash at the wooded area near his apartment. | Photo by Stephen Dyer
A popular TV show awakens an environmentalist in Fairmount
Sam Holloschutz credits an unlikely source of inspiration for his devotion to sustainability: the TV show Lost. “Just seeing how beautiful Hawaii

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Second Shift

Kathleen Harple says volunteering at Greensgrow gives her a break from the “craziness of life.” | Photo by Stephen Dyer
North Philadelphia nurse heals herself in the nursery
Three years ago, Kathleen Harple and her dog, Fenway, went for a walk around Kensington and discovered the bustling Greensgrow Farms. At first, she was just a customer,

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1 min read

Farmhand Handyman

Volunteer and grant writer brings many skills to East Kensington’s Emerald Street Urban Farm
Bryan Thompsonowak says volunteering at the Emerald Street Urban Farm has made him more invested in the neighborhood. | Photos by Jared Gruenwald
When Bryan Thompsonowak, 37, was young, his father, a bricklayer and “all-around handyman-type of a guy,” taught him to

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Lending a Hand

Library activist engages her community with an award-winning garden
Sheila Washington joined Friends of the Haddington Library after protesting to save it from closure in 2008. | Photo by Jared Gruenwald
On a typical Saturday morning, Sheila Washington can be found in the garden at the Haddington Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, watering flowers and

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Plugged In

Mark McGee organizes electronics recycling events several times a year. | Photo by Megan Matuzak
Mark McGee, Kensington's undisputed electronics recycling champion 
The average American throws away approximately 62 pounds of electronics a year, says Kensington resident Mark McGee, citing a WHYY podcast on electronics waste. “I don’t think people realize there is a lot of toxic

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1 min read

Engaging Personality

Bartram's Garden volunteer Mary Armstrong says the historic site has "something for everybody." | Photo by Dan Murphy
Mary Armstrong expands Bartram's Garden network
Longtime Bartram’s Garden volunteer Mary Armstrong says she especially loves engaging visitors from the Southwest Philadelphia neighborhoods that surround the garden. “I like the fact that you can get people who just

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Leader of the ‘Pack

Ambler organizer and activist amazes all
Susan Curry, one of the founders of Pennypack Farm, has devoted her life to environmental issues. | Photo by Cheryl Wilks
Susan Curry is known throughout the Philadelphia region as an environmental organizer, perhaps most notably as one of the founders of Pennypack Farm, the first organic CSA-centric farm in Montgomery

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