Author: Gil

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Thank You

I was just reviewing our Amazon book sales page and saw 5 books sold so far in September.  That was a lot of books but what surprised me was that they were all to one person.

3 were the “Heroes of Frankford High School” and 1 each of “Frankford Stories” and “Frankford Heroes“.

The “Heroes of Frankford High School” has been very popular this year.  It attempts to include all students (over 200 men and 1 woman) who attended Frankford High and later gave their life in service to their country.

Frankford Heroes is the story of the Frankford residents who gave their lives in service from the Civil war to the present time.  Frankford Stories is a good read about life in Frankford.  Its lots of nostalgia.

These books all came out of my experience of writing the Frankford Gazette for 13 years. I met Leon Brantley and he introduced me to Ned Johnson and they wanted some recognition for Frankford veterans.  Since I’m a veteran myself, I agreed and we started a monthly feature for the veteran of the month.

Doing all those stories, it reminded me that veterans are the ones who came home.  That was when I started to look for the stories of those who did not return. Every veteran remembers the day that he left home for basic training after taking the oath, not knowing what lay ahead.

Every Veterans Day we take pride in our service but think back to the sacrifice of those who did not return.  It could have been any one of us.

Veterans day is November 11th.

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A Wonderful Time

A WONDERFUL TIME

Somewhere in this universe the sun will rise.
Somewhere in this universe a brand-new baby will cry.
Somewhere in this universe birds will take to the sky.
That’s the day you become aware, and you’ll see flowers blooming everywhere.
Then you turn around and see honeybees and butterflies bouncing from leaf to leaf.
Then comes that summer breeze, whistling from behind the trees.
As you stand with backpack in hand – then spin around and take in all that you can see.
Then you say to yourself, “What a Wonderful time to be alive”.
So come with me, and take one step, and you will see all that you can see,
And you will say to yourself, “What a Wonderful time to be alive”, and see all that you can see.

BY LENNY JAYNES

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My Magical Garden

MY MAGICAL GARDEN

In My Magical Garden, what you will see? Flying elephants and smoking chimpanzees.
In my Magical Garden what you will see? Crocodiles climbing coconut trees.
In my Magical Garden what you will see? Lions and tigers shooting the breeze.
In my Magical Garden what you will see? Gumdrops and lollipops growing on trees.
In my Magical Garden all you would need is a big imagination fit for a king or a queen.
And then you will see kangaroos flying in hot air balloons, trying to make it to the Moon.
In my Magical Garden this is what you will eat, hot butter popcorn and jellybeans, and gumdrops from the Gumdrop tree.
Cuz all you need is a big Imagination, and you can be – whatever you want to be.
In my Magical Garden, just you and me. With an imagination big enough for a king or queen.

By
Lenny Jaynes

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Frankford High Jr. ROTC Color Guard

For the first time in over 6 years, Bridesburg Lawton Post No 2 Veterans of Foreign Wars of the USA hosted an American Flag Retirement/Destruction Ceremony on July 8th at the post headquarters at 4638 Richmond Street in Bridesburg.

Supported by the Boy Scouts of Troop 120 who performed the actual retirement ceremony and destruction of the American flags by burning, the post provided the emcee, rifle team, bugler and logistical support (refreshments and pizza) for the event, which was held in 90 degree temperatures and 70% humidity.

Add the heat of the fire and it was an intensely hot time. The scouts destroyed several hundred American and service flags of all shapes and sizes.

The Frankford High School JROTC provided a color guard for the event.

Joe Fraioli

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Development at the Frankford Transportation Center

There has been talk about development in the area of the Frankford Transportation Center for years.  You can see all the projects that follow the El from center city up to Tioga and then it slows down.  This project is long overdue and with luck it will get done.

There is a meeting on July 13th at Second Baptist where you can hear the details of the plan.  Some information that I have gleaned from the internet follows.

This project is strategically located across Frankford Avenue from SEPTA’s Frankford Transportation Center (FTC) and is a transit oriented development (TOD) project which will consist of a mixed-use development, anchored by a supermarket, City of Philadelphia health center, additional retail, as well as both affordable and market rate rental housing. This project will have a significantly positive impact on the surrounding area and will also catalyze further development along Frankford Avenue.

The site includes the following parcels:

• 5129-35 Frankford Ave – 73,090 sq ft

• 5119 Frankford Ave – 13,724 sq ft

• 5113-17 Frankford Ave & 5102 Darrah Street- 19,202 sq ft

• 5127 Griscom Street – approx. 20,000

• 1522 Pratt Street – 65,808 sq ft

A. Site Description and Location

One of Frankford’s greatest assets is the combination of its proximity to Center City and its high level of transit connectivity, allowing it to serve as the gateway from Northeast Philadelphia to Center City. Frankford sits between I-95 and Roosevelt Boulevard and is served by several SEPTA bus and trackless trolley routes, the Market-Frankford Line, and Regional Rail.

SEPTA’s Frankford Station is the second busiest transit center in Philadelphia, serving an average of 41,000 customers daily. Combined with Frankford’s inexpensive real estate and vacant land, transit nodes such as FTC present an excellent opportunity to develop a new retail anchor that will attract foot traffic to the corridor and create quality, affordable, transit-oriented housing for the city’s workforce.

This project is consistent with the goals and recommendations in the City’s Philadelphia 2035 Comprehensive Plan and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission that both call for high impact transit-oriented development that would increase housing and commercial development around the transit stations and the specific recommendation to develop a health and wellness center adjacent to the Frankford Transportation Center.