KYW named Billy Gambrell a local legend today on its website:

Legendary coach William Gambrell is an icon in the Frankford community, leading the Frankford Chargers football team of the Pop Warner League for over 44 years.  He is the first living African-American to have a recreation center named after him, and has been honored by the Philadelphia Eagles for his work in the community.

Read the rest of it here at KYW1060.com

I got an email today about Pennsylvania House bill 2291 capital budget.  A few items are included of interest to Frankford residents.

• Construction, infrastructure and other related costs for the expansion and renovation of the Aria Health Frankford Campus Emergency Room $4,800,000.
• Construction, infrastructure and other related costs for the Frankford Friends School expansion project $750,000.
• Construction, redevelopment, and other related costs for the Frankford Senior Living Facility $850,000.

Read the bill its fascinating as usual.

Aria Health is seeking community support for their project.  They have supplied templates for your use, should you wish to go on record with the Governor, Senator Mike Stack or Senator Tina Tartaglione as supporting the project.

On September 2nd at the Boys and Girls Club.

I was on vacation last week so I have two weeks worth of Frankford Links:

• 1211 Herbert Street gets listed for $195,000 [trulia]
• Holiday Thriftway gets 1 out of 5 stars [yelp]
• Violent crime down in the 15th district [NE Times]
• Housemate charged with murdering mother,son on Leiper St [nbc3]
• Fencing has been proposed to protect Overington Park’s trees [NE Times]
• Cop charged with theft from Pat’s Cafe [NE Times]
• Leandro Street Pizza House at Meadow St gets 3 out of 5 starts review [yelp]
• Kenny’s Soul Food gets a 5/5 star review, didn’t this place close down? [yelp]
• Frankford Civic approves request for DiCicco car sales to start washing em too [NE Times]
• 1204 Haworth St gets listed for $195,000 [trulia]
• Leandro’s Pizza at Sellers St gets a 5/5 review [yelp]
• Friends Hospital gets restored to Magellan Health Services network after it was able allay concerns of staffing levels [NE Times]
• Safe Routes Philly stopped by at John Marshall School to promote bicycling as a healthy, low-cost, and environmentally-friendly form of transportation and recreation

photo credit: serlingrod on flickr

Actually there are quite a few gardens growing in Frankford.  Some of the most interesting user comment we have seen has been related to those gardens.  So a few weeks ago when I was coming down Oxford Avenue and saw that group of folks tending to the lot on the corner of Oxford and Foulkrod naturally I had to stop and ask what was going on.  So emerged the story of Tom and Hazel Hummel and Al Houston.  I had heard a little bit of it before.

The old Bell Telephone building became vacant and in 1996 blew up in an interesting burst of flaming inferno.  It was subsequently demolished and a vacant lot remained.  After some time, Hazel and Tom got involved and rallied some other folks and with the help of  Janet Bernstein and the Horticultural Society planted a garden.  The garden was beautiful and turned an eyesore into a little place of beauty.

Some time went by and the people who had worked to maintain the garden were no longer able to do so and it fell into decline.  Along comes pastor Gabe from the little church on the block (By Grace Alone Frankford Fellowship) and well, why don’t we let them to the story.  Here it is below.