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15th District PSA1 Meeting

This month’s Philadelphia Police 15th District PSA1 Community meeting with Lieutenant Becker will be held at our parish Thursday evening – December 8 – at 7pm.

We will discuss your quality of life concerns, safety issues, and share resources and upcoming events in our community.
Your input and feedback is needed to make a difference!
We multiply our impact when more people are engaged and involved. Please invite your block captains, friends, and neighbors to attend with you! All who live, work, worship, and volunteer in Frankford, Northwood, Bridesburg, Wissinoming, and all neighborhoods that form part of PSA1 are warmly welcomed.

Enter Parking lot from 4400 block of GRISCOM (no vehicle entry from Frankford Ave)
Proceed on foot to Frankford Ave
Enter Meeting hall by way of courtyard gate adjacent to Frankford Hardware
Light refreshments will be served
Children welcome; bring a friend or neighbor too!

If you are unable to attend but would like me to raise an issue on your behalf or share your upcoming event, just let me know. Likewise, if you have a flyer for an event or resource and need copies printed for distribution at the meeting, feel free to send my way via email by 2pm Wednesday.

In peace,

Cristina Mancini
Senior Warden

St. Mark’s Church, Frankford
Phone: 215-535-0635 Mobile: 267-614-0345
4442 Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19124
Facebook.com/StMarksChurchFrankford

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Thank You For Your Support!

Pat Smiley and I thank you for your support of our Memorial Day fundraiser and efforts to promote his and Richard Johnson’s book, “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition”! If you’ve been busy or just didn’t quite get to ordering their book, you can still do so and we will still honor our pledge of 20% of book sales to be split between St. Mark’s Church and the Catholic Daughters’ Matthew 25 Food Cupboard. You will still get the ebook edition, too, for free. This effort will officially end on Friday, June 5. Here’s the link for you to use – https://frankfordgazette.com/books-for-sale/

We have mailed the books to those who ordered and have mailed the donations to St. Mark’s Church and Court St. Francis de Sales #2617 CDA. Every little bit helps!!!

For all of you who have purchased the book since it was available last fall, please check your email as Bob Smiley has emailed you a link to the ebook. Please check your email and let us know if you did not receive one and had purchased a book. We do our utmost to insure our records are accurate but… We hope you enjoy this ebook version, too. If you would like to share your comments about the book and allow us to use them as testimonials, please email gil@frankfordgazette.com

We would appreciate hearing what you think of the book!! Thank you again for your purchase and we look forward to sharing more publications with you that pique your interest. Stay well!

 

 

 

 

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Our “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” Honor Roll!

This Memorial Day, May 25, 2020, we wanted to let the “Frankford Heroes” tell you their stories themselves. It’s true that Bob put their stories into the 2nd Edition of his and Richard Johnson’s book, but he is simply retelling the stories of the lives they lived and the sacrifices they have made so that they are always remembered!

At the end of this post, there is a a list of all those who are featured in this latest edition of “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition”. And here are some of their stories. Remember, through Tuesday evening, May 26, if you purchase a copy of Bob and Richard’s book ($14.95) through our website, we will donate 20% of the list price to be shared between St. Mark’s Church in Frankford and the CDA Court St. Francis De Sales #2617 Matthew 25 Food Cupboard at St. Mark’s. Also, by buying this print edition, we will give you the ebook free. The ebook has additional information and links and has just been finished. Nothing is ever as easy as it may seem. (So, if you bought the book previously, we will be emailing you the pdf asap. Thank you for your patience.) We accept PayPal, Credit or Debit Cards or you can mail us a check. You’ll find all the details at this link:    https://frankfordgazette.com/books-for-sale/

“Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” contains the stories of almost 190 Veterans from Frankford. Frankford was a small town before it incorporated with Philadelphia and patriotism and a sense of history continue to be a large part of our traditions. 147 of these stories are those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and for our freedom. The rest of the stories are those who served proudly and most, if not all, still call Frankford their home. To all our Veterans, past and present, thank you! We thank also, all the men and women of our Armed Forces currently serving so proudly and in unexpected ways. Many have been a real support to areas of the country struggling with coronavirus. We salute you and ask God to bless you abundantly!!

I chose a story from Bob’s book that I wanted to share with you. The first is about a young man named Stephen Blanchett. “Stephen Paul Blanchett was born on October 20, 1947 and lived on Foulkrod Street in Frankford.  He enlisted in the Army early in 1965 and served as a corpsman. He was awarded the Silver Star posthumously: ‘He distinguished himself by exceptional valor while serving as Medical Specialist for his unit when it came under heavy small arms fire in rice paddies northwest of Dong Tam, Vietnam, on March 7, 1967. As the unit was maneuvering slowly through several rice paddies, they came under enemy sniper fire. Immediately, one of the unit’s leaders was hit and severely wounded. Private Blanchett, 350 meters to the rear, was notified, and began racing through the paddies in order to reach the wounded man. When he had come to within 50 meters of the casualty, he was urged by fellow comrades to go no further, due to the increasing amount of hostile fire. He courageously disregarded the warning and with fire all about him, ran to the side of the wounded man. He then pulled the wounded man behind the safety of a dike separating two paddies and administered vitally needed first aid. This courageous act was one of many times he unhesitatingly risked his life in behalf of his fellow soldiers.’” Paul was 19 years old – 19!!! There have been so many just like him – good men of valor, courage and a strong sense of duty and caring for their fellow man!

“Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” – Let’s take a look and see if you are familiar with any of the names! These are our honored Veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives for our freedoms during the following wars! There are two pages of names and there are two arrows at the bottom of the document to let you move between the pages. Remember our special offer ends Tuesday evening, May 26 at 11:59 PM!

FH Alphabetical LIsting

 

 

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Honoring the Original Front Line Helpers – Members of Our Armed Forces!

This Memorial Day Weekend, we want to remember those who have served our country as well as all of us! We are proud of our “Frankford Heroes” who demonstrated time and again their dedication through the years.
 
Bob Smiley, the Editor of The Frankford Gazette, has continued to compile their stories and update their stories. Bob’s book, along with co-author, Richard W. Johnson, tells the story of 190 brave souls willing to risk all for their country and 147 of them did give their lives.
 

Through Tuesday evening, May 26, if you purchase a copy of Bob and Richard’s book ($14.95) through our website, we will donate 20% of the list price to be shared between St. Mark’s Church in Frankford and the CDA Court St. Francis De Sales #2617 Matthew 25 Food Cupboard at St. Mark’s. Here’s the link – we accept PayPal, Credit or Debit Cards or you can mail us a check. Also, Bob has just finished the ebook version of “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” which contains even more information and links. https://frankfordgazette.com/books-for-sale/

Here is an interview done with Bob today where he explains how his passion to tell our local Veterans’ stories continues to motivate his efforts. For more information, please contact gil@frankfordgazette.com
 
Thank you! Have a safe holiday! Let’s Remember and Honor Our Vets – past and present!
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Frankford CDC Gets Funding for Paul Street

State Senator Christine Tartaglione visited the headquarters of the Frankford Community Development Corporation (CDC) on January 14th to deliver a $54,610 state grant that will help the CDC to stabilize and rehabilitate a fire-damaged mixed-use property in the heart of the local commercial district.

“The CDC has made great strides in recent years to revitalize the Frankford Avenue corridor, remove blight, and promote the growth of new businesses. This public investment will enable the CDC to continue its work, which has had a tremendous positive impact throughout the community,” Senator Tartaglione said.

The grant was awarded through the Department of Community and Economic Development’s Local Share Account program, which reallocates a portion of the funds generated by casinos that operate slot machines within Philadelphia.

“The Local Share Account grant will allow the Frankford CDC to stabilize what is now a hazardous and blighted site at 4663 Paul Street,” said Kimberly Washington, Esq., executive director of the Frankford CDC. “This vacant property is the last remaining site on the block in need of improvements, making it vital to the Frankford CDC’s goals to revitalize Frankford Avenue as set out in its Reimagining Margaret-Orthodox initiative.”

4663 Paul Street shown before the fire

On October 26, 2018, flames ravaged the three-story storefront, which is just two doors from the Frankford CDC office and less than a block from SEPTA’s bustling Market-Frankford El. The multi-alarm blaze largely gutted the property, which was being used as an unlicensed boarding house. It burned for several hours and spread to a neighboring building, causing severe damage to the second and third floors of both structures.

Frankford CDC bought the property last fall and will use the new grant funding for the first phase of its rehabilitation, including cleanout, demolition, framing, roof replacement, and floor stabilization. These measures will address any immediate safety issues and prevent structural damage to neighboring buildings.

The non-profit CDC will seek to raise additional funding to complete final renovations that will include commercial space on the ground floor, as well as four affordable housing units on the second and third floors.