Category: Features

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“Frankford Heroes” Were Remembered At The Historical Society of Frankford’s November Meeting!

Bob Smiley, Editor, “The Frankford Gazette”, and Richard Johnson just released their second book which contains the stories of local brave men and women in the service of their country. Each November, our hearts and minds remember all those who so selflessly gave their time and sometimes even their lives in the service of their country. Every one of them deserves our thanks and appreciation for their willingness to die, if necessary, to preserve our freedoms. “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” is a tribute to them and tells their stories so that they and their sacrifices live on!

Taking us from a small 17th Century village in Philadelphia county to a 21st Century neighborhood in the city of Philadelphia, PA, Frankford has a long history of proud military service. This new edition has 142 brave men who would not return from war. In addition to their stories, those men and women who have been profiled in the Frankford Gazette as “Veteran of the Month” are also included. These were the lucky ones who made it back home yet still bore the scars, and in some cases, disabilities that killing causes.

In the early years, records are scarce, but it is known that a Frankford resident, General Isaac Worrell (a Frankford street bears his name) served in the Revolutionary War. We have the names of a few hundred men who served in the War of 1812 and it was said that Frankford sent more men to the Civil War than any other town of its size. Think about that for a moment. We also have the first documentation of deaths in service available from newspaper reports in the 1860s. Our local patriots continued their service through WWI, WWII, Korea and the Vietnam War. Service continues today with our young men and women on active duty and in the reserves.

Bob Smiley, “Frankford Heroes Remembered” at The Historical Society of Frankford

Tuesday, November 12th, was a brutally cold day, yet we were very gratified to see familiar faces and new ones who were heroes, themselves, for braving the cold and coming out to The Historical Society of Frankford which is a treasure in our community. Smiley, along with Pat Smiley and their son, Jim Smiley, the co-founder of “The Frankford Gazette” and the developer of our online presence and all things “techie”, participated in the presentation aptly titled, “Frankford Heroes Remembered”. The Smileys really like to keep everything a family affair – and we have a big, extended family – it includes all of you! We really enjoy being able to return to Frankford as needed and when we can because Frankford is a family!!

Today, most people focus on the individual but the sacrifices of these men and women and their families should not be forgotten. For that reason, Bob thinks it’s so very important to tell their stories. Here is a quick glimpse of some of the highlights of Bob’s presentation! It was passing by the tombstone of Joseph Alexander Coyle that first ignited Bob’s passion for these unsung heroes. In Bob’s words:

“Back in 2014, I was working on another project, documenting St. Joachim’s Cemetery and I was taking pictures of all the headstones.  I was almost finished, when I came upon this one.  It is unusual because it is a military burial, a young man killed in the First World War and yet it is not the standard issue military headstone.  I was curious and decided to see what else I could find out about that guy. A few days later, I found him on Ancestry.  It is one thing to be looking at a stone with a name on it but it is an entirely different experience to see him as a person.  A young man, sitting proudly for a portrait, with his whole life before him, not knowing that he would die in France within a few months. 

‘Joseph was born in Frankford on January 26, 1892 and lived at 1325 Sellers and 1629 Fillmore Street. He was a shipping clerk at S.W. Evans and Son on Paul Street when he was inducted into the Army on May 25, 1918. On July 9, 1918 he shipped out on the USS America bound for France.  He was serving with Company K of the 315th Infantry, 79th Division when he was wounded on August 28, 1918. He died of pneumonia on October 28, 1918. He is buried in St. Joachim Cemetery in Frankford. He was survived by his father, John, and his mother, Anna, and many brothers and sisters.’Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition, pg.

Stephen Paul Blanchet

I had seen all the war monuments in Frankford.  A few had long lists of names of those who served and died.  We have their names etched into stone, but we do not KNOW who they were.  That was when I decided to take a closer look to see what I could find out. That closer look lead me to find a total 142 men who died in service to their country.”

Stephen Paul Blanchett was born on October 20, 1947 and lived at 1813 Foulkrod Street in Frankford.  He enlisted in the Army early in 1965 and served as a corpsman. He was Killed In Action on March 7, 1967. 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.”

He was single and was 19 years old when he died. He is buried in the Beverly National Cemetery in Beverly, New Jersey.  Frankford’s American Legion Post 224 2nd floor meeting hall has been named in his honor.  He was survived by his parents, four brothers and two sisters.

Stephen’s parents were awarded his Silver Star in a ceremony at City Hall a few months later. Blanchett and Lloyd Wilson were childhood friends growing up in Frankford.  They were 2 of the 4 African American soldiers from Frankford who died in service.  It is hard to believe but it took many years for Black Americans to earn the right to fight and die for their country.  Today, the Armed Forces could not function without their participation.

Theodore “Ted” Laurer Fischer

Bob’s “Frankford Heroes” project has become very personal to him. He got to know each of these men and women by researching and hearing their stories, many times directly from family members. It becomes more personal, too, when you recognize someone from the neighborhood. Karen Mangan Lash and her husband, Cliff, were in attendance this night. Karen and I had both worked for the School District of Philadelphia and we were together in the Fairhill section of the city. Karen recognized “Ted” and told us after that she had grown up with him and it brought back many memories. We know this can be very hard for families but, to a one, they wanted them to be recognized for the sacrifice, service and courage they exhibited. And then we would hear even more stories about other Heroes. That’s why the book has grown and will continue to share examples of other Heroes we don’t even know about yet.

Theodore Lauer Fischer was born on August 15, 1943 and when his father became Rector of St. Mark’s Church, the family moved to a home on Harrison Street. He had a “Back” position on the football team at Frankford High School and a strong voice which he used in the a cappella choir. “Ted” Fischer led a very active life during his high school years. Teachers there remember the 1962 graduate as an honest, hardworking student with a dramatic flair. 

Fischer enlisted in the Marine Corps in November of 1962. Now 22-years-old and a Lance Corporal, and a radioman for Company A, of the 1st Battalion, 4th, Marines Division, died in the hamlet of Phu Bai, Quang Tri, Province, on March 20, 1966.  He was survived, by his father, Albert, Rector of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, his mother, Elizabeth, and his sister, Barbara. He is buried in Whitemarsh Memorial Park in Ambler, Pennsylvania. 

Joseph Coyle’s Headstone
2014 and 2019

This picture tells the story. Earlier, Bob explained how he first became interested in telling the stories of these “Frankford Heroes”. As members of St. Joachim, we have a cemetery that’s over 170 years old. It is in need of restoration and upkeep as most of our smaller cemeteries in the city are. The photo on the left shows Joseph Coyle’s headstone suffered significant damage. These are the types of things we need to get repaired.

Keep the Faith in Frankford and  Holy Innocents Parish (of which St. Joachim is a Worship Site) formed The Friends of St. Joachim Cemetery. Chaired by Joe and Maureen Taylor, they have begun cleaning the cemetery, giving educational tours and collecting donations to begin some of the restoration projects – like new benches in the cemetery. They have had volunteers coming out to help them but what’s really needed now are dedicated committee members. If you would be interested in helping to plan activities and help with fundraising, etc., please contact Joe via email at joseph.m.taylor12@gmail.com, or text/call his cell at 215-360-6818. Joe’s story is also in the “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” book as well!

We would like to offer our sincere thanks to Jim Young, President, (you were sorely missed, Jim), and other Board Members Jerry Kolankiewicz, Bruce McKenzie, John Buffington, Susan Couvreur, John Hewitt, Fred Prescott and Diane Sadler who were in attendance and most helpful to us as always. Susan gathered and displayed some of the Society’s artifacts related to Veterans this evening. Thank you, Susan! They enhanced the presentation! The refreshments that follow these presentations are worth attending for sure! A double bonus! For more information about the Historical Society of Frankford, please visit their website, https://www.thehistoricalsocietyoffrankford.org/ and find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheHistoricalSocietyofFrankford/?ref=br_rs .

Enjoy the slideshow of the Presentation at The Historical Society of Frankford and also an interview with the author, Bob Smiley!! Thanks for reading! If you have any “Frankford Heroes” you would like to share with us, Bob’s email is in the next paragraph!

Interested in getting a copy of “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition” for yourself or for a Hero in your own life, please click here – Lulu. Then email gil@frankfordgazette.com to get your free ebook which contains even more details and links about our local Heroes. 

A slideshow of the November meeting at The Historical Society of Frankford!

Here is an interview that I did with Bob Smiley regarding his new book, “Frankford Heroes, 2nd Edition”!

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Mary Carroll, You Brightened Our Lives!

Photo courtesy of Tina Dambach

Sadly, we learned another of our dear friends was called home to God recently. If you’re a member of St. Joachim or if you live in the area on the corner of Church St. and Griscom St., a very special woman lived in the first floor apartment, Mary Carroll. She knew everybody even if you didn’t know her.

Mary loved God, her Church and everyone else, too. She was a member of the St. Frances de Sales Court #2617 Catholic Daughters of the Americas as well as a member of Keep the Faith in Frankford! When she attended our 8 AM Prayer Services in front of St. Joachim Church, she would always pray for “the animals, the cops, the firemen, all the people, for us and everybody have a good week!” Mary, we pray for you and we also pray for ourselves because Frankford is a little less bright these days without you! Go in peace, sweet friend!

In the Catholic Daughters’ Newsletter, a section called “Members Spotlight” highlighted Mary Carroll in 2015. Regent Tina Dambach wrote the following about Mary:

“Mary Carroll “Call Security!” That’s one of Mary’s catch phrases to ease an awkward or dicey situation or just to bring a little comic relief. Mary recently turned 70. She loves animals, especially her cat, Rocky. She misses her mother who passed away 3 years ago. Before her death, Mary’s mother was living at Chapel Manor Home and Fr. Wetzel and Fr. Large as well as others would take Mary to visit. Mary is a survivor.

It’s anonymous, but Mary has no problem letting you know she has been in A.A. and sober for 35 years as of April 26, 2015. After 5 years of sobriety, Mary came back to the Church after hearing others speak of the peace they had found. Mary joined Catholic Daughter’s because of our own Fr. Wetzel whom she refers to as “the priest” and who helped us find a lot of our members. She likes the people, the parties and helping out. Mary helps as much as she can at all our fundraisers and meetings. She has helped at Matthew 25 on distribution days and on other days she helps pack bags. Mary has also contributed food to Matthew 25. That’s just one example of her generosity.

Mary hopes to hit it big in the lottery one day, but when Mary does hit a number, she is sure to share some with the Church or another person. The thing she shares the most though is her personality. Mary is down to earth, kind, humble and serene. I only saw her get upset once and she immediately let it go. I only saw her cry once and that was the day Father announced that our parish would be merged into Holy Innocents.

She has a great sense of humor too as her, “Call Security”, phrase indicates. Mary has worked at a few different jobs. She worked in a factory until it closed up. She did cleaning at Shriner’s Hospital which used to be on the Boulevard where the kids loved her. Mary also worked for 8 years at McDonald’s before retiring. Her work ethic extended to the Church.

Mary helped at St. Joachim as a greeter and taking the Offertory gifts up and she would help do the readings at daily Mass. Mary is often chosen to take the gifts to the altar at Holy Innocents Church which she finds to be a great honor. Another way Mary shows her faith and evangelizes is by displaying prayer cards, the cross and other religious articles in the windows of her first floor apartment which is directly across from the Church. Mary also has attended prayer services in front of St. Joachim Church every week since the church was closed. She used to attend healing prayer services at St. Anne’s Church.

How lucky we are to have Mary in our court!”

PS. Many thanks to Tammy Hartenstine for providing Rocky with a new home!!

There is a GoFund Me page started by the Court St. Francis de Sales #2617 of the Catholic Daughters of the Americas for the cost of Mary’s funeral, burial and the vet costs for her cat, Rocky! Any amount will help and is most gratefully received! God bless you! https://www.gofundme.com/mary-carroll-funeral

 

 

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Post Season Football Continues Sunday; Let’s Get Behind Coach Andy Reid!

 

We asked Mike Betz, a local Philadelphia Eagles Fan and Sports Analyst, to reflect on this year’s Eagles season.

Kansas City Chiefs’ Andy Reid

Well, the Eagles’ luck has unfortunately run out. The last 2 seasons have given us incredible thrills to last us for as long as we live. We’ll always be indebted to Nick Foles for taking over and ending 57 years of frustration. Finally, that dark cloud was lifted! Nick Foles should never have to pay for a meal in Philadelphia ever again.

Now that the Eagles finally won it, how about we root for the guy who drafted Nick Foles back in 2012? That’s right, I’m talking about Andy Reid. Love him or hate him, Reid is the winningest coach in Eagles’ history. Many Eagles’ fans, myself included, have criticized him for his play calling and time management, or lack thereof. We were all scratching our heads when he’d call a pass play on first down, when he would burn time outs, and especially at the answer he’d give at his post game press conferences. “I gotta do a better job.” “It’s my responsibility to put guys in position to make plays.” 

Andy Reid is indirectly responsible for the Eagles Super Bowl victory. After all, he recommended Doug Pederson to Jeff Lurie after the Chip Kelly debacle. So far, so good! So, let’s root for Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs to win it all! He has a nice young quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, a solid tight end in Travis Kelce, the younger brother of Jason Kelce. Reid finally seemed to have figured it out. Come on Andy, we got our first title. Go out and get yours. Like you always say, “Time’s yours! Go get it!”

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Mastery Charter at Smedley Elementary School Engages Families

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Please note: This story first appeared in the April/May print edition of The Frankford Gazette. I never finished adding the photo gallery – a good lesson about timeliness in all things for this student of life. 

I was very intrigued and interested in learning about Mastery Charter Smedley Elementary after my first email encounter with Danielle Nicoletti, Assistant Principal of Operations and Student Life at Smedley. I had emailed Danielle regarding our Frankford Community Calendar and I received back an enthusiastic response and a willingness to “connect and work within the community”. One of their activities for March was holding a Job Fair for parents after they had offered parents’ workshops in resume writing and job interviewing skills. This is something I have long believed in –  that we are lifelong learners and schools can play a much larger role in the community as a learning resource for all!

We wanted to share with you more about Mastery Charter Smedley Elementary. Franklin D. Smedley Elementary is located at 1790 Bridge Street. Smedley was designed by Irwin T. Catharine, who was the chief architect of the city’s public schools for almost 20 years. Smedley was built in 1927-1928. He had a penchant for the Gothic Revival look but when used for schools, it’s also called Collegiate Gothic. Smedley operated for over 80 years as a traditional Philadelphia public school but was struggling by the time Mastery Charter came on the scene.

Mastery Charter took over Smedley in 2010 and they were up for the challenge of both refurbishing a building in dire need and improving the delivery of instruction to its’ students who were also in need. Mastery Charter Smedley began with an emphasis on inclusion of parents, students and staff to create a culture where everyone feels they belong. During the past 7 years, physical improvements have included painting, repairs, upgrading wiring and the building of an addition which includes a gym, 4 classrooms and handicap access for those in need.  

Cait Murphy has been in an administrative position since day one. She was an assistant principal for the first five years and then principal for the last two years. This year’s 6th grade graduating class is the first one that she has seen “grow up” from Kindergarten to now making the move most likely to the Lenfest Campus, 35 S. 4th Street, for grades 7 through 12.

Frankford is an area where many parents do struggle financially and this makes succeeding in school even more important for our children to open up future possibilities for them. As you enter Smedley, a poster at the top of the steps encourages students to work hard, to go to college, to work and realize their dreams. That’s the purpose of an education. Mastery Charter elementary schools make a commitment to be “neighborhood” schools – they do not engage in city-wide lotteries. There is, of course, a waiting list for upper grades but Principal Murphy told us that for this coming school year 20 seats are still available for Kindergarten. If you are interested, you must live in this catchment area….. but do contact them directly at the school or by downloading and completing an application here – http://www.masterycharter.org/enroll/philadelphia-enrollment/

Principal Murphy exudes pride in her school and her students’ achievements which she attributes to a culture of family, community and a school spirit that drives the learning curriculum. She gives high marks to her teachers and support staff who go the extra mile to make it all happen. The PTA is growing and the School Advisory Committee are also key components of Smedley’s success. She has flexibility in her staffing and budgeting which allows her to do what is best for her students.

Stressing academics, reading is emphasized in the Early Literacy program gives each student, in Kindergarten through Second Grade, one hour of small group instruction which includes phonics and guided instruction. Students are given a strong foundation upon which to build and develop further skills and interests. This continues throughout the grades as they are focused on continuing to improve their PSSA scores. Many children are at grade level or beyond and teachers can individualize within their classrooms to address each student’s needs.

Every Wednesday, students have a half-day for teachers to engage in professional development honing their own skills. Unlike the public schools, there is no union, but their salaries are performance-based, meaning they do well when their students do well. There teachers like teaching here, partly because of the financial opportunity but mostly because of the community that exists. There are three Assistant Principals who help teachers better develop their skills and focus on best practices for academic instruction in a positive way.

But school doesn’t end at the bell! There are after school programs and events for families. Last Thanksgiving, families were invited to participate with the food being cooked and served by Lintons, their food service company. Traditional dance nights are held with more events planned.

During our visit all was calm and everyone was doing what they should. Students traveled to and from quietly, in an orderly fashion. Asking about discipline (there are no police or security guards here), Principal Murphy told us that when something does happen, the students are taken aside and whatever happened is discussed to be understood and to discuss alternative ways of handling matters (conflict resolution).  

We enjoyed our visit and did witness many of the reasons why Principal Murphy is proud of her school family. It really is a family – Principal Murphy’s father sometimes comes to volunteer.

There were a few openings in the spring for a very few grades, but if you are interested, please call the office at (215) 537-2523. Please mention you read about them in The Frankford Gazette. 

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Giving Hearts!

The Morgan Stanley Foundation is supported by each of the departments within Morgan Stanley. The Foundation has given Keep the Faith in Frankford much needed donations over the past two years.

Those donations go directly to helping us feed those in need through the Northeast Committee on the Homeless’ Dining with Dignity Program that operates at St. Mark’s Church. We have prepared and served over 500 people a hot meal and and have sent them home with dinner bags because of these donations.

There are very good people in our community who don’t need accolades nor do they want them. They genuinely care for others and do the right thing. Morgan Stanley does that, too! They encourage their employees to get involved in their communities and they support their efforts with matching grants and additional monies.

To our unsung hero at Morgan Stanley whose heart is in our Frankford community, thank you for all that you do! We also thank Morgan Stanley for acknowledging your efforts with their generous donations to Keep the Faith in Frankford!