January 24th, at the Frankford Boys and Girls Club, from 6 to 7 PM. See details below.
Winter Gear Drive Giveaway
Tag: frankford boys and girls club
Project Rebuild – the Northeast Frankford Boys and Girls Club
$200,000 Grant from Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to help complete the project
State Senator Christine Tartaglione and State Representative Jason Dawkins brought home the bacon when they presented a check for $200,000 to Joseph Marziello, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Philadelphia, on November 22nd.
Tartaglione and Dawkins invested a lot of time and influence to get the grant for the club. It is ear marked for the completion of the renovations that have been underway at the club for over a year now.
The work at the club has been one of the biggest construction projects in Frankford this year and it has already made a big difference.
From Marziello’s message on the Boys and Girls Clubs web site:
After establishing the new John and Katie Ericksen Family Literacy Center at our Northeast Frankford Club in March 2017, we began renovations to create a Kids Café, STEM Learning Lab and Technology Center at the Club. The improvements are on-track to be completed In October 2017 and will allow us to provide youth at Frankford with hot, home-cooked food daily while engaging them in critical STEM programming.
… Since renovations to the Northeast Frankford Club began, youth enrollment at the Club has increased by 50 percent, with the number of teens attending Club programming doubling.
I spoke with Marziello 2 years ago about his vision for the club. The building was in very poor shape at that point and, yet he was optimistic that he would raise the money and get the job done. He actually did what he said he was going to do.
Bellow is a video of the presentation. If you have seen it on Facebook, this is a shorter version of the same.
Frankford Student Wins Inaugural Essay Contest
Kierra Adams
Congratulations Kierra Adams!!!
The Black Women in Sport Foundation (BWSF) recently announced the winners of its inaugural essay contest for Women’s History Month. The contest was created as an inter-generational history project to continue sharing the rich legacy of African-American women achievements with the younger generation. Youth paid tribute to the late Delores Andy, Venus Williams and Serena Williams with their essays.
One of the winners from the category of fifth- to eighth-graders included: Kierra Adams, (first place), Northeast Frankford Boys & Girls Club of Philadelphia.
The winners were selected based on the scores received from independent judges Linda Carroll-Pitts, Ora Lambright and Jerika Johnstone. The contest was open to participants of BWSF programs and special events. BWSF received entries from youth at the Northeast Frankford Boys & Girls Club of Philadelphia; Masterman School; Beverly Hills Middle School; Tanner Duckrey School; McKinley School; and SCOP Programs Girls Track.
Photo credit to scoopusanewspaper.com
Comcast Cares for the Frankford Boys and Girls Club
April 25th was Comcast Cares day nationwide and in Frankford it impacted the Boys and Girls Club on Kinsey Street with over 250 volunteers. Joe Marziello, one half of the CEO team (the other half being his wife Lizabeth) of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Philadelphia sees this is the start of a multi-year project that will make the facility something that the entire community will be proud of.
Joe Marziello, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Philadelphia and Nashid Edwards COO of Concerned Citizens for a Better Frankford
Also on hand was Josh Temple of the DIY Network show “House Crashers“.
There was painting, clearing, planting and rewiring of the computer room for a start. Marziello has a strategic plan for the improvements will likely take a few years subject to funding.
The Boys and Girls Club has become increasingly important to Frankford since the Salvation Army and PAL have both left Frankford taking their recreational activities with them.
Check out the video below from NBC10.
Northeast Frankford Boys & Girls Club Advisory Council Meeting
The historic William W. Axe School building at 1709-33 Kinsey Street has housed the Northeast Frankford Boys & Girls club for many, many years. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places but it is in a deteriorating condition which threatens to give it up at almost any time. The advisory council is now reforming with some new participants who hope to pull it back from the brink and revitalize it.
The first order of business is fund raising which has been neglected in years past. A Beef, Turkey and Beer event is being cosponsored by the Concerned Citizens of Frankford and the Advisory Council on Saturday, May 24th from 6 to 10 PM at the Lloyd Wilson 224 Post (2006 Orthodox Street). Ticket price is $10.00.
An alumni day is being planned for a date to be determined what will welcome past Boys & Girls Club members to come back to the club to remenice about their times and possible make a donation.
A Facebook page is under construction at this time and should be up and running by the next meeting which is on March 27th at 7PM at the club. Volunteers are welcome and needed.
Looking back at the past few years, we have seen the Salvation Army center, PAL and the Frankford Community Y all close. Each provided recreational activities for youth which is no longer available. We can’t let the Boys and Girls Club die from neglect.
