The Lawncrest Community Association last week welcomed officials from the 2nd Police District, state Rep. Dwight Evans and Kathleen Kane, a Democratic candidate for state attorney general in Tuesday’s primary.
The LCA also held a moment of silence in memory of resident Mary Calise and Robert Neary and Daniel Sweeney, the two firefighters killed on April 9 after responding to a fire in a Kensington warehouse.
The organization promoted the following upcoming neighborhood events:
• Friends of Lawncrest Library will sponsor a box-lunch bingo on Wednesday, May 2, at 11 a.m. at the Lawncrest Recreation Center, Rising Sun Avenue and Comly Street. Tickets cost $10. Call Evelyn at 215–742–3662.
• State Sen. Shirley M. Kitchen (D-3rd dist.) will host a grand-opening celebration for her satellite office at 6418 Rising Sun Ave. on Friday, May 4, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Refreshments will be served.
The office telephone number will be 215–342–8170. The fax number will be 215–342–8175.
Kitchen’s main office is at 17th Street and Lehigh Avenue.
• St. William Elementary School students and the Philmont Kiwanis Club are sponsoring a pancake and sausage breakfast on Saturday, May 5, from 8 to 11 a.m. in the social hall of the Philadelphia Protestant Home, 6500 Tabor Road. The cost is $7 for adults and $5 for children.
• The Lawncrest Clergy Ministerium is planning a walking prayer vigil against violence for Sunday, May 6, at 1 p.m. The gathering place will be Trinity Church Oxford on Longshore Avenue, between Oxford Avenue and Rising Sun Avenue. The crowd will walk south on Rising Sun Avenue and pray for peace outside participating congregations.
• Philadelphia City Council members will attend a budget hearing at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 8, at St. William parish hall, Argyle and Robbins streets. Public testimony is welcome regarding the fiscal year 2013 budget. Written testimony is strongly encouraged and should be kept to three minutes when read.
• The Philly Rising Collaborative will hold a meeting about an action plan for Lawndale/Crescentville on Thursday, May 10, at 6 p.m. in the community room of the Lawncrest Library, 6098 Rising Sun Ave. Topics will include streets and infrastructure, parks and green space, and general quality of life.
• Philly Rising is inviting parents to attend a summer camp expo on Friday, May 11, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the school yard of the Benjamin Franklin Elementary School at Rising Sun and Cheltenham avenues.
• The 2nd Police District and its Police District Advisory Council are joining forces for their eighth annual community day on Saturday, May 19, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Target store at 7400 Bustleton Ave. State Sen. Christine Tartaglione is sponsoring the event.
At 9 a.m., there will be the first Ken Hyers Memorial Bike Ride to stop violence. Hyers died last September. He was president of the Lawncrest Town Watch and chairman of the committee that produced community day, and was elected to serve as PDAC chairman for 2011 before being diagnosed with lung cancer.
The rest of the day includes child fingerprinting, bicycle registration, vehicle identification number-etching, document shredding, electronics recycling, a pet food drive and information tables featuring state and local agencies.
• Lawncrest Library, at 6098 Rising Sun Ave., will be the site of a free quit-smoking program Tuesdays from May 22 to June 26 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. To register, call Jody toll-free at 888-PENN-STOP.
• The Police Officer Gary Skerski Memorial Golf Outing is set for Saturday, June 2, at 8 a.m. at the John F. Byrne Golf Course, 9550 Leon St. The cost is $85 per person. The day will include a raffle, silent auction and barbecue.
Skerski was the 15th Police District community-relations officer when he was killed in 2006 while responding to an armed robbery at a bar.
Call John Marlow at 267–688–9997 or Gary Roman at 215–688–1531.
• Also on Saturday, June 2, a bowling outing will raise money for the Lawncrest Fourth of July fireworks celebration. The event takes place from 9 p.m. to midnight at Thunderbird Lanes, 3081 Holme Ave. (near Willits Road). Tickets cost $25 in advance, $30 at the door, and $125 for up to six bowlers per lane. The price includes shoe rental, pizza and drinks.
Call Steve at 215–651–8470 or e-mail [email protected]
The 97th annual celebration will be held on Wednesday, July 4, with a rain date of Saturday, July 7. The theme is A Community United.
The day will start with a parade at 9 a.m. The grand marshals will be current and former teachers at St. William, which is closing in June.
Activities will be held at the Lawncrest Recreation Center. They include an American flag-raising ceremony by veterans, flea market, car show, children’s rides, food court, live bands, a magic show and drill teams.
Checks can be made payable to the Lawncrest Fourth of July Committee and mailed to P.O. Box 24656, Philadelphia, PA 19111.
The Lawncrest Community Association will meet on Tuesday, May 15, at 7 p.m. at St. William parish hall. ••
