As seen in several photos in this issue, creative acts of kindness can lift community spirits. For instance, a father-daughter trombone duo has been playing music on weekends from their driveway, to the delight of neighbors and passers-by. Last Sunday, this was shut down by a police officer. He presumably was concerned that the live music could draw people to congregate in unhealthy proximity.
During the recent national conversation about spending immense sums of money to help get us through COVID-19, I’ve been thinking that I also want to “think locally.” Not long ago, I learned about the Foundation for Delaware County. They work in the most vulnerable parts of Delco, doing much that would be done by a health department, if we had a county health department.
To follow up on the January 2 Swarthmorean article, “Incoming Delco Council Engages Community as Resource,” there are new developments regarding a potential public health department in Delaware County. We applaud the efforts of the new county council to form a modern, locally based, nimble health department to respond to a variety of threats to public health.
I am a member of Swarthmore Friends Meeting and would like to share our recent experience of meeting online for worship, in the hope that other faith communities might be encouraged to create similar opportunities in this time of outward isolation.
Did you know that Charlie’s Swarthmore Hardware remains open? And that your order from the TrueValue website can be delivered to the store, with no shipping charge, so Charlie gets part of the purchase price?
As all of us grapple with the upending of our lives due to the threat of COVID-19, there has been one essential constant right here in Swarthmore. It’s the Swarthmore Co-op under the tireless leadership of General Manager Mike Litka.
In all the discussion about accidents at the Yale/Cornell intersection, and speeding on Yale in general, I don’t recall any remarks about the lack of speed limit signs on Yale between Chester Road and for about a quarter mile east on Yale. How about two more, oversized, on each side of the street?
Since I have been spending more time at home (partly in response to the current viral outbreak), and since I have greatly enjoyed the new features and in-depth reporting introduced by the Swarthmorean, I am writing to thank “the powers that be” for their commitment to Swarthmore.
We are so proud of the extra effort, commitment, and adaptability of all of our Co-op staff members (and our volunteers, too) who are keeping our store open and working well for our community. As events unfold, we’re making adjustments to continue accomplishing everything we can for our owners and shoppers.
In July 2017, I sat in the back of a taxi cab and was surprised to see two pictures of President Trump on the headrest in front of me. Curious, I asked the driver if he liked the president…
After a wonderful breakfast at La Cannelle Cafe, my daughter, who was visiting from Paris, removed from her handbag a small Rubbermaid container and placed what would usually have gone into a Styrofoam box, the leftover entrée.
Let’s try to put the coronavirus in some perspective. Eminent American physician and health expert Dr. David Katz posted a statistical comparison of the coronavirus versus the influenza virus. It is eye-opening.
Thank you to our Cornell Avenue neighbor who was seen trimming their hedge to improve sightlines at the dangerous, accident-heavy corner of Cornell and Yale.
The board would like to thank the Swarthmorean for running a survey to help us determine the future of the Swarthmore Community Center (SCC). In case you missed the letter sent previously from our board, the Swarthmore College has informed us that by August SCC must vacate the building that has served as our center for close to 50 years. The question now is how do we move forward?
I attended a lively and informative meeting of Swarthmore Borough’s Safety Committee. The principal agenda item was about potential four-way stop signage at the intersection of Cornell and Yale avenues, to reduce collisions. At the same time, the presence of stop signs on Yale at Kenyon Avenue was noted. It’s apparent that those serve only as a traffic-calming measure, principally for eastbound traffic on Yale Avenue.
The Swarthmore Public Library has a nine-member board that helps the library thrive and serve our community. We currently have one open seat for a three-year term.
The Board of Trustees of the Swarthmore Public Library are greatly indebted to the Friends of the Swarthmore Library, the dedicated non-profit group that fundraises on behalf of the library. No one has been a better friend to our local treasured library than Carol Kennedy, who has served as President of the Friends for the last four years and is stepping down from her position this month.
In 1971, the people of Swarthmore decided to establish a community center to meet the needs of seniors, children, teens, and others. At that time, Swarthmore College offered to rent the old Swarthmore Preparatory School gymnasium to the newly formed Swarthmore Community Center for a nominal fee. The building needed extensive renovations, for which citizens raised $76,000 in grants and donations. Through the hard work and perseverance of many community volunteers, and with donated materials, the center opened its doors in 1978. In July 2019, the board of the community center received a notice from Swarthmore College that it would be terminating our lease and that we must vacate the building by August 2020.
It is difficult not to feel despair over recent events. An image that of late has been in my mind is Canadian artist Greg Curnoe’s 1972 India ink on paper drawing, “Map of North America,” in which the United States is entirely eliminated, leaving only Canada and Mexico.
In the United States in 2020, and for much of the past three years, “performance art” has taken the main stage and dominated our political lives and much of our daily lives as well. The impresario, the “star” of this “theater of the absurd,” is none other than our president, Donald Trump. He is simply a master at pulling the strings and making us, the American people, the entire Republican party — and the media — his puppets.
