Tag Archives: Kensington

CONWELL COMMUNITY: PB&J Fulfills Needs for Kensington Youth

Featured

Posted on by
Reply

by A. Schemes-’24/CCB Reporter

PB&J is a new youth program in Kensington. PB&J stands for Philly Bridge & Jawn. According to Bryan Belknap, the founder of PB&J, this is a continuation of his work as the former McPherson Youth Librarian of the Philadelphia Free Library. 

“Bridges help connect people,” Belknap wrote in an email to the Conwell Cougars Blog. “That is what we want our program to do.” 

The purpose of the program is to connect young people to each other and to a few youth organizations working in Kensington. It is also helping young people learn about opportunities in Kensington.

According to Mr. Belknap, the program is designed to help all teens from ages 12-19. The program introduces teens to people that Mr. Belknap thinks are positive influences. These organizations are run by those that Bryan Belknap respects and admires. 

As Mr. Belknap said in his email, they are a good influence on him, therefore, Mr. Belknap thinks they would be a good influence on young people, as well.

According to the email Mr. Belknap sent, he states,  “We want to connect young people to each other and to youth organizations working in Kensington.”

 Some of the groups that PB&J are trying to connect to the teens are

PB&J is holding some pilot program events in the first days of November. Mr. Belknap would like to see 20 teens show up and meet the youth organizations. He said that PB&J is hoping that the young people like the program and will want to do more like it.

According to Mr. Belknap, their goal for 2024 is to help 150 teens. After that, they would like to help 250 teens each year.

As stated by Mr. Belknap in his email, “We would like to reach 150 teens in 2024, and 250 teens every year after. Because some of the teens will be the same from year to year, our 5-year goal is to reach 500 teens.”

Mr. Belknap originally worked in the McPherson Square Library. He worked there for eight years. Once the grant that paid his salary came to an end, he realized he wanted to continue working with young people. 

“The grant that paid my salary came to an end,” Belknap wrote. “But, I wanted to keep working with young people in Kensington.” 

That is when he decided to start the PB&J program. He knew he could not start a new project on his own, he would need some help. While working in the library, he partnered with Nourish a few times. So, he asked for their help with the program. 

According to Mr. Belknap, “Starting a brand new project, I needed help. So, I asked Nourish for help with this program.“

Nourish is a nutrition and cooking program. This program is funded by Pennsylvania SNAP-Ed It educates people about healthy food, affordable recipes, healthy cooking techniques, nutrition information, and other health resources.

According to NKCDC.org, “the goal is to create good food habits with long-term health benefits.” Nourish has an eight week online cooking class for people in Kensington, Fairhill and Juniata. Nourish provides a weekly meal kit with ingredients that are used in the online classes. 

For more information about PB&J and the upcoming program from Nov. 1 – 5, which will take place at 2001 E. Allegheny Ave., contact Mr. Belknap at 856-295-1713 or email him at phillybridgeandjawn@gmail.com.

Posted by CCB Staff

CONWELL COMMUNITY: Upcoming City Council Public Safety Hearing At Conwell Middle Magnet School

Featured

Posted on by
Reply

By A. Peralta-83 – CCB Lead Reporter with contributions by CCB Staff

Image courtesy of Conwell MMS.

On Tuesday, May 9, from 5:30 through 8:30 PM, Conwell Middle Magnet School will be hosting Philadelphia City Council’s next Public Safety Committee Hearing. At the public event, Council member Curtis Jones Jr. (4th district), chairperson of the Public Safety Committee and Council member Quetzy Lozada (7th district), will be speaking about Kensington’s crises of Crime, Narcotics and overall harmful environment for students and civilians alike.

According to Conwell’s principal, Ms. Erica Green, Conwell Middle School has support from the 24th Police District along with Town Watch, IDAAY, The City Of Philadelphia and School Police.

As explained in an article published in the Philadelphia City Council Weekly Report, the purpose of the hearing is for the public to weigh in on Councilmember Lozada’s proposed Marshall Plan for Kensington. The plan is described as a way for leaders from across the city to develop solutions in collaboration with community residents. 

In her resolution, Council member Lozada stated that the plan was so named after, “The Marshall Plan, also known as the European Recovery Program, grew out of the horror and destruction caused by World War II.” Her plan connected the horrors of World II with the current Opioid and gun violence crisis in the neighborhood. 

“They chose Conwell because it is in the heart of Kensington and the Opiod Crisis,” Principal. Green said.

“They chose Conwell because it is in the heart of Kensington and the Opioid Crisis,” Ms. Erica Green, principal of Conwell Middle Magnet school, said. “Voices of the parents, students and teachers should be heard because they are all stakeholders.”

Principal Green encourages the public, residents, and especially students and their families to attend the meeting to have their voices heard.

“Voices of the parents, students and teachers should be heard because they are all stakeholders,” Principal Green said, “and the only way we can make change is if we work together for our community.”

According to Principal Green, students are expected to speak and express their concerns, opinions and worries. Some students were also asked what they would say to the City Council members during the meeting. 

“Our community needs more police officers around making addicts and the homeless get proper help,” said A. Irizarry-82, Conwell eigth-grade student and president of the school’s Student Council. She added, “and ensuring no more addicts are in our community.”  

Many of Conwell’s students walk home, take public transit, and travel from outside the neighborhood, which makes this a major issue and hazard for the safety of the students.

“There should be police officers to at least get people off the street,”  said E. Jasper-83, an eighth-grade student. “I once ran into someone high.¨

Furthermore, the crime rate in Kensington makes this dangerous situation even worse.

“I don’t want to see needles on the ground,” A. Capetillo-61, a sixth grade student, said.

CONWELL COMMUNITY: Youth Given Real-World Opportunities at the McPherson Library Job Fair

Posted on by
1

By A. Peralta – 83 – CCB Lead Senior Reporter

The McPherson Square Library – Photo Credit to Bryan Belknap

Conwell Middle Magnet students and their families are invited to attend the McPherson Library Job fair on April 13, 2:30 – 5:30 p.m. The Job fair is a collaboration that includes 36 organizations and agencies offering jobs for the youth during the summer.

“Working at the library, I have seen teens struggle to get summer jobs,” said Bryan Belknap Belknap, Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor at McPherson Square Library, said in an email to the Conwell Cougars Blog. “So, we wanted an event that makes it easier for teens to get summer jobs.”

Belknap, who is organizing this event with the help from Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, Impact Services, and the Friends of McPherson group, said that this is the second year the library is hosting the job fair. According to Belknap, the minimum age requirement for youth to be eligible for a summer job is 12 years old. However, Belknap said that all ages and people are welcome to attend the Job fair. 

  • Poster Provided By Bryan Belknap – Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor

“There is no requirement to attend the event. Everyone is welcomed,” Said Belknap. “We encourage all teens that are interested in summer jobs to attend and bring a friend.”

During the job fair, students will need to create resumes and applications in order to sign up for summer jobs. Adults at the job fair will help guide students during the process and help give students valuable information about signing up for a job.

“We want to reduce the barriers that keep teens from summer jobs,” Belknap said. “Creating a resume and filling out applications are important steps in getting a job.”

The McPherson Library encourages teenagers that are interested in a summer job to attend the Job fair with their peers and friends. McPherson library is also giving out $50 and $100 in debit gift cards for the 2 people who bring along the most friends and peers to attend the McPherson Job fair.

Poster Provided By Bryan Belknap – Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor

According to Belknap, The person in first place will receive the $100 debit gift card and 2nd place will receive $50 in debit gift cards. In order to qualify for the gift card prizes, students must tag each other and use a hashtag for the event. Students are encouraged to post a selfie in front of the Instagram wall that will be presented at the job fair. Teenagers can only tag 1 person, if they tag more than one person, then only the first tag will count. People without Instagram accounts are advised to find Mr. Belknap in order for him to count them.

The McPherson Library is located at 601 E Indiana Ave, Philadelphia, PA. According to Belknap, the Job fair will be held there due to the easy accessibility and location of the library, being in a central part of Kensington.

Below is a slideshow gallery list of the attending vendors at the April 13, 2023, McPherson Job Fair.

Posted by A. Peralta – 83 – CCB Editorial Staff