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November 2017

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Halloween Events

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Now through October 31, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation facilities are hosting Halloween events, from the not-so-scary to somewhat spooky! Take a stroll through 5,000 hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins in West Fairmount Park at THE GLOW: A Jack O’Lantern Experience – or take your own pumpkin home from Franklin Square’s patch. From Haunted Horses to Trunk-or-Treat, there are Halloween celebrations all over the city. Have you picked out your costume yet?


See our full list of Halloween events.


 

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Monument Lab

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Over the past month, new monuments have popped up across Philadelphia, in public squares and neighborhood parks. These temporary works (here through November 19) are a part of Monument Lab: a public art and history project from Mural Arts, designed to bring attention to underrepresented histories and spark civic dialogue. While you can visit these thought-provoking installations at any time, Mural Arts Philadelphia has coordinated a series of “Saturday Spotlights” featuring the artists behind the work, including:

Plus: on Saturday, October 28 from 7-10pm, check out a one-night-only monument in Marconi Plaza, centered on South Philly’s immigrant families.


Learn more about how, where, and when you can experience Monument Lab.

 

 

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Applefest at Fox Chase Farm

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October 21, 12-4pm at Fox Chase Farm


Fox Chase Farm’s annual Applefest offers fall fun for the whole family, with activities like cider pressing, apple butter making, pumpkin painting, hayrides, and seasonal games. Listen to live music and enjoy seasonal refreshments as you explore this working educational farm, located in Northeast Philadelphia. You can even take some Applefest home with you: apples, apple butter, and cider will be for sale. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for children 3-12.


Learn more about Applefest.

 

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LOVE Your Park Fall Service Day

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November 4, citywide


Show your favorite park some LOVE this November 4, a.k.a. LOVE Your Park Fall Service Day! Spend a Saturday planting trees and flowers, raking leaves, and cleaning up trash and litter at one of 85+ parks citywide. A partnership among Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, Fairmount Park Conservancy, and the Park Friends Network, LOVE Your Park Fall Service Day projects help get our public green spaces prepped for the coming winter weather. We’re looking for 2,000+ volunteers to lend a hand, so check out the list of participating parks and projects and sign up to help out at a site near you.


Get the latest LOVE Your Park Fall Service Day news.

 

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Sport Stacking Tournament

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November 4, 9:30am at Vogt Recreation Center


The stack is back: sport stacking returns to Philadelphia Parks & Recreation (PPR). In this unique activity, competitors race to stack cups in an assigned sequence, testing their agility and focus. On Saturday, November 4, boys and girls ages 6 through 18 can participate in both individual and team relay events at PPR’s Sport Stacking Tournament. Refreshments, awards, and raffle prizes will be available. Register by October 27 for a $5 fee.


To learn more and request a registration form for the Sport Stacking Tournament, call 215-685-3683.

 

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TreePhilly Fall Yard Tree Giveaways

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November 4-5 and 11-12, citywide


Registration is now open for the TreePhilly Fall Yard Tree Giveaways! This fall, there are four chances for you to get a tree to plant in your yard through TreePhilly’s Yard Tree Giveaway Program. Choose from 13 different trees, including large shade trees, small flowering trees, and fruit trees. Pre-registration is encouraged, but walk-ins will be accepted during each event, while supplies last. At each event, you will learn how to plant and care for your new tree, and you will take it home with free mulch. Yard trees must be planted in the ground in the city of Philadelphia on private property, not in a pot, or in the sidewalk.


Learn more about TreePhilly Fall Yard Tree Giveaways.

 

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Unity Cup Championship

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November 11 at Lincoln Financial Field


We’re entering the final weeks of the 2017 Philadelphia International Unity Cup, a soccer tournament celebrating our city’s diverse immigrant communities. On November 11, the competition comes to a close at the championship match, where the top two teams will face off for this year’s title. Join us for free fun with soccer, diverse cultures, and entertainment for all. In the meantime, there’s still time to catch the quarterfinals (Saturday, October 21 at Temple University) and semifinals (October 28-29 in South Philly).


Will we be seeing you at the Unity Cup Championship?

 

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Philadelphia Marathon

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November 18-19, citywide


The countdown is on: the 2017 Philadelphia Marathon is almost here! Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the Managing Director’s Office partner to produce a full weekend of runs, including the Philadelphia Half Marathon, Rothman Institute 8K, and Kids Fun Run on Saturday, November 18; and the Philadelphia Marathon on Sunday, November 19. Since starting in 1994 as a small local event, the Marathon has grown to become one of the top 10 in the country. The scenic course takes runners past historic landmarks, through urban neighborhoods, and along Philadelphia’s picturesque waterfronts. 


Learn more about the Philadelphia Marathon, and register for your run.

 

 

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LOVE Park Christmas Village

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November 23-December 24, LOVE Park


The finishing touches on the new LOVE Park will arrive in the spring -- but in the meantime, we’re excited to share that the park will once again host the Christmas Village this holiday season, offering a sneak peek at the improvements to this iconic space! Modeled after traditional German Christmas Markets, the Christmas Village is an open-air holiday market offering authentic European food and drinks, plus a gift selection including ornaments, jewelry, and arts and crafts. Starting this Thanksgiving, the sights, sounds, and smells of the market will be back in LOVE Park to put you in the holiday spirit.


Enjoy the Christmas Village at LOVE Park this winter… and keep an eye out for the park’s official grand re-opening, coming next spring!

 

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Scarecrow Festival at Sister Cities Park

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Stop by Sister Cities Park soon to meet some very special fall visitors: 16 unique scarecrows, from a hockey player to Frida Kahlo! For the annual Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Scarecrow Festival, kids from different PPR facilities’ After School Programs work to create these symbols of the season. This year’s participating programs included Tarken Ice Rink & Playground (whose after schoolers made the hockey player), East Passyunk Community Recreation Center (Frida Kahlo creators), and more.

 

See photos of the scarecrows, and visit them at Sister Cities Park, now through mid-November!

 


 

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Fall Foliage & Top Fall Hikes in the Wissahickon

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It’s finally starting to feel (and look) a bit more like fall: the weather has cooled down, and the leaves are changing color. Make the most of the season by visiting our parks and trails citywide, from Washington Square to the winding paths of Wissahickon Valley Park. We’ve got a few suggestions for where to start, but let us know where your autumn explorations take you!


Check out our picks for fall hikes in the Wissahickon, and a few of our favorite spots to see beautiful fall foliage.

 

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Roots2Rise Yoga

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Philadelphia Parks & Recreation partners with Roots2Rise to bring yoga programming to locations throughout Philadelphia. Roots2Rise is an organization that aims to make yoga available to communities that traditionally haven’t had access to wellness programming. Classes are offered seven days a week at select PPR facilities citywide: each session is just $5, and classes are open to all skill levels.


Find a Roots2Rise class near you.

 

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Jefferson Street Ballparks: Celebrating Athletic History

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Have you ever wondered how Athletic Recreation Center got its name? With basketball courts, sports fields, and a pool on-site, there are plenty of opportunities to get active at Athletic – but the name’s actual origins are linked to the ballfields on the grounds. A half-century before Philly’s first playgrounds and rec centers appeared, the land that would become Athletic Recreation Center was part of a baseball park, originally known as the Jefferson Street Grounds. Today, a newly installed historical marker at Jefferson and Bailey reflects the site’s role in baseball’s evolution “from an amateur pastime into a competitive professional sport.”


Learn how baseball history was made at the Jefferson Street ballparks!

 

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Getting Fit (and Having Fun) with We Walk PHL

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We’re wrapping up our first season of We Walk PHL: a series of free walking groups, bringing folks together to have fun and stay fit this past June through October! Thanks to a partnership among Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, Fairmount Park Conservancy, Philly Powered, and the Health Promotion Council, We Walk groups met three times a week in East Fairmount Park, FDR Park, and Hunting Park. Over the last few weeks, we visited each site to talk with walkers and get their feedback on the first year of the program. While each location offered its own spin on We Walk, members of all three groups shared similar stories about why they joined the program – and what kept them coming back week after week.


Read on to learn more about the We Walk PHL experience!

 

 

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Senior Strut Recap

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On October 13, hundreds of older adults strolled with the Mummers along Kelly Drive as part of the 5th Annual Senior Strut! After taking a one-mile walk along scenic Boathouse Row to the Mummers’ music, participants attended a health fair with free health screenings, exercise demonstrations, and music by DJ Patty-Pat.


Check out our Facebook Live video from this year’s Senior Strut.

 

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#RunningStartPHL

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Our recreation centers are just one part of how the City of Philadelphia is giving kids a “running start”! A Running Start—Health (#RunningStartPHL) is a new initiative focusing on the health of kids from birth to five years old, targeting a few key interventions that address the most important (and avoidable) health risks in those first five years. One of those goals? Supporting nutrition and physical activity standards in child care to prevent obesity in early childhood. We’re working to get kids moving and making healthy choices at our parks and recreation facilities citywide.


Get the full story on #RunningStartPHL and see how you can get involved.

 

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Recent Ribbon Cuttings & Groundbreakings

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There’s always something new to explore at Philadelphia Parks & Recreation sites! This past month, we debuted several exciting projects and facilities:

  • Professional quality bocce courts at East Passyunk Community Recreation Center;
  • The first phase of renovations at Nichols Park, including new play structures;
  • A new boxing gym at Shepard Recreation Center, with additional training equipment soon to come;
  • Burholme Park’s new playground, with an accompanying parking lot restoration;
  • A redone basketball court for Lloyd Hall.

In addition, we broke ground on a major new project: the Discovery Center, located in East Fairmount Park. At this outdoor education center, the Philadelphia Outward Bound School and Audubon Pennsylvania will offer thousands of Philly students programming in leadership development, environmental stewardship and conservation, and more.


Learn more about our recent ribbon cuttings and groundbreakings.

 

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Staff Profile: George McNally

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On a visit to the Fairmount Park Organic Recycling Center, there’s plenty to catch the eye: mountains of mulch and compost, stacks of massive tree trunks, and heavy machinery of all kinds, from loaders to… The Beast. A hulking yellow machine turning trees up to 36 inches wide into wood chips, it grabs a visitor’s attention with its size -- and its sounds. 


The man behind The Beast? Heavy Equipment Operator 2 George McNally. Meet George in this month’s staff profile.

 

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Philadelphia Parks & Playgrounds: Neighborhood News

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With Philadelphia Parks & Recreation programs, events, and activities going on in every corner of the city, it can be hard to keep up with all of the fun! Check out our “Neighborhood News” round-up for a sampling of stories from sites near you.


North Philly

  • Photo above: On September 23, Shuler Playground held a Community Day celebration. The fun included a Cupid Shuffle Dance Contest, ping pong, relay races, and chess showdowns (including a match-up between Councilman Curtis Jones, Jr., and a Shuler Chess Club member).

Northeast Philly

  • Photo above: Youth football is back at Roosevelt Playground! This fall, the Mayfair Wolves take the field.
  • Philadelphia Parks & Recreation staff from multiple divisions recently teamed up to bring a new look to Disston Park, removing weeds, excess tree limbs, and overgrown shrubs.
  • Lackman Playground’s summer day camp had a visit from some very special guests on August 8: officers (and horses) of Philadelphia’s Mounted Patrol Unit.
  • On September 9, several hundred members of the Fox Chase community and the Philadelphia Fire Department came together for a Community Paint Day at Fox Chase Playground, working on the Firefighter Daniel Sweeney memorial mural.

Northwest Philly

  • Photo above: The hard work of a multi-organization partnership has helped transform the interior (and exterior) of Wister Playground.
  • The Wissahickon Gateway Plan is a 12-month study to coordinate immediate and long-term improvements in the area, including trail connections. Help shape public investment and future development at a public meeting about the plan: October 30, 6:30-7:30 at Gustine Recreation Center.
  • This year marks 25 summers of the Houston Playground Men’s Summer Basketball League! Learn about the story behind this legendary league. 

South Philly

Southwest Philly

 


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