Community Service Projects
Honor King Legacy

Lower, Middle and Upper School students at Penn Charter participated in the 12th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service with activities including blanket-making; cooking; recording books-on-tape; sorting and packing donated children's books, safety equipment and clothes; and bridging communities through lacrosse. Faculty and parents joined students in the activities for "a day on, not a day off" and worked in collaboration with Cradles to Crayons, the Food Project, the St. Francis Inn and PhiladelphiaReads.

Tom Rickards, chair of Penn Charter's religion department, read an excerpt from one of King's works that set the tone for the day. "I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, other-centered men can build up."

Penn Charter parent Ken Holdsman came with his sons Gregory and Daniel to participate in the activities. "We wanted to honor Dr. King's legacy and to have the kids understand all the dimensions of King's life" said Holdsman, of Mt. Airy. "Service, prayer, direct action and protest are all things we want our children to learn about."

Members of the Lower School community gathered in the activity room to make fleece blankets for children in need. Blankets of maroon and olive, purple and fuschia, and of course, blue and yellow, were made by many hands tying the two pieces of fleece together. Parents and their children, classmates and friends worked side by side to make 46 blankets, which will be sent to a child advocacy organization. Fourth grader Tyler Williams said, "I just think it's nice that all the Lower School can be together and work on the same project. And it's nice to help families who need it." Tyler's classmate Holly Webb said, "It was fun to make the blankets. I think the person will be happy to get it and to be warm when it rains or snows." PC parent Linda Sullivan-Webb brought Holly and her other daughter, second grader Juliet, because, "they need to learn how to give."

Middle School students descended upon the cafeteria kitchen to prepare baked ziti casseroles and turkey dinners that will be frozen and later distributed across Philadelphia. Students donned gloves and mixed the ziti in enormous bowls while others stirred gravy for the turkey dinners. The kitchen was a flurry of activity, and the students were happy to be there. "I'm here because I feel like it's the right thing to do. I enjoy cooking and if I was less fortunate, I'd want people helping me, too," said seventh grader Steven Miller as he waited to help wash pots. Eighth grader Joya Ahmad decided to participate in the Day On because it combined her interests and people's needs, "There are lots of people who could use the food, and I like to help and to cook. If I have something to give and people have a need, you can put two and two together; it's as easy as math. And I'm here because I have a lot of energy!" Jessica Star, who is in the sixth grade, came for a similar reason: "I wanted to come. I like to cook. My parents thought it would be good for me to come in, too, because it's a way I could help and it's something I'm good at."

Penn Charter students and families also went to Martin Luther King High School to pack educational and everyday supplies that have been collected for Cradle to Crayons, an organization new to Philadelphia that distributes books, safety equipment, school supplies, toys and clothing to children and families in need. Also at MLK High, Penn Charter students made meals for the hungry and homeless. Several students served the evening meal at St. Vincent's Inn, Philadelphia's largest soup kitchen.

While many Upper School students participated in activities at MLK High, the girls and boys basketball teams collaborated to put books on tape for PhiladelphiaReads. "We're reading books and recording them so kids can learn to read by our voices," said senior Tom Caramanico. The athletes reported that putting a book on tape is a lot harder than you might think. Coach Natasha Pronga was helping the players with the recordings and noticed that "once you get over the difficulty of giving each character a voice, it's easier and you can get into it." Girls coach Diana Caramanico said, "It is good for the teams to come together. We thought it would be great to do a service project on this day and not just have practice." Boys coach Jim Philips agreed. "We've participated in the holiday gift drives before, but it's good to do something new."

Joyous shouts echoed from Penn Charter's field house mid-morning as young girls from across the city participated in a free lacrosse clinic run by the girls varsity team. Both beginner and intermediate players attended the free event that focused on fundamentals. Penn Charter third graders Maya Dzwil and Sarah Barr had never played before today. They worked hard on passing and encouraged each other. As the girls practiced, the atmosphere was supportive and relaxed with a focus on fun and on getting to know each other and the game. Thirty-one girls from all over the area attended the clinic, coming from Springside School, New Media Technology Charter School, Central Bucks Middle School, Plymouth Meeting Friends School and Belmont Charter School, among others. In addition to the varsity players acting as coaches, nine other girls from Penn Charter attended the clinic. "Many kids are just learning the game," said Debbie White, girls varsity lacrosse coach and chair of the Health and Physical Education department at Penn Charter, "My team is doing this as service. If it works out, it'd be great to make it an annual event." Ganayah Cantey is about to start a lacrosse unit in her PE class at New Media Tech. "I like the game. It is fun and it's new. I wanted to play baseball, but when I heard about lacrosse, I said, 'what's that?' Now I like it and I'd love to join a team." Shakirah Bickerstaff is a goalie on the team at Belmont Charter School. She said she heard about the clinic through her English teacher, who is also her lacrosse coach. "I think it [lacrosse] is fun and different. It's unique!" Penn Charter's lacrosse team, with the support of the Black Women in Sports Foundation, U.S. Lacrosse and several parents, organized the clinic. “Lacrosse is a suburban kind of sport,” White said, explaining the players’ interest in bridging urban and suburban communities. “U.S. Lacrosse tries to promote it by doing clinics. We are doing the same as they are: contacting city schools who have just started the program"