Happy New Year! Thank you for your support during a busy, exciting 2011. We are gearing up for an even more jam-packed year of watershed education and restoration.
We would like to announce that we have selected The Source as the title for this TTF newsletter. TTF intern Damian VanHart suggested this name through our competitive Newsletter Naming Contest. Look for The Source in your inbox around the first of each month, and watch for our new look coming in February!
Thanks to everyone who came out and supported TTF for our Helping Hands Week at the Trolley Car Diner. Many delicious meals later, we are pleased with the dollars raised through this effort!
This year marks TTF's fifth anniversary! I'd like to invite you to celebrate this milestone by joining me in one of my favorite New Year's traditions -- a countdown list. Here are the Top Five ways that you can be part of our effort to improve the health of our watershed
1) Celebrate with us! We're planning lots of special events this year and want you to come along! Please read The Source so you don't miss out on any opportunities, especially our fifth anniversary gala celebration and awards ceremony this spring.
2) Make friends for us! If you care about our work, be sure to forward this newsletter on to your friends, neighbors, and colleagues, and invite them to sign up on their own. We are counting on you to help us build our list.
3) Practice stormwater management at home! Check out What Residents Can Do and install a rain barrel, downspout planter, or rain garden at your home. Make sure you let us know about your project, so we can count and recognize your efforts.
4) Volunteer with TTF! We have lots of interesting, critical tasks and projects both in our office and in the field, from tree surveys and planting to fundraising. Lend a hand -- we need you!
5) Make a financial donation! Your dollars help make our projects a reality. Donating is easy! You can make a direct financial donation or even support our efforts when you shop at Amazon.
Thank you and best wishes for a happy, healthy new year. I look forward to meeting you in 2012 at a TTF event!
Julie Slavet
LOOKING BACK AND AHEAD IN TACONY CREEK PARK
Looking for Mourning Doves
On December 17, TTF hosted our final 2011 Love Your Watershed Event in Tacony Creek Park. Community members came out to learn about the watershed, look for birds, and enjoy the brisk December morning. We also enjoyed the company of Teddie, a friendly Philadelphia Water Department spokesdog.
In 2011, TTF hosted three Love Your Watershed Days, held five cleanups removing over 5,000 pounds of trash, and taught 11 watershed lessons. We also met with elected officials, community leaders and hundreds of residents to discuss how to improve the health, safety and vitality of the Tacony Creek Park area. After extensive networking and information gathering, we are developing programs to serve the community and the environment this spring and summer. This winter, we will begin the community engagement and planning process for a rain garden project in the Tacony Creek Park area.
Please stay tuned for updates on how you can be involved in revitalizing Tacony Creek Park and supporting watershed health through fun events and activities. We look forward to seeing you in the park in 2012!
See more about this past year's efforts here and here.
EXCITING WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT EFFORTS IN CHELTENHAM!
Julie Slavet at Breyer Court
There were some wonderful watershed improvement activities implemented in Cheltenham Township this past fall! In November, TTF Executive Director Julie Slavet stopped by a native riparian buffer planting at Breyer Court townhomes, where severe storms had damaged a number of old-growth trees, leading to an overgrowth of invasive species. Breyer Court residents spearheaded this effort, and volunteers planted hundreds of new native trees along the creek, which will provide canopy, wildlife habitat and improved stormwater infiltration, among other benefits. Additionally, the Cheltenham Environmental Advisory Committee led a riparian buffer planting at Parkview Park. You can check out this great wrap-up and slideshow of the event. TTF also attended the Township's Electronic Waste Collection. eForce Compliance collected a total of 43,433 pounds of electronic waste, including 4759 pounds of air conditioners, 510 pounds of steel and iron, and 38,164 pounds of general electronic waste. Recycling these items keeps them out of landfills, where they can leach into our waterways and cause tremendous damage.
We are looking forward to more fantastic watershed improvement activities in Montgomery County in 2012!
Stephen Heverin represents Springfield Township. Stephen is a member of the Springfield Township Environmental Advisory Committee, serving since August 2010. He became Chair of the EAC in April 2011. Stephen is currently a Web Technology Engineer for Pfizer Pharmaceuticals.
Ian Litwin is the Community Planner for the Lower Northeast and North Delaware Districts at the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. He is currently working with City agencies to create a greenway and trail along the Frankford Creek in Juniata Park and Frankford.
Hannah Mazzaccaro represents the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. She is a Certified Planner with the American Institute of Certified Planners, with more than a decade of private sector, public sector, and non-profit experience. Hannah currently works with local governments to improve their land use planning policies and regulations and engage citizens to envision and plan vibrant and sustainable communities.
Sarah Wu is the Policy and Outreach Manager in the City of Philadelphia Mayor's Office of Sustainability. Prior to joining the Office of Sustainability, Sarah helped implement Opportunity NYC, an incentive program working to improve the health, employment, and education of New Yorkers living in poverty. Sarah also served on New York University's Sustainability Task Force, helping the University make green choices in its long-term planning and facilities management.
John Wynne represents Rockledge Borough. John is the Chairman of the Rockledge Borough Planning Commission and Chairman of the Rockledge Borough Shade Tree Commission. He has served as Chief Cameraman for New Jersey Public Television since 1980.
RECYCLE CARTONS AND CHRISTMAS TREES IN PHILADELPHIA!
Great news! You can now recycle food and beverage cartons (milk, juice, broth, soup, soy milk, etc.) in Philadelphia! Just put your empty cartons in your recycling bin each week.
You can also recycle your Christmas tree in Philadelphia!
Between 8:00 am and 6:00 pm from Monday, January 3 through Saturday, January 14(except Sunday, Jan. 8), drop your tree off at one of the City's three Sanitation Convenience Centers:
Trees must be free of decorations, ties, bags or any other wrappings. Trees left at your curb will not be recycled, but treated as common trash.
This is the Street Department's 24th year offering Christmas tree recycling. Let's make it the best one yet!
WANTED: SMALL TINS
TTF is collecting empty candy and mint tins to help protect our watershed. We will work with school students to decorate the tins and distribute them at our events so that conscientious smokers can keep their cigarette butts off our streets and out of our creeks! Contact Steph Clymer at steph@ttfwatershed.org for more information.
UPCOMING EVENTS
January 15 & 16: Arcadia University's FREE Shredding, eWaste and Repurposing Event! [Partner Event] Stop by to drop off your used -- but still usable -- items! Arcadia is hoping to fulfill the wish lists of many non-profit organizations, which include: clothes, toys, tools, household items, cell phones, pet supplies, canned goods, etc. A free maximum security shredding service and eWaste drive will also be featured. Any items with a plug will be collected. This event is free and open to the public. For a complete list of accepted items click here. DATE: Sunday, January 15th and Monday, January 16, 2012 TIME: 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. PLACE: Arcadia University's campus at the Murphy Hall parking lot. Follow signs from the Church Road entrance. CONTACT: If you have any questions please email the Community Service Office at communityservice@arcadia.edu or call 215-572-4000.
January 16: Martin Luther King Day of Service [Partner Event] Join Greater Philadelphia Cares, Awbury Arboretum and the Chew and Belfield Neighbors Club for an all-out neighborhood clean-up event in Germantown. Come prepared to work outside and enjoy a fun day of meaningful service alongside neighbors and friends! Gloves and tools will be provided, though you are welcome to bring your own labeled tools and gear. DATE: Monday, January 16, 2012 TIME: 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. PLACE: Meet at 6211 Chew Avenue, Philadelphia, PA, 19138 CONTACT: Rev. Williams at 215-849-8021 *TTF will be participating in various service events throughout our watershed. For a complete list of service opportunities in the Greater Philadelphia area, see this list.
January 16: Vernon Park Cleanup [Partner Event] Come out to Vernon Park to help build more fences around our newly-planted trees, dig out the chain link fence and tree roots in the old compost pile, rake leaves and pick up trash. DATE: Monday, January 16, 2012 TIME: 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. PLACE: Vernon Park, 5818 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia CONTACT: Sue Finch at SueMFinch@aol.com or Ruth Seeley at ruthseeley@givewings.com
January 19: History of Philadelphia's Water System Lecture [Partner Event] Through historical imagery along with an animated presentation, the "dynamic duo" of Adam Levine and C. Drew Brown will present the topic of how we came to filter our drinking water in Philadelphia. C. Drew Brown is the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) Manager of Public Education and Adam Levine is a PWD Historical Consultant. DATE: Thursday, January 19, 2012 TIME: 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. PLACE: Fairmount Waterworks Interpretive Center, 640 Water Works Drive, Philadelphia CONTACT: Please RSVP by January 13. For reservations or more information, please call 215-685-0723.
TTF's mission is to enhance the health and vitality of the Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Creek and its watershed. We initiate and support efforts to restore the health of the watershed, and to mobilize our communities as watershed stewards through community outreach, networking, educational programs, and project coordination and implementation.
TTF is collecting empty candy and mint tins to help protect our watershed. We will work with school students to decorate the tins and distribute them at our events so that conscientious smokers can keep their cigarette butts off our streets and out of our creeks! Contact Steph Clymer at 
