Be part of our success by supporting TTF's watershed improvement efforts! Make a donation and help us plant trees, clean up our creek, and teach community residents how to be watershed stewards.
Forgot to order a Father's Day or graduation gift? Support TTF by ordering your gifts through our Amazon link -- or by giving the gift of landscaping services through Awbury Landscape Services! TTF will receive 5% of your bill.
Julie Slavet, Executive Director
TTF STAFF UPDATE
Ashley Schmid at TTF's Watershed Milestones Award Ceremony & Reception
Ashley Schmid, TTF's first (and only) Director of Education & Outreach, resigned her position effective in early August, to move with her companion, Aster onto their next adventure. We will work to ensure a smooth transition for programs and partnerships.
Ashley has been an energetic, committed, hardworking, knowledgeable, delightful staff member -- it is difficult to imagine TTF without her. I know you will join me in expressing heartfelt thanks and good wishes to her.
If you are interested in applying for the position of Director of Education & Outreach, you can find the job listing here. Please email a cover letter and resume to Julie Slavet at [email protected]. No phone calls, please.
SUMMER WATERSHED EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY
The Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center (FWWIC) is a regional environmental education center administered by the Philadelphia Water Department and a great TTF partner. Its exhibits highlight past, present and future water-related environmental issues.
Is your child attending a summer recreation program? Want them to learn more about clean water in our city? This July and August, FWWIC will be offering summer programming for 3rd to 6th graders. This program explores the new and innovative ways Philadelphia is preventing water pollution. Youth will engage in hands-on projects that show how greening streets, rooftops and alleyways can help capture the rain before it goes down the drain. This program includes an interactive tour of the Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center and historic area.
Check out more information about FWWIC's summer programming here.
INSTALL A RAIN GARDEN THIS SUMMER!
Rain Garden at Vernon Park
With all of the rain we've been having, it's a perfect time to consider installing a rain garden on your property!
A rain garden is a shallow depression that can be planted with a variety of native trees, shrubs and grasses. The water that enters the garden will be taken up by the plants or slowly infiltrate back into the soil. This helps prevent combined sewer systems from overflowing and polluting our waterways. Installing a rain garden can be a simple and effective way to beautify your landscape and manage stormwater.
Hereare instructions on how to build a rain garden on your property!
Find more rain garden resources here! Download TTF's Rain Garden brochure here. See how beautiful a rain garden can be by visiting the Vernon Park Rain Garden, located near the entrance of Center in the Park, at 5818 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia.
HELP PROTECT OUR PARKS FROM ATV DAMAGE THIS SUMMER
With summer fast approaching, we're seeing more ATVs and dirt bikes on our streets and in our parks. These vehicles are not legal in Philadelphia. They are also frequently operated in a reckless manner without regard for pedestrians and other vehicles. They also damage the parks we all care about, including Tacony Creek Park. The Police Department needs your help in stopping the illegal use of these vehicles.
If you see a dirt bike or ATV on the street, please call 911. Be prepared to provide a description of the vehicle and its operator. Police officers are trained to evaluate the danger that stopping these vehicles will pose to the public before attempting to pull them over. It is extremely important that citizens make every attempt to stay out of the way of these violators to avoid a potentially dangerous situation.
Another way to help is by letting us know who has these vehicles and where they are being stored. The Police Department provides several ways for citizens to submit tips. Tips can be sent via text message to short code PPDTIP, emailed to [email protected], or phoned in to 215-686-TIPS (8477). Please provide any information you have available such as the exact location where the vehicle is being stored, the owners of the vehicle, or if the vehicle is stolen.
GERMANTOWN RESIDENTS: JOIN OUR TREE TENDERS GROUP!
Volunteers at a Germantown Tree Tenders Planting Event
The Germantown Tree Tenders work to increase the number of trees in Germantown, which help to absorb and filter stormwater, while beautifying our community. TTF is working with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) to support its Tree Tenders groups across our watershed. Help inspire a love of trees in Germantown by becoming a group leader! Organizers, volunteer coordinators, liaisons to PHS, and community outreach leaders are all needed! If you are interested in getting involved with the Germantown Tree Tenders, email [email protected] or call 215-844-8100.
Want a tree on your street? Support tree planting by submitting a street tree application to the Germantown Tree Tenders group. Please share the application form with your friends and neighbors. Make sure completed applications are returned to [email protected] or sent to TTF, One Awbury Arboretum, Philadelphia PA 19144 by Friday, July 27.
The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's City Gardens Contest recognizes Philadelphians for their dedicated and imaginative gardening skills and offers them the opportunity to compete for top honors in several gardening categories. Individual gardeners may enter front yard or backyard gardens, and gardens grown exclusively in containers. Community gardeners may participate by entering vegetable and flower gardens, urban farms, parks and garden blocks.
THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED MAKE MAY 31 A SUCCESS!
We'd like to thank all of the sponsors and silent auction donors who helped to make our May 31 event a success! Please learn more about these watershed-minded businesses by clicking on the links below. Be sure to patronize these businesses...and let them know TTF sent you!
June 1-29: Botanical Art Exhibition at Friends Hospital [Partner Event] Historic Friends Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia, whose landscape is now a training and employment site for PHS's Roots to Re-Entry program, is celebrating its 200th year with special events, including "A Living Legacy: Contemporary Botanical Art" (June 1-29). The exhibit features work by members of the Philadelphia Society of Botanical Illustrators and PHS's watercolor class. There will also be programs on eighteenth-century botanist John Bartram. For details and tickets, please contact Carol Delgado at [email protected] or 215-831-3000. June 6: Rain Barrel Workshop with the Abington EAC Attend this free rain barrel workshop to learn about watershed issues and how rain barrels are part of the solution. A rain barrel collects and stores rainwater from a rooftop. You will learn how to install and maintain a rain barrel and what to do with the collected water. By temporarily holding back rainwater during a storm, you can help reduce pollution in our creeks and rivers -- our sources of drinking water. By attending this workshop you will have a chance to purchase a discounted rain barrel from the Primex Garden Center in Glenside. DATE: Wednesday, June 6, 2012 TIME: 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. PLACE: McKinley Fire Company No. 1, Abington, PA 19027 CONTACT: RSVP to Ashley Schmid at [email protected]
June 23: Tacony Creek Park Beginner's Botany Walk Join TTF and naturalist Peter Kurtz from the Pennypack Environmental Center as he leads us on a tour of Tacony Creek Park where you will learn how to look at plants like an expert while enjoying a walk along Tacony Creek. DATE: Saturday, June 23, 2012 TIME: 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. PLACE: Tabor Rd entrance to Tacony Creek Park at 5150 Tabor Rd Philadelphia, PA 19120 (across from Whitaker Mills, between E. Olney Ave and F St) CONTACT: Ashley Schmid at [email protected] or 215-844-8100
June 23: Rain Barrel Workshop with the Springfield EAC Attend this free rain barrel workshop to learn about watershed issues and how rain barrels are part of the solution. A rain barrel collects and stores rainwater from a rooftop. You will learn how to install and maintain a rain barrel and what to do with the collected water. By temporarily holding back rainwater during a storm, you can help reduce the pollution in our creeks and rivers -- our sources of drinking water. By attending this workshop you will have a chance to purchase a discounted rain barrel from the Primex Garden Center in Glenside. DATE: Saturday, June 23, 2012 TIME: 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. PLACE: Springfield Township Building, 1510 Paper Mill Rd, Wyndmoor, PA 19038 CONTACT: Ashley Schmid at [email protected] or 215-844-8100 June 30: Tacony Creek Park Bird and Plant Nature Walk At this event, David Hewitt and Daniel Efroymson will be leading a walk through the Friends Hospital grounds and along Tacony Creek. We will be identifying and learning about birds and plants found in the area. DATE: Saturday, June 30, 2012 TIME: 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. PLACE: Friends Hospital, 4641 Roosevelt Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19124
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 projects.
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