FitC Volunteers Spring Up for Rittenhouse Flower Market Centennial Do You Live in a High-Rise? Will You Help to Bring a FitC Program There? And Everything is Beautiful at the BalletX...Especially with Chocolate and Wine FitC Braves the Storm, Learns About the Jews of Shanghai Volunteer Corner: Back to MANNA Are You Red Cross Ready?

Nothing so Rare - FitC Behind the Scenes at the Library The Winter of Our Discontent: FitC Braves the Weather but Stays Safe Reading Terminal Up, Down, Up Again-and at William Penn House Feeling Young and Happy and Irish-From Businessman to Dancer Behind the Scenes at Philadelphia's Athenaeum Healthy Aging / Wellness

Readers might have walked past the floral and plant displays in Rittenhouse Square every May and perhaps even have made a purchase or two. But this year the 100-year-old Flower Market has established an exclusive relationship with Friends in the City. Notable this May 7th and 8th will be the presence of multiple FitC volunteers-wearing attractive khaki aprons imprinted with the FitC logo -- at the booths of the Rittenhouse Flower Market for Children's Charities.   Read more

FitC members modeling our new aprons.

Joseph shows the first books -- in stone!

What a city treasure! Eleven FitC book-lovers gathered on January 29 to tour the Rare Book Department of the Parkway Central Library on Vine Street. Our group was welcomed by Janine Pollock, Head of the Rare Book Department, and was then guided by Joseph, whose last name we never learned but who for over an hour was a flowing fountain of information about the Library's collection. 

If you're a Newsletter reader living in a high-rise that has a community or conference room, you can help to bring a FitC program to your building.  We've currently identified four programs that could be offered in such a venue:

More portable FitC programs may be identified soon.  Contact Evelyn Eskin by emailing evelyneskin@mac.com to discuss the possibility of FitC where you live. 

Rittenhouse Square Snow Fort.

 

 

BalletX, Philadelphia's premier contemporary ballet company, challenges the boundaries of classical ballet by encouraging formal experimentation within rigorous technique. On Sunday, February 16th, 19 FitC members attended a matinee performance showcasing four vibrant works by three choreographers, including two world premieres. The music varied from Vivaldi to Gorecki, through Nat King Cole, Sakamoto and Klezmer.   Read more

Tri-lingual Monument to the Jews of Shanghai - Mandarin, Hebrew and English

Bob Alcorn.

 

"I still feel young," Bob Alcorn says, "and I am most happy to be associated with FitC and the new downtown Philly experience." Perhaps it's the love of dancing that marks Bob's personality: he says his e-mail username (IrishBob) signals that he is 2nd-generation Irish with grandparents from both Galway and Donegal and that he "does his best to uphold their musical traditions, at least through their dancing."  Read more

The Great Globe.

You can find an Athenaeum in Chicago and Providence and some other older American cities and towns. It would have been founded in the 1800s and served as some kind of library where citizens could gather for cultural events, especially those involving authors and books.  Philadelphia's Athenaeum, perhaps the most distinguished of its type because of its collections, dates from 1814 and moved into its present Washington Square building in 1845, accumulating rare books and artifacts all the while. And guided by Executive Director Sandra Tatman in late February, fifteen FitCers were captivated by many of its treasures and beauties.  Read more

Red Cross Workers.

Emergencies have an unpleasant way of ambushing us, but they are inevitable. According to the Red Cross, it's easier to deal with them if we anticipate, plan, and prepare. FitC member Bob Schmidt, an emergency services volunteer and instructor with the Southeastern Pennsylvania (SEPA)
chapter of the American Red Cross, presented valuable tips on emergency preparedness to a FitC group on Feb. 18th.   Read more

Forty-three percent of people over 65 have some hearing loss. That their hearing is of concern to FitC members is evidenced by the over-subscription of the lunch program on hearing aids scheduled for March 13 when FitC Members with long experience in wearing hearing aids will share their experiences in buying and wearing them.

Reliable information can be found at the website of the Hearing Loss Association of America, www.hearingloss.org, which recently started a chapter in Philadelphia, and the consumer site of the American Academy of Audiologists, www.howsyourhearing.org. Sage advice on purchasing a hearing aid is given by Consumer Reports, www.consumerreports.org/cro/hearing-aids/buying-guide.htm, accessible to nonsubscribers (written in 2008, updated in 2013).

Ice Ripples and Ice Sheets.

• Book Club 1 was canceled and rescheduled for a week later.
• The only thing I canceled was the Emergency Preparedness class which (by the way) was re-scheduled for Tuesday and then the prediction came for snow that day.
• Volunteering at MANNA and St. John's went on during two snowstorms with some not attending. (Jane Weiss) 
• Any event I was involved with went on as scheduled, although with fewer participants. (Mignon Adams)
• The Community Committee meeting was rescheduled.
• Schuylkill River Walkers are a pretty intrepid, committed and enthusiastic group of walkers who meet three mornings a week. But this winter, the weather -- snow, low temperatures, and ice underfoot -- has succeeded in daunting us enough that we have had to repeatedly cancel. Over the last month, I think we were lucky if we got in one walk a week! That said, we are all optimistic and convinced that Spring will come. In the meantime, we watch the weather forecast and expect to walk this week...taking one day at a time! (Lee Junker)
• Our group of seven writers has continued to meet every other Friday from 10:30 - 12:30. Friday's have been luckier in terms of dodging the onslaught of snowstorms. Of course, there has been ice on the ground and some days, it's been treacherous as members have braved their way to my house. I guess you could say we are a group of intrepid writers willing to slog and slide our way through ice and snow in search of the next great story. Two members of our group were quite lucky and had chosen this time to vacation in Florida -- one for two weeks, one for over a month. (Judy Heller)
• Riverfront has been lucky. One dinner had to be postponed by one night. Unfortunately, some folks were unable to attend on the new date but others were added. It does cost the caterer and Riverfront people many hours to make such a change, leading me to say I hope we have better luck in the future. This might be a good time to emphasize that those who register for our dinners must cancel 48 hours prior to the event or pay for the dinner. (Brearley Karsch)

The Athenaeum's Great Clock.

Our Athenaeum is a subscription/membership library with many books of interest to members, especially a major collection pertaining to architecture.  Housed in its magnificent high-ceiling three-story building are many unique objects: a very large globe of the Earth and its countries, chandeliers and gasoliers (since converted to electricity), portraits of 19th century gentlemen and ladies, grandfather clocks (see picture at right) and a huge wall clock. There is even a chess room with tables.

Especially interesting to some of us was the collection pertaining to Joseph Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon and exile to Philadelphia. We noted a painting depicting him as Emperor of Spain, some of his furniture and artifacts, and a prominent half-size sculpture of his sister atop her sarcophagus, also half-size. And we learned much about how the Athenaeum operates and how to join. FitC visitors strongly suggest that we repeat this tour.

No one is immune to emergencies, which can arise from a number of unanticipated events such as floods, extreme weather, power outages, residential fires, earthquakes, or terrorism. The Red Cross recommends that each of us becomes "Red Cross Ready" in case of a potential disaster or emergency.

Bob explained that our chances of surviving a disaster are greatly enhanced by following 3 basic steps: (1) make a disaster kit, (2) make a disaster plan and (3) know how to maintain situational awareness before, during and after disaster strikes. He also highlighted ways to "shelter in place," should that be an effective strategy for staying safe. Bob emphasized that once you become "Red Cross Ready," you should share what you've learned with family and friends.

In the course of covering hundreds of local disaster responses, Bob says the words he hears most often from people experiencing a disaster are "I never thought it would happen to me."

We're all familiar with blood drives, of course, but the SEPA chapter of the Red Cross employs more than 1,700 disaster relief volunteers who deliver services 24/7, 365 days a year. In 2013 alone, SEPA responded to 736 disasters, trained 73,770 people, and distributed 1,599,906 educational materials.

If you missed the session but would like more information about preparedness, here are some useful resources: www.redcross.org (where you also learn about volunteering and donating to the American Red Cross), www.ready.gov and
www.readynotifypa.org.

Red Cross Ready.

Red Cross ERV.

Friends in the City (FitC) is a non-profit organization of older adults in Center City Philadelphia.  We work to create a community of people who want to enjoy everything our city has to offer.  And we believe in giving back to institutions and organizations that work to help those in need. FitC programs are planned and organized by volunteers.

The annual fee to join FitC is just $60. We are happy to have guests attend our events, and we welcome those who want to sample an activity before becoming a member. FitC members receive priority notice of events that often fill up quickly. To join: Download, print and complete this form and send it with a check for $60. to FitC, P.O. Box 2002, Philadelphia, PA 19103 or pay using a credit card at our website www.FriendsCenterCity.org.

Wondering what FitC activities are taking place this week? 

Friends in the City | 267-639-5257 | info@friendscentercity.org | www.friendscentercity.org
22 S. Front Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Mailing Address:  P.O. Box 2002, Philadelphia, PA 19103