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Dear Friends:
See you on May 21!
Our annual celebration is just 15 days away. Join us to honor the accomplishments of heroes from across our watershed, network with key stakeholders, enjoy the beautiful vistas at the Juniata Golf Course, and support our critical work. Learn about our amazing sponsors and award winners and reserve your spot here. We don't want you to miss this watershed happening!
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Wissahickon Charter School is being honored as a TTF Watershed Educator.
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Protect Our Streams & Wetlands
Let's tell the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to restore protections for all streams and wetlands. Small streams and wetlands slow and trap floodwaters, recharge groundwater, filter pollution, and provide habitat for fish, birds, and wildlife. Businesses -- from agriculture to recreation to clean tech industries and craft brewers -- depend on these waters. They are critical to drinking water sources used by one in three Americans (117 million people). Those of us who live and work in the TTF watershed -- from the headwaters in Abington and Cheltenham downstream to Philadelphia -- know that all waterways are connected. Please take time to learn more and take action now at www.cleanwater.org/protect-clean-water.
Support Sustainability in Philadelphia
Our city has made tremendous sustainability progress over the past five years, but we have a lot more work to do. Making the Mayor's Office of Sustainability permanent is a necessary step for continued progress. Councilwoman Reynolds Brown and Councilman Kenney have co-sponsored legislation to make the Mayor's Office of Sustainability permanent within Philadelphia city government. The bill has been positively voted out of committee and is poised for final passage this Thursday, May 8. Because the legislation proposes a change to the City Charter, a 2/3 majority (11 votes) will be required for passage. If passed by Council, the initiative will go before voters in November.
We need your help -- let your City Council member know that you want them to ensure that we keep making progress on sustainability! Tell them to support Bill No. 130878 and Resolution No. 130884. You can find City Council information here and the letter TTF has sent to City Council here.
See you on May 21!
Julie
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| WATERSHED MILESTONES AROUND THE CORNER! |
At our third annual Watershed Milestones Award Ceremony & Reception on Wednesday, May 21, TTF will honor people, organizations, public agencies, and companies whose efforts in improving and protecting our watershed deserve special recognition.
Share the invite with your friends and colleagues!
Read about our award winners here.
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| GET YOUR FEET WET: BECOME A STREAMKEEPER! |
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Through our participation in the William Penn Foundation's Delaware Protection Program, TTF and the Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust (PERT) will work together to recruit, train, and support a cadre of citizen monitor water quality monitors for our creeks and tributaries. There are many miles of streams running through Montgomery County, and we need your help to keep an eye on how their health.
 If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Streamkeeper, please attend our introductory meeting next month! The program will feature an introduction to our organizations and projects, life in our stream, and how we will monitor water quality in our creeks. Watch your email for more information! WHAT: Get Your Feet Wet: Become a Streamkeeper WHEN: Wednesday, June 4 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 pm WHERE: Abington Friends School, 575 Washington Lane, Jenkintown 19046 |
Last month, the Philadelphia Parks Alliance (PPA) asked supporters, including TTF, to join with them to show strong, organized support for Parks & Recreation (PPR) at its City Council Budget budget hearing. As Commissioner Michael DiBerardinis testified, Council chambers were packed with PPR advocates from every neighborhood in the city.
Since this successful hearing, PPA has met with individual Council members and Mayor Nutter...and has received positive responses so far. This effort will continue.
Here are three PPA documents with budget information:
In addition, PPA wants as many parks users as possible to fill out a park programming survey here: survey.
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What great news for our watershed! Thanks to a Growing Greener II grant from the Pennsylvania Department  of Environmental Protection, Frankford Friends School is moving ahead with a project to green its historic campus and add stormwater management features.
The grant will enable the school to engage a stormwater engineer and landscape architect to develop a concept plan with elements like rain gardens, stormwater planters, and porous pavement. Continued here.
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TACONY CREEK PARK: THE WORD ON THE TRAIL
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April was a big month in Tacony Creek Park! We introduced lots of new people to the park with the Healthy Trails 5k run/walk. Over 120 people joined us on a beautiful day to race through the park on the new trail. More about race day here.
Earth Day brought even more new visitors to the park: Olney Christian School spruced up the park near Bingham and Roosevelt Boulevard, and American Rivers connected us with a wonderful volunteer group from MedImmune, which cleaned up the Rorer and Roosevelt Boulevard gateway! Read more about Earth Day in Tacony Creek Park here.
For Comcast Cares Day, we were invited by Philadelphia Parks & Recreation to host a planting event at the Olney Recreation Center rain garden, right up the hill from Tacony Creek Park. We planted native flowers and shrubs, and taught folks about how this rain gardens work to protect our creeks and parks! Read about all our Earth Day activities here.
As you can see, we're committed to working with lots of partners to bring fun, educational programs to Tacony Creek Park. We're excited about upcoming tree plantings and more, so check out our calendar to get involved! Let us know your ideas, keep in touch with us on Facebook and Twitter, and send us photos when you visit Tacony Creek Park.
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ALL DOG ALERT: JUNIATA SPOKESDOG NEEDED!
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If you'd like to know how your dog could be
PWD is looking for two-eco friendly dogs...one from Juniata... who want to help keep Philly's waterways clean!
Each spokesdog will be chosen at a community event and will win over $200 worth of prizes from local businesses. Photos of these winning pups will be used on promotional materials. Spokesdogs and owners will be required to attend at least 3 community events to distribute information on living the eco-friendly dog life.
If you're interested in submitting, don't wait! Deadline is Thursday, May 15!
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UPCOMING EVENTS
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Join us for a walk to look for birds residing in Philadelphia. Expect some good bird spotting (woodpeckers, chickadees, hawks, oh my!) Donuts, coffee and binoculars provided.
DATE: Saturday, May 10
TIME: 7:45 a.m. to 10 a.m.
PLACE: I Street and Ramona Ave, Philadelphia 19124
Join us, the Fairmount Park Conservancy, and Philadelphia Parks & Recreation to beautify Tacony Creek Park and the I Street and Ramona Avenue gateway by planting trees and shrubs! Supplies and refreshments provided.
DATE: Saturday, May 10
TIME: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
PLACE: I Street and Ramona Ave, Philadelphia, 19124
 Container grown native trees and shrubs, plus an expanded selection of native ferns, ground covers, grasses, and flowering perennials for sun and shade, a new collection of hypertufa pots, troughs, and bird baths, and native plant botanical drawings. Robin Irizarry of Fiddlehead Toys will showcase his hand carved toys and demonstrate wood carving demonstration. Moses DeHart will provide live music. DATE: Saturday, May 17 RAIN DATE: Sunday, May 18 TIME: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. PLACE: 773 Roslyn Avenue, Glenside 19038
WATERSHED MILESTONES AWARDS CEREMONY AND RECEPTION 
Celebrate with us! Our annual event is a wonderful opportunity to network, honor volunteers and partners, and raise funds for our critical work.
DATE: Wednesday, May 21
TIME: 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m
PLACE: Juniata Golf Club, 1391 E Cayuga St, Philadelphia 19124
CONTACT: Purchase tickets at wsm2014.eventbrite.com
TIRE CLEANUP AT BRISTOL STREET
Did you know that the Frankford Creek greenway will connect Tacony Creek Park's new trail to the Port Richmond Trail? In preparation for this new community asset, TTF is partnering with Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, the Greenbelt Overhaul Alliance of Levittown, Keep Philadelphia Beautiful, the Philadelphia Water Department, and Philadelphia Parks & Recreation to clean up a large illegal dump site. We will provide the dumpsters and equipment, you provide the elbow grease and enthusiasm! Volunteers must be age 16 and up. Please wear closed toe shoes, long pants and be prepared to work!
DATE: Saturday, May 31 TIME: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. PLACE: Meet at the parking lot behind 1610-1632 East Bristol St., Philadelphia 19124 MONTGOMERY COUNTY EVENTS All events are free unless noted otherwise!
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4500 Worth Street, Philadelphia, PA 19125 · 215.744.1853
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