Swarthmore PAC Center hosting Cinco de Mayo
Norwood Library cuts ribbon on new ADA compliant door
SWARTHMORE » It’s almost Fiesta Time!
The community is invited to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, a day of Mexican culture and heritage, on Sunday, May 5 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Park Avenue Community (PAC) Center, 129 Park Ave., Swarthmore.
The special event will feature colorful folk dances, music, arts, crafts, face painting, traditional tastes and more in a special event for the whole family,
The PAC Center’s upcoming Family Fun Arts and Culture Series spring event will make Mexican culture and heritage come to life with the return of Nuuxakun, a children’s Mexican Folkloric Dance Group serving the Greater Philadelphia Area. Its name is derived from the Oaxacan Mixtec culture meaning “people who laugh.”
The community-family based company will perform traditional dances of the holiday in colorful costumes culminating in a parade and pinata fun for take-home treats and audience participation. Interactive activities include a classic Spanish sing-along, themed face painting with creative artist Dayesla Ixtli, making paper flower garlands and egg maracas, and enjoying tacos, chips and salsa.
Other special guests, all Swarthmore residents, include University of Delaware’s Professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies, Persephone Braham, who will talk about famous Latin artists and their work in a slide show ‘n’ tell and Mexican art and culture
writer/ journalist, Leticia Roa Nixon, of Philatinos Media, along with their director Olga Renteria, cohosting for a bi-lingual exchange.
The event is geared for families with kids ages 2 to 10, but all ages are welcome. Reservations are requested.
The event is free, but donations of $5 per person or $20 per family are appreciated. Donations support PAC youth community programs in collaboration with The Creative Living Room. More information is available under the “Events” tab at at www.thepac.center.
The Family Fun Arts and Culture Series is community events hosted by the PAC Center once a season that feature curated live arts programming geared toward young audiences. Programs provide engaging, educational and authentic cultural experiences with the goal of inspiring creativity and curiosity about the world.
FFACS encourages enrichment learning and builds diversity in neighborhoods through exposure to performances by native
artists and educators.
The community is invited to Marple Historical Society’s next presentation, featuring author Tim Lake, who will discuss his new book, “The Bergdoll Boys: America’s Most Notorious Millionaire Draft Dodgers,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18 at Marple Christian Church, 475 Lawrence Road, Broomall.
The heirs of a brewing fortune, Bergdolls made the area around Broomall their playground in the early 1900s, becoming champion race car drivers and pioneer aviation heroes.
When the Army jailed Grover Bergdoll for desertion from World War I, family fixers arranged with the White House to let him out long enough to search for a fortune in buried gold. Instead, he escaped to Germany
for a decades-long legal and financial battle over the federal prosecution of draft dodgers.
Light refreshments will be served after the free talk. Donations are greatly appreciated and help the Marple Historical Society to continue to preserve Marple Township’s history. For more information, visit www.marplehistoricalsociety.org.
Norwood Library unveils ADA compliant door, new outdoor book drop
To celebrate National Library Week, April 7 through 13, the Norwood Public Library held a ribbon cutting ceremony on April 11 to celebrate the installation of their new Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant door.
The new door allows easier access to the Library for those with disabilities as well as those with children, strollers or other considerations.
On hand for the ceremony were Norwood Mayor Robert Narcavage; Tracy Somani, library board president; Library Board of Trustees; Eileen Baker, library director; and library staff and patrons.
The door project was supported in part through a grant from the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, Pennsylvania Department of Education, with funds provided from the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund.
Additional funding was provided by the borough and fundraising efforts through the library. The library staff would also like to thank library patrons,
the trustees board, Catania Engineering and A to U Services for all of their work and support for the project.
The library at 513 Welcome Ave., Norwood, also has a new outdoor book drop, located on the patio of the library and accessible 24 hours a day.
The library is a member of the Delaware County Library system, currently serving about 5,800 patrons. The library offers materials for the public to check out, including books, movies and music, hotspots, video game equipment, podcasting equipment, puzzles and more.
The library also offers free Wi-Fi, printing, faxing, free notary services and programming for all ages. For more information, call 610-534-0693 or visit www. norwoodpubliclibrary.com.
DCCC recognized as Center of Excellence for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education
Delaware County Community College is one of only 32 institutions nationwide
to be selected by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) as a 2024 Center of Excellence for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education (CoE). The designation recognizes and promotes support to postsecondary maritime training programs that prepare students for careers in the maritime industry.
“The CoE designation recognizes the tremendous value that your institution provides to our nation by developing and preparing students for demanding careers in our vitally important maritime industry,” said Maritime Administrator Ann Phillips, in a letter to college President Marta Yera Cronin. “Your graduates have made outstanding contributions to the industry over the years, which is an excellent testimonial to the superior academic and professional education and training they received while attending DCCC.”
MARAD will work with the CoE designees to help advance recruitment of stu
Marple Historical Society presents author of ‘The Bergdoll Boys: America’s Most Notorious Millionaire Draft Dodgers’
dents and faculty, enhance facilities and award student credit for military service. The designees also potentially could receive assistance in the form of surplus equipment or temporary use of MARAD vessels.
“Our country depends on a highly skilled mariner workforce to strengthen both our economy and our national security,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The 32 Centers of Excellence we are designating will promote training opportunities outside of traditional four-year degree programs and will bring more Americans into these great maritime careers.”
DCCC has a long history of working with various segments of the Philadelphia maritime industry offering essential education, training and apprenticeships in welding, shipbuilding, foundry, rigging, safety, crane operations, industrial skills leadership, transportation and logistics, cargo and casting and molding. The college’s training includes a welding program offered
free to students by Philly Shipyard Inc. and the college via the Collegiate Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development.
“Over the years the college has forged many solid partnerships with business and industry, union, federal, state and community leaders to the benefit of thousands of students and the Greater Philadelphia region,” noted Cronin.
Section 51706 of title 46 United States Code authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to designate a domestic maritime workforce training and education entity as a “center of excellence” if such entity, among other things, is demonstrably successful in maritime workforce training and education. For more information visit www.maritime.dot.gov.
Penncrest seniors battle RTM fifth graders at after-prom fundraiser
Penncrest High School Senior Coass Boosters will present a game show, Are Our Seniors Smarter Than Our Fifth Graders, at 3 p.m. Sunday April 21 in the Penncrest Auditorium. Fifth
grade students from all four elementary schools will participate against a team of 12th graders, with a special round against Rose Tree Media School District staff.
Raffle basket tickets will also be available for purchase, along with T-shirt sales and a concession stand. Those who arrive early can attend the toucha-truck event in Penncrest’s parking lot at 1:30 p.m.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students in grades K-12. Younger guests are free. District employees
get one free ticket if they show their badge. Payment for all tickets can be made through venmo@penncrest2024amprom or paid by cash or check at the door.
Proceeds will benefit the Penncrest AM Prom, a safe, drug and alcohol-free night immediately following the Senior Prom, packed with entertainment for all seniors and their dates.
Springfield wrestler wins Regional Wrestling Tournament, heads to Nationals
Zachary Russell, 14, of Springfield secured a 4-2 record in the Mid-Atlantic Regional Wrestling Tournament in Salisbury, Maryland on Saturday, April 13.
With regional success under his belt, Zachary now sets his sights on the upcoming National Tournament on May 4-5, where he aims to further demonstrate his skill and potential.