Respondents to our most recent survey, about Joe Biden’s vice presidential pick, were internally divided.
Spotlight on: Indigo Healing Arts Collective
The Indigo Healing Arts Collective is a wellness sanctuary offering sacred movement, psychotherapy and bodywork. Their services include yoga, Pilates, guided meditation, sound-bath healing, massage, tarot and astrology readings, aromatherapy, counseling, and more.
One Preschool’s Response to COVID-19
COVID-19 or not, school must go on. The following Monday, teacher Sheri Carney wrote to the parents of her students in the SPNDS kindergarten enrichment program, “Are you familiar with Zoom?” In the days to come, we all would become familiar with Zoom. But for a hands-on school, a shift in perspective has been necessary.
Class of 2020: Facing the Future
On Sunday, over 400 Swarthmore students from all over the country and the world came together virtually, watching on their laptop screens, or maybe on their phones, the landscape that should have surrounded them. High school commencements are up next. Strath Haven High School students will graduate on Friday, June 5. A choreographed plan of staggered appointments will permit each graduate to receive their diploma, accompanied by two guests, and have their photograph taken to document the moment.
Swarthmore College Commencement 2020: By the Numbers
418: Graduating seniors. 418: Packages to be delivered to seniors containing a diploma, T-shirt, and cookies from Dining Services.
Crum Woods Memories
I moved to Swarthmore in 1987 before the birth of my first child. I had a dream before moving that I was sailing a boat on a beautiful river. That boat became the Crum Woods of Swarthmore College.
The Gravel Garden
For some time, I have been drawn to the aesthetics of a gravel garden. The plant palate can vary from prairie to Mediterranean to desert. The gravel garden’s aesthetic is definitely modern.
Farmers Market Adapts
The Swarthmore Farmers Market is opening on Saturday, June 6. There will be strawberries and scallions, cheese and chickens, peanut butter cookies and portobello mushrooms, just as there are every June. Other things will be different.
Anchor of Historically Black Neighborhood Approaches 100
If you walk down Bowdoin Avenue in Swarthmore, it might escape your notice that number 232 is not a residential house. This is Wesley African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church. The building opened its doors in 1927, to serve the small black neighborhood that had grown up at the end of the nineteenth century around Bowdoin, Brighton, Kenyon, and Union avenues. We wanted to share a bit of the church’s story as it approaches its 100th anniversary.
Jon Cohen, Cub Reporter
I am deeply pleased to announce to the community that the Swarthmorean has hired me as a cub reporter. I gave my wife, Mary, the news last evening.
From Academy to Yale: Local Man Runs Swarthmore Streets (All of Them)
A marathon plus five: That’s how many miles you have to run to cover all the streets in Swarthmore. Will Starr did just that earlier this month, embarking a journey that he named “Swarthmore in a Day.”
Moving In
Frankly, I never thought I would be living at Plush Mills. Now, 12 years later, I can tell you we made the right decision for the wrong reasons. Oh sure, the healthcare helped, and not having to go out for meals was great. But the best thing about living at Plush Mills is how easy it is to meet your new best friend.
Staying on the Same Page, Virtually
“There is no substitute for actually being together,” says Andrew Hauze, conductor and music director of the Delaware County Youth Orchestra (DCYO) and a senior lecturer at Swarthmore College. The COVID-19 pandemic has cancelled rehearsals, so he is finding creative ways to help his musicians continue to make music.
Wildlife Observations: May 22, 2020
Anthony Addison continues to see fox kits on the 300 block of Cornell Avenue in the early morning, and he submitted a totes adorbs photo of two of them frolicking. He believes there are five kits in the litter.
Crum Ruins Inspire Short Film
Mark Pappas has been running through the Crum Woods all his life. In the eighties, when he was growing up, he used to ride bikes there with his friends, and explore, and just hang out. But he never saw the ruins until this year. He decided to make a short film about them.
Voter Q&A
Voting — like so much else — is different this year. The Swarthmorean has assembled some information about the upcoming primary, originally scheduled for April 28.
Recommended Virtual Offerings
Penelope Reed has helped us assemble a list of real (mostly local) virtual events we hope might entertain, inspire, and enlighten you.
Remembering Ny’Ques
Several years ago, I dipped my toe into reporting youth sports by covering Chester Panther youth football. Back then, there was one 8-year-old on the Chester Panthers peewee team who stood out. Every game this kid played, he was the highlight reel. As he grew up and moved into the upper divisions of the football program, he continued to dominate. He kept growing, and he kept getting better. I was looking forward to seeing him play this fall as a 13-year-old. And then I got the text that this 13-year-old boy was shot in the head. He died the next day.
Student-to-Student Initiatives Fill Gaps as College Goes Virtual
When COVID-19 prematurely ended the residential semester at Swarthmore College in March, some students were left without clear alternatives. Since the crisis began, the college has raised more than $150,000 in emergency funds, using the money to help students with immediate needs caused by the pandemic. Dean of Students Jim Terhune is proud of the college’s response to this crisis, “particularly with respect to our commitment to low-income/high-need students,” he wrote in an email. However, some students still found their needs unmet.
Board Hears Grim Budget Projections
Martha Kew, business administrator of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District, presented a sobering budget report to the school board at its meeting on Monday. “We have never seen anything like this situation,” she said, citing the large number of unknown factors caused by the COVID-19 pandemic that could worsen district finances. Superintendent Lisa Palmer echoed Kew’s concern. “I believe there is more uncertainty surrounding this budget than I have ever seen,” she said.