By Maleka Fruean
After Hurricane Melissa tore through Jamaica and left parts of the island in the dark, Jamaicans in Germantown and across Northwest Philly started mobilizing. Neighbors are pushing direct cash aid, church collection drives, and supply barrels so help reaches families on the ground faster.
By Rebecca Redelmeier, Chalkbeat • Germantown Info Hub
Philadelphia school officials say they want more feedback before naming schools that could close — and Germantown residents say they want the process slowed down, clearer language, and a plan for buildings so 2013 doesn’t repeat itself.
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By Danielle Smith • Germantown Info Hub
A new city initiative addressing menstrual equity is placing dispensers with free sanitary pads and tampons across the city. Phlow Philly is a partnership between the Department of Health and Aunt Flow, a woman-owned company that makes sustainable period care.
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By Rasheed Z. Ajamu • Germantown Info Hub
As temps drop, Germantown organizations are lining up winter-readiness help, from weatherization briefings and utility clinics to a SNAP Defense Training that will walk folks through new work requirements and exemptions. Even though LIHEAP is pushed to Dec. 3 because of the shutdown, neighbors can still get paperwork done early and connect to other support this month.
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By Pryce Jamison • Germantown Info Hub
As SNAP benefits shrink and new work requirements sow confusion, Germantown organizations are scaling up support, whether weekly meal services or legal education. Seniors, disabled residents, and low-income families are already feeling the crunch, and providers expect demand to spike into winter.
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By The GIH Team • Germantown Info Hub
With many residents facing food insecurity during the government shutdown and SNAP suspension, Germantown Info Hub has rounded up food pantries, free meal sites, and local giveaways to help neighbors stay nourished and connected.
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By Rasheed Z. Ajamu • Germantown Info Hub
Local chef and Das Good owner Anou Vongbandith is home after a judge granted bond and federal officials did not file the notice that would have automatically stayed his release. His wife, Anh, credited months of neighbor-led letters, rallies, and fundraising—more than $82,000—for keeping their family’s fight alive. She urged the community to keep showing up for all families facing detention.
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By Rasheed Z. Ajamu
At FUMCOG, neighbors gathered for “Immigrants Under Siege: Taking Action,” a forum organized by the Northwest Regional Refugee & Immigration Network. Speakers outlined a national legal representation crisis, rising detention, and practical ways Northwest residents can show up for immigrant families now.
By Deesarine Ballayan
Natural Creativity’s second annual Germantown Literacy Fair turned its Pulaski Ave. space into a neighborhood literacy hub where families stamped “literacy passports” at hands-on tables, met local authors, and earned a 3D-printed “book buddy” for visiting every station. Partners like the Coleman Library, Grandmas for Literacy, and Philly Children’s Movement (with a “banned books” dice challenge) underscored that reading thrives in community — beyond the classroom.
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