I hope everyone had a good start to the school year! Though the transition from the days of summer to the fall can be difficult, we can look back on what a summer the City of Philadelphia and America had celebrating the nation’s 250th birthday.

We had the incredible FIFA World Cup and Fan Festival, the MLB All-Star Game and weeklong celebration, a host of America250 events, and a Fourth of July celebration that brought lots of fun and heat (literally). Tourists came from around the world and were able to see what this city has to offer, and we received so many positive responses.

Looking forward, I am thrilled to share that Philadelphia has been named one of the final three cities under consideration to host the 2028 Democratic National Convention. The city is shining!

Sincerely,

The La Colombe/Chobani Legacy Project recently provided Lutheran Settlement House (LSH) with grant funding to expand its vital work serving neighbors in the city.

For nearly 125 years, LSH has met urgent community needs while fostering connection, safety, and belonging. With its first three floors at maximum capacity, LSH renovated its basement to provide an additional floor of flexible space for community gatherings, trainings, and meetings.

This added space will strengthen programs like the Center for Older Adults, provide dedicated space for the Bilingual Domestic Violence Program, and expand opportunities for volunteer engagement—helping LSH reach more community members.

With the sad passing of the extraordinary Dolly Parton, it is fitting that it comes during the week when we honor Women’s Equality Day (Aug. 26). Dolly didn’t just make her way into a man’s world; instead, she built her own.

When women in music rarely called the shots, Parton made the remarkable decision early in her career to hold onto the publishing rights to her songs, resulting in a catalog of more than 3,000 songs. She then invested the compounding royalties from that catalog into her community, along with supporting many other philanthropic endeavors.

Women’s Equality Day honors everyone from the suffragettes who marched in the streets to the women breaking barriers in boardrooms today, with each step forward building upon the foundation laid by those who came before. Women are still underrepresented in leadership, underpaid in the workplace, and expected to shoulder a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities. The fight for equality extends far beyond voting rights to encompass workplace fairness, educational opportunities, healthcare access, and leadership representation.

As a woman in public life, I am grateful for all the women who made space for the rest of us to lead. Dolly is one of those women—a class act whose legacy will not only be her decades-long career as the “Queen of Country,” but also her philanthropy, kindness and generosity, educational foundations and scholarships, and countless other ways she gave back to her community. She will be sadly missed.

Join the Northern Liberties Neighbors Association for its neighborhood-wide monthly clean up! Anyone interested in volunteering should meet in The Yard behind the NLNA Community Center, 700 North 3rd Street, at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29th. Supplies including bags, gloves and trash pickers will be given out.

Bring a chair or a blanket on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 29th and 30th, from 4-10 p.m., for B.Y.O.C. South Street. The 200 and 300 blocks of South Street will be closed to cars with plenty of free entertainment, including live music, mini golf and a movie under the stars. Visit https://byocsouthstreet.org/ for more information!

My free community shredding and e-recycling events will return for the fall on the following dates:

• Saturday, September 26th from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., 511 S. Front Street
• Saturday, October 17th from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m., 343 Fairmount Avenue
• Saturday, October 31st from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Mummers Museum, 1100 S. 2nd Street

This is a great opportunity to safely dispose of personal and sensitive documents.

My fall Senior Fair is scheduled for Friday, October 23rd from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Holy Name Church, bringing resources to seniors and caregivers like information on healthcare, volunteer opportunities, prescription drug plans, preventing identity theft and more.

District Office

610 North Second Street

Philadelphia, PA 19123
(215) 503-3245

Pennsylvania State Capitol
300 Main Capitol Building

P.O. Box 202175

Harrisburg, PA 17120
(717) 783-8098