FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PHILADELPHIA, PA, Oct. 27, 2015 — How do we prepare for the last chapters of our lives for ourselves or with our loved ones?

End-of-life issues will take center stage at “Being Mortal: Prepared and Empowered,” a free public forum Sunday, Nov. 8.

The forum, sponsored by Weavers Way Co-op, Ralston My Way, Northwest Village Network and the Unitarian Universalist Society of Germantown, will take place at 1:30-3:30 p.m., at the Unitarian Society of Germantown, 6511 Lincoln Drive.

The outgrowth of a series of Co-op-sponsored community discussions of the Atul Gawande best-seller “Being Mortal,” the forum will explore issues such as:

• End-of-life choices
• Dealing with the complexity of medical care.
• Preparing an advance directive.
• Having a tough conversation with loved ones.

Featured speakers include:

Gene Bishop — A retired internist who practiced primary care and geriatrics in Philadelphia, Bishop has been thinking and talking about these issues with her patients for 30 years. She is a strong advocate for national health insurance.

Karl Ahlswede — A former cardiac surgeon at Lankenau Hospital who now specializes in advance care planning and palliative care, Ahlswede was one of the first surgeons to receive specialty board certification in Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

Ritajean Reed — Reed, chaplain at Wissahickon Hospice, has been involved with hospice for 20 years, previously serving as a volunteer, director of volunteers and hospice liaison. She has a master’s degree in pastoral counseling.

Wendy Liebling — A social worker and Certified Geriatric Care Manager/Aging Life Care Professional, Liebling is the founder and principal of Liebling Elder Care, a licensed and insured care-management practice.

The forum grew out of several community discussions of “Being Mortal,” sponsored by Weavers Way, partnering with Northwest Village Network and Ralston My Way. Participants saw the need to educate older adults and those who care for them about the issues raised in Gawande’s book. Gawande, a surgeon, public-health innovator and writer for The New Yorker, addresses a question that everyone faces: How can we make our last days more comfortable and meaningful?

It's the start of an ongoing series of community conversations and presentations to share ideas for creating better options and choices to ensure a good life to the very end, and making sure our family members, friends, caregivers and medical professionals know about our values and priorities.

Directions: The Unitarian Society of Germantown is at 6511 Lincoln Drive. Please note that the parking in the plaza at the front of the church is reserved for those with mobility issues. There is also a large parking lot in the rear, with the entrance on Johnson Street between Wayne Avenue and Greene Street (use 359 W. Johnson St. to locate with GPS.)
The Route 53 and Route H buses stop a short distance from the church, and Upsal station of the Chestnut Hill West Regional Rail Line is two blocks away.

About Weavers Way: With stores in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, the Co-op is member-owned, open to the public and committed to offering quality products that are local, sustainable and nutritious. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop.

About Northwest Village Network: NVN is a network of neighbors dedicated to providing support for Northwest Philadelphia residents to live independently, stay active and be engaged in the community. For more information, visit northwestvillagenetwork.org.

About Ralston My Way: My Way is a not-for-profit venture of Ralston Center, providing services to help Germantown, Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill residents age 55+ live independently at home as they age. For more information, visit www.mywayonline.org.

About the Unitarian Society of Germantown: Unitarians have championed progressive causes in America since 1793, in Germantown since 1865 and on Lincoln Drive since 1928. For more information, visit usguu.org.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PHILADELPHIA, October 8, 2015 — Farming in Philadelphia? You bet! And the Harvest on Henry Farm Festival, Saturday, Oct. 17, from noon to 4 p.m. at the Henry Got Crops Farm in Roxborough, is one of the best ways to experience it!

A collaboration of Weavers Way Co-op and W.B. Saul Agricultural High School, Harvest on Henry is a day of fun on the farm at the Saul campus at 7095 Henry Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19128. Admission is free; tickets are sold for some activities.

Kids and grownups alike can visit the farm animals, stroll the fields, take a hayride, check out the vendors’ tables and enjoy live music. There are plenty of veggie-themed activities, like vegetable car racing, and seasonal fun, including pumpkin bowling, pumpkin golf and pumpkin painting.

There will be fine food from the food trucks, which donate 10 percent of their proceeds to the farm. At the Henry Got Crops Farmstand and Café, fest-goers can get their fill of apple cider and apple-cider donuts from Bucks County's Solebury Orchards; coffee from Mt. Airy's High Point Café; Equal Exchange fair-trade tea and hot cocoa; and fresh-popped popcorn.

Then there’s the pie contest. Do you have the crust to enter? This year’s celebrity judges are Scott Piergrossi, an official pie arbiter certified by the American Pie Council; High Point Café proprietor Meg Hagele; and Alex Fries, who as chef at Earth Bread + Brewery in Mt. Airy knows something about dough! Prizes include gift certificates from local foodie and wellness shops, a cookbook from author and Food in Jars blogger Marisa McClellan and a craft-beer gift basket from Roller's Express-o in Chestnut Hill. Retired from competition? You can still contribute a pie to the bake sale. For all the pie info, visit www.weaversway.coop/pie.

Harvest on Henry is a celebration of the 10-year partnership of Saul High School and Weavers Way in 2.5-acre Henry Got Crops farm. Saul students play a key role, running the games, working the petting barnyard and even making the ice cream that goes with the pie!

With the added support of Weavers Way Community Programs, the Henry Got Crops farm provides a hands-on learning environment for Saul students, and also supplies the Henry Got Crops Community Supported Agriculture program. Philadelphia’s Department of Parks and Recreation is the third Henry Got Crops partner. Another exciting part of the project, Henry Got Compost, turns manure from the Saul dairy barn and the Philadelphia Zoo and vegetable waste from Bennett Compost into high-quality compost. (Note: Saturday, Oct. 24, is FREE compost day; bring buckets, bags, even a pickup, to the farm from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Info: compost@weaversway.coop)

Harvest on Henry is the perfect opportunity for a day out, plus a chance to support urban agriculture! Rain date: Sunday, Oct. 18. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop/harvest-on-henry-2015.

(See below for photos from last year's Harvest on Henry. Hi-res available on request.)

Harvest on Henry 2015 food trucks:

• Chef Donte's Delicious Dishes
• Samosa Deb
• Spot Burger
• Sum Pig
• Sweetbox Cupcakes

Contra dancing, plus live music by:

• Fleimingo
• Art Miron
• Nothing Wrong

Other vendors and information tables:

• Saul Home & School Association
• Saul Alumni Association
• Weavers Way Co-op
• Diversified Human Solutions
• Greenpeace
• Heidi Barr Designs
• Inspire Energy
• Instar Apiaries
• Loris Sekella Gourd Art
• Lyceum Integrative Medicine
• Sara Robbins Basket Weaving
• Swiss Villa Eggs
• Tradestone Confections

Thanks to Harvest on Henry sponsors:

• Awesome Dudes Printing
• Blue Moon Acres
• Equal Exchange
• Esposito's Meats
• High Point Cafe
• Kilian Hardware
• Primex Garden Center
• Slow Rise Bakery
• Solebury Orchards
• Stanley's Hardware
• Three Springs Fruit Farm

About Weavers Way: Founded in 1973 as a neighborhood buying club, “the Co-op” now encompasses two grocery stores, two specialty wellness shops and a pet store in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill. Weavers Way is member-owned, open to the public and committed to offering quality products that are local, sustainable and nutritious. For more information, visit www.weaversway.coop.