Folcroft unveils marker honoring borough's first Black family

FOLCROFT — Folcroft officials will honor Folcroft’s first black family — the Baker family — with the unveiling of a historical marker near their former home on Heather Road near Taylor Drive.

Everyone is welcome to the event at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19 to commemorate the tragic series of events that took place 60 years ago and to promote healing and unity.

On Thursday, Aug. 29, 1963, the Bakers were scheduled to move in to the Delmar Village development in Folcroft.

Horace and Sarah Baker weren’t looking to make a political statement when they decided to move from the city to the borough.

They just wanted a safe and comfortable neighborhood to raise a family, including their 2-year-old daughter, Terri Lynn. They were both 26 years old, with good jobs. Horace was a laboratory technician and Sarah was a nurse at Pennsylvania Hospital.

Sadly, when the Bakers arrived at their home, it had already been painted with a racial slur, and a crowd of locals filled the street. The crowd eventually swelled to about 1,500, and rioters shattered all the windows, bashed in doors, and even ripped out electrical and plumbing fixtures. Early the next day, someone hurled a Molotov cocktail into the home’s second floor, starting a small fire.

At 4 p.m. Friday, the Bakers had finally moved in, even as hundreds hurled tomatoes, rocks and sticks at the house.

By nightfall, the mob was pushed back by riot cops, who swung nightsticks and had called in mounted police. Horace and Sarah Baker, who had left their daughter at a relative’s house, spent their first night in Folcroft huddled in the cellar.

The riot was put down, but the harassment never stopped. That harassment led the Bakers to leave Folcroft in 1966.

With the placement of this marker, the courage that the Baker family displayed during those terrible days will be honored and remembered.

“Today, Folcroft looks to change this narrative,” stated Folcroft council member Tawana Grayson. “We are a diverse community and, while we will never be able to change the past, we can say we are sorry that this happened.”

The event was provided with financial support from the Delaware County District Attorney’s office.

Media Post 3460 Commander Francis Newburg was presented with the National All-American Award at a recent training session for all Southeastern area VFW Officers.

The award is in recognition of steadfast leadership in all VFW endeavors, thus qualifying him as a member of the 2022-23 All-American Team of Post Commanders.

Media Post 3460 is an All American, All State Veterans of Foreign Wars Post that is currently recruiting Iraqi and Afghanistan veterans.

The post is open to all veterans and their family members to keep the very active post moving forward. For more information, stop in at 11 Hilltop Road, Media, or visit http://www.vfw3460.com.

Minister Carl Davis will host the third annual back-to-school revival for students in the Chester area, 6 p.m. every evening, Monday, Aug. 21 to Friday, Aug. 25 at Chester Park, 152 Houston St., Chester.

The event will be hosted by Minister Davis on Monday, Pastor Robert Tate of Wilmington, DE on Tuesday, Pastor Tony Spell of Baton Rouge, LA on Wednesday, Master Hilton Rawls of Newark, NJ on Thursday.

On Friday, there will be complimentary food and drinks, plus free backpacks with school supplies. No registration is necessary.

Springfield Mall, 1250 Baltimore Pike, Springfield, will host family-friendly activities and entertainment at the Fuel For School back-to-school event, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19.

Everyone is invited for live music, character appearances, crafts, face painting, balloon twisters and more.

The mall requests monetary, food donations, and nonfood donations to Media Food Bank to support PREIT’s Fuel For School campaign to help provide access to nutritious food for families.

For more information, visit https://shopspringfieldmall.com.

The Rotary Club of Glen Riddle, which is celebrating its 61st anniversary this year, was recently visited by one of its two scholarship winners for this year, Maryam Khaliaf.

Maryam, a graduate of Penncrest High School, will attend American University in the fall, studying the fields of public relations and business.

The Rotary Club also played host to a visiting Rotarian this summer. Devanand Mahadeva is in the country with his son and stopped for a visit during the meeting.

Living in Dubai, he makes a point to visit other Rotary Clubs around the world as he travels.

The Rotary Club of Glen Riddle donated $1,000 to the Maui Rotary District Fund this week.

The Rotary will host the sixth annual Charity Bingo Night on Saturday, Oct. 7 at 5 p.m. at Brookhaven Community Center, 2 Cambridge Road.

Everyone is invited to help support the Rotary’s causes by helping the Rotary raise money with a fun night of bingo, featuring cash prizes, gift baskets and raffles.

Refreshments will be for sale or players can bring their own food and drink, just no glass bottles. Everyone must be 18 and over to attend.

Tickets are $30 in advance. To purchase tickets, visit https://tinyurl.com/yrf9acmk.

The Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Show returns to the Square in center city Philadelphia from Sept. 15 to 17, marking its 96th year bringing fine art to all at this free event.

One hundred forty-five professional artists from around the country and Canada will exhibit originals-only fine art work around the perimeter of the park.

The show began in 1928 with a handful of local art students exhibiting art on clotheslines. The show continues its original foundation with a platform for student artists to learn from professional artists and gain exposure to patrons.

This year, the show will feature the Fleisher Art Memorial in the center of the park.

Celebrating its 125th anniversary, the memorial is one of the country’s oldest nonprofit community art schools, committed to advancing the vision of its founder, Samuel S. Fleisher, who believed that art is one of society’s greatest assets and equalizers.

From the doorway of his Graphic Sketch Club, he “invited the world to come and learn art.”

More information about the Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Show can be found at http://www.rittenhousesquarefineart.com.

Aqua Pennsylvania is investing $3 million to replace nearly 7,000 feet of aging water main in Upper Darby and Upper Providence townships.

The company is upgrading aging water mains with ductile iron water mains, which are more durable and comprised of nearly 90% recycled materials.

This investment is part of Aqua’s continuing infrastructure improvement program to replace decades-old water and wastewater infrastructure around the county. The new water mains will reduce the potential for main breaks and discolored water and will improve water flow for customers throughout Delaware County.

In Upper Darby Township, crews are implementing new 6-, 8-, 12-, and 16-inch ductile iron water mains on West Chester Pike between Oakley Road and North Keystone Avenue.

The project is expected to be completed in October. Final road restoration is expected to be completed by the end of 2023, weather permitting.

Recently, crews in Upper Providence Township completed the installation of new 6-, 8- and 12-inch ductile iron water mains on Providence Road between Palmers Mill Road and Media Bypass Route 1.

To learn more, visit http://AquaWater.com.

Readers can send community news and photos to Peg DeGrassa at [email protected].