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Ralph Brooks was six years old in 1988 when he was shot and paralyzed for the rest of his life.
“Here’s what I think is significant,” Rich Negrin, deputy mayor for administration & coordination, offered Monday afternoon. “The first thing [Ralph] said to his physical therapist was ‘Will I be able to play basketball?’ What we’re doing here for his legacy is to make it available for all of our kids.”
Thanks to a great deal of cross-pollination and coordination among organizations, City offices, and individuals like Eagles linebacker Connor Barwin, an ambitious project is coming together. According to a release from the Office of the Mayor, “the project includes funding from Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, the Philadelphia Water Department, the PhillyRising initiative, the Mural Arts Program, the Office of 2nd District Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, Urban Roots, Connor Barwin’s ‘Make the World Better Foundation’ and 25th Foundation.”
The $450,000 project at the corner of 20th and Tasker streets will be ambitious in scope. The renovations to the Point Breeze corner park include a new play area installed, basketball courts repaved, stormwater management features, a rain garden, an underground strorage trench and a world-class mural care of Mural Arts’ favorite Steve Powers.
Deputy Mayor for Environmental & Community Resources Michael DiBerardinis, who also served as the groundbreaking ceremony’s emcee, said the project “speaks to who we are as a city and what we want to become. Every child deserves a place to go where they can recreate and be with their families and have a safe and clean and fabulous outdoor facility at their disposal.”
About half of the total budget is coming from Barwin and his foundation, combined with moneys from Johnson.
“Today is a special day for me because I’ve been born and raised in this area,” Johnson, a Point Breeze native, said. “Our contribution is $85,000 to make sure this process becomes a reality, and I didn’t hesitate to step up to the plate and get the ball rolling.”
The vision for a revitalized Tot Lot is credited to Jahmall Crandall, a community leader and founder of I.AM. South Philly.
“I’m excited, I’m excited, I’m excited. From 20th and Carpenter to 20th and Tasker [streets], this community has kept me here and kept me safe,” the School District of Philadelphia police officer and resident of the 1900 block of Mountain Street said. “That’s my goal, to protect this community and I’m not by myself,” he said pointing to the crew seated behind him at the podium. “Never let anyone tell you what you can’t do. I wish Ralph could’ve been here today. I speak to him on a daily basis and by this time next year, we’ll have a new Ralph Brooks Park on 20th Street.”
“I’m from Detroit originally and I moved to Philly two years ago,” Barwin, whose residence in Point Breeze and insistence on bicycling and using public transit has caught national attention, including ESPN and NFL Films (the latter was present on Monday), said.
He cited his beginnings on a basketball court as the spark that took him to the NFL.
“I lived every day on the basketball court, and I learned about competitive nature, and to be able to give back to the kids that live here, it means the world to me.” In the Mayor’s Office release, he adds: “When I became an Eagle, I became a Philadelphian. To me, that means caring about and investing in your community – which is the focus of the Make the World Better Foundation.”
With a concert featuring Kurt Vile & the Violators at Union Transfer this past June, the Make the World Better Foundation raised (with a match from Barwin himself) $170,000 to put towards the Tot Lot renovations.
“I remember about two-and-a-half or three years ago when Jahmall came to me with the idea and I knew Jeff Tubbs and some of the work that he wanted to do, so I put Jeff and Jahmall together,” 186th District state Rep. Jordan Harris, another Point Breeze native, said.
He knew the project would need money, so he called Johnson.
“And he convened everybody and somehow Jeff got Connor Barwin involved, and this thing went from an idea to a concept to a moment in time that we have today,” Harris added.
The politician said he’s inspired by professional athletes who give back.
“When I route for the Eagles, it’s not just because I’m from Philadelphia, but I know people in the organization that give back to the community,” Harris said. “I grew up just four blocks away from this playground, for me this is extremely special.”
Tubbs is the founder and president of Urban Roots, and when he and Crandall started talking about improving the corner, it was mostly to do a few quick surface-level changes.
“Originally we talked about doing some new hoops and a new surface,” Tubbs told the crowd.
They became connected to the City’s Planning Commission and to the Philadelphia Water Department, and suddenly it was bigger than they’d imagined.
“Ut oh, how are we gonna do this?” he asked. “But then “some guy on a bike came along and brought ESPN and NFL Films and now we’ve been launched into outer space. We want the kids in the community to launch this with us and design this with us.”
The young people of Point Breeze are appropriately the source of inspiration and motivation. An opening prayer from a local deacon stressed “the young people can grow in safety, elders can walk up and down this corner and we’re praying that this will be the birth of great things to come.”
Barwin’s final comments were also geared toward the kids who will benefit.
“It’s going to be yours, you’re going to own this and take care of it. So grab that, take hold of that, embrace that and make it special.”
PhillyRising’s Negrin pointed out that things have improved greatly in the area as of late. PhillyRising has cleaned 60 alleyways in the area, which Negrin believes has directly resulted in a 10-percent reduction in violent crime and a 14-percent reduction in burglaries in the area. And that wouldn’t be possible minus partnerships.
“What you’re seeing here today is the power of partnerships,” he added, and cited one of his favorite Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes: “Darkness will not drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate will not drive out hate, only love can do that.”
Staff Writer Bill Chenevert at bchenevert@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117.
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