Local teen Michael Leggerie makes Eagle Scout

Pastor Mary Konopka of Redemption Lutheran Church led the congregation through a quick service, including the singing of a hymn, before dismissing them. It was Sunday, April 15 and Boy Scout Troop 100 was setting up the church, located at the intersection of Rhawn and Bustleton Avenues, for Michael Leggerie II’s Eagle Court of Honor.

Most of the congregation remained for the 16-year-old’s ceremony, moving up to the front pews. At the center of those present was Leggerie’s mother, 12-year Juniata Park resident Judy Nicholls-Leggerie, doling out hugs and kisses and thanks for coming.

Soon a trumpet was sounded by Leggerie’s brother Benjamin, 15, and Scoutmaster Vince Serianni called for Troop 100 to carry in the flags and take their seats in the front row. Carmella "Millie" Cappetti, mother of two of Leggerie's fellow Boy Scouts, delivered her “Trail of the Eagle” speech. Troop 100's Alex Olsen, who recently made Eagle Scout, followed Cappetti with a speech about the importance of becoming an Eagle.

To become an Eagle, the highest rank in the Boy Scouts organization, one has to complete 21 merit badges, serving in one or more leadership positions, and complete a service project benefitting some group other than the Boy Scouts. Leggerie, a sophomore at Philadelphia’s Girard Academic Music Program, completed 35 merit badges before making Eagle. He served as Patrol Leader, Assistant Patrol Leader and Den Chief within Troop 100. For his service project, he operated the Kids Zone when Troop 100 volunteered with the American Heart Association's Heart Walk. Leggerie and his mother arrived at the walk before dawn to set up for the walk with the rest of the troop.

After Olsen’s speech, Leggerie’s parents, Nicholls-Leggerie and Michael Leggerie I, and his maternal grandparents, Richard and Jean Nicholls, were escorted by members of Troop 100 to the front of the church. They watched with smiles on their faces as Michael lit a candle signifying his rise to Eagle, and then his mother and father were asked to place Leggerie’s Eagle pin on the right side of his olive green Scouting uniform.

Leggerie placed an Eagle Mom pin on his mother’s ruffled black blouse before he was asked, along with all other Eagles present, to take the Scouting oath.

When given the chance to make his remarks, Leggerie said, "What's most important to me is what I learned. I learned so much about leadership."

Leggerie told The Juniata News after the ceremony that he hopes to carry these leadership skills through college, where he hopes to study mathematics and music, and into a career as a college professor.

During the ceremony, Leggerie thanked family and friends who had helped him on his journey to Eagle Scout. He had a mentor pin to give away and it was his grandfather, Richard Nicholls, whom he called forward for this honor.

Serianni read two of Leggerie’s many letters of congratulations – these were from President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden – and made some final statements before Pastor Konopka read the benediction and Troop 100 retired the flags.

Attendees were asked to join Leggerie and his family in the church’s basement for food and fun.

In honor of his achievement, Leggerie and his mother have been asked to join Rep. John Taylor in his office on the night of Tuesday, April 24.

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This story ran in today's issue of The Juniata News.

Officers discuss local crime statistics at town hall meeting

On Tuesday, Dec. 13, a town hall meeting was held in Police Service Area 3 of the 26 District to share end-of-the-year statistics.

Captain Michael Cram made his presentation at the meeting held in the basement of the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church at 701 East Gaul Street, which was attended by Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey and Angel Torres of the District Attorney’s office.

The 26 District is a “mid-level district,” Cram said, with between 65,000 and 80,000 residents, and is broken up into three PSA’s. In PSA 3, which extends from Front Street to the Delaware River, homicides are infrequent with only three in the last year.

One of the biggest issues facing PSA 3 is property crime, with 1,400 incidents reported. “It’s amazing the amount of property crimes in this area,” Cram said. 

Property crimes include home burglaries and thefts from auto, and Cram said there has been a spike in robberies in the last month.

“What we find with burglaries, is they’re not just stopping at one – they’re doing two or three,” Cram said. In an effort to stem these problems, Cram and his men “stay on top of the pawn shops,” he said.

Thefts from auto keep area police busy, with over a thousand thefts from auto in the last year, Cram reported. “Keeping valuables hidden doesn’t do any good,” Cram said. The criminals target a block and they’ll break in even for just a few quarters, Cram added.

In the last year, 250 residential burglaries were reported in PSA 3. “They use force and go through the back door or windows,” Cram said. “They’re gonna do it quickly.”

Of the 64 burglars arrested, most are adult residents of PSA 3 and are repeat offenders. “They are generational burglars,” Cram said. 

Addressing the audience’s concerns about recidivism, Cram said, “It’s tough to keep ‘em in.”

Cram turned his attention to Torres from the DA’s office, who said that “Community prosecution has been a huge success” in other areas. When criminals from other communities go to court, residents have shown up in large numbers to get results.

Stolen cars are also an issue. Most of the cars that are stolen are 10 years old or older and they’re not “going to the streets,” Cram said.

In PSA 3, there were 312 quality of life arrests including underage drinking and public intoxication. 

There were 48 drug buyers and 44 sellers arrested in PSA 3 in the last year. “Our prescription narcotics in this neighborhood are bad,” Cram said.

Curfew violations and truancy is down. “I don’t have a lot of juvenile crime,” Cram said.

Cram focused the end of his presentation on ways that the community can help the police do their jobs. With the help of a neighbor, the 26 District was able to take over 2447 Jasper Street, a house that was home to drug dealers and prostitutes. It took 451 radio calls, 183 emails, four arrests and one year to convince the courts that the house was a problem.

“We can’t do those things without the community,” Cram said.

Commissioner Ramsey spoke after Cram finished his presentation. He encouraged the audience to attend hearings if they are the witnesses or victims of a crime, no matter how small. He said he hoped to implement training programs to teach landlords how to operate their businesses. 

Prostitution should be a big item on the agenda, he said. “We gotta get the Johns,” Ramsey said, referring to the men who pay prostitutes for their services.

“I promise you that I’ll do everything I can,” Ramsey said in conclusion.


This story and my photos appeared in today's edition of Star newspaper.

Losing one of their own

Publicly, the family of hit-and-run victim Gregory Loper is calling for justice. Privately, they're remembering the best man they've ever known.


A ghost bike – a vintage bicycle painted white and rendered useless with the removal of its tires – was hung on the railing outside 1912 East Lehigh Avenue in remembrance of bicyclist Gregory Loper.

On Tuesday, November 22 at 5:30 p.m., the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia organized the candlelight vigil and placement of the ghost bike for Loper, the 49-year-old father of 11 who was killed by a drunk driver. The vigil, held at the intersection of Lehigh Avenue and Jasper Street, was overrun by anger and sadness at the loss of the family man.

Brett Truskin, 22, of Ivyland, PA, was allegedly behind the wheel of his mother’s 2011 Toyota RAV4 when he struck Loper on Friday, Nov. 18. While some reports claim that he died in the hospital, the family has been told by observers that Loper died on the street while a female witness held his hand.

Loper’s family, friends and strangers who had been touched by the story of his death huddled under a canopy of umbrellas and hid beneath the hoods of their rain jackets that cold, wet evening, united by outrage at the legal system that allowed Truskin to go free just hours after his possible involvement in another DUI.

After a short speech from Alex Doty, the executive director of the BCGP, a man who identified himself as Jay from Tom Cat Town Watch, made a rousing speech about how he’d been hit when he was 16. “We gotta take these streets back and make the law for us,” he said.

Renee Cuffee, Loper’s sister-in-law, responded to this saying that Loper’s family is seeking life without parole for the driver who took his life. Following this, those in attendance chanted “Life without parole.”

“Look at my baby sister. Look. Look what he left behind,” Renee said as the chanting died down.

Bettie Cuffee, the victim’s wife, thanked those present for their support. She would sue Truskin and his family, she said. In addition to taking her revenge, Cuffee was sure justice would be hers when Truskin’s Judgment Day came.

“You never know when Judgment Day gonna come, ‘cause God judge everybody,” Loper’s widow said. “And when your Judgment Day come, my husband gon’ be there. You gon’ see him sittin’ there and he gon’ ask you why, ‘cause I asked him why he leave me with a water bill that I can’t pay.” 

Once more, she thanked everyone for attending the vigil. Then she greeted a few one-on-one before heading back with her family to her house. 

Back at the Cuffee-Loper household, the tone was much more happy. Loper’s children, 12 grandchildren and friends talked with smiles on their faces of the man they all love so much. The family expressed thankfulness for their loving, supportive, hardworking father. 

Loper was, they all agreed, going to be sorely missed. “They take the good ones and leave the wrong ones,” his sister-in-law Renee said.

Markedia Cuffee, 25, may have been Loper’s stepdaughter but she had never known another father. “He was a good man. Loved his grandbabies,” she said with a smile on her face. He was proud of his kids, all of whom had graduated 12th grade – except for the three under the age of 12.

Education was very important to him, agreed several of his children. Loper recently helped his stepdaughter Sabrina, who he called “Brin-Brin” and who called him “Frankie,” pass her final exams.

“He said go to school, stay in school and have a good job,” Sapphire Cuffee, 10, said.

Loper was a dedicated man who worked hard to provide for his family. “He was a hardworking man. He felt less of a man if he sat in the house,” Sabrina Cuffee, 20, said. 

He “did anything to keep us healthy and good,” Loper’s 10-year-old said of her father.

Everyone could see that he took good care of his family. “He did what he had to do,” Sara Berrios, 46, said of the man who provided for her best friend.

Loper wasn’t your typical father, said his stepdaughter Marktina. He was very into science fiction, she said, especially Star Wars. “He was an out-of-the-box thinker,” Marktina added.

Although much of the discussion focused on Loper’s good qualities and better times had with him, the circumstances under which their loved one was taken from them were never far from the minds of the Cuffee-Loper family.

Loper’s wife was at home in bed with one of her grandchildren when the news broke that someone had been hit on Lehigh Avenue. “Oh my God, that don’t make no sense. Somebody got hit on Lehigh Avenue again,” she remembered saying. “God bless,” she added as she watched the report.

The fact that she hadn’t known it was her beloved left her sounding a bit dismayed. “I’m looking at the ambulance goin’ past and all along they goin’ to pick him up and I didn’t even know it was him,” she said.

Cuffee has concluded that she must be happy for what she had. And she’s relieved to know that he’s in a better place, she said. “He up there with God now. He with his mother, his uncle, his dad, his little cousin, his aunt. He’s fine and I don’t gotta worry about him. He don’t gotta worry about his feet hurting,” Cuffee said.

Loper’s stepson Charles Cuffee, 24, may be comforted by that same notion but all he could talk about was his anger at the situation that led to Loper’s passing. “The driver didn’t take my dad, the judge took my dad when he let [Truskin] go,” he said.

Although the family must still contend with the financial burden left by Loper’s absence, they seemed to have found a way to carry the emotional burden, with Loper’s children staying strong for their mother. 

“At first my mom was sad so we had to be strong for her,” 10-year-old Sapphire said. “I’m hanging in there,” she added.

Sapphire’s older sister Sabrina agreed. “He was my mom’s backbone and she was ours so it’s hard [but we have] to be strong for her,” the 20-year-old said.    

The family is accepting donations to help pay funeral costs and other out-of-pocket expenses. Those who wish to make a donation can contact Markedia Cuffee via email at cuffeemarkedia@yahoo.com.

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This piece appeared on the front covers of both the Northeast Times and the Star today.

The Temple News: Debating the adjuncts' role

IAN WATSON TTN
Adjunct professor Carol Jenkins teaching.

 Administrators and adjunct instructors discuss how stable the job should be.

In December, 45 adjunct instructors from the English department’s First-Year Writing Program were told they would not be assigned courses come Spring 2011. But the English department isn’t the only area of the university in which adjunct instructors are out of work.

Adjunct instructor Carol Jenkins, of the department of political science, said a number of adjunct instructors weren’t assigned classes in her department.

Jenkins said Richard Deeg, the chair of the department of political science, told her it was because of a change in the policy, informally known as the “gradjunct” policy. But Deeg said the policy is expected to change next year.

“The situation at Temple overall is bad,” Jenkins said. “It seems like it sometimes goes from department to department, depending on how many graduate students there are.”

To read the rest of this news story for The Temple News, click here. If you would like to reprint this article, please email me (rosellaeleanor -at- gmail -dot- com).

Adjunct 'layoffs' increase concern

As the Fall 2010 semester comes to an end, not all professors are gearing up for spring classes.

Of the 59 adjunct professors who taught courses in the First-Year Writing Program this semester, only 14 will be teaching in Spring 2011. This news came to the 45 adjunct professors, who will lose their current appointments, in a document titled “Spring 2011 First-Year Writing Program Staffing (Projected).”

Although university officials were hesitant to call the announcement a layoff, many of the affected teachers said they feel this is indicative of a rift between the university and its adjunct instructors.

While attempts by the adjuncts to unionize have yet to come to fruition, adjunct faculty members suggest a union could have prevented this situation.

“We’re the last hired, first fired, and this is a continuation of that relationship,” said Frank Fucile, an English instructor who was not assigned to teach any courses next semester.


Read the rest of this news story for The Temple News here.

Hart approves changes to TU Alert system

Recent changes to the TU Alert system focus on the use of the TU Siren.

On Friday, Oct. 14, after a shooting occurred in a residential home on North Warnock Street, just northeast of 11th and Berks streets, a TU Advisory notice was sent via e-mail to inform students, faculty and staff of the incident.

On Sept. 3, the Office of President Ann Weaver Hart approved changes to the TU Alert system, which provides students, faculty and staff with vital information in the event of a campus emergency through one of three ways: a TU Advisory, a TU Alert or the TU Siren.

“What we’ve tried to do is create a system that’s flexible enough so we can relieve the uncertainty associated with certain activities,” Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Anthony Wagner said.

According to the revised Emergency Communication Policy, the university “recognizes its responsibility to provide accurate and timely information to the campus community during emergencies.”

To read the rest of this 700-word news story for The Temple News, click here.
The above picture of Lucas Rowe, a freshman civil engineering major, signing up for the alerts was taken by Abigail Reimold.

Left-over lunch's cycle

Many mobile eateries on Main Campus boast their fare is made fresh daily. Some owners try not to let the extra food go to waste.

Even after the lunch trucks close at the end of the day, the quiet hum of freezers can still be heard.

To avoid waste, most truck owners keep meats and other items frozen over night. Most dishes they serve are made to order, according the owners of TJ’s Corner, Silver Eagle and Chicken Heaven.

At TJ’s Corner, which parks on Montgomery Street between Broad and 13th streets, the most popular meals are made with chicken. Approximately 120 pounds of chicken are ordered each week, all of which is kept frozen and prepared to order.

“It takes a little longer, but it’s safer, and you don’t waste,” owner Kevin Doan said.

Read the rest of the news story, written for The Temple News' special Lunchies edition, here.

Accelerated programs help combat delayed graduation

While other universities push students to finish in three years, 67 percent of Temple students take six or more years to graduate.

While debate continues on whether America’s colleges should replace four-year degrees with three-year degrees, Temple is focused on getting students out in four years.

Currently, roughly 67 percent of Temple students take six years or more to graduate, Senior Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies Peter Jones said.

While schools like Hartwick College in Oneonata, N.Y., are implementing three-year programs and emphasizing the financial benefits for students, Jones explained that he wants students to think of the money they could save by graduating in four years versus five or six.

Tuition for out-of-state students is roughly $40,000 over two years, Jones noted. A student taking six years to graduate loses out on a potential income for two years. That could be $100,000 lost by not graduating on time, Jones said.

To read the rest of this news article for The Temple News, click here. The above picture is of Peter Jones, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies. While I did not take this picture, there is no credit on The Temple News' website.

Juniata News: PAL kids come to Juniata Golf Course for a week of fun

Sergeant Michael Faust, of the Police Athletic League, called Montanna Stewart over to the parked cart at the GEICO Junior Golf Program’s 9-hole tournament on Friday, August 1.

“Do you like it?” Sgt. Faust asked the first-time camper. She nodded vigorously. “Would you come back?” She nodded again.

Stewart is one of roughly 130 inner-city kids from 26 PAL centers who participated in last week’s program at Juniata Golf Course. Many of those kids are returning campers; many, like Stewart, want to return next year.

PAL, for those who don’t know, is a non-profit organization that has served the community since 1947. It operates 26 centers citywide and serves more than 27,000 kids, ages 6 to 18. The organization sponsors sports, educational and cultural events free of charge, including the junior golf program, and provides scholarships to more than 200 recipients a year.

“I’ve enjoyed watching them play and they’re really getting better,” Sgt. Faust said.

Perhaps the reason the kids are improving is because the week spent at Juniata Golf Course is the final phase of PAL’s 3-part junior golf program.

During the introductory phase, which started in early May and lasts 8 weeks, 300 kids were taught the basics at the Burholme Driving Range and Miniature Golf Course. From the end of June to mid-August, roughly 225 kids work on chipping, putting, driving and golf etiquette with the help of golf professionals in the “Kids on the Hill” program.

Then every officer in charge of a PAL center picked 5 kids who spent three days in Juniata learning more from PGA professionals before participating in an 18-hole tournament at the Spring Mill Country Club in Warminster, PA. On the final day of camp, they return to Juniata for a mini-tournament and awards luncheon.

“Everybody gets a medal for participation,” Sgt. Faust said. “It goes over real good, people are happy to have that.”

Those awards were given out by PAL Officer Ernie Rehr, who has led the team operating the camp in the 11 years since Bob Wheeler, one of the founders of the camp, retired. Wheeler is now manager of Juniata Golf Course and has served for the last 3 years as executive director of the Juniata Golf Foundation.

“This is a tremendous program,” retired Officer Wheeler said. “It’s the only legitimate program that teaches inner city kids. We’ve been doing it longer and absolutely better than anyone else.”

Officer Rehr’s nephew Drew was a camper like Stewart and because he agrees with Wheeler’s sentiment, volunteers alongside his dad Andy, a Philadelphia police officer not officially involved with PAL, now that he is too old to participate.

What Officer Rehr wants campers to learn during their week in Juniata are the lessons golf teaches.

“Golf teaches honesty, integrity, dedication, work ethic. I call it the 3 R’s: respect yourself, respect others and respect the course or the environment,” Officer Rehr said. “If you can get a kid to do those things, you’ve got a well-rounded kid.”

Many who have been involved in the camp or seen kids learn those lessons visited last week. Among them were: retired officer Jerry Hartman, who helped Wheeler found the camp; Steve Head, former PAL kid from the 1950s and 1960s; Bobby Ewing, former manager of Juniata Golf Course and PGA golfer; and Dick Smith, former president of PGA who now runs a golf school with Ewing.

The thing Sgt. Faust said is most important is that each kid feels on the course that they’re having fun. “That’s what we want to hear, ‘We’re having fun,’” Sgt. Faust said.

This 530-word piece appeared on the front page of the August 24th edition of The Juniata News. I shot the above picture, of Billy Schneider and Jerry Hartman with junior golfers, using a Nikon point-and-shoot.

The Juniata News: K&A's tenth annual MarketFest proves vitality of the neighborhood

The Kensington and Allegheny Business Association shut down the busy intersection at the heart of Kensington for its tenth annual K & A MarketFest on Saturday, June 5, 2010, a week earlier than normal. Residents of all ages enjoyed the attractions which Impact Services Corporation President John MacDonald said are a gift to the neighborhood.

“Everything’s for nothing,” MacDonald said.

Even without funding from the city, the business association will always find a way to run the fair, MacDonald said. With the support of the Bank of America, Wachovia Bank and Beneficial Bank, local businesses and Impact Services Corporation were able to keep the fair running smoothly.

Impact Services Corporation is a 36 year old community development organization that oversees projects aimed at revitalizing Kensington. This includes the operation of three business associations, housing for veterans and training programs to place roughly 1000 citizens – people who have been released from prison or rehab, welfare mothers and veterans – a year in the workforce.

The organization is “intended to help businesses and then the businesses help folks in the neighborhood,” MacDonald said. And the K&A MarketFest is meant to show that the area is a safe place to be.

“We were trying to prove to folks K and A isn’t dead,” MacDonald said.

Between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., adults could browse vendors selling everything from shoes to Avon products, lemonade to produce. Among the attractions children enjoyed were Moonbounce houses, inflatable slides and Conference Bikes which seat six children and an adult who steers the vehicle.

While the turnout had tapered off in the middle of the fair’s four-hour span, MacDonald said this was still an important event to Kensington residents.

“Some folks would think this is no big deal but to the neighborhood, it is,” MacDonald said.

Based on its track record for growth year to year, MacDonald expects the eleventh annual K&A MarketFest to be even bigger and better.

This 300 word news piece appeared in the local newspaper entitled The Juniata News today (June 8), accompanied by three photographs I took.

Adjuncts rally for union at bell tower

The Adjunct Organizing Committee is pushing for unionization with the support of TAUP.

The Adjunct Organizing Committee, a group that aims to unionize Temple’s part-time faculty, declared the week of Nov. 16 Adjunct Awareness Week. Members of the committee stood at the Bell Tower around noon every day through Nov. 20.

The AOC has worked for several years to unionize adjuncts. Its goals are to gain some predictability in adjuncts’ courses, a clear path for promotion based on performance in teaching and research and equal pay and benefits for equal work.

This is the first year the committee organized Adjunct Awareness Week.

Adjunct American studies professor Regina Bannan said they chose to do so this year, “because the university is doing the Middle States Study for accreditation, and the Middle States standard is that all faculty should be treated as faculty. We decided to do this to raise awareness that Temple is not treating its adjuncts equally.”

Adjunct professors make up 46.5 percent of Temple’s faculty but do not receive the same pay and benefits awarded to full-time professors. Although the AOC has the support of the Temple Association of University Professionals and the American Federation of Teachers, its members still face great opposition in their quest for unionization.

To read the rest of this 1,000 word piece for The Temple News, click here.

Fraternity brothers shake cans for prostate cancer

“Ask me about my prostate,” cried Jonah Hill, a member of Phi Kappa Theta, at the fraternity-sponsored Bell Tower can shake to raise money and awareness for prostate cancer held Tuesday.

Although President Obama declared September Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, an international following has deemed November an unofficial men’s health month by supporting Movember, an effort to bring awareness to and raise money for prostate and testicular cancers. Phi Kappa Theta fraternities nationwide teamed up with Movember to grow mustaches and raise money for the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the LIVESTRONG Foundation.

This is the first year Phi Kappa Theta has held this fundraiser.

“It’s a good cause because one in six men gets prostate cancer,” Derek Spencer said, holding a can out to passersby at the Bell Tower around 1:30 p.m. Phi Kappa Theta’s can shake began at 11 a.m. and would last until 3 p.m.

The rest of this article, a 350-word web exclusive written for The Temple News, can be read at Temple-News.com.

Edward H. Rosen Hillel Center opens doors for students of all faiths

The dedication ceremony for the Edward H. Rosen Hillel Center a block off Main Campus was held Wednesday night included greetings and remarks from many of those involved in the realization of a center where all students – not just those of the Jewish faith – could gather. Those in attendance included Sen. Arlen Specter, President Ann Weaver Hart and namesake Edward H. Rosen.

Rosen wore a suit, a red tie and a rose pinned to his left lapel and spoke openly and warmly about his role in the campaign for a Jewish community center.


A graduate of Yale, Rosen learned at his school’s Hillel about community service and giving back and after 20 years of service on Temple’s Board of Trustees, the opportunity presented itself.

“I’ve been working in the community trying to pay back the opportunities I had growing up. My goal [with this Hillel] was to make a meeting place for forums and lectures … It’s a wonderful place,” Rosen said.

This article was written for The Temple News' News section. Appeared in print on November 17, 2009. Read it online here.

The first picture, above, is what the finished Rosen Hillel Center is to look like. The second picture is of Mr. Rosen and Temple President Anne Weaver Hart.