Community Center Leaves Light on for NW Philly Youth

One would be hard pressed to find a more encompassing, more accessible neighborhood hub than the North Light Community Center in Manayunk.

Outside, various tile and mural projects coordinated by volunteers and the students who frequent the center adorn the walls. Sprinkler turtles, young trees, a jungle gym, basketball nets, and newly donated and designed benches with planter boxes built into them create a safe haven within the fence.

Inside, an indoor basketball court with a team-created mezzanine above, a student gym, classrooms, and play centers covered with paintings of Eric Carle book covers and motivational quotes tell the story of a community center that has survived its share of hardships to become an organization that serves some 2,800 students and their families annually.

"We really do a lot of things that aren't done in the neighborhood," said Karen Smith, the center's marketing and communications director.

Founded in 1936, the center began as a drop-in center for wayward boys. Over the next nearly 80 years, North Light would come to include after-school activities, summer camp, art and theater programs, tutoring, sports and recreation groups, a public computer lab, scholarships for students of all grade and collegiate levels, a food cupboard, teen employment and leadership opportunities, parenting workshops, and emergency support services.

Youth from Manayunk, Roxborough, Wissahickon and the surrounding areas gather to play sports and work on schoolwork after class. Only rarely does one find this building empty. Smith said the staff here does what it can to foster an "it takes a village to raise a child" atmosphere.

"After school, doing homework, they're in every nook and cranny," Smith said, gesturing into one of the downstairs classrooms.

From adult literacy classes to a newly created Bright Lights preschool to an arts program assisted by a professional potter who has a kiln in the studio, North Lights offers a diverse set of services for those in need. The center is assisted regularly by Villanova students who tutor and run food drives, and City Year programs that bring corporate teams into the facility for a day to help with renovations. Over 300 area volunteers offer roughly 8,000 hours of service annually.

These children have learned to give back to the communities they live in and travel through. In August 2009, children from the center teamed with Philadelphia Water Department employees, representatives of the Schuylkill Project and the Environmental Protection Agency's Student Environmental Development program to clean the Manayunk Canal Towpath.

Despite its work, North Light has faced a number of hardships in recent years. The center has been without a maintenance worker for several weeks, so the staff has taken on extra duties until they can afford to hire.

A few years ago the United Way reconfigured its mission and cut its funding, putting the center out $80,000 of its previous operating budget.

"We didn't fit their mold anymore," Smith said.

The center raised 85 percent of its operating budget independently, Smith said, so families can pay what they can afford for services.

"Here at North Light, no one is turned away," she said.

So they've sought out other ways to raise their capital. This past July the center's 10th Annual Golf Classic and Auction, sponsored by Audi Willow Grove, raised $40,000. This year, the center received $15,000 from the Green Tree Community Health Foundation. The center also rents its space to sports leagues and groups like the Manayunk volleyball league.

And they receive help from area schools as well. This past April, Villanova Greek life held its annual Can Castle Contest, where sororities and fraternities design large quantities of canned goods into creative figures before donating the goods to North Lights. The university delivered four truckloads to the center in April. By mid-July, the cupboards were nearly bare.

Smith said that the center's food pantry is one of its most frequently used services by families, and they are always looking for more donations of nonperishable goods.

"They say the economy's turning around, but you wouldn't know from the lines," she said.

But North Light continues to serve its community. This past summer it still managed to take its summer campers to their annual trip to the New Jersey Shore. Smith said some of the children that attend have never seen the ocean before.

"It's just so rewarding," she said. "It's like, 'wow.' You don't get that everywhere."

To learn more about North Light's services and volunteer opportunities, visit the center at 175 Green Lane, call 215-483-4800 or visit its website.