Panepinto Jewelers
Ron Panepinto Karen Panepinto-Minarcik 700 Sansom St. • Phila., PA 19106 Tel: 215-923-1980 email: info@panepintojewelers.com www.PanepintoJewelers.com
Vol. VII No. 39 3 (Issue (Issue328) 364)
Jim Stevenson 9371 ROOSEVELT BLVD. PHILA., PA 19114
215-698-7000 PhillyRecord.com
PhiladelphiaPublicRecord
@phillyrecord
JStevenson@ChapmanAutoGroup.com
The Only The Union Only Union Newspaper Newspaper Reporting Reporting South/Southwest South/Southwest PhillyPhilly The Way The ItWay Deserves It Deserves
September January 25, 16, 2014
Don’t Eat This Local Native Unless You’re A Real Bird!
by Maria Merlino Walk around South Philly until you find an abandoned garden, an alley with cracked concrete or another edge habitat. Chances are you’ll find a fouror five-foot, reddish-stalked, handsome perennial, with long, medium-green leaves and graceful clusters of deep-purple berries. Behold the pokeberry!
The species is indigenous to this area and grows over many parts of the country. During mid-September, the berries are ripening, but please don’t eat them even though they look like blueberries or grapes. They will make you very sick. However, they are a good food source for the birds, especially songbirds. Pokeberry is spread by seeds dropped by the birds and new plants form a taproot. A song was written about it in 1968 by Tony Joe White called “Poke Salad Annie (The Gator’s Got Your Granny!)”. Native American shamans valued its properties for medicinal purposes. Poke is a contraction of “puccoon” or “pocan”, which the Algonquin Indians of Delaware called the well-known wild plant. It means blood. Since many solutions to medical problems have come directly from the pharmacopeia of the Native Americans, scientists are investigating pokeweed extract (Cont. Page 2)
FIRST ANNUAL Officer of the Year Banquet was held at Galdo’s. 1st Dist. Capt. Lou Campione, South Detectives Capt. Martin Derbyshire, South Divisional Rep of Police Advisory Board Russell Shoemaker, Sr., 1st Dist. Officer of the Year P/O Paul Byson, 17th Dist. Officer of the Year P/O James Lippi, 3rd Dist. Officer of the Year P/O Lynne A. Zirilli, South Detective Division Officer of the Year Det. Frank Straup, Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, Capt. Nicholas Brown, State Rep. Maria Donatucci, 3rd Dist. Capt. Frank Millio, South DiPhoto by Maria Merlino vision Inspector Tony Washington. by Maria Merlino Police Advisory Board Representative Russell Shoemaker, Sr. is not a police officer. But he certainly comes from a police family with his son as a detective in Central Division and four nephews as officers. His rationale: “In 1998 I attended the Citizens Police Academy, a 13-week course that gives all the knowledge that one needs to know about police and what cops actually do. I had an idea to have an event that would also be a fundraiser and what better party to have than honoring four officers, from the 1st, 3rd,17th and South Detectives. I love South Philly and wanted to give kudos to them.” POKEBERRY PLANT The four honorees, 1st Dist. Officer Paul Byson, 17th Dist. Officer James Lippi, 3rd Dist. Officer Lynne A. Zirilli, and South Dethrives in S. Phila. Photo by Maria Merlino tectives Officer Frank Straup, were selected by their supervisors. Of course, all police officers are extraordinary and put their lives on the (Cont. Page 2)
6915 Essington Ave.
800-791-2572 Best Warranty & Service!
Our Cops Take Center Stage For A Bow!!