Happy Memorial Day
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MAY 24, 2012
Leisure labor Locals united at City Hall to demand a restoration of funds for parks and recreation facilities. By Joseph Myers R e v i e w S ta f f W r i t e r
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hough the City deemed May 12 to 19 “Love Your Park Week,” a dearth of monetary endearment for the Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Department prompted Lauren Bornfriend to announce May 16 that she and other residents have had their patience maxed out. Their City Hall gathering aimed to have Mayor Michael A. Nutter fulfill a 2008 pledge to use parking tax increases to help to swell his municipality’s parks and recreation budget to $56 million. “Our parks and recreation facilities have See PARKS AND RECREATION page 8
Sports
Rev. Michael Scuderi, with sign, soaked up the rays and the camaraderie during the area’s sixth arthritis walk. The preacher has spent more than four decades battling the condition, the nation’s leading cause of disability. P h o t o P r o v i d e d b y T h e A r t h r i t i s F o u n d at i o n
Joint effort
Pitch-22
A senior southpaw secured a quarternal playoff victory for his East Passyunk Crossing school. By Joseph Myers..........Page 29
A Newbold priest served as the adult honoree of a weekend walk to combat a condition he shares with millions. By Joseph Myers
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R e v i e w S ta f f W r i t e r
hough he frequently receives it as a genial friar at the National Shrine of Saint Rita of Cascia, Rev. Michael Scuderi dislikes earning attention. The 45-year-old prefers to blend in with crowds when not preaching, yet his gregariousness and gusto pushed him to the forefront at
Saturday’s 2012 Arthritis Walk. Held adjacent to the American Swedish Historical Museum, 1900 Pattison Ave., the sixth local edition of the 64-year-old Arthritis Foundation’s signature event designated the third-year priest as its adult honoree, recognizing his 42-year mission to curb his rheumatoid arthritis and recent advocacy for additional research funding. Always eager to make acquaintances, the
Darby native had ample chances, as 600 participants formed 60 teams all aiming to topple the nation’s chief cause of disability. According to the foundation, 50 million adults and 300,000 children have received arthritis diagnoses, so Scuderi decided two years ago to form Hank’s Holy Hikers, his 20-member group that takes its title from See SCUDERI page 11