The house: a 1,380-square-foot 1950s twin with three bedrooms and 2½ baths
The price: $255,000
The ask: Kim Sephes didn’t want to live in a house attached to her father’s church anymore. It “felt strange,” she said, living there after he passed away in 2019.
So in 2022, she and her husband, Matthew, began searching for a home for their family of eight. Safety, location, and a driveway were top priorities. They needed four bedrooms and dreamed of a backyard.
The search: At first, the couple searched in Northeast Philadelphia, where they found a lot of nice houses, but were worried about their kids walking around safely without supervision. They expanded their search to Mount Airy, but the competition was stiff. They made offers on four houses only to get outbid every time.
“It was a crazy housing market where people were offering cash offers left and right,” Sephes said.
Soon after, the family “stepped on the gas” with their search and found a house they loved in August 2022.
The appeal: The house was move-in ready. Only the kitchen needed updating.
But they had to make a few compromises.
It was three bedrooms, not four — but it had a finished basement that Sephes says could be converted. It was a twin, not their preferred single, home — but it was attached to the corner house.
“At least we weren’t in the middle of the block,” said Sephes. Most importantly, it was in a great section of Mount Airy, and it had a back patio.
Kim Sephes with children (from left) Darius, 8, and Solomon, 4, on the steps of their home. She is carrying 1-month-old Adam.
The deal: They offered $5,000 over the asking price of $250,000. The house attracted several offers from investors but “the sellers really wanted to sell it to a family,” said Sephes. “Our real estate agent went hard trying to convince them to sell it to us, because they did have a cash offer on the table for more than what we were going to offer.”
In the end, the Sepheses’ offer was accepted and, after a little back and forth about the inspection, they sealed the deal with a $5,000 non-refundable earnest money deposit.
The money: The couple saved $18,000 for a down payment, socking away the previous two years’ tax returns and parts of their paychecks. For three years, they put a little bit away every time they got paid.
“I was so determined,” said Sephes.
They also got a $15,000 forgivable loan through the Neighborhood Lift program, which they do not have to pay back as long as they stay in the house for 10 years.
Through their lender, Fulton Bank, they secured an additional $2,000 grant and a Federal Housing Authority (FHA) mortgage with a 5% interest rate.
The Neighborhood Lift grant “helped get us in the home,” Sephes said. Without it, they “would’ve qualified for something way less.”
The move: The Sepheses closed on Sept. 26 and started moving right away.
To ensure they had enough time to move, they paid October rent. However, they were officially out of the house within the first week, so the church gave them the full month’s rent back. “I really appreciated that because they didn’t have to do that,” Sephes said.
Any reservations? The only issue with the house is that “it’s a little small,” Sephes said. But the garage has extra space for storage.
More than anything, Sephes is grateful they were able to move.
“We were ready to leave the church house,” she said.
Life after close: Sephes says the best thing about their new home is the neighborhood.
“It’s a beautiful block, very quiet, and it’s wide, too, so we don’t have to worry about traffic.”
The FBI on Friday announced criminal charges against two men in connection with an attempted robbery of an armored truck on Oct. 3 that led to school lockdowns and a shelter-in-place order in Lower Merion Township.
Dante Shackleford, 26, also was charged by indictment with two attempted robberies of armored trucks in Philadelphia in July and an armored truck heist in Elkins Park in August in which $119,100 was stolen.
Mujahid Davis, 24, and Shackleford were charged with the Oct. 3 attempted robbery of an armored truck on the Philadelphia side of City Avenue that led to a pursuit and an hours-long incident. Several suspects were finally arrested in Lower Merion.
The FBI announcement came just hours after another attempted robbery of an armored truck, this time outside a Wawa store in Philadelphia.
Shortly before 8 a.m. on the 7700 block of Frankford Avenue, two male suspects attempted to rob a Loomis truck when the driver fired two shots at the suspects, who then fled. Police reported no injuries or arrests.
The indictment against Shackleford and Davis filed in federal court on Thursday provided few details about the prior armored truck crimes.
On July 15 and on July 22, Shackleford and others allegedly attempted to rob Brink’s trucks in Philadelphia, according to the indictment.
On Aug. 12, Shackleford and others allegedly robbed a Brink’s truck in Elkins Park and got away with approximately $119,100 and the Brink’s employee’s gun.
Then on Oct. 3, Shackleford and Davis allegedly attempted to rob a Brink’s truck in Philadelphia, which reportedly occurred in the area of City Avenue.
Davis also is charged in Montgomery County Court with multiple counts related to what happened on Oct. 3, including fleeing law enforcement and evading arrest.
U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick (R., Pa.) has joinedfellowSenate Republicans in signing on to a letter urging top health officials in the Trump administration to rescind approval for a drug used in one of the most common methods of abortion.
In a letter to Health and Human Services SecretaryRobert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary earlier this month, the Republican senators recommended, among other things, that officials re-evaluate the safety of mifepristone, one of two pills commonly used in a medication abortion, and suspend the distribution of the drug and its generic versions, saying it should be considered an “imminent hazard” at the federal level.
“Today, your agencies have all the information they need to bring an end to previous Democrat administrations’ abortion drug regulations while a comprehensive review is conducted,” the Republicans wrote in the letter.
Only two Senate Republicans, Lisa Murkowski (R., Alaska) and Susan Collins (R., Maine), did not sign the letter.
McCormick’s signature on the letter could signal a change in how the Pennsylvania Republican views abortion regulation. During his campaign last fall, McCormick said during a debate that he wants to leave regulation to individual states, which has been the status quo since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. His backing of the letter, which encourages sweeping policy decisions at the national level, suggests otherwise.
“Sen. McCormick has concerns about the adverse effects mifepristone can have on women, as shown in a recent study,” a spokesperson for McCormick said in a statement Friday evening. “This letter addresses those potential impacts on women’s health and encourages HHS and FDA to reevaluate the potential risks and harms associated with mifepristone. Sen. McCormick also issued a statement yesterday applauding the White House’s efforts to lower IVF costs.”
Eugene DePasquale, chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, accused him of betraying his constituents.
“Sen. McCormick’s support for an extreme anti-choice policy that could threaten the lives of Pennsylvania women is a shameful betrayal of his constituents,” DePasquale said. “This type of extreme policy coming out of Washington only makes it clearer that everything is on the line when it comes to protecting our freedom — and it is up to us to do it right here at the state level.”
“By law, the FDA has very limited discretion in deciding whether to approve a generic drug, and the FDA’s approval of a generic mifepristone is not an endorsement of the product. HHS remains committed to its study of the reported adverse effects of mifepristone,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement to The Inquirer.
Should the FDA revoke its approval of mifepristone, medical abortions won’t be eradicated. Medication abortions are possible using just misoprostol, but the method is less effective, according to a 2021 report from the American Family Physician.
In addition to their safety concerns, Senate Republicans are also urging Kennedy and Makary to suspend approving new generic versions of mifepristone awaiting the results of a safety review of the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) for the drug. REMS are safety programs for certain medications as required by the FDA.
The Republicans are also urging the federal government to require mifepristone and its generic versions to be distributed in person, not through mail, and not at a pharmacy.
The letter also claims that the U.S. has an “‘abortion-on-demand’ culture,” referring to the accessibility of mifepristone through mail. But, according to Planned Parenthood, a telehealth call is required before any pill is shipped.
Staff writer Katie Bernard contributed to this article.
This story was updated to include a comment from Sen. McCormick.
On the way back to the office from an assignment about pet bakeries, my colleague and I stumbled upon a true ice cream lover’s paradise: a rare brick-and-mortar Mister Softee.
While the trucks and their iconic jingles are a dime a dozen in the summertime, a free-standing Mister Softee is about as common as two Philly sports teams winning on the same night. (Too soon?) This one is cash only and open year-round, with a menu that spans ice cream swirls and floats to milkshakes and chocolate-covered bananas. My cup of strawberry and banana soft serve was thick, silky smooth, and anything but artificial-tasting. The roadside stand also gets bonus points for on-season sprinkles. It really is about the little things. Mister Softee of Pennsauken, 3605 Haddonfield Rd., Pennsauken, N.J., 856-662-3787, Facebook page
— Beatrice Forman
Francobolli at Fiorella
On a recent girls’ night out, my friends and I sat at the bar and took it upon ourselves to try four plates of pasta from Fiorella. A noble task, I know! There were no misses, and the current agnolotti dish — stuffed with a sweet polenta and topped with chanterelles — was exceptional.
But the dish that lives rent free in my head nearly a week later is the Francobolli clam pasta. We almost didn’t order it, but the bartender insisted; a man has never been more right on a girls’ night out. A pasta-fied take on vongole su crostini aka clam toast, the postage stamp-shaped pasta was stuffed with breadcrumbs and served in a white, brothy sauce topped with littleneck clams. It’s worth seeking out. Fiorella, 817 Christian St., 215-305-9222, fiorellaphilly.com
— Emily Bloch
The Francobolli at Fiorella, a pasta-fied version of clam toast.
Gourmet lamb sampler (for two!) at Zorba’s Taverna
I don’t need a fancy restaurant for my birthday. I prefer the comfort of a neighborhood favorite, and few are as wonderfully reliable as Zorba’s, the 28-year-old taverna that is one of Fairmount’s cornerstone restaurants. To begin with, a flaming platter of ouzo-splashed saganaki cheese beats a birthday candle every time. But Zorba’s also delivers a wide array of some of the most consistent traditional Greek cooking in the region, and the “gourmet” lamb platter for two is a true celebratory feast. (This is not to be confused with the also-delicious charcoal-grilled platter for two, which includes some fantastic lamb chops.)
The platter I chose is a tribute to the slow-cooked pleasures of lamb in three different styles: slices of tender roasted leg seasoned with garlic and herbs, Smyrna-style meatballs simmered in a cumin-scented red wine and tomato sauce, and finally, a meltingly soft mallet of lamb shank glazed in a lemony white avgolemono sauce with artichokes (a distinctive dish I sometimes order solo). This is rustic home cooking at its best, with deep flavors prioritized over fancy presentation. The platter’s aroma is entrancing, and, the tangy potatoes and mixed well-cooked veggies on the side make it extra hearty. My fork wouldn’t stop roaming until I savored every bit. Zorba’s Taverna, 2230 Fairmount Ave., 215-978-5990, zorbastavern.com
— Craig LaBan
The gourmet lamb platter for two at Zorba’s in Fairmount includes Smyrna-style meatballs, roasted leg, and a lamb shank in avgolemono sauce with artichokes.
Fried skate cheeks at My Loup
Bacalao who? My Loup’s fried skate cheeks are an elevated take on cozy fish fritters. The crispy fried batter works perfectly with the sweet, tender, puffed-up fish meat. The three balls are finished off with ají dulce peppers and a subtle horseradish sauce. My Loup, 2005 Walnut St.,(267) 239-5925, myloupphl.com
— Emily Bloch
Fried skate cheeks from My Loup in Rittenhouse Square.
Smash burger at American Sardine Bar
When I moved into my new apartment, my first priority was clear: Scout the neighborhood for my bar— a place where I will eventually be on a first-name basis with the bartenders. American Sardine Bar is well on its way to being that place. I’ve been four times since moving.
My first meal was top-notch: a Caesar salad with a side of French fries and a martini. A stellar way to begin this journey. This week, however, I sank my teeth into one of the best burgers I’ve had. American Sardine Bar’s smash burger (the best kind of burger, in my opinion) is a perfectly cooked beef patty nestled between pickled shallots, pickle slices, a 10K sauce, and a butter-toasted brioche bun. I’m not on a first-name basis yet, but I will go back and order as many smash burgers as I need to to make my dream a reality. American Sardine Bar, 1800 Federal St., 215-334-2337, americansardinebar.com
When he looks up from assembling the Phillies’ roster, Dave Dombrowski watches sports. One thing recently caught his eye. The Golden State Warriors are poised to open the NBA season with four starters who are 35 or older.
“It’s never happened before,” he said.
Dombrowski, the team’s president of baseball operations, brought this up Thursday, midway through his 54-minute news conference in Citizens Bank Park, to make a point: Aging teams can contend for titles.
It’s relevant because if the Phillies achieve their offseason priority of re-signing free agents Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto, who will be 33 and 35 next season, at least four of the top hitters in the projected opening-day lineup will be 32 or older and locked up to multiyear contracts. It would be so uncommon that Schwarber joked about it several months ago.
“We would love to all finish our careers together,” he said. “But who would want to come out and want to watch a bunch of 40-year-old dudes play baseball? Right?”
Warriors fans might not mind the basketball version, but there’s a notable difference. Whereas Stephen Curry and Draymond Green won four championships together before teaming with Jimmy Butler and Al Horford, the Phillies’ core — Bryce Harper (33), Trea Turner (32), Schwarber, Realmuto, and pitchers Zack Wheeler (35) and Aaron Nola (32) — is still title-less.
The Phillies are coming off 96 wins, 95 last season, and 90 the year before. It would be irrational to blow it all up based on one bad week in each of the last three Octobers and impractical given all the long contractual commitments made by Dombrowski and owner John Middleton.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski must balance blending an aging core with young players from the farm system.
But in addition to an eyebrow-raising challenge to Harper — “I guess we only find out if he becomes elite or if he continues to be good. … I’ve seen guys at his age that level off, or I’ve seen guys rise again. We’ll see what happens” — the takeaway from Dombrowski’s end-of-season gab session was that he realizes the need for an infusion of youth, even as the Phillies prepare a nine-figure offer to Schwarber and discuss how far to go to retain Realmuto.
To extend the NBA comparison, the Phillies must incorporate their Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga, the 23-year-olds among the Warriors’ graybeards.
“We have some young players that we’re going to mesh into our club,” Dombrowski said. “I’m not going to declare that anybody has a job. But there will be some people that we’re really open-minded to being with our big league club next year, coming out of spring training.”
Unsurprisingly, Dombrowski mentioned outfielder Justin Crawford and right-hander Andrew Painter. He also name-checked Otto Kemp, who made his major-league debut in June and could fit next season as a right-handed bench bat.
But Dombrowski said he “wouldn’t even preclude [infielder] Aidan Miller from being that type of guy” to contribute in 2026, an indication that the Phillies are ready to push down harder on the prospect pedal.
They were conservative this season, consistent with their recent philosophy. A recent Fangraphs study showed that only 24 players have made their major- league debut with the Phillies since 2022, the third-fewest in baseball after the Yankees and Braves.
The trend must change.
“It’ll be very interesting next spring training because those guys, they’re on the doorstep, and a couple of them are ready to go,” manager Rob Thomson said of Crawford, Painter, and Miller. “So we’ll see. I love young players because they always bring energy. But they have to perform, too.”
Phillies outfield prospect Justin Crawford won the triple-A International League batting crown with a .334 average.
Front and center, or stage left?
At times this summer, the Phillies got “very close,” a team source said, to calling up Crawford.
Instead, they left the 21-year-old in triple A.
Never mind that left fielder Max Kepler was drowning, with a .201 average and .661 OPS through July 25. Rather than releasing the $10 million veteran and replacing him with Crawford, the Phillies gave Kepler a longer rope. And after trading for Harrison Bader at the deadline, there wasn’t an opportunity for Crawford to play every day in the majors.
But Crawford reached base at a .411 clip for Lehigh Valley and won the International League batting crown with a .334 average. He stole 46 bases and led the farm system with 147 hits.
“I don’t know what else he really does at the minor-league level at this point,” Dombrowski said. “He’s led leagues in hitting. He steals bases. He’s a good energy guy. He’s a solid outfielder.”
Go ahead, then, and pencil in Crawford for a spot in the season-opening outfield.
Differences of opinion about Crawford once focused on his offense, notably his extreme tendency to hit the ball on the ground. Now, it’s more whether he’s best suited for center field or left.
Crawford got drafted as a center fielder and played there exclusively for three years. He shifted to left field more often late this season, especially once Johan Rojas got sent back to triple A. Crawford’s dad, Carl, played left field for 15 years in the majors.
Dombrowski might have hinted at the Phillies’ thinking by saying Kepler is “not going to most likely be back because he’s a free agent and we have Justin Crawford coming.” And Thomson said Crawford is “maybe a little better in left than he is in center,” based on internal reports.
Other team officials don’t fully concur.
Some Phillies officials believe Justin Crawford is best suited to play left field. Others think he can handle center.
“I see Justin as a center fielder,” minor-league director Luke Murton said. “We’re very confident in his ability to play center field. It’s just a matter of, he’s played less left field over the course of his career, so give him exposure to that so when the opportunity comes, if he has to go to the big leagues and play left field, then he’s prepared to do that.
“But I think, as an organization, we see him as a center fielder.”
It would simplify the outfield picture if Crawford is able to handle center field.
Bader, who stabilized center field after the trade, is expected to decline his $10 million mutual option. The Phillies would feel less urgency to bring him back in free agency off his career-best season at the plate.
And they could commit to Brandon Marsh, also a better defender in left field than center, as at least the lefty-hitting side of a corner outfield platoon, which would enable them to focus on finding a replacement for malcontented right fielder Nick Castellanos, all but certain to be traded or released.
Regardless, it will be Crawford’s time. At last.
“I don’t expect him to carry our club in the very beginning of the season, but you also don’t want to put him in where you think it would be a bit too much for him,” Dombrowski said.
“I don’t think that’s going to happen. He has never been overwhelmed when he’s been with us at any level, and we keep moving him up. You want to just see that he just continues to handle himself the same way that he has,” Dombrowski said.
Phillies top pitching prospect Andrew Painter struggled in triple A in his first season back from Tommy John elbow surgery.
‘He’s going to be fine’
Don’t look now, but there will probably be a spot for Painter in the season-opening starting rotation.
Really. It’s true this time.
In 2023, a few team officials predicted that Painter would make the team out of camp even though he was 19 and hadn’t pitched above double A. He injured his elbow and wound up needing Tommy John surgery.
Last winter, in outlining the plan to build Painter’s workload in his return to the mound, Dombrowski infamously said he could be ready for the majors by “July-ish.” Instead, the top prospect had a 5.40 ERA in triple A.
It’s doubtful, then, that Dombrowski will pin yet another timetable on Painter. But with Ranger Suárez headed to free agency and Wheeler recovering from thoracic outlet decompression surgery, Painter’s long-awaited debut could come early next season.
“I think he’s going to be better the second year out after the Tommy John [surgery],” Thomson said. “The command’s going to get better. The quality of stuff’s going to get a little bit better. He’s going to be fine.”
Rival talent evaluators generally agree. One NL scout said last month that he has “appropriate concern” about the decline in Painter’s command but is inclined to “cut him some slack” after not pitching for two years.
There were encouraging signs last month. In his second-to-last start, Painter tossed five scoreless innings. He shut out Syracuse for three innings before allowing three runs in the fourth in his final start.
Even if Suárez bolts, Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Nola, and Taijuan Walker are rotation holdovers. The Phillies are optimistic that Wheeler will return. They can’t say for sure that he will still be elite.
Painter’s time is coming. Maybe even in April.
“He still throws his fastball in the upper-90s, touches 100, still has quality breaking stuff,” Dombrowski said. “Most importantly, he remained healthy. So, those things are the encouragement. He used to have great command. It wasn’t quite as good this year. And normally, when you trace back to a lot of people that have had Tommy John, that’s the last thing that comes back. We’re optimistic that he’ll be able to regain that.”
Phillies infield prospect Aidan Miller went 9-for-27 with two doubles and a homer in an eight-game triple-A cameo to end the season.
Miller time?
Murton was skeptical in spring training when minor-league baserunning coordinator Gary Cathcart recommended that Miller be among the players who got a green light to run.
“I was like, ‘Hey man, I don’t think Aidan Miller’s going to steal a ton of bases in the big leagues. That’s just me,’” Murton said. “He’s like, ‘Well, I think he’s going to.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I don’t.’”
Murton relented. A few months later, he marveled that Miller already swiped more than 20 bases. Miller finished with 59, including seven steals in eight games at triple A to end the season.
In hindsight, even Miller didn’t see it coming.
“Honestly, no,” he said last month. “I don’t really know if I’m faster this year. Maybe a little bit. But I think I’m just being more aggressive on the bases.”
Miller’s path to the majors might be accelerated, too.
After a slow start, he batted .356 with a 1.099 OPS in his last 36 games. If the Phillies trade Alec Bohm this winter, after dangling him in talks last offseason, Miller could be in the wings at third base, even though he has played shortstop so far throughout the minors.
“He’s played some second, he’s played some third, but he’s primarily been a shortstop, so we’d have to make sure that we properly prepared him to do that,” Dombrowski said. “That’s still a discussion that we’ll have to have. But he’s a really good player and a good athlete. And he can hit.
“If Miller’s coming up here, he’s going to be an everyday player at the beginning of his career. We’re not going to bring him up and not play the majority of time.”
Miller was scheduled to play in the Arizona Fall League, but the Phillies decided that it was better if he rested after a long season. Besides, he could be in for a big spring training.
If it seems fast, consider this: When Dombrowski ran the Red Sox, he called up Andrew Benintendi from double A in 2016 and Rafael Devers a year later after only six triple-A games, two fewer than Miller played this season.
Former President Barack Obama endorsed U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee for New Jersey governor, who is locked in a tight race with Republican Jack Ciattarelli.
Obama’s announcement just weeks ahead of the Nov. 4 election came in the form of an ad paid for by Sherrill’s campaign that Sherrill shared on X Friday morning.
“Mikie is a mom who will drive down costs for New Jersey families,” Obama said in the ad, echoing her campaign’s core message. “As a federal prosecutor and former Navy helicopter pilot, she worked to keep our communities safe.”
“Mikie’s integrity, grit, and commitment to service are what we need right now in our leaders,” he adds.
I'm honored to have President @BarackObama on Team Mikie.
This movement is about delivering something better for New Jersey — lower costs, more opportunity for our kids, and a government that's truly accountable to the people. pic.twitter.com/A0f5mHr0GI
Sherrill maintains a single-digit leadin polls over Ciattarelli, a former Assembly member who also ran for governor in 2017 and 2021 and has the endorsement of President Donald Trump.
In a statement, Sherrill praised Obama for leading “historic efforts to lower healthcare costs” and criticized Ciattarelli for defending cuts to Medicaid in Trump’s “big beautiful bill.”
“There’s so much at stake in this election, so President Obama and I are mobilizing New Jerseyans to make a plan to vote on or before November 4,” Sherrill added.
Sherrill last week appeared in South Jersey last week with Sens. Cory Booker (D., N.J.) and Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) and in her hometown of Montclair with former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, an Arizona Democrat. She will appear in this weekend with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.
Ciattarelli appeared on Wednesday with Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who co-founded Trump’s DOGE and who appeared at a GOP summit in Atlantic City earlier this year to garner enthusiasm ahead of the gubernatorial primary.
Trump does not currently have plans to appear in the state with Ciattarelli, Axios reported. While New Jersey shifted more in support of Trump in 2024 he still lost the state by 6 percentage points.
Last week at the Vatican, two Villanova legends finally came together: Pope Leo XIV and former basketball star Maddy Siegrist.
Siegrist took a short trip to Rome to visit the big landmarks, including the Trevi Fountain and the Colosseum and spent a day with Villanova at an Augustinian conference, where she got to meet the pope.
Last year, the Villanova women’s basketball team took a group trip to Italy and the Vatican, but Siegrist, still in the middle of the WNBA season, couldn’t attend. This time around, after the Dallas Wings were eliminated from playoff contention, Chrissy Quisenberry, who helps organize alumni trips at Villanova, reached out to let Siegrist know they were planning another trip and that they might get an audience with the pope, also a Villanova graduate.
“People always joke because he [went to] Villanova, like, ‘Is he going to do the wedding?’” said Siegrist, who’s engaged to Stephen Perretta, an assistant women’s basketball coach at Drexel and the son of former Wildcats coach Harry Perretta. “When it did happen, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is crazy.’ We have a family group chat of all my cousins and aunts and grandparents. I sent the picture, and they’re like, ‘Are you joking?’ It was kind of a last-minute trip, so I didn’t really tell anyone because I didn’t know — when they said audience, it could be 1,000 people outside, which would have been unbelievable, but I didn’t realize I was actually going to have the opportunity to shake his hand.”
The group attended mass at St. Peter’s Basilica and toured the catacombs before meeting with Pope Leo. Siegrist got a photo shaking the pope’s hand — which she did have to pay for, like a Disneyland ride photo — and said it was a bucket list moment, which “rejuvenated” her Catholic faith.
Pope Leo XIV wears a Villanova hat gifted to him during a meeting with an Italian heritage group in June.
Pope Leo frequently goes viral for his White Sox fandom and has been pictured in Villanova hats on multiple occasions since assuming his new role. But even with a group from Villanova in the building, Siegrist said he was careful to stay impartial.
“He’s not biased at all,” Siegrist said. “I’ve seen a few pictures of Villanova hats and stuff. I think he addressed that. Dr. [Barbara] Wall was on the trip, she was one of his professors, so that was pretty cool to be with her during that moment. He knew there was a small group from Villanova at the conference, I think about 20-25 people. Such a cool experience. I really don’t even remember what I said in the moment. You just get so starstruck. You’re so nervous.”
Think you know your news? There’s only one way to find out. Welcome back to our weekly News Quiz — a quick way to see if your reading habits are sinking in and to put your local news knowledge to the test.
Question 1 of 10
After decades as the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia's arts center in Fairmount Park is getting a new name. What is it called now?
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
The Pittsburgh-based Highmark insurance company will join the Mann nameplate starting immediately under the terms of a 12-year deal. The arts center will use the moniker "Highmark Mann" for short, and its new name comes with a renovation slated for completion in the spring.
Question 2 of 10
This Eagles player announced his retirement Monday on social media after 11 seasons in the NFL:
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
Smith, 33, wrote that he “knew this day would come — but now that it’s here, I’m feeling so many emotions I never expected." The 6-foot-4, 270-pound outside linebacker signed with the Eagles on Sept. 5, one day after their season-opening victory over the Dallas Cowboys.
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How many of the eateries on The 76, The Inquirer's annual list of the most vital restaurants in the Philadelphia area, are fresh additions this year?
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
More than half of the list is fresh — classics that Inquirer scouts felt deserved their time in the spotlight, or new and new-to-us spots that reflect the shifting energy of the dining scene.
Question 4 of 10
A plan to convert Chester County's Pennhurst State School and Hospital into one of these facilities is drawing outrage from local residents:
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
A plan to convert Pennhurst into a massive data center has outraged and mobilized local residents, as well as people in neighboring communities in an area known for rolling hills, farms, and an overall rural character. The pushback comes as both President Donald Trump and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro champion data center development.
Question 5 of 10
The Philadelphia Zoo is adding a new attraction that will serve as the first of its kind on the institution’s campus in its more than 150-year history. What is it?
CorrectIncorrect. XX% of other readers got this question right.
The 10-story amusement ride — dubbed the “Pherris Wheel” by zoo officials — will open Nov. 20 and sit just past the zoo’s main entrance, offering a gondola’s-eye view of the animal park below, Boathouse Row, the Philadelphia Art Museum, and the skyline below.
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Question 6 of 10
How much money did Temple University get as part of a record-making gift it recently received from an alumnus who almost didn't get accepted into the school?
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Christopher Barnett, who made his money in real estate and healthcare, has donated $55 million to the school, surpassing the $27.5 million given by philanthropists Sidney and Caroline Kimmel in April. Barnett was rejected from Temple nearly two decades ago, but he talked his way in after showing up unannounced at the office of the director of transfer admissions.
Question 7 of 10
A Delco-based tattooer won a scrapple sculpting contest at Reading Terminal Market late last week. His scrapple-fied sculpture depicted:
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Patrick Moser was crowned champion for his version of the Eagles’ Tush Push, which he called the “Mush Push.” The sculpture, judges said, was advanced, ambitious, and pushed scrapple “to its absolute limits.” Moser was awarded a pig trophy named “Scrappy” and a $100 Reading Terminal Market gift card.
Question 8 of 10
Following the Phillies' tragic knockout in game four of the National League Division Series, where is team manager Rob Thomson going next season?
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With one year left on his contract, Thomson will be back to manage the Phillies next season. Questions arose about Thomson’s job security last week after the Phillies lost in the divisional round of the playoffs for the second year in a row.
Question 9 of 10
Iron Hill Brewery abruptly closed all its stores and filed for liquidation bankruptcy earlier this month. That leaves one question: What happens to all their beer now?
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The final destination of Iron Hill's beer will play out during the bankruptcy process, which could take several months to just over a year. If the beer is able to be sold, proceeds would go toward paying the company's debts.
Question 10 of 10
This dive bar made The Inquirer's list of the 20 happiest places in Philly, thanks in part to its welcoming bartenders:
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Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy good food and a fun beverage, which is a pretty neat shortcut. Dirty Franks, one reader wrote, not only has $2 beers but bartenders so warm that they sometimes think of them as "additional mothers."
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Seems like you’ve been skimming more than reading there, buddy. There’s always next week.
You’ve read some articles (or made some educated guesses) but we wouldn’t come to you first for our local news recaps. Better luck next week!
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It always figured to be an emotional day when the Alter family gathered at Har Jehuda Cemetery in Upper Darby. They were commemorating their mother’s first yahrzeit, the anniversary of death in the Jewish tradition.
But when the family arrived at her grave, they found it in devastating condition.
Beatrice Reina Alter, 93, was buried last year next to her husband, Milton Alter, in plots that the couple bought in the Jewish cemetery in the 1990s. When their family came together for her yahrzeit in August, they expected there to be a new headstone to match Milton’s.
Instead, her grave was covered in a fresh mound of dirt. The corner of a plywood board stuck out. And there was no headstone to be seen.
“We were shaken and appalled,” said Daniel Alter, one of the couple’s five children.
Yet issues at the cemetery — and for the burial industry — extend beyond placing headstones on time. Har Jehuda reflects an industry facing serious challenges to its longevity, where sometimes small, antiquated businesses must reinvent themselves. The country’s relationships with cemeteries and burials are changing, putting a seemingly timeless business at risk.
Har Jehuda, for instance,has been an important institution for the region’s Jewish community since its founding in the 1890s, holding more than 20,000 graves. But today, its grounds are largely overgrown and unkept, and numerous gravestones have fallen into disrepair. A volunteer group has stepped in to cover some of the maintenance and landscaping costs but fears it cannot sustain the cemetery for long.
Overgrown weeds and displaced headstones at Har Jehuda Cemetery in Upper Darby.
“The reality is that there are not enough staff or funds to maintain the cemetery, and there hasn’t been for years,” Randi Raskin Nash, a member of the Friends of Har Jehuda Cemetery group, said by email.
The cremation boom
A hundred years ago, cremation was an unusual choice in the United States. Things started to shift in 1963, when the Catholic Church lifted its prohibition of the practice and Jessica Mitford’s book The American Way of Death, an exposé of the death industry, was published. Before then the cremation rate was reported to be in the single digits, and even as it rose, by 1999 only about 25% of Americans were cremated. But that is changing.
Cremations are expected to double the number of burials in 2025, according to a report from the National Funeral Directors Association. By 2045, the cremation rate in Pennsylvania is projected to reach over 82%, with burials dropping to just under 14%.
Several factors appear to be driving the shift, according to Christopher Robinson, the president of the association’s board of directors. Those include costs, environmental concerns, declines in religious affiliation, and growing cultural acceptance of cremation.
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But that is not the business model that most cemeteries were built upon.
When folks secure a plot for interment, they are really buying an easement for burial rights, or essentially a license to use the cemetery’s land. Plots can cost thousands of dollars and areoften nonrefundable.
Once it comes time for a person to be buried, the cemetery may charge for other parts of the process, like digging and closing the plot, creating a headstone monument, or supplying a vault for the casket.
Most cemeteries sustain themselves for the future by putting a portion of that revenue into an endowment fund, where the return on investment can be used for maintenance and repairs. Friends of Har Jehuda estimates that it requires roughly $50,000 to$75,000 just to cover lawn mowing and weeding per season.
Cremations are much less profitable, particularly if a cemetery does not actually perform it — a walled recess with an engraved cover for a loved one’s urn may cost only a few hundred dollars.
It’s unknown exactly how many cemeteries have formally closed or been abandoned in recent years, since the statistic does not appear to be widely tracked. What is clear is that cremation trends and dwindling space for future burials have left cemeteries struggling.
“There’s going to be a lot of cemeteries going out of business in the next 20 years,” said Tanya Marsh, a law professor at Wake Forest University who teaches funeral and cemetery law, in an episode of The Economics of Everyday Things podcast last year.
Would you get married at a cemetery?
Some cemeteries have embraced the changes and creatively diversified their offerings.
“We’re an outdoor museum. We’re a sculpture garden, we’re an arboretum … we’re more than just a cemetery,” said Nancy Goldenberg, CEO of Laurel Hill Cemeteries in Philadelphia.
Laurel Hill uses its combined 265 acres on both sides of the Schuylkill to its advantage. On a given day at the historic cemetery, you might see visitors on a history tour, stretching out to watch a movie screening, attending a wedding, or meeting with the official book club, Boneyard Bookworms.
The 49 Burning Condors singer Kimber Dulin, Christopher Tremogile on guitar and Jason Gooch on drums play as folks shop for unusual antiques, vintage items, artwork and handmade wares at the Market of the Macabre at the Laurel Hill Cemetery in 2021.
Goldenberg said the extensive offerings are meant to build connections between people and the cemetery: They will be more likely to contribute money, or when they eventually need a resting place for their loved ones, they will look therefirst.
This all used to be more common — the first U.S. cemeteries in the mid-19th century also served as the country’s first public parks, with open grassy fields fit for a picnic. Before then, people buried their dead in smaller graveyards that eventually became overcrowded and sources of disease.
Laurel Hill is readying itself for a changing death industry, too. Goldenberg said she anticipates a rise in “green burials,” in which a person is buried without embalming or a casket, and said the cemetery was designating a section for them.
Visitors view a display behind a hearse during the 13th Car & Hearse Show presented by the Mohnton Professional Car Club at Laurel Hill Cemetery in 2021.
And while Goldenberg said she would be long gone before the cemetery runs out of space for new burials, it is a reality officials are planning for.
Laurel Hill is adding space for an additional 225 niches for cremated remains.
“There are small cemeteries, and once they fill up, that’s the revenue stream. … You have to be prepared for that,” she said.
“If you don’t, that’s when you fall on hard times.”
If a cemetery reachesthe point of closure or abandonment, it’s not alwaysclear what would happen to it. Last year, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed into law a bill sponsored by StateRep. Tim Brennan (D., Bucks) that would give financial relief to municipalities that take over abandoned cemeteries, since doing so can be a costly burden that local governments want to avoid.
Uncertain futures for cemeteries
Days after the Alter family made it through the prayers and memorial they planned, the emotional weight of the experience hit them even harder.
Daniel Alter later confirmed with Har Jehuda that a fresh grave had been dug where he believed his mother was buried. Recently, he hired a ground-penetrating radar company to examine the burial site, which determined the freshly dug grave was directly adjacent to where his mother was buried. While Alter was relieved to learn his mother’s grave had not been disturbed, he said Har Jehuda could have prevented the anguish he and his family have felt over the last few months.
Har Jehuda Cemetery’s owner, Larry Moskowitz, declined to comment for this article. Moskowitz was previously prosecuted by the state attorney general’s office over allegations that his other business, Wertheimer Monuments, had failed to deliver headstones to people who had paid for them. Complaints like these against the burial industry happen occasionally — the attorney general’s office also sued another Philadelphia monuments company in 2023 for failing to deliver headstones. There are multiple organizationsdedicated to protecting consumers against predatory burial providers.
The Alters, like other families, continue to visit and bury their loved ones at Har Jehuda, but they hope that no one else goes through their experience.
“Our collective wish is that it never, ever, ever happens again to anyone in the Philly area,” Daniel Alter said.
This week’s Shackamaxon is about field trips, political systems, and state budget shenanigans.
Perspective vs. parochialism
Five members of City Council, several Council staffers, three state representatives, and the head of the Philadelphia Parking Authority are taking a field trip up to Hoboken, N.J., next week, with the aim of learning more about how that city managed to eliminate traffic deaths. Hoboken hasn’t just done so forone year or two — the Mile Square City has gone without a vehicular fatality since 2017. Council President Kenyatta Johnson deserves credit for being willing to learn from other places, something Council has traditionally been hostile to.
Still, if our local legislators want to truly have their minds blown, they should head farther north. No, not Boston. The city they should learn from is Montreal, where my wife and I spent last weekend.
The city known as “Le Belle Ville” shares a lot in common with Philadelphia. Unlike Hoboken, which is ultimately a satellite city of Manhattan, Montreal is the center of its own metropolitan area, and the biggest city in Quebec. While there are zip codes in Philadelphia that have more residents than the North Jersey hamlet, Montreal has over 1.7 million inhabitants. It also has a riverside Old City, a park named for Marconi, an often contentious relationship with their state provincial government, a plethora of Second Empire architecture, a storied Chinatown, an expansive urban park that’s a bit of a hike to get to, and they call their downtown “Centreville,” or Center City.
Unlike Philadelphia, however, Montreal’s leaders embrace being a city, rather than trying to plug their square suburban preferences into a round metropolitan hole. The difference in quality of life is easy to see, even on a short trip.
People gather next to the Lachine Canal on a warm spring day in Montreal in 2021.
As my colleague Stephanie Farr pointed out, Philadelphia lacks even a single regularly pedestrianized corridor, while in Montreal, you’ll find them all over the place. Montreal’s mayor, Valerie Plante, credits its pedestrianization program with attracting additional tourists and boosting the local economy. There are more cyclists in Montreal than here in Philadelphia, and yet, you were less likely to encounter them speeding past you on the sidewalk, with even older riders and parents of small children feeling comfortable and safe riding in the street, thanks to traffic calming in residential areas and abundant paths elsewhere.
Additionally, their embrace of city life means a much more pleasant transit experience. In the four hours I spent riding the rails in Montreal, I did not notice a single person smoking cigarettes or marijuana on board a train or inside a metro station. I smelled both on my first trip back on SEPTA. Many Montrealers smoke. You’ll even find a recreational cannabis dispensary along Rue Saint-Paul, their historic thoroughfare, but they respect their transit system enough to refrain while on board. Imagine that!
Real choices
It would be easy to cite cultural differences as the primary reason why things seem to work better up north. But culture is not stagnant; it interacts with politics and policy. There are differences in electioneering between the City of 100 Steeples and the City of Brotherly Love, as well.
Since Philadelphia enacted the 1951 Home Rule Charter, the Democratic Party has dominated city politics. Many Council members are reelected without facing a credible challenge. Local Republicans stand little chance, especially with their colleagues in Washington and Harrisburg routinely demonstrating their contempt for our city.
A sign in the Fairmount neighborhood in May.
The city’s new, progressive opposition, the Working Families Party, is often more focused on national issues than things city government has direct control over. In fact, it urged people to vote for it in order to stop Donald Trump. Neither opposition party has been willing to tackle local good government priorities like councilmanic prerogative or eliminating row offices. This makes achieving change in this city feel impossible, which probably contributes to what former Inquirer columnist Helen Ubiñas famously called “the Philly Shrug.”
In Montreal, however, voters have a real choice. They even have municipal political parties, meaning voters have to form their own opinions about local issues.
Budget blame game
Harrisburg Democrats are increasingly convinced state Senate Republicans are holding up the budget to boost state Treasurer Stacy Garrity’s chances in next year’s governor’s race. Garrity is currently behind by about 16 points in the polls. Republican consultant Chris Nicholas, one of the more reasonable members of his party, insists this is not the case, claiming that if it were, the treasurer would have unveiled her loan program earlier for Pre-K Counts programs and groups that provide rape and domestic violence prevention and response services.
State Treasurer and Republican candidate for governor Stacy Garrity holds a rally in Bucks County at the Newtown Sports and Events Center in September.
Still, it is hard to avoid thinking a Josh Shapiro landslide in 2026 could have an adverse effect on the campaigns of Republicans who are up for reelection next year.
Of course, holding up needed state cash might only make things worse. The county commissioners in state Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward’s Westmoreland County canceled their public meetings because there’s no money to spend. As Spotlight PA’s Stephen Caruso has outlined, nonprofit service providers are already feeling the pain, taking on debt that will hurt their ability to provide care for years to come.
It’s too bad that kind of pain has not been felt by our representatives.
