Checking in at Strawberry Mansion | Morning Newsletter
And depression can get better.
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The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
It’s expected to be a rainy and cloudy day. Dress accordingly (or stay inside if you can).
Our main story puts the spotlight on Strawberry Mansion High School.
One year after the community beat back the Philadelphia School District’s plan to close the school because of declining enrollment, The Inquirer spent an entire school year inside chronicling efforts to revive the facility.
Four years later, we decided to check back in.
If you see this 🔑 in today’s newsletter, that means we’re highlighting our exclusive journalism. You need to be a subscriber to read these stories.
— Taylor Allen (@TayImanAllen, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
Patience Wilson, a 17-year-old smiley senior, is accustomed to people shaking their heads and telling her all the bad things they’ve heard about her high school, Strawberry Mansion.
Some background: For years, Strawberry Mansion fought against several challenges like high poverty, high rates of gun violence, declining enrollment, and a mismatch between available funding and concentrated student need.
But Wilson knows the real Mansion, the place where students can start a path to a building trades career, partner with nonprofits, and spend their lunchtime in clubs and activities.
Reminder: The school was under threat of closing because of dwindling numbers but the surrounding community successfully fought back. The Inquirer reported on the efforts to revive the school at 31st Street and Ridge Avenue.
Four years later, Mansion has a full complement of students.
Read more to learn about the new improvements and challenges.
What you should know today
Because Iran has been silencing protesters for decades, a Philly resident dedicated his career to composing music as a form of political dissent. Grab your headphones for this story as Sepehr Pirasteh walks you through his composition.
Surging babysitting rates could cost Philly parents hundreds for a night without the kids.
In South Philly, GoPuff neighbors seek relief on safety, sanitation and quality-of-life issues.
Dave McCormick is eyeing another Senate run in Pennsylvania and talks Trump, China, and trade in his new book.
A beekeeper duo found 100,000 bees inside a dilapidated South Jersey home. The removal process was equal parts construction, science, and patience.
A Philly pastor runs a can’t-miss interview series featuring nearly every candidate for Philadelphia mayor on his Facebook page.
When Sen. John Fetterman checked into a hospital for clinical depression last month, critics questioned whether he would be able to serve his six-year term.
Mental illness is often portrayed as an inescapable condition but for most people, depression and other mental health disorders don’t last forever, according to David Mandell, the director of the Penn Center for Mental Health.
Everyone’s experience is different.
The Inquirer spoke to four Philadelphians about their experience with depression, what treatments worked for them, and how they continue to take care of their mental health.
🧠 Trivia time 🧠
In what theater did Steven Spielberg see his first movie, The Greatest Show on Earth?
A) The Westmount
B) The Boyd
C) The Milgram
D) Mastbaum
Find out if you know the answer.
What we’re...
📺 Watching: Last night’s season finale of The Last Of Us.
❤️ Swooning: This love story of two people who kept finding each other. 🔑
🎧 Listening to: Omay Lay’s Tiny Desk Concert.
🧩 Unscramble the Anagram 🧩
Hint: Jefferson Station
AMTRAK TEES
We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Send us your own original anagram to unscramble if you’d like. Cheers to John Piernikowski, who correctly guessed Sunday’s answer: Philadelphia Style Ice Cream. Email us if you know the answer.
Photo of the day
Enjoy the beginning of your week. Thank you for starting your day with The Inquirer.