🎶 A sound of the holidays | Morning Newsletter
And today’s top stories
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Welcome to Saturday. The sun should come out, but brace for wind chills in the 30s.
Today, we’re highlighting a classic commercial that signals the start of the holiday season in Pennsylvania. Plus, there’s news about SEPTA averting a significant fare increase, Abington’s smelly drinking water, and new tennis and pickleball courts on the way.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.
What you should know today
Residents of Abington Township in Montgomery County have been reporting for several days that their drinking water smelled of either chemical or plastic, but Aqua Pennsylvania said Thursday that the water is safe to drink. Here’s what’s going on.
A South Jersey first grader was physically restrained and attacked by his teacher during a school bus trip caught on video, and West Deptford school officials tried to cover up the alleged assault, according to a lawsuit by his mother.
Gov. Josh Shapiro stopped by a West Philadelphia barbershop to talk Philly sports, President-elect Donald Trump, and working with Republican Dave McCormick.
Sen. John Fetterman said this week that he would vote for onetime opponent Mehmet Oz if the celebrity doctor agrees to protect Medicaid and Medicare. This made some of Fetterman’s former staffers “Delco mad.”
Pennsylvania’s education secretary, Khalid Mumin, is stepping down. He called the role “the honor of a lifetime.”
A Philadelphia man was wounded when his P320 gun accidentally discharged. This week, a jury awarded him $11 million in damages.
Workers at the Whole Foods in Spring Garden are taking steps to unionize. They’re seeking better wages, working conditions, and health-care benefits.
Former Eagles running back Wendell Smallwood Jr. is facing federal charges over allegedly defrauding COVID-19 relief programs and the Internal Revenue Service in a series of schemes that resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in falsely obtained payments.
Jason Kelce is taking his talents to late-night television. The new weekly ESPN show will film in Philly with a limited run leading up to the Super Bowl.
A Brooklyn businessman wants to save the SS United States from sinking. The ship’s current owners say it’s too late.
An indoor pickleball and tennis club is coming to the Fishtown area next spring.
🎤 Let’s pass the mic to trending culture reporter Emily Bloch.
Picture it: The Birds game is on, you’re snacking on the couch, and suddenly, you hear it: “This holiday season, my good friend gave to me: seven Powerball tickets — .” With the start of Pennsylvania’s annual showing of its prized lottery Christmas commercial, the holiday season is truly here.
Dating to 1992, the ad, which is titled “Snowfall,” features a group of carolers singing an abridged and heavily modified version of “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” swapping the usual swans a-swimming and geese a-laying for an array of lottery games.
On social media, the return of the ad — which typically begins airing in early November — is celebrated. “It’s practically a holiday tradition,” one Reddit user wrote 13 years ago about the ad (from a Reddit thread in 2011 discussing its return that holiday season). A new Reddit thread posted this week also embraced the holiday ad.
“The moment they hear the carolers sing, many Pennsylvanians reflexively smile, sing along, and mentally count the weeks until they can put up the tree,” Drew Svitko, the Pennsylvania Lottery’s executive director, said in 2016 ahead of the ad’s 25th anniversary. “We are proud that our popular commercial brings back so many warm memories for viewers and has become a Keystone State holiday tradition.” — Emily Bloch
Keep reading to dive into the history of the beloved ad, and to watch this year’s edition. And if you have another favorite holiday ad, let us know about it.
In 2020, over half a million Philadelphians voted to establish the Citizens Police Oversight Commission, to administer independent investigations of officer misconduct.
But in a guest column for The Inquirer, Tonya McClary, executive director of the CPOC, says Philadelphia needs to strengthen the agency’s power to fulfill that work.
“We are proud of our work to perform these critical functions, but we know — and we have heard from the community — that they fall short of the independent oversight Philadelphia’s residents expect,” McClary writes.
Read on for McClary’s perspective on how the CPOC lacks the practical authority to fully realize its mission.
âť“ Pop quiz
The owners of Avalon’s “Monstrosity” couldn’t find a buyer who’d save the home, so they’re selling it to a developer.
Why is it (lovingly) called the “Monstrosity”?
A) There’s an urban legend about a “monster” under the floorboards
B) It transforms into a haunted house on Halloween
C) It’s named after complaints about rowdy youths who hung out there
D) None of the above
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: These musical Eagles just dropped their new — and maybe final — holiday album
ACHY PHILLIPS STEEL
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Mike Leeds who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Keith Haring. A drawing by the Pennsylvania-born pop artist, whose distinctive style became known worldwide, will become a U.S. postage stamp next year.
Books in Homes, a Bucks County-based nonprofit, recently donated books for kids to take home at Gloria Casarez Elementary in Kensington. The day was also a cause for celebration because Books in Homes gave away its one millionth book.
The nonprofit aims to boost literacy and foster a love of reading in children by giving them books to own — not castoffs or material that holds little appeal, but books they love, books they choose.
Fourth grader Baashir Willis, pictured left, received the one millionth book. “I love books,” the 9-year-old said. “I can’t believe they picked me.”
Somewhere on the internet in Philly
Do you consider Center City part of South Philly? A Philadelphian posed the question on X, and we’re curious what you think.
October was the city’s first rainless month in 153 years of recordkeeping. The drought is not over, but we’ll take the recent showers as a cause for celebration.
And in another corner of the web, a cyclist is looking for a friendly stranger who helped them after they crashed an e-bike and broke an arm. Ouch. Wishing you a speedy recovery, and hope the good Philly Samaritan sees this!
👋🏽 Back at it tomorrow with the latest news.
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.