Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia

Walking the Walk

Philadelphia Group

Students from these communities gathered 13 times over the year to engage in meaningful conversation with one another, volunteer at the Books through Bars service learning organization, write poetry, and attend conflict resolution trainings.

Group Leaders

Margie Scharf, Interfaith Center.

Student Group Leaders

Mikey Pasek
Ibrahim Muhaimin

Highlights of the year included:

• Criminal Justice – In conjunction with packaging requested books for prisoners at Books through Bars, the youth learned another side of criminal justice from a 59 year old man who spent 24 years behind bars, obtained a GED in prison, and is now pursuing his college degree.
• MLK Service Day – The youth spent the day at Al Aqsa Islamic Society where they made blankets for babies of homeless moms, explored hot topics such as abortion and gun control, toured the mosque, and enjoyed a traditional Middle Eastern feast!
• Sharing Ritual Objects – Each youth shared an important symbol or object from his/her tradition. Afterwards, they made “still lifes” with their objects.

Service Learning Partner:

Books Through Bars, West Philadelphia

Books Through Bars enables prisoners to transition more smoothly back into society by increasing available educational materials. The organization hopes to spark dialogue about the issues of imprisonment and the criminal justice system. Volunteers supply prisoners with quality educational materials by reading prisoner book requests, selecting the appropriate books, and packaging them for mailing.

Congregational Partners:

The Congregational Partners serve a number of functions for the group, including:

• Recruiting participating youth for the year-long program;
• Providing a mentor who accompanies the youth and offers guidance and assistance;
• Hosting at least one session and providing a tour of the worship space.

The five Congregational Partners for the Philadelphia group are:

Al Aqsa Islamic Society School, North Philadelphia

Beth Am Israel, Penn Valley

Quba Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies, West Philadelphia

White Rock Baptist Church, West Philadelphia

Photo Gallery of the 2007-08 Philadelphia Group

Highlights from the 2006-2007