NEast Links: Valley Swim Club, new laws, a wedding and more

By Shannon McDonald

Here’s a summary of the week’s Northeast news we didn’t cover. See others here.

A big story last week involved Huntingdon Valley’s Valley Swim Club. The Montgomery County private pool is accused of kicking out a group of black campers from Creative Steps Day Camp on Devereaux and Summerdale avenues. Many reporters stated the pool is in the Northeast, when in fact, it is not in Philadelphia at all. Here’s a roundup of some of the media outlets that covered the story.

Phawker likened the incident to the nation’s former Jim Crow laws. Jeff Deeney followed up with a second post, calling the Northeast culturally indistinguishable from Huntingdon Valley.

Philebrity initially reported that the swim club is in the Northeast.

Young Philly Politics had a brief recap of the story. Though its reporters didn’t blame the Northeast specifically, they did associate the club with Philadelphia.

Philly Blunt, like Philebrity, reported that Valley Swim Club is in the Northeast, and also provided links of other media outlets that did the same.

Inga Saffron, the Inquirer’s architecture columnist, touched on the story, but focused on the larger issue: the disadvantages urban kids – regardless of color – face, compared to suburban kids.

CNN even picked up the story, making sure to state in the lede that the club is in suburban Philadelphia.

Theresa Sauter has become a one-woman advocate in the fight to raise the mandatory minimum prison sentence for people who flee the scene of an accident. Sauter holds this issue close to her heart, as her daughter, Marylee Otto, was killed in a hit-and-run accident at Rhawn Street and Lexington Avenue. State Sen. Michael Stack sponsored the bill.

A Northeast woman won a long-running eBay contest for an all-expenses-paid wedding. Katie McIntyre, whose neighborhood was not revealed, bid $34,100 on a wedding with her fiance, Sean Mooney of Glenside. The wedding package is worth $50,000, and all the money from the bidding benefited Alex’s Lemonade Stand.

Fox Chase Cancer Center unveiled its first satellite campus, which opened Monday. The $14 million facilities are in Buckingham, Bucks County – nearly 20 miles from the main campus next to Burholme park.

Our best-read story this weekNortheast man poses as priest to comfort injured cop

Our most-commented story this week Tonight at the Pennypack Park Concert Series: The Fantastic Party Dolls

What was your favorite story of the week? What do you think about these other stories? What are you thoughts on Valley Swim Club? Do you think there should be tougher penalties for hit-and-run crimes?

Every Friday morning, we make sure you didn’t miss any Northeast Philadelphia news with NEast Links.

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