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When 90-year-old Madeline Brinkman first moved to South Philly from the Scranton area, a friend of hers was shocked.
“Why would you want to live in South Philly?” he asked.
Brinkman can quickly convince anyone that what makes South Philly a great neighborhood is the people. Since relocating here during World War II, she has been working to keep her neighborhood as clean and civic-minded as the day she arrived. Over the years, she has been an active block captain for the 300 block of Emily Street and still helps to recruit voters for local Democratic politicians.
Brinkman’s caretaking skills don’t just focus outside her front door. She cares for her daughter, Maryanne, who has cerebral palsy. Brinkman has been highly dedicated to making sure her daughter had every advantage. Brinkman took her daughter to therapy since an early age and worked on fundraisers through Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Less than halfway through her daughter’s first day of school, the facility realized it couldn’t care for her daughter. Brinkman was appalled by the decision.
“Had I known then what I know now, I would have gotten in touch with the politician. That’s why I work with them,” Brinkman, who goes door-to-door on Election Day to get people out to vote, said. “If I have a problem, I can get in touch with them and they take care of it for me.”
After retiring from a long run as block captain, Brinkman can still be found out on the street with a dustpan and broom. She continually tells herself she is going to put down the broom, but she just “can’t stand a dirty street.”
Brinkman recalled a time when the neighborhood would come together and turn on the hydrant and clean up the street. Her agenda is about personal pride and just doing what needs to get done.
“If I see a paper, I stoop down and pick it up,” she said. “You don’t live out in the street, but you do your daily chores of whatever you have to do.”
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
More 2011 Difference Makers:
Louis DiRenzo Bonney DosSantos Andrew Emma Darren Fava Sara Feinstein
Greg Frangipani Gary Harkins Kelly Hile Mitch Little Robert Malara
Jessica Mammarella Chris Menna Anton Moore John Murawski Cassie Plummer
Sue Posternock Michelle Rumbaugh Letty Santarelli Christy Santoro
Marianne Squillaciotti Walter Stewart Jennifer Swain Angelica Victoriano Joe Whelan
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