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Jess Gould may not be a South Philly native, but since relocating to the area in 2005, the West Passyunk resident has passionately wrapped her arms around the community ready to tackle any task where she is needed.
Besides being a wife, mother and holding down a full-time job, the New Hampshire native is one of the founding members of the friends of Stephen Girard Elementary, 18th Street and Snyder Avenue, where she has lead the efforts to revitalize the landscaping and run two successful supply drives on behalf of the school’s faculty. She also is president of the West Passyunk Neighbors Association and makes regular contributions to the 1st District Advisory Council.
“I’ve never had much money to donate, so I enjoy donating my time. The most rewarding thing to me is volunteering my time to make even the smallest difference to someone else,” the resident of the 2200 block of South Lambert Street said. “Volunteering my time specifically within the community started out small, by wanting to plant trees with Tree Tenders, however once I got involved with West Passyunk Neighbors Association, I quickly realized that it made me feel like a bigger part of the community, rather than just a homeowner.”
One of the crowning accomplishments for Gould, 37, who is a GIS specialist with the Philadelphia Water Department, is the regular cleanup efforts to Girard schoolyard.
“Quickly, it became a weekly Saturday morning ritual for a small group of us (from Newbold, West Passyunk and Girard Estate) to meet and clean the yard, work on landscaping, gossip, brainstorm and visit with passer-bys,” she said.
The leader by example currently dedicates about 10 hours a week to her WPNA tasks, making sure she leaves ample time to spend with her husband and 5-year-old daughter. Come early 2015, the family responsibilities will be expanding as Gould is five months pregnant, but she has no intention of changing her ways.
“I want people to get to know each other beyond their block. I am very big on saying hello to people that you pass by on the street. … I want people to feel empowered that they can make a difference in their community whether small or large,“ Gould said.
Contact Editor Bill Gelman at bgelman@southphillyreview.com or ext. 121.
2014 Difference Makers
/ L. Jay Agnes / Christine M. Beady / Jessica Calter / Mikki Capo /
/ Barbara Capozzi / Giovanna Cavaliere /
/ Christopher DiCapua / Marlo and Jason Dilks / Marie DiStefano / Beth Dougherty /
/ Cornell Drummond / Maureen Fratantoni / Etrulia (Trudy) Gay / Jess Gould /
/ David and Lisa Grainge / Richie Lazer / Tim Lidiak /
/ Shane Martin / Laura McColgan / Akhenaton Mikell / Russell Shoemaker / Lionel Simmons / Tom Wyatt/
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