South Philly Review

The never-ending quest for optimal health is making a summer visit to South Philadelphia.

Passersby and residents of the Conswiller B. Pratt Apartments, 3001 Moore St., have had weekly Friday opportunities to satisfy their desires for affordable produce since July 2. Fresh fruits and vegetables greet their eyes and please their wallets through the Food for Life program, a collaboration between the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) and Center-City based Iovine Brothers Produce & Catering.

The five-month-old partnership visits four PHA sites one day a week, with Wednesdays meaning treks to Wilson Park, 2500 Jackson St., and Fridays providing stops at the Greater Grays Ferry Estates, of which the Pratt apartment complex is a part. At these locations and two North Philadelphia spots, two workers offer an array of goods. The even distribution of fruits and vegetables allows for what one might think will be a brief stay for one or two items to become an extended adventure in being thrifty.

“The peaches and nectarines are the most popular items,” Irvin King, formerly of Sixth and McKean streets, said last week, the fifth of operation. The 25-year-old worker joins with Abeer El-Zaher, 16, each week to peddle the staples of any sound diet. The two dole out that mixture from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“Most days we stay until 4:30,” King said.

“The times are great for me,” Sadiq Brown, of the 2900 block of Moore Street, added. “I work at night, so I grab some fruit for a snack. Everything is so convenient.”

King and El-Zaher received their positions through Iovine Brothers and will continue to make sales and friends through at least September.

“We do well here and have met some interesting people,” El-Zaher, a PHA resident, said of the Grays Ferry location, which is situated among 40 acres encompassing 554 units.

Most of those friends live in the apartments located just a few yards from King and El-Zaher’s tented area. Those spaces comprise 72 units and house about 120 people, many of whom are elderly, on fixed incomes and eager to be able to walk only a short distance for their sustenance. Last week, Alice Sheldon, one of the building’s tenants, discussed Jersey tomatoes, which she and King said many people assume are rotten because of their distinctive rough look.

“I come here every week,” Sheldon said. “Coming here eliminates the produce part of my shopping trips.”

Friday’s temperatures did not reach the high 90s like those of other days last month, a fact that seemed to worry King slightly.

“I don’t know why, but the hotter it is, the better we do,” the North Philadelphia resident said.

Though the sun went easy on everyone, business began to increase around noon.

“This food is always fresh. I shop at Pathmark, too, but I love how reasonable these prices are,” Corinthia Dandy, a five-year resident of the building, said while grabbing a huge cabbage and collard greens. “I’m going to split the cabbage with a neighbor and make the greens in a couple days.”

“I’m coming over,” King interrupted with a laugh.

He and El-Zaher consistently replenish their supply of nearly 30 fruits and vegetables, which is good news for resident Catherine Smith, who bought three bags of apples.

“If I got money, I spend it on good stuff,” the nine-year occupant said.

Despite the uniformity of her purchase, Smith commended the presence of the stand.

“I like a mixture of everything in life,” she said. “These guys give me that.”