by Barbara Sherf

While walking along Forbidden Drive from the Valley Green Inn to Monastery Stables last week, I paused along the way to take photos for the Friends of the Wissahickon photo contest.  Zooming in on Pewee Rock, the pristine beauty of the valley and my quiet time were marred by a “F--- Trump” graffiti tag in white spray paint on the rock face.

As I got to the stables, I shared the image with Monastery Barn Manager Heather Byrd.

“It’s sad to see on such an old rock,” said Byrd.  “People shouldn’t go to hate to prove a point.  There are other civilized ways to get your point across.”

Equestrian and Friends of the Wissahickon Trail Ambassador Diane Garvey was just heading out for a ride.

“As trail ambassadors, we often clean graffiti while on our rounds,” said Garvey. “The person who wrote this is not having the influence on people they would like,” “Instead, they are convincing park users that anti-Trump activists are rogue individuals who want to spread hate while destroying the natural beauty of our park.”

FOW Executive Director Maura McCarthy said the graffiti is at the top of its  list to remove early in 2017.

“Peewee rock is often subject to graffiti tagging, so we do schedule work days periodically for removal, based on weather conditions and the condition of the site,” she said.  “We will see how the weather cooperates in the scheduling of the next removal day early in the new year.”

McCarthy noted that the FOW is careful about how to remove the tags so as not to harm the water, wildlife or stone.

“In recent years we have used a mud coating for tags on stone and trees, which conceals in the short term and can have a mild abrasive reaction as it washes away from the rock or bark face,” said McCarthy.  “We welcome anyone who is moved by this to join our many volunteers to help with this and other projects throughout the year.”

Jack Ott, Proprietor of the Valley Green Inn complimented the FOW on its  efforts.

“The FOW volunteers continue to address the graffiti issues that have plagued not only the Wissahickon Valley but the city of Philadelphia for decades,” he said.  “I’ve watched a gentleman paint over graffiti on one of the gates several times.  He did this every time someone “tagged” the gate.  Now there is no more graffiti since it seems the vandal gave up on that specific target.”

Ott said he hoped to see more stories on the numbers of hours and projects the volunteers are working on.

McCarthy said the public is encouraged to help with cleaning up the graffiti and numerous other initiatives within the park.  To volunteer or become a member go to www.fow.org or call 215-247-0417.

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Barbara Sherf is a regular contributor to the Local. She can be reached at communications pro.com@gmail.com