Lee Roberts spent 25 years in the military, but when he returned from his stint in the Air Force to his old Philadelphia neighborhood, he couldn’t believe what he saw. Crime had skyrocketed. Guys he once knew were “dead or in jail.”

“I was disappointed,” he said of the area around Broad and Erie Streets. “It wasn’t the Philly that I knew.” Eventually, Roberts decided to do something about it.

He began volunteering with Men Who Care of Germantown, a nonprofit dedicated to community service. Encouraged to contact the organization by Enon Tabernacle Church’s Rev. Alyn Waller, Roberts not only found a mission, but also a brotherhood of like-minded men. 

Men Who Care of Germantown (MWCG) aims to “serve and enrich” the Northwest Philadelphia neighborhood through the organization’s weekly food pantry, scholarships, summer camp, and community engagement programming. 

Catching kids “before the streets catch them”

One of the group’s signature initiatives is its “Real Men Talk” mentoring sessions in local schools. It was after one of these sessions at East Germantown’s Martin Luther King High School that the purpose of what Roberts and MWCG were doing hit him hard. “There were days when I said I wouldn’t do [the mentoring] anymore,” recalled Roberts, now one of the organization’s eight directors. 

One day, after having heard so many stories from young men bemoaning the lack of positive figures in their lives, “I went into my car and cried,” he said. But then he thought, “God has me here for a reason.” It made him realize the importance of his role. 

The “Real Men Talk” sessions are popular. A recent gathering drew 60 young men and 30 young women to the school. The sessions give students a chance to express themselves and learn from the experiences of MWCG members. “We want to catch them before the streets catch them,” said Keith Brown, another MWCG director.

Added Joe Budd, a group founder and director, “We’re trying to change a culture. How do we change that mindset in our young people?”

The core of MWCG is composed of men in their 60s and 70s, most of whom grew up together in Germantown and spent time in the streets when they were young, hustling, cutting class, dealing weed, and drinking. Some of them hung out in the tiny bar formerly known as Simmy’s on East Tulpehocken Street near Morton, which is now barless and functions as the group’s headquarters.

Budd said, “The powerful thing about this organization is the majority of our directors are guys that came up together, hustled together, did stuff in the streets together.” 

Seasoned by life’s ebbs and flows — and calling themselves alpha males — the men offer knowledge, leadership, and wisdom to care for the neighborhood, its schools, and its residents. Budd explained, “Our focus is on commitment and passion.” 

Sharing and caring

The group started informally when he and a friend, the late “Big George” Waters, wanted to do something meaningful for the neighborhood. By that time, Budd had stopped running the streets, so they decided to engage in some community work. Their first project was to clean up an empty lot at Pastorius and Baynton Streets. 

From there, others joined in the projects, planning bowling parties, raffle sales, and fish fries. The events became popular, and the positive vibes were contagious. Donations trickled in, volunteers were eager to help, and politicians and school administrators took notice. MWCG made its official debut in 2011.

Volunteers such as Deidra Thomas are the backbone of the group. She has worked with MWCG for five years, mostly with young girls. One character trait she tries to instill in her charges is, “Not everything has to be a fight. Not everything has to be a battle.” 

MWCG’s food pantry, in partnership with the Share food bank, serves about 300 residents every Saturday morning. They arrive on foot, in cars, vans, and trucks, the vehicles stretching down two blocks of East Tulpehocken, temporarily turning the narrow two-way street into a one-way drive-through market. 

Inside the headquarters one recent Saturday, volunteers stuffed plastic grocery bags with items such as canned goods, tomato sauce, walnuts, and collard greens, as the song “Happy Feelings” by Maze (featuring Frankie Beverly) played in the background. The bags were picked up and carried outside.

“It helps me so much to have [the food] available for my son,” said Tiffany Hill, a food pantry regular who received her bag from a table staffed by volunteers Valerie Hurt and Laverne Gadson. 

Their reason for pitching in was the same. “What you do comes back to you,” Gadson said.

“People have that need,” said Keith Pate, another MWCG director, as he stood just inside the doorway of MWCG headquarters while the last few food pantry customers trickled down the street. 

The food bank is just one need the organization hopes to fill in their old stomping grounds. Among other efforts, they want to expand their programs, bring together community organizations in northwest Philadelphia, and perhaps get a larger space for its food pantry and headquarters.

For more information, visit menwhocareofgermantown.org, contact 215-335-4786, or mwcphilly@gmail.com.