The RoundUp: Meet some locals raising money for good causes

Closing in on two million: For eleven years, volunteer seamstresses with Ryan’s Case for Smiles have been creating colorful, patterned pillowcases for hospitalized children nationwide. The volunteers cut fabric, sew, wash, and then package the fun and cheerful pillow cases before distributing them to participating medical centers. Volunteers also bring their sewing machines into hospitals and teach kids how to sew. Since its inception in 2007, Ryan’s Case For Smiles has delivered hundreds of thousands of pillowcases and this year hopes to cross the 2 million mark. The nonprofit was founded locally by Cindy Kerr, whose son Ryan died in 2007 of osteosarcoma. To learn more go to http://caseforsmiles.org/philadelphia.

This team is on a (lobster) roll: Team I Hate Cancer, a nonprofit founded by Center City brothers Mike and C.J. Walsh, has raised nearly $400,000 since its 2006 founding. In June, five members of the group will ride their bikes from Philly to mid-coast Maine with the goal of raising $75,000 for the Flatwater Foundation, a cancer-support organization. Their ride, christened The Lobster Roll, will be filmed for a documentary. To learn more go to www.teamihatecancer.com.

Temple’s jazz faculty cuts their own record: For the first time ever, six musicians who are also members of Temple University’s jazz faculty are playing together on one album. Terell Stafford, Dick Oatts, Bruce Barth, Tim Warfield Jr., David Wong, and Byron Landham combined their musical talents to create the Family Feeling LP, an homage to the smooth and soulful sounds of the ’60s and ’70s. Its eight tracks were composed and arranged by Barth. The album, released on Temple’s Boyer College label (BCM&D Records) is available on iTunes, Spotify, and Apple Music or via https://familyfeeling.hearnow.com/family-feeling.

Urban bikers get new digs: The Wilmington-based Urban Bike Project, a nonprofit community bike shop that provides educational programs and mechanical assistance to area residents and kids in need, hosted a grand reopening on May 18 to celebrate the latest renovations to its home on 1500 N. Walnut St.: a 112-year-old former stable that once housed police horses. To complete the renovations, Urban Bike Project partnered with the Challenge Program, which provides vocational training to at-risk youth. The renovations include changes to the building’s facade to evoke its historic beauty, improvements to its structure and systems, and a remodeled interior that allows UBP to serve more Wilmington residents. For learn more, go to www.urbanbikeproject.com.