Reimaging Kensington with Jeremy Chen and Friends

Name: Reimaging Kensington with Jeremy Chen and Friends
Start: 2026-02-13T19:00:00-05:00
End: 2026-02-13T20:30:00-05:00
Location: The Trust Performing Arts Center

Schedule

Fri Feb 13 2026 at 07:00 pm to 08:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

The Trust Performing Arts Center | Lancaster, PA

We hear how Klean Kensington pays urban youth to grow gardens in a beloved yet greatly challenged neighborhood in Philadelphia.
About this Event
Event Photos

Why this Forum?

Becuase most of us have seen the disturbing Youtube videos from under the Frankford Metro line. Drug use and traffiking are evident all along Kensington Avenue.

What the videos don't show is the context of an historically thriving and proud section of Philly that still exhibits signs of neighborhood vitality.

We could use a dose of restorative reality for own city. We need a model of what incarnation looks like in our fractured world. That's why Tom wanted to re-introduce Jeremy to you in Lancaster, his hometown.

What to Expect

Chen, a graduate of Princeton University and Missio Seminary, will introduce us to some of the young staff and teenagers of Klean Kensington. They'll talk about what it's like growing up in Kensington and how they are shaping its future...and their own lives.

Admittedly, it’s a tough place for many reasons, but can you imagine the life that’s already there and longing to emerge? They can.

Gardens, health clinics, local investment, and arts groups are all taking root in Kensington. It's a fuller story than you'll get from heartless headlines or vexing videos.

Our forum might just turn your notion of Kensington on its head and invite you into practical ways to help out. If not in Philly, right outside your front door.

About Jeremy

Jeremy and his wife Amy moved into Kensington twelve years ago to embody the Good News of Jesus and to simply become neighbors. Amy is a dentist at Esparanza Health Center, and Jeremy is Founder and Director of Klean Kensington.

About him Tom Becker says in a May 2025 LNP column:

Jeremy is a sort of intellectual block captain CEO with a staggering capacity to curate solutions and build relationships, all in a place that really needs it. He’s raising money to pay teens to work the gardens and has yet to take a salary. Incrementally KK’s teens are not only beautifying Kensington, they’re also finding life-affirming ways to make money and enrich their souls.