🐶 The art of finding lost dogs | Morning Newsletter

Rise and shine, Philly. We’re promised mostly sunny skies with a high near 85.

Our Sunday read is about a Delco woman who spends her free time locating stubbornly lost dogs in the Philly area.

And a local business got its start by making dinners for doctors. Now it’s selling thousands of meals a week.

— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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Closing in on canines

They call her the Delco Dog Detective, but her real name is Colleen Bell, and she has a true passion for tracking down pups in distress in the Philadelphia region.

By Bell’s estimates, she has recovered nearly 1,000 dogs over the last 14 years, using her own unique methods to accomplish the mission.

Two years ago, Bell created the nonprofit GoodBoy Dog Recovery to facilitate the growing costs of the operation. But she’s not in it for the money or fame, reports The Inquirer’s Dana Munro.

“She does it purely for a love of the game, the thrill of the hunt, the satisfaction of capturing a petrified pup, and the fulfillment of reuniting it with a frenzied family,” Munro writes.

In Bell’s own words: “We never stop until we catch the dog.”

Read the full story here.

‘Bursting at the seams’

Home Appétit traces its humble beginnings to a Center City apartment in 2013. This year, the meal delivery company is on track to rake in $10 million in revenue.

🛒 What it does: Brings roughly 16,000 to 20,000 fully prepared meals a week within a 50-mile radius, according to founder and CEO Lee Wallach.

🛒 Next up: A move to a former catering facility in East Falls in September. It’s currently operating out of a space off City Avenue in West Philly.

Business reporter Ariana Perez-Castells has the story on why Home Appétit grew as some competitors fizzled.

What you should know today

• Tattooed Mom, one of the city’s most iconic dive bars, said it’s been ordered to cease all live music and performances by the Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections.
• Top Pennsylvania leaders have reached a $50 billion state budget deal, sources say.
• Philly Democrats criticized President Donald Trump’s recent promotion of Freedom Fuel stations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey as an effort to fool people about the high price of gas rather than a long-term solution to the problem.
• A sampling of Philadelphia stores and businesses showed half are violating the city’s ordinance that bans plastic bags and requires a fee on paper bags, according to an environmental group.
• Lower Merion’s police department is investigating a string of itinerant burglaries that have occurred in the township in recent weeks.
• Two elite rowers and a couple of bystanders jumped into action — and into the water — Friday afternoon to rescue a man who drove his car into the Schuylkill.
• Philly-based retailer Five Below plans to open its 2,000th store soon. The company’s expansion puts it on par with Home Depot and Target.
• Abington moved toward banning e-bikes and e-scooters at public parks and trails.
• A new FDA study found traces of heavy metals in tampons, but not enough to cause harm. Fewer girls use tampons today, an expert told The Inquirer.
• With seven days and eight nations remaining in the World Cup, Fan Fest’s commitment to remain open for the full 39 days of the tournament includes four concerts starting Sunday.

This week in history

🎤 Here’s Tommy Rowan with a look back at the legalization of bingo in Pennsylvania.

Despite its proliferation across charitable events and senior centers, bingo is considered gambling.

And it wasn’t always legal.

But on July 10, 1981, Republican Pennsylvania Gov. Dick Thornburgh signed the Bingo Law.

It was time to crack down on the ping-pong-ball pullers. Read on for the full story.

❓Pop quiz

Despite the blowout loss, the USMNT-Belgium World Cup game drew more than:

A) 65 million viewers

B) 100 million viewers

C) 50 million viewers

D) None of the above

Think you know? Check your answer.

What we’re …

🧅 Mesmerized by: Kibbeh nayyeh at Suraya, among the best things we ate this week.

☕ Loving: How the World Cup provided a sense of community at a University City coffee shop.

🧳 Packing for: The perfect Jersey Shore weekend in Sea Isle and Strathmere.

🏰 Admiring: The distinctly Philadelphia Victoriana architecture of an 1891 building that looks like a castle, a cathedral, and a factory.

🌉 Learning: Before the Ben Franklin Bridge opened 100 years ago, Pennsylvania wanted to make it toll-free.

🧩 Unscramble the anagram

Hint: French soccer star

INKY MAPPABLE

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.

Cheers to Jimi Ogunneye, who correctly guessed Saturday’s answer: Patti LaBelle. “The Godmother of Soul” will sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the MLB All-Star Game. But she won’t be the only local performer.

One more All-Star story: We looked into how baseball’s midsummer celebration has transformed into a major-league merchandising machine.

Photo of the day

🎶 Today’s song goes like this: “Nothing I can say / A total eclipse of the heart.” Grammy-nominated Welsh pop star Bonnie Tyler died last week. She was 75.

One more musical thing: An old-fashioned Battle of the Bands is coming to Philly.

👋🏽 That’s it for now. Thanks for reading, and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

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