Title
Celebrating and honoring Patricia Ford for her tireless advocacy for her community, her love for her children, and her devotion to improving the lives of people across Philadelphia, on the occasion of Black History Month.
Body
WHEREAS, Patricia Ford was born in Philadelphia, living in a two-parent home. Her father was one of the first Black people to work for the Philadelphia Water Department, and they were one of the first few Black families to own their own home. She went to a neighborhood junior high school, and was accepted into Dobbins to do art for high school - every Saturday morning she would take the trolley for 22 cents to Fleisher Art Memorial for classes; and
WHEREAS, After finishing high school, she went to community college for a year before she decided to start working. She started at Girard Bank before moving to the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, and then to Merrill Lynch tracking down lost checks and bonds; and
WHEREAS, Patricia met her husband as a teenager, and he would write to her after he left Philadelphia to join the coast guard. She visited him in Corpus Christi, Texas, for five months before coming back to Philadelphia and getting married. They eventually moved back to Virginia for five years, and eventually again came back to Philadelphia before having their second child; and
WHEREAS, Although she does not quite know what it is about Philadelphia that she loves so much, Patricia simply does - she cannot live without Philadelphia. She's been to Paris, lived in Texas, Detroit, Ohio, South Carolina and all across the world, but loves Philadelphia above anywhere else. She remembers how happy she was growing up making art, and never felt too put-upon; and
WHEREAS, Patricia and her mother were living together in an apartment when it was hit by a fire. They moved in with family in Nicetown, where her mother began developing kidney failure treated through dialysis; they helped her find supportive care and found a home, where Patricia ...
Click here for full text