City of Philadelphia - File #: 170648

• File #: 170648
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: ADOPTED
• File created: 6/15/2017
• In control: CITY COUNCIL
• Final action: 6/22/2017
• Title: Also naming South 31st Street, between Grays Ferry Avenue and Wharton Street, "Lillian Ray Way," to honor of Lillian Ray's lifetime of service to the City of Philadelphia, and to her beloved Grays Ferry neighborhood.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Bass, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Henon, Councilmember Green, Councilmember Greenlee, Councilmember Taubenberger, Council President Clarke, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Domb, Councilmember O'Neill, Councilmember Gym, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez, Councilmember Oh

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
6/22/2017	0	CITY COUNCIL	ADOPTED
6/15/2017	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced and Ordered Placed On Next Week's Final Passage Calendar	Pass

Title
Also naming South 31st Street, between Grays Ferry Avenue and Wharton Street, "Lillian Ray Way," to honor of Lillian Ray's lifetime of service to the City of Philadelphia, and to her beloved Grays Ferry neighborhood.

Body
WHEREAS, Lillian Ray is a lifelong resident of Philadelphia and a product of the Philadelphia public school system, having attended Alcorn Elementary School, Audenreid Junior High School, and Edward W. Bok High School. Ms. Ray received formal training from the United States Department of Treasury, the Office of Substance Abuse and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, the Midwest Academy of Neighborhood Organizing in Rockhill, South Carolina, and the Philadelphia School District's Student-Assistance Program; and

WHEREAS, Lillian Ray's community organizing efforts began in 1973, when she brought together a group of mothers to address the issues of gang violence in Philadelphia, in particular in her longtime neighborhood of Grays Ferry. During the 1980s, this group incorporated their efforts under the name Stinger Square Community Services. Mrs. Ray served as the organization's Executive Director, and implemented and developed youth and community based programs and services, including an interracial sports league, computer training centers, the Stinger Square Steppers Drill Team, literacy classes, food distribution networks, and senior citizen enrichment workshops; and

WHEREAS, In 1999, after serving as Assistant Deputy Mayor in the Mayor's Office of Gun Violence and Drug Control Policy, Lillian Ray was appointed the first African-American female drug czar of the City of Philadelphia. While in this capacity, Mrs. Ray was responsible for identifying and coordinating City, state, and federal resources for anti-drug initiatives and developed and implemented criminal justice strategies that are still practiced today; and

WHEREAS, Lillian Ray helped form Grays Ferry Unified, a diverse organization comprised of various religious, social,...