Title
Hereby declaring the week of September 16, 2019 through September 22, 2019 as the fourth annual “Philadelphia Legacy Week,” commemorating esteemed Philadelphians who have made major contributions to our City.
Body
WHEREAS, Philadelphia Legacy Week is dedicated to creating a deeper understanding of Philadelphia’s unique place in the history of the United States - past and present. The celebration was established in 2016 as an annual observance to educate and strengthen awareness of the City’s diverse cultural heritage and its importance as a destination for visitors from around the world; and
WHEREAS, The fourth annual Philadelphia Legacy Week, to be celebrated the week of September 16th through September 22nd, will include historic tours and feature portraits commissioned by local artists. The highlight of the observance is the awards dinner on Saturday, September 21, 2019 at the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, where five honorees will be recognized for their outstanding contributions. The 2019 Philadelphia Legacy Week honorees are Wilt Chamberlain, Fran Dunphy, Derrick Pitts, Stephen Cox, and Sam Delany; and
WHEREAS, Wilt Chamberlain took the basketball world by storm from the time he started his career at Overbrook High School. Chamberlain played college basketball for the University of Kansas, before emerging in the pro’s as one of the first African-American players. Chamberlain won championships with both the Philadelphia 76ers and the Los Angeles Lakers. Chamberlain is the only player to score 100 points in a single NBA game or average more than 50 points in a season. He is also the only player in NBA history to average at least 30 points and 20 rebounds per game in a season, which he accomplished seven times; and
WHEREAS, Fran Dunphy is the coach with the most wins in “Big Five” history. Dunphy is known as “Mr. Big Five,” because he played and started his coaching career at La Salle University, received his Master’s Degree from Villanova University, and coached at both the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. Dunphy was one of 25 active NCAA Division I coaches with 500 victories. In April of 2019, Dunphy was inducted into the Big 5 Hall of Fame; and
WHEREAS, Derrick Pitts has been the Chief Astronomer and Planetarium Director for the Franklin Institute for over 20 years. He has been named as one of the “50 Most Important African-Americans” in the field of research science. Pitts served as the President of the Philadelphia chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. He has made numerous television appearances, including shows such as The Colbert Report, The Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, and The Ed Show. Since 1991, he’s co-hosted a weekly radio program called “Skytalk” on WHYY in Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Stephen Cox comes from a Philadelphia Legacy family where his father was a judge for 45 years. Steve’s father encouraged his son to set his sights high, so he joined the Navy’s Acrobatic Fighter Team, Blue Angels, which led him to learn how to fly, design and study aerodynamics. Cox is the founder and developer of the Greater Philadelphia Region Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (Philadelphia AMP) Program funded by the National Science Foundation. Philadelphia AMP is a tri-state alliance of nine higher education institutions: Drexel University, Temple University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Delaware, Cheyney University, Lincoln University, Delaware State University, Community College of Philadelphia and New Jersey Institute of Technology. Through his AMP Program, Cox has helped numerous minorities achieve their doctorate degrees in the sciences; and
WHEREAS, Sam Delany started his life in Harlem, New York. During the 1960’s, Delany made quite a mark on both the science fiction and literary worlds. By the end of the 1980’s, Delany, a high school graduate, became a tenured college professor based on his work at the University of Massachusetts after having completed a number of teaching fellowships. Delany later came to Temple University where he taught for 14 years. Throughout his career Sam Delany has challenged and broken barriers in the literary world from his science fiction writing to using his experience as a gay man to create unique characters; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby declares the week of September 16, 2019 through September 22, 2019 as the fourth annual “Philadelphia Legacy Week,” commemorating esteemed Philadelphians who have made major contributions to our City.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be made to commemorate this event as evidence of the sincere respect and appreciation of this legislative body.
End