Title
Honoring and congratulating Dr. Carmen Febo, the longtime Executive Director of Taller Puertorriqueno Inc., on the occasion of her upcoming retirement.
Body
WHEREAS, Dr. Carmen Febo is the longtime Executive Director of Taller Puertorriqueno Inc. (Taller), a Latino arts and cultural non-profit organization located in Northeast Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Taller uses art and cultural exchanges to foster development in the local Puerto Rican and Latino communities, and promotes the community’s contributions to build bridges across cultures in the greater Philadelphia region; and
WHEREAS, Operating in Northwest Kensington, Taller also aims to combat poverty, violence, and other social ills in the neighborhood by providing resources and programs for at-risk youth; and
WHEREAS, The programs offered at Taller include the Youth Artists Program which works with talented young artists to foster their development and build portfolios for college, and the Cultural Exploration Program which introduces children to local artists and performers over the course of a year to promote self-discovery; and
WHEREAS, Taller also manages a Latino and Caribbean art gallery - named the Lorenzo Homar gallery - which draws 3,000 visitors annually, and operates an archival resource center - named the Eugenio Maria de Hostos Archives - which offers books, periodicals, and scholarly articles specific to Latin history and culture; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo was named Executive Director of Taller in 1999 and previously served 14 years as Chair of Taller’s Board of Directors. Across the nearly four decades of Febo’s service, Taller grew from a budding, financially insecure organization to a thriving $1 million operation; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo was born in Ciales, Puerto Rico and attended medical school at the University of Puerto Rico. She moved to Philadelphia in 1974 to complete her residency in family practice at Hahnemann Hospital and Medical Center; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo moved back to Puerto Rico in 1979 where she worked at the Naranjito Health Center before returning to Philadelphia in 1984 to work as the Medical Director of Germantown Family Medicine Associates; and
WHEREAS, Under Dr. Febo’s leadership, Taller has become the largest and most impactful Latino cultural center in Pennsylvania, and significantly expanded its reach through partnerships with the School District of Philadelphia, the Kimmel Center, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the African American Museum in Philadelphia, among others; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo also oversaw Taller’s planning and construction of the $11 million El Corazón Cultural Center which opened its doors in 2016. The state-of-the-art center is located at 5th and Huntington Streets; and
WHEREAS, In addition to her work at Taller, Dr. Febo has served on the Mayor’s Commission on Arts and Culture under Mayor Goode, as a member of the Advisory Council on Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy under Mayor Nutter and now under Mayor Kenny, a member of the City Art Commission, and as a board member of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo served as a leader of the steering committee for Unidos PA'PR, a grassroots relief effort which raised nearly $400,000 and shipped nearly 2 million pounds of supplies to Puerto Rico in the wake of 2017 Hurricanes Irma and Maria and reactivated following the earthquakes in 2019 and 2020, establishing a fund through the Puerto Rico Community Foundation providing direct support for local, grassroots nonprofits; and
WHEREAS, For her years of leadership and public service, Dr. Febo has received community and civic awards including the PA Hispanic Bar Association “La Justicia” Award, Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania Take the Lead Award, Hispanic Choice Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Bread and Roses Paul Robeson Life Achievement Award; and
WHEREAS, On March 23, Taller announced Dr. Febo would be retiring from her post as Executive Director effective November 1, 2021; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Febo will leave behind big shoes to fill in the local Latino community and will be missed by all who knew her in the arts and culture industry. In her decades of service, Dr. Febo unlocked the power of cultural exchange and showed how the arts can be a vehicle for uplifting communities and breaking down barriers; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby honors and congratulates Dr. Carmen Febo, the longtime Executive Director of Taller Puertorriqueno Inc., on the occasion of her upcoming retirement.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to Dr. Carmen Febo, further evidencing the sincere respect and admiration of this legislative body.
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