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Also naming the 700 block of North Broad Street (between Fairmount Avenue and Brown Street) "Rev. Dr. Herbert H. Lusk II Way", to honor the astounding, Christ-driven legacy of the Senior Pastor of the Greater Exodus Baptist Church and CEO of People for People, Inc.
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WHEREAS Herbert H. Lusk II was born in Memphis, TN and spent his teenage years in Monterey, CA, he came to Philadelphia in 1976 when he was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles as a running back under head coach Dick Vermil; and
WHEREAS As a professional football player, Herb Lusk became the first NFL player to ever kneel and pray in the end zone after scoring a touchdown as a way of giving thanks to God. Because of this faith-filled act, he earned the nickname "The Praying Tailback" ; and
WHEREAS At the height of his playing career, Herb Lusk heeded God's call and retired from professional football after three seasons with the Eagles to attend seminary, and in 1982 he assumed the pastorate of the Greater Exodus Baptist Church in North Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS Under Rev. Dr. Lusk's pastoral leadership, Greater Exodus Baptist Church grew from its humble beginnings as a small, debt-crippled congregation to a booming beacon of hope and service to the North Philadelphia community. In 1991, Rev. Dr. Lusk created People for People, Inc. (PFP), a non-profit organization with a mission rooted in breaking "the vicious, generational cycle of poverty in the lives of economically challenged residents of Philadelphia"; and
WHEREAS The mission of PFP as pioneered by Rev. Dr. Lusk is evidenced through the organization's job training programs; the establishment of the first free and public computer training center in Fairmount/Francisville; Stand for Africa, an organization that helps African children orphaned by HIV/AIDS; the People for People Charter School, a K-12 school serving more than 500 students from across the City; the PFP Early Childhood Development Center; the HOPE Pregnancy Center, a ...
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